'Observe and Report' not worth observing

The second major movie this year to center around a mall security guard, Observe and Report follows Ronnie Barnhardt (Seth Rogen) in his pursuit of a flasher terrorizing his mall.

When a pervert strikes, Ronnie and his squad of security pals do what is in their power to stop him before the local police do. In his attempt to stop the flasher, Ronnie tries to win the attention of his dream girl Brandi (Anna Faris). But through under-developed characters and humor, it is hard to observe or care.

I have enjoyed the acting of Seth Rogen, Anna Faris and Ray Liota in the past, and I have heard only good things about Jody Hill’s previous movie, Foot Fist Way. Rogen is generally funny, if not a bit repetitive, and Faris does a good job at being clueless. With all the talent on this project and a promising premise, why did the movie turn out so bland? Let me break it down.

A comedy, by definition, is designed to make the viewer laugh. If it doesn’t achieve this, it’s either a drama or a bad movie. Observe and Report falls somewhere in between, being built around comedic situations but including some serious emotional scenes. One would be tempted to say the movie doesn’t know what it wants to be, but the fact is that it actually does: It wants to be a comedy.

But with half of the jokes failing to fully deliver, and Rogen’s character crying every twenty minutes, it is hard to really get a good laugh. I was disappointed with how weak Observe and Report turned out to be. If you’re a diehard Rogen, Faris or Hill fan, wait to rent and observe Observe and Report, otherwise don’t waste your time.