When did Seth Rogen get old? Neighbors place him at war with Zac Efron with hilarious and shockingly poignant results. Like most of Nicholas Stoller’s movies, Neighbors sprinkles in some truths amidst drug use and mini-trampolines. It even manages to include James Franco’s little brother in the proceedings.
Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly (Rose Byrne) Radner just had their first kid and moved into what they consider an idyllic neighborhood. Until a frat moves in next door led by President Teddy (Zac Efron) and Vice-President Pete (Dave Franco). After attempts to reach an understanding fail to sink-in, Mac and Kelly go to war with the frat to protect their new family, new home, and new lifestyle.
Much attention has been made about the very keenly observed intergenerational warfare, and rightfully so. The music best exemplifies what is going on. Most of the musical selections are youthful or remixes. Remixes masquerade as original songs much like thirtysomethings wanting to be considered cool by the generation before. Ke$ha’s Die Young is so built around living in the moment that is exemplifies the blinders frat life puts on college kids. Neighbors big conflict is not really the battle between Mac/Kelly and Teddy, but between the push toward the future and the pull from nostalgia. The Apatow movie world always carries with it a hint of something true within its crazy exterior, and Neighbors is no exception.
Let’s not kid ourselves though, Neighbors has its share of big laughs. Rogen and Byrne have fun using their awkwardness in a more mature way here, trying too hard to fit in with people they shouldn’t want to. There are amusing erection jokes and breastfeeding failures (no diaper jokes with a baby, well done). An extended fight sequence at the end pushes the pratfall count in Neighbors to extremely high levels, sometimes to the detriment of the story. It’s nice to see Rose Byrne get some shining moments (Apatow movies can be a little to guy heavy); she concocts a brilliant plan quickly to cause Teddy and Pete to fight. Neighbors can rely a little to heavily on low hanging fruit, but it delivers punch lines fast enough to keep audience members from getting bored.
Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne are by now seasoned vets of the comedy world. Both are great here. Rogen does his poor schlub routine in his sleep, but equally impressive is Byrne, who can keep up with Rogen as well as any of his guy friends. Zac Efron is the wild card here. He is solid as Teddy, keeping the frat boy from falling into a stereotype hole. His shirtlessness is used to great effect, and his fight scenes with Franco and Rogen are well acted on his part. Dave Franco is mostly there for emotional effect, but he does a solid De Niro impression and uses his sex face to great effect. Ike Barinholtz, Carla Gallo, Hannibal Burress, and Jerrod Carmichael provide solid support for the core 4, especially Barinholtz.
Neighbors is a smart title. Yes, these people live next to each other, but their age range is also adjacent. That means in a few years, Dave Franco will become James Franco. I hope he looks good with cornrows and grilled teeth for the next Spring Breakers movie.