Graeme Willy (Simon Pegg) and Clive Gollings (Nick Frost) have decided to make a trip to America to experience all that the San Diego Comic-Con has to offer. After Comic-Con, the guys have decided to rent an RV and set out across the country with the intentions of visiting UFO sites. Their first stop puts them at a UFO diner (run by Sue Silvester herself, Jane Lynch), and encounter two local hillbillies (David Koechner and Jesse Plemons) and accidently damage their truck with their RV. While on the road, they witness a car explosion and find that it was caused by an alien named Paul (voiced by Seth Rogan), who is on the run from the government. Graeme reluctantly agrees to help Paul to escape from his pursuer, Agent Zoil (Jason Bateman), and they set out on the road. Zoil recruits local FBI agents (Bill Hader and Joe Lo Truglio) to assist with the capture of Paul, but refrains from informing them of the nature of the suspect that they are pursuing. Paul explains that he had crashed in 1947 and has been a “guest” of the government for years, and that he was also a major pop culture influence over the years, siting a conference call with Steven Speilberg regarding E.T and the creation of Agent Mulder in The X-Files. Graeme and Clive soon find that they have a lot in common with their alien friend and they quickly bond as a group. During their travels they find themselves staying at an RV park, run by the Ruth Buggs (Kristin Wigg) and her father (John Carroll Lynch), two extremely religious individuals, who accidently see Paul and proclaim him a demon. The men make a quick escape and Ruth is taken along for the ride. Now they must continue their escape from the hillbillies, the government, and evade Ruth’s father, who are hot on their trail.

This film exceeded all expectations and really allowed for each of these talented actors to have a moment to shine. Simon and Nick did an outstanding job as the two leading men, and really got to play up their geeky nature and portray geeks into a positive light. Jason Bateman playing Paul’s pursuer was an interesting change of pace for the actor, who got to break away from his stereotypical roles and do something a bit more developed. Kristin Wigg was the biggest surprise in Paul, as she was able to portray a character that was very different than the same three characters that she plays weekly on Saturday Night Live. Seth Rogan did a fantastic job as Paul, providing the character with a depth and geniune feel that allowed the audience to truly connect with this CGI character.

I think that audiences typically connect with a movie more easily when the cast and crew truly enjoy the product that they are making, and Paul is certainly no exception to this idea. It was obvious that every person involved in this film had a fantastic time making it. There is a certain dedication that comes across in a collaberative comedy like this, and with so many recognizable actors involved, it can be easy to lose sight of the goal of the film and just rely strictly on cameos for humorous moments, but Paul exceeds in creating a lovable, vulgar, and entertaining comedic adventure that will easily become a favorite for our generation along with Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz.

ComicsOnline gives Paul 5 out of 5 pop culture driven films.

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