After seeing the trailer back in April, this has been The Film I’ve been waiting to watch all summer. That little two minute tease featured the now iconic “McLovin” (newcomer Christopher Mintz-Plasse), Arrested Development’s Michael Cera trying to be smooth with a young lady but rambling on like Woody Allen in perfect comedic timing, and the portly curly haired Jonah Hill proclaiming that he wanted to be a drunk girl’s mistake at a party. All of this madness played behind Van Halen’s “Panama”.
Then the screen flashed what matters most to a film- who's behind it. In this case the co-writer was the hilarious Seth Rogen and it was produced by the immensely talented Judd Apatow. It seemed to have all the makings of a smart, free-wheeling, laugh-out-loud film of which very few are made today.
Superbad delivered on its promise.
Although this bears the brilliant comedic stamp of Apatow (Freaks & Geeks, 40 Year-Old Virgin, and Knocked-Up), the script by Rogen and his childhood friend Evan Goldberg must be praised for its wit and originality. And the director- Greg Mottola, who honed his skills on the humor soaked Arrested Development, knows how to pace jokes with plot and make every scene count.
From the opening credits, where the two leads dance in silhouetted animation to a 70’s funk song, the laughs do not stop. We first meet Seth (Hill) & Evan (Cera) as they head off to one of their final days of high school. You instantly understand their true friendship, and their comedic raunchy banter perfectly sets-up the simple premise- they want to have fun and get laid before they go off to different colleges. And it’s the camaraderie between Seth and Evan (and their fear of being separated) that drives the film, that gives it depth underneath their quest to get booze for a party and get down with their high school crushes.
All good plots and stories are about people trying to reach some sort of worthy goal (be it the discovery of the meaning behind the word “Rosebud”, the destruction of an evil ring, or desperately trying to get into some girl’s pants). Since we all have different ideas of what is important, the best films are the ones that convince you that the main characters MUST get what they desire. By setting up a believable world and seeing the earnestness of the people involved in the story, the audience bonds with the characters and roots for them to beat the numerous obstacles they encounter and reach their goals.
That’s why the simple journey of three friends to a party (Seth, Evan, and the nearly piss-yourself-funny McLovin) works perfectly. Superbad is able to hang a thousand funny lines of dialogue (Hill describing how he hides his erection in the waistband of his pants) and bits of physical comedy (Cera singing for a bunch of cokeheads) on the story and have everything work in seamless perfection. This isn’t just Saturday Night Live skits or hilarious stand-up routines, Superbad is a real film that makes you care what happens to the characters.
Is that getting too deep about a movie that graphically portrays a young kid’s obsession with drawing penises and shows the mark a menstruating woman makes on somebody’s pants? Absolutely not. There are so many funny things that happen in Superbad that you couldn’t possible recount them in a review. And I wouldn’t want to reveal too much to somebody who has yet to see the film. But whether it’s McLovin having crazy adventures with two inept cops (played by Rogen and the funny Bill Hader) or Seth and Evan discussing pornographic websites, the characters are not cynical or full of hate and destruction like so many young people who make their way on the nightly news. They are good people at heart. Although these misfits are horny, immature, and drunk . . . you still want to see them succeed.
Superbad delivered on its promise.
Although this bears the brilliant comedic stamp of Apatow (Freaks & Geeks, 40 Year-Old Virgin, and Knocked-Up), the script by Rogen and his childhood friend Evan Goldberg must be praised for its wit and originality. And the director- Greg Mottola, who honed his skills on the humor soaked Arrested Development, knows how to pace jokes with plot and make every scene count.
From the opening credits, where the two leads dance in silhouetted animation to a 70’s funk song, the laughs do not stop. We first meet Seth (Hill) & Evan (Cera) as they head off to one of their final days of high school. You instantly understand their true friendship, and their comedic raunchy banter perfectly sets-up the simple premise- they want to have fun and get laid before they go off to different colleges. And it’s the camaraderie between Seth and Evan (and their fear of being separated) that drives the film, that gives it depth underneath their quest to get booze for a party and get down with their high school crushes.
All good plots and stories are about people trying to reach some sort of worthy goal (be it the discovery of the meaning behind the word “Rosebud”, the destruction of an evil ring, or desperately trying to get into some girl’s pants). Since we all have different ideas of what is important, the best films are the ones that convince you that the main characters MUST get what they desire. By setting up a believable world and seeing the earnestness of the people involved in the story, the audience bonds with the characters and roots for them to beat the numerous obstacles they encounter and reach their goals.
That’s why the simple journey of three friends to a party (Seth, Evan, and the nearly piss-yourself-funny McLovin) works perfectly. Superbad is able to hang a thousand funny lines of dialogue (Hill describing how he hides his erection in the waistband of his pants) and bits of physical comedy (Cera singing for a bunch of cokeheads) on the story and have everything work in seamless perfection. This isn’t just Saturday Night Live skits or hilarious stand-up routines, Superbad is a real film that makes you care what happens to the characters.
Is that getting too deep about a movie that graphically portrays a young kid’s obsession with drawing penises and shows the mark a menstruating woman makes on somebody’s pants? Absolutely not. There are so many funny things that happen in Superbad that you couldn’t possible recount them in a review. And I wouldn’t want to reveal too much to somebody who has yet to see the film. But whether it’s McLovin having crazy adventures with two inept cops (played by Rogen and the funny Bill Hader) or Seth and Evan discussing pornographic websites, the characters are not cynical or full of hate and destruction like so many young people who make their way on the nightly news. They are good people at heart. Although these misfits are horny, immature, and drunk . . . you still want to see them succeed.
No comments:
Post a Comment