Observe and Report (2009)

"Observe and Report", starring Seth Rogen, Anna Faris, Michael Peña, and Ray Liotta, is surprisingly emotional. It is funny, for sure, but it is also very human, evoking tears of sadness and of sympathy, feelings of grief for the things the characters are going through, and of happiness. In this day and age you'd be hard pressed to find a comedy film that depicts multi-layered, complex, realistic, and relatable characters, and that delivers plenty of hard laughs, but "Observe and Report" does all of this, and does it well, never forgetting that everyone, at their core, is flawed.Seth Rogen plays Ronnie, a bipolar mall security guard who has dreams of one day becoming an official police officer who can carry a gun. All Ronnie wants to do is make something of himself, and his delusions of grandeur grow in dangerous amounts throughout the film until they climax in a violent and bloody outburst where his dreams are finally fulfilled.Seth Rogen is fantastic in this role, and this is probably his best performance. He is an unlikeable character, a racist with violent tendencies, but you really can't help but like him, sympathize with him, and hope for the best for him. You know that he'd be okay if only he had a normal home life, if only people treated him with respect, if only he would continue to take his medicine regularly. And while watching this film, you realize that it isn't Ronnie himself that is a bad person, but rather it is his bipolar disorder that is making him choose bad decisions, that is making people treat him poorly, that is making him believe he doesn't have to continue taking is medication. Seth Rogen is utterly fascinating to watch on screen playing this character whom you want to root for, even when he goes a little bit insane.Collette Wolfe is also fantastic in this movie, and she has a scene that I will not spoil, but it is truly Oscar-worthy, and you'll know it when you see it. Honestly, her performance during that scene was so good and so emotional that I wept."Observe and Report" is marketed as a silly comedy, but it is much more than that. Of course, it does have its moments of laugh-out-loud hilarity, but underneath the surface, "Observe and Report" is a character study of Ronnie and an analysis of how bad mental illness can become if it is unchecked and taken lightly.

Observe and Report (2009): Dir: Jody Hill / Cast: Seth Rogan, Anna Faris, Ray Liotta, Michael Pena, Celia Weston: Hilarious film about the difference between seeing and translating it. Seth Rogan plays head security at the mall where a flasher has struck. Director Jody Hill avoids formula by taking circumstances and relationships in different directions. Rogan's mall cop desires to be a police officer yet is subdued by poor judgement. He lives with his alcoholic yet loving mother, and makes it his mission to score with the cosmetics girl. Anna Faris plays the cosmetics girl he is obsessed with. She is self absorbed although becomes the object of Rogan's desire after she is flashed in the parking lot. Her attitude is returned full force during a shocking comedic climax. Ray Liotta plays a cop whom Rogan dislikes because he is investigating the flasher scene at the mall. This is problematic due to Rogan's initial outbursts. Perhaps had Liotta made the first conflicting motion then the security guard might have had more credibility. Rogan will retaliate when the need for a badge doesn't distinguish who he is. Michael Pena plays Rogan's partner with a secret and a massive drug high. Celia Weston is hilarious as Rogan's drunken mother who offers support when she can muster it. More detailed than the inferior Paul Blart: Mall Cop, with smaller factors celebrated within one of the best comedies of the year. Score: 9 / 10

You have to admit that when you are watching most comedies there are a number of things that you have to overlook. Be it plot, plausibility, dialog, depth of purpose etc. One in a thousand comedies can be considered high brow art. I think the thing most critics missed in their analysis is that they didn't like Ronnie's many highly socially awkward moments. It makes the critics sense of sensibility go into crisis lock down mode then they hate it all. This film has a great plot (for a comedy), it has really exceptional cinematography, good social commentary. I did like how well they captured the grandiose nature of a type 1 bi-polar person with hilarious grand Hollywood style epic scenes. The cop fight, the skateboarder beat down/drug binge, shooting the flasher etc. also there were subtle things in the movie that were hilarious. Ronnie's detective board, the candid shots of people in the mall, looks that the flasher made during the chase. Normally I hate the moments of heart in comedies. But there were some good ones Especially with the cop in slicked back hair, the drunk mom and Ronnie at the end of the date.The film left me questioning my dreams and possible grandeur by showing how easy the social fabric of society can turn on you based on one conversation or bad relationship with one person. It also showed how many times those socially unacceptable conversations or situations can be irrelevant. I guess the critics can't handle that.

Observe and Report is the second of two mall security person movies to be released in 2009. This film is definitely not nearly as family- friendly, and is more vulgar to the taste. I sort of thought it was a funny movie, but it had a mean-spirited tone which somehow I was not able to digest. Short in length, the film wastes no time telling you what kind of movie it is and at least the film knows it's a stupid movie. I liked Paul Blart better, but this film does have a certain charm and it was pretty funny at points. Jody Hill's movie is about is about a mall security guard named Ronnie. After a flasher exposed himself at the mall, Ronnie makes it a priority to catch the flasher. Trouble arises when the flasher exposes himself to the girl of his dreams thus bringing in the cops, in particular the shady Detective Harrison. The acting is pretty good, I thought. Seth Rogen does a relatively good job as Ronnie, though he could have been a little nicer. Ray Liotta made a fine detective and is not as corrupt as other cops he has played. I also thought Michael Pena did a solid job as Ronnie's right-hand man who gave this film a surprising twist. Overall, Observe and Report is an okay movie, but don't expect anything special. I'm all down for raucous comedies, but it goes a little overboard when things get mean, blatantly obvious mean. There are many jokes, and a lot of them do manage to be effective. But in the end, Paul Blart was the better movie this year. But I still sort of liked the film. I rate this film 7/10.