FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL

“Forgetting Sarah Marshall” might not be as outrageous as “Superbad” or as unusual as “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” but it’s another “comedy with a heart” from the folks that brought you all of the films I just mentioned (Judd Apatow is a god). 

Written by and starring Jason Segel, the film tells the story of Peter Bretter (Segel) who has just been dumped by his actress girlfriend Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell).  It’s a simple set-up that leads to your familiar boy-loses-girl, boy-meets-new-girl story that is peppered with a good dose of oddball characters and well-timed banter.  

The usual suspects from Judd Apatow’s cast of supporters including Paul Rudd as a stoner surf instructor and Jonah Hill as a waiter add some laughs.  Mila Kunis (That 70’s Show) puts on a pretty solid performance as Jason Segel’s love interest in the film.  But the actor who steals the movie in my humble opinion is newcomer to American shores, Russell Brand.  His sex-addicted rock star character Aldous Snow is a laugh riot.  Expect to see lots more of Russell Brand in the future. 

“Forgetting Sarah Marshall” is a solid low-key comedy with a near perfect script and solid acting from the Judd Apatow camp of comedy gold and rates pretty high on the Toby-O scale of perfection.

8/10