Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Movie Review: "Neighbors" (2014)

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Movie"Neighbors"
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 36 minutes

New parents Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly Radner (Rose Byrne) have just bought a house in a seemingly peaceful part of town when a prospective group of neighbors, a local college frat house, moves in next door and make their lives a living hell.

Don't go into this movie expecting something along the lines of "This Is The End," because this is not that film. In fact, it's not even close.

We have no idea how this one ranks higher than that one on IMDB. Let's be real, "Neighbors" is not a bad movie. It's got a ton of big, genuine laughs, but it's just not great, either. We felt like they were few and far between compared to what we've come to expect from Seth Rogen and company. Most of the laughs come from the slapstick elements that are seen in the trailer. In fact, 98% of the funny moments are divulged in the trailer, leaving little left to discover for more than a $7 ticket. The comedy missing from the trailer revolves around the expected: lots of genitalia, a couple of C-words just for the hell of it and for "shock" value, and your typical fraternity affair, including lots of drugs, drinking, dance orgies, and the like.

One thing we will say is that Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne make a really great on-screen pair surprisingly. They play young parents with a newborn child trying desperately to cling to their old fun, pot-smoking way of life. Seth Rogen?? Playing a pothead??? WHODATHUNK?????? Obvious plot line is obvious, water is wet, etc. We personally can't stand Zac Efron, and I'm sure I am the only female alive that doesn't find him even remotely attractive. There's something about his douchey face that puts me off of him as a character in movies, and his real-life persona in general. He just needs to get punched in the face. I know that sounds way harsh Tai, but it's true. He plays the same damn person in every single film! He's not even a good actor, but since he's playing a guy with a douchey face who gets punched in the face, it's alright! Dave Franco is decent but seems like he's trying hard to follow in his brother's (shallow) footsteps. He doesn't really act well enough to pull it off, which is saying something since James Franco isn't the best actor, either (Oscar nominations be damned).

The end of "Neighbors" is supposed to be this poignant conclusion, but really, will two new parents ever really become complacent with their new lives overnight? Maybe some people can achieve this, but we're willing to be more often than not, this isn't the case. It just seems like a really rushed conclusion. Maybe it's because BigJ and I are not parents that we can't relate, but this doesn't mean we shouldn't understand it in a film.

Plus, who the F really, really, really leaves their baby alone like that?! If you do, you deserve to get punched in the face, too!

My Rating: 6.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 6.5/10
IMDB's Rating: 7.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 74%
Do we recommend this movie: Sure, why not?

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