Get Him to the Greek shows exactly why characters matter in a comedy: Things are simply funnier when they happen to three-dimensional people we can empathize with and even like. Though the movie falls far from realism, it features the type of genuine characters we rarely see in comedies of this caliber.
Nevermind the movie’s advertising—most of the gags from the theatrical trailers were (wisely) cut out of the finished film, replaced by better bits. The marketing would have you think this is merely a wild tale of wish fulfillment. While Get Him to the Greek certainly contains some aspect of that, it also has more. This is a movie about conflicted ambition and the price of success. The film suffers from some story flaws, but it finishes strong nonetheless.
Get Him to the Greek centers around a low ranking record executive (Jonah Hill) who is enlisted to retrieve a rowdy rock star (Russell Brand) from England and escort him back to Los Angeles for a special anniversary concert. Hill’s music career—and to a lesser extent, Brand’s, too—hinges on this performance. After the first act, the movie slips into a series of comedic set pieces as Hill struggles to keep the sex and drug crazed Brand from partying too hard and missing the show. In terms of narrative, there’s some element of a ticking clock, but the pressure is never really emphasized.
For the most part, this formula works: The set pieces are usually funny. But near the middle, Get Him to the Greek begins to lag a little as the story loses momentum. Comedic diversions come one after another, but their results start to diminish. At this point, the film’s humor would have been more effective if it had been paced with a more fluid narrative.
By the end, though, the movie comes together and Get Him to the Greek manages to please as a whole. The script and direction are strong, but it’s the casting that really makes the film. Jonah Hill and Russell Brand perform great together: Hill is convincing as the wide-eyed protagonist; Brand is perfect as the strung-out rock star. The two are funny throughout, though P. Diddy (Sean Combs) outshines them both as the madcap record executive who can’t stand failure. His shtick begins to wear a little thin near the end, but for the first three quarters of the movie, he’s gold.
Get Him to the Greek provides a simple template for success in the comedic genre: Craft some interesting characters on paper and cast some funny actors to play them. Sure, there’s some more to it, but that’s a pretty good start.
