'Forgetting Sarah Marshall': Buzznet Movie Review

Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the latest raunchy comedy in the Judd Apatow empire, is a surprisingly realistic examination of dependent relationships and what happens when they collapse. It's also the funniest movie so far in 2008.



Jason Segel commands the screen in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, plain and simple. Appearing in nearly every scene for almost two hours, he gives a noteworthy, heartbreaking, and simultaneously hilarious performance as Peter Bretter. Peter is a geeky musician who scores his girlfriend's over-dramatic crime show, "Crime Show," but is working on a puppet-filled vampire musical in his spare time. His life falls apart when his gal, Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), suddenly and inexplicably breaks up with him.

The beginning is a bit rushed (and full of far more full-frontal male nudity than I expected), but once the movie settles into the story, it's a great ride. After trying to have sex with other women or distract himself from his depression, Peter's friend (Bill Hader) suggests that he go on a vacation. Of course, he chooses the same hotel in Hawaii that his ex is staying at with her new beau, Aldous Snow (Russell Brand).


The film alternates between physical comedy, painful awkwardness, and a truthful sense of character development between Peter, Sarah, and Peter's new love interest, Rachel Jansen (Mila Kunis, in a surprisingly good performance). But what really stands out about the film is its open acceptance of its own geekiness.

One of the major sub-plots is Peter's determination to create a Dracula musical with puppets. (There are a few clever nods to Segel's plans to write and direct the next Muppets movie.) In any other movie, not only would this not make sense, but studios would probably cut it out in fear of distancing potential ticket sales. But director Nicholas Stoller is smart for keeping Segel's writing intact; it helps to create a more believable character and to prevent the film from slipping into cliched parody.


Above this all, however, floats Segel's self-deprecating sense of humor; his script is rife with shots at his character's inability to move on, his unattractive body, and his poor habits. (Makes me wonder if the film is really about himself.) Matthew (Jonah Hill), a waiter obsessed with Aldous Snow, is particularly funny; for once, Hill doesn't play the same character he has in the past. Matthew is alternately shy and uncertain and there are some wonderful interactions between him and his idol.

Overall, this is a great film and incredibly funny. It's a bit on the long side, but by the end, the length felt necessary for Stoller and Segel to tell the full story of these characters. It is an "ultimate romantic disaster movie," just as the one-sheet boasts. Sure, there are plenty of mushy love scenes to satisfy those who love romantic comedies. At heart, however, this is a disaster film. In this case, the human heart causes all the destruction.

Grade: A-