i totally didnt recognize Ben Best as that guy from the police station.

Bad Santa is a pretty sharp comparison. Tonally, that is the movie that it reminded me of more than anything else. But the uncomfortable sense of humour employed is up there with BBC’s THE OFFICE.

I think Jody Hill is one of the best things to happen to film in a while. It baffles me how these guys, who I like to call the David Gordon Green crew since they are all friends and hail from South Carolina (i think), found there way into mainstream studio comedy’s. I see them almost as experimental filmmakers, they somehow manage to meld genres and get them thrown out into the mainstream, I love it.

Man Sean, I never understand your star rating system. I always thought 3.5 out of 4 stars would be for something just outside of perfect, yet your written review comes across as it’s a so so movie?! Do you ever go below a 3?

I did like Observe and Report and love the way everyone is low rent, therefore, everyone is worth judging badly. I disagree with you on the ‘f-you’ argument and think it was a clever and totally new take on the way men get in stupid profanity arguments. I also think you are judging Faris against her other bimbo roles and not giving her credit for totally capturing the vapid self obsessed women she is playing here. She was really funny in that date scene and it (like all good comedic performances) was harder than it looks.

I don’t know how I feel about the over-the-top fantasy violence in this latest collection of comedies (Observe and Report, Pineapple Express, Eastbound and Down). The push-pull of laughs and aghast was fun as I sat in a packed theater with a lively audience Friday night. That shit can really turn off an audience if misused even slightly – real risk for the filmmakers. I look forward to a podcast discussion of this topic.

“this sounds pretty concerning if date rape is being played for laughs.”

as opposed to murder or animal cruelty played for laughs in countless other dark comedies? Look, these characters are made to be dispicable, complaining about these characters’ awful actions is kind of foolish in a dark comedy. And for the record, the scene is very funny, mostly because of the delusion of this character who probably a) doesn’t realize what he’s doing and b) thinks its a beautiful romantic ideal evening.

btw, with all the protests of the rape scene, how come none of these people spoke up a couple years ago when Josh Hartnett got raped by a woman in “40 Days and 40 Nights”?

Here Sean, I’ll try a review were I elaborate on the “It’s funny”,

Observe and Report is the latest comedy from writer director Jody Hill (Foot Fist Way, East Bound and Down) and the latest in a string of comedies that are helping usher the public in to a brave new world. If you are entering the theater expecting anything like the other mall cop movie or a Will Ferrell send up of some odd job (anchorman, figure skaters) you my friend are in for a surprise.

Yes, on the surface Observe and Report is about goofy mall cops, bad detectives, vapid cosmetic counter matrons and dysfunctional families, but the real comedic nuggets come from the way Mr. Hill uses these characters lives and actions to reference bigger themes, other movies and genres entirely. It has been stated that Observe and Report is a comedic Taxi Driver; a send up of the lonely maladjusted guy looking for his place in the world on the mean street of the local mall. That layering of message is what makes this comedy so enjoyable to the film fan that desires more than boner and fart jokes. Likewise, Mr. Hill takes the asinine behavior of the homophobic, racist lead to such bizarre heights that the characters actions show the foolishness of the politically incorrect behavior in question. It is fearless, risky, honest comedy not a show focused on puns and cartoonlike characters. The film takes you inside a typical mall filed with typical stupid Americans and turns up the thermostat for laughs.

Using the attitude displayed by the film: Go see, and support, this movie, or don’t, what the f*ck do I care.

“as opposed to murder or animal cruelty played for laughs in countless other dark comedies?”

Yup, definitely as opposed to that. There have been lots of posts in the blogosphere about this movie and I’ll just quote one of them for the sake of brevity: “One out of six women in this country [America] is sexually assaulted in her lifetime. Which means a whole lot of your bromen are confused about what consensual sex is. Is the laugh you get worth making them even more confused?” Murder is not confusing. Animal cruelty is not confusing. Neither happens to one in six people in the population at some point in their lives.

I get that these characters are supposed to be utterly despicable and I’m happy that you, Goon, are able to see the humour in the scene as being based on how pathetic and miserable the situation is because of how pathetic and miserable the characters are and not because “hahaha, he’s having sex with her and she’s unconscious”. I don’t have such faith in the portions of the male population who won’t be able to make such distinctions. (You know, the ones who are convinced that a girl is “asking for it” because she wears a short skirt.)

“how come none of these people spoke up a couple years ago when Josh Hartnett got raped by a woman in “40 Days and 40 Nights”?”

I don’t know, where were they? I never saw the film and hadn’t heard about a rape scene until now. I’d love to see more men speak up about the awfulness that is rape, especially when it comes to men being raped since male rape is definitely under reported to the police.

Liz, I’m usually on your side on this issue (see Twilight chat) but this film is rated R for adult situations and content, as are, many films with rape during war, women that use their bodies to gain something for their children etc. Are you really going to to judge every movie by this issue and not leave it up to the gatekeepers in place: a rating system, the public’s buying power, and the fact that the people watching are by government standards adults and can judge for themselves. Observe and Report went through a rating system and did not receive a higher NC-17 rating, which, in my opinion it would have if it had clear evidence of date rape. Leave it be until you see the film.

And hey, Rus (or anyone else), if you click on my name and go to my site to read any of my reviews, you’ll see just how few are filled with feminist rage!

Liz, From the little time I’ve been associated with you, here and the Twilight chat, you keep expressing this idea that if these films have any hint of physical violence against women the films should receive more censorship. You keep implying this when you question if the films should be allowed to be shown to “portions of the male population”. Both films might tip-toe around the edge of violence against women yet neither actually has direct violence against women. I don’t understand why you feel the need to call for censorship. I feel I need to remind you all the Tennessee Williams and Shakespeare works (among others) that have central themes, story lines and plot points that center around abuse of women. Do you advocate they to be censored? And do you feel a film that has a man undergoing massive amounts of stress at the hands of another party with it ending in him loosing his thumb, should this be censored also. Its the same thing as a women being raped – oppressed by force, physical and emotional damage to victum.

*Rorschach example not due to rape, but because some dumbass might take his style of vigilantism as a good idea.

Rus, I’ve never said anything should be censored. Ever. Seriously. Re-read all my comments, both in this post and the Twilight one. You won’t find a call for censorship. What you will find is my expressing disappointment about what’s being depicted on screen or disappointment that everyone seems quick to write negative or damaging message off as a joke or as not being important. I am not suggesting (nor have I ever suggested) that the film NOT be shown to various segments of the population; I am suggesting that some people will not have the mental tools necessary to deconstruct the scenes for what they are, and will instead take them at face value. It’s because of this it’s important that people are actually talking about these issues, rather than saying “It’s a joke, get over it.”

I can’t comment on Goon’s examples because I haven’t seen two of the films mentioned and I saw “A Clockwork Orange” so long ago that I really don’t remember any of the details of the scene referenced.

“It feels like you’re asking us to idiot proof things based on what specifically makes you uncomfortable.”

No. I’m just asking that people not assume that everyone is smart enough to read between the lines when presented with stuff like this. Everyone here professes to understand that the rape (or pseudo-rape or whatever we want to classify it as) is not funny in and of itself, it’s the fact that Ronnie is clearly delusional, pathetic, and deplorable that makes it funny. It’s great that we’re all smart enough to realise this. I just can’t trust that everyone can make that same distinction. I’ve been in audiences for other “edgy” comedies (“Borat” comes to mind most recently) and the number of people “getting it” vs. the number of people laughing on a surface level at the jokes is what makes me wonder when things like this come up.

At this point, it doesn’t matter, Goon. As per usual, I’ve been worn down to the point where I don’t care either.

I care you don’t care Liz…don’t ever leave filmjunk, we will overdose on testosterone

I’m just coming in to this conversation a little later after having discussed it on the podcast as well. I have to say that with comedy it is kind of the nature of the beast that someone is always going to try to push the envelope a little farther than the last guy. Not everyone will find it funny, and some people will be offended. That’s how it works, and that’s part of the appeal of edgy comedy.

That said, I think Liz brings up a good point, that there probably are people who would misinterpret things, particularly with a movie that stars Seth Rogen that is in wide release. Just like with The Last House on the Left, it’s a bit of an anomaly where these are films that normally would come out in select theatres because you can generally be sure that your audience is going to “get it”. Whether or not a movie like this should be allowed to be made isn’t quite the point, but I think it’s a valid debate over whether or not such a thing should be unleashed on the mainstream multiplex crowds.

That’s true, but just because you’re old enough to get into an R-rated movie doesn’t mean you are well-versed enough to understand the intricacies of a dark comedy.

@ we don’t need to censor our work for these idiots.

Didn’t I just call you out on this?

Rusty James, what the fuck don’t you understand about the ORIGINS of censorship and how it is part of this discourse!?

Censorship is the suppression of speech or deletion of communicative material which may be considered objectionable, harmful or sensitive, as determined by a censor.

The rationale for censorship is different for various types of information censored:

* Moral censorship, is the removal of materials that are obscene or otherwise morally questionable. Pornography, for example, is often censored under this rationale, especially child pornography, which is censored in most jurisdictions in the world.
* Military censorship is the process of keeping military intelligence and tactics confidential and away from the enemy. This is used to counter espionage, which is the process of gleaning military information. Very often, militaries will also attempt to suppress politically inconvenient information even if that information has no actual intelligence value.
* Political censorship occurs when governments hold back information from their citizens. The logic is to exert control over the populace and prevent free expression that might foment rebellion.
* Religious censorship is the means by which any material objectionable to a certain faith is removed. This often involves a dominant religion forcing limitations on less prevalent ones. Alternatively, one religion may shun the works of another when they believe the content is not appropriate for their faith.
* Corporate censorship is the process by which editors in corporate media outlets intervene to halt the publishing of information that portrays their business or business partners in a negative light.

I guess the “fuck” that I don’t understand Rus, is the part where Liz advocated censorship. Maybe it was in some other thread I didn’t read.

Do we consider the studio to be an “external body” if they funded the film? To me censorship would be altering the content or not allowing it to be released at all. It sounds like the studio was pretty flexible in this case.

If they did opt for a more limited distribution it would be a business decision based on whether or not the film would appeal to/be understood by a wider audience.

@ Do we consider the studio to be an “external body” if they funded the film?

No.

It seems the problem with Observe and Report is the same problem with religion: It’s hilarious, but the one thing ruining the joke is all the people who take it seriously.