Worth Remembering

After a mostly mild winter here in Denver, Mother Nature has decided to balance the scales with a run of blizzards over the last month. Snowed in during one of them, I watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall, a comedy from last year I'd meant to see, but that somehow slipped from my "schedule."

It turned out to be a solid movie with plenty of good jokes and a very likeable cast. Jason Segel has mostly played slight nuances of the same general type so far in his career, but this movie got put him back in a particular sub-category we've not seen since Freaks and Geeks, the lovesick goober. Likewise, people aren't throwing a variety of roles Kristen Bell's way, but I loved her in Veronica Mars, so I'm happy to have her show up pretty much anywhere else.

I have to admit, though, I was actually surprised by Mila Kunis. Really only knowing her from That 70s Show and Family Guy, both of which get a lot of mileage out of her abrasive voice, I was expecting her to be a love interest only slightly more credible that Fran Drescher. But she was actually completely endearing in this movie, and it was really easy to start rooting for her character.

Along the way were great walk-ons from members of the "Apatow Rep," and it was all in service of a decent story. More than just a collection of jokes, the movie actually had a pretty sweet romantic tale to tell.

But while completely enjoyable throughout, there wasn't really much that was exceptional in the movie. No huge belly laughs, no deeply emotional scenes. It was a good blend of ingredients, but all in the sort of moderation one expects from a major Hollywood romantic comedy -- even one with the occasion streak of "frat boy." I do recommend the movie though, and rate it a B.