“I like how you say I like how you say ‘K.”

Justin’s rating: I can’t stop thinking of Bobby Newport quotes now

Justin’s review: I don’t know if you consciously realized this, but shortly after 2010, the movie studios took the entire comedy genre behind the woodshed and unceremoniously shot it in the head. After three incredible decades of gut-busting classics, comedies were finished virtually overnight. Hollywood stopped making them, for the most part, along with the traditional sitcom.

Thus, it’s incredibly depressing fishing around for genuinely good comedies post-2010. It’s not a complete wasteland — 21 Jump Street, Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, and Game Night are a few excellent standouts of the more recent era — but where there was once a teeming mass of great low- and mid-budget comedies, now there’s only the occasional chuckle swimming by.

I do try to hold out hope, though. Every so often I investigate the more recent movie scene to see what others might recommend. And this brought me to 2014’s They Came Together, starring two of my favorite comedians, Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler (who were also in Parks and Recreation for a season there).

This is probably a very long overdue parody of the romcom. More specifically, a parody of every New York City-based romcom starring two 30-somethings. And much more specifically, a parody of You’ve Got Mail.

At a dinner with friends, Molly (Poehler) and Joel (Rudd) share the movie-like story of how they got together. Naturally, Molly was the super-clumsy single owner of a quirky candy shop, and Joel was a high-powered candy company exec who’s in a relationship with a cold woman. Naturally, the both of them have best friends to bounce relationship ideas off of, and naturally, they both meet cute before realizing that they’re mortal business enemies.

What I wasn’t expecting is that They Came Together is very much in the vein of old Zucker/Abrams/Zucker parodies. Everything is extremely on the nose with characters calling out tropes left and right, bad puns prevailing, and sight gags popping up with no dignity whatsoever. Ahh, seriously, I missed this sort of thing.

It’s all a goofy silly light-hearted journey through the typical romcom beats. Molly and Joel hate each other at first, then find a growing attraction, confess undying love, have a break up, and get back together before the closing credits.

The only question that matters is if this is actually funny. And I can say without reservation, yes, it totally is. It may not be the sharpest of writing, but it’s humorous enough, and our leads embrace the ridiculousness wholeheartedly. The abrupt shifts in tone as plot points are speed-run and the role reversals made for some unexpected laughs as well.

Plus, there’s a pretty great supporting cast here (Max Greenfield absolutely steals every scene he’s in) and not a few good zingers at the romance version of New York City (now with fewer bums urinating on trash cans!). I also got a kick out of how they made sure to stock this with all of the standard romcom supporting characters, such as the Disapproving Older Sister, the Surprise Kid, and the Sleazy Business Rival.

The jokes ramp up and up, the absurdist humor piles on, and so many background gags make this a rewatcher’s dream. There are so many classic moments: “You can say that again.” The terrible basketball-and-advice game. The out-of-nowhere “I miss mom and dad.” The seasonal transitions to fall and winter but all of the extras are still wearing summer shorts. Knocking over half the apartment because you’re in a kissing frenzy.

But if you’re wondering why you didn’t hear of this movie, it’s because it has the worst title ever, made barely $82,000, and got steamrolled by a Transformers movie. It’s taken a while to rope in an audience, but people are starting to catch on to this, especially after hearing that it was directed by David Wain (Role Models, Wet Hot American Summer).

All I can say is, thanks. Thanks They Came Together for being a beacon of comedy in a dead zone. Thanks for keeping screwball spoofs alive. And thanks for giving Paul Rudd a job. He’s been hard up for work for a while now.

Yeti’s rating: Eight Wet Hot American Summer alumni out of ten.

Yeti’s review: If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the last two weeks, it’s this: road trips are much better on film than in real life. I never met up with an overweight jolly fellow that drove me crazy, there was no accidental trip to Boston instead of Austin, nor was I surrounded by a dysfunctional family on the way to a beauty pageant. Heck, I’d even settle for a Fellowship, as horrifying as that trek would be. I bet this is where you expect me to relate my terrible trip to the quirky new “road trip” film I’ve seen. Not so fast my friends.

You see, in the next few days I will be attending a family re-union in upstate Maine. Obviously I could have boarded a flight from Los Angeles to Maine, making all of my labors go away in one turbulence filled heart attack. Unfortunately for my stress levels, I decided to watch Into the Wild, and over two weeks later, with physical and mental scars to show, here I am.

All of this for what, a family reunion? Any reunion is pretty awful if I say so myself. I’m twenty-five, going on twenty-six years old. There will be tons of questions as to why I’m not married yet. I can’t even hire my cousin to come along as my “pretend date.”   I need to save that for the ever so popular high school reunion. Yeah sure, the doctors and the architects have no problem at these events. But for the Jason Statham look a like (in the wrong way) bartender, this is not ideal. Unless of course my whole class has become Cocktail super fans over the past ten years (if only). To get me out of my cynical mood I planned on popping in the greatest reunion movie, American Reunion. That is until I learned of a more unexpected gathering. David Wain had just released a new movie, They Came Together. After perusing the IMDB page and seeing the cast, I had no choice but to check it out. And to iTunes I went!

The film opens with Joel (Paul Rudd) and Molly (Amy Poehler) on a double date with two friends of theirs (played by Bill Hader and Ellie Kemper). Right away you know what you’re getting into. In that first scene, Joel and Molly explaining how they met, Wain, and co-writer Michael Showalter, make it perfectly clear what kind of movie you are about to watch. Unfortunately, as is pretty standard with me, I can’t think of a word to describe it. It’s not exactly a spoof. It is, but with a dab of homage mixed in. So it’s the baby from a homage and spoof marriage. A “hoof,” if you will.

If I’m being honest, I could feel a hint of maliciousness during my viewing. The jabs at the genre were so unrelenting. It’s like one of Matthew McConaughey’s middle of the decade disasters personally attacked Wain or Showalter’s family. I’m pretty sure they have a grudge against the genre. Didn’t they listen to Ben Affleck’s Oscar speech? Perhaps they just hate themselves for loving romantic comedies so much. That’s not to say the movie isn’t enjoyable. Because it is. And it’s not to say that it won’t make you laugh. Because there are parts that definitely will. But was it genuinely because of the film, or did it have anything to do with the mini-reunion that it displays?

When you put Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Christopher Meloni, David Wain, Michael Ian Black, Zak Orth, and Ken *freaking* Marino on screen, you’re going to get some laughs. I don’t care who you are. I’ve been salivating for a Wet Hot American Summer sequel (or prequel) ever since I randomly rented it at my local video store. And it looks like we will indeed be getting something like that (in the form of an Arrested Development Netflix deal), but in the meantime, They Came Together fills that void perfectly. Along with our alumni, Wain reaches out to a deep slew of cameos, from Ed Helms, to multiple Saturday Night Live vets, climaxing with Michael Shannon (arguably the funniest bit in the film).

I’m hesitant to recommend to friends. To anyone, really. If you hate romantic comedies, one would think this is the movie for you. And while it does decimate them for almost ninety minutes, it remarkably has the feel of a romantic comedy. Of course if you love movies in that genre I wouldn’t stop you from watching, but the humor might not be your taste. The only niche group who I can recommend it to are the Wet Hot American Summer fans. It’s not even a safe bet that if you liked Wain’s more mainstream films, Role Models and Wanderlust, that this one will be worth it. Perhaps if you like Childrens Hopsital or The State. Now that I think of it, there is a group. If you live for awkward conversations with that dude you sat next to in homeroom all of high school, watch this film. Do you look forward to not getting a word in while your Uncle Ralph talks about his fly fishing stories? Turn on They Came Together. Because this is a more satisfying reunion than any I’ve ever attended.

Intermission!

• He’s vaguely but not overtly Jewish. Just Jewish enough.
• “I love you.” “I admire your spirit.”
• Girls shave their face too
• Don’t “go deep” while playing football on a skyscraper
• “My friends call me Eggbert.” “They must not be very good friends.”
• I laughed at “Eggfart.”
• This is the worst game of basketball ever. And they keep shouting “basketball!”
• “You came in here looking like crap and you haven’t said much” (repeat infinitely)
• If you ever wanted to see Poehler and Rudd as dual Ben Franklins, this is the movie for you
• Back zipper superhero costumes make it EXTREMELY hard to pee
• You can sneeze your subtitles to pieces
• “The washcloths are just for show…”
• Bookstores are such a common staple for romcom browsing
• That’s a really fast progression to first kiss
• “Hey Aunt Flo!”
• “Have you ever given yourself a pap smear?”
• “Hi Mr Joel, are you my new daddy?”
• The ol’ cheeseburger-behind-the-ear trick
• “I look like a chimney sweep!” cue fashion montage
• Everyone in this movie wants to get the last word
• Not every spontaneous kiss is welcomed: “Just felt like I was getting a vibe.”
• He does have a pole up his butt
• The stinky doodoo fish special
• “Your name is Billy Joel?”
• OK I loved the frantic kissing where they’re demolishing the entire apartment
• The corpse under the leaves
• Oh hai Norah Jones! And John Stamos!
• iTones Rhapsordy Amazong Spandorca — great internet music services
• “How could you not tell me your parents are white supremacists?”
• You may not leave the dinner table until the story is done
• Three holiday parties in a row
• “I think deep down… you’re a horrible person who’s smoking hot.”
• JUDGE JUDY
• Dang that’s one old slide projector… and one very new hologram projector
• I didn’t need the grandmother scene at all
• “You’re fired! Now get out of here before I change my mind!” “But I want you to change your mind, then I’ll still have a job!”
• You can convince an entire wedding party to follow you
• “This is the same guy who pooped in his costume at the Halloween party?”
• I wasn’t prepared for the “HE’S GOT A SWORD!” moment
• The cop just executing the ex-husband as everyone’s clapping
• That’s the worst coffee shop ever