Finally, the summer has bared its first great movie. After all the hype and utter disappointment of the big blockbusters that May offered,"Knocked Up" felt like such a breath of fresh air.
Judd Apatow cemented his status as a god amongst the disenfranchised and the belittled with his work on "Freaks and Geeks" and "Undeclared." He also was prominent in the Emmy Award winner "The Larry Sanders Show." But as we have seen before, what may work for TV (be it the actor, the writer, or the premise) certainly isn't always the case for film. However, Apatow is too good of a creator and writer to fall victim to any of those pitfalls.
Ironically, his TV shows only amounted to cult hit status. They were widely recognized as the best that TV had to offer when they were in rotation, but they never obtained the viewers needed to survive. His movies, however, have been moderately budgeted and yet make 500% in profit. Why are his films so successful when his TV shows weren't? I can't really say. He has maintained the same honesty and the same affection for his characters that he always had.
The key to his success though isn't simply his brilliant handling of raunchy humor and sincere emotion. Nor is it due to the fact that he has come up with a unique comedic plot ala Borat. In fact his two movies could easily fall prey to being deemed a gimmick (40 Yr Old Virgin) or unimaginative (Knocked Up). But what he brings to his films is his talent for picking the right actor for the right role, and bringing out the best in them.
Ben's friends in this movie, while don't serve the plot as well as Andy's friends in "Virgin," still have some of the funniest lines you will hear all year. Jason Siegel, Martin Starr, Jay Baruchel, and the great Jonah Hill (whom has lost alot of weight! I am saddened) all get their moment to shine. The lines said in reference to Starr's untamed beard are up there with "You know how I know you're gay?"
Katherine Heigl is annoying on Grey's Anatomy. She hasn't been particularly good in anything I've seen before. Yet here she is a gem. She can hold her own both comedically and emotionally with anyone in this movie. I 'm excited to see what she does next.
Leslie Mann may be the funniest unknown actress ever. She was so funny in her small role in "Virgin", but she gets to stretch her wings here and actually act. I will say she isn't the most convincing actress when she has to get all emotional, but she still sells it because she is so gifted in every other scene in the movie. An absolute riot.
Paul Rudd needs his own movie!!! Now!!! He once again just about steals the movie. Anchorman. Virgin. Knocked Up. He has proven himself to have both great timing and delivery for any occasion, be it comedy or drama. I hope he isn't relegated to supporting roles for the rest of his career.
And finally, the man of the year, Seth Rogen. I absolutely loved him in "Virgin." His lines were the best in my opinion. Here he has a tough task of creating a character that we both love, but expect more from. It really is quite a feat to portray this character where we root for him to make the right choices, but when he doesn't we are so disappointed in him. We react to him as if he were a long time friend of ours in real life. Some may think it wasn't so much acting as was just him being himself, but I still am astonished at just how much depth is actually there to witness. When he holds his daughter for the first time and tells her about his first encounter with Alison, I laughed and cried. I though it was a beautiful moment that Rogen earned all on his own.
Comparisons to "Virgin" are bound to happen. If I must make a statement on that notion, I will say "Virgin" is more quotable and "Knocked Up" is more poignant. But I find it really hard to definitively say which one is better. With only two movies under his belt, Apatow has perhaps started his own "dynasty." In twenty years, hopefully people will be talking about his movies in the same breath as Annie Hall, Blazing Saddles, or Animal House as the funniest films ever.
In a summer bursting with the best in effects, the best in explosions, the best in thrills, and so many damn sequels I can't count them all, it is great to see that what makes the best movie is something that a computer can't do. A great cast and a great script makes a great movie.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Lego My Prego!
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3 comments:
I agree wholeheartedly with everything you said, except... between Knocked Up and 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up wins hands down.
I'm sorry. 40-Year-Old was a funny movie. The best friends were hilarious. Steve Carell was great. But Catherine Keener was not and the whole relationship aspect that the film deteriorated into towards the second half of the movie really took away from such a great start.
In Knocked Up it felt better handled. Instead of half a movie of one-liners and guy banter and half a movie of relationship stuff, Knocked Up melds them together into the storyline. It has a better flow. It's more relatable. And because of that, it's funnier on a whole.
I'm not ripping on Virgin but it seemed like Apatow was still learning the ropes and how to handle such a long running time. And while Virgin runs on about 20-30 minutes too long, Knocked Up never felt a moment longer than it needed or should have been.
With these two films, and the TV shows I definitely need to catch up on, Apatow has cemented his place in the comedy world. He's like a better version of Adam McKay (whose films I've also enjoyed).
I definitely look forward to anything he comes up with next.
Other than that though, Chachi pretty much nailed it. Rudd needs a movie. Ever since Clueless I thought the guy was great and I was astonished at the career comeback he made with "Friends" and in bit parts towards the beginning of the 2000's. Plus, I saw him on Broadway in "Three Days of Rain" with Julia Roberts and the dude can act. I'd be astonished if Apatow didn't give him the lead in his next picture, but even if he doesn't, he needs to get one soon.
Heigl was charming and lovely and played a nice complement to what was going on. I've always hated "Grey's," so complimenting anyone from the show is hard to do, but she was great. The best compliment I can give her is she made the relationship with Seth believable. Completely.
And Seth Rogen. Hilarious. Great. I still don't know if he's a leading man though. This role was totally suited to him and his disposition. Any other role like it, sure, cast him immediately. But I don't see him stretching like a Jim Carrey or an Adam Sandler (or even a Will Ferrell). I don't know. He knows his comedic persona and he does it well, so as long as he stays close to it I think he'll be fine. In Knocked Up though, he's definitely perfect for the role.
Loved it.
I agree to a certain extent with what you say about the differences in how Virgin and Knocked Up are handled.
My biggest "complaints" would be that I think that Andy's friends are used more effectively in the Virgin plot than Ben's friends are in Knocked Up. Perhaps they need not be used the same since Leslie Mann and Rudd fill that void. But what you call "guy banter" I felt was much needed and honest dialog between friends that both made me laugh and propel the through line needed for the plot. Ben's friends are just there to make you laugh, and that is fine by me.
The second thing from making a clear decision between the two is that Knocked Up does feel too long. Even though Virgin and it are similar lengths, I felt it drag a few times in Knocked Up.
That said, I think Knocked Up is the more important film and one that I think will resonant with audiences more. But I think Virgin will have people quoting more lines. However, quotability does not make a movie.
Also I think you are dead wrong about Catherine Kenner. I thought she, much like Heigl, made it believable. She was great and really sold me. She was getting a lot of award notices that year particularly in Capote, but I thought she was best in Virgin.
You're right about Andy's friends being a better group than Ben's except for the crossover of Paul Rudd. He's equally good in both films. But I think that's more attributable to the fact that Seth Rogen was one of the key friends and while Jonah Hill and Jay Baruchel are solid supporting actors, I don't find them nearly as funny as Rogen or Rudd. It's 3-against-2 (adding Carell to the mix). It's an unfair fight.
But I would take Katherine Heigl's charm and beauty over the downtrodden and irritating Catherine Keener any day, better yet, any minute of any day.
Keener is a solid actress. She's been good before but Capote was not a great performance either. She's too flat. She plays the same easily flustered and colorless character. What it amounts to, I would guess, is that she basically plays herself in everything - and she's just not very interesting. She's got a friendliness that seems faked and seems much more comfortable being angry.
Really, I never put this much thought into Catherine Keener before, but she's not exactly a presence in a film that I would welcome because I feel like I know what I'd get every time. I dunno, maybe she'll prove me wrong.
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