Summary:
A bi-polar mall cop decides to be a police officer to take down a streaking menace.
My Thoughts
Just to be clear from the start, Observe and Report is a pitch black comedy. It's meant to offend and it's not going to cater to everyone's tastes. The premise itself is already fairly offensive, it follows a bi-polar mall cop (Seth Rogen, “Pineapple Express”) who eventually worms his way into try outs for the police department. In the same vein as “Bad Words” or “Bad Santa”, “Observe and Report” is as mean and nasty as they come. I'm not surprised this movie didn't do so well critically, or commercially, but if you're a sick bastard like I am, this might just strike the right cord.
As Ronnie's (Rogen) sole mission is to catch a chronic streaker who has shown his junk and then some to Ronnie's heart throb Brandi (Anna Faris, “Overboard”), it should be obviously that this film relies heavily on off color and politically incorrect humor, nasty language, and some really disgusting gags. In one scene, Ronnie takes Brandi out for drinks, she has far too much and vomits, and yet Ronnie still plants a big open mouth kiss on to her. There's a date rape joke, but not surprisingly that one just isn't okay no matter the context. It's gross out and malicious comedy, but that's not to say despite it's mishaps that this movie doesn't have a heart. Somewhere buried deep down in the debauchery there is a message about not letting people control the outcome of your life, but that message is most often covered up by some sort of bodily function, making the heart of the film feel like more of a black hole. But if given to the right audience this film can be absolutely riotous at times.
Director Jody Hill clearly set out to make a specific kind of comedy, and for the most I think he hits it maybe three quarters of the time. Of course there's jokes that don't really stick, like when Aziz Ansari (“This is the End”) and Ronnie say "f*ck you" over and over again, it really just feels too long and forced. But for every missed joke there's at least a couple that do work; the physical humor in particular is brutal and effective. Like I said, this movie will not be for everyone. But if your brand of humor is along the lines of Ray Liotta (“Goodfellas”) screaming at Seth Rogen, calling him a ‘f*ggot and a r*tard’ for making a simple mistake then “Observe and Report” might just be your movie.
By no means is this a stellar movie. Yes, it’ll hit the the funny bone for some, but really the movie is too thin on story for it to really mean anything. And as opposed to a movie like “Bad Words”, which actually had some resemblance of a moral message on the surface, “Observe and Report” really doesn't. The end is more of a gag than it is a resolution, albeit it is a funny ending, it's just not satisfying. This movie relies heavily on Seth Rogen's fierce and hilarious performance; he's large and commanding in the center roll and he carries it with ease. He's a funny actor and this movie probably wouldn't have worked without him. The fight scenes are ridiculous but also very fun to see a big guy like Rogen be light on his feet, much like Chris Farley (“Beverly Hills Ninja”) back in the day (Rogen beating up a gangster Danny McBride (“Tropic Thunder”) and his cronnies is wonderful) .
Verdict
At the end of the day Observe and Report requires a certain kind of taste. The pitch black humor will turn a lot of people off, especially in this day in age. There's a lot of easily offended folks out there, so if you're one of them, this is a hard pass. But if your moral compass is skewed and your mind loves that sort of humor (like me), this movie is full of laughs and fun to be had. Jody Hill wanted make this sort of comedy and for the most part he succeeded. It's quick, nasty, and most of all it's wonderfully offensive. The story is too thinly written and the message is unintentionally smothered, and other than Seth Rogen's Ronnie none of the other characters are likable (Anna Faris especially is annoying as all get out in this film). Some jokes really don't work, but luckily there's a fair share that do. I think the ending could've been executed in a less sloppy way, but if you're in the mood for a mean, gut busting comedy, maybe check out “Observe and Report”.
I give “Observe and Report” 3 stars out of 5.
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