Seth Rogen plays Mac who can be best described as an enjoyable idiot, and from the arrival of the frat, is turning into a grumpy old guy. Zac Efron as Teddy is very funny and charismatic. Efron is one of those actors that I have not really been a fan of, but in this film he proved to have very good comedic timing. Especially when he is interacting off of Rogen. Whenever the two are together, they share very funny lines with one another. Though Rose Byrne is third credited in this film, I love to consider as the third lead along with Rogen and Efron, because not only does her character play a role that is just as key as the two main leads, but for me she completely steals the show. Her character Kelly maybe my favorite in this film. Byrne proved that she can be super funny as well as sharing an unbelievably great chemistry with Seth Rogen. Mac and Kelly maybe one of the best couples I have seen in film in a while. Though in reality they can both considered to be idiots as well as terrible parents, at the very least they allow themselves to be idiots together and they share a lot of the same interests. I loved every scene of dialogue the couple shared together, and it almost felt like watching a real couple interacting off one another. It was not the usual dumb husband and morally conscience wife that you see in a lot of other films and TV shows. Dave Franco plays Pete, Teddy's best friend, who shares very good chemistry with Zac Efron. The chemistry is so good in fact that it is easy to buy the two are very best friends and that the audience can be interested in and relate to their friendship. There are other cast members like Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Ike Berenholtz, and Lisa Kudrow who also give very funny performances and portray memorable characters. The film is chock full of entertaining and funny characters!
The comedy is almost constant and non-stop. Whether you are laughing at the lines Rogen and Byrne share with another, the fraternities antics, the set-up pranks, and even some slapstick, there is always something there to keep the audience laughing. The script is sprinkled with droplets of comedic genius that may have been there before or even during production. I have no doubt that some of these funny lines and bits said in the final cut of this film were actually improvised by some of the actors, which in most cases does happen a lot. But credit for that can also be given to the incredible amount of good chemistry the cast has with one another that allows them to bounce good lines off of one another. The antics and pranks that is the cause to some of the slapstick that happens in this film also has some wonderful timing!
If there are any flaws is that the pacing of the story can be a little jarring. The story can go at a decent rate and can be flowing and entertaining, then sometimes it slows down just a little bit that can disrupt the flow. It often goes to places it does not really need to go which can result of some pointless scenes. But there are advantages during some of these slow scenes, for example they do give good character development to Teddy and elaborate on his relationship with the fraternity and his friend Pete. So there is good that comes out of it. But then again it makes the film seem long despite only having an hour and a half running time. Despite that though, Neighbors does prove itself to be a very entertaining and original comedy. Seth Rogen can hardly ever disappoint, but a lot of the other cast members also gave it their best shot and they succeeded. A definite recommendation if you feel like having a good old laugh!
GRADE: P+
0 Comments