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| HALL PASS |
Movie
review by Neil Sadler
Starring: Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, Jenna Fischer, Christina Applegate, Richard Jenkins, Stephen Merchant, Nicky Whelan, Larry Joe
Campbell
Director: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly
More details
It's really easy to
dismiss the Farrelly brothers as purveyors of smut and writers that
rely on cheap laughs, but films like THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY
and even THE HEARTBREAK KID have far more heart than people give
them credit for. While it may be the sperm in the hair and the
untrimmed body hair that people remember, it's the bittersweet love
stories that make them a bit more memorable than just comedy shock
fests.
HALL PASS tells the story of Rick and his best friend Fred. Both
happily married for years but unable to leave their lusty single
ways completely in the past. Their wives decide to test them by
giving them a week off their marriage, a ‘hall pass’. But they
and their wives learn that getting what you want isn't always the
best thing.
Owen Wilson is less “laddy” than normal and the southern charm
is very much on the back burner. Awkward and almost shy, his Rick,
while not exactly a loser is a very different character for him and
he manages to keep him likeable throughout without veering into the
cockiness that he often has.
Jason Sudeikis as Fred gets many of the big laughs and there are
many big laughs here. As usual a few of these are shocking laughs,
where you stare at the screen in shock before the laughs come. The
film doesn't pull its punches and there is nudity and bodily fluids
a plenty here. But none of this would be memorable if not for the
genuinely touching story that unfolds.
It is always strange to see Steven Marchant in a film such as this
and he plays a memorable supporting role (stay for the credits at
the end for an unforgettable added scene) but it is the four leads
that make it worth seeing.
In many ways, this is the kind of film that Adam Sandler has been
trying to make for years. One of this film’s strengths, and
something which is not well reflected in the marketing of the film,
is the rounded characters of the wives played by Jenna Fischer and
Christina Applegate. Their stories, told in parallel to the men, may
not have the belly laughs but it is where the heart of the film is
based. Because you care about these characters, you care about the
relationships succeeding by the end. Sandler’s films often lack
these strongly defined female characters but with Cameron Diaz’s
Mary as well as THE HEARTBREAK KID’S Miranda, the Farrelly brother
show they have more than just toilet humour at their disposal.
You'll remember the car arrest, the spa rescue and the girl with
appendicitis. You'll tell your friends about them. But you'll enjoy
HALL PASS and watch it again because of the story.
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