"Are you gonna probe us?"
"Why does everyone always assume that? What am I doing? Am I harvesting farts? How much can I learn from an ass?"
"Why does everyone always assume that? What am I doing? Am I harvesting farts? How much can I learn from an ass?"
The Story:
Graeme Willy (Simon Pegg) and Clive Gollings (Nick Frost) are a couple of British geeks who are making the nerdiest pilgrimage of them all: the annual San Diego Comic-Con. This just serves as a mere undercard to their main event, however, as they engage on a barnstorming tour of the southwest, hitting notorious hotspots for UFO sightings and alleged alien activity. They end up having a very close encounter of the raucous kind when they stumble upon Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen), an alien life form who is on the lamb, having escaped from the government agents that have kept him captive for over 30 years. Along the way, they pick up a sheltered religious zealot, Ruth, (Kristen Wiig) as they attempt to elude various authorities.
The Review:
Paul continues the grand tradition of comedies made for geek audiences by a bunch of geeks themselves. Pegg and Frost (along with usual cohort Edgar Wright, who doesn‘t tag along for this outing) have endeared themselves to the fanboy crowd with films like Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, which sent up zombie and action films, respectively. This film isn’t so much a send up as it is a love letter to the films that obviously informed their youths: Star Wars, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and E.T.. Fellow geeks will enjoy the numerous references to these and other films. My particular favorite was a country-western rendition of a famous Star Wars tune that’s heard when our heroes have to enter a wretched hive of scum and villainy. Genre fans should also keep their ears out for a couple of famous voices--one eventually shows her face, and let’s just say she’s had multiple experiences with aliens.
But she never quite ran into an alien like Paul, a foul-mouthed, pot-smoker who’s just as spaced out on earth. It essentially feels like Seth Rogen is just wearing an alien costume, not that there’s anything wrong with that. The expected zany antics ensue--after all, how could they not, given the situation and the fact that Superbad director Greg Mottola is at the helm? His slick, energetic approach is a good fit for Pegg and Frost’s screenplay, which mostly trades in the clever, witty banter of their previous films for low brow raunchiness. Most of the humor works, and the duo doesn’t completely abandon their penchant for witty, well-timed dialogue. This is particularly seen in some choice bits that are repeated throughout (such as everyone’s consensus that a girl with three breasts is indeed awesome). One can see Superbad similarly echoed in a pair of dimwitted, doofus agents (Bill Hader and Joe Lo Truglio), who are like dorkier, more incompetent counterparts to Slater and Michaels in that film. Hader especially excels at being earnest to the point of absurdity considering the situation at hand.
But for all its silliness and bawdiness, Paul is a tale about outcasts and misfits; nerds like Graeme, Clive, and Ruth are typical likable underdogs for tales like this. It’s up to alien Paul to show them that they can belong and finally rule the day; there’s a sincerity and warmth at the center of this film that glows every bit as brightly as E.T.’s finger. The film shows that aliens often get a bad rap--maybe they’re not as concerned with anal probes as they are probing our souls and showing us what we’re capable of. Maybe we can get the girl or write that incredibly nerdy science fiction novel after all. These are all lessons learned along a journey that culminates in an outrageous climax whose neck is likely worn out from the constant nods it gives to other films. It’s a total blast (literally) that solidifies Paul's status as the best alien buddy comedy since Meatballs II. (Brett G.)
But for all its silliness and bawdiness, Paul is a tale about outcasts and misfits; nerds like Graeme, Clive, and Ruth are typical likable underdogs for tales like this. It’s up to alien Paul to show them that they can belong and finally rule the day; there’s a sincerity and warmth at the center of this film that glows every bit as brightly as E.T.’s finger. The film shows that aliens often get a bad rap--maybe they’re not as concerned with anal probes as they are probing our souls and showing us what we’re capable of. Maybe we can get the girl or write that incredibly nerdy science fiction novel after all. These are all lessons learned along a journey that culminates in an outrageous climax whose neck is likely worn out from the constant nods it gives to other films. It’s a total blast (literally) that solidifies Paul's status as the best alien buddy comedy since Meatballs II. (Brett G.)
Tale of the Tape:
8 out of a possible 10 inches.
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