Year: 2013
Director: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
Screenplay: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
Starring: Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny
McBride, Craig Robinson
Synopsis is here
With This is the End I’m really at a loss. I’m not sure if it’s the
cast's slow crawl to irrelevance, a weak grip on the material or my successful
humour transplant. But it’s safe to say that I found this directorial début from Superbad’s Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg to be something of wasted opportunity,
in more ways than one.
While not completely without charm and with a better, kinder head on its
shoulders than one or two of its American comedy counterparts (See The Hangover
Sequels). This apocalyptic comedy suffers from weakly scripted gags and the now
typical pop culture references which date the movie quicker than one would
want. The film reeks of the semi-improv chicanery that is affecting so much
mainstream American comedy. I know it
sounds wrong but sometimes structure, even in comedy, is nice.
It's mildly fun to see these guys poke fun at themselves (Franco as an
ignorant celebrity ass is a decent idea), and one or two cameos are
chucklesome. Yet so much of the film, too much, dies on its backside. Mostly
because the main conflict (that Jay Baruchel dislikes how L.A has changed his
best friend Seth Rogen) is poorly utilised, despite being an interesting
concept. I found myself waiting for any moment Danny McBride takes the film by
the scuff of the neck. He affects the film the same way Stevie Gerrard (Google
it non football fans) would take hold of a Cup Final in his prime.
Weed smoking plays a large part of the humour, but it’s often like
watching someone else play a video game. Unless you're involved, it doesn't
feel as fun. Too often I felt like the designated driver having to maintain
while the popular kids have a kick ass time at the back of my borrowed car.
They're having a blast and sometimes I'm involved. In the end however they
leave the vehicle in a mess. For male bonding laughs during the end of the
world, you may want to seek out The World’s End.
