If you were in charge of marketing the film, you'd have no hesitation before deciding to advertise Forgetting Sarah Marshall as the latest from producer Judd Apatow. Which is why it's a bit ironic that this film would be better if we were somehow able to completely forget that Apatow's earlier films existed.Sure, Forgetting Sarah Marshall was written by first-timer Jason Segel, but this film (along with Superbad, the recent Pineapple Express, and the upcoming Zack and Miri Make a Porno) is unmistakably part of the Apatow franchise. It centers around a positively Apatowian slacker-star; it features numerous references to cannabis; and, while it does cash in quite a bit on gross-out humor, it does so without checking its brain at the door.
Writer Jason Segel, recognizable as one of Seth Rogen's stoner friends in Knocked Up, also serves as the star of this film, a musican named Peter Bretter. The movie begins with Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), the star of a prime-time crime procedural drama called "CrimeScene: Scene of the Crime," breaking up with Peter, who does the music for the same show. Peter's pain is magnified by the fact that Marshall is now dating Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), a vaguely Liam Gallagher-esque British rocker. The pain is further compounded when Peter takes a Hawaiian vacation to ease his pain, and ends up at the same hotel that Sarah and Alduous are staying at.
The movie cashes in on the pathos of Peter's impossibly bad trip for awhile, until he starts falling for the hotel's hospitality director, Rachel (Mila Kunis). Then there's the excitement of new love, the confused and complicated mixture of feelings for lovers old and new, the inevitable misunderstanding, and, finally, the satisfying resolution.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall is helped quite a bit by the loving attention it devotes to its smaller roles, most notably the suddenly ubiquitous Jack McBrayer as a sexually confused honeymooner. It's also helped by the fact that it avoids making any character entirely into a villain. Sure, Sarah Marshall cheated on her boyfriend, but it's not like he was being an ideal boyfriend at the time. Sure, Aldous--as the new boyfriend--is kind of a tool. But he's also--as Peter admits--kind of cool.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall is hurt by the fact that it seems about 30 minutes longer than it needs to be. And by the fact that it's kind of, well, forgettable. But why is it forgettable? Well, that'll require us to glance back at the recent history of comedy.
When you do look back, there's actually a pretty predictable pattern with comedy franchises. There's the Discovery, the Crowning Achievement, and then the Gradual Decline. For example:
The Farrelly brothers announced themselves to the watching world with Dumb & Dumber, established themselves as a lucrative comedic force with There's Something About Mary, and then released a few more movies that ranged from decent to abysmal, none of which could come close to matching the success of Mary.
While Will Ferrell made his reputation on Saturday Night Live, he got "discovered" by the greater public by being the funniest thing in Zoolander. He was then given a vehicle that was distinctively his in Anchorman, and has yet to match the success of that vehicle.
Even a more highbrow comedic director like Wes Anderson fits this model: He announced himself with Rushmore, had his financial crowning achievement with The Royal Tenenbaums, and hasn't had any movie do as well since.
So it shouldn't come as any surprise that the Judd Apatow franchise is falling into the same pattern. He was "discovered" after 40-Year-Old Virgin, crowned after Knocked Up, and is now enjoying a very slow decline.
So what really hurts Forgetting Sarah Marshall is the same things that hurt all the other comedic franchises listed above. What makes any comedy sparkle is the element of freshness, of surprise -- the ability of a comedic mastermind to make you see something in a way that you've never seen it before. But the Faustian trade-off of the Crowning Achievement is that once you've been crowned, you're known. And your perspective--which was once fresh, unique, surprising--is now, well, mainstream.
That's not necessarily a death knell; comedic franchises can go on to have long and successful Gradual Declines (as Adam Sandler has proved). But it's nearly impossible to recreate the success and excitement that comes with the Crowning Achievement.
So for better or for worse, Forgetting Sarah Marshall is sort of what you'd expect. It offers that same Apatow sensibility that you already know, which is both its benefit and its curse. In the end, it's not an embarrassment, but neither is it a triumph. In short, it's about a 5.
Iconic lines:
"When life gives you lemons, just say 'F*ck the lemons,' and bail."
"You have Christ between your thighs... only with a shorter beard."
Aldous, in a music video, holds up a sign that reads "Sodomize Intolerance."
6 comments:
No, no, no. Superbad was the funniest Judd Apatow movie so far. Just because that Forgetting Sarah Marshall wasn't amazing, and Pineapple Express didn't know what it wanted to be doesn't mean that he's in a decline.....yet. It's just the law of diminishing returns.
i think, maybe, DW, that you have slightly unrealistic views of Apatow's involvement in his films, Virgin and Knocked Up excluded. he directed those ywo films, but for the rest of the films in the Apatow canon, he was at most one of the producers. while he had the final okay on whether or not the movie got made, i can't see him having a big hand in the particulars of Forgetting Sarah Marshall. most of the decisions probably came from the writer (Segel) and the director (Nicholas Stoller). i went back and looked at your review of Superbad, and while you're right that Apatow's fingerprints are all over it, so are writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's. and only the best forensic scientists would be able to tell the difference. likewise, Pineapple Express was only produced by Apatow, and was mainly a Seth Rogen engine. the title of "producer" is sometimes just a way to get your name associated with a project and nothing more (coughcoughSpielbergcoughcough). while Apatow's involvement was most likely greater than that, it's something to bear in mind. in light of that idea, Apatow may not be on the decline you described.
I was not a huge fan of this movie, I laughed a few times but not enough to improve the experience of watching a movie. I am slightly less than "meh" about this movie so I give it a -1.
I was able to attend a preview screening of the film here in LA which was followed by a Q&A with Jason Segal. He talked a bit about his relationship with Judd and how he was supposed to have the lead in a few of Judd's earlier films but the studios wouldn't back him as a lead. Judd basically told Jason that if he wrote and directed a film, he would back it for him so it could get made because he recognized Jason's talent.
also, correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Zak and Miri Kevin Smith's latest? I didn't think Judd Apatow had anything to do with it.
Excellent responses, all. Let me do my best to respond to them:
I'll start with PM: In a way, it doesn't matter how involved or uninvolved Apatow is with these movies, as long as they still carry his comedic flavor(which Forgetting Sarah Marshall clearly does). The point is, eventually that comedic flavor goes from being fresh and new and surprising to, at best, exactly what you expect. There can still be some benefit to getting exactly what you expect, but it'll match the excitement of the fresh and new.
In that vein, maybe YRF's "law of diminishing returns" is a better way to say what I've termed a "decline." It's not necessarily that the films are getting worse, it's that it takes that much more to impress us.
(I'd also argue that Knocked Up was better than Superbad, if not necessarily funnier, but that's a separate argument.)
And cmdluke: You're absolutely right. I was distracted by the presence of Seth Rogen, but Zack & Miri is indeed a Kevin Smith project.
And that leaves some uncertainty as to how that mix of comedic flavors will turn out. Will it be two great tastes that taste better together, like, say, chocolate and peanut butter? Will they simply co-exist without generating a new taste, like peas and carrots? Or will it two great tastes that don't work together, like barbecue sauce on eggs?
First of all, there is nothing wrong with BBQ sauce and eggs.
second, I think seth will work well in zak and miri. The comedy styles of Kevin and Judd are close enough that he will be able to adapt. They are both centered on smart dialogue. not to mention the fact that he is surrounded by some kevin smith regulars.
Kevin's films differ from judd's in that they are more fast talking pop culture humor where as judd's play more to the humor that comes from the emotion of the situations.
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