I had a really weird feeling about this blog at one point during How to Lose Friends and Alienate People. As Simon Pegg's character lashed out against Kirsten Dunst's character for her committed interest to celebrity news and gossip, I thought, "Wait a minute. That's kind of what I'm doing, isn't it? Writing about movie stars and supporting the business and culture of Hollywood?" Hmm...well hopefully I'm successful in digging a little bit deeper into all of these movies I see, but it was still an important reminder that so many of the words I'm writing here are completely meaningless to the advancement or progress of humankind. Not that I ever had allusions otherwise, mind you, but just remember that all the time you spend reading about movies and all the time I spend writing about them could certainly be spent doing something more productive. Like watching more movies...just kidding.
Based on the memoir by British journalist Toby Young about his five years at Vanity Fair magazine, How to Lose Friends and Alienate People has been somewhat accurately compared to The Devil Wears Prada. The difference, of course, is that the central character is an obnoxious man instead of an innocent young woman. Enter Pegg, who's star has been steadily on the rise since 2004's Shaun of the Dead, nevermind the occasional starring role in forgettable fluff like Mission Impossible III and Run Fatboy Run. Don't expect much more substance in How to Lose Friends, but do expect to witness Pegg's consistently amusing charm on display again. Like several American actors at different times in their careers (Adam Sandler and Ben Stiller among them), Pegg is becoming the go-to guy for roles that call for equal parts sleaze, raunch, and romantic charm - and a British accent. (Maybe it's no surprise, then, that Trekkies are concerned about the casting of Simon Pegg as Scotty in J.J. Abram's upcoming Star Trek remake).
As is the case in most of the movies in this "bawdy romantic comedy" genre, we find it hard to root for the protagonist and even harder to keep hope alive that a new twist will work its way into the formulaic story. I'll save you the suspense: no twist appears. His reputation as a troublemaker firmly established in Britain, magazine editor Sidney Young (Pegg) is hired to take a position at the fictional Sharp's Magazine in New York City. His arrival is met with disdainful disinterest by his co-workers, namely Alison Olsen (Dunst), who is alternately his mentor and main flirt, depending on the day. Sidney's bizarre behavior and off-putting attitude about magazine culture (which I described earlier) threaten his stay at Sharp's, but not before he wins over Hollywood starlet Sophie Maes (Megan Fox, Transformers) and the Big Boss Editor Clayton Harding (Jeff Bridges, Iron Man).
Does any of this matter? No. How to Lose Friends is really a star-making vehicle for Simon Pegg, an attempt to expose him to Americans who still don't recognize his name. Those of us who are already fans will have a good amount of fun, but despite the bizarre tandem of Megan Fox and Kirsten Dunst (who I don't believe even exchange dialogue here), and despite the fact that it's based on a true story, something tells me the general public is not going to be drawn to a movie about a guy they've never heard of, starring a guy they've never heard of. Their loss, I suppose. We'll see what happens after Star Trek.
Trivia: the only movie in which a character is seen eating an entire sandwich from start to finish...
Although How to Lose Friends and Alienate People defies not one convention of the genre in which it firmly sits, Simon Pegg's commits himself to the role well enough to provide some really funny moments. The screenplay by Peter Straughan features some great one-liners, and director Robert Weide ("Curb Your Enthusiasm") wisely gets out of the way and allows Pegg to take center stage. It's a movie that's probably only funny the first time around, and there are few lessons to take from it that would otherwise make it worthwhile - unless you consider that whole addiction to Hollywood thing...
Grade:
Writing - 8
Acting - 10
Production - 8
Emotional Impact - 9
Music - 5
Social Significance - 2
Total: 42/50= 84% = B
Background: Simon Pegg isn't really a household name in the U.S. yet, but a rapidly growing number of movie fans know the British actor as the public face of the partnership he shares with best friend Nick Frost, with whom he co-wrote and directed Shaun of the Dead and last year's (fantastic) Hot Fuzz. Taking a break from buddy farces, Pegg somehow ended up as the leading man in David Schwimmer's (yep, same one) directorial debut, Run, Fatboy, Run. Written by comedian Michael Ian Black and originally set in L.A., Fatboy was moved to London and Pegg was added as a co-writer. Filling out the cast are Thandie Newton (Crash, The Pursuit of Happyness) and Hank Azaria ("The Simpsons," Dodgeball). If you're curious about when the next Nike River Run is, you'll have to wait for a sequel since the race doesn't actually exist. I don't think I've ever seen so many Nike swooshes in a movie.
Synopsis: Dennis Doyle (Pegg) is a paunchy neurotic who left his pregnant fiancée, Libby (Newton), at the altar five years ago. Dennis is forgetful and frequently flustered, but he's an upstanding guy and he loves seeing his now 5 year-old son, Jake, when Libby allows. We don't know much about Dennis and Libby's relationship since the wedding day, but Dennis is shocked at the sudden appearance of Libby's strapping new boyfriend, Whit (Azaria), who makes bank as a hedger and runs marathons for charities. Determined to prove his worth as a dad and as a man, Dennis plans to run in the upcoming charity marathon, the Nike River Run on the Thames - for erectile dysfunction, but against Whit. If you haven't figured out the conventional plot from this point on, you obviously haven't seen many movies, but I'll amuse you because I respect you for reading this: Dennis is coached by his best friend and his Indian landlord while Whit becomes more villainous by the hour. After an emotional setback, Dennis finds himself again just in time to set up the climactic race and predictable ending. Oh, and one important detail - somewhere in all of that a massive blister bursts open on somebody's face.
I Loved:
+ Simon Pegg in the moments when he actually had an opportunity to act.
I Liked:
+ Thandie Newton, as a character that was just a touch softer than her grating roles in Crash and The Pursuit of Happyness. The chemistry between her and Pegg worked well, too.
+ The soundtrack - especially the song playing when Libby opens the gift from Dennis.
I Disliked:
- The deliberately frequent butt shots. Is that an inside joke or a desperate reach for cheap laughs?
- The reliance on physical comedy, especially for Simon Pegg's character. Anybody (Mr. Bean?) can fall down a flight of stairs or trip over jumpropes, but it doesn't fit Pegg well enough to work. Kind of like Steve Carrell in Evan Almighty - these aren't slapstick actors, they're clever comics. Let them shine with their natural talents.
- Some awkward editing, for which I blame Schwimmer. The bun shop scene, for example, was stuttering and overdone.
I Hated:
- That no creative effort was put into mixing up the predictable clichés. I thought Simon Pegg's writing credit would have added more wit to this, but it doesn't appear he did anything improve on Black's original work, and the movie suffers because of it.
- The exploding blister, which may have been appropriate in Shaun of the Dead, but was just abrupt and really gross here.
Grade:
Writing - 6
Acting - 9
Production - 7
Emotional Impact - 9
Music - 5
Significance - 3
Total: 39/50= 78% = C+
Last Word: Were it not for some light comedy and my admiration of Simon Pegg, I would have really hammered Run, Fatboy, Run as the predictable and ultimately bland movie that it is. It still loses points for formulaic writing and poor production, but it's not an out-and-out bad movie primarily because the silly emotions that you think you feel for the characters are actually genuine. The credit for this goes to the actors, and not just the three established stars. Newcomer Matthew Fenton subtly adds a surprising amount of charm and cheer as young Jake, and even Dylan Moran and Harish Patel add life to their poorly written characters. David Schwimmer did nothing to impress me here, but my low expectations overall didn't give me much reason to be disappointed. I liked seeing Thandie Newton be able to smile a bit more again, and Simon Pegg can do wrong in these harmless roles. I'm a little curious about how he'll be as Scotty in next year's Star Trek, but somewhere I read that he and Nick Frost are working a screenplay where Frost stars and Pegg supports as comic book convention attendees. Anyway, he's the only reason to make an effort to see Run, Fatboy, Run, which is fine for a theater trip but probably best as a DVD rental.
