I adore Shaun of the Dead, found Hot Fuzz more than a little tedious, but I was still very much looking forward to Simon Pegg and Nick Frost re-teaming  once again, this time for the big sci-fi blockbuster “Paul,” which hits U.S. theatres March 18th. Because the film hits British theatres later this month, reviews are already starting to pour in and now my enthusiasm has cooled some. Really guys? Southerners and Christians? Needless to say, I expected something a little more creative and original than some lazy, cliched Kevin Smith-style of satire with about as much edge as a tuna sandwich. 

Below is a review round-up for what’s looking like a left-wing, atheist polemic disguised as escapist comedy so that Pegg and Frost can get their bigotry on and line us up for a series of sucker-punch cheap shots. Unlike Monty Python, present-day “satirists” are too ignorant and mean-spirited to mock us with the kind of intelligence and affection we can appreciate, so it’s unlikely we’re looking forward to a couple hours of laughing at ourselves here. ”Paul” might well be the rare exception, but somehow I doubt it. Either way, it’s always good to know what you’re walking into, what you’re laying down your hard-earned money for. So here’s the heads up.

Bottom line: my guess is that the jokes will be less insulting than the “satiric” laziness involved in choosing the easiest, safest targets imaginable. And there’s simply nothing duller than an evangelical atheist.

i09: 

The bromance between Pegg and Frost is as great as ever, but the addition of a fundamentalist Christian woman (played by Kristin Wiig) dilutes their dynamic a bit. The film doesn’t entirely succeed as a fun road-trip comedy or a jaunty science fiction adventure comedy, and some of the jabs at Christianity may piss off Christian audiences.

Apparently Wiig’s character has a sort of anti-religious awakening, in which she rejects Christianity and learns to swear, and this is most likely the most controversial aspect of an otherwise standard comedy. At one point, Paul the alien says, “My existence doesn’t necessarily disprove religion: just all Judaeo-Christian denominations.”

The Hollywood Reporter:

Men in black, rednecks and fundamental Christians are the main heavies that get in the way of their plans. …  Christianity gets in the neck, which could hurt Bible-belt box office[.]

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Janeane Garofalo is an unreconstructed, unapologetic racist.

Yet the uncouth actress will never be punished, vilified or marginalized, because she openly disparaged the one ethnic group which enjoys no Hollywood protection. That would be white people. Particularly, white people from the South.

What do you think would happen should anyone turn the tables, reverse the races, change the geography, and denigrate an urban person of color? The conservatives I know do not resort to gutter talk. 

For her bold and unbridled racism – offenses that are sure to draw deafening applause by the American left – Janeane Garofalo is my Celebutard of the Week, in keeping with my book, “Celebutards: The Hollywood Hacks, Limousine Liberals and Pandering Politicians Who Are Destroying America.”  (more…)