Thursday, December 13, 2007

DVD REVIEW: SUPERBAD


The Judd Apatow crew is back and as "Superbad" as ever. If you have seen "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" or "Knocked Up," you are familiar with their work. This movie takes the same approach of mixing situational/sexual humor, clever dialogue, familiar-feeling characters and I can't believe they went there comedy.

The story was written by Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg and they say it was based on their lives as awkward teens. It focuses on two high school kids, Seth (Jonah Hill) and Evan (Michael Cera), who are trying to get booze and sex. Oh, the originality! I'm pretty sure I've already seen this one once, twice or a dozen times. At least that's what I thought.

Luckily this one has something different about it, giving it a freshness that doesn't allow it to fall into the garbage pile with so many other bland, teen movies. Whether it's another enjoyable performance from Hill, seeing some relatively new faces on the screen or the enjoyable exploits of an oddball named Fogell, "Superbad" delivers.

Seth and Evan are like all other males their age and are interested in girls. Unfortunately these two guys aren't really popular and the objects of their affection seem to be out of reach. But they still decide to make it their goal to score with these girls. The problem is that they don't know just how to do that. But the stars to align and present the perfect opportunity.

Seth is asked by Becca, the girl he has the hots for, to pick up alcohol for a party she is throwing. As fate would have it, an acquaintance of his, Fogell, got a fake ID that day and could help him pull it off. Once they had the booze, it would be easy for Seth and Evan to get drunk with the girls and then get them in bed. Of course it would be way too easy if things went according to the plan.

The problems start when Fogell returns with his fake ID and his new identity is that of a 25-year-old Hawaiian name McLovin. The outlook gets worse when you throw in a couple incompetent cops, relationship issues among friends and encounters with some very unique individuals.
As far as the performances, Hill and Rogan continue to show the ability to produce in comedic roles, Christopher Mintz-Plasse is suprisingly good as Fogell and Bill Hader ("Saturday Night Live") provides a steadying presence. Cera might be a little too bland, but it does help to counter the high energy of Hill. Martha MacIsaac and Emma Stone work well as the love interests. They aren't asked to do much, but it's nice to see someone new instead of running out the same old faces.
Yes, this has elements of the typical teen-booze-sex comedy. It's a formula that has proven to be successful when done well and, as usual, the Apatow-Rogan-Goldberg connection comes through. "Superbad" isn't a perfect film and does have some slow periods, but the overall product is definitely worth a look if you need a chuckle. Because, while Seth and Evan deal with their highs and lows, there's always one thing that the viewers can count on: laughs.

Grade: 7.5/10 (the extensive list of extras might bump it to 8/10)
"Superbad" is an enjoyable film that most people should be able to relate to. It's never going to be confused with the truly classic comedies, but it's definitely worth a couple hours of your time on a weekend night. So get a bowl of popcorn and a tasty beverage...just be careful when you drink it because it may wind up coming out of your nose!


Rated: R
EXTRAS
- Pineapple Express: Exclusive First Look
- Deleted and Extended Scenes
- Gag Reel
- Line-O-Rama
- Cop Car Confessions
- Making of "Superbad"
- Original Table Read 2002 - Seth Rogan reads for the part of "Seth"
- Dancing Title Sequence
- Vag-tastic Voyage (contains nudity)
- Cast Audition Footage
- Press Junket Meltdown
- The Music of "Superbad"
- "Everybody Hates Michael Cera" - The Unfortunate True Story
- On-set Diaries
- "Snakes on Jonah" Featurette
- Michael's Voicemails from Jonah
- TV Safe - Watch Jonah Hill try to record alternate "safe" lines appropriate for TV
- Table Reads

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