Review: Role Models

Role Models (Universal)

Rated R for crude and sexual content, strong language and nudity.

Starring: Paul Rudd, Sean William Scott, Christopher Mintz-Plasse Elizabeth Banks, Bobb’e J. Thompson, Jane Lynch, Ken Jeong.

Written by Paul Rudd, David Wain, Ken Marino, Timothy Dowling.

Directed by David Wain.

GRADE: B

REVIEW

By Dan Metcalf

Since Porky’s was released in 1982, the raunchy, teen sex comedy genre has gone through several peaks and valleys, with many recent successes in the form of American Pie, Superbad, and others. As time goes by, many of these films haven’t improved in quality, but have instead increased their raunch factor.

Role Models is the latest raunchy comedy, starring Paul Rudd as Danny, an energy drink promoter who travels from school to school trying to get kids to ingest copious amounts of Minotaur, a green beverage he despises almost as much as his job. Danny’s sidekick and wearer of the Minotaur mascot costume is Wheeler, played by Sean William Scott (you remember, Stiffler from the American Pie franchise). Wheeler is a party boy with little aspiration.

When Danny realizes his life is going nowhere, he abruptly proposes to his longtime girlfriend Beth (Elizabeth Banks) who promptly rejects him. The rejection sends Danny into a tirade that lands he and Wheeler in legal trouble, forcing them to accept community service over jail.

Danny and Wheeler’s community service comes in the form of being ‘big brothers’ to two troubled young men. One is Ronnie, a foul-mouthed young African American who is paired with Wheeler. The other is Augie (Christopher Mintze Plasse, or McLovin from Superbad), a teenager who lives in his own little world of medieval fantasy. Augie spends all his spare time role-playing with people who pretend to be knights and elves and such, meeting in parks where they do battle and bow to kings and speak in a lot of ‘ye’ and ‘thee’ talk.

Of course, Danny clashes with Augie and finds the whole medieval fantasy a little too geeky for his taste. Wheeler also clashes with Ronnie, who constantly berates him with every white insult he can muster. Ronnie saves his best insults for Danny, who he calls many different incarnations of Ben Affleck (“Yo, Reindeer Games!”, or “ Daredevil”).

Event though the two ‘big brothers’ clash with their charges at first, they eventually see them as troubled young men and develop feelings for them, while maturing themselves.

Role Models isn’t especially ‘touching’ as Danny and Wheeler suddenly wake up from their self-loathing and immature behavior. The movie has its moments as the two men lose themselves in the lives of the boys, swallow their pride and actually make a difference in their lives.

The comedy in Role Models isn’t family friendly. The gags, dialogue, and sights earn the film a true R-rating, but the movie seems to be made to appeal to teens, and could have easily survived PG-13 downsizing.

Paul Rudd actually helped script Role Models, a trend for many actors associated with the Apatow/Sandler/Will Farrell crowd. The script is okay, while Rudd's performance is phoned in from his other Apatow projects like Knocked Up and The 40-Year-old Virgin. Sean William Scott doesn’t offer much new information other than showing us what Stiffler would be like after high school. Jane Lynch, another Apatow alum, provides some awkward moments as the ‘big brother’ center’s director; a woman with a troubled past of her own, and willing to share every intimate detail of her past debauchery. Ken Jeong, another favorite of the Apatow gang, is his usual comic self as the 'king' in Augie's medieval bunch.

If you’re into such gutter humor, with its sex, language and other vices, then Role Models is for you. True classic comedy it isn’t.