I'm going to say it. Don't try and stop me. I'm going to say it. 30 Minutes or Less is the funniest movie of the year. There I said it. This is quite the competition too, going up against such quality fare as... The Change-up, or the much revered No Strings Attached. And of course one can't forget about the soon to be classic... The Smurfs. Boy I hope my sarcasm is blatant enough here. But anyways, 30 Minutes or Less really is hysterical despite how the "funniest movie of the year" title isn't saying much. The film follows a deadbeat pizza delivery guy (Jesse Eisenberg) who gets a bomb strapped to him by a couple of idiots who need 100,000 dollars for one to kill off his dad. They force Eisenberg to rob a bank in order to come up with the money, or the bomb explodes. After much nervous deliberation, Eisenberg and his best friend (Aziz Ansari) set out to rob the bank and save Eisenberg's life. The results. Hilarious.
I've spent this year being very underwhelmed by the comedies. They've been either blatantly stupid, or a complete disappointment when I thought they actually had some potential. (i.e. Paul, Horrible Bosses, etc.) So obviously I was a little skeptical that 30 Minutes or Less would produce the same lackluster results. So I was pleasantly surprised when I spent the entire film laughing my head off. Looking back, it's been way too long since I laughed this hard during a movie, at least for the right reasons. When you boil it down this film is pretty straightforward and predictable. The plot itself is entertaining but there are a lot of aspects to it that once could easily come up with themselves. But this film makes it all work, and there is unexpected and unpredictable fun in the jokes themselves. You also have to commend it for always keeping the laughter going. There is never a dull moment in 30 Minutes or Less and even at its most sincere there is still something to laugh about on the screen.
Honestly, in retrospect my skepticism was pretty irrational. Can you really go wrong with a cast like this? There are four central characters in this film and they are all fantastic. It's the character dynamic and interaction that makes this film work so well, and makes it so outright hilarious. Jesse Eisenberg make a great comedy duo and they have their fair share of entertaining scenes together, namely the bank robbery which will bring up tears of laughter. But it's Danny McBride and Nick Swardson that make this film. They are the perfect duo as goofy partners in crime who can't really get anything right. It's a pairing that we've seen before, but never at this level of raunchiness, vulgarity, and absolute hilarity. You almost get to the point where you are just in a fit of anticipation waiting for the next scene with these two. You couldn't have picked a funnier duo and I don't know that I could be more satisfied with everything that happens between these two hilarious characters.
I've said it before but I'll admit it again. Comedy films just aren't something that are going to warrant high ratings from me. Especially comedies like this one. It's a film that is more about the jokes than the actual story. Of course the story in 30 Minutes or Less is actually very entertaining and hilariously creative at times, but it still just serves as a container for the jokes. Thankfully, the jokes are some of the most side splitting things I've seen and heard all year. And it's for that that I definitely recommend this film as probably the funniest thing you will see all summer, and if 2011 continues on the same trend as it has been, the year.
I've spent this year being very underwhelmed by the comedies. They've been either blatantly stupid, or a complete disappointment when I thought they actually had some potential. (i.e. Paul, Horrible Bosses, etc.) So obviously I was a little skeptical that 30 Minutes or Less would produce the same lackluster results. So I was pleasantly surprised when I spent the entire film laughing my head off. Looking back, it's been way too long since I laughed this hard during a movie, at least for the right reasons. When you boil it down this film is pretty straightforward and predictable. The plot itself is entertaining but there are a lot of aspects to it that once could easily come up with themselves. But this film makes it all work, and there is unexpected and unpredictable fun in the jokes themselves. You also have to commend it for always keeping the laughter going. There is never a dull moment in 30 Minutes or Less and even at its most sincere there is still something to laugh about on the screen.
Honestly, in retrospect my skepticism was pretty irrational. Can you really go wrong with a cast like this? There are four central characters in this film and they are all fantastic. It's the character dynamic and interaction that makes this film work so well, and makes it so outright hilarious. Jesse Eisenberg make a great comedy duo and they have their fair share of entertaining scenes together, namely the bank robbery which will bring up tears of laughter. But it's Danny McBride and Nick Swardson that make this film. They are the perfect duo as goofy partners in crime who can't really get anything right. It's a pairing that we've seen before, but never at this level of raunchiness, vulgarity, and absolute hilarity. You almost get to the point where you are just in a fit of anticipation waiting for the next scene with these two. You couldn't have picked a funnier duo and I don't know that I could be more satisfied with everything that happens between these two hilarious characters.
I've said it before but I'll admit it again. Comedy films just aren't something that are going to warrant high ratings from me. Especially comedies like this one. It's a film that is more about the jokes than the actual story. Of course the story in 30 Minutes or Less is actually very entertaining and hilariously creative at times, but it still just serves as a container for the jokes. Thankfully, the jokes are some of the most side splitting things I've seen and heard all year. And it's for that that I definitely recommend this film as probably the funniest thing you will see all summer, and if 2011 continues on the same trend as it has been, the year.