Review of Eagle vs Shark (2007) by Margaret L — 14 Aug 2010

I wanted to like this nerdalicious rom-com more than I did. In fact, I felt an absurd guilt for not buying into it wholeheartedly. Loren Hornsley plays Lily, a self-effacing young woman who doesn't complain about anything, even when Jarrod (Flight of the Conchords' Jemaine Clement), the uber-geeky other half of the rom-duo, treats her awfully. I think that was the flaw for me - Jarrod was ultimately unlikeable. There was nothing redeeming in his geekiness - no kindness, no awareness of others' feelings, and certainly a near-utter lack of self-awareness.

The film throws in some brilliant one-liners ("I'm just a spectator," quips a character dressed as a many-eyed tarantula) and there are moments of sly comic genius. But whereas other films such as Napoleon Dynamite that rely heavily on quirky nerdiness also have a strong element of likeability in thier most socially awkward characters, Jarrod shows nothing truly human - it's hard to understand why Lily sticks with him.