Over the last five years three acts have dominated modern comedy. This first consists of Jon Stewart and his writing team. Whether you agree with his politics or not his show is freaking hysterical. The second is Todd Philips and his merry band of idiots. That name doesn’t ring a bell for you? Well I’m sure The Hangover does and Philips was responsible for it. Find a comedy that was more loved or embraced as strongly by film critics the world over, you won’t. The third act is none other then Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone and Andy Samberg. Collectively known as the Lonely Island. Even if you don’t know them you’ve seen their stuff every time a digital short was on SNL. They created the $^#(@ in the box guys, laser cats and of course Macgruber which is now a feature length film. So was it any good?
Imagine the last time you went to the bathroom in a gas station along a highway somewhere. What did you see written in the stalls? I’m guessing you probably can’t repeat most of it. Some of it might have been funny but the majority probably catered to the lowest common denominator. This is the best way I can sum up Macgruber. This film was way to foul even for me and mind you I ingest a healthy dose of Family Guy and South Park weekly.
You might be thinking that The Hangover wasn’t all that family friendly either. You’re right but the difference between these two films is vast. In The Hangover there were moments where the story went to the gutter but the film wasn’t dominated by that type of humor. It was smart, it was oddball and at times so funny I almost had to run to the little boy’s room. Macgruber was the exact opposite. It lived in the gutter and every once in awhile it climbed out and gave us solid comedy. That’s what made me so angry. The boys at the Lonely Island are immensely talented and those few moments of good comedy in Macgruber prove it. So why does every joke in this film have to be based on a penis or a vagina? These guys are better then that. Why were they so lazy in their writing?
The Lonely Island didn’t give us a film to laugh the night away. They gave us a look into most junior and senior high boy’s mind across the country. I tried to have fun, tried to will myself to laugh but instead I felt like I was using a shovel to dig through crap. At the end of the night I didn’t find enough comedy gold to make that terrible smell worth it.
Until next time I’ll be trying to answer the ultimate comedy question. Why did that darn chicken cross that road anyways?
The Pretentious Filmmaker
