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Observe and Report
Observe and Report
Actors: Seth Rogen, Anna Faris, Michael Peņa, Ray Liotta
Director: Jody Hill
Genres: Comedy
R     2009     1hr 26min

Bargain hunters at forest ridge mall get more than they bargained for a chubby flasher in a ratty bathrobe. Security guard hopes to catch the flasher so he may get a real police job and to romance with a hot cosmetics coun...  more »
     
     

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Movie Details

Actors: Seth Rogen, Anna Faris, Michael Peņa, Ray Liotta
Director: Jody Hill
Genres: Comedy
Sub-Genres: Comedy
Studio: Warner Home Video
Format: DVD - Color,Full Screen,Widescreen - Subtitled
DVD Release Date: 09/22/2009
Original Release Date: 01/01/2009
Theatrical Release Date: 04/10/2009
Release Year: 2009
Run Time: 1hr 26min
Screens: Color,Full Screen,Widescreen
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Total Copies: 9
Members Wishing: 0
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Languages: English
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish
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Member Movie Reviews

David W.
Reviewed on 8/7/2013...
Great movie by, Seth Rogen!!
Derek B. from LINDSBORG, KS
Reviewed on 1/11/2011...
This movie is exacly what you think it is. It is stupid mind numbing humor. Thats it, if you go into this expecting the next Boondock Saints or Godfather then you are horribly confused. This movie is nothing more then stupid joke with lame punch lines, but my god is it funny. The ending made it all worth while for me. Watch this movie to kill a couple hours and just veg out.
0 of 4 member(s) found this review helpful.
IVOR I. from CHICAGO, IL
Reviewed on 12/22/2010...
Ronnie Barnhardt (Seth Rogen) is a bipolar, knuckleheaded, shmuck who is head of security at a suburban Mall in the obnoxious, creepy yuk-yuk comedy 'Observe and Report.' Heavily medicated, armed, delusional, racist and fascist, Ronnie metes out a kind of vigilante justice to naughty skateboarders and thieves. On patrol, he harasses Brandi, a moronic blonde cosmetics clerk (Anna Faris); consumes free cups of coffee at the doughnut shop.

Meanwhile, daydreaming of the day he can become a real cop and blow society's miscreants away, he goes to target practice (always aiming at the head and the genitals) and goes home to his obese, alcoholic out-of-control mother (Celia Weston). A flasher shows up at the mall and Ronnie becomes bizarrely territorial when a police detective (Ray Liotta) takes over the case.The rest is just bad behavior and a few good yuk-yuk jokes.

Any moron will get the sledgehammer implication that the mall is a wasteland. This utter disaster of a hybrid of gross-out comedy, civics lesson and psychosexual paranoia works as neither a comedy or, umm, drama. The actors, Rogen, usually cast as a likable Jewish shlemeil, gives an edgy enough performance here and looks for zero empathy. Ms. Faris is a fine actress normally, but the snarling moron she plays here is devoid of all feeling. Only the normally avuncular Michael Peņa gets it right as a fellow schizoid security guard serial killer-cum-career criminal.

The film's director Jody Hill is clueless throughout. How someone shmoozed all these A- listers to sign up for this bucket of puke is beyond me.
1 of 3 member(s) found this review helpful.
Katelyn B. (KatelynBoyett) from CORCORAN, CA
Reviewed on 6/18/2010...
This movie tries so hard to be funny, that it's not funny. At all.
2 of 7 member(s) found this review helpful.

Movie Reviews

An absolutely stellar black comedy.
DanD | 09/19/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ronnie is a mall cop with big dreams: he wants to be a cop. Partly to carry a gun, partly so people will finally respect him. When a flasher appears on his turf, it's war--especially when one of the victims is Brandi, the makeup-counter girl whom Ronnie has a crush on. But when a real detective intrudes in the case, Ronnie decides to take matters in his own hands--to win respect, to win the case, and to win the girl.

OBSERVE AND REPORT is perhaps the darkest comedy in ages. Seth Rogen does not play Ronnie as a beloved character, as many a lesser actor would; in Rogen's hands, Ronnie is a borderline-sociopath, a bipolar loser who is as hilariously aloof as he is dangerous. Anna Farris, as Brandi, is a comedic delight as always; she throws her self-esteem to the wind in order to wring the last little laugh from every scene. Michael Pena, as Ronnie's sidekick, is a scene-stealer. However, it's Ray Liotta who walks away with the only character to hold his own against Ronnie; as Detective Harrison, Liotta is tough and unforgiving, and the climax between the two ends the only way it could (though you'll be holding your breath the whole way).

In other words, Jody Hill's OBSERVE AND REPORT is the darkest of dark comedies, often bordering on a (non-supernatural) horror movie; the comparisons it's garnered to TAXI DRIVER are well-founded, and often-times you don't know whether to wince or laugh. Hill doesn't just take things too far; he takes them to limits no one else would dare to. OBSERVE AND REPORT is not a comedy for the squeamish, but it's certainly a film for those of us who don't mind a few chills with our humorous thrills."
New King of Comedy
Acid | Rogers, AR USA | 11/05/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Not to say that writer/director Jody Hill is the new Scorscese (he's not), but I was constantly reminded of Scorscese's early 80s disturbo-comedy "King of Comedy" when watching this. Whereas Scorscese uses stark realism, though, Hill uses the conventions and expectations of modern comedy to nail us. This could have easily been another crude and rude comedy along the lines of Superbad or Pineapple Express. Those (hell, most) comedies made today feature borderline-sociopathic, emotionally-retarded, and hopelessly immature males. Hill simply tips his characters over the edge. There is no denying that Ronnie (Seth Rogan) is a full-blown psychopath. What's surprising is how close this character is to every other character Seth Rogan has ever played!
Your reaction to this film will be greatly effected by your expectations. If you expect an extremely dark, yet often silly, film instead of yet another "Superbad" or, god forbid, "Paul Blart: Mall Cop", you should not be disappointed in the least.
"
If anything, I was surprised when I discovered its dark come
Renfield | Edmonton, Canada | 01/06/2010
(4 out of 5 stars)

"Upon going into the theatre for "Observe and Report" on its opening day, I was under the impression that I was about to see an 18A-rated Mall Cop.

Boy, was I surprised when I found out how wrong I was.

Nevertheless, dark comedies have always been something I've had a knack for, and if you're expecting a "Mall Cop for adults", you best not even touch the DVD. Because believe me, Observe and Report is a dark, twisted, and VERY violent romp through bi-polar disorder, drug use, date rape, and a man running around and flashing people.

If I haven't put you off seeing this movie, you can continue reading this review.

Yeah, something tells me I put a bunch of people off watching this movie just by that comment in the above paragraph alone. The 2.5 star out of 5 rating is caused mostly by people who walked into this movie not knowing the dark film they were about to see, and expecting a sex comedy. If anything, I was surprised when I decovered its dark comedy. Nonetheless I enjoyed it quite a bit. Fronted by Seth Rogen, Observe and Report is the chronicles of an every-day man with bipolar disorder and the obnoxious tendencies that consume him.

Seth Rogen plays Ronnie Barndhart, a security guard at a shopping mall in New Mexico. He has bipolar disorder, which does get him in quite a bit of trouble. He lives with his mom, who is an alcoholic, but loves him dearly. He enjoys seeing the incredibly cute Nell at the coffee shop every day and getting free coffee from her, and enjoys talking to Brandi, who works in the makeup department of a Sears-type store.

However, a streaker has been wreaking havoc at the mall. He goes around flashing people in the parking lot and in the mall. Ronnie, and the rest of the security team have a plan to take the streaker and turn him in to the police department. One day, on her way to work, the streaker flashes Brandi, mentally scarring her. After talking to her and comforting her, Ronnie seems to develop displays of affection towards Brandi and even asks her out. The rest of the movie turns into a twisted and violent romp that is definitely not for the prudish, but most definitely NOT for the faint of heart!

Observe and Report is a brutal and twisted movie, but that's to say that I enjoyed it immensely! In fact, I like to look at this movie as a twisted stage play. This could actually work as a really good stage play, as the writing had sort of a theatrical feel to it, as if the story could work well on stage too. Rogen turns in a wonderful performance as Ronnie, our bipolar anti-hero for the 86 minutes. Anna Faris also excels here, with her portrayal of the adorably slutty Brandi. All of the cast seems to be especially great here, with no question.

As the film approaches its last 30 minutes, you feel as if you dunno whether or not you're watching the movie or having a REALLY messed up dream. There is a date-rape scene in there that has caused outrage among some viewers, which, if looked at correctly, is rather darkly funny (I think rape is a horrible but it was done humorously). The violence, especially for a comedy, is surprisingly brutal- and even exaggerated in some aspects too. The dark tones are evident there, as you see some of the most twisted stuff in film ever. But that said... it's really good.

I can see why people would hate this movie. It certainly is NOT for everybody. So many will hate it and so few will actually et the point of it. But if you lower your expectations, this is a movie that is very enjoyable, and for that, remains a personal favorite of mine.

IN TOTAL:
Entertainment: 8/10
Sex: 4/10, or 3/10 if you don't count date rape
Violence: 6/10
Laughs: quite a few, but this is no laugh riot
Brutality: 10+/10
Rogen: Managed to pull it off very well
Surrealism: Am I watching a movie or having a messed up dream?
Litres of Tomato Ketchup: One 2L heinz bottle, rapidly squeezed at an alarming rate

***Recommended!***"