Cedar Rapids (2011)

Yeah, yeah- I'll respect the fact Ed Helms has paid his dues and is very good in The Hangover and perfected the Daily Show on-location interview, that they still use today BUT Clay Davis is one of the greatest fictional corrupt characters of ALL TIME! I'm ashamed to say I don't even know the name of the actor that played him and i'm usually very good at that; that said I love the guy and I'd watch anything with him in it. It's even better when he suprises you by popping up in something random like the mediocre Choke (a book, like most, basically unfilmable) and you squeal 'CLAYDAVIS!?!'
He's basically opposite of his 'Wire' character in this but for whatever reason, there's a running joke (as you may have seen in the trailer) concerning his character's love of Omar Little. I'm sure most people hate that kinda meta-self awareness but i LOVE that kinda thing. It's exactly what I love in pop culture.
Cedar Rapids, with it's basically unoriginal storyline and lack of ambition is fairly middling. It's good for more than a few laughs and easy to watch and entertaining but it kinda levels out after a while. The only thing that keeps the film ticking over is the solid comic acting from Helms, Clay Davis and John C. Reilly and anytime their on-screen together is good but they all make good alone as well. It's strange to say this because he's so brilliant in everything but Reilly is maybe at his zenith, playing a sleazy, coarse but loveable dick. Helms is basically called on to repeat what he did on The Hangover except more childish and more dramatic ACTING bits. Clay is just a big cute bear and i love him. It's basically these 3guys trying especially, Reilly and Helms trying to steal the film from one another; again I love that in films and tv too.
Matching guys when they can get screen time are Sigourney Weaver and Alia Shawkat. Weaver doing more comedy these days and in this gets to be a more empathetic 'Mrs Robinson'; she is not the nicest older lover but she's not malicious in trying to play with emotionally-retarded Helms and Shawkat is delightful as this small-town teen hotel prostitute; not the easiest part to play as you might imagine.
Cedar Rapids is just a very competent comedy- it's funny enough but it never tried to be something bigger than its self and in concluding, is a basic comedy about insurance salesmen and as curious as that sounds...

I watched Cedar Rapids (2011) at the cinema.
My 2011 in Movies will return with Hanna (2011)...