“The first official movie of 2015, despite what the date on this post might say. Of course Laredo wasn’t cool enough to be showing this, so I had to wait to get back to Boston.
By now, we all know the controversy surrounding this film’s release. When all of it was starting to play out, and the film was getting pulled, my first thought was “”but hey, I genuinely want to see this movie””. It’s no secret that I love Seth Rogen and James Franco. There is much documented proof of that. I sincerely thought this would be a movie I enjoyed, and I genuinely wanted to watch it.
Then things happened. Besides being sad about possibly not ever seeing this film, I was upset about the precedent it was setting. I was scared for the future of cinema and the suppression of free speech. I figured there was much more at play than what they were telling us, and it angered me that the decision on whether or not to watch a film was being taken out of my hands, and possibly jeopardizing future films. But then the film did start to roll out, and I just had to get back to my dirty water town and it’s wonderful independently owned movie theaters, and all was well.
Although, it was disconcerting to be walking up to the theater and seeing a fire truck pull up alongside. Thankfully, it went away by the time I got to the door.
Was it all worth it? Eh. Again, I love Seth and James, but this wasn’t their best. Without thinking too hard about it, I’d say This is The End was their best and I’d still rank Pineapple Express above this one. It did take a while for the film to find it’s footing. I felt like Franco was trying too hard, really mugging for the camera and trying to milk every line, and it was all too much. As much as I love a cleverly written line of dialog, if the delivery isn’t right, the line doesn’t work, and there was a lot of that going on. I think James should leave the comedy to lil bro Dave, who has been rocking that lately, and James can focus on some of the more serious stuff, with small cameos of comedy or straighter characters in comedic roles. Rogen, on the other hand, has hit his stride. He was the straighter of the characters, but he kept himself (and the film) grounded, without letting it drift off too far to the absurd.
And about all the controversial material? I fully understand why it was a big deal, and maybe not the smartest move to make. When asked about how he got away with The Producers, Mel Brooks smartly replied that he “”waited until Hitler was dead!””, which may have been wise advise. I think the biggest point that was missed is that the main subject of ridicule is not North Korea or its leader. The main subject of ridicule is the naive and dumb Americans and the misguided American media. Most of the jokes are at our own expense, and the statement being made is against us. Not NK. Yet that’s what’s shadowing this film. But hey, ten years ago, Team America was even more offensive, yet turned out to be a much better film. While there were some golden lines here and there, (including one particularly nerdy one that had me laughing out loud hysterically, only to find that no one else in the theater found it funny), it wasn’t quite the comedy I’d hoped for. Maybe it was just the one we deserved? Eh, maybe not. Try again next time boys. But no really, please try again. I want to see more of you two!
The Interview – \m/ \m/ \n”