The Videogum Movie Club: I Love You, Man
Let's all go to the movies, and let's all see the same movie, and let's discuss it here.
This weekend's Videogum Movie Club selection, Paul Rudd and Jason Segel's I Love You, Man, came in second at the box office to Nicolas Cage's Knowing (though it still did pretty well.) How is Hollywood supposed to take America seriously with outcomes like that? (JK!) I don't read or put any stock in movie reviews prior to seeing movies I want to see, but Rotten Tomatoes usually gives an inkling: I Love You, Man: 81%. Knowing: 25%. Weather report: Americans are still dumb.
So, some of us saw I Love You, Man this weekend. Let's start with the things that were wrong with it.
1. The Entire Premise:
Peter Klaven doesn't have any close male friends because he moved around a lot as a kid and was always too focused on his (many) girlfriends to sustain male friendships, so he goes on the hunt for a best man for his wedding.
Okay, that's ridiculous. For one, it's hard to imagine a guy without friends (because the movie mentions no female friends, either) being able to get all these girlfriends in the first place. Everyone needs friends. Friends are the most fun people in our lives. This is editorializing, but my life would be a living hell without both female and male friends. In the girl-culture world, there's a total stereotype of the woman who has no female friends, but it's because she's a c-word who has been universally rejected by her own gender (and doesn't help her case by loudly and constantly attributing her lack of female companionship to a mysterious ethereal phenomenon we're all supposed to realize is her intolerable hotness.) It's possible, and even likely, that there's a male version of that archetypal c-word running around out there, but Peter Klaven isn't it. (Peter's co-worker, Tevin, played hysterically by a fearless Rob Huebel, could very well be it, however.)
Also, Peter is close (enough) to his father (J.K. Simmons) and brother (Andy Samberg) that they could be his only best men and that would be fine and normal.
So, yeah, the premise is less-than-totally-believable...but still more believable than a man who puts on makeup and terrorizes a city just because he loves chaos. So STFU about the premise. This is a comedy, people.
The premise of I Love You, Man is just about the only thing wrong with it. So now, on to the good stuff!
1. Paul Rudd
Seriously, Paul Rudd in this movie? Transcendent. He is does opposite of phoning it in. He comes over to your house, knocks on your door, and when you don't open it goes and finds the hide-a-key under the rock and let's himself in and surprises you with breakfast in bed. In what could have been (and what seems like, from the trailer), a total straight-man role, Paul Rudd brings sneaky depth and three-dimensionality. If you read this site regularly, you might know about my thing where I go all swooning middle-aged cat lady over Paul Rudd, so it's a testament to his performance that I HAVE NEVER FOUND PAUL RUDD LESS ATTRACTIVE than in this movie. As I left the theater, I had to remind myself of why I found him so attractive in the first place:
And:
Whew! There we go. Anyway, seeing Paul Rudd subtly play a total sad-sack pussy-boy who learns that he's a likable guy after all is one of the joys of this movie. It's called RANGE.
2. Jason Segel
Jason Segel is hilarious as "investment consultant" Sydney Fife who only dates cougars and exudes an air of danger (the fact that Jason Segel can exude any danger is a testament to his own range in this movie.) He teaches Paul Rudd how to be a dude in a way that's simultaneously hilarious (the "jerk-off station") and sweet. That guy has SO forgotten Sarah Marshall.
3. The Subversion Of The Romantic Comedy Genre:
It's one of the movie's gimmicks that it's a romantic comedy about two men, but somehow, the gimmick works: from the inevitable "falling in love montage" (the first funny one since The Naked Gun) to the "rushing back into each other's arms" scene, the filmmakers found a funny (and interesting) way to shake up the genre. I was expecting the last quarter of the movie to drag the way it does with regular romantic comedies, but nope: they plowed through all the coming-apart, moping, and coming-back-together stuff so fast that when it was over, you barely even noticed because you were laughing the whole time (often at Jon Favreau.)
Also, Rashida Jones was adorable with her little ironic baby tees (she had as little to do in this movie as the male fiances in Bride Wars, but that was sort of the point.)
As we left the theater, the male friend I saw the movie with, when asked, summed it up thusly: "It was better than I thought it would be. It was actually better than Role Models." Yep.
Your turn.
Posted by Lindsay at 12:15 PM in The Videogum Movie Club
Tags: Andy Samberg | Aziz Ansari | I Love You Man | J.K. Simmons | Jaime Pressley | Jane Curtin | Jason Segel | Joe Lo Truglio | Jon Favreau | Knowing | Nicholas Cage | Paul Rudd | Rashida Jones | Rob Huebel | Tom Lennon
I loved it, man.
Score = 1
not a whole lot
Score = -2
if you really think there aren't any guys like paul rudd's character who don't have male friends because they always had girlfriends you are living in a tiny, tiny, bubble.
Score = 20
Those guys sound like a self-selecting not-knowing-a-lot-of-people group, so that's fair.
Score = 4
I thought the AV Club's take on it was pretty fair. They gave it a B-. And definitely not better than Role Models. Not by a mile.
Score = 2
If Role Models is the measuring stick for this movie than I think I'll take a pass. ROLE MODELS = POOP
Score = -20
I thought it was better than Role Models. Sure, it was formulaic. But so was Role Models. This is funnier. The only thing this movie was missing was Jane Lynch.
I liked a lot about this movie. 1.The stupid ass nicknames (Totes Magotes, Joban). 2. Every awkward, uncomfortable moment when Paul Rudd was not cool enough and I felt embarrassed for him. 3. The awesome gay tongue kissing.
Score = 1
It was slightly more than mildly entertaining and there wasn't much about it that I'd consider memorable. The story was pretty lightweight yet there wasn't much else there (the former "The State" cameos were smaller than I expected).
And yes, I liked the whole "slap-a de bass, mon" part, but NO, I will not bring it up or mimic it in front of others.
Score = 0
some thoughts:
1) rashida's dialogue was horrible. and her acting was even worse. TOTALLY PHONED IT IN. what?
2) sydney could have been an annoying holier-than-thou "just chill out, bro" sort of character but he was most defintely not. kudos to Segel for pulling the role off without a hint of douchebaggery.
3) we were kinda heartbroken when we briefly thought sydney was trying to rip Peter off. it would have bummed us out big time and also would have made no sense for the plot at large.
4) i didn't even see paul rudd on the screen when jason segel was around. SWOON.
it was v. cute. thumbs up.
Score = 6
"1) rashida's dialogue was horrible. and her acting was even worse. TOTALLY PHONED IT IN. what?"
Aww... poor Karen Filippelli. I thought she did a great job delivering her limited lines and looked adorable while doing so.
Score = 10
she looked great. amazing clothes. although, i feel like that's not what all you dudes are talking about.
she had lame lines. they were so hackneyed. yuck.
Score = 4
The scene in the car after the toast was kind of awkward...FOR ALL PARTIES! She did the best she could there, but it was a painful. Nobody has that convo..Ever!
Zooey: It's not that I don't like doing it, I do.
Pete: Then why don't you?
Zooey: Because my ex-boyfriend didn't like it.
Me: :::whaa???:::
The tweens sitting next to me: hehe
Score = 3
So wait, he has a brother and doesn't consider him for a best man? So...this is a movie version of Bromance then right? Someone call up Brody Jenner and tell him that bro got swagger jacked.
Score = 0
Loved Jason Segel's character and it was very funny at times, but good God was it formulaic. And it smacked of "wait, we have to repeat this joke a few times to make sure everyone gets it." The puke scene was a dumb gag that might as well have been in American Pie, and there were a couple of those. But the "Dude, you jerked off to a picture of your own girlfriend? That's disgusting!" scene was pretty good, along with a couple others.
Score = 4
I liked the movie alot, but yeah, there were a few things that bugged. Rudd was amazing, but I felt like he spent half the movie saying incredibly awkward things into a phone. Good for a bit, but overkill. Also, the movie tried to make it clear that Rudd was closer to his mom, but he had a good relationship with his father and brother. They tried to shoehorn Samburg into a friend role in the movie and somehow making him Rudd's brother disqualified him for best man. So, premise fail.
Score = 0
Overall I thought it was everything I expected it to be: NOT SHAKESPEARE.
I laughed the entire time. I left thinking about it. It made me try to reconcile with a former friend! So yeah, I though it was everything I had hoped it to be.
My only criticisms-
I agree with the weirdness of the situation that he didn't really have friends, but again- this is not supposed to be a work of art. I'm sure everyone involved knows this.
What irked me the most though was the dialogue that was written for the women, particularly Rashida. total cheese and stooped to SitC.
Score = 1
I completely agree with the poor female dialogue. I was really excited in the beginning that the female characters would be funny and developed and then that kind of just fizzled out, although mad props to Jamie Pressly for being a total scene stealer with such limited dialogue.
I loved it, enjoyed it and it was hilarious but anything involving Paul Rudd and Jason Segel riffing for an hour and a half would've elicited the same response. I had some issues with the lack of character development... I'm still not even sure why Paul and Rashida's characters should've gotten married at all. But yeah, overall, worth the price of admission and I'll probably get in on DVD for the deleted scenes/out takes.
Score = 0
Lindsay, Lindsay, Lindsay! Why!
Definitely not better than Role Models, which gets better every time I see it (especially after watching RM twice this past weekend before going to see I Love You, Man).
It reeked of Wedding Crashers runoff. Not nearly as good as Forgetting Sarah Marshall or even any Apatow movie really. Did you see that one of the writers also wrote DOCTOR DOLITTLE 2!!
Andy Samberg as a "gay guy who can nail straight guys" was almost offensive, but mostly just unbelievable, dumb, and half-assed.
I Love You, Man was the most disappointing trip to the movies in a while.....and I saw Watchmen......
Score = -3
Joe Lo Truglio as the Galaxy superfan was pretty funny.
Score = 2
i liked it.... rudd and seigel were great. jon favreau was kinda annoying thou (can u really be that much of a dick?)
Score = 0
"Why does every voice I do sound like a leprechaun?" - HAHA, classic.
Score = 0
I saw this at sxsw about a week ago, with the cast, and it was awesome. The writer/director explained that the comedy stemmed from his real questions about making friends as an adult. I've been a segel fan since undeclared, so I'm excited to see others realize how freaking talented he is. And, I loved Paul Rudd's ability to convey extreme uncomfortableness hilariously.
Score = 2
I also watched Hot Rod this weekend (and honestly I liked it probably better than this, for its wholehearted absurdity), so every time Andy Samberg was on screen I expected something absurd to happen. It was good that nothing did.
I loved the bit where he says that he only pursues straight guys now because gay guys aren't enough of a challenge.
And J.K. Simmons is always good. Rashida Jones was boring but avoided being detestable as a character, which easily could have happened. A+ would watch again.
Score = 1
while i did love it, man, this exchange from role models is funnier than anything in i love you man:
-hey, nice cow costume, homo. where'd you get it, the gay zoo?
-this is not a cow. this is a minotaur. a creature of myth. and he got it out of your mom's closet.
-she let me keep it after i fucked her.
Score = 2
Haha, I watched that last night. And I am not dissing Role Models. I bought Role Models. I own Role Models. It's awesome. Duh.
Score = 2
It was a pretty simple movie so there's not too much to say about it. I loved the scenes with just Paul and Jason playing off each other and enjoyed the quick resolution in the third act. And Is it just me or did Jason's character remind you of an 30-year-old version of Nick from Freaks and Geeks?
Score = 1
Thought it was great.
"see you later, Jobin"
Score = 2
I liked that part when Paul Rudd and Jason Segel were deviating from the script and obviously riffing. I mean, just put these two guys in a room and turn the camera on, am i right or am i right? ( i am not right, this movie was a piece of shit)
Score = -3
I saw it twice this weekend. The bro-sayings that were touted in the advertising were annoying in the advertising, but actually funny in context. The 15 year old next to me screamed at the words "period" and "tampon" which was a hilarious side effect.
The prolonged awkwardness was the best. There's a comedy rule that if you repeat something enough times, it goes from being funny, to no longer funny, to funny again. Slapping the bass is a perfect example of that.
The women were probably the least funny, which is unfortunate, but whatever. We lose this round I guess. But I loved all the stereotypical romcom scenes applied to dudes, and I had no problem with the premise because its believable enough. During the previews they showed a trailer for Crank 2 and after watching that, almost any other movie premise became the most believable reality ever invented.
Score = 1
I expected it to be...funnier. I enjoyed it but it was no Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I think that part of the reason I didn't like it was because I wasn't expected to feel so uncomfortable during the movie. It was like The Office x20.
Score = 0
Great, great, great.
And it was definitely better than Role Models. Your review is spot-on, Lindsay.
Score = 0
Question: Did Gabe see this movie or did he refuse to take part in the movie club for this week?
Score = 0
Nor did I see "Watchmen."
Score = 0
Paul Rudd in Wet Hot American Summer and 200 Cigarettes makes me all tingly.
Score = 1
Score = 0
As for your problem with the premise, I have to admit, I am that guy. No male friends. In fact, even though I loved the movie, watching the movie actually made me feel really bad about this fact. And I don't even have any good excuses like "I'm an Army brat". The only one I could think of is that I work in a female dominated profession (teaching). So... for the record, it's not a ridiculous concept.
Every day you should post at least one clip from Wet Hot American Summer. It could be the best movie ever made.
Score = 0
Lindsay, maybe "dude" movies are not for you...
Score = 0
Yeah, I have to disagree with the problems with the premise as well. It's very realistic. Though not as bad as in the movie (where he has zero), I've definitely always been the guy with a girlfriend who has very few guy friends. And the longer you're that dude, the harder it is to know what to do and how to act in GuyLand. The premise was the whole reason I went to see it. "A pain I know all too well" Sorry, had to make a Simpsons reference.
P.S. probably not funnier than Role Models. It loses a lot of steam at the end. But still funny.
Score = 2
just saw it tonight...i didn't think it was as funny/good as either role models or forgetting sarah marshall, but i don't feel like i wasted my money. paul rudd and jason segel were GREAT, and the state cameos were fun, jo lo truglio and rob huebel and that dangle from reno 911 were hilarious. 'jobin' was amazing. but there was something about a lot of it that gave me the impression of trying to hard and falling short, or maybe yeah just being too formulaic. i think i am already over this 'bromance' thing, i actually rolled my eyes in the wedding scene. once you hear that joke once or twice (they're straight dudes acting like a couple!) it's not really that funny anymore. or at least it isn't for me. still though, b+ would rent to watch the dvd extras.
Score = 0
Wow, I hated this movie. I love Paul Rudd, Jason Segel, etc., but this was flat out awful. From the premise, to the plot, to the dialogue. Nothing happens in this movie, there is no conflict, and there is no development. Paul Rudd, for no real reason, suddenly decides to provoke a fight with his fiancée, then blames Segel for causing the break-up, then gets back together with Jones even though nothing has changed, and then Rudd and Segel make-up because the movie is ending and they are supposed to get back together.
Their characters were awful, across the board. Seriously, are we still doing that 'there are rules to BLANK' crap in movies? I thought/hoped that stuff would die with Swingers, but every lazy writer with nothing better to do must sit around for hours working on these arbitrary, stupid self-helpish philosophies. And I know Rudd tries to deflate this when he breaks up with Segel, but that still doesn't account for the fact that we have had to sit through twenty 'walking in Venice' scenes with him rambling on without even accidentally making a point or a joke.I also like how most of the scenes consisted of charachters directly stating their personality traits. That's much easier than having to write dialogue or scenes.
And I would like to judge the jokes, but honestly I couldn't find any. With these actors and nearly two hours to kill, how do you not accidentally at least create a joke? It felt like each actor was waiting for the writer/director to give them something to work with. The best part of the movie for me was when Rudd was talking about 'slapping the bass' in their home for what felt like 45 minutes. A woman in the #non-laughing# audience had finally had enough and yelled 'for Christ's sake, just end the fucking scene'. That pretty much sums up the whole movie.
Score = -1
How is it that people who hated movies somehow always manage to be in a theater where everyone else hates the movie? And vice versa? I've very rarely had such a homogeneous experience.
Score = 0
Best line of the film: "I haven't seen them since the 'Signals' tour."
Also, the origin of a new Rudd dance when he's calling for a cab after the tits fish tacos? Great work.
Score = 0