Review of She's Out of My League (2010) by Matthew H — 06 Jan 2012

Since the Judd Apatow era of comedy began, a pattern has emerged concerning its actors. Many supporting players from his first film, The 40 Year Old Virgin, gradually moved on to headlining roles, such as Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd, while those filling bit roles, such as Craig Robinson, have moved to the supporting roles.

Thus far, it has worked. Thanks to Apatow, many of these actors are in high demand when it comes to the comedy genre. Logically, then, it would seem that Seth Rogen's fellow countryman Jay Baruchel, who can be seen in Knocked Up and Tropic Thunder just to name a few, would get his chance.

To spare those who are a little less than patient, I can tell you that the experiment did not pan out as hoped. From start to finish, the film is without direction. Of course, I'm not looking for a master work in a Rated R comedy, but the awkward development of the plot left me robbed of the sympathy that had me cheering for guys like Seth Rogen in Knocked Up or Jason Segel in Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

For the most part, the acting falls flat on its face. Alice Eve is surefire eye candy but her performance is snoozeworthy, while Baruchel is bearable but simply doesn't boast the charisma to carry the film.

He is rarely funny and while male leads don't have to be regular Schwarzeneggers, I doubt that Baruchel even clocks in at 130 pounds soaking wet. Ultimately, what puts this film to rest is its naive direction.

Jim Field Smith clearly shows as a rookie, with cheap storytelling and a rather disastrous job of focus. The supporting cast is haphazardly thrown into scenes which completely disrupt the flow of the film and give rise to an abundance of awkward moments, but not the intended ones like TV's The Office thrives on.

While She's Out Of My League isn't the end of the world for the people involved, things certainly could of gotten off to a better start for a cast of relatively completely new faces. 4/10.