Aren't you excited?
So first of all, I write this evening from Londontown, and I arrived on Monday night, courtesy of a little airline known to the world as Virgin Atlantic. God, what an ecstatic trip it was. Even in Economy (not to be confused with Upper Class, or even Premium Economy), they give you real food, a glass for your complimentary wine, and a phenomenal selection of films to watch on demand during the flight.
Like, so many films you can't decide which ones to watch, and you're concerned that the flight will not be long enough to accommodate your viewing needs. (It wasn't)
Up first on the Films Bitsy Missed This Past Summer? Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
Late last year I reviewed Zack and Miri Make a Porno, in which my conclusion was something along the line of "ordinary plot dressed in sheep's clothing." Or something. Let me state from the first that Forgetting Sarah Marshall is, in effect, an ordinary breakup film. Unlike Zack and Miri, though, Sarah Marshall injects the concept with new life, which makes it both exciting and hilarious to watch.
Let us first start with the usual suspects in Judd Apatow comedies, for most of them make appearances here: Paul Rudd, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, and Jack McBrayer all show up and make us smile by merely appearing on screen, and then they proceed to make us laugh out loud with their unbelievable antics (Brief summary: Rudd as stoned surfer, Hill has one of the best faux-British accents I have ever heard, Hader plays the obnoxious step-brother with a grossly gooey wife, and as for McBrayer, he essentially plays his character Kenneth from 30 Rock... on his honeymoon. Classic.)
The film, of course, is about one man (Jason Segel)'s quest to forget his ex-girlfriend, Sarah Marshall, who has unceremoniously dumped him (while he was naked!) for another man. Ouch. The most surprising revelation comes at the end, when we find out that Segel actually wrote the film, which holds much insight into both the male and female perspectives on relationships. Yes, Sarah is a bitch who broke our hero's heart. But when the two sit down and have an honest conversation about their last months together, we see a woman who was genuinely hanging on by a thread, and who did everything she could to try to salvage the relationship.
She is a terrible person, but it is nice to see the character not completely condemned to the House of Heartless Women.
Segel's character rebounds with a pretty young hotel concierge, Mila Kunis (who bears a striking resemblance both in attitude and mannerisms to our own Lady Liberty... who knew?), who teaches him how to live, the things he was missing from his life in his former relationship, etc.
The point is, this is how you take a trite concept ("the break-up movie") and make it fresh-- give us good, real characters who, despite their eccentricities, are relatable, and then make it funny and outrageous.
Plus, a little full-frontal male nudity doesn't hurt (especially when there is no porn shoot involved.)
Coming Soon- Films Bitsy Missed This Past Summer, Part II: Tropic Thunder
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