I remember quite vividly seeing an absolute shit ton of adverts for 'The Night Before' (2015) before its release. It didn't look a bad film at all, but I'll tell you what it did look like. Another Seth Rogen comedy. The same stoner humour that he pumps out in prolific fashion. I am not opposed to these films, even if they are very hit and miss. I also can't think of a single one that I love. So my expectations for this lay somewhere between it being okay and terrible. My expectations were met, with the film landing firmly within the okay pile. It follows the trend of Seth Rogen films as I expected. The film follows three best friends, Ethan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Isaac (Seth Rogen) and Chris (Anthony Mackie), who have spent Christmas Eve together every year since Ethan's parents were killed. On the first day of that newfound Christmas tradition they hear about the infamous Nutcracker Ball, a drug and alcohol fuelled Christmas Eve party which you need a special invite in order to attend, and spend years trying to find the party. With Chris becoming a famous American Footballer and Isaac close to becoming a father, the three decide that the Christmas of 2015 will be their last celebration of the long standing tradition, and when Ethan steals three tickets for the Nutcracker Ball it becomes the most intense and important one yet.
The plot of this film is a very loose one, as is the case in a lot of comedies like this one. It has a plot basically because it needs one in order for it to be a classic Hollywood film. But it is effectively there to give the film a structure for the jokes to bounce off of. It is a film that is a long series of comedic episodes rather than a flowing and arching story. As a result of this, a lot of the relationships between characters seem rushed and don't have a satisfying conclusion when the film comes to its end. This isn't necessarily a bad thing if the jokes land, and this film has a decent ratio of jokes landing to not landing. The film mostly relies on Seth Rogen acting extremely high throughout, which does allow for some sequences of genuinely creative and funny absurdist and, often, surrealist comedy. These moments are probably the most enjoyable in the film. That or the church scene. It is a scene that if you have seen the trailer for the film you will be extremely familiar with as it was plastered all over the marketing. It is clear why when you see the film as it is the funniest sequence. However, the film is not funny enough to make up for the weaknesses in the plot that I have previously mentioned. This is especially disappointing as the message of the film is actually a really good one. The film is about making an effort to stick by those close to you through good and bad and the difficulties of adult life. However, the focus on the jokes means that the meaning is quite often lost. The film is also quite often just dumb, and not a good kind of dumb. This is most clearly seen with the cameos. Miley Cyrus for reasons of we could get her I guess. And worst of all, James Franco being obnoxious and taking up screen time for no reason. Well, the reason is that he and Seth Rogen are good friends, but his appearance adds nothing to the film, especially no comedic value at least. This is often a problem of these types of comedies and this one does not avoid the trap.
Performance wise you get what you expect mostly. All three of the main characters put in good comedic performances. Anthony Mackie, who I have seen very little of outside of Marvel films, does a good job portraying an American Footballer consumed by new found fame and has surprisingly good comedic time. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is an actor whose work I really enjoy and he is also very good in this film. He manages to be comedic while also showing genuine emotion when he is called upon. Seth Rogen is Seth Rogen. There is very little to say. He is good at playing himself, but he is just playing himself. All three actors also share great chemistry which makes the jokes work much better and allows you to bevel in the relationships between the characters. The best performance comes is a surprising one. Not because the actor is a bad one, but just because I had no idea he was in this film and his casting is spot on. That performance comes from Michael Shannon as Mr. Green, a drug dealer who the three main characters have been going to since they were teenagers. Shannon style of intense acting is brilliant for the role. His line delivery and dead pan expression along with a brilliantly written character go hand in hand to give the best performance and best scenes within the film. The character is also much more important to the film then first appears. I won't spoil it, but I will just say the reveal is fucking bonkers.
This film was about as good as I expected it to be. The humour was spot on what I knew it would be going on, and despite it not being the greatest comedy you'll ever see it does have enough solid jokes that it isn't a waste of time. The plot is a weak one and the strong message of the film does get lost in the shuffle a little bit which does mean a lot of the emotion that could be have been there is also lacking. But three good performances, complemented by very good chemistry between them, allows a lot of the comedy to flow better than it would with weaker performances and make the film an enjoyable one. I would recommend this one if you're looking for a classic Seth Rogen style comedy around the Christmas period. If that is the specific itch you're looking to scratch you won't get betther than this classic Seth Rogen style comedy Christmas film. Obviously.