“This Is The End” marks the directorial debut of comedian/actor Seth Rogen and longtime writing partner Evan Goldberg. The two also co-wrote this screenplay. They decided to go all-out and make a raunchy, creative, offensive and at times quite funny adult comedy about a subject that isn’t so funny: The End of the World.
The best thing about “This Is The End” is that the film is filled with Hollywood stars playing themselves – at least by name (you’d like to think that these people aren’t like this in real life – but you never know). This allows the characters to poke fun at themselves and their movies – both the successes and the flops. On this level – as a satire of young Hollywood and celebrity – the movie works quite well.
The first hour of “This Is The End” is, at times, very entertaining. The plot couldn’t be more basic: Rogen and long-time friend Jay Baruchel (“The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”) show up at James Franco’s new house in L.A. for a party, which is filled with film and TV stars, providing a nice, authentic feeling. Soon weird things start happening, including blue lights sucking people up into the sky and a giant sinkhole that appears in front of Franco’s house. Many of the celebs fall into the hole to their death, some in comical ways. But a handful – Rogen, Franco, Baruchel, Craig Robinson (“The Office”) and Jonah Hill – all survive, and they have to figure out what’s going on and how to deal with what could be either a major earthquake or The Apocalypse. There are some great gags and tons of sarcastic dialogue.
But then things start to go downhill, not only within the film but with the film. The jokes start getting less clever and more crude. And many of the scenes drag on way too long, as we begin to realize that Rogen has run out of jokes to complete his project. “This Is The End” really pushes the envelope of the adult comedy genre. In fact, it makes last summer’s Seth MacFarlane hit, “Ted” look like “Sesame Street”. It’s too bad that Rogen went over the top with the offensive material because it wasn’t necessary.
In the final act, even weirder things start happening, many of which make no sense, as Rogen and Goldberg scramble to try come up with a way to bring things to a satisfying conclusion. But they don’t succeed. The duo began with an off-beat idea and deliver some outrageously funny moments (the “Pineapple Express 2” trailer is hysterical). But by the end, “This Is The End” sinks to a goofy and bland conclusion.
Once again, I want to stress that “This Is The End” is rated R for adult content and language, nudity, consistent sexual references, drug use and graphic violence. This is not a film for kids or younger teens.
On The Official LCJ Report Card, “This Is The End” gets a C+.