This is the End

Directed by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogan. Written by Even Goldberg, Seth Rogan, Jason Stone (based on the story by). Starring Seth Rogan, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson.

Bottom line: This is the End is why I rarely watch comedies; what began as a solidly funny movie, slowly but surely (in almost a linear fashion) became one of the most irritating things I’ve ever seen.

1.5/4

With regard to comedies, I am turning into a damaged lover. Every time I warm up to one and let my guard down, I end up disappointed, frustrated, and confused. Maybe, somehow, I am picking all the bad comedies and missing the good ones.

This is the End has some great qualities and it had the potential to be really, really funny. The star-studded cast members all play charactertures of themselves: Jonah Hill is disconcertingly nice, Michael Cera is doing coke, James Franco is obsessed with his movies and friendship with Seth Rogan, etc. They are able to make fun of themselves with each other and I liked that. I also liked the structure of the jokes. The delivery is almost mechanical and the punch lines are predictable, which isn’t the normal recipe for a joke. Normally, I would think a natural smooth delivery would be better, but somehow it works. It’s almost as if we are watching a comedy duo perform a standup routine. The camera is fixed as the characters banter back and forth. Take, for example, one of the first scenes in the movie.

Seth Rogan is at the airport picking up his friend, Jay Baruchel, for a weekend of video games, drinking and weed. Once in the car, Jay says, “Next stop Carl’s Jr!”

Rogan replies with, “Um, well, I can’t really do that. You see, I’m on this new gluten free diet thing.”

“You’re kidding! I bet you don’t even know what gluten is.”

“Sure, I do.”

“Well, then do tell.”

“Gluten is…really anything bad for you so fat and sugar and all that.”

“So you’re not drinking or smoking or anything?”

“What are you kidding? Of course I am drinking and smoking, I am just having no gluten.”

The scene ends as the camera cuts to the two sitting outside Carl’s Jr as Rogan takes a bite of burger saying something like, “This is the best gluten free burger ever.”

The banter is simply two friends alternating between setups and punch lines and the simplicity makes it work. If only they stopped while they were ahead. I would’ve really loved this movie if the jokes were consistently this funny. In the initial stages of the movie, the cast doesn’t feel the need to beat a joke to death. This is the End was almost cruel in that once things start to go downhill, there are still funny jokes sprinkled throughout serving as a reminder of what the movie could’ve been.

In terms of story, the two friends go to James Franco’s new house for a big party. Before too long an Earthquake ends the party and a sinkhole opens outside the house. There is chaos and confusion while the group tries to figure out what is going on. It is the Biblical end of times, they eventually conclude.

It seems like once the Armageddon plot begins, the movie really starts to go downhill. The jokes are excessively long and are mostly about masturbation and penises. I am all for profanity but the characters use the f word as a comma making the dialog more tiring than edgy. The movie devolves from a comedy about movie stars to just another frat-boy joke fest.

As this is the Apocalypse, the “good people” go to Heaven before fire and brimstone start falling. The characters may not have ascended but still live, so they have a chance to make amends. By the end of the hour and a half ordeal, This is the End still has the opportunity to makes amends but, not surprisingly, it fails. Two of the characters are flying into the blinding white sky past the clouds. We could’ve just faded to black and to the credits. Nope. Alright, now the two characters are dressed in white, skipping in the clouds with a rainbow in the background. It could’ve freeze-framed as they could jumping and laughing. Nope. The camera cuts over to show the golden gates of Heaven. The gates open to another blinding white light. Again, the movie could’ve faded to the credits. Instead, we meet with another character who presents two halos to his friends. He says “Welcome to Heaven…” and looks over his shoulder. The camera moves into the clouds. This is the last chance for the movie to end reasonably. We could’ve faded to the credits and left Heaven up to the audiences’ imagination. Nope. The movie just had to take a shot at the realization of eternal paradise: there are rollercoasters in the background, unlimited drinks, weed and women dancing in bikinis. “You can have anything you want. Just make a wish,” the one person explains.

I wish they went over the top with Heaven and ended the movie sooner. For example, the camera could’ve flown through the clouds to a reveal a couple dozen beautiful women. One of the guys could’ve said, “Wow, they were right after all.” It would’ve been stupid and offensive but so offensive that it would be funny. This is just a generic, dumb male fantasy about what would be awesome to have for eternity. But wait, there’s more! This is the End has almost a supernatural instinct about how to get worse.

If you’ve read any of my other reviews, you might recall that I generally dislike children in movies but I haven’t mentioned how much I hate comedic dancing sequences. Am I supposed to laugh at the characters because they can’t dance? If they are trying, we ought not hold it against them. I don’t always dance but when I do I try and, let me tell you, it feels awful to be mocked for trying. I don’t feel involved because I would much rather be dancing than watching people dance. These types of sequences are always too silly: pelvic thrusts do not a funny movie make.

If you feel compelled to watch this movie, rent it and put it on during a party. I’d say that the party’s attention can be held just long enough for the goodness of the movie to run out. Other activities will distract everyone enough to leave this movie to fade into the background.