I agree. I also took issue with the score when the heavens opened with violins when Owen went in to visit with the kid, until I suspected it was meant ironically once we got to hear the conversation.
I guess I turn a blind eye to his obsession with race relations, his adopted religion and like issues because he's pretty much built a career on them. Do you get the feeling he uses these topics (like the turban guy) out of habit - as crutches even? It's utterly ineffectual, goofy even, because he's so predictable. I noted just what you did and did just what you did: sat back and went for the ride. But I was conscious that I was fighting passing judgement on a few things.
It was an awfully fun movie.