BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
When I first saw trailers for “The Watch” I was curious, but not that into it. I was excited to see the awesome Richard Ayoade in a featured role and anytime Jonah Hill gets on my screen is a good thing. My weary issues were with Ben Stiller and Vince Vaughn. I was never a huge Stiller fan, but especially after his past few movies. They just seemed to lack the “edge” that a guy in his late 20’s with no kids would appreciate. Vince Vaughn has had some of my favorite modern comedic performances, but he can still find himself in stuff that’s just not my cup of tea. The premise seemed hokey and I figured it would be a tame movie with predictable and lame jokes. It was better than I expected. It movie revolves around Stiller’s character. He is the manager at a local store and one of his employees is murdered. He gets a “neighborhood watch” together and the rest of the stars show up. Vince Vaughn just wants to do “dude things”, Richard Ayoade is just weird, and Jonah Hill is an aggressive jerk. It’s all works out. These grouping of skilled comedic actors resulted in a pretty fun chemistry. I’ll be honest and say I didn’t expect it to be as fun to watch as it was. After about an hour of antics, they run across an alien! This is when the movie shifts in a totally different direction. The tone shifts so much that it’s hard to really process what’s going on. It takes a few more minutes before the next big twist happens. Then the whole movie is changed into something else. That makes for an interesting movie. It’s entertaining and amusing enough and then it changes and is still entertaining and amusing. What happens next? It changes and CONTINUES to be entertaining and amusing. I like the variety they throw at you, but it could also be jarring to a normal movie fan. The movie then shifts into ANOTHER direction. It gets kind of crazy and over the top. It reminds me of an 80’s comedy or even Tom Hank’s “The Burbs”. It’s not perfect, but it’s fun. The rest of the cast was cool too. Will Forte has a fun role in the creepy cop, Billy Crudup is a “golden god” in the spot as the creepy neighbor, and there is a quick and hilarious cameo of “The Lonely Island” guys if you don’t blink during a part you’ll insist on blinking through. Rosemarie DeWitt gets the job of being Stiller’s wife. I’m always a fan of hers and even in her limited role she brought charm to the movie. Her loving Stiller’s character made him more likeable for sure. It’s not the best movie I saw this year. I’ve seen a few comedy movies that I liked better for sure. That doesn’t make this a bad movie. It’ll be a good movie to catch in the afternoon on a weekend or a movie to pick up on a rental on boring night. It’s a step in the “edgier” direction for Stiller and Vaughn while Hill and Ayoade pretty much carry the movie with their weird and fun characters. If you’re a comedy fan then check it out. B
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