Film of the week: Year One (12A)

Damon Smith • Published 6 Jul 2009 07:30 0 Comments

What do you call a comedy without a single laugh?

The punchline is: Harold Ramis" ramshackle road movie through the Paleolithic era headlined by Jack Black and Michael Cera, two of the most gifted comic actors of their generations.

Black is an unstoppable force of nature, who brought his nervous energy to light up High Fidelity, The School Of Rock and Kung Fu Panda.

Cera adopts a more laidback, laconic delivery that perfectly suited Juno and Nick & Norah"s Infinite Playlist.

But put the actors side-by-side in Year One as hunter-gatherers with a nose for adventure, and the results are painful.

'The upside-down prisoner has to pee,' whimpers Cera as warm urine trickles over his face, up his nose and into his mouth in a throwaway scene that perfectly encapsulates the sophistication and artistry of Ramis" vision.

Pelt-clad primitives Zed (Black) and Oh (Cera) are incompetent and lazy, and don"t pull their weight like the other men in their village.

Zed cannot master his bow and arrow, and is a woeful hunter.

'I"ll be back, unless something goes horribly right,' he tells Oh before his latest disastrous attempt to woo alpha-female Maya (June Raphael). Likewise, Oh fails to fulfil his duties as a gatherer. Nor can he turn the head of the object of his affections, Zed"s sister Eema (Juno Temple). Inevitably, the friends are banished from the tribe and embark on a quest of self-discovery through an ancient world riddled with danger.

En route, the misfits encounter wondrous creations such as the wheel, and colourful characters including feuding brothers Cain (David Cross) and Abel (Paul Rudd), and circumcision-obsessed father Abraham and his son Isaac.

Zed and Oh unexpectedly find courage and determination in the face of adversity, arriving in Sodom where the flamboyant high priest threatens to sacrifice Maya and Eema to the gods. Thankfully, the buddies orchestrate a daring rescue mission, but first they must outwit the captain of the guards, Sargon.

Producer extraordinaire Judd Apatow"s recent winning streak, which includes The 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Superbad and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, comes to an inglorious end with Year One.

Foolishly, the script begins at the dawn of mankind and merrily incorporates biblical references, which beg unfavourable comparisons with Life Of Brian.

Monty Python"s film may be 30 years old, but it boasts more chuckles and guffaws in the opening five minutes than Year One can muster in its lifeless entirety.

A selection of out-takes, which play out over the end credits, should have remained on the cutting-room floor.

Banter between Black and Cera fails to spark.

'You"re going to be my right hand,' enthuses Zed.

'I"ve seen what you do with your right hand, so no thank you,' replies Oh glumly.

We"re just as enthused about Ramis" film.

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This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 02 Jul 09

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