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SXSW ’08! Plain Jane On THE PROMOTION And RUN FATBOY RUN!
Hey, everyone. ”Moriarty” here.
Plain Jane’s one of the reviewers who’s been working hard so far at SXSW, and it’s nice to see another batch of reviews in the inbox:
Hey everyone! I was lucky enough to catch two very similar but different films at SXSW today. The first, "The Promotion," was written and directed by Steve Conrad, writer of "The Weather Man" and "The Pursuit of Happyness." The film stars Seann William Scott ("American Pie," "Mr. Woodcock") and John C. Reilly ("Chicago," "Walk Hard") as Doug and Richard, grocery store assistant managers competing for the manager job at the new store opening up across town. Fred Armisen of SNL plays their boss and Jenna Fischer of "The Office" plays Doug's wife, Jen.
I felt like the film was a little schizophrenic. It tended to awkwardly flit back and forth between slapstick/random humor and heartfelt moments. I like a mix of comedy and heart, especially when Judd Apatow is dishing it out, but here it made the parts that were supposed to feel genuine feel like a joke.
My main problem with the film is that I'm almost too used to Seann William Scott playing really unlikable characters. It made it difficult to sympathize with him in this film, as he doesn't really do anything signaling him as a nice guy until the end of the movie. His voice over work in the parts featuring his internal monologue didn't really blow me away, either. It felt a little forced for me, especially when compared to Will Smith's internal monologues from "Happyness."
On the other hand, John C. Reilly's character is impossible not to love. I would have been happy with an entire film based on Reilly's character, who at times reminded me of his Steve Brule character from Adult Swim's "Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!" In "The Promotion," Reilly had some spectacular moments where he conveys everything with a prolonged silence or a unique facial expression that had the audience in stitches.
So "The Promotion" was decently entertaining, but it couldn't hold a candle to David Schwimmer's directing debut, "Run Fatboy Run."
I say these films are similar because they both feature protagonists with something to prove to themselves and to the community. The characters in these films are essentially earning respect as well as their manhood. But I really felt that Simon Pegg's struggle in "Run Fatboy Run" trumped the admittedly more realistic trials of the characters in "The Promotion," at least in terms of entertainment value.
In "Run Fatboy Run," Simon Pegg ("Hot Fuzz") plays Dennis, a generally "unfit" individual who bolts on his wedding day, leaving his pregnant fiance, Libby (Thandie Newton, "Crash"), at the altar. Five years later, Dennis continues to be a loser, working as a security guard at a women's clothing store. But he has a solid relationship with his son, Jake (Matthew Fenton). When Libby gets engaged to a wealthy American marathon runner (Hank Azaria, "The Simpsons"), Dennis decides to prove to himself and Libby that he can do something worthwhile by training for and running a marathon. Dennis is helped along by his best friend (Dylan Moran, "Shaun of the Dead") and his landlord (Harish Patel).
Though the trailers (and really, the above description) make the film seem like the marathon is an effort to win back Libby's heart, Dennis is really running to prove his worth as a man and as a father. This has to be one of the best fatherhood themed films in some time, thanks to the really genuine scenes between Pegg and Fenton.
"Run Fatboy Run" finds the right combination of heartfelt and hilarious that "The Promotion" struggled with. Every joke was hysterical, even a particularly disgusting one involving a blister. Every performance is brilliant and Schwimmer's work is actually quite wonderful for a first-timer. Hell, he's good even compared to someone who's been doing it for a while. "Run Fatboy Run" was definitely my favorite film at SXSW so far.
Until next time,
Plain Jane
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Mar 11, 2008 7:27:12 AM CDT
WE HAD RUN FAT BOY RUN IN TH UK LAST YEAR..!!
by greigy just wanted to say
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Like anyone cares with a SXSW Talkback. Or in any Talkback, ever. Because it means nothing. But is, in a certain sense, a bit of the post-modern ironic.
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Then 3rd, perhaps. I spent too much time ruminating on my Talkback verbosity, and it cost my rightful 1st place! Oh, the agony.
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I think I'll pass on the promotion. As far as "Fatboy" goes, I'm just not sure how I feel about the phrase "directed by David Schwimmer". But . . . I shouldn't pre-judge.
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so what?
The states got Grindhouse not only 10 months before us but in the double bill release. They get most of the stuff before us, so i wouldn't make too big a deal out of it, mate. -
Schwimmer has been directing things for the last ten years.
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Yeah, how did I ever miss "New Car Smell"? Oh, I know. "Directed by David Schwimmer".
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It's just not a very good movie. It's boring and cliched and not very funny. I don't mind David Schwimmer or anyone else in it, couldn't fault the direction...Simon Pegg and Michael Ian Black's screenplay was just subpar.
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It's full of groan inducing cliches. But that said, there are solid performances from Pegg and Dylan Moran which kept me mildly interested.
Great cast, terrible plot but more than a few good witty lines. -
I was really excited to see it since I kiss the ground that Pegg walks on, and I was SHOCKED to see him slum it up so blatantly. If you've seen any, ANY romcom ever made, then you've seen this film already. It is nothing special at all. And can someone please tell Thandie Newton 1) Eat something and 2) stop trying to act when you can't. Thanks.
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