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The Interview – Movie Review

Release Date: [imdblive:date]

Certificate: [imdblive:certificate]

Director: [imdblive:directors_nolink]

Cast: [imdblive:cast_nolink]

Runtime: [imdblive:runtime] mins

Plot: [imdblive:plot]

Never has a film, as of recent, been shrouded in such conspiracy, controversy and mystery. But then again, never have film-makers had the nerve to undermine and poke fun at a itchy trigger fingered dictator. The films over-the-top and mad, nothing else should be expected. It doesn’t hold back and it doesn’t confide within ‘boundaries of comedy’, but of course nothing less is to be expected of Seth Rogen and James Franco. Whilst it certainly isn’t Rogen’s strongest comedy, it is still very funny and should be applauded for its sheer audacity. It’s wacky and will have you laughing at bizarrely constructed scenes, featuring an eccentric mock-up of Kim Jong-un. The film’s weakness is its pacing, which slumbers for a short period of time during the second half during ploddy CIA sequences. This, coupled with Rogen taking a back-seat while Franco helms the bulk of the comedy leads to an uneven film. It’s Achilles heel is the underdeveloped CIA scenario, while the films forte is all the mayhem that ensues in North Korea, with a comedic, if not lifelike, imagining of Kim Jong-un.

The film’s plot boasts simplicity; a famous US interviewer goes to North Korea to interview Kim Jong-un, whilst being coerced by the CIA to assassinate the dictator. There is nothing else to this film, it’s bare and it does the trick; well for the most part anyway. Rogen and Franco team up to deliver their usual punchy, raunchy comedy which is always filled with pop-culture references.  It borrows from Pineapple Express as the second half of the film delves into ‘Tarantino-esque’ like action. As ever, this duo works perfectly with their chemistry being firmly rooted in their previous outings. The Interview switches up the formula, a little, with Franco having the larger role with the bigger laughs. At times Franco can be seen as ‘overdoing’ it, but this is just part of the over-the-top nature of the film and works perfectly well with the tongue in cheek nature of the film. Rogen is as good as ever, but the star of this film is Randall Park who delivers a hysterical portrayal of the dictator. It’s sarcastic, funny and everything the man himself would not want to be seen as. As mentioned before, the CIA element is the weakest part of the film, mainly due to Lizzy Caplan’s weak role as the agent behind this operation. This isn’t to say she herself is bad, the issue with her role is the scripts decision to not accommodate her part into the plot more/or in a better way.

With stories being released about this film every day, it’s growing in popularity. The controversy is justified in places, as it’s rational to see why N.Korea would take offence to the material in the film. Yet, the film also satirises America’s news landscape, critiquing how the popularity of the news is dominated by what gossip is circulating in the celebrity world. But this film needs to be seen as what it is, a satire of our culture, a comedy – a film that wants to create laughs and not create political tension.

‘The Interview’ was well worth the hype, after viewing it you can see how over-the-top and nonsensical the film is. It’s witty and is littered with Rogen’s humour, which if you are a fan of (like I am) then you will find a lot to like in this film. It’s a strong contender for funniest film of the year, it’s unique style and explosive ending make it stand out from the rest of the flock. It’s a pity this film isn’t as funny as it could have been, a slight tweak concerning the CIA element would have made it even better. Nevertheless, it’s still hugely entertaining and always a pleasure to see Rogen and Franco team up.