We all know Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are fanboy royalty, especially here in the UK, where the duo could probably film themselves strangling nuns and get a standing ovation, as long as they were dressed up as wookies while they did it. There's a sense of trust when we see these two onscreen together that's almost unique in the hyper-critical vulture's nest that is the online fan community. That's what Spaced, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz buys you in nerd currency.
But Paul, the road movie/Close Encounters homage Pegg and Frost wrote together and roped in Greg Mottola (Superbad, Adventureland) to direct, marks a momentous watershed for the pair, it being the first film they've appeared in together without the guiding hand of co-conspirator Edgar Wright behind the camera. After all, their records outside of their Wright collaborations are considerably more spotty - Pegg has been earning his bread with amusing but lightweight rom coms (Run Fatboy Run) and "funny little Brit" comic relief roles in massive US blockbusters (Mission: Impossible III, Star Trek). Frost, meanwhile, has mixed some TV roles with the likes of The Boat that Rocked, Kinky Boots and Wild Child, which range from unremarkable to somewhat dreadful.
So here's a story Pegg and Frost have been working on since filming on Shaun of the Dead, a passion project that they're properly invested in, which aims to stake their claim as great screenwriters and comic actors in their own right. They certainly made smart decisions in the lead-up to the film, working with a director with proven comedy chops and bringing on board a veritable troop of credible US comic talent (Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Joe Lo Truglio and Bill Hader, among others). So did they bring it together, or does Paul feel worse off for its Wright-shaped hole?
Well, as Daisy Steiner would say, it's ups and downs. This story, which follows a couple of British geeks who have their sci-fi obsessed US road trip interrupted by the appearance of the titular foul-mouthed little space man who needs to catch his flying saucer home before the M.I.Bs on his tail harvest his magical gizzards, has plenty going for it, but some crucial missteps hold it back from the upper echelons of the action-comedy pantheon.
Let's start with the bad. Perhaps the most surprising thing that occurred to me watching Paul, a criticism I never thought I'd make of a Pegg/Frost movie, was the relative lack of chemistry between the two leads. The script makes a big deal of Graeme (Pegg) and Clive's (Frost) lifelong friendship and the constant assumptions by passersby that they're lovers, but oddly enough, Pegg and Frost lack the amiable onscreen fizz that is so central to all their other collaborations. Their banter at the beginning of the film seems forced and dull (along the lines of "Who'd have thought we'd be here at Comic-Con/this UFO hotspot, eh? Amazing!") and the relationship lacks the little details of familiarity that sell an onscreen friendship to an audience. The fault lies less with Pegg and Frost's performances and more with the script, which fails to differentiate the characters enough to generate some engaging back-and-forth.
Sadly, Paul also lacks the gag hit-rate to really register as an unreserved slice of fried gold. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of really funny moments (on which more later), but few of them are in the saggy first half hour when Graeme and Clive are touring around in their RV. A comedy really needs to hit the ground running to warm up an audience's funny bone for the meat of the movie, and in this regard Paul falls short. There are also some pretty lazy, easy-target jokes, most notably an ongoing seam of perfectly truthful but painfully cliche anti-Creationism gags. Speaking of ongoing gags, Pegg and Frost somewhat overplay their hand with the movie references - a little goes a long way when it comes to sly nods to other movies, and there are moments (our introduction to Special Agent Lorenzo Zoil chief among them) when what should be a wink feels more like a oversized cock punch.
So there's the bad, but what about the good? Well, there's plenty to choose from here, as well. Alien stow-away Paul is the heart of the movie, as well as the adrenaline shot that kickstarts the plot just when it seems to be flatlining. Voiced by Seth Rogen, Paul is a brilliant creation. Hilarious, sweet and expertly rendered, Paul is an extraterrestrial with a difference. He's been cooped up in government facilities since his ship crashed in the 50s, and his exposure to earthling media has made him a foul-mouthed product of pop culture (in a clever little twist, he's also been the secret consultant behind xeno-inspired artistic endeavours over the years, from Close Encounters to The X-Files). Rogen is an unlikely but surprisingly inspired vocal choice, imbuing Paul with a soft human side as well as the expected sense of comic timing.
Backing Paul and his Limey cohorts up is a dynamic and well-considered cast of supporting players. Kristen Wiig is foremost among them, playing sheltered Christian fundamentalist Ruth, who has her entire theological belief system blown apart the minute she catches sight of Paul's fat grey head. Her overenthusiastic attempts to embrace the sinner's lifestyle, complete with jarring mish-mash swearwords and hyperactive drug freakouts, yield some of the film's funniest moments.
Bill Hader, Joe Lo Truglio and Jason Bateman all shine as the trio of goons on Paul's trail. Hader and Lo Truglio suffuse their bumbling over-zealous rookie roles with a child-like stupidity (Lo Truglio's character at one point loses his shit over the thought of Paul's "space man balls", which in turn sets up a cracking visual gag down the line) that does a lot to bring the movie's hit-rate back up to par. Bateman as the aforementioned Zoil indulges his inner bad-ass, delivering his lines with a straight-faced conviction that counterplays well with his ridiculous subordinates.
Although Paul might lack a little of that consistent comedic flair to put it up there with the greats in terms of comedy, praise should be given to Pegg and Frost, and director Mottola, for creating a genuinely feel-good story with real warmth. Pegg has described Paul as a love letter to Steven Spielberg, and there really is a pleasantly Spielbergian tone here. The story's impetus picks right up as the movie hits the mid-way point, with Pegg and Frost showing they have a real knack for mixing broad humour with more touching moments, especially as the gang get closer to the end-point of their journey.
No doubt Paul would have been a different movie had Edgar Wright been at the helm. But it feels unfair to speculate what Wright could have brought to the table when Frost, Pegg and Mottola have crafted a movie with an atmosphere of its own. Paul is not without its flaws, but as a broad, accessible comedy blockbuster, it's pretty loveable. In its own way.
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