1.5 Dark-over-simplifications out of 4
Had the North Korean Ministry of Culture viewed Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s The Interview before launching an all out P.R. war, I’m sure they would not have attempted to hinder the film’s release. There are very few films – outside the realm of propaganda – that have attempted to humanize a barbarian, brute, and bully as much as The Interview. Even Der Untergang (Downfall) – perhaps the most sober portrayal of Adolf Hitler – eventually has its protagonist fall to ruin in the face of mounting pressures and internal conflict. In comparison, The Interview is obsessed with humanizing Kim Jong-un, and insists on doing so until its final moments.
These are staunch accusations against an otherwise mediocre frat-comedy feature, and my disdain for the film comes from my disappointment at its missed potential, not from how dismayed I was with the movie’s writing or acting.
James Franco and Seth Rogen play Dave Skylark and Aaron Rapoport, entertainment industry showmen who host and produce the Entertainment Tonight-like program, Skylark Tonight. Rapoport – Rogen channelling his natural self as the film’s straight man – grows weary with the sensationalist nonsense heralded by his program, and attempts to pull himself, as well as Skylark and the program, out of the sewage by scoring an interview with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.
Eventually, the CIA become involved, and the interview becomes an opportunity to kill the North Korean dictator. The film is a commentary on the decadent state of an industry well before it becomes a commentary on the abhorrent state of politics. For example, Skylark is saccharine and stupid – his entire character hinges on the friendship shared with Rapoport. Franco, whose acting range is varied and able, instead settles into the bumbling, needy, codependent fool portrayed in films like Pineapple Express and This Is The End.
I must ask: are Franco and Rogen overcompensating for something? Whenever they’re onscreen together, they insist that they’re the best of friends (in the whole wide world), but I’m starting to think there might be trouble in paradise. Are Franco and Rogen really not friends outside of film? Are they worried that the world hinges on the fact that the duo gets along? Or perhaps they really are best friends, but Franco is every bit the clingy, attached, insecure moron he insists on portraying in his films with Rogen. Regardless, the point still stands: Franco’s Skylark falls apart without Rogen’s Rapoport. At the mere hint that their friendship is struggling, Skylark finds solace in the arms of Kim, who seduces him with attention, drugs, women, and Katy Perry lyrics.
If there is, however, a reason to view this film – which is now easily accessible for a fee in a variety of forms online – it’s Randall Park’s Kim Jong-un. As the dictator, Park’s portrayal is equal parts menacing and harmless – he’s a mix between a fire-breathing dragon and a slobbering puppy. Characters remind the audience that Kim is a master manipulator, but The Interview insists that Kim suffers from crippling paternal issues. Apparently, the dictator dictates simply because his father never loved him. Park’s performance capitalizes on these assumptions, shifting between monster and mortal almost instantaneously. With Skylark, Kim is sympathetic and emotional, revealing a love for Katy Perry and margaritas. The two share an instant connection, but the film’s script plays this connection for laughs, failing to recognize that there is comedy beyond the obvious.
As a whole, The Interview is far from subtle, choosing to emphasize even the most mundane of witticisms. This is a movie built on basic story-telling tropes, which is why I suggest that we refuse to treat it as satire, and, instead, teach it in introductory English classes. If there’s anything positive to say about the film, it’s that the movie’s use of metaphor, foreshadowing, juxtaposition, simile, idioms, hyperbole, and synecdoche are obvious and easy-to-reference.
Perhaps my favourite example: early in the film, Skylark suggests ridiculous solutions to assassinating Kim Jong-un. His ideas are immediately rejected by the more sophisticated and experienced Langley agents handling the case. Later in the film, when every other plan fails, Skylark’s earlier suggestions result in the elimination of the dictator.
This film lacks subtlety, this film lacks grace, and this film lacks sophistication. In short, The Interview is an immature comedy masquerading as meaningful political satire. Its premise, though intriguing, is bogged down by weak acting, unfunny humour, and a story arc that even Kim Jong-un’s own personal vanguard could not think to concoct for fear of making their god too likeable.