Butter is a 2011 American comedy film directed by Jim Field Smith, from a screenplay by Jason Micallef, starring Yara Shahidi, Jennifer Garner, Ty Burrell, Olivia Wilde, Rob Corddry, Ashley Greene, Alicia Silverstone, and Hugh Jackman.

[3] Butter received mixed reviews from critics, who questioned Smith's direction of the film's script in terms of humor and satire and the performances from the ensemble cast.

In Johnson County, Iowa, Destiny is a 10-year-old African American foster child being raised by a white couple, Ethan and Jill Emmet.

Bob has won the fair's butter-sculpture contest for the past 15 years straight; because of his dominance, he is asked to abstain from future competitions to give others a chance.

Meanwhile, Kaitlin's stepmother, Laura hooks up with Boyd Bolton, an old high-school boyfriend who is now an owner of a used-car dealership, also is a skilled butter sculptor.

Brooke gets her money from an infatuated Kaitlin, meets Destiny after school, and takes her to the mall to buy her a $1200 set of chef's knives to help her in the rematch with Laura.

The sabotage of the piece is recognized as "higher art" as the judges believe the melted face lends the butter sculpture a greater depth.

The website's consensus reads: "Despite its talented cast and a few funny moments, Butter's satirical aims are largely undone by a lack of subtlety and air of smugness.

"[15] Sean O'Connell of The Washington Post gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, similarly praising Garner for showing great humorous timing and Smith's direction of biting satire that falls just shy of the works of Christopher Guest and Alexander Payne, concluding that "But with Garner’s triumphant turn as a buttoned-down manipulator and Smith’s broad, scatological punch lines, Butter often proves it's sharp enough to .

"[16] Joel Arnold of NPR found the film's satire a bit obvious in its message but said that it gets by with its cast of characters delivering strong humor, saying that "this is a movie centrally about a competition, and there Butter finds its comedic footing.

"[18] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film 2 out of 4 stars, finding it too broad and lacking sharpness in its political satire and Garner's absurdly humorous performance barely getting any laughs, concluding that "she's stuck in a movie that wishes it were a Christopher Guest sendup but comes off like a cheap imitation.

"[19] Scott Bowles of USA Today felt the cast was wasted with cheap humor and underwritten characters, calling it "a film more enamored of its premise than interested in making it work."

Club gave the film a D+ for using its premise as a failed satire mouthpiece to make lackluster jokes about the Midwest, saying that "Mostly, Butter is a venue for writer [Jason] Micallef and director [Jim Field] Smith to lob spitballs at people about whom they seem to know nothing, and care less.