Aldous Snow Gets His Own Movie!

Rating: 9/10 (3 November 2010)

I had commented on FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL, stating that Russell Brand's self-focused rock star Aldous Snow was probably my favorite part of the whole movie. Apparently, I wasn't alone and writer-director Nicholas Stoller has returned to give the lead singer of fictional rock band Infant Sorrow his own movie. As the film begins, Aldous has fallen back into a life of stoned/drunken debauchery as his music career hits rock bottom with his universally hated album "African Child" and his love life sits in shambles with his long-time lover model/pop star Jackie Q splits with their son. In Los Angeles, Aaron Green is an up-and-comer with Pinnacle Records and suggests to his boss that they hold a ten year anniversary concert with Infant Sorrow at the Greek Theater. Aaron is given the job of flying out to London, wrangling Aldous, and ensuring that he gets him to Los Angeles in three days for his performance.
I was worried when I saw the original trailers for this film. The jokes weren't coming off well and I began to fear a movie I'd been looking forward to was going to fall flat. I was so glad when I finally got to the theater and saw the film because it is HILARIOUS. Russell Brand as Snow is one of the funniest characters in recent years and he completely embodies his role (probably because some aspects are loosely pulled form his own personal life). Surprisingly, he even manages to give his character some depth and earn sympathy as the film progresses when it becomes apparent he's not a one-note joke but begins to show a bit of humanity. Jonah Hill, while usually a scene stealer in his own regard, is constantly over-shadowed by Brand's bravado. His character was written as a passive person, which sealed the deal of playing second fiddle when you put him with Brand's stoned energy.
There are some great cameos in the film. Colm Meaney shifts gears for a comedic turn as Aldous's father, Jonathan, and he's got great chemistry with Brand. The entire sequence in which Aldous detours to Vegas for a visit with his estranged father is the funniest in the film, beginning with an awkward conversation and ending in a full-blown rock star hotel room trashing. Even Sean Combs is hilarious in the film as Sergio, head of Pinnacle and Aaron's boss. He fell right into the improve/comedy vibe and I wouldn't mind seeing Combs making further appearances in Apatow-produced comedies.
Major credit needs to be given to Jason Segel, Lyle Workman, Mike Viola, and the rest who wrote original music for Infant Sorrow and Jackie Q. Seriously, the music in the film is good enough that I had to get the soundtrack. Each of the songs sounds as if it could be a legitimate rock/pop song and each of them is hilarious and often addicting. After having seen this film a few times and gotten the tunes stuck in my head, I really wish Infant Sorrow was a real band.