Year One

This movie's title would suggest that there's at least a possibility that the filmmakers have a sequel in mind, depending (of course) on how many fans of Jack Black and Michael Cera flock to see it. While the prospect of a sequel to Year One isn't horrifying, it's nothing worth getting excited about either. The humor here is very much scattered and inconsistent; this is precisely the kind of movie that the fast-forward button was made for, which is why it's highly advisable to wait for the DVD on this one, rather than sitting through it in theaters. After watching Fired Up, Year One seemed like a potentially refreshing piece of amusement, and while it's certainly better, it still falls short of being good.

The fact that the film is set in the first year of human history is just an excuse to try to put an interesting spin on the plot, even though this doesn't really do much for the comedic value, since most of the laughs are found within the banter that our two main characters exchange. Unfortunately, these few amusing moments are lumped between some really terrible, unfunny dialogue and a set of uninspired and poorly choreographed action/fight sequences. Worst of all, though, there are three vomit-inducing instances in which the film resorts to toilet humor: the first goes miles further than it needs to and involves consumption of feces, the second involves flatulence in bed (how creative), and the third involves upside-down urination and is beyond disgusting. The saddest thing about this is that Cera is involved in all three moments, and he's forced to cringe his way through all three of these scenes. He's also the direct subject of the upside-down urination scene, and watching him embarrass himself like this, the only consolation is the knowledge that he has been (and hopefully will continue to be) in other, much better comedic projects. You also have to give him credit for continuing to employ his dweeb-ish comedic shtick so well, and it's mostly thanks to that that the film isn't without its scattered laughs. Jack Black is marginally less successful because, well, he doesn't act - he just gives a lot of wide-eyed stares and mugs for the camera as often as he gets the chance.

The word "primitive" is very fitting here, not just to describe the era and the characters in the film, but also to describe the quality of the comedy, which shows occasional potential, but is mostly amateurish, tired and uninventive.

5/10