Sunday, October 23, 2011

Paul (2011)

Director: Greg Mottola. Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen (voice), Kristin Wiig, Bill Hader, Jason Bateman, Sigourney Weaver, Jeffrey Tambor, Steven Spielberg (voice). 104 min. Rated R. USA/UK. Sci-Fi/Comedy.

An alien that talks and acts like ... Seth Rogen. But no, Paul is far beyond that. Like Galaxy Quest, Paul is a movie very specifically made for sci-fi nerds like me. And very brilliantly so. So if you're well-acquainted with every scene, dialogue and soundtrack clip from the original Star Wars trilogy, Close Encounters, Indiana Jones, E.T., Aliens, Back to the Future, and so on, this is definitely the movie for you; because the homages are subtle, intelligent, and funny. If not, don't even bother; you won't get it.

PS: Thank you, Mohi, for the recommendation. I wasn't planning on watching this.


Mo says:

4 comments:

  1. Besides the huge amount of sci-fi references, I also liked the science vs. religion treatment. One of the funniest quotes was that of Wiig's character about her religious father: "You just can’t win with these people!" (For those of you who haven't yet seen the movie, the quote is much more funnier in its context.)

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  2. Mohi,

    As soon as I started reading your comment, the first line that came to mind was: "You just can’t win with these people." At that point I laughed out loud watching the movie.

    ;-)

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  3. I thought I was going to hate this but I loved it. I was a little uncomfortable about the religious intolerance. I have some very close friends who are committed Christians and great people. I'm not sure what to believe myself but I know science and science fiction does not have all the answers. Great movie though :D

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  4. I initially was creeped out too, because the trailer strangely reminded me of the horrific E.T. ripoff, "Mac & Me". False alarm.

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