Long Shot is a practically perfect comedy. Charlize Theron plays Charlotte Field, the Secretary of State, who works for a vacuous television star, but not mean spirited because movies are always better than real life. She is perfectly poised to run for POTUS when her boss confides in her that he won’t be seeking reelection until her path collides with Seth Rogen, an unemployed Brooklyn journalist who is willing to go to extremes personally and professionally to maintain his integrity and make a difference.
Long Shot opens in a counterintuitive way to let us know that it gets the state of our country and isn’t trying to minimize it, but it is also going to be completely unrealistic so the filmmakers aren’t trying to insult our intelligence and establish fairly early that they get it, but this movie is fiction. It also establishes Rogan’s character, Fred Flarsky, as someone more than just a schlubby, normal guy love interest. In his own way, he is serious and a leader in his field, but it doesn’t matter because nothing matters. Wait, is that the movie or real life? Both.
Ultimately Long Shot is a rom com so individually both characters have assets, but are lacking something crucial that the other has to teach them. It is obvious that Charlotte has more assets than Fred, but Fred helps her reconnect with her authentic self. She always had integrity (in the real world, I would question anyone’s integrity if they worked for certain people), but needs to be reminded when she should be unwilling to compromise. Fred has to learn that there are things important enough to compromise for, and I loved that he ended up doing the traditional chick thing with his profession.
Long Shot is even better than my words can express. It is rare for me to laugh out loud during a comedy movie, but I laughed throughout the entire film. Everyone and everything is funny. I have no idea if this movie will stand the test of time, but it perfectly blends the nostalgic music of my childhood with contemporary popular culture references. Game of Thrones babies, there are spoilers for Season 7 if you’re not caught up, which is unlikely considering that this movie was released after Season 8 began, but some of you are procrastinators.
I feel as if no one should be surprised that Rogen is funny although one of his more political comedies, The Interview, fell flat for me, and I haven’t completely enjoyed one of his films since This Is the End. I have nothing but unconditional love for Theron. Even when I hate her films, I’m still seeing her films in theaters, but you should also come because everyone does a great job. Theron is taken seriously in this movie. She is a sexual, beautiful woman, which is an essential part of the plot, but the camera never ogles her and puts her on the butcher’s block.
I have no idea when I decided that I liked June Diane Raphael, but she is superb as the tough as nails part of Field’s staff who completely disapproves and is disgusted by Fred. She never plays it one note, and she manages never to make us hate her even though she is mean.
O’Shea Jackson completely lights up the screen. He plays Fred’s way more successful best friend and has a really wonderfully organic chemistry with Rogen that never once had me rolling my eyes that he was the black friend although there is a plot twist that threatens to undermine all the good will that the movie stored up. If people don’t like it, I would not be surprised. I would not sign a waiver, but the demerit was smaller because of what the movie accomplished up to that point.
If you think that one character reminds you of Andy Serkis, but you rationalize that it couldn’t possibly be Serkis because isn’t he too big to star in a rom com, no, you were right the first time. It is Andy Serkis. Fresh Off the Boat’s Randall Park has a brief, but memorable appearance early in the film. I did not recognize Ravi Patel, the star and director of the documentary, Meet the Patels, but he has an understated, but joyous supporting role as one of Field’s staff members. At one point, I had an opposite feeling about his character, but then there was a plot twist that revealed that I read him completely wrong. Even one of the Secret Service agents, Agent M, played by Tristan D. Lalla, ended up feeling meatier and mattering more than I thought that he would. Lalla imbued his line deliveries with such emotion that a viewer could understand what kind of person he was off the clock.
If I had one complaint, Alexander Skarsgard did not quite succeed at being funny, and in one early scene, he slipped into his sexy True Blood Eric voice instead of his overdoing it Canadian accent. He may be too hot to be funny. I’m not sure if it was the direction or his choice, but the character did not work for me. It was kind of like a funny black hole, but the only one so not a big deal, especially if it is in such a pretty package. I also didn’t understand what the stunt casting of Lil Yachty was supposed to make me feel because I don’t know who he is. Please explain it to me.
Long Shot has a lot of physical humor, which was a pleasant surprise because it managed to execute it without seeming gimmicky or diminishing the overall product. It felt more like a palette cleanser. This day in history: I actually laughed at a drug scene and did not resent the characters for having privilege to not get arrested like some segments of society. I don’t think that has ever happened before, and I see a lot of movies and television shows. It is usually an instantaneous turn off for me.
There was also something classic, old school Hollywood about Long Shot. Everyone except Rogen is dressed beautifully and looks terrific. Even though the film wasn’t shot in numerous international locations, it still gives you that glamorous, jet-setting feel. Field’s book collection at home and in her office had me drooling. I wanted to pause the movie and zoom in to see the titles. It is also convincingly set in New York while not actually being in New York. How? Movies are getting good at this.
I highly recommend Long Shot. It is funny without treating its audience like we’re stupid and is extremely sweet and good-hearted. I had a great time and thought that this comedy is why movies exist. It is the almost perfect blend of fantasy and reality.