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FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL - REVIEW

FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL ( English,2008)

Director : Nicholas Stoller

Cast : Jason Segel , Kristen Bell , Mila Kunis , Russell Brand , Jonah Hill

Am not really a fan of the romantic comedy genre ,but decided to give this a try , as there was a fair amount of talk going on about the movie.

The story is nothing special. Peter Bretter (Segel) a not-so-famous musician is in a relationship with a famous TV actress Sarah Marshall ( Bell) . One day ,Sarah decides to end the bond and walks out on him,saying that she is involved with another man. This devastates Peter , who then decides to take a trip to Hawaii to relax and calm down. Ironically he ends up at the same resort where Sarah and her new boy-friend , a rock star Aldous Snow( Russell Brand) are put up.

Peter badly wants to get over his break-up with Sarah and feels lonely in the resort , and has to put up with the sight of Sarah and Snow having fun together. He then falls for a beautiful receptionist , Rachel ( Kunis ) and they end up having an affair.

The movie is essentially a comedy , centered around Peter who wants to forget his relationship with Sarah. Fortunately, we don't get to see exaggerated drama , as is expected in "breaking-up" movies. However there are some scenes which make you feel bad for the couple who have just split up.

The comedy is mainly dialogue based , but we do get to see a lot of raunchy humor in the movie. It does not portray anything vulgar , but treads the thin line between raunchy and obscene humor. The humor has to be taken light heartedly , as sometimes it looks a wee bit out of place in the movie. However , it is certainly quite funny at large.

The acting is fairly decent by the lead pair. The other actors too chip in with decent performances. It was nice to see Jonah Hill of "Superbad" in the movie. He is involved in some really funny scenes. However the surprise package in the movie has to be the character of Aldous Snow. He is such an eccentric character , with a rather bizarre sense of humor.

The imagery is very beautiful , as the movie is entirely set in Hawaii. The scene in which Rachel and Peter decide to go hiking is shot beautifully. The movie is not meant for people who want to watch crude humor on-screen. The humor is really good and even the seemingly raunchy jokes are well intended. The best scene in the movie has to be the one in which the two couples Rachel-Peter and Sarah-Aldous have dinner together . It had me rolling with laughter.

Screenplay is fairly decent and you don't get bored much as the humor keeps you occupied for the bulk of the movie. There are other small but interesting characters like a Surfer , a bar-tender , and a newly wed couple on their honeymoon , who definitely add value to the movie as a whole.

Overall , this is a pretty good movie , if you are able to stand the humor. You will surely appreciate the well intended humor , if you are a little open-minded. However , it does not really come across a romantic movie , except in a few parts. It is a blend of raunchy humor and breaking-up emotions , and also tries to give us a look at how tough it is to get over a relationship gone sour.

Not one of the best movies I have come across , especially in the Romantic Comedy genre. The story initially reminded me of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind", in which Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet try to get over their break up . The similarity of this movie with that masterpiece ends there.

I will go with 3 out of 5 for this comedy , which manages to keep you interested in it , thanks to some funny sequences and almost over-the-top humor.

VERDICT : Pretty Good . ( 3 / 5)