Paul (Greg Mottola, 2011)

Astute audience members will more or less realize the trouble they've got into from the opening -- an ugly, terribly shot ode to Spielberg's E.T. After that there's a momentary spark of hope, as Paul at least proves itself to be the only movie about nerds I've seen that doesn't try to play off semi-malicious "haw haw, nerds" as "affectionate ribbing." The movie shows genuine fondness for the characters and their eccentric interests, rather than the usual have-it-both-ways that often comes off more as condescension than real endearment. Unfortunately, even this "high point" is made ugly by an awkward encounter with a non-American worker and jokes about Pegg and Frost's enthusiasm for aliens (the extraterrestrial kind) making him confused and uncomfortable. Ha ha? Soon the movie embraces all the most boring formulas of the buddy road movie, with titular character demonstrating an Amazing Superpower that nearly everyone should recognize will come in handy during the seemingly dire last act conflict.

Along the way the movie stops to take potshots at just about every easy target, Middle American stereotype one can think of -- from outwardly homophobic and violent rednecks (as opposed to the main characters, who are homophobic in the more polite, good-natured kind of way of us fine, upstanding liberals) to Bible-thumping "wacko" creationists to the usual boring jokes about incompetent government officials. And, unlike Michel Gondry's work in The Green Hornet, Mottola lacks either the skills or the interest to reign in Seth Rogen's occasionally insufferable riffing, leading the movie down long stretches of meandering, unfunny gags. Also there's the icky subplot involving a newly unburdened Christian falling for Simon Pegg's character, with all the man-showing-woman-the-ways-of-the-world baggage that goes with it. I don't know, while I didn't exactly have high hopes for this one, it did manage to let me down in almost every way imaginable. Even Sigourney Weaver is wasted in a thankless role of not funny bossy voice lady. And eventually the movie ends by moving from not-always-clever, but at least somewhat hidden references to a string of line-for-line cribbing that demonstrates a complete descent into creative bankruptcy.