Paul

Paul follows a pair of British sci-fi enthusiasts (Simon Pegg’s Graeme and Nick Frost’s Clive) as they encounter and befriend an actual alien (Seth Rogen’s Paul) while touring various UFO hotspots, with the movie subsequently detailing the road trip that ensues as Graeme and Clive attempt to deliver Paul to a meeting spot while avoiding the relentless pursuit of several dogged agents (including Jason Bateman’s Zoil and Bill Hader’s Haggard). It’s an irresistibly off-kilter premise that’s employed to pervasively watchable (yet far from engrossing) effect by filmmaker Greg Mottola, as the director does a nice job of initially capturing the viewer’s interest by emphasizing the back-and-forth banter between Pegg and Frost’s respective characters – with the actors’ palpable chemistry together ensuring that the movie is at its best when focused on their low-key exploits. Paul‘s episodic midsection plays an instrumental role in perpetuating the film’s decidedly uneven atmosphere, however, and there’s little doubt that certain sequences ultimately fare a whole lot better than others (eg it’s hard to work up much enthusiasm for the protagonists’ uneventful trip to a small town). The sedate atmosphere also ensures that the action-heavy climax can’t help but feel a little out of place, as the movie is, for the most part, a talk-heavy endeavor that seems content to remain within the confines of Graeme and Clive’s motor home. It’s finally clear that Paul falls right in line with Mottola’s affable yet unspectacular prior efforts, with the film elevated by the charisma of the various actors and by the enjoyably tongue-in-cheek nature of Pegg and Frost’s screenplay.

**1/2 out of ****