If you like this type of humour...or maybe if you don't...

Rating: 3/10 (31 December 2012)

Ted is the type of movie that's bound to attract a lot of teenagers or young adults, and it's not solely based on swear words, drugs/alcohol use and politically incorrect jokes (though that is an attraction). It has a lot to do with the type of humour the film employees (as well as Seth MacFarlane's Family Guy): random.
It's the idea that as soon as something funny comes to mind, you might as well just say it; or in this case, put it in a movie. The same goes for intertextual references and celebrity guest appearances, where the joke lives or dies based on whether or not the audience recognizes the reference and/or the star/historical figure; whether the logic of the situation allows for said reference to be made is another story.
But in short, this is what the humour of Ted is: a bunch of ideas and references strung together. A lot of the connections don't make much sense and the jokes can drag on a bit longer than they should (again, like in Family Guy).
Speaking of Family Guy, if you're a fan of that show then odds are you're likely to enjoy this film, as it's really just a live-action version of that show with new characters and setting. Similarly, if you've never encountered this humour before then you could very well be taken (pleasantly?) by surprise at what you see and hear.
Personally? I'm not much of a fan. I used to like this humour, and I admit, I even engage in it with my own friends sometimes, but that's the difference: this humour, I feel, works best in isolated situations as opposed to being forced into a some kind of story (unless, of course, it's a spoof). And yes, there is a story; the bare bones of one, but a story nonetheless.
If I had to estimate how many of the jokes figure into the situations presented in the story, I'd probably say somewhere between 15-20%. The remainder are just ideas thrown at the screen by MacFarlane, seeing what sticks.
Does this make it a bad film? Well, that largely depends on your sense of humour. When it comes to a lot of comedies, no one really cares about the story or characters being super great (though having those can't hurt), they just want a film that can make them laugh. So if you find this humour funny then odds are you will laugh & you'll likely enjoy this film. As for my rating, the reason it's not lower for me is because some of the jokes I did think were rather funny. I'm disappointed the entire movie wasn't as funny as those jokes, but what can you do? In short, if Ted sounds like it's for you then check it out. Unfortunately, it wasn't for me.