Caveman comedy cries out for sharper edge
All the way through Harold Ramis' new caveman comedy "Year One," I had the impression I was watching a series of pulled punches and blunted rapier thrusts, as if Ramis kept suppressing a project that constantly cried out to be crazier, naughtier and more outrageous.
Later, when I read up on his movie in imdb.com, I realized why. "Year One" had originally been rated R before it underwent the metaphorical editor's knife to conform to the ever-loosening criteria that qualify for a PG-13.
So, the material that should have been awesomely gross is only semi-gross. The stuff that should have been off-the-charts offensive never leaves the charts. The scenes that should have been riotously funny achieve levels of mere amusement.
These would have been even less had they not all contained generous amounts of Jack Black's antic, frantic comic persona with the rolling eyes, adorable mugging and broad physicality in the service of keeping audiences awake.
Black plays Zed, a screw-up caveman who accidentally spears his own fellow hunters and enrages the biggest, baddest guy in the tribe, Marlak (Matthew Willig), by lusting after his woman, Maya (June Diane Raphael). But Zed is a dreamer and a visionary of sorts who constantly challenges the status quo by questioning if the world is really flat and wondering if women really are subservient to men, and being skeptical that sacrificing virgins brings on much-needed rain.
Zed runs into big trouble and gets banned from his tribe after eating a radiantly splendid apple off the forbidden tree of knowledge. He declares himself to be "The Chosen One" who's smarter than everyone else, and that he knows everything.
His cute Neanderthal sidekick Oh ("Juno" star Michael Cera) tests him:
"Where does the sun go at night?" Oh asks.
"Next question," Zed replies.
"Where do babies come from?" Oh asks.
"Next question," Zed replies.
"Year One," written by Ramis and Gene Stupnitsky of TV's "The Office," clearly is out to ridicule unscientific religious conclusions and people who profess to possess ultimate knowledge. Yet, these targets become muddled in a barrage of gross-out jokes, literal potty humor and slapstick shtick.
The movie has great fun manipulating history for its own storytelling purposes. "Year One" presumably takes place during the first year of Christ's life. Still, Oh and Zed come across Cain (David Cross) and Abel (Paul Rudd in quiet comic overdrive) and witness the first murder, a hysterically sadistic scene eliciting more laughs as Cain continues to beat Abel more violently.
Zed and Oh continue on their journey by interrupting Abraham (Hank Azaria) during the sacrifice of his son Isaac (Christopher Mintz-Plasse of "Superbad" fame). Then, it's on to Sodom where the two become slaves, with Oh tending to the personal services of an ultra-hairy high priest (Oliver Platt).
Black and Cera have a cinematic ball playing off each other, one the manic egomaniac, the other the introspective introvert. Regretfully, the supporting cast is more hit and miss (mostly miss) with a woefully miscast Mintz-Plasse looking out-of-place as Isaac, as well as attractive but depthless Raphael and Juno Temple as Zed's and Oh's respective love interests.
In one scene, a Roman seer throws down a pile of animal intestines to read the future and announces that he sees "a happy face!"
That's pretty much what "Year One" elicits. No belly laughs or hyperventilating filmgoers as in Ramis' earlier films, "Analyze This" and "Groundhog Day."
A smiley face.
"Year One"
Rating: 2½ stars
Starring: Jack Black, Michael Cera, Hank Azaria, Oliver Platt, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Directed by: Harold Ramis
Other: A Columbia Pictures release. Rated PG-13 (language, sexual situations, violence). 97 minutes
<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=301118">Ramis reflects on comedy career, recent honor <span class="date">[06/18/09]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>