ISU Bengal

Issue date: 4/23/08 Section: Opinion

If free tickets were not enough to entice you to the Bengal Theater for a pre-screening of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the uproarious laughter escaping from the theater Tuesday, April 15, should be motivation to visit the Pine Ridge 10.

While some of the theatrical elements of this motion picture may seem familiar, the plot and humor are original and vibrant. The familiar feeling may be attributed to the film's producers, who are the same funny people behind Knocked Up, The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Superbad.

The film's stars are also likely to seem familiar. Jason Segel, who also acted in Knocked Up, stars as Peter Bretter, a composer whose life hinges on his girlfriend. Kristen Bell, from Pulse, stars as Sarah Marshall, the stunning heartbreaker who shatters Bretter's life and steals away with some British pop singer. Enter Russell Brand, recognizable from Penelope, who plays Aldous Snow, the aforementioned overtly sexual, British singer sensation.

After floundering in tawdry one night stands and incessant moping, Bretter decides he needs a change of scenery. So he does what any reasonable, heartbroken man would do and buys a ticket to his ex-girlfriend's favorite tropical destination - Oahu.

Bretter arrives in Oahu on a whim and finds a lovely and considerate front desk girl, who gives Bretter the nicest suite in the hotel after a nasty run in with Sarah Marshall and Aldous Snow.

Mila Kunis, who is easily recognized from her work on That '70s Show, stars as the kind-hearted and easy going Rachel Jansen. Jansen is sympathetic and flirtatious with Bretter and encourages him to let go and move on. With all four main characters now neatly situated on Oahu, the movie quickly drifts into "the world's first romantic disaster comedy," according to the movie's official Web site.

Unless you're dead from the waist up, this movie guarantees laughs. It seems appropriate to caution viewers that there's some full frontal and dorsal male nudity, but thankfully it is brief.

While Bretter's hound dog eyes, incessant blubbering and dumpy body were all a haunting throw back to an ex, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. In fact, my cheeks ached from all the smiling and laughter. It seemed the audience enjoyed this film as well. "That's the funniest thing since Knocked Up," Paul Pope said.

As the audience slowly filed out of the theater, a number of people could be seen wiping their eyes.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall is hilarious, absolutely worth watching and adding to any movie collection.

It is also worth visiting the official Web site, http://www.forgettingsarahmarshall.com, after the movie to discover your Hawaiian name.

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