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Observe and Report
2009
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claustrophobic
interesting
serious
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33 %
50 %
Rotten
$ 26 Million
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Observe and Report
Positive Reviews
88
Negative reviews
57
Average Rating
2.9
/5
disturbing
claustrophobic
interesting
serious
All
Positive
Negative
2.0
But as a whole, Observe And Report is indigestible, torn apart by the same mass of contradictions that give it distinction.
Av Club
1.5
Advertisement Not since Paul Thomas Andersons Punch Drunk Love has a studio comedy so willfully punctuated fantasy with shocking violence.
Av Club
3.0
The result is a crazy mosaic of Americana with tiles scattered and missing.Need I observe and report that the view isnt for every taste
EW
3.3
Bracing, bleak and berserk, this is a film which laughs in the face of American intolerance, and comes up punch drunk and grinning.
Time Out
3.8
Hills predilection for wrenching humor from ugliness can, on the surface, occasionally seem shocking simply for the sake of being shocking.
1.5
Given that the ordinarily likable Seth Rogen is portraying a delusional, violent, sexist, racist, homophobic mall cop with a bipolar disorder, theres ..
3.0
While the premise has merit, Hills central story about the two mall mysteries isnt very interesting.
Screen Daily
2.0
Hills uninventive visual style further removes any possibility of surprise or ingenuity with its rote shot/reverse shot gambit.
1.5
Why Cybill Shepherds character is dumb enough to walk into a porn theater with Bickle is anyones guess, and thats partly why I prefer Scorseses King o ..
Paste Magazine
4.0
Hill pushes his characters right to the edge of horribleness while keeping them brutally funny.
E Film Critic
4.4
One of the ballsier comedies to come from a big studio in some time thats likely going to tear at audiences expectations but, hopefully, will have the ..
E Film Critic
5.0
It is so good and funny that as far as I am concerned, Jody Hill has officially been forgiven for The Foot Fist Way.
E Film Critic
1.0
Plenty of slapstick carnage ensues, along with a level of tonal confusion that verges on the bi polar.
Telegraph
3.8
The movie never gets sentimental.Its as harsh and nasty as comedy can be, and if anything, it gets ruder and more outlandish as it goes along.
San Francisco Chronicle
3.0
An odd one. Rogens latest clown is an angry, confused man who you never feel entirely comfortable laughing at. There are laughs youll just feel guilty ..
4.0
The films similarities being and end with their protagonists professions.Observe and Report isnt even really a comedy, though it contains many funny m ..
Cinema Blend
3.5
But its for the best because as this funny, violent and refreshingly offbeat dark comedy goes on, it is, as Travis might say, a rain that washes most ..
Ny Daily News
3.8
steals almost every scene she is in, even when she is passed out drunk on the floor.
JoBlo
3.0
Consider Observe and Report as spiritual exercise for your heart.
Spirituality And Practice
3.0
Its Paul Blart with a nasty streak, a perverse kind of farce that most people will be more likely to recoil from than to laugh at.
One Guys Opinion
1.5
Ronnie the Mall Cop is as an iconic expression of irate proletarian populism and brainless role playing as Joe the Plumber or Rush the Limbaugh identi ..
Village Voice
2.0
But when it wrestles with its conscience and tries to come up with something relevant to say, it gets slapped down for trying to be something its nota ..
Sover
3.8
Those looking for copious laugh out loud moments may be disappointed by what Observe and Report has to offer.
ReelViews
3.0
One minute, hes blissfully overconfident, the next, hes suffering the unsettling effects of what is clearly actual mental illness.
Tv Guide
3.8
Director Jody Hill (The Foot Fist Way) punctuates all this with a steady stream of aggressive pop tunes; the film sometimes seems like a random collec ..
Combust Ible Celluloid
2.0
Hill even borrows a raffle car escape sequence from Nobel Son, a film no one should be looking to for inspiration.It should also be noted that Seth Ro ..
3.1
When Observe and Report is funny, its often shockingly so. The characters can be nasty or self absorbed, yet they still have a whiff of sweetness.
Usa Today
2.0
The film suffers from bad timing in its recurring theme of gun humor.
Lariat
2.0
This is a fascinatingly bizarre dark comedy, an abrasive and occasionally mean spirited tale that succeeds by being completely committed to its ideas.
Eric Ds Nider
1.5
Instead of something clever or witty, Hill fills the script with meaningless vulgarity and cheap shot dialog.
Shadows On The Wall
1.5
Observe and Report proposes that a man who feels worthless is capable of a violent rage. If this sounds edgy, its not.
Pop Matters
3.5
The Nature of Imitation is the sound of Dorian Concept systematically deconstructing various genres, stripping them back to the bones underneath and t ..
Pop Matters
2.0
Observe and Report desperately wants to be Bad Santa, but its handful of decent moments fail to compensate for a wildly uneven tone, several badly mis ..
View London
3.1
Newsday reveals the All LI teams for the fall 2018 season in nine sports Over 24,000 employees at 116 LI companies were polled on what makes their emp ..
News Day
2.0
Its just that Observe and Report is a lot better when its being funny than when its rummaging in the shadows.
Cs Monitor
3.8
As the comedy ventures into territory involving serious use of deadly force, you wonder just how far Hill and Rogen who, unlike many comics, does not ..
New York Post
3.5
You have to respect Hills willingness to continually go to any length without so much as a flinch to get a laugh. But that doesnt mean youll continual ..
Az Central
3.1
But this new movie is crazier, scarier, funnier, and more bewildering.
Boston
2.0
Much of the movie is just plain vicious. At best, its sad and grotesque, rather than hilarious.
Smh
2.5
That playlist proves that Observe and Report was shaped by a hip sensibility.
Npr
3.8
Writer/director Jody Hill knows that disgusting and hilarious can be two sides of a very thin coin.
Star Tribune
1.5
Its almost as if the movie doesnt realize that it keeps verging on the darkest kind of satire rather than merely deploying apparent stupidity for its ..
1.9
Even the films archly ironic title cant match the direct appeal of its predecessor.
Toronto Star
3.0
Jody Hill claims he was inspired by Scorseses Taxi Driver (you can add King of Comedy) but his comedy tries too hard to be edgy, dark, change the defi ..
Emanuellevy
1.0
Im all for bad taste and black comedy and grossout.But it has to be funny.
Guardian
4.0
Hes the best thing about Monsters Vs.Aliens and his fascinating performance in Observe and Report should earn him many new fans.
Reel Talk Reviews
2.5
A lot of the beats are a bit too familiar from previous entries in the series, which isnt surprising given that this is the fifth film to play off the ..
Q Network
1.5
Observe and Report tickets should come with a free breath mint, because however hard youve been laughing, that ending leaves a seriously bad taste in ..
Slate
1.0
This is indicative of the tone of this downright dumb film that is so low brow its audience will attempt to yawn a lot, but forget how.
5.0
It refuses to compromise and, instead, punches you repeatedly in the face and asks, Isnt this hilarious.In other words, its the best comedy of the yea ..
Movies
3.5
In most guy oriented comedies, originality is the merest wrinkle.
Time
2.0
A weirdly timely, pitch black comedy about America the Insanely Angry.
Boston Herald
4.0
Russell Crowe Lets hope not as State Of Play is a good, old fashioned thriller.
Express
4.4
Thats probably just as well, since tonally that rather jovial romp didnt match the self important pretensions and delusions of actual dramatic weight ..
Mr Brown Movies
3.8
Above all, writer director Jody Hill, finding laughs in the perverse and surprising breaths of drama in its starkness, is a filmmaking talent to watch ..
The Movie Boy
3.0
Both movies deal with the darkly comical psychosis of one mans aspirations to become something more, but Observe and Report falls well short of attain ..
Bullz-Eye
2.0
If, however, you prefer your dark comedy to leaven the dark with a bit more actual comedy, you may find Observe And Report unfocused, puerile and ever ..
Total Film
2.0
Movies offer us wildly divergent stories with vivid, close up emotions, and so did the six fimmakers we invited to take part in the Envelope Directors ..
Calendar Live
3.0
Its hilarious in parts but the overall tone is wildly uneven and not totally satisfying.
Hollywood
2.0
The audience is continuously kept off balance by Jody Hills unconventional use of slapstick humor offset by straight to the heart dialogue and over th ..
Coles Mithey
1.5
Rogen proves hes capable of carrying a modest comedy like this one on his shoulders, and though Ronnie isnt the most readily likable character hes pla ..
Pajiba
2.5
Everything feels plastic and false, the tone shifting so frequently that the farce, satire and simplistic Sandler style dumb comedy dont ever coalesce ..
Movie Freak
3.5
There are enough laughs to make it worthwhile, though not enough to make it unforgettable.
3.1
The film finally arrives at a jaw dropping climax that delivers big laughs that catch in the throat.
Groucho Reviews
4.5
Benedict Cumberbatch Wants You To Know He *Is* The Motherf*cking Grinch The Grinch star takes Mike Ryan through the final scenes of Avengers: Infinity ..
Hit Fix
4.5
Just because hes sad and pathetic, that doesnt mean Ronnie isnt a potential psychopath.
Cnn
3.1
It may amuse Moron Movie fans, and startle some rude laughs out of others.
Nj
1.0
I like a good dysfunctional comedy, but this sort of this just left a bad taste in my mouth.
7M Pictures
3.0
That story synopsis could easily describe a pitch black indie drama instead of a pitch black low budget comedy.
Oregon Live
1.5
If it were funnier or remotely well made, you could take the beat down in stride, but writer/director Jody Hill has located the dark and mislaid the c ..
Boxoffice Magazine
2.0
But Hill cant seem to figure how to make a comedy from such a heartbreaking character.
E Online
3.0
Ronnie is not just another lovable stoner, hes more of a tortured and tragic figure.
Film School Rejects
4.0
Its a brutally unexpected twist on lighthearted comedy, substituting typical risqu humor with raucous coarseness and hallucinogenic morbidity.
4.0
The verdict This dark and bleak comedy is an oddball affair, with Seth Rogen brilliant as a bipolar guard.
Mirror
2.0
If this were an audition reel and I was the head of a studio Id call security to make sure this guy Seth Rogen and his writer director Jody Hill never ..
Varia Gate
1.0
Dark, subversive and politically incorrect humour can be brilliant in capable hands and with the right purpose (like the wonderful South Park), but he ..
Digital Spy
1.0
The hideous thing is that the film is modelling behaviour for young men who might still think its all hilarious.
Abc
4.5
Like being ordered to have long hair and smile on stage, but wondering how to smile with a trombone in your mouth.Or repeatedly told youre not good en ..
News Blaze
0.0
Unfortunately, despite pushing the envelope, the film breaks a cardinal rule of comedy by failing to be funny.
News Blaze
3.8
Maybe were also laughing at ourselves for so willingly being sucked in.The film is very good at what it sets out to do make us giggle, but I guess tha ..
Ross Anthony
1.5
Hills script finds every harsh edge in the material and sharpens it.
Hollywood And Fine
4.0
The new Toby has all the old Tobys memories, but he doesnt know hes a robot.
Killer Movie Reviews
2.0
While claustrophobic and defiantly specialized, Observe is heavy with brutal slapstick and broad humor to keep the laughs coming.Rogens deliriously co ..
Brian Or Ndorf
4.4
What distinguishes greatness is that some people arent bound for it.
The Filmy Ap
3.5
Ronnie may very well be the most appalling and wicked comedy protagonist ever... does not particularly care about being liked, and its surely not to a ..
Antagony & Ecstasy
3.1
Rogens Ronnie is quite disturbing and, while its often played for laughs, one cant help but be grateful that Hill doesnt give the film any artificial ..
3.0
Anyone looking for an imaginative plot with believable situations filled with warmth and humor should look elsewhere.
Nyc Movie Guru
0.6
Its an uneasiness that makes you wish you werent watching Observe and Report because these people are despicable and desperately need psychological co ..
Waffle Movies
3.1
In the end, the filmmakers pull off a rare thing: ending the moving exactly the way it should while still giving us the ending that we want.
Movie Crypt
4.0
Theres nothing cute or predictable about Observe and Report. And thats precisely why it works.
Hollywood Chicago
3.8
Fueled by the same kind of obsessive and unhealthy impulses as Martin Scorseses masterpiece and nearly as willing to alienate viewers with uncomfortab ..
Montreal Film Journal
4.0
Offbeat and violent with laughs that frequently stick in the throat, this isnt Knocked Up but if the idea of Napoleon Dynamite meets First Blood appea ..
Sky
3.0
This weeks TLS October 12, 2018 Visions of modern India; the Odyssey in reception, translation and imagination; what German nationalism did to the ide ..
Entertainment Times Online ..
2.0
This weeks TLS October 12, 2018 Visions of modern India; the Odyssey in reception, translation and imagination; what German nationalism did to the ide ..
Entertainment Times Online ..
2.5
Ronnies pretty abusive himself, for that matter.Written and directed by Jody Hill (The Foot Fist Way, a nasty semi hoot), Observe is a schlubby mall f ..
Chron
3.0
Interesting and disturbing, its one most will love or loathe probably the latter.
Metro
3.1
Observe and Report is refreshing and frustrating in equal measure.
Scene Stealers
4.5
Rogen and writer director Jody Hill wring out of it a scary funny character study about a warped man and his twisted sense of what it means to be a he ..
Or Lando Weekly
4.0
Jody Hill proves to be one of the most exciting filmmakers of the moment.
Streaming Quickflix
1.5
Ive observed this Seth Rogen comedy, and I can report that its not very good.
Chicago Reader
2.5
How much youre entertained will likely depend on your own taste as well as your appreciation for Hills subversion of feel good Hollywood norms.
Jam! Movies
4.0
One of the things that makes Observe and Report so funny is the unexpected savagery with which the filmmakers make fun of Ronnies world and everyone i ..
East Bay Express
3.0
The rest of the film is hit and miss, but it never loses your attention.
From The Balcony
3.0
If writer director Jody Hill provides Rogen with pretty slim opportunities, the biggish man remains a gloriously robust talent. Heck, hes even able to ..
Film4
2.0
...gets increasingly bleak and ludicrous as it goes along, until it ends on a sentimental yet still rude and vulgar note. The movie is relentless.
Movie Metropolis
5.0
Observe and Report is the rare action comedy (almost always a muddled hybrid) that earns its cathartic climax.
Ny Mag
3.5
And though the final reckoning does smack a little of pandering, and its often too bizarre for words, youve got to admire its moxie.
Future Movies
3.5
Paul Blart: Mall Cop is TV squeaky clean. Observe and Report. has four letter words, raunchy dialogue, drug use and female and male nudity. It is also ..
Tri City Herald
3.8
If you laugh at all which I admittedly did it is sometimes laughing at the political/social incorrectness of , and sometimes laughing at the sheer aud ..
Aisle Seat
3.8
But its worth your while to make the adjustment, because in lieu of cheap laughs the film offers the deeper insight of anarchic hilarity.
Boston Phoenix
2.5
I just think it could have gone further, which is to say Im so desensitized to violence that beating up children and vandalizing public spaces feels t ..
Can Mag
3.0
But in its own demented Pineapple Foot Fist Four Letter Word Way, Observe and Report delivers a cynical, angry and funny take on a life of loud, viole ..
Orlando Sentinel
1.5
While claustrophobic and defiantly specialized, Observe is heavy with brutal slapstick and broad humor to keep the laughs coming.
Dark Horizons
3.0
Writer director Jody Hill is obviously trying to accomplish something here. But just what is none too clear.
Detroit News
3.0
If you feel uncomfortable with the films mixture of comedy and violence, thats all to the good: director Jody Hill pushes the envelope in this often r ..
Compuserve
2.0
Observe and Report wants very desperately to be a dark comedy. But it doesnt quite get there, as its not funny enough to hit the comedy dismount and n ..
Film.com
4.0
Ive never understood the appeal, though Observe and Report at least becomes marginally interesting by insisting on its stars unlikability.
Cine Passion
4.0
Its a film made with the naughty rush of kids getting away with something crazy behind their parents backs.
Metromix.com
5.0
The article requested cannot be found!.Please refresh your browser or go back.
Ny Press
1.5
This is downright scary in the context of all the recent killing sprees around the country, but some out there might nevertheless find it hilarious.
Critics Notebook
3.0
A romantic zombie comedy that tips its hat to George Romero and mines one very funny spoof that doesnt ignore the rules of the zombie horror genre tho ..
Week In Rewind
2.5
Maybe you thought you were going to see a thriller and got pulled into a love story instead
Crazed Fan Boy
4.5
Hill and Rogen made precisely the strange little comedy that they wanted to. Trust me when I say that this is NOT your typical studio farce, and thats ..
Cinematical
2.0
In the attempt to go dark, writer/director Jody Hill loaded on vile, tasteless moments all aimed to shock the audience with their supposed edge and po ..
The Diva Review
2.0
I have no affection for this movie but I have to admit to a grudging admiration for its willingness to be awkward, intrusive, and disturbing.
Movie Mom
3.5
Its not that this is a bad film; its just a boring and completely uninspired one.
Kc Active
3.8
Its a comedy with a foot on the neck of the Zeitgeist, and its this pressure on our trachea that crushes the laughter in our throats.
Gomemphis
1.0
Walking out of Observe and Report, I was torn between categorical loathing and perverse admiration.
Brandon Fibbs
2.1
Observe and Report is one of those films that leaves you feeling confused about what you just watched. Luckily the last five minutes make up for the r ..
2.0
Imagine Taxi Driver or The King of Comedy if everyone in sight had been written and performed as a maladjusted loser.
Deep Focus
5.0
Things go from bad to worse to violent and yet as in Pineapple Express, which also starred Rogen the film never stops being funny, even though youll f ..
MSNBC
4.4
Detective Harrison (Ray Liotta) doesnt think too much of Ronnie, and vice versa.
Washington Times
5.0
Perfect; its dark and strange and dances right on the edge of being completely mean and unfriendly, but manages to keep from tumbling over. Its f***in ..
Chud
2.0
The movie is simply not credible; it comes off as hard core smarty pants sketch comedy.In subverting the rom com formula, the filmmaker ends up with a ..
Ma Cleans
1.0
This mall cop makes Paul Blart look good, and thats not saying much.
Jo Reviews
2.5
Observe and Report is bold, raw and uncompromising. Its also an unqualified mess.
Washington Times
1.9
Oh, and Ronnie finally gets the chance to whip out his big gun.Dark comedy can be bracing stuff.
Jackson Ville
3.5
But both films play shamelessly to their core audiences if Observe is purposely over the top in its bad taste (and boy is it ever) then Paris 36 is ju ..
Knight At The Movies
2.0
Having observed Seth Rogens latest comedy, may I report that its not very good. And if that seems like a tedious pun (even by my standards), thats bec ..
Daily Mirror (UK)
2.0
Soon, Rogen will muscle up into the role he really wants: Rambo. That explains the shoot em up climax of Pineapple Express, an unfunny joke now stretc ..
Ie Weekly
4.0
Offers a surprising journey if youre prepared to ride along with Ronnie, his security cart, and his attitude.
Courier Mail (Australia)
2.5
All of this would be forgiven if the movie were funny or edgy or bold or anything worth the bother.
Sea Coast Online
5.0
This is one of the best comedies of the decade, and I suggest you check it out immediately just dont take your grandmother.
The Crat
2.5
I am all for perverse and dark comedy, but is it too much to ask for it to actually be consistently funny
Wd Times
1.5
he upbeat ending which comes on the heels of a genuinely shocking climax is so incongruous that, as with The King of Comedy, it almost seems were bein ..
Tnr
3.0
Comparisons to the similarly set and massively popular Paul Blart: Mall Cop will inevitably pop up, but where the Kevin James comedy played things bro ..
Ask Men
3.0
Far from being another lazy comedy about a fat rentacop trying to prove himself, Observe and Report is an extremely disturbing comedy about a fat rent ..
2.5
Not thatplays as a lament.Writer/director Greg Mottolas third feature is more emotionally rich than hisand, but its still more interested in the comed ..
Stop Smiling Online
2.5
Observe and Report feels more like a series of not quite successful skits thrown together than a movie with a script.
Miami Herald
4.0
A dark, daring and very funny R rated comedy that wears its penchant for bad taste like a badge of honor.
Movie Mantz
1.5
In other words, if Paul Blart were a monthly comic, and Alan Moore took over the writing, this might be the result.
LYTRules.com
3.0
You will laugh not hard, but frequently and sometimes thats enough.
Ign
3.8
Reminded me of the work of Paul Thomas Anderson and Quentin Tarantino.
1.3
The comedy isnt funny enough and the black comic edge isnt nearly nasty enough.
Ac Weekly
2.0
That really is the joke.The movie can act as dark as it wants to, and look as fine, and throw weird curveballs at you when youre least expecting it, b ..
Leitch Tumblr
3.1
If you would have told me that Kevin James and Seth Rogen would basically make the same movie and both would have come out the same, I wouldnt have be ..
1.5
Maybe Observe and Report is a dumb, stupid movie and thats the end of it.
Daily Gazette
2.5
The final confrontation with one of the mall criminals will get a big laugh, but may leave you a little embarrassed that you did laugh.
Telegram
2.5
You can cheer on Paul Blart, something impossible in Observe and Report, which is much darker. It does have some occasional funny moments, but they do ..
Sean the Movie Guy
See Where to Watch
Observe and Report