“Get Him to The Greek” in the simplest terms can be summed up as pure sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll. This film follows the outlandish and bizarre journey of Aldous Snow (Russell Brand) a highly sexualized and stereotypical essential British rock star (originally introduced in the film “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”) and Aaron (Jonas Hill) a babbling and dull record company employee as they try to reach their destination which is Snows show at the famous concert hall The Greek. While on this journey the viewer is given a peek into the extraordinary and elaborate life of Aldous Snow who is considered to be one of the last remaining rock stars. Unlike the rock and pop stars of the present day which have become humanitarians, mentors, and role models Snow gives us everything that rock n’ roll was founded on decadence, drugs, immortality, and living for nothing more than pure self indulgence. Due to all of Snows unconventional and extravagant behavior he is constantly in the spot light with the media and the paparazzi which internally begins to take a toll not only on him but also in his relationship with his long time lover and mother to his son Jackie Q (Rose Byrne).
As the film further in the audience is also given a view into the past of Aaron, a failed musician himself who only released one album titled “African Child”. Although Aaron had appeared to have given up on music after this failure the reality was that he never truly gave up on his dream of becoming a musician. Aaron like Snow has love problems of his own, Aarons girlfriend Daphne (Elisabeth Moss) is an overworked medical resident who has little time for anything outside of her profession, including Aaron. With the mixture of issues that these two have it ultimately leads to them separating which is conveniently timed while Aaron is on his journey with Snow. This separation from Daphne allows Aaron to live his dream rock n’ roll lifestyle with Snow without any consequences later.
“Get Him to The Greek” is a refreshing comedy that ignores all modesty and political correctness while still creating a witty and entertaining film. It has the perfect combination of physical humor and boldness to not only keeps viewers entertained but also intrigued to see what will happen next. For those who are already fans of Brand it will come to no surprise the remarkable job that he did bringing Aldous Snow to life as a true and archetypal rock star. Throughout the film Brand’s performance is flawless which only adds to the absurdity of his character in the film. Not to be overlooked is the rest of the cast which all seem to do their own individual parts in creating this impressive film.
The on screen combination of unique humor created by both Brand, who creates the perfect combination of bold crudeness and idiocy and Hill who masters traditional physical humor and pure awkwardness enriches and even seems to further create the storyline of this film. While Moss and Byrne give a richness and definition to not only the characters but also the situations in which all of these individual personalities thrive. They are able to add their own moments of enjoyment while still being the steadfast characters in the film. Besides the main character there are also significant amounts of guest appearance that range from Lars Ulrich of Metallica to Tom Felton from Harry Potter.
“Get Him to The Greek” is a perfect film for those who are looking for an entertainingly vivid and bold comedy. With a unique combination of well scripted and performed humor which is most comparable to cult classics like “Spinal Tap” viewers are in for constant non-stop laughs throughout this film. Although the majority of this films theme is idiocy and indulgence there is a slight undertone of melancholy which allows the viewer to connect with these characters on a more defined and realistic level which only adds to the merit of this film.
