Move over Dewey Cox, there is a new fictional rock star king and his name is Aldous Snow.
Whether it's drinking centuries old absinthe or fighting with his father in hotel rooms, Snow manages to deliver one of the funnest examples of reckless abandonment in Get Him to the Greek, which is as much a comedy as it is a commentary on the current state of the music industry and artists as much as it's about Snow's goal of making it out to Los Angeles, CA to play a reunion show with his band Infant Sorrow at the Greek Theater.
In this spin-off of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, we follow Snow (Russell Brand) three years after releasing the worst single of the decade called "African Child" and breaking up with his girlfriend Jackie Q. (a scene-stealing Rose Byrne, playing a Lily Allen parody almost pitch perfect). He also doesn't respect his father Jonathon (Colm Meaney), who as Aldous' manager is accused of ruining his career. Now living with his parents and drinking excessively while kissing Pink and causing havoc, he has become a true has-been.
Until hardcore fan Aaron Green (Jonah Hill) manages to convince Sergio Roma (Sean Combs), the head of a failing record company, to have Snow play a reunion show at the Greek to commemorate the release of a "Live at the Greek" album, which is supposedly bigger than "Frampton Comes Alive". A few brash banters later and Green is on his way, having to say goodbye to his girlfriend Daphne Binks (Elisabeth Moss), a doctor eager to move to Seattle, WA despite Green's desires to stay in Los Angeles and go see the Mars Volta live.
The rest of the journey includes stops in New York for Good Morning, America and Las Vegas, where numerous crazy hi-jinks occur, including a lot of partying, sex, and drugs, all in good fashion of the typical rock star.
However, Brand is a master at this culture, having been the loose cannon on shows like Re:Brand for years in England. It is true that a lot of Snow's stories are based loosely on Brand's life and thus makes everything that happens to be more entertaining and kind of shocking. To put it best, Aldous Snow manages to put Pete Doherty and Amy Winehouse to shame by coming out of binges in top shape while Green falls victim to everything imaginable.
If you are expecting Nicolas Stoller to have directed a Forgetting Sarah Marshall with as much romance, it's not going to happen. The story is the tale of a rock star's return to glory and numerous struggles that in the end create a realism that balances out the fun times with humanistic traits. While the love stories aren't as well crafted, the movie doesn't feel concerned about more than having the good time on the road that Sex and the City 2 failed to have.With numerous cameos and clever pop culture references, this is a comedy of the moment, choosing to acknowledge what the industry expects of our stars. It also features another batch of brilliantly written songs including "Coming Up" and "Furry Walls". Brand owns the movie and despite a few moments of horrendous overacting by Jonah Hill, it really feels like a true rock star film, covering every high and low with abandonment.
Brand, who is a recovered alcohol and sex addict, has a way of embodying the stereotypes and giving them original traits the same way John Belushi did in his day. It's too soon to see if he is just another flash in the pan, but with a remake of the classic Arthur on his plate, it will definitely be a great time to watch movies about drunk people.
So, if you're looking for a great time at the movies, you will be hard pressed to find a better comedy for awhile that is better than Get Him to the Greek. It's got plenty of charm and a great soundtrack to rival previous (producer) Judd Apatow works like Walk Hard and other mockumentary classics like This Is Spinal Tap and The Ruttles.
But most of all, it just has fun despite it's flaws and isn't that really what a movie about rock star should be about?
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