{"id":944,"date":"2011-04-28T17:05:29","date_gmt":"2011-04-28T17:05:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/?p=944"},"modified":"2011-04-28T17:07:50","modified_gmt":"2011-04-28T17:07:50","slug":"cedar-rapids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/comedy\/cedar-rapids\/","title":{"rendered":"Cedar Rapids ****"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>\u2018We\u2019re all just selling something\u2019 is the weighty moral of Youth In Revolt<\/em><\/a> director Miguel Arteta<\/a>\u2019s new coming-of-age comedy, and without the intriguing (and unlikely) pairing of Ed Helms<\/a> and John C. Reilly<\/a>, it could be argued that marketing a film about a na\u00efve insurance salesman from small-town, Midwest America who discovers himself on a business trip would be a hard sell in itself. But Cedar Rapids<\/em><\/a> has that endearing indie ingredient: the triumph of the underdog. Who better than The Hangover<\/a><\/em>\u2019s star Helms \u2013 who plays respectable but uptight and hapless Stu in the hit 2009 comedy \u2013 to take the helm in this buddy story, what with the anticipated forthcoming sequel out in May. Cedar Rapids<\/em> is not only Helms \u2018warm up\u2019 act to the former, but also a solid leading-man effort.<\/p>\n

Cedar Rapids<\/em> sees Helms as 34-year-old insurance agent Tim Lippe who has worked in insurance all his life and has never left his tiny hometown of Brown Valley, Wisconsin. After the controversial death of his company\u2019s top salesman, Tim must travel to the \u2018hotbed of debauchery\u2019, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the annual ASMI insurance convention, with the aim of winning the coveted \u2018two-diamonds\u2019 award that his company has bagged three years in a row. However, even though it\u2019s all smiles, hearty backslaps and fun team-building exercises, something rotten lies at its core, and it takes the distraction of a trio of convention veterans (played by Reilly, Anne Heche<\/a> and Isiah Whitlock Jr.<\/a>) to make a real man out of by-the-book Tim, as well as expose the convention\u2019s uglier side.<\/p>\n

Helms comfortably takes on the kind of good-hearted geek role we normally associate with Steve Carell<\/a> \u2013\u00a0Tim is merely a thirtysome clone of Carell\u2019s 40 Year Old Virgin<\/em><\/a>, a lovable man-child full of virtue. As such a character is a rarity in today\u2019s jaded world, there\u2019s always something appealing about getting to see the world still through childlike eyes. For the immature humour in this film to work, though, it requires reminiscing back to the deviant glee of the classroom innocent finally getting their hands dirty.<\/p>\n

However, Arteta doesn\u2019t just put Tim up for ridicule, but he gives him a strong set of values that we all aspire to and eventually wins all over, making him more layered than first depicted. In fact, as Tim is the \u2018immature kid\u2019 \u2013 as highlighted by his odd and slightly uncomfortable sexual relationship with his former teacher, Ms Vanderhei (Sigourney Weaver<\/a>), we tend to forgive him more as he spins off the rails. Indeed, Arteta\u2019s character isn\u2019t that different from other small-town, wide-eyed ones of past films (including Steve Zahn<\/a>\u2019s unforgettable role in Management<\/em><\/a>), but he has a disarming charm and a refreshing lack of baggage, so is content with his lot and very easy to like. But Tim is by no means an angel, and like an exploring teen, Helms expertly brings out his silly, serious and fearful side as he encounters the pitfalls of \u2018adult\u2019 life.<\/p>\n

Helms by no means carries the film alone. Arteta again develops a set of quirky characters that we can really get behind, as they experience their own personal highs and lows. That said Reilly, Heche and Whitlock Jr. to some extent play character types we\u2019ve seen them in before, though merely play to their strengths. Reilly is loud, brash \u2018Ziegler\u2019 who\u2019s nursing a broken heart. Heche is independent (but married), adventurous and smart Joan \u2018O Fox\u2019 Ostrowski-Fox who is charmed by Tim, and Whitlock Jr. is the voice of reason. Although initially mocking Tim, whilst playing up to certain stereotypes and scenarios in the film that induce a couple of groans, they all learn new things about themselves and each other while stepping out of their comfort zones. It\u2019s their evolution that\u2019s probably more interesting than Tim\u2019s as they reinvent themselves.<\/p>\n

Expect the decadent running jokes and lowbrow smutty antics, but moments of sobering clarity, and you\u2019ll not be disappointed with Arteta\u2019s oddball bunch of characters in Cedar Rapids<\/em>. You do root for all these misfits in the end, even after they show some less than impressive personality traits \u2013 and you need to stay for the end credits, as is becoming the norm these days, like some lazy plot after-thought. This crowd-pleaser is not Arteta\u2019s defining piece, but its feel-good nature and big heart bolster your spirits.<\/p>\n

4\/5 stars<\/strong><\/p>\n

By @FilmGazer<\/p>\n

<\/object><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u2018We\u2019re all just selling something\u2019 is the weighty moral of Youth In Revolt director Miguel Arteta\u2019s new coming-of-age comedy, and without the intriguing (and unlikely) pairing of Ed Helms and John C. Reilly, it could be argued that marketing a film about a na\u00efve insurance salesman from small-town, Midwest America who discovers himself on a … <\/p>\n

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