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There is nothing to forget about 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall'

Jason Segel successfully dips his hands into screenwriting with a relevant, entertaining and witty comedy.

Karen Marcus

Media Credit: Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures Piano man | Peter Bretter (Jason Segel) is a TV composer who gets dumped by his actress girlfriend, Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), in the new comedy, "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," which opens Friday.

It's the typical story. Boy meets girl. Boy dates girl. Girl dumps boy.

So what's different about "Forgetting Sarah Marshall"?

In the film written by Jason Segel and directed by Nicholas Stoller, Peter Bretter (Jason Segel) is trying to move on after he is dumped by his actress girlfriend of five years, Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell, "Veronica Mars").

Peter is a couch potato and a television show composer who rarely leaves his apartment. Segel's portrayal of a guy exhibiting pathetic behavior with bad fashion sense and a sense of humor make for good comedy.

Peter ends up moping over Sarah after she leaves him for a rock musician, Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), frontman of the band, Infant Sorrow.

Aldous is a Johnny Depp character gone wrong, who can't keep it in his pants and is one of the funniest characters in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall."

Bell is brass, nonchalant and a driving force for Peter. "Saturday Night Live" cast member Bill Hader plays Peter's advice-doling brother, Brian, who suggests Peter use sex to get over Sarah.

But after multiple rendezvous, Peter is still left depressed and on his couch. In an effort to get over Sarah, Peter goes on a vacation to Hawaii, but his efforts are in vain as she and Aldous are staying at the same resort.

After some time spent grieving and other times spent failing to avoid Sarah, Peter finds a proper distraction in Rachel Jansen (Mila Kunis), who works at the resort's front desk.

Kunis plays a refreshingly different character from "That 70's Show" self-centered persona of Jackie - accepting Peter for all his awkward flaws.

Peter also finds time to hang out with two misfits played by Paul Rudd and Jack McBrayer. McBrayer plays the same straight-laced character he portrays on "30 Rock" as Kenneth the Page, with a sex-obsessed twist.

Rudd's character, Kunu, is a surfer dude/instructor who gets Peter's mind off Sarah by teaching him to surf.

Funnyman and USC alumnus Judd Apatow produced "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," resulting in the movie's humor and tone being similar to other Apatow movies such as "Superbad," "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and the cult hit "American Pie"; yet Segel manages to bring his own brand of writing and humor to the movie and pushes boundaries.

In the beginning of the movie, Sarah returns to Peter's apartment only to find him wearing nothing but a towel. The scene gets progressively more scandalous as he intentionally removes the towel, unaware that she is about to break up with him, embracing her in an awkward hug.

Segel is clearly unafraid as a writer to use his own nudity as a comedic plot device.

Gross humor and pain, however, are the audience's gain. Desperation and awkwardness generate the most laughs - whether Peter is following Sarah around the island, interrupting Sarah and Aldous' dinner or composing a rock opera about Dracula.

Punchy one-liners make the film a gem. When Peter reacts sarcastically to the idea of his ex-girlfriend dating Aldous, it is a true example of Segel's witty writing.

"It sounds like Aldous shared a lot of his needles, so thank you for dating him after me," Peter says. Segel's deadpan delivery leaves the audience in stitches.

The only thing this movie needs, besides filling a few plot holes, is to properly introduce its characters.

Using "Access Hollywood" to introduce characters is a cheap ploy - a character flashback or voiceover would give better insight.

Peter also seems too sloppy for Sarah's movie star lifestyle; they hardly seem believable as a couple and Peter is too uninhibited for her.

Despite minor kinks, "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" will be a box office hit that will have audiences rolling on the floor in laughter.

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