Rapture-Palooza is the kind of film made for twelve year olds by twelve year olds. It's a film that contains the amount of vulgarity and depravity that will hold me over until the next raunchy comedy due out next year. Faithful readers will note that, usually, the only thing that offends me about a bad film is its badness in fields, rather than specific content or instances. To call myself offended by Rapture-Palooza's inherent immaturity would show nothing for me other than I'm a prude. I simply have a capacity for overwrought dirty-talk - needless, overwrought dirty-talk - and this film knew the buttons to push to make me surpass that quota.
This is a dirty-minded, lifeless picture combining great talents and sour material into a very bitter batch of cinema. It pairs Anna Kendrick and John Francis Daley as a couple left behind after the Rapture occurs on Earth, literally summoning all of the good religious people and devout Christians into the sky, while leaving non-believers stranded on a less-populated Earth. In the time of destruction and mass-hysteria, the only way to get out of this predicament is to defeat the new world leader, the Anti-Christ, played by Craig Robinson. So, the two try to stage something of a date between Kendrick's Lindsey and Robinson's Anti-Christ in order to hopefully try and make a better tomorrow by riding the world of the evil dictator he has grown to become.
This is the satirical premise of the year, surely equipping itself with enough fuel to pilot hilarity on religion, science, phenomenons, logic, and biblical characters. The fact that Rapture-Palooza failed to grab headlines and ignite controversy should be your first indication that you're dealing with an inert dud. This is a film so effortless and dry that churches and the religious don't feel the urge or drive to get upset about it; even if more of them knew about it, they likely would be unfazed.
The cast is unanimously capable but also unanimously bored with the material. Kendrick, whose smile, energy, and charisma fueled the writing and the material behind Pitch Perfect, one of last year's biggest comedy surprises, is directly the opposite from her usual cheery persona. She is bored and completely free of all energy and passion for the material, the direct opposite from what she was in Pitch Perfect. Craig Robinson was already victim to the horribly unfunny Peeples this year and certainly didn't need Rapture-Palooza on his resume. Perhaps he should pack up and wait for 2014 to roll around. Other appearances like Rob Corddry and Ken Jeong didn't drum up their usual spur-of-the-moment excitement. More like a raised eyebrow and look of bewilderment before the next set piece or sight-gagged commenced.
But take out all the vulgarity and look at Rapture-Palooza as a lighter, more flexible R-rated comedy and this isn't such a bad movie. By no stretch is it a good movie, but it's far more serviceable than some of the mainstream schlock that has been disposed of in theaters this year. Now replace all the vulgarity and senseless four-letter words and you have an indie-comedy that's just about on the same level as The Hangover: Part III and Identity Thief as a humorless, plastic diversion in the field of comedy.
Rapture-Palooza's title even comes from the realm of desperately uncreative movie titles, and falsely indicates a sense of fun and excitement. It's no "palooza" when talk of "booty-holes," perverse sex acts, and constant depravity is tossed back and forth as if the actors are trying to one-up each other. This isn't just one of the worst films of the year; it's also one of the saddest.
Starring: Anna Kendrick, John Francis Daley, Craig Robinson, Rob Corrdry, and Ken Jeong. Directed by: Paul Middleditch.
This is a dirty-minded, lifeless picture combining great talents and sour material into a very bitter batch of cinema. It pairs Anna Kendrick and John Francis Daley as a couple left behind after the Rapture occurs on Earth, literally summoning all of the good religious people and devout Christians into the sky, while leaving non-believers stranded on a less-populated Earth. In the time of destruction and mass-hysteria, the only way to get out of this predicament is to defeat the new world leader, the Anti-Christ, played by Craig Robinson. So, the two try to stage something of a date between Kendrick's Lindsey and Robinson's Anti-Christ in order to hopefully try and make a better tomorrow by riding the world of the evil dictator he has grown to become.
This is the satirical premise of the year, surely equipping itself with enough fuel to pilot hilarity on religion, science, phenomenons, logic, and biblical characters. The fact that Rapture-Palooza failed to grab headlines and ignite controversy should be your first indication that you're dealing with an inert dud. This is a film so effortless and dry that churches and the religious don't feel the urge or drive to get upset about it; even if more of them knew about it, they likely would be unfazed.
The cast is unanimously capable but also unanimously bored with the material. Kendrick, whose smile, energy, and charisma fueled the writing and the material behind Pitch Perfect, one of last year's biggest comedy surprises, is directly the opposite from her usual cheery persona. She is bored and completely free of all energy and passion for the material, the direct opposite from what she was in Pitch Perfect. Craig Robinson was already victim to the horribly unfunny Peeples this year and certainly didn't need Rapture-Palooza on his resume. Perhaps he should pack up and wait for 2014 to roll around. Other appearances like Rob Corddry and Ken Jeong didn't drum up their usual spur-of-the-moment excitement. More like a raised eyebrow and look of bewilderment before the next set piece or sight-gagged commenced.
But take out all the vulgarity and look at Rapture-Palooza as a lighter, more flexible R-rated comedy and this isn't such a bad movie. By no stretch is it a good movie, but it's far more serviceable than some of the mainstream schlock that has been disposed of in theaters this year. Now replace all the vulgarity and senseless four-letter words and you have an indie-comedy that's just about on the same level as The Hangover: Part III and Identity Thief as a humorless, plastic diversion in the field of comedy.
Rapture-Palooza's title even comes from the realm of desperately uncreative movie titles, and falsely indicates a sense of fun and excitement. It's no "palooza" when talk of "booty-holes," perverse sex acts, and constant depravity is tossed back and forth as if the actors are trying to one-up each other. This isn't just one of the worst films of the year; it's also one of the saddest.
Starring: Anna Kendrick, John Francis Daley, Craig Robinson, Rob Corrdry, and Ken Jeong. Directed by: Paul Middleditch.