You might like it if you like Family Guy

Rating: 6/10 (1 August 2012)

I hemmed and hawed for five minutes before going in to see this movie. I hadn't heard anything about it, and the poster made it look like a children's movie. However, I didn't want to wait too long for the next film and I noticed Seth MacFarlane had directed it -- so I took the plunge.
For the first 20 minutes I was worried I had made a mistake. The only other person in the theatre was a kid. Then the movie took a strange direction and gradually morphed into a Family Guy kind of film. (It took me a few years to warm to Family Guy, but I'm at the point now where the oddball humour entertains me somewhat. And there are times when the show is brilliant, especially in scenes involving the Stewie character.)
I'm afraid however that I did not really fully appreciate most of the writing and humour in this film. I just didn't find it that witty or funny. The gratuitously offensive jokes and the toilet humour fell flat for me. It was supposed to be irreverent, but much of it just seemed stupid. Perhaps I was in the wrong mood.
However, I did enjoy the original premise at the core of the movie (once I accepted its lack of realism) and some of the gags that arose out of it. I was also impressed at the technical wizardry.
I had problems with the casting of Mark Wahlberg as John Bennett. I'm a fan, but he is too old, too hot and too worldly to play a 35 year old loser. I don't see him as the Peter Pan figure that the script calls for. In general, I didn't really appreciate this character's quirks. It was forced. Wahlberg pulled it off I suppose. He has a wider range than people give him credit for. I saw Lori (played by Mila Kunis) as just being annoyingly demanding. I thought that Wahlberg and Kunis were a hot couple, but they were in the wrong roles and the wrong movie together. Giovanni Ribisi was good, as always.
I was put off by the constant drug and alcohol indulgences of Ted and John. I mean, look at what John looks like: this is a guy who would be into the gym and into his health.
I am not quite sure how a young teenager could be allowed into the theatre to see this film. I'm not a prude, but I suppose there are no age restrictions anymore. A lot of the material and language in the movie seemed inappropriate for children, especially the anti-semitic and homophobic humour.
If you really enjoy Family Guy, I think you might enjoy this film though.