Towards the end of watching Observe and Report, Seth Rogen’s latest release, I couldn’t help but think about the recent shooting rampages in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Binghamton, New York. If you think these gunmen should be celebrated, this movie is for you.
An uneven, ugly exercise masquerading as a comedy, Observe and Report’s barely there plot concerns Rogen’s character Ronnie Barnhardt, a disturbed shopping mall security guard who hopes to win the respect of the community and the love of cosmetics salesgirl Brandi (Anna Faris) by apprehending the scourge of his beat -- a perverted, trenchcoat-wearing flasher.
Barnhardt, an obscenity-spewing malcontent, is obsessed with firearms and believes any confrontation can be remedied through violence. He is so disturbed, he fails in his attempt to join the police force because of psychological problems. And he’s the hero. But then again, he’s matched up against Faris, whose character is an alcoholic, pill-popping slut and a police detective (Ray Liotta), who hates Barnhardt so much he doesn’t hesitate to abandon the mall cop in the worst part of town in the hopes that he’ll become another fatal victim of gang violence.
In fact, there really isn’t a character in Observe and Report you’d want to spend time with. The most likable are Rogen’s right-hand man Dennis (Michael Pena), who turns out to be a coke-sniffing, heroin-shooting thief, and his mom (Celia Weston), a drunk whose highlight of the day is to soil herself and pass out on the floor so that her son can take care of her.
One summer, back in my college days, I had the mind-numbing experience of landing a part-time job as a security guard. The training consisted of learning the phrase “Observe and Report” and acting on it accordingly. So when I heard the title, I laughed, and thought it would be worth a look. I was also hopeful it would be a better take on the subject matter than this year’s earlier release, “Paul Blart, Mall Cop,” which was just plain stupid.
Perhaps it’s because my expectations for comedies are higher than other genres, that I am particularly disappointed by this one. The movie is a mess. Scene transitions are awkward and characters’ actions make no sense and seem to be done for no other reason than to elicit a cheap laugh. The word f**k is used extensively, I suspect because director/writer Jody Hill thinks it’s hysterical. This predilection reaches its low point in a racially-tinged exchange between Barnhardt and a Middle Eastern kiosk owner that devolves into the duo exchanging continuous insults using the word -- comedy at its finest.
Of course, we’re supposed to cheer later on when Barnhardt punches out the “Arab” in the film’s climax. But, then again, all the feel good moments of “Observe and Report” revolve around excessive acts of violence. A band of punk skateboarders breaks the rules by skating in the parking lot, and Barnhardt retaliates by breaking their boards over their heads. The boss of a food court girl Barnhardt has befriended is being mean to her so Barnhardt bashes his head into an oven. A gang of drug dealers pulls a gun on him, so he beats them to death. Barnhardt confronts half the town’s police force, and they beat him to a bloody pulp. And his eventual redemption is won by gunning down the flasher. But, it’s okay, because the shot, though extremely bloody, is not fatal.
This brings up another odd point about the movie. The filmmakers suggest that ultimate evil is a man who exposes himself to women. And the best way to resolve disputes is to inflict as much pain as possible on your adversary. Penis bad, violence good. Not that I don’t think flashing is sick, but so is glorifying guns. Just how warped are this film’s sensibilities?
It won’t surprise me if Observe and Report does well at the box office. Rogen is riding a wave of popularity, and coupled with American’s obsession with guns and its thirst for violence, I’m sure it will attract its intended audience. I just wouldn’t want to be sitting next to any of them in the theater.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
