Paul

OPENING: 03/18/2011

STUDIO: Universal Pictures

RUN TIME: 104 min

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

The Charge
Fugitive, celebrity, slacker, joker, alien.

Opening Statement
After delighting moviegoers with the wildly entertaining one-two punch of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have re-teamed for the similarly satirical sci-fi comedy Paul. Alas, the film proves a huge step down for the duo.

Facts of the Case
Graham (Pegg) and Clive (Frost) are two English buddies on holiday in the United States. After enjoying a few days at the San Diego Comic-Con, the pair plans to hit the road in their RV and check out the locations of famous “alien sightings.” Though both men believe quite strongly in the existence of aliens, they’re nonetheless startled to actually encounter one in real life.

The alien’s name is Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen, Knocked Up), and he looks like a stereotypical amalgam of every Hollywood alien you’ve ever seen. That’s largely due to the fact that Paul has been around since the 1940s, and those who have glimpsed him have incorporated elements of his features into various aspects of pop culture. Paul’s assimilated a good deal of pop culture himself, frequently referencing his favorite movies and music (not to mention smoking, drinking and swearing like a space sailor).

After an awkward “getting to know you” period, Graham and Clive agree to allow Paul to accompany them on their journey. Along the way, they encounter a bible-thumping redneck (John Carroll Lynch, Zodiac), a non-bible thumping redneck (David Koechner, The Office), a timid creationist (Kristen Wiig, Saturday Night Live), some bumbling federal agents (including Bill Hader, Superbad and Jason Bateman, Arrested Development), a respected sci-fi writer (Jeffrey Tambor, Hellboy) a powerful bureaucrat (Sigourney Weaver, Alien), a friendly waitress (Jane Lynch, Glee) and others.

The Evidence
If nothing else, Paul serves as a sharp demonstration of just how gifted writer/director Edgar Wright is. Though Wright had nothing to do with the film, it’s clear that the seemingly unstoppable team of Pegg and Frost is reduced considerably without Wright at the helm. The infectious energy and ferocious wit of Wright’s Pegg n’ Frost films are gone, replaced with a good deal of aimless raunchiness, clumsy gags and sloppy storytelling.

Still, Paul seems like it ought to be a lot of fun. In addition to a screenplay written by Pegg and Frost, the film is helmed by Greg Motolla (who gave us the entertaining Superbad and the surprisingly moving Adventureland) and boasts a large cast of very funny people. There are so many things about Paul that probably looked great on paper which simply don’t add up to much in the film.

During some scenes, Paul feels like a movie that never really got past the conceptual stage. The notion of a comedy about an alien who has influenced every element of alien pop culture in recent decades is a potential comedic goldmine, but Paul is content to make some obvious Spielberg references and leave it at that. For that matter, most of the movie’s sci-fi references tend to be pretty obvious (when the guys enter a bar, the band is playing a country & western version of the Cantina music from Star Wars). The film desperately wants to be regarded as a hip celebration of geek culture, but its insistence on being so inclusive prevents that. Being aware of famous moments in Star Wars, E.T. and Star Trek hardly qualifies one as a nerd.

Another idea that probably looked great on paper: creating a comedy about two frightened Brits enduring the horrors of America. Paul presents us as a nation of right-wing, idiotic, tobacco-chewing, gun-loving, power-hungry religious zealots. Which, uh, is fair enough, I guess. There’s fun to be had in looking at the less savory parts of America through the eyes of outsiders, but all of the American characters are presented as such simplistic, one-note cartoons that the whole joke loses its steam very quickly. The film isn’t as much a skewering of American culture as it is a story made up by someone who heard about America from a friend of a friend a few years ago. Alas, we’re a million miles from the delightful sting of In the Loop.

Perhaps the biggest problem is that the central characters just aren’t that interesting. Pegg and Frost aren’t interacting with each other so much as they are with the CGI alien, and they have a tough time generating genuine chemistry with him. Speaking of which, choosing Seth Rogen to voice the title character was a bad idea. Rogen’s cinematic persona is so well-established at this point that we know pretty much everything about Paul within a few minutes of meeting him, and Rogen’s distinctive bark becomes grating rather quickly. I think Rogen is a talented guy, but we either need a break from him for a while or he needs to try tackling more projects that push him out of his comfort zone.

The supporting cast is loaded with talented folks, and we smile when we see most of them appear. Unfortunately, too many of them aren’t given anything to do–Jane Lynch, John Carroll Lynch and Sigourney Weaver in particular are completely wasted. Kristen Wiig has fun playing a character who transforms from timid Christian to foul-mouthed rebel, but after a while she’s forced to repeat the same joke over and over again (she’s new to swearing, so she uses foul language in a variety of unusual ways). Only Bill Hader manages to both receive a decent character and find a way to keep that character interesting for the duration of his screen time.

When the film arrives at its warm and gooey final reel, the effect is rather strange: the “character development” up to this point has been so thin and cartoonish that the movie’s attempt at sincerity feels like a joke. To watch these scenes and feel nothing is to realize just how ineffective Paul is at achieving what it seemingly set out to accomplish.

Closing Statement
In fairness, it should be noted that there are a handful of laughs to be had, along with a handful of genuinely clever sight gags and throwaway lines. Still, these moments only come along just often enough to remind us how much better this could have been had the screenplay been through another draft or two (or three or four). Here’s hoping Pegg and Frost are back in fine form their next time around.

The Verdict
5/10

How to Lose Friends & Alienate People

OPENING: 10/03/2008

STUDIO: MGM

TRAILER: Trailer

ACCOMPLICES: Official Site

The Charge
Brace yourselves, America.

Opening Statement
How to Lose Friends & Alienate People is based on the life of Toby Jones, a writer for Vanity Fair magazine who did indeed lose a lot of friends and alienate a lot of people. For all of Jones’ faults, at least he was honest enough about himself to write a very unflattering autobiography of sorts. The film is a little kinder to Jones than the book was, largely because the role of Jones is played by Simon Pegg, an actor who is rather difficult to dislike completely. This creates a lead character that is more appealing than he might have been, but perhaps that reward is earned at the expense of the film as a whole.

Facts of the Case
Here, Pegg’s character goes by the name of “Sydney Jones,” and he goes to work for a magazine that is essentially Vanity Fair in all but name. The magazine is run by a fellow played by Jeff Bridges, who is one of the few actors who can seem both irritated and relaxed at the same time. Bridges hires Jones on something of a whim, admiring the fearlessly rude work Jones has been doing on a much smaller magazine. Unfortunately, Jones may be more trouble than anyone bargained for. He behaves badly, doesn’t play well with others, and hires a transvestite stripper to pay a visit to the office on “bring your daughter to work day”.

Jones yearns to write the kind of ruthless material he built his unsavory reputation on, but he keeps running into brick walls while working for this high-profile company. Either he isn’t allowed to trash someone for fear of upsetting a powerful publicist (Gillian Anderson) or his articles aren’t printed because the editor is unhappy with his sloppy writing. He’s also being treated quite badly by his direct superior (Danny Huston), who doesn’t seem to want Sydney to make any progress. Sydney finds himself in a couple of romantic difficulties, too. He pines after his co-worker (Kirsten Dunst) who just so happens to be dating Huston, and he lusts after a movie star (Megan Fox) who will remain unattainable unless he writes a flattering puff piece about her. Oh, what is a fearless journalist/unpleasant person to do?

The Evidence
The film succeeds early on, thanks to some genuinely witty dialogue and some very enjoyable performances. Pegg is genuinely entertaining in his self-absorbed role, and he is surrounded by a strong supporting cast. Danny Huston has never seemed more like his father than in this film (which should tell you everything you need to know about his character and his performance), and Jeff Bridges has a way of making even the most inconsequential scene memorable. Kirsten Dunst is much better than usual, and Megan Fox shows a sense of comedic talent that she was not permitted to display in Transformers. Unfortunately, the fun stops all too quickly. I was quite disheartened to discover that the formulaic plot elements taking Jones on his obligatory dramatic arc of redemption had taken over by the halfway point. After the first forty-five minutes or so, the film becomes quite predictable and only occasionally enjoyable. We aren’t given quite enough entertainment to make the banal padding worthwhile. At least the recent Ghost Town spent a solid 70% of its running time making us laugh before it turned to familiar mush.

To make matters worse, some of the comedic scenes here are obnoxiously broad and unfunny. One of these scenes involves a pig. Another one involves a puppy. Yet another involves a bag of cocaine. Each of these scenes feels like they belong in another movie, perhaps an R-rated version of College Road Trip. In many ways, the film reminded me of The Devil Wears Prada, another modestly entertaining film that spent too much of it’s running time either tossing out poorly-conceived gags or unconvincing sermons.

Closing Statement
Perhaps I’m making How to Lose Friends & Alienate People sound a bit worse than it actually is. The weak elements here only seem so disappointing because the film actually demonstrates that it could have been something smart and satisfying. If you watch the film you will find some small pleasures and some big laughs here and there, but not quite enough to make you feel like your hard-earned ten bucks has been well-spent.

The Verdict

6/10