There are some funny one-liners here and there in these opening scenes but one-liners are all they are and they can already be found in the red-band trailer. Moreover, there is instantly a snaky, nasty streak that grows in Rogen's character as he cruises around “investigating” but really just picking on minority concession stand owners such as the rather tastelessly named Saddamn (Aziz Ansari). The latter results in a big, unimaginative cursing match that just goes on and on and on. Then there is a gaping misogynistic hole that the movie never recovers from when Ronnie forces Brandi to a date, watches her get drunk to the point of throwing up and commits what is essentially date rape, which is supposed to be outrageously funny and endearing because he says, “I accept you” and kisses her after she vomits. Anna Faris has gone on interviews to say that she thought this scene would never make the final cut and I think this scene should work as an acid test for the ladies unfortunate enough to see this as a date movie: If the guy is laughing at this scene, date the guy no more.
Then, about a third of the way through, the movie abruptly shifts to try to introduce the more serious elements in Rogen's character to try to explain his sociopath behavior and this is where it just about breaks into two. Just like drama, comedy, especially when it turns dark, requires a realistic entry point at its root and the only way we can care about this one-track minded guy with bipolar disorder is to treat it with at least a smidgen of gravitas. This, of course, puts the movie entirely on Seth Rogen's shoulders and this is where he is way behind his fellow comedic actors like Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler or even Will Ferrell in properly playing up enough drama to even be darkly comedic (which is probably why even in Knocked Up, his character's supposed transformation to end up with Katherine Heigl was frivolously rushed with a mere five-minute montage). When we see him strutting around with a squint and maybe a few tears, there is a flippant clownishness that he wears like an obnoxious funny hat he refuses to take off. Because he never takes his own role seriously, we cannot either and it is just as much Hill's fault that he cannot properly gauge in his star how much he wants his character to be mocked or embraced.
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