Mall of Confusion

Movie marketing is a funny thing. Take, for example, the TV campaign for "Observe and Report", which touts the movie as a great date movie, or the perfect buddy movie. Or even an R-rated version of the similarly-themed "Paul Blart: Mall Cop". Beware of marketing, because in truth, it's none of those things at all. It's less a light-hearted, goofy comedy than "Taxi Driver" set in a mall. With jokes.

"Observe and Report" is the tale of Ronnie Barnhardt (Seth Rogen), the head of security at a shabby suburban mall. Despite the fact he's generally looked down upon by the mall staff and has no real authority, he sees himself as a big shot — ruling his security team with an iron fist and aspiring to win the love of Brandi, the hot cosmetics counter girl (Anna Faris).

When a flasher and a rash of robberies threaten mall security, Ronnie vows to hunt down the perpetrators. His meddling soon pits him against police Detective Harrison (Ray Liotta), the cop in charge of the case. Harrison's attempts to put Ronnie in his place only seem to fuel his delusions, which are great indeed. Their conflict pushes Ronnie further and further to the edge as he tries to maintain control of his mall.

"Observe and Report" comes to us not from Camp Apatow, but from Jody Hill. Hill co-wrote and directed the cult comedy "The Foot Fist Way" and is co-creator of HBO's "Eastbound & Down". Like those productions, "Observe and Report" has a definite low-budget, film-festival-circuit quality, both in production values and story. As such, it seems kind of cheap in relation to its star power and marketing push. It's a small film and a strange one, but it's the kind that's tailor-made for a cult following.

It's almost too bad, then, to have cast big name comic actors like Rogen and Faris. Relative unknowns may have put less expectations on this film to be a comedy blockbuster. To their credit, both Rogen and Faris play with the dark sides of their characters (delusional gun nut and trampy booze hound, respectively) while delivering the jokes. Ronnie and Brandi's first date is by turns hilarious, revolting and disturbingly creepy.

Even putting expectations aside and looking at it as a small indie, it's hard to pinpoint exactly what's really wrong here. Like Ronnie, the film just seems unbalanced. A modest movie with its own delusions of grandeur, perhaps. The role of Ronnie seems to have been written not to fit Rogen, but Danny McBride, Hill's frequent collaborator and star. As Ronnie's words are written in the same cadence and tone as McBride's, having Rogen step into the role is a little jarring, as if he's wearing an ill-fitting suit. Also oddly fit is Ray Liotta, who is strangely subdued. He seems at a loss to know exactly what character he's playing. His presence is fleeting and serves only to act as the catalyst to Ronnie's meltdown.

The tone of the film also feels off. There are some great moments and quotable lines (most of which come from Ronnie's right hand man, Dennis, played by Michael Peña from "Crash"), but it's more than a little disturbing when Ronnie's violent run-in with a crack dealer (McBride) and his mother's (Celia Weston) alcoholism are played for laughs. The violence, especially, throws the film out of kilter. Teetering between cartoonish and all-too real, it leaves one wondering in what kind of reality does the world of the film exist.

Those looking for "Superbad" or even "The Pineapple Express" will have to look elsewhere. As Ronnie, Rogen is less the familiar lovable lug than a chubby Travis Bickle. "Observe and Report" isn't so much about the jokes than Ronnie's spiraling out of control in the face of his "destiny". It's at times hilarious, but mostly a bit uncomfortable to watch.