Sometimes when you are successful you unintentionally set yourself up for a fall. That is certainly the case for Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, when you are the creative minds behind brilliant films like Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz people expect something amazing every time you put pen to paper. Paul is nowhere near as good as the previously mentioned films, but having said that it is still ten times better than most of the films around today.
Paul tells the story of English comic book nerds, Graeme Willy (Simon Pegg – The Chronicle Of Narnia – The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader, Burke And Hare) and Clive Gollings (Nick Frost – TV’S Money, The Boat That Rocked) as they arrive in the U.S. to attend Comic Con and to also take a journey through the ‘Extraterrestrial Heartland Of America’. However their journey doesn’t go as planned when they run into Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen – Fight For Your Right Revisited, The Green Hornet), an alien who is desperately trying to get back to his home planet. Just to add to their concerns they soon find themselves being chased by the authorities, led on the ground by Agent Zoil (Jason Bateman – The Switch, TV’S Sit Down Shut Up) and then running into religious nut, Ruth Buggs (Kristen Wiig – TV’S Saturday Night Live, Funny Or Die Presents…).
Greg Mottola (Adventureland, Superbad) was the right choose as a director for Paul. Using Frost and Pegg’s script as a guidance he does a wonderful job mixing outrageous comedy while not forgetting that there is also a dramatic storyline also going on. Poor Mottola certainly gets his directional skills tested as he practically has to weld all genres together (apart from drama and comedy there is also sci-fi and action to throw into the mix) seamlessly, as well as direct, Paul… a character that is never present on the set. Luckily, he is up to the task and what you are left with is a film that a pure joy to watch.
Once again Nick Frost and Simon Pegg show why they are the two best comedic actors going around at the moment. Their comedy scenes are impeccable while much to their credit they can also pull-off dramatic scenes with ease. Credit must also be paid to Jason Bateman who is excellent as the deliberately rubbery Agent Zoil and Kristen Wiig who steals the show on a number of occasions with her over-the-top portrayal of Ruth.
Paul is a terrific comedy that is a must see for comic book fans out there. It is the best fanboy comedy since… well Fanboys.
Year: 2011
Director: Greg Mottola
Stars: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig
Classification: MA
Runtime: 104 mins
Rating: 