Starring: Jay Baruchel, Alice Eve, Mike Vogul, Krysten Ritter, Lindsay Sloane, TJ Miller, Nate Torrence
Directed By: Jim Field Smith
Written By: Sean Anders, John Morris
Grade: B+
The main thing that attracted me to She’s Out of My League was Jay Baruchel. He’s a great comedic actor with wide appeal. He’s really way overdue for the lead in a film like this. He carried the funny and rich college comedy TV series, Undeclared, which began nearly 10 years ago now. From the first 5 minutes Baruchel shows his incredible energy and stellar comedic timing. Surprisingly enough, there’s more to the film than just him. Hopefully some of the commercials spark people’s interest a bit more, because although I like the poster, it comes off as very bland and generic. This gave me the impression that it would be a funny and fairly enjoyable film but probably wouldn’t be anything all that great. She’s Out of My League really surprised me with just how good it was, giving me continuous laughs, great performances, and a good-hearted film.
Kirk (Baruchel) is still determined to get back with his girlfriend, Marnie (Sloane). They have been on a break…for 2 years and she has done a lot more experimenting in their time off than he has. In fact, she has moved on right under the same roof as him. His parents basically adopted her and she lives in the same house as him with her new boyfriend. His mother (Debra Jo Rupp) is pretty much the only loving one in his family. His father is disapproving of him and cracks jokes at his expense while his wild brothers constantly beat on him. His brother’s pregnant wife talks just as much trash to Kirk.
Kirk works at the airport with his friends, Jack (Vogul), Devon (Torrence), Stainer (Miller), and unfortunately Marnie as well. When Molly (Eve) is being hassled by Kirk’s boss while trying to get through airport security, Kirk stands up to him so he lets Molly through. Once she gets on the plane she realizes that she left her phone in security and Kirk is the one who answers it. They make plans to meet up at a party she planned the following day. This leads to a hockey game the next day followed by an official date when Kirk is mistaken by Molly’s good looking pilot ex-boyfriend for the waiter and later assumed to be her gay friend. There are a few bumps along the way, but Molly seems to really like Kirk and he is crazy about her. Still, everyone seems to be so shocked that he could be with her, psyching him out and making him think that he just got lucky for awhile and it can only last so long.
Jay Baruchel is extremely likable and has great comedic timing as Kirk. He pulls off the character very well and makes us root for him throughout the film. Hopefully this will lead to better things for him, because he more than proved he can be the leading male in a film. Alice Eve also did a great job as Molly. Her character actually surprised me. I thought she would be a flat, boring character. Along with the writing, Eve made the character much more than this. She has class and charm, follows her true passions, and is kind and genuinely an interesting person.
There were a lot of fairly unknown actors in the film who were completely hilarious, making the film quite a riot. The first that stands out is TJ Miller as Stainer. A lot of his comedy was through joking about how lucky Kirk got for being able to date out of his league, but there was a ton of great material even aside from this. Even the way he talked and his philosophies were very entertaining. A polar opposite character but equally as hilarious was Devon played by Nate Torrence. He is jolly and extremely energetic, creating this extremely innocent yet fun loving character. Some of his Disney references especially to Aladdin were particularly hysterical.
She’s Out of My League is an immensely fun film. It’s more than just some dorky guy hooking up with a hot chick. All of the characters are developed really well, giving us a real feel for all aspects of their lives rather than just their love life. It deals with the notions of settling for what others tell you you deserve and realizing what you really want and grabbing a hold of it for yourself. Not only are there continuous laugh out loud moments ranging from really extreme and outrageous to innocent and ironic comedy, but the writing is really stellar, giving us sharp and smart dialogue throughout.
