Whoever was in charge of marketing...
Whoever was in charge of marketing completely and totally dropped the ball, and I hope they were held accountable for it. I feel so bad for Martin, Black, and Wilson. This was NOT a bad film, but I 100% believed that it was before I ever saw it. Even the POSTER made it look stupid and possibly annoying. I cannot tell you how bored and desperate I was when I finally rented this on iTunes. And I cannot tell you how surprised I was, and then upset because this film was never even given a fair chance.
If this was an independent film and marketed as off-beat, one in between a drama and comedy, it would have done a lot better. Because that's what it is. It has humor in it, but only because of how honest it is. I mean, let's be truthful: bird watchers are kind of weird to the general public. To be THAT into bird watching is naturally a little amusing. But the film is so honest and heart-felt, that it never feels condescending. Yes, there are some missteps, a couple of moments that felt like they were forced by the studio to make it "funnier" (the sea-sickness, for example). But they don't fit in well with the rest of the movie, they feel out of place, and so because of that they are easier to forgive. This movie is not about slapstick.
Someone gave up on this movie before it even got off the ground. Someone decided that it had to be marketed as one thing, when it was something else. What is weird is, I cannot tell if that's because they thought it would help it or hurt it. It's pretty well-known that Martin's recent films have been that kind of slapstick and cheap humor, and they haven't worked. They have bombed. THAT is how this movie was marketed, as the same type of movie. But it's not. I have a hard time even calling it a "comedy," because of what others will be expecting when they hear that word and see Martin in the credits. I'd rather just call it a family film. Maybe having a sweet film like this, but staring people like Wilson and Black, threw them off and they didn't think it would sell. So they went the slapstick route and hoped that the niche market for it would bite. That's just my guess. But it was a mistake.
Basically, give this movie a chance. I didn't when I should have, and I feel pretty bad about it now.