Observe and Report (2009)

Director:

Jody Hill

Writer (WGA):

Jody Hill (written by)

Release Date:

10 April 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Right now, the world needs a hero.

Plot:

Bi-polar mall security guard Ronnie Barnhardt is called into action to stop a flasher from turning shopper's paradise into his personal peep show. But when Barnhardt can't bring the culprit to justice, a surly police detective, is recruited to close the case. |

Plot Keywords:

Mall | Police Detective | Bi Polar | Flasher | Dark Comedy

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Seth Rogen	...	Ronnie Barnhardt
Ray Liotta	...	Detective Harrison
Michael Peña	...	Dennis
Anna Faris	...	Brandi
Dan Bakkedahl	...	Mark
Jesse Plemons	...	Charles
John Yuan	...	John Yuen
Matt Yuan	...	Matt Yuen
Celia Weston	...	Mom
Collette Wolfe	...	Nell
Randy Gambill	...	Pervert
Alston Brown	...	Bruce
Cody Midthunder	...	D-Rock
Deborah Brown	...	Female Reporter (as Debra-Jayne Brown)
Aziz Ansari	...	Saddamn

MPAA:

Rated R for pervasive language, graphic nudity, drug use, sexual content and violence.

Runtime:

86 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #45064) | Australia:MA | Ireland:16 | UK:15 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:18A | Finland:K-15 | Iceland:16 | Argentina:16 | Singapore:R21 | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:M18 (edited version)

Filming Locations:

Bosque Farms, New Mexico, USA

Company:

De Line Pictures

Trivia:

Jody Hill has described his initial inspiration for this film as wanting to do a comedic version of Taxi Driver (1976). There are numerous references to Taxi Driver (1976) throughout the film, like Ronnie having to restart his spoken manifesto in mid-sentence.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Brandi is driving her car right before the pervert assaults her at the parking area, you can clearly see the spoiler move.

Quotes:

Mom: I just want you to know, I'm ready to make a change.
Ronnie Barnhardt: You gonna stop drinking?
Mom: I'm switching to beer.

Movie Connections:

References Taxi Driver (1976)

Soundtrack:

Dwarves Must Die

Rogen lets his guard down in this strange comedy drama.

Seth Rogen stars in what I can honestly say was one of the strangest "mainstream" movies I have seen in recent years. Apparently, it was conceived as a comedic spin on Taxi Driver. Well, let me just say, Taxi Driver doesn't work with a comedic spin. Certainly not this time around anyway.

It's not actually a terrible movie. The basic plot, all about Rogen's bipolar head of mall security (Ronnie) and his tribulations while he tries to catch a flasher, catch a thief, catch the woman he loves and compete professionally against a detective called in to get results, is actually okay. It's a testament to the writing and direction that director Jody Hill almost succeeds in making you care for these characters despite the fact that there's barely one decent person amongst the lot of them.

The acting is sound although those who dislike Rogen aren't going to be won over here. Michael Cera is pretty funny as Dennis (another mall guard with delusions of grandeur), Anna Faris is as likable as ever while playing someone easy to hate, Ray Liotta is great as the detective who gets increasingly irritated by Ronnie and Collette Wolfe is a little ray of sunshine in a bleak, bleak microcosm.

The script is pretty unfunny although I'm not quite sure just how much comedy was ever intended to be mixed in here so it gets marks for actually having some good scenes when not simply relying on Rogen's random foul-mouthed rants. It has some surprisingly effective moments but is simply too erratic in tone and too concerned with unlikeable characters to be anything more than just good.

Derfinitely an intriguing one to watch, this film shows an interesting and dark side of director and star. Ultimately, it's a failed experiment but it certainly gets points for daring to be a little different and it was never dull.

See this if you like: Taxi Driver, Falling Down, Funny People.