Observe and Report: Enough with the security mall cop films already!

It's hard to figure out just why two films featuring mall security cops as their lead characters (this film and Paul Blart: Mall Cop) were released in the past year. Of the two, Observe and Report would have been the obvious choice as more likely to tickle one's funny bone due to its popular leading man Seth Rogen. Unfortunately, it's the Kevin James lead Paul Blart that wins the crown as "the least terrible" of the two.

Audiences have grown accustomed to seeing Seth Rogen in the funny, nice guy role due to his work in previous movies like Knocked Up, Zack and Miri Make a Porno, etc. But his role as Ronnie Barnhardt in Observe and Report cast him in a different light. Ronnie was bigoted, overbearing and hard, if not impossible, to like. There was no backstory to explain his rash behavior (he takes meds but his condition was never discussed), no room for his character to grow, he was just a disturbed weirdo with a penchant for weapons and spouting curse words. At least Paul Blart had some semblance of a recognizable story/plot, Observe and Report lacked a cohesive story structure and the editing was amateurish to boot. To top it all off, there was nothing funny in the film (save for Ronnie tasing a guy and beating up on some skateboarders). The jokes that were there fell flat, and Rogen was never given the chance to show any smarts, wit or even the slightest bit of the charm which he uesd to make the characters he played in those other films so memorable.

One kept waiting for something funny or even interesting to happen, but the joke was on them beacuse Observe and Report simply stunk.

Grade: D

Paul Blart: Mall Cop? No thanks!

I've never watched Kevin James' show King of Queens cause I've always known that if I wanted to see the hilarity that ensues when a rotund man and his goregous wife try to make it through the paces in a suburban American setting, there were better choices out there (see The Family Guy or The Simpsons). And after sitting through Paul Blart: Mall Cop I doubt I'll ever try to catch King of Queens.

The premise is simple enough, down on his luck Blart longs to be a full fledged New Jersey state trooper but has a problem that makes that impossible (he needs his sweets to stay awake). So he ends up working at the local mall where he is in his tenth year of protecting and serving all those shoppers who constantly mock him and take him for a joke. Things change when Blart notices a new kiosk girl named Amy whom he tries to save, along with other shop owners, when thieves take over his beloved mall.

The film switches from maudlin to slapstick at the drop of a hat and never really establishes a narrative which makes for watchable cinema. Sure, James brings heart to Blart and can take a prat fall like no one's business but that's all he can do to get laughs, run into things or get doused in a tanning booth (and you can only do that so many times before it becomes irritating). Fans of James will no doubt still want to check out this movie but if you're looking for something that will make you chuckle on a consistent basis and doesn't make you think about doing all those chores you're trying to avoid, stay away from Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

Grade: D