Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

VERDICT:
7/10 Dracula Musicals

The official date movie of ’08 and the moment where Jason Segel finally got his due.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall is about a hopeless romantic that gets dumped by his A-list girlfriend, decides that a Hawaiian vacation is just the thing he needs to get him back on his feet, and realizes as soon as he arrives at his paradise hotel that his ex is there vacationing with her new British rock star boyfriend, thus making it increasingly difficult and painfully awkward to forget about her.

Apparently this is loosely based off a number of Segel’s failed past relationships, and, man, you can’t help but feel bad for the guy if that’s really the case. Fortunately, I’ve never had to be the guy bawling his brains out over a broken heart, but even so, Jason Segel’s an easy guy to relate to thanks to him seeming like a generally good person both in real life and otherwise.

On the other hand, he’s also pretty shameless about everything in this movie,  as some of the best parts come from his wallowing in self-pity to going full-frontal without even so much as blushing. Considering you couldn’t pay me enough to get naked in front of a cat, props to Segel for using his own dude-ity as a punchline.

You know what, props to Jason Segel for being Jason Segel. He’s the man and it’s about damn time he became a household name as a legitimately funny dude. He was the best part of Freaks and Geeks along with Martin Starr and even though I’ve only recently started watching How I Met Your Mother (which is hilarious), he’s great in that, too. This was a great way for him to finally get his name out there and the same goes for newcomer Russell Brand as the British rock star boyfriend. Like most people, I’d never heard of Brand before in my life, and while I’m still having a hard time believing that this whole Robert Smith look of his isn’t just an act, he actually gets some of the biggest laughs in the movie. Too bad he’s been a nightmare of a host at the MTV VMA’s, but can’t knock him for being nothing short of hilarious here.

Kristen Bell and Mila Kunis are also good and there’s a pretty funny bit role by Jonah Hill thrown in there, but chances are that Segel and Brand are the two names you’ll find yourself remembering.

But as far as date movies go, this is a fine example of a romcom that successfully caters equally to both the men and the ladies in the room. The romantic aspect isn’t corny or lovey-dovey and the comedy is consistently funny even if you might find yourself forgetting most of the lines after it’s all said and done. This isn’t the edgiest humor in the world, but whatever, you don’t have to be edgy to be funny; just look at Napoleon Dynamite.

In the end, Forgetting Sarah Marshall is just a nice movie. Even though it almost feels too run-of-the-mill to be more than just “nice”, it’s endearing and funny enough that it manages to elude being, dare I say it, forgettable (cue eye-rolling). So snuggle up and check it out.

I love you, Jason Segel.