It’s hard to review a movie that isn’t exactly excellent nor something bash-worthy bad. It’s a strange middle ground where movies are barely more entertaining than the “barely entertaining” threshold, if that makes sense. The Big Year  is exactly that, making this reviewer struggle to pinpoint a score for it. Thankfully, the comedic heavyweight triangle of Owen Wilson, Jack Black, and Steve Martin carry the movie out of the “blah” territory and into a heartfelt, lite-comedy.

A “big year” is a huge event for bird watchers where bird aficionados go across the nation, spotting as many different species of bird as they can. Each three of the leads have their own backgrounds. Martin is the CEO of a big company who feels confined by the mundane corporate life, Black is a divorcee who, like Martin, decides to chase the passion of bird watching. Owens is the current record-holder with 736 and is the guy who lets this flying passion (get it?) take over his life and marriage to Rosamund Pike. It’s not the most gripping of material, but bird watching in combination with the mostly likable leads results in a delightfully pleasant surprise.

Jack Black gives one of his more subdued performances (in Jack Black terms) and it’s always a delight to see him play a not-so-crazily-outgoing guy every now and then. Martin, surprisingly, didn’t wring a single chuckle out of me but he sill managed to please. Wilson is, well, the same guy he plays in every movie — you know, that guy who always talks his way out of situations and has an explanation for every scenario. His wife, Rosamund Pike, turns in a good portrayal of a woman conflicted with the love of her husband and the hate of his obsession.

One of the positives of having a unique storyline is that it can be unpredictable and The Big Year, while not entirely unique (it’s still a comedy with a moral of ‘don’t let your passion consume you’), hosts a couple unpredictable moments. The script never really bogs its story down with unnecessary dumb jokes, focusing on the heart and purist nature of spotting different birds. There are a couple lulls and dull moments that might run a little too long, but you can really do a lot worse than this surprisingly heartfelt movie.

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