Paul: movie review

In this comedy adventure, two sci-fi geeks go on a road trip in Nevada where they accidentally meet a foul-mouthed alien named Paul.

|
Mario Anzuoni/Reuters
Writers and cast members Nick Frost (l.) and Simon Pegg pose at the premiere of 'Paul' at the Grauman's Chinese theater in Hollywood, Calif. on March 14. The movie opens in the US on March 18.

The amusing conceit behind “Paul” is that an E.T. can be every bit as foul-mouthed and goony as any slacker. This is not quite enough of a conceit to sustain a full-length movie – “Paul” would have made a terrific short film – but there are incidental pleasures all along the way.

Nick Frost and Simon Pegg, who also double as screenwriters, play geeky British tourists who rent an RV and scout out UFO landmarks in Nevada. Soon they are joined by an escapee from a top-secret military base, Paul, a scrawny alien who, after 60 years on Earth, just wants to get back to his own planet. Hot on their trail are federal agents (Bill Hader, Jason Bateman, and Joe Lo Truglio) of varying degrees of cluelessness.

I’m not sure that having a rabid ex-evangelical firebrand (Kristin Wiig) join the fray was such a masterstroke – it brings the movie into evolution/creationism terrain that is too scabrous for its own good. But Frost and Pegg, who had a breakout hit with “Shaun of the Dead,” are a wiggy team, and director Gregg Mottola (“Superbad,” “Adventureland”) has a genial touch. The movie, despite what you may have gathered from the goofy trailer, is more sweet than silly. Grade: B (Rated R for language including sexual references, and some drug use.)

You've read 3 of 3 free articles. Subscribe to continue.
QR Code to Paul: movie review
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/The-Culture/Movies/2011/0318/Paul-movie-review
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe
CSM logo

Why is Christian Science in our name?

Our name is about honesty. The Monitor is owned by The Christian Science Church, and we’ve always been transparent about that.

The Church publishes the Monitor because it sees good journalism as vital to progress in the world. Since 1908, we’ve aimed “to injure no man, but to bless all mankind,” as our founder, Mary Baker Eddy, put it.

Here, you’ll find award-winning journalism not driven by commercial influences – a news organization that takes seriously its mission to uplift the world by seeking solutions and finding reasons for credible hope.

Explore values journalism About us