Forgetting Tough Times (and Sarah Marshall)

The local multiplex was hopping over the weekend, with hourly showings of Iron Man and a special sneak of What Happens in Vegas, the Cameron Diaz/Ashton Kutcher we-got-married-but-we-didn’t-mean-it comedy. If there is a recession on the way, moviegoers haven’t noticed yet. Iron Man brought in nearly as much as the original Spiderman, which came out the same weekend a few years back; this would explain Robert Downey Junior’s smug expression sitting courtside at the Lakers playoff game on Sunday.


I didn’t see Iron Man, loyally waiting for my traveling husband to return, but I did see

FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL

Not as good as Forty Year Old Virgin, but more believable than Knocked Up. Jason Segal (one of the slacker buddies in Knocked Up, regular on How I Met Your Mother) plays Peter Bretter, a composer who gets dumped by his TV star girlfriend and tries to recover on a therapeutic trip to Hawaii. Thing is, his ex-girlfriend is vacationing at the same resort with her new rock star boyfriend. In a simpler time (like the 1950’s) this may have been a madcap comedy, but these characters are far too earnest to be madcap; you get the feeling that at any moment they might all agree to group therapy. The highlight of the film is Mila Kunis, Peter’s new love interest; she confirms with gentle grace that she has acting chops far beyond what we saw on That Seventies Show. There were some good laughs in this picture but I don’t remember any of them, it’s that kind of a film, but it’s diverting and lighthearted, and has no special effects. A month from now, that might seem refreshing. Final note: several times in the film, Segal faces the camera full length and completely naked. This appears to serve no purpose except to elicit nervous giggles from the young teen set. Fair warning.