This is the End Review

This is the End is an apocalyptic comedy written & directed by Evan Goldberg and star of the film, Seth Rogen. The movie consists of several movie stars playing themselves in a scenario where the world is coming to an end. The film stars Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson and Danny McBride but they are joined by several other stars including Emma Watson.

I went into this movie with reservations. While I love most of these actors, especially Rogen, Franco and Watson, I was very concerned that this would be just a terribly stupid comedy with a bunch of stars making dumb jokes for another big payday but on the flip side, I was hoping this would be a joy ride of watching these characters interact in an environment that allowed them to be more of themselves than usual. Well, I’ll tell you what, it was hilarious and crazy. It was ridiculous and enjoyable. In fact, we were laughing out loud all night, including my girlfriend who does NOT laugh out loud at movies or TV very often.

What made this movie work was not only the awesome chemistry that makes me believe these people are all friends anyway, but the fact that there was actually a story here. It did not feel like This is the End was made because they were bored and wanted to do a movie. They had a reason to pull this off and man, I’m excited for the Blu-Ray. You’ll be amazed by how many celebrities they got to show up in this movie. Some have only a line but others literally just show up to be in the background or part of some funny joke. It really felt like a team effort across the board to just bring laughs to us all.

The film is definitely rated R, primarily for language and sexual content with some violence thrown in as well. It also runs at 107 minutes, so it’s a decent length for this kind of film. Another thing that’s great about this is that the budget was an estimated $25,000,000 according to IMDB, meaning this was not just a huge money grab by these guys, since I’m assuming all of the destruction that ensues had to cost a nice chunk of that. Plus, they didn’t go out of their way to force IMAX or 3D on us, driving ticket prices up. This is the End really has a feel of just a fun comedy.

As a short synopsis without giving anything away, the movie starts off with these guys all getting together when the apocalypse hits. The refreshing part of this is that they act like I imagine I would if the same thing happened. It couldn’t possibly be Judgement Day, right?

It must just be an earthquake or sinkhole. Unlike most zombie movies that pretend no zombie movie has ever been made, This is the End exists in our world, today. At the end of the day, the movie is paced very well and doesn’t just hang out there. The plot keeps moving and events keep up the tempo. The film even has a solid ending that is yes, a little corny, but also a lot of fun. If you are looking for a serious film or take yourself and movies too seriously, This is the End is not for you. But, if you enjoy a laugh out loud comedy that is exciting, thrilling and silly all at the same time while including many of your favorite  younger actors, This is the End is perfect for you.

This is the End is now in theaters.