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Mark Wahlberg’s new Prime Video movie is getting a big thumbs-down from audiences.
The star of such critically panned projects as Max Payne, The Happening, and Flight Risk, Wahlberg has long been on the receiving end of widespread bashing by reviewers. Though audiences have occasionally joined in on the hate, there are certain Wahlberg films that have been embraced by moviegoers even in the face of full critical rejection. Father Stu, Uncharted, Shooter, and Four Brothers are just some of Wahlberg’s starring vehicles to receive less-than-fresh Rotten Tomatoes scores, while scoring high on the same site’s audience-measuring Popcornmeter.
For Wahlberg’s new Prime Video release Balls Up, there will be no such Popcornmeter redemption, and indeed, the comedy movie is looking like an all-time stinker for the star. With 17%, the film currently boasts the lowest-ever audience score for a Wahlberg starring vehicle, taking the crown away from previous co-champions The Union and The Happening.
Critics have actually been kinder to Balls Up than audiences, pushing the movie to a still-bad 32% Tomatometer score. Reviewers have focused on the film’s failed attempts at raunchy humor, calling it low-brow, unfunny, and limp. They’ve also bashed Wahlberg’s lack of comedic chops, while crushing director Peter Farrelly for losing the touch that led to classic comedies like Dumb and Dumber, There’s Something About Mary, and Kingpin.
RT’s audience reviews call Balls Up a disgrace, terrible, garbage, and other colorful terms. Some of the non-professional reviews bash Prime Video for their overall output, calling Wahlberg’s latest just another example of the streamer’s boringly formulaic approach to churning out content.
The same complaints could indeed be leveled at Netflix for their own less-than-sterling contributions to Wahlberg’s filmography, the streamer having released the audience-panned The Union and Me Time. The star’s list of lowest-rated titles on RT also includes plenty of theatrical releases from various stages of his career.
|
Mark Wahlberg’s Ten Worst Movies On The Popcornmeter |
RT Audience Score |
RT Critics’ Score |
|---|---|---|
|
Balls Up |
17% |
32% |
|
The Union |
24% |
36% |
|
The Happening |
24% |
17% |
|
The Truth About Charlie |
27% |
35% |
|
Planet of the Apes |
27% |
42% |
|
Max Payne |
29% |
16% |
|
Mojave |
30% |
31% |
|
The Gambler |
31% |
43% |
|
Me Time |
32% |
7% |
|
The Family Plan 2 |
33% |
30% |
Wahlberg’s recent shift to largely making streaming movies has not been a good one for either his critical profile or popular reputation, if the above list is any indication. In addition to Prime Video’s Balls Up and the two Netflix films already mentioned, AppleTV+’s The Family Plan 2 finds a place in the star’s bottom 10, making streamers responsible for 40% of Wahlberg’s least-loved movies.
It’s entirely possible that Wahlberg will one day make a great streaming movie that wows critics while satisfying audiences, but at present he seems content to put aside any actual artistic ambitions as he lends his services to content-creating companies that are only concerned with following formulas and filling release slates. Even the star’s fans seem to have grown tired of his uninspired streaming output.
