Brothers Isaiah and Yassir Lester co-directed a film that just had its wide release Friday. It was written as a joke, never meant to be made. Now, on the back of an impressive and hilarious cast, it comes to theaters after debuting at South by Southwest earlier this year.

“The Gutter” tells the story of perennial-failure-turned-bowling-prodigy Walt (Shameik Moore) and his journey to be the first Black national champion, as well as save his local bowling alley on the way. Competing with bowling legend Linda Curson (Susan Sarandon) and with the help of retired pro, Skunk (D’Arcy Carden), Walt strikes an impression on the nation and audiences alike.

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The film is unapologetically unserious. Its utterly silly tone gets the ball rolling down the lanes from the get-go, with a vivid and expressive Moore playing childish and racy simultaneously. The tone he sets and the jokes he delivers are as unexpected and surprising as they are hilarious. Swiftly, the world around him adapts and responds to his over-the-top goofiness, and one can quickly realize just how mad everyone and everything is in this world.

This allows other supporting characters to thrive in the environment. The passing — literally — cameos of Jay Ellis and Langston Kerman as Lil Patience and Half Life, respectively, are some of the prime examples of this fast-paced, engaging style of comedic storytelling. They also, however, exemplify its biggest flaws.

The film barely breaches the 90-minute mark. It had no good reason to. Its sequences operate as if they were two-minute sketches that just so happen to be intertwined plot-wise. That is until they are broken up by montages in slow motion of the lead characters wearing some ridiculous costume, gesticulating to other bowlers and finding exhilarating success at the sport. This does not happen once. It does not happen twice, either. At times, this film feels like one long trailer.

It does not help that the editing is questionable, being illiberal with words. The gamut of student films at USC and many other campuses exude more professionalism in said department than in this film. Of course, continuity should not be the primary concern of a film of this sort, but precisely for this reason, it is alarming how noticeable it is for the audience.

However, this previous point applies as much as a critique and a compliment. Awkward, poor-quality cuts aside, the interspersed city intros and other visual gags are a testament to the creativity of those behind these very moments as well.

“The Gutter” may be one of the most repetitive feature films conceived this century. And not just because of its cyclical scenes. It occasionally tries to wring out laughs from the audience through shock alone. Whether it be crass and brash statements from the pornography-addicted lead or his alcoholic coach or overly — and after a certain point, tiringly — racialized humor through decades-old jokes banking on certain slurs, this film quickly runs out of gas.

It also does not help to see some of its stars keep the car running on empty. After a half-hour of pure raunchiness for the sake of raunchiness, “The Gutter” attempts to be a real film. A human conflict between a daughter and a mother between Linda and Skunk falls flat when the deadbeat parent has no reason to have been absent and no remorse for being so.

It falls even flatter when neither character has any depth to speak of. It would be a feat to find two stills of this film with either one of these characters, where they have different expressions in each photo.

The truth of the matter is this film is at its best when it forgets it is a film. One can easily see the “written as a joke” comment materialize at points throughout, which also happen to be the points at which the film feels the funniest and most subversive.

One would be remiss not to sing the praises of its performers at these moments. The boundless, bounce-off-the-walls charm of Moore has explosive chemistry with Carden’s Skunk, making a blend worth looking at when their back-and-forths are not drawn out. Sarandon’s performance is up to par, and fun comedy mainstays like Paul Reisler and Nelson Franklin make worthwhile cameos.

In all, “The Gutter” is a feature film that would have better serviced moviegoers by being a short. Still, it is creative and fun; a worthwhile watch for a weekend plan with friends. Sincerely, the film feels like it was made in a context not too dissimilar. One of its most joy-inducing factors is how much it feels like the filmmakers had the time of their lives creating this. For that, it gets full marks and a stamp of approval. For other considerations, not so much.