Freaks and Geeks Tagged Articles at Cinematical

So maybe I was a little late to the party, but over the weekend I finally caught a screening of Observe and Report and as I wandered from the theater in a misanthropic haze, I began to wonder: Just how funny is Seth Rogen? Being hailed "the new hero of comedy" is a lot of pressure for anyone -- and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't like the guy; I know he's a great writer and a whiz at improv, but after getting a load of the darker side of Rogen's range as Ronnie Barnhardt I was kind of happy to see that maybe he wasn't the soft and fuzzy stoner (not to mention one-note wonder) that Hollywood would like us to believe.

Think back to 1999 when Rogen made his acting debut in Judd Apatow's Freaks and Geeks as the acid tongued 'freak', Ken Miller; it was a role that was perfect for Rogen's sarcastic laid back style, and he's been doing a variation of it ever since. Whether it was Cal from 40 Year Old Virgin, Ben in Knocked Up, or Zack Brown in Zack and Miri Make a Porno, each character wasn't necessarily someone you wanted to bring home to Mom, but they charmed audiences nonetheless. Sure they were all kind of jerks, but they were all loveable jerks, and more importantly they were relatively 'toothless' when it came to their bad behavior -- compared to Ronnie, Officer Michaels was practically a choirboy.

I read a story earlier (forget where exactly it was) that Seth Rogen needed oxygen after rehearsing an action scene for The Green Hornet -- and as a recovering fat kid, I totally gained more respect for this dude because, let's face it, he's not exactly the ideal action star, but he's losing weight, busting ass and risking his health to bring us a superhero flick unlike any we've seen before.

In a new interview with Moviefone, Rogen talks up his voice role in Monsters vs. Aliens, as well as several other projects he has on his plate -- like Observe and Report, this summer's Funny People and, of course, The Green Hornet (which hits theaters next summer). Regarding the latter, Rogen says, "Me and Evan [Goldberg] have thought, in our writing, we'd be able to reinvent a lot of the conventions of how these superhero movies generally go -- but we want to be sure that in the visual look of the movie we'd be able to do the same thing, and having a guy like Michel Gondry pretty much guarantees that we'll be able to do that. In my head, he's kind of an unmatched visualist. He conceives of things that aren't even on other people's radars. So it's exciting."

Rogen also made a pretty interesting observation when it came to his character's past in the upcoming dark comedy Observe and Report. He notes, "Actually, after watching Observe and Report again recently, I feel like that character in a way could be a continuation of Ken from Freaks and Geeks. I do. It wouldn't surprise me if he ended up like that." Check out the rest of the interview over at Moviefone, and read about Rogen's Playboy cover, his fear of Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, his contributions to Sacha Baron Cohen's Bruno and more.

Sure, I've already shared Seth Rogen's audition for Freaks and Geeks, but since the comedic wonder that is The Pineapple Express is finally here, it's a pretty good time to share old-school Saul and Dale before they reunited, hit the chronic, and got themselves in trouble with dangerous drug dealers. A good ten years ago, they were living in 1980. In the above clip, James Franco's Daniel spends a lot of time going punk, and then Nick (Jason Segel) and Ken (Rogen) make fun of him for his new look, full of distressed clothing and eggy hair.

Most of the kid's from Judd Apatow's old show have come a long way, many of them reuniting over and over in the Apatow universe. But I have to say -- it's high time Sarah Hagan gets a piece of the action. It's just wrong that her last movie was Orange County. Even a little cameo. Just a tiny one to start ... Whaddya say, Judd?

I sure hope that by now, you've not only seen Seth Rogen in comedies like Superbad, Knocked Up, and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, but also his television work on Freaks and Geeks and Undeclared. But ... have you seen him before he got his first role as Ken Miller?

Above you can check him out during his Freaks and Geeks audition, where he talks about his career options, and just how he would run a grow house where "the pot would make me happy." It's pretty much the Rogen we know and love today, just a tad younger.

But there's also another oldie, where he popped up on Dawson's Creek as a loser that Busy Philipps' Audrey sleeps with (the scenes also feature pre-Cruise mom Katie and Kate Hudson's brother). You can check that out after the jump.

Last Rewind Answer: Sorry folks! A whopping 63% of you said that the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad are also the names of the enemies of G.I. Joe. They are the names of enemies of Captain America.

There are some actors who need to stick to playing supporting roles. Paul Rudd is not one of them -- he is good-looking and perfectly capable of being a lead -- but that doesn't mean I can't prefer him as the leading man's buddy, or as the romantic opposition, or as a member of an hilarious ensemble. But as goofy as the guy is, we have to remember that he was once just that love interest/step-brother for Alicia Silverstone in Clueless. Fortunately, as Rudd appears to grow in Hollywood status, starring in his own vehicles, he seems to be choosing movies that relate more to his work with Judd Apatow, Adam McKay and the Stella guys than to run of the mill romantic comedies.

His latest to be announced is called I Love You, Man, which makes one think of the joke in Wayne's World about platonic love between two grown men (" I LOVE you, man"). And, what do you know? I Love You, Man is in fact about platonic love between two grown men. According to Variety, the movie is about a guy (Rudd), who is about to get married, but who doesn't have a male friend who can serve as his best man. So, he seeks one out and eventually finds gangly Jason Segal of TV's How I Met Your Mother (and Knocked Up, which co-starred Rudd).

Cinematical has just received the first official poster for Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (click on the image above for a larger version), the upcoming comedy written by Judd Apatow and Jake Kasdan. Do I need to say more, or are you already sold? I mean, if John C. Reilly in a Jim Morrison-like pose doesn't do it for ya, we've got issues to discuss. Essentially, the film will be spoofing all those popular musical biopics, like Walk the Line, etc ..., but I take it the flick will be a major step up from the silly spoofs like Scary Movie and Not Another Teen Movie, etc .. It'll be silly, sure, but check out some of this cast: John C. Reilly, Jenna Fischer, Paul Rudd, Justin Long, Jason Schwartzman, Jack Black, just about every popular SNL cast member in recent years and White Striper Jack White as Elvis Presley.

Walk Hard follows the life and times of fictional music legend Dewey Cox (Reilly) who, throughout his turbulent (yet awe-inspiring) career, fathers 22 kids, 14 step-kids, becomes addicted and subsequently kicks every drug known to man, and falls in love with his longtime backup singer Darlene (Fischer). Somewhere along the way, he also makes friends with everyone from The Beatles to Elvis -- and stars in his own 70s Variety Show. As a big fan of everyone involved, I know this movie is going to kick major ass -- how can it not? Directed by Jake Kasdan (who also helmed the very funny Orange County and comes from the same Freaks and Geeks world as Apatow), Walk Hard is set to sing its way into theaters on December 21.

People tell me I'm nuts, but I absolutely adore long plane rides. Mainly because, over the years, the wife and I have assembled quite an electronics arsenal. I have the personal DVD player, the PSP, the iPod -- not to mention (in the non-electronics department) books, pillows, blankets and -- most importantly -- a big bag of Twizzlers. It doesn't get much better than that. Prior to traveling, I also map out which seat I want (and then bother whomever to make sure I get it), and do plenty of research on which films will be playing on the flight. The other great thing about long plane rides is that no one (except a flight attendant with crummy food) is allowed to bother me. No emails. No phone calls. No taking the dog for a walk. Nothing. Just me, my electronics, my pillow and my movies. This is my heaven.

I mention this because, on Saturday, I leave New York City for a two-week trip to Australia. My cousin is getting married. And I'm so there. Today I started to assemble my movie playlist, which include the actual DVDs I plan to bring, as well as what I plan to watch (all edited and whatnot) on the plane. Since I like to be diverse, here's what I have so far: A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints, Wristcutters (a LEGAL copy, mind you -- I'm no pirate), Tale of an Osaka Love Thief (a doc I've heard wonderful things about), The Boys of Summer (another festival-ish doc), Freaks and Geeks: The Complete Series, Weeds: Season 1 (for the wife) and Battlestar Galactica: Seasons 1 and 2.0. (Damn you Heroes for not being out on DVD yet!) I'm also planning to watch Fracture and Zodiac on the plane, although I'm not crazy about them being all chopped up. I'd like to add a tad more comedy and a really great thriller to the lot, so feel free to offer up suggestions. Are you as ridiculous as I am with regards to your in-flight movie planning? How does your inner movie geek go about prepping for a long trip at 35,000 feet? Do tell ...

I think just about everyone is desperate to drink from the Freaks and Geeks fountain -- if you had anything to do with that show back in the day, chances are there's a studio out there that wants to buy your ideas. Hey, I own the DVD box set and have tons of ideas -- does that count? John Francis Daly (who played one of the geeks) has become the latest F&G veteran to join the party; according to the Hollywood Reporter, New Line Cinema has acquired a spec script he wrote along with Jonathan Goldstein called The $40,000 Man. No, it's not about the trials and tribulations of living on a measly $40,000 salary in New York City (although there are some who somehow survive on a lot less) -- this script is in the vein of The Six Million Dollar Man, only the dude is worth a lot less.

Basically, when a legendary astronaut is severely hurt in a car crash, the government offers to rebuild him to be a bionic man ... only they can only spare $40,000. Seeing as one finger probably costs a few hundred grand, I imagine our heroic space traveler will end up looking like one helluva f**ked up science project. Chris Bender and JC Spink will produce the project, which marks the first feature writing gig for Daley (who also appeared on something called Kitchen Confidential). The idea certainly has some legs (I can see there being a part when it's time to be with a woman and those parts weren't exactly paid for in full), but it could become tiring after awhile unless they consistently keep the jokes fresh. No word on whether Daley would have a role in the film; his character on F&G was always enjoyable, so I wouldn't mind seeing him again. And man, did he get tall.

It is extremely gratifying that one of Hollywood's quality comedy directors can still get impressed by things like sitting next to Eric Idle at a screening of Borat. Judd Apatow tells this story and also sums up the comedic scene from 2006 in a column at MTV. Apatow, who has directed and produced episodes of Freaks and Geeks, as well as last year's hit 40 Year Old Virgin, writes that he had met with Sacha Baron Cohen about doing a feature film version featuring his Borat character from Da Ali G. Show. He candidly admits that if he had been hired to make that film, it wouldn't have been anything like the Borat that hit screens this year, and that we would have been robbed of a classic.

He also hilariously includes Babel amongst the top comedies of 2006, and also talks about the darker side of living in Los Angeles. Although I'm hoping that he doesn't move back to North Carolina, because he'll be really missed in Hollywood. He's been behind films like Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and the upcoming Knocked Up. He tends to use the same cast members in his projects, so we'll have seen Seth Rogen go from supporting actor in Freaks and Geeks to a tiny role in Anchorman, to a hilarious supporting role in 40 Year Old Virgin, and he'll be the leading man in Knocked Up. All thanks to Apatow.

So please Judd, hear our cry, and stay in Los Angeles. We need the quality movies to keep on coming.

From the very beginning I was really behind this project: A comedy (from the man behind Freaks & Geeks and Undeclared) based on a rather amusing story called Babysitting (which you can still hear on This American Life) about a bunch of kids who get stuck in a snowed-in airport during Christmas Eve -- sounds pretty promising, right? And then I heard that folks like Paget Brewster, Jessica Walter, B.J. Novak, David Koechner, Tony Hale, Lewis Black and Rob Corddry were among the "grown-up" cast members, and my enthusiasm for the movie doubled in a heartbeat.

And then I watched this trailer. If you can watch this thing and not think "Home Alone Times Six," then you've probably never seen Home Alone three times like I have.

Now, maybe I'm just a victim of overzealous and misleading advertising ... but this movie looks like a 12-ton migraine of monumental proportions! And the jokes! How about a nice overlong belllllch or that reliable old "ouch that high-five secretly really hurt!" grimace? Some little brat punching Santa in the belly? A kid comically choking on an inflatable life-jacket? The air-duct ceiling-crash cribbed from The Breakfast Club? Silly dancing, slapstick security guards and a kid inside a suitcase being bashed around the room?? What the hell is going on here?

Of course this sort of simplistic physical schtick is by no means a surprise ... if we were talking about someone like Brian Levant or Don Rhymer or (dear lord) Steve Carr, but from Paul Feig? The guy who put so much heart and soul and warmth (AND comedy) into Freaks & Geeks AND Undeclared? And directed episodes of The Office and Arrested Development?? Ugh, how disappointing. I guess the Nielsen ratings on both of his babies taught Paul Feig an important lesson: Heart doesn't sell -- and fart does.

Anyway, here's where you can check out the trailer and one specific scene from the flick, and here's the official site for those who enjoy picking through character bios, photo galleries, video interviews and production notes. Of course I'm still quite interested in seeing the movie, and obviously I'll give the thing a perfectly fair shake, but based on this trailer ... I'm just pretty much stunned.