Neighbors

Nicholas Stoller – 2014 – USA

Another in a long series of “comedies” about neurotic adults coping with the horror of not being cool anymore, if they ever were.  In a nutshell, this means endless, awkward scenes of Seth Rogan or Peter Segal or Paul Rudd acting dorky and it not being funny.  I know, I know; you’re supposed to laugh at how awkward it all is, but I can’t shake the suspicion that this is merely an excuse for movies not having any great ideas.  I feel that what we’re really witnessing is the result of overblown egos and a steady intake of weed, which leads to something I like to call the “everything-we-think-of-is-genius” syndrome.  There’s clearly plenty of improvising among friends going on here, (which normally I’d applaud as bold in a mainstream Hollywood movie), but unfortunately there is practically zero editing to keep it under control.  Nevertheless, I admit to laughing a few times; but a few times in such a long movie doesn’t seem very impressive.  And ugly guys naked is never funny, by the way; and I wouldn’t think so no matter how young or high I was.  Ike Barinholtz, as the stock friend-from-work character, is the funniest person in the movie, and he has the best lines too.  Upon reuniting with his ex-wife, he reacts to her suggestion that they have a baby with complete sincerity: “That’ll solve all our problems.”