Arriving in 2008, Nicholas Stoller's FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL was a surprise comic gem. Now Stoller brings back the sexually charged rocker, Aldous Snow, in his own movie. Going into this spin-off, I was leery of how it would work bringing the broadest character in the previous film to the forefront. Plus you don't have the charm of Jason Segel or Mila Kunis in this movie either. But GREEK avoids all the potential problems by simply making Snow a real character.
Snow (Russell Brand, BEDTIME STORIES) is now on a professional and personal free fall. His latest album "African Child" was named not only the worst album of the decade, but the worst thing to happen to Africa since apartheid. He's in a long-term relationship with pop star Jackie Q (Rose Byrne, TV's DAMAGES), think of a less subtle version of Lady Gaga, which blows up in his face in a very embarrassing televised interview. And after what she said about him, he falls off the wagon big time. Meanwhile, record exec Sergio Roma (Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, MONSTER'S BALL) is looking for the next big thing. Intern Aaron Green (Jonah Hill, playing a different character than he did in SARAH MARSHALL) suggests having an anniversary concert to celebrate Snow's legendary performance at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles. Roma warms to the idea and tasks Green to go to London and retrieve Snow and bring him to the concert.
As one might expect, hauling a drug-addicted rock star from London to L.A. is not an easy task. And of course we get the scenes of excessive partying and missed planes, which are about as fun as being the designated driver out with alcoholics. But the film never beats that horse to death. In an effort to keep Snow sober for his TODAY SHOW appearance, Green guzzles all his booze and smokes his entire joint. Needless to say this doesn't help Green when he discovers that Snow doesn't actually know the lyrics to his latest single. And you'll have to see the film to find out what Green has to do with Snow's heroin when they are about to board a flight.
The film mixes broad scatological humor with very direct moments about the characters. One of the best scenes in the film isn't a particularly funny one. Green's girlfriend Daphne Binks (Elisabeth Moss, TV's MAD MEN) springs on him that she received a residency in Seattle and he's flabbergasted that she doesn't understand why picking up and moving isn't an option for him. In another spot, the film goes from one of its most outlandish bits to an unsettling moment between Snow and Green over his drug use to another broad moment regarding Green trying to find drugs in Las Vegas. Some of these tone shifts feel awkward, but they give depth to the characters and save the film from tacking on sentiment at the end.
Brand restrains his performance and makes Snow more than a joke. Yeah, his songs are ludicrously sexual and perverse, but that's him. I mean are this songs any more direct than say Billy Squier's "Stroke Me?" The film doesn't apologize for him being a man who loves sex. This said he generally loves Jackie Q and misses her and their son Naples (Lino Facioli). When we discover how the boy got his name, we learn a lot of unexpected things about Snow. And when he goes to visit his musician father Jonathan (Colm Meaney, LAYER CAKE), their relationship turns out to be more complex than simply a filmic bad dad case.
The humor ranges from raunchy to downright disturbing. One tangent scene finds Green in a Las Vegas hotel room with a very frisky wanna-be starlet. And you'll never guess what happens when Snow meets Green's girlfriend. While these scenes might feel unconnected to the story, the film knows the rule of random scenes in comedies — make them hilarious.
Some big laughs come from cameos. SARAH MARSHALL characters pop up and one legendary rocker steals the show from Brand. On a sad note, P Diddy cursing like he's auditioning for 2 Live Crew wares out its welcome fast. Then again the chaos he creates in Vegas makes THE HANGOVER look like a tea party.
Snow lives on the edge for a reason. He doesn't have real people in his life to count on. He's Aldous Snow — the rock cliché. Through he time with Green, he reconnects with his fans, which gives him a bit of happiness again. They don't want him singing about saving starving children; they want him singing his hit song "Clap." You can clap your hands to it, even though that's not what the song's about.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
