A crude, self-mocking, hilarious attempt at an overused post-apocalyptic story

Rating: 8/10 (12 June 2013)

Wow. I was expecting this movie to be funny but I never expected it to be as funny as it was. This Is the End is the best comedy to come out this year. It stars James Franco, Craig Robinson, Jonah Hill, Danny McBride, Seth Rogen and Jay Baruchel as themselves. The group finds themselves in a sort of apocalypse while partying at Franco's house.
The best part of the movie is that the actors play "stupider" versions of themselves. Most of these actors have reached household name status, so it's fun to see them make fun of themselves for our entertainment. They know exactly what their fans want to see and they do it, whether it makes them look bad or not. The funniest bits are when they are making fun of each other or referencing one of their previous movies.
The choice of music was selected perfectly for each scene (once you see it, you'll understand). The guest appearances of many well known actors like Emma Watson and Michael Cera add to the comedic effect. The role that Cera plays in this movie is probably his funniest yet.
The most surprising part was the storyline, which I was expecting to be the downfall of the movie (as it is for most comedies). The storyline was well-written and went really well with the comedy. There was a good balance of comedy, action, character growth and those emotional scenes. Each of them had to come to terms with what was going on and accept it in their own terms. The plot wasn't mind blowing or amazing by any means, but it worked really well with the movie and the actor's performances made up for the flaws in the plot.
Without the undeniable chemistry between these five friends, the movie would have suffered. This Is the End was ultimately about the relationship between these five guys, so it literally depended on the chemistry between the six actors. They are all clearly great friends and great comedians, which is what made the movie so great. The movie takes place mostly in Franco's house, so there's not much going on and it all relates back to the six friends.
The movie was written and directed by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen. They are behind some of the best "weed-smoking" comedies that have come out like Pineapple Express and Superbad. The story comes from a short that they both did together back in 2007, along with Jay Baruchel, called "Jay and Seth Versus the Apocalypse." Apparently they've been wanting to do this movie for a long time but never really thought it would happen. This Is the End is probably going to become their biggest hit, so far.
I highly recommend seeing This Is the End in theaters with a good group of friends. I've already seen the movie twice in the past week and it was still funny the second time. If you love just one of the six mains actors, then you'll probably love this movie.
It's worth watching the entire movie just for the last five minutes.
This Is the End is a great mixture of comedy, action and spoofs. The entertaining, self-mocking performances of the six main actors makes the movie worthwhile and one of the best comedies to come out in a very long time.