Observe and Report (2009)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

Jody Hill

Writer (WGA):

Jody Hill (written by)

Release Date:

10 April 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Crime

Tagline:

Right now, the world needs a hero.

Plot:

Bi-polar mall security guard Ronnie Barnhardt is called into action to stop a flasher from turning shopper's paradise into his personal peep show. But when Barnhardt can't bring the culprit to justice, a surly police detective, is recruited to close the case. |

Plot Keywords:

Bi Polar | Mall | Flasher | Police Detective | Security Guard

Cast

Seth Rogen	...	Ronnie Barnhardt
Ray Liotta	...	Detective Harrison
Michael Peña	...	Dennis
Anna Faris	...	Brandi
Dan Bakkedahl	...	Mark
Jesse Plemons	...	Charles
John Yuan	...	John Yuen
Matt Yuan	...	Matt Yuen
Celia Weston	...	Mom
Collette Wolfe	...	Nell
Randy Gambill	...	Pervert
Alston Brown	...	Bruce
Cody Midthunder	...	D-Rock
Deborah Brown	...	Female Reporter (as Debra-Jayne Brown)
Aziz Ansari	...	Saddamn

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive language, graphic nudity, drug use, sexual content and violence.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #45064) | Australia:MA | Ireland:16 | UK:15 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A | Finland:K-15 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Bosque Farms, New Mexico, USA

Company:

De Line Pictures

Trivia:

Jody Hill has described his initial inspiration for this film as wanting to do a comedic version of Taxi Driver (1976).

Quotes:

Dennis: My bad, my blunder.

Movie Connections:

References The Foot Fist Way (2006)

Very Dark and Very Funny, But That's Not All

I went in to the movie theater to see "Observe and Report" knowing it was going to be a lot darker than a typical goofball comedy. After all, if it came out two months after another slapstick film like "Paul Blart: Mall Cop", it better not be the same movie. Still, despite having that expectation going in, I didn't expect a lot of other elements in the movie, particularly the surprisingly effective dramatic ones. Based on that, I also didn't expect to really like the movie the way I did.

The movie starts out brilliantly with scenes from a mall familiar to anyone who has either worked in one or has gone to one at 9 A.M. in the morning at least once. It's an excellent montage showing the diversity of mall customers from the toy stores to the food court. Any other casting director may have stuck perfect looking people in that scene, but its familiarity to people who don't live in L.A. makes it work so much better.

From that scene comes a part I expected only from reading reviews beforehand. You see the back of a flasher's trenchcoat as he roams around a large parking lot flashing mostly women. The plot, or at least one element of it, presents itself, and in comes Seth Rogen.

I really went to see this movie because of Seth Rogen, since he has not done wrong in a movie yet. What I didn't expect was for Rogen's character, "Officer" Ronnie Barnhardt, to be so believably dislikeable, especially in the beginning. Rogen in this role reminded me of some people I went to high school with who were so delusional and full of themselves that they came off as arrogant and posturing. That's good, though, because it's about time Rogen plays someone who isn't just a lovable yet unmotivated guy again. He will eventually play that character so familiar in movies like "Knocked Up" and "Zack & Miri Make A Porno" again soon. For now, it's just refreshing to see him play someone else, even if it's someone you don't expect to dislike.

Anna Faris also usually plays a likable goofy person in her movie roles, especially in comedies. Although she's still funny in this movie, she, like Rogen, plays someone who is like the popular girl in high school you love to hate. Barnhardt's crush on her also strikes many familiar tones, and his disillusionment with their relationship is entirely believable. There has been some controversy over his taking Faris' drunken character home after a date and then having sex with her even though she is partially unconscious. It's a shocking scene that many have characterized as rape, and they're correct. However, in a scene like this, it is not as though the movie is advocating this kind of promiscuity. Far from it, in fact. Anyone who has these kinds of hook-ups, and there are sadly many, is out of their mind and needs help. Rogen's character definitely needed help, especially since his character is bipolar, as the movie revealed shortly before that scene.

Besides Faris, Rogen didn't have anyone to play off of in the movie, since his character is so self-absorbed and standoffish he makes almost every other character uncomfortable in his presence. Rogen's Barnhardt won't play off any other person because he refuses to even if giving the opportunity. Having Ray Liotta play Detective Harrison was a good casting choice. Especially good was the part where Liotta's character loses it and goes on a screaming rant towards Barnhardt. Liotta's rant was somewhat unexpected, but Rogen's reaction was not.

That being said, his fellow security workers seemed a bit pointless to me as characters. There was the Mexican-American who served an important part in the story three quarters of the way through, but came off to me as a one-dimensional stereotype than a convincing character. The twin Asian security guards also didn't seem to serve a purpose, and they said very little throughout the movie. Why did the movie even need twins anyway? I just didn't see the point.

On the whole, though, "Observe and Report" is a good vehicle for Seth Rogen. He shows in this role that he can play unlikeable just as well as he can likable, and he can still be funny. This movie is far more like "Bad Santa" and "Heathers", which is not bad at all. It's funny, but with incredibly despicable people. It's just the believability of the characters, the absurdity of the situations, and the great plot twists really engage you into the movie, as it should. Just like Adam Sandler in "Punch-Drunk Love", if you come in with more of an open mind, you'll see that Seth Rogen's darker side can carry a movie very well. Although the film is not perfect, I still recommend it.