Paul

I honestly like the work of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost a lot. It's a slightly different kind of humor that, when done well and tastefully (and that's really true in this case), usually works brilliantly. Another very ill-matched (or well-matched?) pair of protagonists who live in their own worlds, yearn for an alien encounter, and their collisions with the real world usually end in disaster. The cadence of jokes and gags may not be as killer this time around as in, say, Hot Fuzz, but it's richly balanced by the laid-back atmosphere that oozes from the entire film, and I actually liked the slight pathos at the end quite a bit. (19/09/2012)

Another disappointment after the fourth Pirates (although this time, admittedly, a bit less, as I was not looking forward to Paul all that much). I was struck by how un-British this British comedy was, how few jokes the screenwriters put together, how boringly Mottola directed it all... And most importantly... How unfunny Mr. Pegg and Mr. Frost were. Why did it have to be the two of them who got into this mess? So what if I enjoyed Paul's animation and his pleasant dubbing, the references to Star Wars, Spielberg, Star Trek or Roswell? What was the point of having Sigourney Weaver and the charming Kristen Wiig (So someone give her a proper role already, dammit!)? Why was there all this other stuff when it all seemed so contrived? Not to mention the unnecessary "let it have energy" vulgarisms. In my opinion, Paul is a big missed opportunity, which may also harm the final part of the Cornett "Wright-Pegg-Frost" trilogy. Because I'm afraid that when it comes to theaters, people are going to say, "Those two and the aliens again? We don't give a damn." And it will be the fault of Paul's screenwriters, whose failed 2011 sci-fi comedy will be remembered by few by then. Two and a half stars. Fanboys was better. (12/06/2011)

Despite the clichés and a hint of sentimentality in the ending, I found myself enjoying the film. Simon Pegg's style gets me every time – flaws and all, the guy can make me laugh. Nick Frost has the same effect on me. Plus, there's something delightful about someone expressing a blind (or semi-blind) faith in a higher power. I could almost hear the sound of fanatical Christians grinding their teeth. Overall, this film managed to lift my mood and I haven't even mentioned the joy of having Kristen Wiig in the mix. / Lesson learned: Choose the location for your final speech very, very carefully. (09/07/2022)

The idea that an alien being, an until recently fundamentalist Christian, and two basement nerds discover the world and are therefore not particularly different from each other has wonderful potential and invites endlessly funny confrontations worth multiple series. So why the funniest component of the film is a federal "higher power" on their asses is indeed a mystery. It's probably because the screenwriter decided that if there weren't at least 16 lighter moments in every scene, it just wouldn't be it. Unfortunately, though, he didn't think any deeper about the fact that to make it work it's good to build on the jokes and build up the jokes, not drop them like eggs onto a conveyor belt. As such, though Paul makes it through quite deftly every time it threatens to get bogged down in the ballast of sentimentality, just as often you'll find yourself while watching it dropping a "he he he" and a "why" in the same sentence. (12/03/2012)

Unfortunately, I was expecting something a little different from Paul than the end result. I like the films with Pegg and Frost mainly because of their dry English humour, which was totally missing here. I think that if the third of the famous trio, Edgar Wright, had been put in charge of directing, the potential of the film would have been much better used. In fact, in the film, this duo only play second fiddle, because if anyone is pulling it off, it's the stoned alien Paul himself. His digital rendering and all his grimaces are absolutely flawless. The humour itself was not so accomplished, although there were some hints parodying well-known science fiction, but most of it was classically American humour. This is one of the reasons why the British actors did not have a chance to make a significant impact. Setting aside my expectations, I still got an above average comedy, but one that had for a lot more than that. (12/04/2012)