If there’s anyone in Hollywood whose star shines brighter
than the others right now, it’s Channing Tatum. The 32-year-old actor has shown
a massive rise in his showmanship in the past year, impressing in the
underrated Haywire and legitimate hits The Vow and 21 Jump Street. Women (and some men)
flocked to theaters to make his pseudo-biographical male stripper movie Magic Mike far more successful than
it would have been without him. Even this summer’s sudden GI Joe: Retaliation delay was good for him; one of the given
reasons for pushing the film back to next March was strengthening of his
character (who was supposed to be killed off in the first scene) from the first
film. It’s difficult to imagine anyone else having as big a year as he has
enjoyed so far.
But
Tatum is not 2012’s only success story, as I would be remiss to ignore Tatum’s Jump Street running buddy, Jonah Hill.
Fresh off an Academy Award nomination for his role in last year’s acclaimed Moneyball, Hill has also come off
strong, with an unspecified role in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, coming out this Christmas. But his biggest
challenge to date (besides his failed solo comedy shot in the abysmal The Sitter) is how he stacks up in
comparison to his fellow comedic actors. That’s where The Watch comes in, as Hill is teamed up with veterans Ben
Stiller and Vince Vaughn, as well as imported talent Richard Ayoade. With such
notables to be counted as his co-stars, Hill now has a chance to show that he
can play with the big boys. This was certainly important, with the film
formerly known as Neighborhood Watch
needing to the best it could be to outshine some of the better R-rated comedies
in recent years.
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| Actually, I think I'm MORE threatened by having them on the street... |
Unfortunately,
The Watch never manages to break free
of its own limitations. I admit that this was always the probable outcome; where
Stiller and Vaughn go, laughs rarely get more sophisticated than
repeatedly-referenced penis jokes and outrageously vulgar sexual commentary.
That gets multiplied tenfold when you allow Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen (the
team behind Superbad) to pen the
script, which ultimately changed the focus of the story from a more
family-friendly Ghostbusters-light to
something that would be right at home at one of Emperor Nero’s celebrations. We’re
often subjected to the same joke over and over again, and as you can probably
predict, the goodwill fades fast. With the same deliveries that Stiller and
Vaughn have given in each and every one of their films, there’s almost enough
here to condemn the movie right here and now as nothing beyond ordinary, even
with its alien invasion storyline and adult content.
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| They might have just committed intergalactic murder. |
At
least the characters and their motivations are unique enough to stand on their
own, with or without the talent of their performers. Stiller’s Evan is a
goody-two-shoes Costco (who obviously were happy with their film presence)
manager who starts the Neighborhood Watch in response to the brutal murder of
one of his employees and friends. This is typical Stiller, so square that he
rests comfortably between the extremes of Derek Zoolander and Roger Greenberg
with ample elbow room. The film calls for Stiller to play the straight man to
his fellow co-stars, and he’s a competent, if not altogether entertaining lead
in that capacity. I’m really not a fan of Vaughn, and The Watch expresses why perfectly, as he once again plays the Alpha
Male man-child with little actual likability. His one saving grace is the
storyline featuring his teenage daughter, played by Erin Moriarty. Their
believable and hilarious interactions make up for much of Vaughn’s immature
behavior, redeeming the character more than a little. Hill and Ayoade end up
the standouts, though unfortunately not to the level that they need to carry
this film. Hill’s high school dropout and police force reject is fun in that
psychotic mix of Travis Bickle and Patrick Bateman, managing to charm even as
he scares you just a little. And Ayoade brings something different to the table
as a recently immigrated divorcee who joins the Watch as part of a scheme to
get sex. Other standouts include Saturday
Night Live alum Will Forte as the head of the local law enforcement,
Rosemarie DeWitt as Evan’s wife, and Watchmen’s
Billy Crudup as Evan’s creepy new neighbor.
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| This interrogation brought to you by Costco. |
And to be fair, the film has its moments, though they are
often dulled by the crude nature of the script’s attempts at humor. The secret
is in The Watch not taking itself all
that seriously, which makes all the difference in the world. This is the one
success of director Akiva Schaffer, who could have easily made this movie into
something like the travesties that were Bad Teacher and Machete. The Watch is certainly not a GOOD
movie, but it is entertaining when it wants to be, from an alien’s description
of Costco (“You really DO have
everything we need under one roof.”) to R. Lee Ermey spouting off in his best Full Metal Jacket persona, to the
group’s ludicrous plans with which they ALMOST
follow through. The four men work well together, with their disparate
characteristics often coming into conflict with one another, creating endless
possibilities for where conversations can go. Sure, it too often dwells in the
nether-regions, but The Watch doesn’t
do too badly for never quite reaching its potential.
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| Well, what would YOU do with a fire-spitting orb of doom? |
The movie’s action brief action sequences are also something
of a respite from the sometimes dreary attempts at humor and bromance,
recalling those Ghostbusters
comparisons I mentioned earlier. Though the quartet are often being shown out
of their element against an alien invasion, they are really no different than
those jumpsuit-wearing heroes of the eighties in that they work through tension
to team up and make good things happen. The action both looks cool and silly,
seamlessly blending what you might see in Independence
Day with MacGruber, but better
than I made that sound. It’s funny, it’s ridiculous, it’s unbelievable… and it
works.
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| Happier times for Hill... |
Sadly,
The Watch can do little to stand out
in a year featuring other (and in some cases better) R-rated fare, with Friends with Kids, Project X, and even The Dictator ranking higher. Of
course it’s nowhere CLOSE to 21 Jump Street, though that (and Hill’s
performance within) might be the best adult comedy you’ll see all year. Though
he succeeds at times, Schaffer needs to work a bit more on his storytelling (getting
away from Saturday Night Live would probably help) before he tackles another
major motion picture, as what The Watch
really needed was an experienced hand to steer the ship away from the blatant vulgarities
of Rogen and Goldberg. It’s not a bad time spent at the theater, and with so
few new films out right now, I’d be a decent third or fourth choice. If you’ve
had your fill of The Dark Knight Rises or The Amazing Spider-Man, you could do
a whole lot worse. The problem is that you only need visit Netflix or your
local video store to find just about anything better.
