Seth Rogen, Anna Faris, Michael Pena

Bi-polar mall security guard Ronnie Barnhardt is called into action to stop a flasher from turning shopper's paradise into his personal peep show. But when Barnhardt can't bring the culprit to justice...( read more  read more... ), a surly police detective, is recruited to close the case.

Flixster Users

40% liked it

78,307 ratings

Critics

50% liked it

181 critics

R, 1 hr. 46 min.

Directed by: Jody Hill

Release Date: April 10, 2009

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DVD Release Date: September 22, 2009

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Stats: 12,909 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (12,909)


  • October 28, 2009
    It's basically the same as that other mall cop movie, only with more F-bombs and penis.
  • October 28, 2009
    Seth Rogen is both a huge asset and detriment to "Observe and Report", director Jody Hill's follow-up to his 2007 cult favorite "The Foot Fist Way". Rogen's Travis Bickle meets Paul Blart is certainly revolting, however the expectations an American audience has for a Seth Rogen f...( read more)ilm don't allow the film to fully commit to every risk. For every gamble the film makes, we get a skateboarder-beat-down segment played for laughs. Nevertheless, the film is an extraordinarily original and mostly satisfying picture - but had Hill and the film's producers had the courage to go all the way with their "Taxi Driver"-esque pitch-black comedy, it could've been something really remarkable.

    Rogen plays Ronnie Barnhardt, a local shopping mall's "rent-a-cop" who takes his job far, far too seriously. He still lives with his mother (Celia Weston), and the closest thing he has to friends are his loyal security team, including his second-in-command, Dennis (Michael Pena), and a pair of fellow gun-nut twins (John & Matt Yuan). When a streaker begins to harass women in the mall's parking lot, Ronnie takes it upon himself to solve the case and bring the streaker down - a process which mainly involves accusing anyone who appears to be even the slightest bit suspicious.

    He's infatuated with the mall's sexy cosmetics girl, Brandi (Anna Faris), a dumb-as-a-brick skank whom Ronnie considers to be one of the streaker's main targets. One night, he harasses her into a date that climaxes with one of the most shockingly funny, cringe-worthy, and depressing sex scenes you'll see this year - she appears to be comatose on a vomit-stained pillow, yet the second Ronnie stops she protests.

    Had the movie not marketed itself to be a comedy, it may have been mistaken as a harrowing drama about bipolar disorder. Barnhardt's cynical inner monologue, his frequent violent bursts, and his delusions of grandeur make him a bit of a despicable, if sometimes sympathetic, antihero.

    I admit it - the film has an identity crisis, and Hill doesn't fully commit to the material. However, because the surrounding material is so unusual, I was able to forgive a lot of the film's downfalls. Rogen is very good, and the script, although not without it's hiccups, is certainly more interesting than your standard modern comedy. The film may not be as good as it could have been, but it's still a delightfully sadistic comedy - one with a few of the biggest surprises of a mainstream picture all year.
  • October 19, 2009
    Sloppy, ludicrous, toilet humor about a mall cop. The 2nd this year, barely edges Paul Blart. Dear Hollywood, mall cops are not interesting or funny. No more please. Thanks.

    The plot was all over the place, the dialog was forced, and there were only very few laughs to...( read more) be had out of this crapfest.

    Everyone in this movie worth a damn was wasted. Highly not recommended... don't waste your time.
  • October 15, 2009
    i thought this was supposed to suck
    i was pleasantly surprised
  • October 6, 2009
    Not bad but not great either. Has the odd funny moment but is a lot more serious than you might imagine.
  • November 11, 2009
    I was hoping for something funny. This was a wast of money. I feel sorry for anyone who had to pay to see it.
  • November 10, 2009
    Didn't nearly go far enough in the abyss.
  • November 10, 2009
    Wow Exactly like mall cop but worse.
  • November 10, 2009
    was ok...glad I rented on redbox...bleh
  • November 10, 2009
    not as funny as I espected !

Critic Reviews


April 13, 2009
Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com

If a darker, more depraved R-rated version of Paul Blart is what you've been waiting for, then this mall cop is for you! full review

April 10, 2009
Kurt Loder, MTV

Seth Rogen's wasted in this comedy of errors. full review

April 10, 2009
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle

A few of the less repeatable lines hit their marks, but the whole affair has the pasty-faced desperation of shoppers trapped in fluorescent light. full review

April 10, 2009
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

The tone of the film wavers queasily, though intentionally, between slapstick and shock. full review

April 10, 2009
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

The whole thing is calibrated to wow us with its weirdness, even as it assumes an air of 'Who, me?' guilelessness. I've seen slick, glossy Hollywood thrillers made with less knowing calculation. full review

April 10, 2009
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

Observe and Report strikes me as a comedy in perfect pace with this moment. It's funny and uncompromising, offering laughs without denial. full review

April 9, 2009
Claudia Puig, USA Today

When Observe and Report is funny, it's often shockingly so. The characters can be nasty or self-absorbed, yet they still have a whiff of sweetness. full review

April 9, 2009
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

As funny as it is sick (and it's plenty of both). full review

April 9, 2009
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

There won't be a more polarizing comedy released in 2009 than Observe and Report. This audacious, subversive action comedy turns two of our cuddliest performers, Seth Rogen and Anna Faris, into poster... full review

April 9, 2009
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Observe and Report revels in creeping you out and making you laugh -- hard. full review

View more Observe and Report reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • YLOWBSTARDreturns
    September 24, 2009
    Hollywood studios need to fund more outlandish comedies like this!
  • brianna1993
    August 9, 2009
    I never watched Paul Blart: Mall Cop. So I can't compare. I loved this movie. It was funny and amusing, I really liked how the story went and I loved the ending as well. I give this movie 8 out of 10 :)
  • kwolf77
    March 26, 2009
    Great movie! Very perverted, but a genious comedy!

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