It’s getting to the point now that any major Hollywood comedy is virtually guaranteed to feature at least one (often two or more) cast member from The 40-Year-Old Virgin, regardless of whether Judd Apatow has anything to do with making it. Such was the case with the recent Zack & Miri Make A Porno, which, though written and directed (recognizably) by Kevin Smith, starred Virgin alumni Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks. This isn’t really a complaint, as these are certainly very capable comedic performers, but Hollywood comedies are starting to look like they were all built from the same $8 Lego kit.

The most recent assembly is Role Models, with Paul Rudd (40-Year-Old Virgin, who also co-wrote) and Seann William Scott (a.k.a. Stifler) as a pair of moderately successful slackers working as spokesmen for a Red Bull-like energy drink company. Through a series of events better left for the film to explain, the two end up in criminal court facing jail time. Helped by Rudd’s lawyer ex-girlfriend Elizabeth Banks (40-Year-Old-Virgin), they are offered an alternative: to perform community service as “big brother” types in an organization run by Jane Lynch (40-Year-Old-Virgin) to mentor kids. Scott is paired with Bobb’e J. Thompson, a kid so foul-mouthed in this movie that you wonder if the script itself can be considered child abuse, and Rudd with Christopher “McLovin” Mintz-Plasse, a geeky loner who participates in L.A.I.R.E., a sort of live-action Dungeons & Dragons.

L.A.I.R.E. is where most of the film’s best gags end up playing out. Based loosely on S.C.A. (the Society for Creative Anachronism, an organization which counts my sister as a long-time participant), it should be recognizable to anyone who has seen people in the park fencing with homemade foam-and-duct-tape swords. Rudd is loath to get involved in such activities, but eventually gets caught up in Mintz-Plasse’s struggle against King Argotron (Ken Jeong), one of those evil geeks who just want to ruin the fun for everyone else. Lynch, as always, brings some good laughs as a recovering addict-turned-social worker. Mostly Role Models relies on profane crassness for its own sake, which I have to admit worked fine for me. – [DVD]

Comedy

Rated R

DVD Release Date: 3/10/09

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