Role Models (2008)

Since Wet Hot American Summer and the finale of Friends, I have been dying to see Paul Rudd in a leading comedy role; I am happy to say that Role Models more than fulfilled my expectations. In Role Models, Seann William Scott and Paul Rudd are forced to become big brothers in order to satisfy their court ordered community service. The two odd ball kids they are forced to mentor were cast perfectly. You will recognize Christopher Mintz-Plasse as McLovin' from Superbad. While he is not an amazing actor, and not in any way attractive, he is amazing in this role, and you have to respect a guy that is doing as much as he can with what he has been given. Bobbe J. Thompson is hilarious as the fowl-mouthed ward of Wheeler (Scott), and while it is impossible to make predictions about a child actor's future, I hope he continues to do good work in good roles down the line. Seann William Scott is terrific in Role Models. He is not the best actor in the world, and I fear he has become pigeon-holed into what is basically his Stifler persona, but in roles like this one, like in Road Trip, no one is better. Paul Rudd may be my favorite actor of the moment. His dry sense of humor and his timing are both great, but what I love most about him are the facial expressions he makes; in that, he is second to none. The cast of this film is great overall; just about everyone from Wet Hot American Summer (a must-see) is in Role Models, and they are all great. This movie is quite original, is non-stop funny throughout and has a lot of moments that make it impossible not to enjoy. Role Models has a lot of raunchy humor that some may not like, and a lot of the humor is about as ridiculous as it can get, but to people like myself, these things add to the appeal of the film rather than detract from it. There is also a lot of amazing dialogue in this film, almost Quentin Tarantino-esque, that is extremely clever. My wife watched Role Models with me and loved it. We had both seen The Hangover just a few days before and are both conflicted as to which we think is better. I cannot believe I am saying this, but I think that I actually preferred Role Models. I have seen both only once, so may have to revise my view in the future; I eagerly anticipate seeing both films again. For now, I have no choice but to give Role Models 4 and a half stars.