Ted

This week, Ted was on the docket. It's the name of a movie, not the name of a guy. We took Evan's labmate with us, because he's a fan (presumably of Seth MacFarlane). We tied the preview game this week, with The BourneLegacy, The Campaign, Premium Rush, and Django Unchained. Or maybe The Campaign was only part of the pre-show show, and there's another one I'm forgetting. Whatever.

Anyway, the movie opens up with Patrick Stewart narrating how a talking teddy bear came to life. He also capitalizes on his previous serious acting roles, much like how Leslie Nielsen (RIP) made Airplane so funny because he had done so much serious stuff beforehand. I think it would be impossible to watch his previous stuff and not laugh. Even for the dramatic roles. Once you go funny, you don't go back. Unless you start funny. Then you can go dramatic (see: Carrey, Jim).

Anyway, we get up to the present day after the opening credits. Look, another man-child. At least he's not living with his parents. This movie could have been produced by Judd Apatow for all of his notes that it hits. Let's see: Funny actor, check; hot chick, check; casual drug use, check; random pop-culture reference, check. Oh, sorry, that last one was on my Seth MacFarlane checklist. Because he wrote, directed, and voiced the eponymous bear. He was heavily involved, and it shows. There are all sorts of gags that are similar to Family Guy, but better. They tend to stand up on their own, and don't rely on cut-aways. Sure, there are a few, but they're really funny. For instance, there was a pastiche of dancing parody scenes that was a flashback of how Mark Wahlberg and Mila Kunis met. Both An Officer and a Gentleman (but not the factory scene) and Saturday Night Fever were sent up. And probably some more that I didn't get.

Anyway, the movie is about Wahlberg trying to grow up so he can be more to his girlfriend than just a boyfriend, but his best friend is really immature and keeps dragging him back into man-childhood. Which is probably bound to happen, as his best friend is a living teddy bear.

Many gags, foul language, and drug use ensues, as well as a surprisingly poignant but also hilarious climax. There's also an extended reference to the 1980's Flash Gordon movie throughout that actually becomes a minor plot point, but what do you expect? It's Seth MacFarlane.

I was really tickled by how far the actors would go for a joke. Wahlberg gets spanked with a TV antenna, and then gets a TV dropped on his groin. Ryan Reynolds appears for maybe 30 seconds, all for a gay joke with Patrick Warburton. Tom Skerrit appears, just for fun. Giovanni Ribisi plays the overly obsessed fan of Ted, and really gets down to "I Think We're Alone Now" in the most hilariously creepy way imaginable. Jessica Barth (little known actor, but did some voices for Family Guy) had a ball, getting to fly off the (crazy) handle at Mila Kunis over an innocent question ("I've had a baby. I can kick your ass!")

It's a theatre movie for me. Yes, it has an overly contrived ending, but that fine. The humour is absolutely hilarious. Maybe not quite up to 21 Jump Street's calibre, but definitely up there. If you're a fan of Family Guy, or really, an biting humour, you'll probably love Ted. It's not for the faint of heart, but (surprising many people) it has an awfully sweet one. You know, for a raunchy comedy.

On an unrelated note, I'm not sure how many more movies we're going to get to see. We might boycott Spiderman, and then we'll have to wait a few weeks to see The Dark Knight Rises. And how do we feel about that movie?

Yeah.