Peter Bretter (Jason Segal) is living what he considers to be the perfect life. He is dating the perfect woman, television star Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell) and is doing well financially, thanks to his job as a composer. However, life quickly hits him in the face when Sarah ends their five year relationship for a singer, Aldous Snow (Russell Brand). He travels to Hawaii to find solace after the painful breakup, only to find that Sarah and Aldous are vacationing there as well. He struggles to find inner peace and to create new bonds, but will soon find that his new and improved life is staring him in the face.
Casting director Jeanne McCarthy put together an ensemble of wonderfully talented comedic actors. Mila Kunis (Rachel Jansen), Paul Rudd (Chuck) and Jonah Hill (Matthew the Waiter) have impeccable chemistry with the other actors and created a fluid and entertaining product. Rudd and Segal work so beautifully together and their asinine conversations reflected their ability to produce ironic and laugh-out-loud comedy out of thin air. The story is one that many viewers are capable of making connections with. Most people have dealt with painful breakups (or some type of hurt), and many of those people struggled to find peace after those traumatic events. Segal, who was also the writer, created a story that allowed audiences to feel like they were part of the experience as it offered some semblance of therapy. While the film did not ignore the difficulties of breakups, it often made light of the topic and used comedy as a device to combat the harsh results it yields. Segal’s ability to reach audiences the way he did made the film easy to follow.
Music can make or break a film. Music director Lyle Workman found a way to incorporate the absolute worst possible songs into the story and use them to further the comedy. From Peter’s Dracula’s Lament to Aldous’ Inside of You, Segal and Workman used this ridiculousness to create even more levity and, somehow, a greater connection to the characters.
With erotically propelled music and perfectly executed humor, audiences were taken on a journey of healing and excitement. Segal’s perfect balance of fun and emotion wrapped up audiences and kept them comfortable and engaged from beginning to end.
Such a great movie!!