The Interview

The Interview

* 1/2 / ****

 

Reviewed By Sean Trolinder

 

Directed by Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogen

 

Cast: James Franco, Seth Rogen, Randall Kim, Lizzy Caplan, Diana Bang, Timothy Simons, Anders Holm

 

 

 

           For a Sony movie to anger North Korea so much that they’d threaten the United States upon its release, you’d expect it to hit on the correct satirical cords, right? In my many years of following the film industry, I had never seen a high profile film with so much publicity get pulled before its release, since by doing so, it is an admission by the studio that they would lose money. Since the film business is an industry meant for the mighty dollar, any film with a lucrative budget would be given a fighter’s chance to earn back its investment, right? For all its controversy surrounding the film’s comedic portrayal of Kim Jong-un, The Interview is harmless. It is not the crude humor, the objectification of women, and the same trite jokes that make The Interview an utter disappointment. It is the fact that the film didn’t do enough to make Kim Jong-un into the comedic presence that the film demanded.

            For such a forgettable film, The Interview has a glorious first five minutes. The film begins with Dave Skylark (played by James Franco) doing an interview with the rapper Eminem on Skylark Tonight. While Dave tries his best to dissect the true meaning behind Eminem’s lyrics, the rapper admits, rather calmly, that he is gay, which blows up the phone lines in the control booth. At this moment, the executive producer, Aaron Rapaport (played by Seth Rogen), begins freaking out, declaring that this is the single greatest moment in the show’s history. Eminem’s sudden admission elevates Skylark’s stature momentarily, but only for its celebrity news, which bothers Rapaport, who desires to produce a serious news show one day.

            During another broadcast of Skylark Tonight, one in which Rob Lowe admits that he’s bald, the show is interrupted by an attack done by North Korea. Instead of Skylark taking the news to heart, he throws a fit, since the climactic moment on his show was disturbed by Kim Jong-un’s attempt to be seen as dangerous. After the interruption, Rapaport takes this as an opportunity to mull over what an interview between Skylark and Kim Jong-un can do for his career and how it could change the direction of the show. To his surprise, Rapaport discovers that Kim Jong-un is a fan of Skylark Tonight, so he tries to pull some strings in order to set up this exclusive interview.

            Then enters the CIA, who predictably wants Skylark and Rapaport to murder Kim Jong-un with a strip of poison. The idea is for Skylark to have the strip sitting in his hand while shaking the dictator’s hand, but it becomes clear to Agent Lacey (played by Lizzy Caplan) that Skylark is too much of an idiot to pull it off. Regardless, Skylark and Rapaport are the only two Americans who can be close enough to Kim Jong-un to even attempt this. Before going to North Korea, Agent Lacey warns the duo that Kim Jong-un can be very manipulative, so be careful. Naturally, when Skylark meets Kim Jong-un (played by Randall Kim), they begin developing a friendship. Skylark learns that this man, who Americans consider a threat to the world, is actually a softy, since he enjoys drinking margaritas and listening to Katy Perry songs. After traveling around in Kim’s tank and shooting some hoops, Skylark believes that Kim Jong-un is harmless, but Rapaport, who still clings to this idea that his career is at stake based on what happens in North Korea, tries to convince Skylark not to become too attached, since they still must kill the man.

            Compared to This is the End, a film in which the celebrities were making fun of the personas the media made them out to be, directors Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen try too hard to make the satire work in The Interview. Part of the reason This is the End worked as a satire is because the performers involved were having entirely too much fun playing up their alter-ego selves, but in this case, Franco and Rogen seem as if they struggle to make the comedic moments work, especially in the North Korean scenes. In addition, Franco’s comedic timing has regressed from his time in Pineapple Express. For an actor who has put together stellar dramatic work in In the Valley of Elah, Milk, and 127 Hours, I have to wonder why he chooses to make so many B-level comedies. Also, the ending of The Interview is rather predictable and Rapaport’s storyline disappears for quite a while once Kim Jong-un enters the film. As far as characterization goes, Rapaport is made out as the one who has the most to lose from this mission, so why the film gives a moron like Skylark so much focus is a bit perplexing.

            In the grand scheme of things, James Franco and Seth Rogen will continue to make comedies, since they are box office draws. However, both have done better work together, so resorting to a film that depends so much on cliché jokes about pooping and how females are seductress manipulators wastes their talents.