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Did producer Judd Apatow swear a blood oath to make the comedy careers of everyone he hired on TV's Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared? I ask because the creative types on both those low-rated but deservedly treasured sitcoms keep turning up as actors, writers and directors on the films issuing from Apatow Nation. The last two (Walk Hard, Drillbit Taylor) were factory seconds. But Forgetting Sarah Marshall — the tale of a dude dumped by his girlfriend while his limp dick hangs out — ranks with the hit models, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up and Superbad.
The man of these two hours is doughy, hangdog, unfailingly funny Jason Segel, who appeared in Freaks, Undeclared and Knocked Up and currently does sitcom duty on the un-Apatovian How I Met Your Mother. Segel wrote the script and stars as the rejected lover in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, and he pulls off both jobs with a deceptive ease that does Apatow proud. First-time feature director Nicholas Stoller — no surprise that he worked as a writer on Undeclared — shows a rare knack for keeping a balance between what makes the characters wacky and what makes them human. It's the job of Apatow regulars such as Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd and Bill Hader to blow in and rev up the laughs.
Mission accomplished. Segel is an immensely appealing screen presence as Peter Bretter, a couch potato who composes a Dracula musical for puppets while turning out what he calls "dark, ominous sounds" for a CSI-like crime drama in which Billy Baldwin (a hoot) co-stars with Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), Peter's live-in girlfriend of five years. Peter knows he's dating above his pay grade. "Move out of the way, giant," scream paparazzi when Peter escorts Sarah to premieres. But this is a woman who buys him Tupperware to keep his cereal fresh. It's love. Cheers to Bell (Veronica Mars, Heroes) for finding nuance in a diva written as a stone-cold bitch. The sight of Sarah dumping a full-frontal Peter is one for the comedy time capsule — forget that he dissolves in tears. (Note to prudes: Even a shriveled schlong gets an R rating.) Peter's girlie meltdown disgusts his stepbrother, Brian (Hader), who hustles him off to Hawaii to forget Sarah at an Oahu resort where "lei" has at least two meanings.
Mahalo to that, brother. The scenes at the resort, which comprise the bulk of the movie, are rip-roaringly fun and surprisingly touching. Peter is crushed when Sarah shows up at the hotel with her randy new love, Brit rocker Aldous Snow (Russell Brand). Rachel (Mila Kunis of That '70s Show), a sympathetic hotel clerk, tries to cheer Peter up by letting him use a $6,000-a-night suite until Dakota Fanning shows up. But as Peter mopes, taking surf lessons from Kunu (Rudd) — it's Hawaiian for Chuck — and befriending Darald (Jack McBrayer of 30 Rock), a honeymooner chasing "the myth of the clitoris," the humor stays rooted in truth.
The trick of keeping many characters spinning simultaneously on film is not an easy one (see last year's The Heartbreak Kid for how to botch it). But Segel's deft script is a gift for actors. Two non-Apatow players nearly steal the movie. The illegally adorable Kunis is killer good, taking the second-tier role of rebound girl and turning it into her own Cinderella story. Brand, a Brit stand-up, radiates star quality and ace comic timing as the sexually insatiable lead singer of Infant Sorrow, a rocker so self-involved that he doesn't see why Sarah wouldn't want to join his groupies, the Sorrow Suckers, on tour. Brand is priceless when a pushy waiter (Hill is perfecto) asks if Aldous has listened to his audition CD. "I was going to," says Brand in an accent that blends Keith Richards with Monty Python, "but then I just carried on livin' my life."
OK, Forgetting Sarah Marshall goes out with a whimper when you so want a bang. But until then, this so-called romantic disaster comedy is a raucous ride through one man's pain. Apatow has given Segel all the tools to score his breakthrough in big-time movie comedy. Consider it scored.
another comments:
- This movie is worth your viewing time. Multiple viewings in fact. All of the actors are at their comedic best. From the scenes of the titular character's television show to Jonah Hill's disgruntled whispered rant, this movie has millions of laughs. But I HATED the ending. Well, not the spectacular stage performance; that too was hilarious. The protagonist's overall ending was way too happy for what he deserved. He made a rather asshole decision (cold sober I might add; usually some sort of inebriation helps soften this kind of blow... heh heh, "soft blow") that led to my grand dislike of his happiness, and the justification of that decision made by supporting cast only made it worse.
- forgetting sarah marshall totally caught me off guard. it's much funnier than i expected, and although much of it isn't terribly memorable, the film at a whole is. the acting is actually quite well done, and once the film finally get rolling and the main character finally begins to "forget" sarah marshall, the film gets ALOT better. i laughed alot, and that's a sign of a good comedy. it's really that easy.
- "Its Gonna Be Hard To Forget About Sarah Marshall". Judd Apatow is back ladies and gentlemen, after giving us an OK Walk Hard, and an awful Drillbit Taylor. This time around Jason Segel is the writer of the film, and he is the star as Peter Bretter. ...(read more) Peter is stoked to see Sarah after she has had a long day at work on the set of her hit show Scene of The Crime(clearly a spoof towards CSI). He prepares a nice romantic gathering for the two, "little does he know she has something a little less romantic in store". His girlfriend Sarah(Kirsten Bell), says that they need to talk. His assumption is that she wants to break up, and he drops his bathrobe and we see Peter's "Bretter". He does not take the break up well at all, and decides to get some advice from his brother played by Bill Hader. He tells him to find as many girls he wants to screw, or as Peter likes to put it "B my L on some T's"(HAHAHA). After almost 5 one-night stands with horny babes, he realizes all he can think about is Sarah. Peter ends up going on a trip, trying to leave Sarah behind. Unfortunately, avoiding Sarah is just as hard as Forgetting about her. In Hawaii, he meets many people who makes his trip less unerving. Jonah Hill is to die for as the creepy host at the restaurant, Judd Apatow is a stoner who loves to surf, and often tries to teach people as well, and there's this nerd who is just plain awful at pleasing his wife, and is just sketchy as hell. Mila Kunis plays Rachel, a woman who can surely help him forget about Sarah Marshall. They gain a true bond with each other, and they are a perfect match. "Payback's a bitch" for Sarah, because we see how much of a deutche bag her British boyfriend, Aldus is. He just wants to bang anything that walks and has no shame telling Sarah. I kind of feel for Sarah, but not really due to the happiness that Peter and Rachel have. Plus Rachel is the only one who truly gets Peter, and I love that aspect of the film. This film is consistently funny, has a HEART of gold, casted outstandingly, Jason Segel is PERFECT, a Dracula Musical, full frontal nudity, THE BEST COMEDY FROM THE JUDD SERIES, and THE FUNNIEST MOVIE I'VE EVER SEEN. You're DAMN right Sarah Marshall is hard to Forget, because it is just to DAMN GOOD. ~MOVIE GUY OUT~
- I thought "Forgetting Sarah Marshal" was a great refreshing romantic comedy and one of my favorites in a long time. Hilarious, one of a kind, leave the theater happy is how I will describe it to people.
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall was one of my favorite movies of the year and one of my favorite all time romantic comedies. Make sure you check my full review of the movie at http://mysocialstandards.blogspot.com/
- There is a great review of Forgetting Sarah Marshall by two old school Hollywood veterans in their 80's --they have different viewpoints but are smart funny and give a fresh perspective- check it out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBD8m1m9vOk
There’s Just No Getting Away From an Old Flame, Even in Hawaii
By A. O. SCOTT
Published: April 18, 2008
One way to enjoy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” — at least vicariously — is to think of the movie as the Judd Apatow Stock Company’s Hawaiian vacation. Those pasty-faced funny guys have been working awfully hard over the past few years, so who can begrudge them a few weeks of surf, sun, babes and fun? I don’t know if Mr. Apatow himself, a producer of this movie (the director is the first-timer Nicholas Stoller), went along for the trip. The members of his troupe who did managed to squeeze in enough work to placate the I.R.S., and also that segment of the audience, myself included, whose appetite for naturally sweetened raunch has not yet abated.
07:40PM TH
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