enjoyable Simon Pegg comedy - nothing outstanding

Rating: 6/10 (24 January 2013)

I love Simon Pegg; from Spaced to Hot Fuzz, Paul to Shawn of the Dead, so was expecting to love this too. Whilst I didn't love it, at least not on first watching, I did 'like a lot' this Brit-comedy with a lot going for it. Simon Pegg is clever, self-effacing and eminently watchable. He's not so up his own backside that he can't make fun of himself and in this - as with a lot of his films - he doesn't paint himself well, but comes good at the end.
Dennis (Pegg) is a bit of a loser, a "nearly man" and someone who never sees something through including marrying love of his life and mother of his child Libby (the beautiful Thandie Newton), leaving her 'at the altar' so to speak. Five years on and he's in a dead end job, and seeing Libby get it together with good-looking, rich, fit American hedge-fund manager Whit (Hank Azaria) who has the best of everything, and so the competition begins for both the favour of Libby and the attention of their son, Jake. The competition between the two is padded out by funny interactions between him and his landlord (Harish Patel) and Libby's cousin/his friend played by the timing-genius Dylan Moran. Spot Stephen Merchant, David Walliams and Floella Benjamin to name a few familiar faces dotted through the film.
Whilst there's nothing particularly outstanding in Run Fat Boy Run there are some great comedic moments (the lingerie shoplifter and the spin-class portion were particular hoots), some heart and the take home message about how the underdog can win if they work hard. It's predictable to a certain extent but it's just a nice film typical of Simon Pegg's oftentimes cringeworthy sort of humour; always well executed and cleverly written. Sadly no Nick Frost in this one!