Neighbors hits the multiplexes this weekend as a big surprise on the level of This Is The End–meaning a seemingly dopey comedy that actually has a lot of deep thoughts. In fact, Neighbors gets genuinely thoughtful as a look at would-be hipster parents dealing with their new lives just as a fraternity moves in next door. You can imagine the bad movie that could get made from that high concept. We’d probably enjoy that one, too. Still, Neighbors has Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne dealing with their (roughly) quarter-life crisis just as the college students next door face the end of their own wild days.
But all of that gets worked out amongst a suburban war that’s knee-deep in beer, babes, and dildos. The film critics aren’t going to have to fake enthusiasm for this one, and we’re certainly feeling a lot better about Zac Efron than we ever imagined. Let’s hope he doesn’t celebrate this film’s good reviews like his character would in Neighbors. We won’t spoil anything about the movie here, but there are still some things about Neighbors that should probably be known. They’re the kind fo things that might even get you to the box-office, if you’re still on the white-picket fence about giving this comedy a try…
1) Neighbors is written by the director of Muppets Most Wanted, so Nicholas Stoller is probably the only guy in Hollywood right now who has a kiddie movie in theaters at the same time as an R-rated comedy that features lots of dick jokes. Sadly, Stoller missed out on a brilliant crossover idea because he didn’t cast this guy in Neighbors…
2) Neighbors is kind of a kiddie film in its own right, since Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne end up not being terribly sympathetic as new parents who are totally terrified of seeming uncool. They want to be the kind of hipster parents who tell their poor kids that dressing up like Iron Man is too uncool for Halloween, and send their children out looking like this…
3) This is still the kind of Seth Rogen movie that guys go to see. We didn’t time the movie, but we’re pretty sure that you’re not five minutes into Neighbors before you get Seth Rogen doing this…
4) It’s a little distressing to see Christopher Mint-Plazze in Neighbors, because it feels like somebody’s doing a favor for the guy–but at least they mention that he’s a little old to be a college student, so we can pretend that it’s a tribute to this guy…
5) Speaking of old college students–look for a cameo from these guys, but don’t be afraid because Neighbors is a lot funnier than the last movie where these guys showed up in a cameo, which was The Watch…
6) Also, you get these guys, so the entire film should really come with a flashing #RIYL hashtag…
7) We also want to note that you can catch COED fave Chasty Ballesteros in a small role–but the most important cameo in Neighbors is Natasha Leggero as a prostitute, because she can’t get sexy on Suburgatory, and she’s a really funny lady who looks like this…
8) The great news is that you can get away with Neighbors as a date movie, because Rose Byrne is pretty much out front as a character in charge. That’s a pleasant surprise, since this could be the kind of film that ditches the wife as a secondary character. Also, Rose has a quick lesbian scene in the movie, and she looks like this…
9) The bad news is that Rose Byrne’s big topless scene looks more like this…
10) The biggest problem with Neighbors is that it’s ultimately a summer feel-good movie, and the whole thing kind of wraps up like a Tyler Perry movie. We don’t really need a fun frat film to end up as some kind of black comedy, but this is still one of the final images that are supposed to send you out smiling. It’s not the final scene, but it sets up a final scene that might still leave you feeling sorry for those new hipster parents (or their friends)…
