In this film Jason Segel plays a lovelorn loser that resembles his Freaks and Geeks role. He is dumped by his girlfriend of six years and decides to take a vacation to get his mind off things. The scene in which he gets dumped is particularly hilarious in that Segel is naked throughout the whole scene. He attempts to stall the breakup by not getting dressed which further humiliates him as he is then subsequently dumped while flaccid (a fact that is shown multiple times). This humiliation is not his last as Segel’s character garners many of his laughs from his degradation. The shining moment is when Segel plays a song from his incomplete Dracula musical. This scene is particularly funny and well played by Segel as a crowd looks on with confusion.
The key to most of Apatow’s projects are raunchy humor and a secret ingredient. Films like Waiting (2005) and Good Luck Chuck (2007) have raunchy humor and don’t understand this so they fail. Apatow knows that good humor is real (for lack of a better term, “it has heart”). I don’t know how else to put it. But I see it in every one of Apatow’s projects. Knocked Up had true soul searching in Rogen’s character as he struggles to quickly grow up, Superbad had a friendship that felt genuine and faced the trauma of a separation after high school, and Sarah Marshall has a breakup with real substance. The two protagonists both do things to ruin the relationship they have spent six years on and this is devastating. This film doesn’t pretend it isn’t, but it finds the humor in this devastation.
While I can’t say this is my favorite of the Apatow’s Crews’ flicks I must say they are operating on a different level than the Frat Pack of the early 2000s. And while Jason Segel isn’t a leading man – he just isn’t, I can’t help but fall for the old Andopolis charm.
7 out of 10: Segel gets humor out of real life a feat which is both hard and rewarding for the audience.
12 comments:
zzz. i can only imagine.
I gave Travis the hookup, ps! Hopefully he bought something good!
Thanks for giving Trav the hook-up! I hoped you would. This will be up in a day or two as everything is slowing down for me again.
what real life!!!!
DID YOU SEE THE GIRLS THAT SIEGAL DATES!?
Aps has jumped the you know what.
iron man?
I hope jennie didn't make you go see Made(Man) of Honor.
disagreed about 'tow jumpin' the shark. This film wasn't perfect but it is ten times better than anything Will Farrell has done in years.
We went to a wedding this weekend so no-go on movies this weekend, though I am startin up BB online again... so we will be getting a lot in a week or two! And she IS dragging me to Maid of honor - the horror!
by comparing apatow to will ferrell, a man whose steady decline in projects has been widely noted by fans and critics, is setting the bar pretty low, eh?
Nor is that really an affirmative support for Apatow but instead a re-direction by comparison. who said anything about will ferrell!?
well Anonymous,
Then let's discuss the state of comedy as it is today in the industry. Let's even limit ourselves to the past year. When films like Fool's Gold, Semi-Pro (a Ferrell picture), and Meet the Spartans are not only some of the few comedies coming out, but are #1 at the box office, I feel I have a right to champion Apatow's work. If you really want to say Apatow is failing, then you must compare him with his contemporaries, am I incorrect? Comedies these days are horrible. You can choose from gut wrenching spoof films (Superhero Movie!?!?!? really?!?) the recent incarnation of Blaxploitation films (First Sunday) and teenybopper bile (Collage Road Trip). Who would you site as contemporaries if not films such as these?
For my money I'll go with Apatow for now.
Clearly, anonymous was me. I hope you realized that.
PS- I think that you're making a fundamentally flawed argument. Yes, I think there is a severe gap of the "adult comedy"- something that I think apatow would probably qualify under but its heading would more accurately be "grown up man-children ages 18-34."
And no, I don't believe Apatow's contemporaries have anything to do with his work specifically except that it erroneously places his work in a positive light because it's, exactly what your argument states, "the best of what's out there." I feel like its more accurate to compare Apatow to himself (his earlier work, and I'll even lump "Anchorman" in there. I think that your point that the field is barren for those who want to laugh at the movies-although all of the movies you mentioned are somewhat unfair comparisons considering none of them play to the same demographic that Apatow plays to except perhaps First Sunday (which unless you've seen, have no ground to call "Blaxsploitation") The Superhero/Epic movie crowd would skew younger, College Road trip is family fare- I refuse to believe that i should just accept mediocrity because a) i formerely liked this guys work or b) nothing else is out there.
Yeah, I figured Anonymous was you but I didn't want to assume.
I have to concede that my argument is, "the best of what's out there". And I wouldn't argue otherwise. This is why the film is a 7 out of a 10. I believe Apatow's best work is on television, thus at least done five years ago – he isn't getting better (and on a side note I believe Freaks and Geeks to be his best work, thus his first major work was his peak after that it has been downhill). But when I think of movies, and especially comedies that have recently come out a decent choice is Apatow - that was my argument. You still haven't given me examples of recent good comedies.
Though you might be arguing that Anchorman is a good comedy and if that is the case I’m a little worried.
saw Iron Man last night...waiting on you, pal.
I know! We were going to see it on tuesday and life happened! Bah. Soon my friend, soon. I guess I'll also be seeing CoN:PC soon too. So, the summer filmfest has started! Bloated over-budget plot-less drival for all! I'm so excited. Like a movie every other day!
exclamation point!
after all of that hullabaloo, i wound up seeing this last night.
my rating: 6/10.
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