"There is an alien in the kitchen making bagels and coffee."
"Did you want tea?"
"No, I don't want tea!"
"Right, because tea is weird in America."
British comic book fans Clive (Frost) and Graeme (Pegg) are taking an extended vacation to the U.S. to see the sights: Comic Con and a roadtrip, in an RV, of all the alien hotspots in the Midwest. On the first night on the road they witness a car accident and meet Paul (Rogen). Paul is an alien that crash landed in Wyoming in the 1940s and has been living on a top-secret military base. Paul just wants to go home, so Clive and Graeme agree to give him a ride. Along the way they accidentally kidnap Ruth (Wiig), and soon the three timid humans and stoner alien are the run from Agent Zoil (Bateman), two incompetent government agents (Hader & Truglio), and Ruth’s gun-toting uber-religious father (Lynch).
Stars / writers Simon Pegg & Nick Frost lovingly lampoon the sci-fi genre, including cameos by well-known sci-fi staples and stars. With references to numerous sci-fi films and TV shows, it will appeal to fans of the genre with jokes that the rest of the audience will not understand. Fans of their previous collaborations (Spaced, Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) will be disappointed. It is a funny film, but not as good as their work with director Edgar Wright. Overall, the film feels like Superbad (also directed by Mottola). Pegg and Frost are good writers, but the film is missing something...
The entire cast is comedy gold, with each major player getting a moment to shine. Pegg and Frost have incredible chemistry and Seth Rogen is surprisingly good as Paul, adding an interesting dynamic to their friendship. Bill Hader and Joe Lo Truglio have the best transformation: from clueless agents that play hide-and-seek while waiting for something to happen, to renegade agents with weapons that work.
There is an entire subplot focusing on Kristen Wiig's Christian character. The script / other characters don't hold back on their feelings about Christianity, and they even have Paul dispel a significant amount of Christian beliefs. It was an unnecessary and a major turnoff for me... maybe that is part of the reason I didn't love this film. I understand there is a significant divide between Christians and scientists, (trust me, I work with scientists, and have had numerous discussions about faith versus science) but was it really necessary to attack a portion of your audience (not all Christians are fanatics, why are we typically portrayed as such?).
Funny, especially if you know the genre… but disappointing to Pegg / Frost fans.
Director: Greg Mottola
Starring: Simon Pegg as Graeme Willy
Nick Frost as Clive Gollings
Seth Rogen as Paul
Kristen Wiig as Ruth Buggs
Jason Bateman as Agent Zoil
Bill Hader as Haggard
Joe Lo Truglio as O'Reilly
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