2008 Woodie Awards
the reel critic
Christopher Anderson
Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: Arts
MOVIE | Forgetting Sarah Marshall
DIRECTOR | Nicholas Stoller
STARRING | Jason Segel
"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" is a little different from other recent Judd Apatow movies. I speak of course about those that he's directed or produced, the list of which is "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," "Superbad" and "Walk Hard." These movies get his name because each is infused in some way with his brand of humor - of crass images and bad language, gags and jokes that are sexual and "sophomoric" and of characters and storylines that are emotionally truthful, people who we root for because their goodness compels us to.
And if that last sentence is complex, it's because his movies are. They're not as formulaic as Adam Sandler's are, or, unfortunately, as Will Ferrell's have become. Somehow they seem fresher. "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" is in that vein, but is also very different from the others. For one, it's written by Jason Segal, who stars in the film as Peter, with no help from Judd Apatow. His writing style focuses less on gags and more on quirky dialogue, most of it coming from Peter and reflecting his charming but awkward personality.
The film is about, surprisingly, forgetting Sarah Marshall, Peter's ex-girlfriend. She is the star of a TV show (a "CSI" knockoff called "Crime Scene") for which Peter provides the "dark and ominous" score/music. She has recently exploded in the public eye and, after her success, she dumps Peter for a mindless British rock star named Aldous Snow. He is in a band called Infant Sorrow, and the tone of his songs doesn't quite match his enthusiastic dancing.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall turns out to be more difficult for Peter than he could have imagined. He is clearly hurting after she breaks up with him, and some of the funniest scenes in the movie happen right after, in the midst of him trying to get over her. He enlists his brother Brian to "wingman" for him, and he relies on his advice for the better part of the film. When Brian tells him to take a vacation, Peter decides to go to a place that Sarah mentioned loving - a resort in Hawaii.
DIRECTOR | Nicholas Stoller
STARRING | Jason Segel
"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" is a little different from other recent Judd Apatow movies. I speak of course about those that he's directed or produced, the list of which is "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," "Superbad" and "Walk Hard." These movies get his name because each is infused in some way with his brand of humor - of crass images and bad language, gags and jokes that are sexual and "sophomoric" and of characters and storylines that are emotionally truthful, people who we root for because their goodness compels us to.
And if that last sentence is complex, it's because his movies are. They're not as formulaic as Adam Sandler's are, or, unfortunately, as Will Ferrell's have become. Somehow they seem fresher. "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" is in that vein, but is also very different from the others. For one, it's written by Jason Segal, who stars in the film as Peter, with no help from Judd Apatow. His writing style focuses less on gags and more on quirky dialogue, most of it coming from Peter and reflecting his charming but awkward personality.
The film is about, surprisingly, forgetting Sarah Marshall, Peter's ex-girlfriend. She is the star of a TV show (a "CSI" knockoff called "Crime Scene") for which Peter provides the "dark and ominous" score/music. She has recently exploded in the public eye and, after her success, she dumps Peter for a mindless British rock star named Aldous Snow. He is in a band called Infant Sorrow, and the tone of his songs doesn't quite match his enthusiastic dancing.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall turns out to be more difficult for Peter than he could have imagined. He is clearly hurting after she breaks up with him, and some of the funniest scenes in the movie happen right after, in the midst of him trying to get over her. He enlists his brother Brian to "wingman" for him, and he relies on his advice for the better part of the film. When Brian tells him to take a vacation, Peter decides to go to a place that Sarah mentioned loving - a resort in Hawaii.
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