YEAR ONE

Starring Jack Black and Michael Cera

Where to begin?This one was directed by Harold Ramis and as soon as I found that out,I thought I was in for a treat. Having been responsible for such awesome classics over the years from Ghostbusters to Caddyshack and Groundhog day,Ramis is no stranger to off the wall and somewhat dirty humour. This time around,we are treated to scenes involving Jack Black sniffing and licking poo and Michael Cera urinating on his own face. Classic.
The casting was all over the map on top of the groundbreaking nonsense. Grossly under utilized are Bill Hader and Paul Rudd,who can hold their own in any comedy allowing them to spread their wings.Instead,we have a supporting cast that seems bored. The love interests are all but non existent until the last 90 seconds and while we are on the topic,who the heck came up with the pairing of Black and Cera in the first place? Jack Black is 40 and Cera is 20,and we are to believe that these two are fast friends??
The rubberheaded crowd in my theater seemed to enjoy some of the sight gags but the actual clever moments and fairly well written lines went by unnoticed. You actually can NOT have it both ways. You're a witty farce or you're the gross out jokes that were lifted from the last 4 American Pie movies.This was an embarrassing turn by Ramis. Black and Cera did what they could and are actually not to blame for the movie failing on many levels. Fingers can be pointed at the script,casting director and editor as well as Mr Ramis our director.
All in all I am ready to forgive this hiccup and look forward to the next Ghostbusters. Until then,tread lightly with this one.

Rating 1 1/2 fart jokes out of 5