Actually I never really was all that interested in seeing "Paul", since it just looked like a bit of a lame and simplistic comedy to me, even though I of course really like other Nick Frost and Simon Pegg movies. I however kept hearing really good things about this movie so I decided to give it a chance, which was something I really don't regret.
Let's start off by saying that "Paul" is a great comedy. It made me laugh from start till finish and it was being way more clever and also more subtle than its trailer made it seem.
It's basically an homage to the geekdom and references a lot of fan favorite '70's and '80's movies, from often the science-fiction genre. But thing with the references are that it aren't the usual obvious ones but more the ones you'll only catch and get when you have actually seen the movie they are referencing. It's what mostly makes the movie so much fun to watch. Maybe this is also why this movie wasn't that well liked and received by just everybody. Lots of people won't get most of the inside jokes but actually I'm still convinced about it that it isn't really a must to get everything this movie is referencing in order to really like it and to laugh at its jokes as well.
It's not just referencing lots of genre movies but also to its style. Really, in lots of ways this movie has Spielberg's '70's and '80's style written all over it. Funny thing is that Spielberg himself actually has a cameo in this movie as well, in which he isn't afraid to poke fun at some of his own movies.
There is something with its story. I don't now, it's hard to really put my finger on it but it maybe seems to me that the script they worked with was a first draft of something that could had turned into something truly great. I feel they could had taken things a bit further. It's often being clever with its references and inside jokes but the main story itself is only just so-so. On the one hand its a lot of fun but on the other it also perhaps feels a bit underdeveloped.
The movie its story also sparks some controversy by kicking against Christianity. I can see how this movie can be quite an offensive one to some people. And lets face it, was this really necessary for its story? In my opinion really not. The movie could had really easily done without it and I can even say that it sort of made the story drag at times. But again, this might be due to it that the story feels sort of underdeveloped. They could had perhaps taken it somewhere interesting or funny but it just never quite gets there.
Nick Frost and Simon Pegg do a great job portraying two nerdy characters, without the glasses or silly voices. They are being the more true, more common and modern nerd, of which there are actually so many off. They represent the little nerd that is in all of us and they are so easy to identify with, for most movie lovers. The movie is filled with some other great actors as well and also has some cameo's in it from well known actors. But it's not up to a point that it becomes distracting from the movie and it's actually weaved quite nicely into the movie its story and developments.
Paul himself, who got voiced by Seth Rogen, is great and realistic looking. I was actually worried because he never really looked that convincing in the trailers and I was also worried about how the interacting between him and the 'real' actors would work out. But as it turned out, everything went incredibly smoothly. Paul actually became a really great and solid character and was being just one of the 'guys', as if he wasn't being a CGI created character at all.
I was really close to really loving this movie but there are still a bit too many inconsistencies and weaknesses in it to truly consider this to be a perfect movie or an absolute must-see.
7/10
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