Starring: Josh Zuckerman, Clark Duke, Amanda Crew, Seth Green, James Marsden
Written by: Sean Anders & John Morris
Directed by: Sean Anders
I love a good fart or dick joke as much as the next guy, but I also require a little bit extra in my comedies. Base humor is a basic connector to all that is human and childish in every one of us. Laughing at the vulgar, stupid, or gross is the perfect way to erase a rotten day by making you laugh so hard at something so stupid and forgettable that you yourself almost become an actual fart joke. Show me someone who disagrees with idea of the need for stupid humor and I will show you someone that sat through a full hour of funny home videos and did not crack a smile. You might be a superior human being to me for not laughing at a whiffle bat to the crotch, but you’re a right unfunny bastard.
That brings me to the movie itself, which is a collection of vulgar jokes than run the gamut from realistic to sitcom realistic to “really? WHAT PLANET?.” on the comedy spectrum. The humor is wildly uneven and feels a bit sitcomish at times. In fact, you almost expect a laugh track during certain moments. The story comes across like the plot for a sitcom set in a high school. Virgin boy Ian (Josh Zuckerman) meets mysterious sexpot on the internet who promises sex if only he will show up for a meet and greet. Boy’s confidant, wisecracking friend Lance (Clark Duke) urges him to cut loose and drive cross country for sex, while the girl he truly loves, Felicia (Amanda Crew), buddies up to him on the road trip, completely oblivious to his obvious feelings. It is kind of a cross between “The Sure Thing” and “Superbad.” While not as even keeled as either of those movies, “Sexdrive” definitely has its moments.
Seth Green plays Ezekiel, an Amish gearhead who helps Josh on his journey to manhood. Green also coincidentally was the best thing about this movie. Though the script is kind of up and down for me, Green’s deadpan delivery sells a lot more than the script delivered in those scenes. Although I was a bit conflicted by the rest of the movie, Ezekiel tipped the scales in favor of a recommendation.
I also liked the scenes with the Mexican Donut. The suit itself is a hoot but Josh Zuckerman’s squeaky voice made me laugh a lot more than I probably would have over some of the jokes in those scenes. With a comedy, a lot of times, that is what it comes down to. Some good comedies didn’t have the best scripts, but the cast elevated the material. A great comedy has the cast and the jokes. Here the cast is overall very funny, but I did not feel like I had an idea exactly what kind of comedy I was watching. The humor throughout is so varied that you do not really know what to expect from scene to scene. The movie has two writers (and is based on a book), so maybe it was just a conflict between different senses of humor.
HOWEVER, all that nitpicking aside, the movie does have some very funny moments. And when you’ve had a hard day, all you are really looking for are those laugh out loud moments. This movie has them, and it is worth checking out.
That brings me to the movie itself, which is a collection of vulgar jokes than run the gamut from realistic to sitcom realistic to “really? WHAT PLANET?.” on the comedy spectrum. The humor is wildly uneven and feels a bit sitcomish at times. In fact, you almost expect a laugh track during certain moments. The story comes across like the plot for a sitcom set in a high school. Virgin boy Ian (Josh Zuckerman) meets mysterious sexpot on the internet who promises sex if only he will show up for a meet and greet. Boy’s confidant, wisecracking friend Lance (Clark Duke) urges him to cut loose and drive cross country for sex, while the girl he truly loves, Felicia (Amanda Crew), buddies up to him on the road trip, completely oblivious to his obvious feelings. It is kind of a cross between “The Sure Thing” and “Superbad.” While not as even keeled as either of those movies, “Sexdrive” definitely has its moments.
Seth Green plays Ezekiel, an Amish gearhead who helps Josh on his journey to manhood. Green also coincidentally was the best thing about this movie. Though the script is kind of up and down for me, Green’s deadpan delivery sells a lot more than the script delivered in those scenes. Although I was a bit conflicted by the rest of the movie, Ezekiel tipped the scales in favor of a recommendation.
I also liked the scenes with the Mexican Donut. The suit itself is a hoot but Josh Zuckerman’s squeaky voice made me laugh a lot more than I probably would have over some of the jokes in those scenes. With a comedy, a lot of times, that is what it comes down to. Some good comedies didn’t have the best scripts, but the cast elevated the material. A great comedy has the cast and the jokes. Here the cast is overall very funny, but I did not feel like I had an idea exactly what kind of comedy I was watching. The humor throughout is so varied that you do not really know what to expect from scene to scene. The movie has two writers (and is based on a book), so maybe it was just a conflict between different senses of humor.
HOWEVER, all that nitpicking aside, the movie does have some very funny moments. And when you’ve had a hard day, all you are really looking for are those laugh out loud moments. This movie has them, and it is worth checking out.
Good review.
I have heard a lot of mixed things about this one.
There are too many other things I want to see right now.
Seriously! I checked the movie listings for my usual Friday night jaunt and realized there were like 8 movies I wanted to see this weekend.
But I'm willing to make that sacrifice... :)
I'll be checking this one out tomorrow along with W. Great review Spaldy!!!