Movie #16 - Ted

Yes, for once I'm posting a movie review before it comes out, so you can be fully informed and not have to try to rush out while it's on its last legs.  Last night we attended a free preview of Ted, in a Vmax cinema no less.  First time in Vmax, it was quite nice with the comfy leather seats and extra leg room.  The blindingly bright lights on the seat number on the drink-holder between the seats was quite annoying though. Don't think I'll pay extra for this annoyance.  Anyhoo....

Ted.  A teddy bear that magically comes to life to save little John Bennett (Marky Mark Wahlberg) from a lifetime of having no friends.  Teddy moves from family friend to celebrity to disgraced celebrity to a nobody after his 15 minutes are up, but he remains best friends forever with John.  Now 35, John's life is based around hanging out with Ted, working in an average job and trying to keep his girlfriend Lori (Mila Kunis) just happy enough not to leave.  The catch is that when Ted and John are hanging out, it involves a lot of smoking pot, swearing and watching bad TV including Flash Gordon.

You can't have avoided seeing the ads for this, so the shock factor is probably gone a little and some of the funniest bits are in the trailer.  But there's still plenty to laugh at and make an "oh my god" face over, because it is weird to hear this naughty language coming from such a cute little teddy bear.  But this not just a cuter version of Wilfred (the great TV show where only one guy can see his neightbour's dog talking to him). There is a subplot in the movie that is not even shown in the trailer, which I really enjoyed, and gave the movie a point of difference just when it looked like being a typical "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy loses best friend, boy has to win them both back" rom-com plotline.  This revolves around some fans of Ted and the efforts they go to to make friends with him.

This is Seth McFarlane's movie - he wrote, directed and "stars" as Ted (somehow he wore a motion-capture suit to portray the bear, but it doesn't really show if you ask me, it could have just been a very realistic CGI character).  He's that guy who created Family Guy and American Dad.  And his voice for this movie is very similar to Brian the dog's voice in Family Guy, just with a Boston accent.  But once you get over that and some of the slightly lame "magical" parts of this fairytale, the fact that the humour is very similar to Family Guy (pop culture references, general weirdness, weird cameos) makes it worthwhile seeing.  And it has THE best fight between a man and a teddy bear that I've ever seen. Which totally offsets the lame "animated show" music that is sprinkled through the movie - it really could do with a soundtrack makeover. Which is made up for by the awesome payouts on celebrities I hate and the Flash Gordon references and tribute scene.

So the movie has pluses and minuses, but overall I'd give it 3.5 stars out of 5.  There are some really really funny moments but you just feel like there could have been a few more.