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Seth Rogen, Anna Faris, Michael Pena, Ray Liotta, Dan Bakkedahl ...( see more  see more... ) , Jesse Plemons

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.

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617,579 ratings

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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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Flixster Reviews (13,258)

  • cartersimo
    December 15, 2009
    cartersimo
    Crude but funny if your a fan of Seth i'm sure you'll like it i'd watch it again
  • sononothing
    December 4, 2009
    sononothing
    2009 will be remembered as the year of the rent-a-cop with this film and the horrible Paul Blart gracing our screens throughout the country. Both films are basically the same story of a guy that takes his job way to seriously and both fail to be anything close to funny.

    Seth Rog...( read more)en stars as Ronnie, the head security guard at a local mall who goes on the offensive when a flasher goes to work around his mall, prompting him to go into overdrive. He has a crush on the mall slut (Anna Farris) and the detective in charge of the case (Ray Liotta). He makes an ass of himself throughout the film- you know that already.

    The funny thing about Observe and Report is the way it harkens back to Scorsese's masterpiece Taxi Driver. A loner that's psychologically unbalanced takes it upon himself to purge society of it's ills- his society being the local mall. Sadly, this isn't Taxi Driver. This isn't even the last season of Taxi. It pushes the dark envelope, it just doesn't do anything with it and when the movie tries to be funny, it fails because we know that our hero is just a sick, twisted bastard.

    That's the feeling you get when you finish the film. Sadness. This guy's not funny, he's just coo-koo. Not a funny nutty, just sad. Sure, he screams profanities left and right, but it just doesn't work in the end. Please, no more mall cop movies. Please. Stop.
  • PvtCaboose91
    November 15, 2009
    PvtCaboose91
    "The world has no use for another scared man. Right now, the world needs a fucking hero."


    Every review of Observe and Report will most likely mention Paul Blart: Mall Cop at some stage. The connection between these movies is understandable since both were

    ...( read more) released during 2009 and both provided satirical portrayals of mall cops. But while Paul Blart was a genial, good-natured, family-friendly story of a blue-collar schlub, Observe and Report is dark, demented, twisted, perverse and absolutely not for a family audience. Logically, one would think that R-rated content would afford an edge which was sorely missing from the bland Paul Blart: Mall Cop, but Observe and Report is merely smutty for the sake of smut, and it's a far worse film than its PG-rated counterpart. A note to filmmakers: movies about mall cops are destined to fail.


    Observe and Report concerns Ronnie Barnhardt (Rogen); a shopping mall security guard who, at the beginning of the movie, makes it his duty to catch a flasher who has been exposing his privates to females in the vicinity. Above all, Ronnie is determined to protect vacuous, slutty make-up counter girl Brandi (Faris). Meanwhile, he barely gives the time of day to a temporarily disabled and good-natured coffee vendor (Wolfe) who takes a romantic shine to the mall cop. With Ronnie obsessively hunting the flasher and desperate to join the police force, he embarks on a campaign of terror...this leads to a date-rape (he has sex with an almost unconscious Brandi who's drunk and vomiting), smashing local kids over the head with their own skateboards, labelling an Asian mall worker 'Saddam Hussein', and some excessively violent - and pointless - showdowns with cops & villains.


    Ronnie is a mere clod. How he managed to get the job as a security guard, let alone head of security, is mystifying considering his many psychological difficulties. Ronnie's answer to any problem is to yell, curse, punch or shoot (occasionally at the same time). A number of scenes involve the mall cop attacking people or attempting to single-handedly defeat a horde of police officers in almost surrealistic scenes of obnoxiously unfunny ultra-violence. How the filmmakers thought this Neanderthal was humorous is a mystery. Worse, writer-director Jody Hill made an absolute howler of a decision to position Ronnie as the hapless hero of the hour who gains respect from mall workers and the police force through indefensible actions, which an audience is encouraged to laugh at and enjoy rather than justifiably abhor.


    This could have been all well and good, if only the film was genuinely funny. Observe and Report dishes out black comedy and gross-out humour...only without the comedy or humour. At one stage in the movie, Ronnie is being told that he was unsuccessful at getting a job as a police officer. As it turns out, a number of people were listening in as Ronnie received the news. One of these people soon enters the room and proclaims "I thought this was going to be funny, but actually it's just really sad". I can't think of any better words I could use to describe this movie...


    It's difficult to tell what kind of comedy that writer-director Hill was aiming for. Observe and Report is a dark, witless dark comedy that appears to confuse acts of violence, racism and rape for humour. Hill also relies heavily on foul language and gratuitous nudity to get a rise out of the audience. Black, subversive and politically incorrect humour can be brilliant in capable hands and with the right purpose (like the brilliant Bad Santa), but here it's offensively bereft of any wit and, at the end of the day, simply unpleasant. Throughout the film's running time, it's hard to tell whether you should laugh or cringe in discomfort. The only positives of this flick are surface-level stuff - the crisp, slick cinematography admittedly makes the film easier to watch, and the film has been assembled skilfully.


    Seth Rogen is completely incapable of making Ronnie likeable or even a character to sympathise with. Rogen is usually recognised for his amiable, witty slacker persona, but all of these characteristics are quickly lost amid the wreckage of such an appalling character. Meanwhile Anna Faris is at her one-note limit. Faris is usually likeable in the roles she plays, but there's very little reason to care about her in Observe and Report - she's a drunken bimbo without a shred of self-respect. Ray Liotta is also on hand as a cop who rather bitterly hates Ronnie (at least one character in this cinematic atrocity has a brain), while Michael Peña appears to sleepwalk throughout the film as one of Ronnie's co-workers. Collette Wolfe is the only cast member whose acting is truly heartfelt. She's one of the film's limited bright spots.


    It's crucial to note that the creators of Observe and Report didn't set out to emulate Paul Blart: Mall Cop, and the makers of both movies even shared information with each other to make sure they weren't stepping on each other's toes. So why is it, then, that Observe and Report truly is just a version of Paul Blart: Mall Cop for adults? In Observe and Report, Ronnie is useless and pudgy (like Paul Blart: Mall Cop), lives with his supportive mother (like Paul Blart), takes his job far too seriously (like Paul Blart), has a condition which requires medication (like Paul Blart), has a crush on a worker at the mall (like Paul Blart), and dreams of firing a gun (like Paul Blart) but can't actually have a gun (like Paul Blart). There's a crime happening in the mall (like Paul Blart) and solving it will be Ronnie's redemption (like Paul Blart), and even though everyone will laugh at him along the way (like in Paul Blart) he won't give up (like Paul Blart: Mall Cop)...


    Observe and Report grows increasingly bleak and ludicrous as time drags on until it ends on a sentimental yet still vulgar note. The climactic chase sequence features an obese, overcoat-wearing flasher running through the mall with the camera fixated on his grotesque equipment for what feels like hours instead of minutes...the fact that several minutes are spent observing his penis in slow motion just about sums up the flaccid quality of this lazy, awful motion picture. Observe and Report possesses all the earmarks of a low-budget indie product trying too self-consciously to be cute, coy, clever, unconventional and groundbreaking.
  • liquidchick76
    October 28, 2009
    liquidchick76
    It's basically the same as that other mall cop movie, only with more F-bombs and penis.
  • her69eyes
    October 28, 2009
    her69eyes
    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.
  • middleeasternfilms
    December 29, 2009
    middleeasternfilms
    Seth's still milking his 15 minutes for all it's worth isn't he?
  • jscottcorley
    December 26, 2009
    jscottcorley
    Remember in Field of Dreams when Ray Liotta talks about inviting Ty Cobb to play and then laughs? I don't care how "feel-good" the flick was supposed to be--that shit was creepy.
  • 339z
    December 26, 2009
    339z
    wow umn just seen this movie 4 the 1st time n think that this is a good movie 2 watch.......its got a good cast of actors/actressess throughout this movie.....i think that seth rogen, anna faris, michael pena, ray liotta, jesse plemons, dan bakkedahl play good roles/parts thorugh...( read more)out this movie.....i think that seth rogen is brilliant throughout this movie.......i think that the director of this comedy/romance movie had done a good job of directing this movie because you never know what 2 expect throughout this movie.....i think that this is a good summer 2009 blockbuster movie n its a really funny movie 2 watch with a good cast throughout this movie
  • shiruken
    December 20, 2009
    shiruken
    Another Seth Rogen film. It has its ups and downs and is absolutely ridiculous. The end.
  • MisterTuttle
    December 20, 2009
    MisterTuttle
    Disturbingly funny! Also the soundtrack is great. The ending was more a reason to watch this film a second time. It's hilarious. Beware though: IT IS NOT A TYPICAL SETH ROGEN COMEDY. It's much, much darker. Like 'Cable Guy' dark.

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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
    YLOWBSTARDreturns
    Hollywood studios need to fund more outlandish comedies like this!
  • briannacarline1993
    August 9, 2009
    briannacarline1993
    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
    kwolf77
    Great movie! Very perverted, but a genious comedy!
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