Get Him to the Greek
Get Him to the Greek
is not so much a sequel
to the terrific romantic comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall from a
couple of years ago so much as it is a spin-off.
Arguably the most interesting character in that film was the just slightly
addled rock star Aldous Snow, played with verve and charm by British
comedian Russell Brand. Snow was having an affair with the title character
of the film, all the while trying desperately to cling to his sobriety.
It
was a great, funny character – but when I first heard of this film built
around Aldous, I wondered if the guy could carry a whole film himself or
whether he worked best as supporting comic relief.
The
pleasant surprise is that Greek is just as good – if not even better
– than Sarah Marshall.
In
fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the funniest film of the summer –
the surprise break-out like The Hangover was last summer. It’s not a
perfect film – in fact it is often lowbrow – but it’s a damned funny one and
surprisingly heartfelt at the same time.
Get Him to the Greek
makes no claims towards
artistic deepness, but it is the state of the art in slightly rude guy
humor.
If
those hallmarks sound like the Judd Apatow film factory, it is no real
surprise that this film (and Sarah Marshall) were produced by Apatow
and created by his protégées. Forgetting Sarah Marshall writer/star
Jason Segel is also on board as a producer here and that film’s director
Nicholas Stoller wrote and directed this new chapter in the story.
Even
Jonah Hill is back. He had a supporting role in Forgetting Sarah
Marshall as a waiter who idolizes Aldous Snow. This time around he is
playing a totally different character (no mention of the original character
is made here) and yet in certain ways he is similar.
Hill
plays Aaron Green, a low-level exec at Pinnacle Records who convinces his
bosses that a tenth anniversary show for a legendary concert at LA’s Greek
Theater by his hero – Infant Sorrow leader Aldous Snow – will not only make
the label a mint, but will also revive the rock star’s reputation after a
disastrous “message” album called African Child. (The film has lots
of fun with the reviews of the record, calling it “the worst thing to happen
to Africa since Apartheid.”)
Since the show was his idea, the label sends him off to London to
collect the wildly off-the-wagon rock star, take him to New York to be on
The Today Show and then to LA for the show.
This is easier
said than done, because the rocker has been coddled for so many years that
he has little interest in anything but the next party, dragging Aaron deeper
and deeper into the drugs, sex and the hedonistic
lifestyle of a rock star. Aaron is constantly
trying to corral his traveling companion, who really has no great interest
in whether or not they arrive at the destinations they are expected.
Hill, who in past roles in stuff like Superbad and Night at the
Museum 2 has tended to play things very broadly, here is a team player
and smartly underplays most of his role. He understands he is the straight
man here and his character is all the more hysterical for his desperate
attempts to keep order in the chaos that surrounds Snow at every turn.
Interestingly, the filmmakers realized that if they made Aldous the main
character, they would need a supporting role to come out, steal a bunch of
laughs and then fade away again.
For
that role, they picked rapper/music mogul Sean (P. Diddy) Combs.
I
know, I know, I don’t think of Diddy when I think of comedy, but the guy
hits it out of the park. His role as Pinnacle Records head Sergio Roma is
inspired. Granted, it’s not a huge stretch for him, but the guy is flat-out
hysterical.
In
fact, flat-out hysterical describes most of this film. At the same time,
though, there is a good amount of truly touching scenes between Aaron and
his girlfriend (Elizabeth Moss of Mad Men), Aldous and his pop-star
ex-wife (Rose Byrne of Knowing) and the two guys themselves, who
reach an uneasy truce and friendship.
Get Him to the Greek
isn’t going to get
noticed in awards season, but there is a real skill to putting together a
truly funny, clever, heartfelt comedy – and on that level Get Him to the
Greek is a rousing success.
Jay S. Jacobs
Copyright ©2010 PopEntertainment.com.
All rights reserved. Posted: September 28, 2010.
