Who doesn’t love a culture clash comedy, especially when the two cultures clashing consist of lurid fluorescent shot glasses, self-made dildos and violent strobe lighting going up against punishingly high mortgages, breast pumps, spreadsheets and spreading bellies? It’s hardly original but Bad Neighbours proves to be a generally amusing frat boy/stoner/coming of age mash up that rides on some inspired physical comedy and an affectionate rapport between Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne.
The plot throws in a few themes to chew on but complexity is not the goal. It centres on Mac (Rogen) and Kelly Radner (Byrne), new parents who have purchased their first house. All looks rosy until a frat house led by a mostly shirtless Zac Efron as Teddy and Dave Franco’s second in command Pete move in next door. After an initial welcoming party, a refusal to turn down the sound escalates into a full blown war that sees increasingly dangerous practical jokes and underhand tactics employed by both sides to try and force the other into submission.
As both warring camps ramp up the conflict, life lessons abound. There’s so much coming of age it’s hard to keep track. Mac and Kelly don’t want to lose their youth, their friends Jimmy (Ike Barinholtz) and Paula (Carlo Gallo) are re-finding their passion, and the frat boys are finally facing the adult world. If director Nicholas Stoller would just allow us to watch all of this, it might be manageable. Instead, everyone has to launch into a little monologue about where they are now and where they should be heading. There are occasions when the monologues are punctured by an unexpected joke, a clear sign that Bad Neighbours knows it’s sailing a little too close to the wind when it comes to earnestness, but these are few and far between.
Thankfully, laughs are also available. Rogen and Byrne lie at the heart of much of this. They’re a wonderful cross between passionate young lovers, new parents and college roommates, sharing as many jokes as they do tender moments. Their banter alone carries large sections of the film. On top of this, there are several examples of superbly staged physical comedy, a final fight between Rogen and Efron that includes the use of dildos as swords the highlight.
These funny antics paper over the often tedious frat house. Underdeveloped characters and unbearably loud and clichéd behaviour combine in a blur of drugs, drink, partying and general debauchery based on what people think college life is like. Maybe they could get away with it if a couple of jokes worked but they don’t. Instead, it becomes a slightly unpleasant bore until we can get back to Rogen and Byrne.
Hampered by the dull college guys from hell and their dreary frat house, more time spent writing jokes and less spent on slight sub-stories, leering shots of young women and excuses to take Efron’s top off would have improved the film considerably. In the end though, Bad Neighbours battles through on the back of Rogen and Byrne’s efforts to reach a satisfyingly amusing conclusion.
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Writers: Andrew J. Cohen, Brendan O’Brien
Stars: Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, Zac Efron
Runtime: 96 min
Country: USA
Film Rating: 
