Paul
Rating: 7/10
Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Voice of Seth Rogen
Director: Greg Mottola
Aliens, geeks and Pegg and Frost back on screen - how can it go wrong?
The duo from Hot Fuzz, Spaced and Shaun of the Dead reteam (and write) this comedy about two guys, Graeme and Clive who head to geek mecca Comic Con after years of dreaming of making the trip.
Sated on the nerd fest that is Comic-Con, the duo then decide to roadtrip around the States, taking in some of the best UFO spots in America.
On a remote highway, the hapless pair chance upon Paul, a grey alien (voiced by Seth Rogen).
The little chap needs a helping hand to escape the government and get home - so Graeme (Pegg) obliges - and the great alien road trip begins.
Throw in a couple of FBI agents chasing, an accidental kidnap of Kristen Wiig's Ruth from an RV camp and a shadowy figure trying to stop them, and you've got the recipe for the rest of this scifi-geek-steeped-pop-culture film.
Eschewing many sci-fi references (ET, Close Encounters, Aliens, Star Wars et al), Paul is likely to appeal more to a certain sector of the audience than others.
That said, don't let the scifi bent of this witty (at times puerile) script put you off.
Sure, some may garner a little deeper level of laughs here compared to others - but the trademark bromance chemistry between long time working partners Pegg and Frost continues to amuse on many levels.
Granted, Paul is a little slow to get going and you almost feel some of the jokes are a little predictable at the beginning but once it picks up the pace, it really fires on all cylinders.
If you're a connoisseur of the bromance of Pegg and Frost (and their old married couple vibe), you'll know the easy charm the pair exude and with some great repartee (some of it completely unexpected and laugh out loud funny), you'll be in stitches throughout.
The supporting cast are also uniformly brilliant too - from the
ever dependable Jason Bateman as an FBI agent to Kristen Wiig as
the love interest, there's plenty of heart beating in here as well
as the geek.
And yet in places, the script creaks a little with easy puerile
humour being relied on a little too heavily. Given the smarts of
the writing team that is, to be frank, a little disappointing.
Ultimately though, Paul is a good solid night out; it's cheeky, amusing and fun - some of the geek references may be lost on portions of the crowd, but that's not enough to make you feel you're missing out.
