Reznet

'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' Unforgettable

By Nancy Kelsey

Put another notch up under the Judd Apatow column.

The producer of "Knocked Up" and "40-Year-Old Virgin" delivers hysterical laughs in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." It is the funniest movie I have seen since "Superbad."

My pangs of shock at some of the appalling antics were literally blinded by the uncontrollable tears in my- eyes from laughter. Thematically, this is a cookie-cutter romance movie. But it pioneers a new territory in comedy.

The Apatow crew — Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, Jason Segel and Paul Rudd, among others — is pushing the envelope further than before with humor. This effort seems to see how much the audience can be shocked into laughter before it becomes inappropriate. So far so good. Sure comedians might do this all the time but to bring it to the screen, as these guys do so successfully here, is reason to applaud.

The movie stars Segel as Peter Bretter, a typical nice guy whose Hollywood girlfriend, played by Kristen Bell, breaks up with him, leaving him devastated.

At his step-brother's urging, Peter heads to a Hawaiian resort to get away from all that reminds him of his ex. One problem — he choses the same getaway his ex-girlfriend and new boyfriend are staying at.

Through his devastation he meets stunningly gorgeous hotel worker Rachel, played by Mila Kunis. She has really come a long way from the invisibility of being Jackie on "That 70s Show."

The two begin re-introducing Peter to living in a series of adventures that give me a chuckle as I call them to mind now. Keep your eyes out for a completely ridiculous scene in which Peter shares with a crowded bar a song from his Dracula musical.

Paul Rudd's character is a pleasant addition whose aimless but successfully funny dialogue is typical of the Apatow flick. The singer boyfriend of the Hollywood ex is completely ridiculous but laugh-till-it-hurts worthwhile.

Worth noting, the script was written by Jason Segel, just as "Superbad" was written by Seth Rogen. Keep 'em coming guys!

I'm going to see this movie again! No joke. I loved it. It warrants the Apatow regular helping of four frybreads.

Nancy Kelsey, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, is studying journalism at the University of Nebraska graduate school in Lincoln. She is a graduate of the Freedom Forum's American Indian Journalism Institute. She interned as a reporter at The Seattle Times last summer. Next summer she'll report for The Associated Press in Boston.