Thanks for checking out our Forgetting Sarah Marshall Review.
The General Idea
Plot Outline From IMDB: Devastated Peter (Segel) takes a Hawaii vacation in order to deal with recent break-up with his TV star girlfriend, Sarah (Bell). Little does he know Sarah’s traveling to the same resort as her ex … and she’s bringing along her new boyfriend.
The Good
Many of the funniest moments in this film come through verbal sparring. One person will burn someone, and with outstanding timing a retort will be given, funnier than the previous line. The stacking of punch lines is a very good comedic technique, causes big hearty laughs and is done often in this film.
Going in, I was skeptical about Jason Segel as the lead. I didn’t care much for his character in Knocked Up, and was afraid it would be more of the same. To my delight he was nothing like his Knocked Up character and was great as the leading man. He was hilarious and believable as a man with a broken heart; like all of us, I am sure he has had some practice. His natural ability as a piano player was put to good use and served as an excellent way to add uniqueness to his character. Staring in a script you wrote has its advantages; Jason crafted a story that played to his strengths and resulted in a damn funny film.
The cameos in this film are outstanding, I will not mention them – because that would ruin the surprise. I will tell you that the greatest cameos come via the TV show that Sarah Marshall stars in, and were milked for maximum hilarity.
The Bad
This film follows a typical ROMCOM structure and offers no deviation from type. You know how things are going to end and you know that right before the happy ending the couple will have an issue that will strain their fledgling relationship. I am not against sticking to formula, but the ROMCOM structure is so beat to death that it nauseates me. The “crisis” moment is funny as hell however, and is done in a way that allows people to relate to both sides of the argument.
Overall
This movie was very funny, and the theatre was aflame with laughter the entire screening. To give you an idea of how enjoyable it was, I would consider it superior to Knocked Up but under 40 Year Old Virgin. The film was very funny and made the most of its formulaic and predictable skeleton. Harold and Kumar had more gut busting jokes thanks largely to NPH but this film certainly edges ahead with the number of quality jokes. Out of 10 I would give this film an 8. I can see this film becoming very popular, and is one you should check out April 18th.
