Rated D #9 - Paul

• Long ago... In a cinema far far away...
  


• Welcome Back to Rated D!
  


• I guess it wasn't that long ago, but the theater is far, far away from most of you. About two weeks ago, I went to see a movie called "Paul". SPOILER ALERT: When two nerdy, middle-aged, sci-fi fans meet a foul mouthed, fugitive alien, they aide and abet his escape from the government agents who have turned against him.
  


• I was very excited to see this one and it didn't disappoint. On the other hand, it left me wanting more somehow. Now, it's easy for me to sit there watching the movie and critique but then again, that's what the audience does and should continue to do. Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Shawn of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) are likeable as per usual and Seth Rogen (Knocked Up, The Green Hornet) lends his voice to the drinking, smoking, swearing alien (which was a wonderfully unique choice). The bulk of the movie is spent making their way to contact Paul's alien friends while being pursued and shot at while the rest is filled with the same getaway stuff that we usually see in a hunt/hunted flick. Still, a lot of the jokes give you a good laugh and even a couple twists and turns at the end make you smile. However, there are a few "holier than thou" moments where the jokes they make sort of alienate the audience by making fun of religion or people's views and beliefs. It seemed a little pretentious and out of place in such a silly film. I hope you like the punny use of words like "Holier than thou" and "alienate" in the previous sentence.



• To Tie It Back To Health & Fitness...


• As Paul can tell you, his race can turn invisible for as long as he can hold his breath, but even he comes to the realization that his smoking is effecting his ability to make his escape. Everyone knows that smoking is bad for you, but new studies are beginning to prove that smoking is not even one of those things that is alright in moderation. Thanks for that lesson, Paul.



• "Why does everybody always assume [I'm going to probe them]? What am I doing? Am I harvesting farts? How much can I learn from an ass?" - Seth Rogen as Paul



• Technically Speaking....



• I had some fun, but there were things that seemed a bit clunky to me here and there. The main bad guy reveal at the end of the film seemed like it was meant to be a bigger surprise than it was in my opinion which left me lacking for caring who the bad guy was or what happened to them. The script was fun and allowed a lot of fun jokes due to the slacker, stoner alien gimmick as well as nods to the sci-fi genre, but a running joke of Kristen Wiig (Saturday Night Live, MacGruber) misusing profanity for more than half of the movie starts off as hilarious but dies out quickly, dragging down the humor in other scenes.



• Review - I give it 3 naked alien butts out of 5.



• Still Haven't Scene It?


• Tangled- A new take on the old story of Repunzal that succeeds in every way. It's funny, original, and doesn't falter on it's animation or musical numbers. In fact, its song "I See the Light" by Alan Menken, who has written most of the memorable Disney songs over the past twenty years, was nominated for an Oscar this year.



• Next Time on Rated D -


• Insidious - Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, and a red faced demon that scared the crap out of me the first time I saw it.



• Gorilla Man