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Judd
Apatow has aptly been titled the "John Hughes" of the 00's, churning
out classic naughty comedy after classic naughty comedy (Anchorman,
40 Year Old
Virgin, Talladega
Nights, Knocked
Up, Pineapple Express). And why the hell not -
he's created an empire out of dick jokes.
The
flick (which pulled in a phenomenal box office coup not wide of the
$200M mark) follows Seth (Jonah Hill - the portly gentleman) and Evan
(Michael Cera - the awkward gentleman) who want nothing more than to
lose their virginity before they head off to college (yep, that old
teen movie chestnut). In order to do that though, they need to get
liquor for the party that night. With the help of their nerdy friend
Fogell (a.k.a. McLovin - the superb Christopher Mintz-Plasse) and his
fake ID, the three of them go on a hilarious chase for that elusive
booze, dodging incompetent cops (Seth Rogen and SNL's Bill Hader),
angry neighbors and jealous boyfriends.
Such a plot explanation really doesn't do Superbad
any justice whatsoever, because it simply isn't as stereotypical as it
sounds. Unlike any other comedy of the last two decades - this is
hilarious... and dirty as hell.
If Knocked Up
was Apatows Breakfast
Club, then Superbad
is his Sixteen Candles.
But,
let's be fair, it takes more than a producer credit to create a teen
comedy this perfect - something which seems to have been overlooked by
most in the press. You see, the real brains behind Superbad are it's
writer (and star) Seth Rogen and director Greg Molotta. They have
delivered such a perfectly paced, cast and marketed comedy. It lacks
the glossy sheen of Can't
Hardly Wait and American
Pie - yet retains the everyman 'underdog' quality which a
good comedy ultimately needs.
The film's stars (Hill & Cera) work together immaculately. Both
performers possess such supreme comic timing, that you will be hard
pressed to find any to equal it (bar perhaps John Candy and Steve
Martin). They've mastered the art of relatable performance, for mine,
it was the most accurate representation of High School I've ever seen
on screen (even down to the line "You know sometimes you get a boner in
class, so what I do is flip it under my belt. It both hides it - and it
feels awesome...").
It's raw, edgy, yet still possessing ten times more authentic heart
than half the dramas you've forked you're cash out for.
Quite simply, it all just clicks.
DVD EXTRAS
I have to admit, Superbad was the
first movie I've ever actually gone to see at the movies on more than
one occasion. So to say that I had high hopes for the DVD extras is an
understatement.Luckily, it's a kickass extras package!
Along with a healthy dose of bloopers and "Extra Lines" (the beauty of
filming on HD is that it allows for a great deal of adlibbing - most of
which turns up here), there are also deleted scenes (there are several
"Extended Sequences" that have been weaved into the DVD version of the
movie, which, strangely often works against it).
There's plenty of watchable featurettes (which are actually pretty damn
funny) as well as a sneak peak at Seth Rogen's next flick Pineapple Express
(which, admittedley, isn't the best advertisement for the flick) and
some cool promo pieces "Cop Car Confessions" - the best of which has
Justin Long doing a spot on Matthew
McConaughey impersination.
Great movie - superb package. A must have!
Conclusion:
Movie 100% Extras: 100%
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