Your Highness

So let me tell you what I wasn't going to pass up; seeing Natalie Portman - Oscar winning Best Actress - in a straight up stoner movie. Where else would this ever happen besides Hollywood? I went and saw this in the theater. Surprisingly, it opened up only in the 6th spot and has brought in a meager $16 million which is only a small fraction of it's almost $50 million budget.

The movie stars Danny McBride (co-writer), James Franco, Zooey Deschanel, and Natalie Portman in a period piece farce about kings and wizards. Franco sets out on a quest with his brother, McBride, to save his bride-to-be, Deschanel, from an evil wizard. Along the way, they meet Portman who's on a similar quest.

Now, obviously the plot is a parody. Think Robin Hood: Men in Tights. The dialogue was pretty amusing, with most of the humor coming from random f-bombs thrown into the dialogue. There was some situational and a lot of physical comedy thrown in there as well. It's interesting to note that most of the dialogue was improvised from the actors and that they didn't even have a script on set with them. The plot is no Monty Python or Men in Tights, but it's headed in the right direction. There was one plot element (think inappropriate necklace) that I personally could've done without. But luckily, there wasn't really any extremely over-the-top gross out moments which seem to be a pre-requisite for these types of rated R comedies nowadays - although there could be an argument made that the necklace element and even the wise creature scene were almost there.

The sets were on par with similar parodies of this time period. The film was nice clear quality. The score, contemporary.

So if these four mega-actors were not in this movie, I would have not gone to see this movie. In the end, they are what make the movie humorous. Especially the caliber of these actors doing this type of movie is just humorous in itself. They took their roles just seriously enough to be funny. Props to each of them to be able to let go and have a good time.

Overall, I don't think it's on the level with Monty Python or Men in Tights, but it wasn't a waste of time either. It was fairly humorous throughout and I was entertained for that two hour period I spent with this movie. It was nice to see good actors such as these just through caution to the wind and do a fun movie. I'd like to see more actors doing this, so I'd like to recommend people to go see this in the theater to get the numbers up. But honestly, this will probably make a better rental movie for those who enjoy this type of genre. Now, if you know right off that you do not like these types of rated R parodies, then don't see it. "What a coincidence, I was just about to finish thinking of you" -- Your Highness.