From the comical duo of James Franco and Seth Rogen comes yet another media artifact that uses generic slapstick comedy elements, satire, and bromance to entertain its audience. What was half-jokingly deemed the start of a potential third world war, The Interview falls short of expectations by simply inducing eye-rolls and sighs of exhaustion instead of laughs.
The Interview is a political satire that narrates the tale of the fictional assassination of the North Korean tyrant Kim Jong-un (Randall Park) by television host Dave Skylark (James Franco) and his producer Aaron Rapoport (Seth Rogen). The plot revolves around the television show Skylark reaching their thousandth episode and hearing about Kim Jong-un’s interest in the show. The duo aim to interview the Korean dictator to increase their show’s reputation. However, things go awry when the CIA gets involved and instructs Skylark and Rapoport to assassinate Kim Jong-un. More chaos ensues when the duo begin to connect with Kim Jong-un on a more personal level.
The film’s storyline is shallow even for a slapstick comedy, and repeats its jokes over and over again (especially the overused Lord of the Rings references. Ugh, we get it). The satirical nature of this film tries to poke fun at an entire nation by making a serious situation lighthearted but fails at that as well. Nevertheless, there are a handful of funny moments. Franco and Rogen’s dynamic and their nonsensical mannerisms almost reassure you that the film was worth your time and money.
So if you are interested to see what all the hype was around Sony’s hacking, or if you’re a fan of Rogen and Franco’s comedy, you might enjoy this film. But I should warn you: it’s no Pineapple Express.
MM½
