It takes “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” less than 10 minutes to deliver the audience their first of many laughable, full-frontal encounters with nudity. In fact, the second occurs only 30 seconds later. It should come as no surprise to anyone that the man behind this delightfully raunchy farce is none other than Judd Apatow, the mastermind behind “Knocked Up” and “Superbad.”
But the credit for this movie’s success goes well beyond just the creative genius of Apatow. Rookie director Nicholas Stoller neatly pulls all of the film’s plot threads together to create a final product that does not fray at any point. He also manages to generate just the right amount of romance so that it blends perfectly with the vulgarity but at the same time does not make the film feel like a romantic comedy.
The real force behind this film, though, is Jason Segel, who pulls double duty as both writer and actor. Although this is his first screenplay, he expertly takes the exhausted, cliched plotline of a recently broken-up guy trying to find someone new and breathes new life into it. He creates an engaging story with dynamic characters and fresh humor that is crass but still tasteful.
The story starts off with lovable schlub Peter (Jason Segel, “Knocked Up”) getting dumped by his longtime celebrity girlfriend Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell, “Veronica Mars”). After meaningless sex and constant sobbing fail to help him get over Sarah, Peter impulsively decides to take a trip to Hawaii in an attempt to clear his head. But upon arriving he runs into none other than Sarah, along with her egotistical, British-rock boyfriend Aldous Snow (Russell Brand, “Penelope”). Overly distraught, Peter finds relief by venting to a stunning resort employee, Rachel (Mila Kunis of TV’s “That ’70s Show”) and ends up falling for her.
If you have yet to witness Segel in CBS’ “How I Met Your Mother” or other Apatow projects, you are truly missing out. He is a gifted actor with the natural ability to make people laugh, and it is great to see him step out of the shadow of supporting roles and shine as the leading man in this film. Segel could have easily gone too far over the top with this role, but instead he delivers a performance that is believable and that the audience can easily relate to.
While at times making the film feel jumpy, especially near the end where the plot seems rushed, the extra steps the creators take to add as many original opportunities for humor as possible is remarkable. Dispersed throughout the movie are comical clips from Sarah Marshall’s hit TV show “Crime Scene: Scene of the Crime,” a salacious parody of “CSI,” complete with numerous deadpan sexual innuendos courtesy of her onstage partner Billy Baldwin.
The best comedic addition, though, is the ingenious subplot focusing on Peter’s dream of writing a Count Dracula rock opera featuring puppets. One of the more hysterical moments in this film is when we see him for the first time, awkwardly performing a song from his musical in front of a bar full of strangers.
It always helps when there are big names attached to a project, so who better to fill the supporting cast than a handful of Apatow alumni? Jonah Hill (“Strange Wilderness”) and Paul Rudd (“Over Her Dead Body”) are priceless as a hotel employee with a man crush on Snow and a stoner surfer, respectively. Bill Hader (“Superbad”) is also fantastic in the role of Peter’s brother.
At the same time, it is refreshing to see the new faces in Apatow’s film. Bell wisely avoids portraying her title character as a vindictive bitch, instead choosing a peppy but shallow celebrity approach — though she is still the most forgettable character here, ironically enough. Rachel, meant to be the perfect contrast to Marshall, does just that, with Kunis taking on her role with the kind of charisma and intelligence needed to make this juxtaposition possible.
But it is Brand who steals the show in his Apatow debut. As a sex-driven, flamboyant rock star, he commands the stage and introduces a wholly different level of comedy to the film. Brand utilizes his character’s openly over-conscious view of life and racy songs to create a character whose outlandish actions are just as hilarious as his lines.
With “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” Apatow proves once again his ability to set the bar for comedy. His job was only that much easier thanks to colorful characters played by a talented cast, a smart story and heaps of raunchy humor. This film is not only the best comedy, but one of the top movies in any genre so far this year.
4 stars out of 5
