Movie Review - 'Paul'

Paul Starring Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen Directed by Greg Mottola Rated R

The problem with taking the biggest comedy star in the world and throwing him into your cute little comedy is that he dominates the whole undertaking. That's true even if it's just said star's voice, which is the case with Seth Rogen in Paul. You see a CG-animated alien on screen, but you know it's Rogen behind the animation, and that's enough to make the character hard to buy into.

This is a shame, because the character is funny in concept. He's the most stereotypical bubble-headed little green man we all can think of. That's because he's the one who the stereotype is based on. But every time he talks, you know it's Seth Rogen you're hearing. It makes it so hard to see the character as an alien that it might as well not be... Except for the fact that it's one of those CG characters that can't help but call attention to its CG-ness the entire time it's on screen in the first place.

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are the perfect people to encounter such an extraterrestrial. They come to America on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Comic-Con in San Diego, followed by a journey in a rented RV across the Southwest, visiting all of the legendary locations of sci-fi geekdom. I say they're perfect for this part because they play the fish-out-of-water role so well, being ever so British in an ever-so-American setting to begin with, making them already in the prime mood to encounter things that are alien to them, in one form or another.

When they encounter Paul, the little green man they've been seeing all their lives, it's as if, well, they've been seeing him all their lives. Frost and Pegg don't play their characters as people shocked to be met with such an extra-ordinary experience, but rather ones who almost expect to be in such a position, as if they've been waiting their turn for something like this to happen to them all along.

The movie becomes a pretty standard road-trip/discovery adventure, with the expected cast of characters to be met along the way. There are certain actors these days who are becoming cliched in such roles, Kristen Wiig foremost among them. That's not to say that she doesn't do a good job—she always does, it's just that at this point it's not particularly noteworthy when she pops up because it's the same thing she seems to always be doing. This time her character has an interesting bent, being an advocate of the Intelligent Design "Theory," but the distinction is really just a novel twist on her typical typecasting. Sigourney Weaver, too, shows up in a pretty hilarious part that would be unexpected if it weren't for the fact that she's tending to show up in so many "unexpected" places these days.

Pegg and Frost are the reason for coming to see this movie, though, and I'd say they carry their own if only they weren't so overshadowed by the cartoon version of Seth Rogen that is ever-present from about 10 minutes in. It's weird to say that Paul is a "Seth Rogen movie" when he never actually appears on screen, but at the same time the film never has a chance to get beyond that. It's a piece of voice casting that sounds good on paper, but really doesn't work in practice.

Director Greg Mottola is becoming the go-to guy to helm thoughtful comedies these days, and he doesn't disappoint with what he's given to work with in Paul. It's just that he's handcuffed by the over-bearing presence of Rogen throughout the movie, to the point where even the nuances of Pegg and Frost's script almost fall into the cracks.

If you're one of those people who revels in proudly calling themselves a "geek," you'll enjoy the Comic-Con setting and all of the sci-fi movie allusions that exist throughout Paul. They're all well done, especially the bits involving Adam Shadowchild (Jeffrey Tambor), a science-fiction author who's such a spot-on character you're convinced he must actually exist, exactly in this form, in real life. Unfortunately, you'll find yourself wishing the opposite of the film's title character.

Comments

[MM]

"The problem with taking the biggest comedy star in the world..."

Seth Rogen is the biggest comedy star in the world? Are you on crack or something.

[Mike Chesnut]

Who would you say is bigger right now?

[Chris]

Sandler is still bigger. Rogan is up there cause he's in every freaking movie.

[Mike Chesnut]

Right, and in every freaking movie he just plays "Seth Rogen," which was my point.

I'm not sure I'd say Sandler is bigger right now. Depends on the criteria you want to use, I suppose. The only decent movie either of them has been in the last couple of years was Funny People, and there they were co-stars.

[Krystal]

I found this movie very offensive as a Christian. I can handle a lighthearted joke now and then, but this was a blatant and distasteful mockery of God, and those who believe in him. I am very sad I wasted the money on it.

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