What’s funnier, cancer or rape? That’s a trick question; neither is funny. And in the past 24 hours I’ve seen concerns for two Seth Rogen movies because of how they involve these unfunny subjects. Of course, I doubt the cancer comedy Funny People will turn as many people off as much as the date rape joke in Observe and Report.
If you’ve seen the red-band trailer for Observe and Report, you’ve seen the gist of the joke, which has Rogen pause mid-intercourse because he thinks Anna Faris’ character is unconscious. She’s apparently not, though, and scolds the guy for stopping. Yes, it’s black comedy, and yes, it makes sense as a joke in theory. But neither Faris’ seemingly conscious outburst nor the audiences’ laughter make it okay, according to some people who will not be going to see the movie this weekend or ever.
Few blogs are writing about the date rape issue surrounding the movie, but those that are have received a few interesting comments, all of which make me wonder if Observe and Report’s box office could be even slightly hurt by the joke. Certainly there have been successful films featuring total scumbag protagonists (Gran Torino is one example, though its character’s racism isn’t necessarily played for laughs), but does this one really appear to be saying that the scumbaggery is forgiveable in certain situations? After reading Faris’ thoughts, watching Rogen’s apologism and reading the comments below, let us if you’ll also be avoiding the movie as a result of its misogynous humor.
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In the subversive new comedy Observe and Report, Seth Rogen plays one very angry mall cop. But despite what you’ve figured out from the trailer, the character is not set off by a pervert flasher, nor is his violent behavior necessarily triggered by his decision to stop taking his medication. No, he’s simply incensed by Hollywood’s depiction of mall cops. If the movies aren’t stereotyping them as idiot police rejects, like in this year’s other mall security guard movie, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, they’re replacing them with also-flawed, laser-shooting, head-exploding robots, as in Chopping Mall. When Rogen is seen bashing skateboarders’ skulls, he’s not merely fed up with teenage hooligans wrecking his own place of employment; he’s also obviously reacting to the scene in Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol where David Spade gets away from a real cop and a mob of irate shoppers after skating recklessly through a mall (there are also skateboarding villains in Paul Blart).
On top of all this, Rogen’s character is likely tired of all the destruction caused to malls in the movies. And after seeing damage caused by police cars, aliens, robots, zombies, time travelers, terrorists, and Arnold Schwarzenegger (multiple times), he’s just so hard on the offensive, because he feels he has to be ready for anything. Unfortunately, teens and perverts are all he’s got. So, to illustrate the kinds of threats he seems more pumped up to handle, we’ve selected the ten best action scenes set in a mall:
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Between the new Vanity Fair spread starring his comedy troupe (which includes his wife) and official word that he’s producing Ghostbusters 3, Judd Apatow is the talk of the Internet today. Eric D. Snider, in a new post at Cinematical that is apparently unrelated to either bits of news, even discusses Apatow’s potential status as this generation’s John Hughes. Considering some bloggers refer to the stars of the Vanity Fair feature as the “Frat Pack,” despite that term’s origins being with another set of actors (though Apatow’s pals do overlap and have been deemed “Junior Varsity” members), there may be weight to Snider’s claim.
Whatever Apatow’s group is called (Vanity Fair simply yet prematurely labels them “Comedy’s New Legends”), their leader is certainly ruling over a large part of Hollywood these days, enough that he’s sure to appropriate more than just the Frat Pack name before he’s done with his reign as King of Comedy. Now that he’s borrowed the talent of Adam Sandler (for this summer’s Funny People) and is about to take charge of even older SNL alum (for the next Ghostbusters flick), what could stop him from hiring Anthony Michael Hall or Shirley Maclaine in order to align himself with even the “Brat Pack” and “Rat Pack,” respectively?
We’ll just have to wait to see how much Apatow will ultimately conquer. So, for the time being, let’s take a look at what the blogosphere is saying about him and his crew today:
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While Karina (and indieWIRE) sits off to the side celebrating the recent indie box office record-breaker, most of the interweb is talking about the weekend’s mainstream achievements. Well, actually people are mostly focusing on just the shocking success of Friday the 13th, which I believe broke records for its franchise, its genre, its rating and for President’s Day weekend (though not for the month of February). As for the other monumental marker, Paul Blart: Mall Cop, I’ve seen maybe two bloggers comment on how it’s just passed $100 million. How is this a remarkable feat? Well, not only does this make Paul Blart the highest grossing January opener ever, but the oft-derided comedy is also the first film to debut in January to reach the $100 million point (not counting the special edition re-release of Star Wars, that is).
As this is a holiday and most of the web cinephiles are celebrating appropriately by watching North by Northwest or Point Break, there isn’t much else being written about, so here are some noteworthy quotes and links regarding the stunning box office figures:
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After flocking to theaters for the PG-rated Paul Blart: Mall Cop, is America ready for the R-rated version? That will be decided when Jody Hill’s Observe and Report hits theaters this April (and before that, SXSW next month). Starring Seth Rogen in the Kevin James role, the later of “the dueling mall cop movies” has a new NSFW red-band trailer, and it has all the Blart-haters on the net (many of whom probably didn’t see the movie) all excited. Never mind if Observe will be better (it will be for those who prefer a lot of F-bombs in their comedies), the real question is whether or not a darker, raunchier version of a movie that’s already a box office hit will in turn be a flop. Especially in these times of speculating that audiences want more hopeful yet more mindless entertainment. Considering Observe seems almost like a bridge between Paul Blart: Mall Cop and Taken, which took the box office top spot away from Blart a few weeks ago, it’s plausible that this could actually be Rogen’s biggest hit yet.
After the jump, check out the trailer and what people around the blogosphere are saying about it:
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