I’m still laughing at this scene. Image via Ace Showbiz

It’s a classic setup: a rag-tag fraternity goes up against their stuffy, adult neighbors. The underdog rebels go up against the establishment. However, what Neighbors wants to presuppose is: what if we are actually rooting for the adults?

Here comes Neighbors, which is the first big comedy blockbuster of the summer. It promises big laughs and gratuitous party scenes. It delivers on both these promises, but more on the latter than the former.

Neighbors is ambitious, to say the least. It throws a lot of shit at the wall, and a lot of that shit actually works. Neighbors sees Seth Rogen growing up just a little bit from bachelor stoner to stoner with a baby. Rogen plays Mac Radner along with Rose Byrne, who plays his wife Kelly Radner. The Radners are in that weird stage where they are both adults but they still feel like they are kids. I sense a theme emerging.

Just as the couple is starting to get used to their boring suburban life, a fraternity moves in next door. The brothers we will come to know the most are Teddy (Zac Efron) and Pete (Dave Franco). We know that Teddy is a meathead because he always has his shirt off, and we know that Pete is smart because sometimes he wears glasses. The two of them are also trying to hold on to the last days of their youth.

Now, I know that last paragraph sounded abrupt, but that’s because it all happens very abruptly in the movie itself. At one moment, a gay couple is looking at the house next door and then suddenly, a bunch of fraternity brothers are already moving all of their stuff in. The biggest problem with Neighbors is that it rushes through every important plot point as quickly as possible and it never gives its story any time to breath. Neighbors is a comedy that relies heavily on its plot, yet it seems more interested in moving from one penis joke to the next.

There isn’t necessarily anything wrong with that. Randomness and chaos can make a comedy great. However, something like Neighbors should be focused more on the latter than the former. Something like Step Brothers, which is, no joke, one of the best comedies of the 21st century, can be as random as it wants because it never really claimed to have a plot. When you do something like Neighbors, which borders on some form of high concept, you have to commit to the story you laid out for yourself. One of the biggest problems with Neighbors is that it wants to have it both ways. It wants to be both an Apatow comedy and an 80s comedy where a bunch of slobs challenge the establishment. When you try and have it both ways, you end up defeating yourself.

This is not to say that Neighbors is a failure as a comedy. When it works, it really works. There is one scene depicting a parade of Robert De Niro impressions. Part of this scene is already in the trailer, but that doesn’t make the actual scene any less funny. Maybe the funniest part of the whole scene is that there is a Jackie Brown reference in it. But really, the best part is watching Dave Franco claim to be “Robert De Niro from Meet the Fockers” as he spouts out quotes from Meet the Parents. Neighbors does pop culture references better than a lot of comedies I have seen in a while.

Then, next to some of the smarter jokes, there is a lot of broad slapstick humor. A lot of it works very well, such as a climactic fight between Seth Rogen and Zac Efron that uses objects in the room masterfully. Then, there are parts like the airbag joke, which would have been a lot funnier if they spread it out and built up to it. It also would have been funnier if they didn’t play that same gag on TV every ten minutes.

Neighbors is good, light summer entertainment. It is worth many laughs. However, it is unfortunate when you think of the wasted potential. It is constantly at odds with itself about whether it wants to be stupid or smart. In that mix, you have a lot of funny and charismatic people trying to figure out what to do with themselves. Neighbors is not a bad movie. In fact, at times, it is a very enjoyable movie. Yet, in the end, it feels less like a movie and more like a collection of side gags looking for a more complete comedy.

Brain Farts From The Edge

• I would like to think that Neighbors is secretly a piece of comedy fan fiction and that the Radners are actually related to Gilda Radner. That would be awesome.
• Ike Barinholtz, who you might know from The Mindy Project, is fantastic as the goofy and inappropriate friend. I wish he was given more to do.
• Okay, Zac Efron is shirtless just a little too much. At least the guy has some acting chops, though.
• Oh good, Carla Gallo is getting work.
• Integrating new media and technology into movies is tough. Probably the worst way a movie could do it is by putting text conversations and Skype calls on the screen. Neighbors does just that, and it bothered me maybe a little too much.
• The baby actors that they got here are pretty great. Look forward to some hilarious baby reaction shots. Extra points to Nicholas Stoller to figuring out how to direct a baby.
• I really wish that they let Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg write this. They could have turned it into Superbad set in college.
• Usually, a movie like this would be told from the perspective of the fraternity and the parents would be the villains. Neighbors tries to utilize both sides and it only works sometimes.
• This movie is really about how nobody prepares you for adulthood. Maturity kind of just happens. I like that a lot. I just wish they focused on that a little bit more and cut down the penis molding scene just a little bit.
• Also, they could have cut down on the party scenes. I just graduated from college and don’t need to see your found footage frat party scenes.
• One more thing: I could have watched Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne saying “keep it down” for 20 more minutes. As well as an additional 20 minutes of Hannibal Buress’ laugh.

“Hey Kermit! Did you know that there is no God and the Bible is a lie?” Image via YouTube

Like any good Muppets movie should do, Muppets Most Wanted begins by announcing what it is to the world. “We’re a sequel, dammit, so like us or don’t like us!” But it’s the Muppets, and the Muppets are impossible to hate. If you were looking for a Muppet movie that is equal parts charming, funny, and chaotic, then Muppets Most Wanted will give you everything that you are looking for.

Muppets Most Wanted picks up almost directly where the last movie left off, with the Muppets reunited and famous once again, but this time without the help of Jason Segel or Amy Adams. Celebrity cameo numero uno is Ricky Gervais as Dominic Badguy, which is French for “good man,” as their new manager. Celebrity cameos in any given Muppets movie are always exciting. I wait for the cameo like people wait for the scary moments in a horror movie.

While The Muppets was something of a bromance, Muppets Most Wanted is an old school caper. It turns out that Kermit has a doppelganger named Constantine, who happens to be the most dangerous frog in the world. Constantine escapes from the Siberian Gulag where he was imprisoned and switches places with Kermit. This body switch makes up for most of the film’s best jokes. Watching a frog with a Russian accent try and learn how to do a Kermit voice is absolutely delightful.

In fact, “delightful” is probably the best way to describe Muppets Most Wanted. Even when it does go wrong (more on that in a bit), there is no way this movie can’t make you happy. Each celebrity cameo is great because of the way they are all employed in the story. Having Usher be an Usher is probably one of history’s greatest anti-jokes. Muppets Most Wanted is worth the price of admission just for the rendition of “I Hope I Get It” with Danny Trejo and Ray Liotta. Now that is a sentence I never thought I would get to type in my life.

Muppets Most Wanted finds as much middle ground as possible between what both kids and adults will love. If it is a good family movie, then adults should be able to enjoy it, as opposed to just feeling the need to tolerate it. There might even be more here for adults to enjoy than kids. Some of the pop culture references are so subtle that you can’t help but admire them. A lot of comedies set in prisons will reference The Shawshank Redemption, but only Muppets Most Wanted will reference it simply with a Rita Hayworth poster that has Miss Piggy’s face.

When you have a movie like Muppets Most Wanted, it is impossible not to compare to both its predecessor as well as all other Muppet outings, given that the Muppets are an American institution. In that regard, Muppets Most Wanted is underwhelming. It throws a lot of the more well-established characters to the side at times to let in room for new characters. That is fine, as most of the new characters that are introduced are great (except for Walter, he doesn’t really bring that much to the table). Even though the last movie focused on two brand new characters, it still felt like every well-established Muppet got his or her moment in the sun.

The Muppets are and always have been about going meta. There is a saying that “once you go meta, it’s hard to go back.” Some claim that this is what ruined The Simpsons (though I believe there were many more good episodes after “Behind the Laughter,” but this discussion should be saved for another time). The problem with Muppets Most Wanted is that it eventually forgets the promise of the opening song and and gives in to its heist movie nature. Every movie for kids need to have a lesson in the end. However, if you are going to go meta, then you have to go all the way.

Muppets Most Wanted is still enjoyable and packs in just about as many laughs as it should. It is great fun but it has a little less of the anarchy that always makes the Muppets so great. What I am trying to say is that Muppets Most Wanted isn’t bad, it just could have used a pair of fart shoes.

Brain Farts From The Edge

• How long before Phil Lord and Chris Miller are asked to direct the next Muppets movie?
• It’s unfortunate that two of the movie’s best visual gags (the giant badges; Tina Fey tripping over a stool) were spoiled by being shown in every single trailer and commercial.
• Hey, is Ricky Gervais still an atheist? Just checking.
• It really is a bummer that this flopped at the box office this past weekend.
• If you are a Marx Brothers fan, there is an amazing reference to one of their classic bits in Muppets Most Wanted. Even if you aren’t familiar with the Marx Brothers, the bit is still just as funny. Now that is how you make a good reference.
• With her Kermit Shrine, Tina Fey’s Nadya is basically Helga Pataki.
• There is some shameless product placement for Subway here, but it is used so well and the scene is so funny that I completely forgive it.
• Miss Piggy’s dog is pretty great.
• My favorite Muppets: Animal, Beaker, and Swedish Chef. For some reason, all my favorite Muppets are the ones that make weird noises.