Envy

Starring: Jack Black, Ben Stiller

Directed by: Barry Levinson

RS: 1of 4 Stars

2004 Comedy

Jack Black, fresh from his tri-umph in School of Rock, takes a hard fall in this not even half-baked farce -- directed by Oscar winner Barry Levinson, no less. Black plays an inventor who instills murderous envy in his best friend (the ubiquitous Ben Stiller) by making millions off a spray called Vapoorizer. You spray the stuff on dog poo, and the poo just vapoorizes. Later, environmentalists are up in arms. "Where did the shit go?" they want to know. The answer is painfully obvious: into the screenplay.