MacGruber isn't entirely a waste of time, but there are better things you can do with
your Sunday afternoon. (Creative Commons)

"MacGruber" wasn't completely bad, but it wasn't completely good either. The movie was at times grating but also that stupid kind of funny Saturday Night Live does so well. 

The humor caught me off guard and I didn't realize I was laughing so hard until I was done. There were, however, scenes that should've been over and done with quickly, but instead dragged on and on. 

Like many SNL skits that get turned into movies, this one felt like it was trying to fill in large gaps of time between the funny parts.

Will Forte's MacGruber was thought to be dead for the past 10 years but has actually been living quietly in Ecuador. He is sought out by Col. Jim Faith (Powers Boothe) and Lt. Dixon Piper (Ryan Phillippe) to hunt down his arch nemesis, Dieter Von Cunth (yes, pronounced that way, with less of a hard "T"). Von Cunth, played by Val Kilmer, killed MacGruber's wife and has plans to launch a missile into Washington D.C. It's up to MacGruber and his team, consisting of Piper and Vicki St. Elmo (Kristin Wiig), to stop Von Cunth.

When I first saw Ryan Phillippe, I asked myself if it was really him, then asked what he was doing in the movie. For the most part, I can't tell you the answer to that. He's supposed to be the straight character to MacGruber's goofy one, but his acting was too wooden to make his role work. He has one scene near the end of the movie where it's supposed to be funny, but it falls flat because he doesn't seem to carry humor naturally.

Kristin Wiig, on the other hand, is one of my favorite SNL actresses, and I wish they had used her talent more in the movie. I think she did the best she could, given the material, but her acting couldn't save "MacGruber's" inconsistencies.

"MacGruber," in homage to 1985's "MacGyver," is faithful in representing MacGyver's mullet, choice in nostalgic 80s rock ballads, late model sports car with a discontinued detachable car radio that looks more like a suitcase than a radio, and ability to take simple drugstore items like Q-tips and paperclips and make high-tech contraptions to get him out of whatever predicament he's in.

Unlike MacGyver, MacGruber is very, very annoying. He's also cowardly, corny, childish and delusional. In other words, the writers (Will Forte, John Solomon, Jorma Taccone), director (Jorma Taccone), etc. spell it out for you that he's completely dumb but will somehow save the day in the end.

Overall, if you watch the movie, you'll experience short spurts of laughter and long spells of staring at the screen.

I had such high hopes for "MacGruber" because reviews were at 100 percent on Rotten Tomatoes just a few days before it opened. Now it's at 53 percent, which is a score I would agree with. Wait for it to come out on DVD or watch it at a cheaper theater, it's not a movie you want to pay $12.50 for.