Growing up in and working around insurance people my whole life, the world of Cedar Rapids is spot-on; the personality types, the (yes) Christianity, the stupid prizes that give your company this or that credibility, the scandals, the pressure to sell. You don't have to be from that world to appreciate the movie - there's the performances that go a long way, including the first one from Ed Helms that shows he has some real range past his work on The Daily Show and The Hangover (or the Office even), and John C. Reilly of course and Anne Hece - but it does add a certain something that I wasn't expecting. The world of insurance isn't used simply as a goofy thing that the characters work at, albeit it could also be real estate. It's how the world of salesmen works in a comedic context but at the same time is grounded in what is happening.
It also helps that the main character Helms plays, a sheltered guy who when not screwing his former math teacher (Sigourney Weaver) is being okay but not great at a Midwest insurance office, is a genuinely nice, sweet guy. Maybe too nice, which is where the dichotomy takes place between his mild-mannered self and the brusque, crude guy that Reilly plays. He, too, is also kind of sweet, but way underneath all of his braggadocio and big comments about women and "curse" words. The story moves at a good pace and the comedy comes out through some unexpected absurdism (the Christian angle) and through some sexual antics that are howlingly funny (when Helms decides to sleep with Anne Heche's character he yells "LET'S MAKE LOVE!") The quirks are kept to a minimum, despite coming from the director of Youth in Revolt, among other drama-comedies.
The only time the film really lost me was when the protagonist goes with a young hooker-type-druggie character to a big party and does some unseemly things with drugs. It wasn't that it seemed out of character at the moment (at that point anyway he's in a desperate situation), but it just went too far ans wasn't as funny as it could have been as they chose that route. Plus the ending comes on a bit rushed. But in general, Cedar Rapids has the kind of sensibility that would bring Alexander Payne on as a producer: natural, human comedy with real tragedy underneath, and pathos. It's not great, but it gets the job done. And it feels real, which is hit or miss with the kind of cast here like Helms and Reilly. 7.5/10
It also helps that the main character Helms plays, a sheltered guy who when not screwing his former math teacher (Sigourney Weaver) is being okay but not great at a Midwest insurance office, is a genuinely nice, sweet guy. Maybe too nice, which is where the dichotomy takes place between his mild-mannered self and the brusque, crude guy that Reilly plays. He, too, is also kind of sweet, but way underneath all of his braggadocio and big comments about women and "curse" words. The story moves at a good pace and the comedy comes out through some unexpected absurdism (the Christian angle) and through some sexual antics that are howlingly funny (when Helms decides to sleep with Anne Heche's character he yells "LET'S MAKE LOVE!") The quirks are kept to a minimum, despite coming from the director of Youth in Revolt, among other drama-comedies.
The only time the film really lost me was when the protagonist goes with a young hooker-type-druggie character to a big party and does some unseemly things with drugs. It wasn't that it seemed out of character at the moment (at that point anyway he's in a desperate situation), but it just went too far ans wasn't as funny as it could have been as they chose that route. Plus the ending comes on a bit rushed. But in general, Cedar Rapids has the kind of sensibility that would bring Alexander Payne on as a producer: natural, human comedy with real tragedy underneath, and pathos. It's not great, but it gets the job done. And it feels real, which is hit or miss with the kind of cast here like Helms and Reilly. 7.5/10