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Friday, September 25, 2009
Observe and Report: The Ten Point Review
- If anyone but Seth Rogan had played the role of Ronnie, a seriously unhinged security guard, it might have been a horrible movie. His likability is the only thing that redeems the violent, delusional loser.
- And beware: there are things in here that will make you wince. Not least of which is the occasional bit of male, full-frontal nudity (and not in a way that many folks are bound to find aesthetically pleasing).
- More, though, it’s the darkness of the humor and the savagely cruel life of Ronnie that will set the viewer on edge.
- Yeah, it’s funny, but it’s mean, too. Sometimes, really mean.
- There’s a scene in which a police officer announces, “I thought it was going to be funny. It’s just kind of sad.” Well, it really is a funny movie in places, but that line is one of the more memorable moments because its not far off how the audience is starting to feel. Laughing at the lovable loser (see Paul Blart, Mall Cop for an example) can be awfully fun. This just feels little too honest to be full-on funny, though.
- It’s the difference, pardon the cliché, between laughing with someone and laughing at someone. Only someone truly cruel likes laughing at someone like Ronnie, who isn’t a horrible soul but most certainly is a failure as a human being by almost any standard.
- Beautifully shot.
- The occasional violence has a nasty, vicious feel. That’s not a complaint. The cruel edge helps to maintain the dark, broken tone of the whole thing. That is, it maintains that tone except for where it dives fully into insane bouts of silliness (as in the big mall fight scene wherein we learn that Ronnie wields one mean Maglite).
- Supporting characters vary wildly between poorly rendered cardboard cut-outs and ridiculously effective counterpoints to Ronnie.
- By the end--maybe an overly positive end--I was pulling for Ronnie. I wouldn’t invite the guy out for drinks, but I wanted him to wake up, wise up, and start getting better.
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