For a tale of two comic-book nerds on a pilgrimage to America, where else to begin but San Diego’s Comic-Con, the annual gathering of the faithful (and, actually, the largest art convention in the world)?
That’s the canny opening of “Paul,” a new comedy starring the “Shaun of the Dead” boys,
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. As scriptwriters and stars of “Paul,” Pegg and Frost haven’t come to the U.S. from their native England to poke fun at nerds, but rather to affirm their brotherhood with the clan.
Pegg plays Graeme, Frost plays Clive (even their names mark them as strangers to these shores), whose weekend at Comic-Con is just the beginning of a road trip to famous UFO sites.
When they run into an actual alien in a barren corner of the Southwest, the E.T. hitches a ride and the trip goes into high gear.
A government agent (Jason Bateman) gives chase, and a one-eyed Bible-quoting, trailer-park maiden (Kristen Wiig of “Saturday Night Live”) inadvertently tags along. As for the alien, he is a convincing digital creation whose voice comes to us in the gravelly tones of Seth Rogen.
The film creates an amiable (if decidedly R-rated) mood, thanks to the effortless buddy rapport of Pegg and Frost, as well as director Greg (“Superbad”) Mottola’s nice-guy touch.
“Paul” has a softer approach than “Shaun of the Dead” and “Hot Fuzz,” which Pegg wrote with director Edgar Wright, who isn’t involved in this film. When a few satiric barbs are unleashed (mostly directed at fundamentalists and creationists), they don’t seem to fit with the rest of the picture.
Fortunately, there are just enough good jokes to keep the thing moving along, and enough small comic cameos (Jane Lynch, Jeffrey Tambor) to add interest.
As in “Shaun” and “Hot Fuzz,” there’s an appreciation for the carefully built running gag — even when said gag (as with an expensive samurai sword Clive really, really wants) turns out to be deliberately anti-climactic when it pays off.
I enjoyed the film. But somehow I expected more from Pegg and Frost than another good-natured version of “Fanboys.”
Maybe the whole “British humor” thing got tamped down in making an honest-to-gosh Hollywood movie, or maybe the guys just like aliens so much they put the sharp edges away. Either way, the revenge of the nerds happens quietly here.
“Paul”: 2 1/2 stars
“Shaun of the Dead” boys Simon Pegg and Nick Frost come to America and find an extra-terrestrial during their road trip through the Southwest. There’s less satire than R-rated good nature here, although the running gags and good cast keep it rolling along. Seth Rogen does the voice of the alien.
Rated: R for language, subject matter
Showing: Alderwood, Cinebarre, Everett Mall, Galaxy Monroe, Marysville, Metro, Oat Tree, Pacific Place, Thorton Place, Woodinville, Cascade
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