It will always be known as the film that brought Sony down after alleged North Korea-inspired cyber attacks – but to be honest this middling comedy pokes nearly as much fun at America as it does the communist state.
It’s definitely less of an insult to North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un than say, Team America: World Police was to his father Kim Jong-il some ten years ago, or even, Sacha Baron Cohen’s The Dictator.
It does still undoubtedly offer some offence towards Pyongyang, but it’s tongue is firmly embedded in cheek, and one wonders would such outrage have been sparked if the country had seen the finished product – which generally is above-average with the trademark Rogen tomfoolery thrown in.
James Franco stars as celebrity TV Show host Dave Skylark, who along with Seth Rogen’s producer Aaron Rapaport, get asked by the CIA to assassinate the North Korean dictator after he’s revealed to be a fan of the show.
Being rare that anyone from the western world is invited into this highly secretive land leads to comedic shenanigans that surprisingly offers more hits than misses when it comes to laughs.
Skylark’s ‘bromance’ with Jong-un (Randall Park) even opens the door of sympathy towards the young leader that helps balance the proceedings.
It ultimately won’t linger in the memory for too long – and will be remembered for the wrong reasons – but if this movie ‘gamble’ cost Sony millions, it probably wasn’t worth it from a risky political stance.
From a comedy stance though, the amiable leads – particularly the enigmatic Franco – make it worth a watch, and you’ll ultimately probably laugh more than you expected to.
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Gavin Miller
Cast: James Franco, Seth Rogen, Randall Park, Lizzy Caplan, Diana Bang & Timothy Simons
Running Time: 1 Hr 52 Mins
Directors: Evan Goldberg & Seth Rogen
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