American Reunion

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Role Models

Director: David Wain
Starring: Paul Rudd, Seann William Scott, Elizabth Banks, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Bobb'e J. Thompson, Jane Lynch
Running Time: 100 min.
Rating: Unrated

★★★ (out of ★★★★)

Familiarity can breed contempt and it seems every other week a new R rated comedy comes out that features the usual Judd Apatow players, or if they're not, they feel like they are. But something hit me while watching David Wain's Role Models. Apatow's name isn't anywhere on it as either producer, writer or director yet I'm still mentioning him in this review. Sure, a couple of actors who have appeared in his films are featured here but he was in no way creatively involved with this picture. Still, it's impossible to watch this and not think how closely it resembles much of his output.

As much as I complain that Apatow doesn't always get it right (Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall), a lot of the time he does (The 40-Year-Old-Virgin, Superbad, Pineapple Express) and despite my occasional misgivings toward this brand of comedy, no other recent filmmaker has made as positive an impact on film. Because of him actors and actresses who would be unthinkable as leads just a few years ago are now headlining major releases and the face of comedy has completely changed. It's smarter and everyone else has been forced to step up their game. Spielberg is an influential producer and director but have his projects transformed an entire genre and actually MADE stars? Have other writers and directors tried to imitate him? Are his fingerprints on movies he had nothing to do with? Wain was around way before Apatow starting on MTV's The State and moving on to direct one of the most underrated comedies of the past decade in Wet Hot American Summer. He knows what he's doing anyway but there's no denying this new style of comedy has influenced his latest, and in a mostly good way.

Energy drink salesmen Wheeler (Seann William Scott) and Danny (Paul Rudd) travel from school to school hawking their Minotaur beverage and urging kids to stay off drugs (isn't caffeine a drug?) While Wheeler loves his job and is essentially a big kid, Danny is cold and morose wondering how his life got so off track as he passes 30. After his girlfriend Beth (Elizabeth Banks) can't stand it anymore and dumps him, he and Wheeler find themselves sentenced to 150 hours of community service after causing property damage at a school. The charity they're sent to is "Sturdy Wings," a big brother like program led by recovering drug addict Gayle Sweeney (Jane Lynch) whose behavior and methods in overseeing the program are bizarre to say the least. We find out about her troubled history through a hysterical flashback video that may be the highlight of the entire film.

The guys are assigned to a kid each with Wheeler stuck with Ronnie (Bobb'e J. Thompson), a foul-mouthed 10-year-old obsessed with breasts. On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, Danny is assigned nerdy teen outcast Augie (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), who's obsessed and way too involved with a live-action Medieval role playing game called LAIRE (Live Action Interactive Role-playing Experience). Unless Danny and Wheeler provide sufficient guidance to these kids and carry out all their tasks within the allotted time, Gayle will call the judge and have them thrown in the slammer, an option that's beginning to look better to them by the second.

Predictably, after a rough early going, Danny and Wheeler start to bond with the kids and find a common ground on which they can connect. The story's obvious from the first frame but that's not why you watch a movie like this. You watch to laugh and there are plenty of laughs here thanks to some scene-stealing performances and Wain's affectionate depiction of a role playing universe we don't often see explored in comedies. It would have been so easy (almost too easy) for Wain to take cheap shots at this hobby that is supposedly popular among geeky circles but rather than laugh AT the people involved in it Wain lets us laugh WITH the characters and appreciate their dedication to it. I was surprised how involved and excited I was during the final fight and found it interesting how all the role-players are on the same page with their honor system. But the largest reason Augie's role-playing sub-plot works is Mintz-Plasse.

Like in Superbad, Plasse is playing a nerd but you'll be surprised just how differently he does it this time. That character was confident in his non-conformity while Augie is kind of hurting and struggling to fit in. It's a small touch, but Plasse plays it just right. This isn't just a rehash of McLuvin' as the trailers and commercials indicated. Kerri Kenney-Silver and Ken Marino also manage to get some good jabs in as Augie's unlikable mom and boyfriend, particularly during a memorable dinner scene with Rudd's character. Plasse's junior co-star Bobb'e J. Thompson is basically playing a 10-year-old Chris Rock, cursing up a storm and having a blast doing it. It's hilarious at first but after a while it started to wear on me.

Though its through no fault of his own Seann William Scott is saddled playing an older version of Stifler in that there isn't much depth to that character beyond his emotional immaturity. But he does have a great scene where he offers up the most logical defense of KISS's music possible. Rudd, who seems to be the go-to leading man in comedies these days, succeeds in making Danny a depressed jerk, but invests him with enough innate likability and charisma that we still really want to root for the guy.

The always lovely Banks is given one of her least memorable roles to date as the thankless love interest, but given the nature of this script I'm not sure much more could have been done with the part, or that it needed to be. What all the performances have in common is that they pale in comparison to the work of Jane Lynch, who steals the entire movie with her zany portrayal of program founder Gayle. The things that come out of her mouth are completely insane but Lynch finds a way to somehow ground it in reality enough that she's a believable counselor also, which just make her antics even funnier. Just as strong is Ken Jeong as Augie's role-playing arch-nemesis King Argotron, who plays his part so hilariously straight you'd think he wandered off the set of Braveheart.

It's a relief knowing that comedies have gotten a lot smarter lately and the amount of unfunny ones being released in a given year are lower than ever. The Apatowian R-Rated comedy with a message is just about the safest studio bet left and there are many audiences out there who will only take a trip to the theater to see this kind of film. Having said that, I'm not sure how long it'll be before I start to tire of them. We're not there yet, but I can easily see it happening. The same actors are starring in the same types of movies with only slight variations on similar themes and you have to wonder how long it'll be before they run out of gas. Luckily, Wain's script and the performances come through to make Role Models more entertaining than most.

Mr. Woodcock

Director: Craig Gillespie
Starring: Billy Bob Thornton, Seann William Scott, Susan Sarandon, Amy Poehler, Melissa Sagemiller, Ethan Suplee
Running Time: 87 min.
Rating: PG-13

*** (out of ****)

We've all had a teacher like Jasper Woodcock at some point during our lives. Also at some point we've all shaken our heads in disbelief as seemingly attractive and intelligent women actually marry guys like him. If you're as unlucky as the main character in this film maybe one of those women was your mom. It's that glimmer of recognition and other clever life observations that make the humor in Mr. Woodcock work. You could tell yourself that the movie is exaggerating or takes things too far, but if it is, it's not by much. Teachers like Woodcock exist and they're often rewarded for their despicable behavior because either people are too dumb to notice or afraid to do anything about it.

Much to my amazement, the movie takes this situation and rather than exploit it with silly sight gags or toilet humor instead looks at it intelligently and mines laughs from the absurdity of everyday life. Despite what its off-color title may suggest, other than some sexual innuendo, this is a comedy that the whole family can enjoy together and also delivers a positive message without pandering to its audience. Most importantly, all the actors look like they're having a great time, except for Billy Bob Thornton who, as usual, is paid to look like he's not. It's a role he's mastered and even if you're sick of it by now, there's no one who does it better.

As a child John Farley (Seann William Scott) was tormented daily by his sadistic gym teacher, Mr. Woodcock (Thornton). Constantly harassed about his weight and even forced to do pull-ups in his underwear he somehow managed to overcome this childhood trauma and become a successful self-help guru and bestselling author ala Tony Robbins. His book, titled "Letting Go" gave inspiration to millions hoping to let go of their pasts and reach their full potentials. Fresh off his book tour, John returns to his mid-west hometown to be honored by the community for his accomplishments and take part in the annual "Cornival." He instead comes home to a terrifying reality: His widowed mom Beverly (Susan Sarandon) is dating Mr. Woodcock. What the film does with this information is a good example of what differentiates a smart comedy script from a stupid one. Michael Carnes and Josh Gilbert wrote a surprisingly smart one.

You'd probably expect the rest of the movie to consist of John conjuring up sick, disgusting schemes to break up Woodcock and his mom with Woodcock retaliating and making his life hell again. But actually John approaches the problem logically, as any of us would, and Woodcock doesn't let John's slowly growing hysteria over the situation get to him one bit. Thornton plays it as straight as he would if he were in an Oscar nominated drama, which just makes everything that much funnier. Rather than relying on gross-out gags director Craig Gillespie lets the situation do the work and relies on the two actors to play off one another, which they do quite well.

The movie also goes unburdened with useless, distracting sub-plots and gets a lot of details right regarding small-town life. That hot girl you went to grade school with does eventually become a teacher there and that old buddy from your class still works at the pizza place. This stuff happens…all the time. It'll be 20 years later and no one has left the town. It's funny because it's so true. John's budding relationship with his crush (played by Melissa Sagemiller) isn't shoved down our throats, nor does it just exist for John to make a blubbering fool out of himself as it would any other comedy. It can't really go anywhere because while he's convinced everyone else he's let go of the past, he hasn't fully convinced himself. I liked how they're just two people at different places in their lives and it doesn't work out. That's how it goes sometimes. The script doesn't go for any unnecessary fireworks that would potentially distract from the main storyline.

You'd understand how a community that celebrates structure would be blind to Woodcock's sadistic behavior and even want to honor him. And honestly, how many times in your life have you seen complete assholes praised for their "accomplishments?" I'm sure too many instances to name. In one hilarious scene he torments the elderly, but you'd see why they'd appreciate it because they finally have someone who won't talk down to them and treat them like everyone else. Think of how smart it was for the screenwriters to subtly slide that detail in there. It changes everything. The movie's send-up of the self-help profession is a highlight, with Seann William Scott being not only likable, but surprisingly believable as a motivational speaker and bestselling self-help author. Amy Poehler also has some really funny scenes as his high-strung alcoholic agent.

Thornton finds a way to slide some humanity into the performance, so Woodcock comes very close but stops just short of going too far. Well, okay he does go too far but we accept it in this context. The way he plays him he seems more like a guy with an anti-social disorder and major baggage than just an evil jerk. People like this exist. If any other actress but Susan Sarandon was playing the lovelorn Beverly I'm convinced we wouldn't buy it. She somehow makes us believe she would fall for this guy without looking like a complete idiot. The underrated script knows that sometimes people are so caught up in the idea of being in love they ignore their partner's obvious character flaws. And yes, even if those flaws are as reprehensible as Mr. Woodcock's. It also knows that some act differently around those they care about to the point that they can seem like a completely different person.

For a change, the characters don't undergo a huge transformation overnight that results in a contrived ending. They still have their problems and have to learn to tolerate one another and work through them. Other than one grandstanding gag I was amazed how restrained and intelligent the finale was for this type of movie. With Bad Santa, The Bad News Bears and School for Scoundrels Billy Bob Thornton has been accused of playing variations the same role over and over again. While I agree that it's definitely time for him to move on to something new, there's a little more depth to it this time around and he can take some credit for supplying it. Mr. Woodcock may not be a great film, but it doesn't do much wrong and is consistently entertaining. That's a lot more than you could say for most of the other comedies released these days.