A sweet and lovable delight

Rating: 9/10 (21 April 2008)

Judd Apatow's latest production follows a formula similar to some of his other films, but it still works quite well. What Apatow and his crew bring to the table are more fully developed characters, an emotional core and a refreshingly adult sense of humor. Kids can have their Meet the Spartans; I'm perfectly happy with this. Jason Segel stars and wrote the screenplay. Kristen Bell is the actress who broke up with him. Russell Brand plays her new boyfriend and Mila Kunis the new girl whom Segel meets. Pretty predictable plot-wise, of course, but the laughs are frequent and I actually cared about the characters. It's great to see the film not resort to making Bell and Brand outright villains. They feel like genuine people. The real treat of the film is the wonderful supporting cast and their lovable characters, including Apatow mainstay Paul Rudd as a stoner surf instructor, Jonah Hill as a guy obsessed with Russell Brand's rock star character, Bill Hader as Segel's supportive step-brother and Jack McBrayer as a sexually frustrated newlywed (his wife played by Maria Thayer, who played Tammi Littlenut in Strangers with Candy). It's not the funniest movie I've ever seen, but it's quite satisfying.