According to 86 percent of the critics at Rotten Tomaotes, maybe Jeremy Piven should have stuck to the small screen and his role as Ari Gold on HBO’s “Entourage.” “The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard” movie reviews are in, and they are not good for “The Goods.”

This film has been in the works for a few years, and unfortunately director Neal Brennan might have nothing to show for it. I couldn’t find out how much it cost to make this film; maybe the filmmakers are embarassed to say because they know they might not be getting a good return on those cash advances. Here are some of the movie reviews for “The Goods.”

Ed Gonzales, Slant Magazine:

Exiting the press screening for director Neal Brennan’s The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard, I got the sense that Hollywood might never make another great comedy if it sticks to its current model of releasing schlock by conveyor belt. Seemingly picked straight out of Will Ferrell’s discard pile (questionably, though, he produced this train wreck and makes a forgettable, cringe-worthy cameo), The Goods starts out with a promising premise but quickly devolves into a mean-spirited nightmare of throwaway gags. …

The off-the-wall characters (or caricatures) that inhabit the world of the film come off as tired, mean renditions of the same, trying Ferrell formula. Fully cured of his bout with mercury poisoning, Piven serves up another exhausted take on his Entourage super agent Ari Gold, while other supporting players replicate past performances from better, and more side-splitting, films.

Christy Lemire, The Associated Press:

Enduring the soul-sucking process of buying a used car is bad enough. Watching a movie about soulless used-car salesmen is even worse – especially when it’s a comedy that strains desperately for raunchy, politically incorrect laughs.

In theory, the pieces were there for something slightly more inspired with “The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard.”

“Chappelle’s Show” co-creator Neal Brennan directs for the first time (from a script by Andy Stock and Rick Stempson), and the large ensemble cast features Jeremy Piven, David Koechner, Ving Rhames, Ed Helms, Tony Hale and Ken Jeong. A lot of improv supposedly went on, as well, as you might expect in a movie from Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s Gary Sanchez Productions. After all, these are the people behind “Anchorman” and “Talladega Nights.”

But this time, except for a couple of amusing lines here and there, the results just feel flat and generally unpleasant. Every character is singularly unlikable, but beyond that, they’re drawn so one-dimensionally that they’re not even interesting.

Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

The government recently decided to subsidize the purchase of new automobiles for Americans driving alleged junk. The program is called Cash for Clunkers. But anyone looking for a cheap, timely vicarious alternative might try “The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard,’’ a comedy set on a used-car lot in Temecula, Calif. You put up the cash, the movie clunks.

Elizabeth Fairchild, Personal Money Store

Despite these awful reviews, I will probably still go see this movie. I don’t really know why. Maybe it’s because I am a big fan of Ed Helms. Maybe it’s because my boyfriend wants to see it. Maybe because I only seem to like comedies when it comes to movies, so I have to take what I can get. Or maybe it’s because this guy liked it:

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

“The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard” is a cheerfully energetically and very vulgar comedy. If you’re okay with that, you may be okay with this film, which contains a lot of laughs and has studied Political Correctness only enough to make a list of groups to offend. It takes place after a failing car dealer calls in a hired gun and his team to move goods off the lot over the Fourth of July.

Zach Galifianakis

Reviews are flowing in for the most-talked-about movie opening this weekend. The majority of “The Hangover” reviews are positive, with 76 percent of critics on Rotten Tomatoes giving the film a good review.

With “The Hangover” reviews this good, it’s bound to have a blockbuster weekend. I couldn’t find a budget for the film, but I have no doubt producers will be able to start counting their profits soon. Any payday loans they took out to fund the film will be paid back lickety split.

“The Hangover” reviews

Here are some snippets from “The Hangover” reviews on Rotten Tomatoes:

It distinguishes itself from other what-happens-in-Vegas comedies (practically a subgenre at this point) by setting an especially vivid scene and telling an actual story instead of pasting together random shenanigans the way many modern comedies do.

– Carla Meyer, The Sacramento Bee

You’re likely to hear all about it as friends and co-workers endlessly quote lines or re-create scenes.

– Tom Maurstad, Dallas Morning News

Much smarter than it needs to be and darker than you’d expect, The Hangover seems destined to be the big comedy of the summer.

– Liz Braun, Jam! Movies

Phillips (“Old School”) and the writers (Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, redeeming themselves after “Four Christmases”) can’t resist some tacky laughs. (Is the sight of a naked senior citizen really that funny?) But they keep things funny and fast, and wisely wrap up the action just before the movie runs out of steam; Judd Apatow, please take note. And at its heart it is something big-budget comedies often lack: an irresistibly good story that draws you in. “The Hangover” should be a huge hit this summer for laugh-starved audiences; happily, it delivers.

– Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times

Every summer needs at least one silly, dirty comedy, but “The Hangover” may end up being one of the few to actually get the mix right.

It’s a bit of a surprise considering that the screenwriters’ past work includes “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.”

– Stephen Witty, Newark Star-Ledger

“The Hangover” is the latest from Todd Phillips, a director who knows what men are really like. Other comedies present men in ways that are too crude or too sentimental, but Phillips – both in previous pictures (“Old School,” “Starsky & Hutch”) and this new one – has an instinctive feel for the truth. His honesty is what makes Phillips’ movies hilarious, even when they’re not consistently successful, and what makes “The Hangover” the funniest movie so far this year.

– Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

Like “Old School,” the jokes hit the mark because they’re based in well-conceived characters. Ed Helms (Andy from “The Office”) is the most likable, a nerdy, vulnerable dentist who tries to make the best of the series of Vegas catastrophes until he finally — and hilariously — explodes. Zach Galifianakis is also funny as a childlike guy with serious reality problems, as is Bradley Cooper as the studly best man.

– Chris Hewitt, St. Paul Pioneer Press

Showing the money

Comparisons to “Old School” in “The Hangover” reviews should come as good news to those who stand to profit. “Old School Cost about $24 million to make and brought in $89 million at the box office.

I wouldn’t be surprised, though, if “Old School” made a killing on rentals and video sales. “Old School” was one of Todd Phillips’ more lucrative recent projects. “Four Christmases,” which shares writers with “The Hangover,” actually did pretty well at the box office, pulling in $120 million in the U.S.

“The Hangover” will undoubtedly rake in tons of dough at the box office thanks to the good reviews and the all-star cast, which includes Helms, Galifianakis, Heather Graham and even an appearance by Mike Tyson.