The Interview

Last week my roommate suggested we watch The Interview just to see what the hullabaloo was about. I said, “Sure.” After all, I have a Netflix account and they so generously decided to say “fuck it” when it came to the ridiculous amount of hype and controversy lingering around the movie. But in the back of my mind I knew it would fall short of our expectations. Friends who had already seen the movie described it as “meh”, or “okay”, or, “I guess it had some good parts.” Pretty much the same answers you’d get asking “How are Seattle’s wide receivers?” (I’m still waking up in cold sweats.)

At least you didn't have to watch this movie, Richard.

The story revolves around a celebrity gossip TV show host Dave Skylark (James Franco) and his producer and best friend Aaron Rapaport (Seth Rogen) as they are very believably granted the divine opportunity to interview the world’s most reclusive madman, North Korea’s Supreme Glorious Great Leader for Life Kim Jong-un. Aaron reluctantly agrees and soon the two are preparing for the interview of the century, but not before the U.S. government decides it can’t possibly pass up the chance to intervene. Sent in is CIA Agent Lacey (Lizzy Caplan) to brief “Frogen” about their plot to assassinate the leader of the not-so-free world.

I’ll stop my synopsis here because the rest is shit.

Seriously, the rest of the film is just a rehashing of a Frogen odd-yet-so-fitting couple story. The dialogue is weak, most happenings in the movie occur for the sole purpose of pushing the story along, and most of the characters are as relatable as your stepmom’s cousin’s twice-divorced brother. The only character I found at least mildly likable, and at times believable, was Caplan. I found myself furiously nodding in agreement with her frustration with Franco during the mission briefing. Rogen brings nothing new to the table character wise, he’s the lovable, mostly level-headed foil to the other central character’s blissful ignorance. The ignoramus I speak of is Franco’s Skylark. The sheer idiocy his character exudes during the painstakingly dull two-hour abortion of a movie exceeds human comprehension. 

I feel you, Liz.

Maybe that’s a bit harsh. I have seen worse movies. (I’ll get to The Room at some point.)

That being said, the incredible amount of press this film garnered in the midst of the Sony hacks scandal seems plausible considering the TERRORIST THREATS it generated prior to its release. But watching Frogen stumble through Kim’s palace, shove lethal poisons up their ass, and develop a romantic interest so out of left field that Ken Griffey Jr. would kneel and call it king  brings everything to an equilibrium. 

But maybe I’m being a bit harsh. After all this is a Frogen comedy and wasn't intended to be Oscar bait. Its just a cash grab jumping in on the “hate North Korea” circle jerk. Then again, the duo has produced and starred in some of the finest stoner comedies in recent memory with Pineapple Express and This Is The End. But that doesn’t excuse the apparent lack of effort that went into this film. No amount of Katy Perry references that this film generates, however funny, will redeem it as an enjoyable experience.