Role Models

Role Models is about Danny (Paul Rudd) and Wheeler (Seann William Scott) who are two guys that make their livelihood touring schools and selling Minotaur energy drinks to kids. Their work is perfectly legitimate and everything is hunky dory until Danny has a bad day. His problems coupled with an inordinate consumption of Minotaur energy drink lands them in the company truck up a statue in front of a high school.

In order to avoid prison for 30 days they must complete 150 hours of Community Service at Sturdy Wings mentoring kids. After one day with the kids, however, jail doesn't look half bad. Once the center's ex-con director (Jane Lynch) gives them an ultimatum, Danny and Wheeler are forced to tailor their brand of immature wisdom to their charges, Augie (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) and Ronnie (Bobb'e J. Thompson). And if they can just make it through probation without getting thrown in jail, the world's worst role models will prove that, sometimes, it takes a village idiot to raise a child.

One of the films defining elements is the showcasing of role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons (here it is known as L.A.I.R.E). Role Models takes a surprisingly even handed look at it. It pokes fun, of course, but there is also respect embedded. The result is a case of "so lame it's awesome" where the absurdity of Dungeons & Dragons is given dignity. It's hilarious, and does look terribly fun. 

And it's here that the film makes its stand. Do what makes you happy, no matter what your parents or anyone else tells you. You got to give a bunch of people playing with foam swords in the forest their comeuppance. They're doing what makes them happy.

Role Models is more than just your average slapstick, gross humoured comedy. The storyline may be a semi familiar tale however Role Models is not just another comedy thrown out to keep the masses at bay. The film definitely stretches beyond that stigma providing a nice balance between comedy and the trials and tribulation of growing up and finding yourself.

 

Ghost Town

Ghost Town is, sort of, a romantic comedy that takes the lighter side of death and develops a less morbid view on the afterlife. This could have been problematic since cinematic ghosts tend to be a tough sale; death is a serious matter, which if treated incorrectly could have made audience reject the film. However Ghost Town has a great balance of comedy, emotion and a bit of romance that builds an engaging story.

Betram Pincus (Ricky Gervais) is a sad, lonely dentist, though he would argue otherwise. A cynical misanthrope who after dying a short while during a routine colonoscopy wakes up to discover his world has changed a bit, he sees dead people. In a not so creepy air as The Sixth Sense, the story brings up the ever- lingering tale that the dead are always among us seeking to conclude their unfinished business. Pincus now must not only avoid encountering the living but also the dead. The story is shifted from comic blarney into a story with a deeper emotional underlying when a ghost, Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear), asks Pincus to help his widow, Gwen (Tea Leoni), from making a horrible choice for her future. The walking dead continue throughout the film and play both on comic relief and emotional understanding. A great thing about this film is that while it is about ghosts the ghosts are second to the characters that are developed based on their deaths. It relies strongly on the memories of those left behind. Which plays back into discovering why Pincus is the way he is and his time spent helping the dead actually brings him back to life.