Apocalyptic comedy This Is The End is squarely aimed at the Judd Apatow audience. It is sometimes crude, but more often than not pretty amusing.
When Jay Baruchel goes to Los Angeles for the weekend, he is hoping to spend the time catching up with his best friend Seth Rogen. However Seth is keen that they go to a party at James Franco’s house. The party is a bad idea, but not for the reasons Jay thought…
In This Is The End, all the characters play themselves. The film itself boasts a fun premise – a group of Hollywood actors trying to survive an apocalypse. This set-up wears a little thin over the almost two-hour duration, but This Is The End is thoroughly entertaining for the most part.
The fact that the characters a playing themselves, or at least a version of themselves, is one of the film’s main attributes. With the inclusion of a plethora of cameos, it is certainly fun to watch these stars sending themselves up. Nonetheless, it is a pity that James Franco, for example, does not make more of his perceived persona.
The humour in This Is The End is often crass. This is not unexpected, however, given the talent involved in the film. Although the jokes tend to go for the lowest common denominator, the humour does generate laughs.
Jay Baruchel is a likeable protagonist. He functions as the ‘normal guy’ within the sea of celebrities. As a result, he is the one viewers will most likely identify with. Jonah Hill and Craig Robinson offer good support, whilst some of the film’s funniest moments arise from the high-profile cameos.
Although it won’t be to everyone’s tastes, This Is The End should certainly satisfy the demographic it will appeal to. The film is silly fun, and recommend just for this purpose.
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