Hall Pass (2011) Movie Review.

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

"Hall Pass", the latest movie from the Farrelly brothers starring Owen Wilson (Rick) and Jason Sudeikis (Fred), is a raunchy comedy that serves up "distasteful" humor. The movie has an intended audience: People (male and female) who enjoy raunchy, racy, "dirty" comedy. If you laughed until you cried while watching "There's Something About Mary", then you will most likely appreciate this flick. If you thought "Dumb And Dumber" was just plain stupid, then you will probably not enjoy "Hall Pass".

The Premise: Two married, middle-aged men, Rick (Wilson) and Fred (Sudeikis) are in loving but sexually-unexciting marriages. They portray the typical horny male with sex on the brain who ogles women frequently.They believe their wandering eyes are clandestine, but unfortunately they are caught scoping chicks by their wives, played by Jenna Fischer (Maggie) and Christina Applegate (Grace). After the wives witness a few cringe-worthy scenes of male libido gone wild within their husbands, they are encouraged by their friend, a therapist, to allow the men a "week off" from marriage to cure their wanderlust.

The Execution: "Hall Pass" is not an Oscar-worthy movie - nor is it incredibly original. The stars do not deliver Shakespearean-level performances. What you get is exactly what the trailers promise: A desperately funny, sad, tragic and raunchy comedy that both entertains and enlightens. The opening scenes which set up the movie's premise are fresh and raucous - look for the scene involving the "Stepford" family and their safe-room video cameras. I actually learned a new lexicon which, I am sure, will become popular amongst my Facebook friends: "Big Mouth Vagina", "Fake Chow," and "Oversexed Bobble-head". Also, witness the quiet desperation of Wilson (Rick) and Sudeikis (Fred) as they ogle the coffee house barrista. The second act of the movie is pretty dirty - and quite laughable. I will not give anything away, here - not every joke in the movie is razor sharp or fresh, and some of it is a bit stale. However, you certainly get what you paid for - a few moments of diamond-hard nastiness so crude you might never have imagined it yourself.

Whether it was intentional or not, the movie succeeds and / or fails in the over-the-hill physical presentation of the couples. Wilson and Sudeikis looked slightly old and fat, while Fischer and Applegate looked slightly pale and fine-line wrinkly. I understand that the movie's premise revolves around middle-aged couples, but I did not really enjoy the stars' tired-looking appearance - why could they not have been portrayed as older-but-still-sexy? Applegate as Grace is really the only married character who looked like she still kept herself up. This, of course, is only a minor quibble - the directors obviously felt that a bit of paunch and wrinkle was necessary to make the characters more believable.

The third act of "Hall Pass" offers a satisfactory conclusion to this cautionary tale. Rick and Fred are able to rejoin Maggie and Grace after realizing that they did indeed already have everything they needed to enjoy happy unions with their spouses. Pay close attention, here: There are a few unpredictable, surprising moments which make the movie well-worth seeing and definitely elevate the film within its shock-humor genre. Is this a bit of a "Hollywood" ending? You bet it is - but in this age of common infidelity and skyrocketing divorce, I feel the conclusory message of the movie is quite poignant, and yes - uplifting. The characters each learn "hard" lessons which will hopefully strengthen their unions for years to come (pun intended).

Final Credits Scene Alert: Many people, after viewing the movie in the theater, will rise from their seats and hurry out to continue their lives as the credits begin to roll. STOP! Don't do it! One hilarious scene and one humorous out-take remains - much like the final scene in "The Hangover". Do yourself a favor and stay until the credits have COMPLETELY finished. This is becoming more and more common in movies - pivotal sequel clues and codas are now frequently left in the final credits. I don't mind this at all - for me, the movie is not finished until the credits have stopped rolling.

Final Recommendation: While some people may feel that the humor in "Hall Pass" is over the top, I must respectfully disagree. You go into a movie of this type with your eyes wide open, and the trailers all point to one thing - one heck of a "dirty" movie. There shouldn't be anyone who knows anything about the premise of this movie who feels cheated because you get exactly what you pay for: Hilariously concocted set-piece after set-piece of trashy, low-brow hi-jinx. With respect to execution of raunchy comedy, the Farrelly brothers deliver in high, grotesque style. Anyone seeing a movie at the theater can expect some level of predictability. The really good movies deliver unexpected surprises and plot twists that leave you talking for a few days. "Hall Pass", in my humble opinion, is that type of movie.

"Hall Pass" delivers a splendid menu of delicious depravity for the audience to digest. If you do not like this type of sexual comedy, then please wait for your friends to see it instead, and get the story second-hand from them - but I am sure that they will summarize the movie with knowing, private smiles on their faces and wicked gleams in their eyes.

Concept: 10 out of 10 Stars. Execution: 9 out of 10 Stars. Overall Rating: 10 out of 10 Stars.

***This is also published at Imdb.com at the following URL:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0480687/reviews-11***

- Chipper F. Xavier, Esq.