Review: Andy Samberg Spoofs Pop Stars Without Spite. And That’s 4 Real.

My favorite movie of the past decade. It is brilliant and hilarious. Have watched it many times and listened to the soundtrack album hundreds of times. Was in tears from laughing on multiple occasions the first time I saw it.

Somebody please figure out that Andy Samberg is not a movie star.

I appreciate this review. I've always liked Andy Samberg's SNL shorts. I probably won't see this at the theater but reading this means I know it'll be good for us to watch on Netflix/Amazon/Hulu whenever it shows up and won't be a waste of time, which is all I ask of a movie review.

I also appreciate the NYT reviewers reviewing movies of all genres and for all ages and tastes. Like the movie "The Fits" sounds interesting to me and I'll look for it on streaming later - but I never would have heard of it if I hadn't read the review of that this week. If you readers don't want to see this Samberg pop parody movie? Maybe watch another movie instead of kvetching in comments about a movie you'll never think about again after you press Submit? Just a thought!

As two very astute readers wrote on the hysterical Magazine article comments about Snapchat last week (I just read and rec'd; didn't comment): "One thing this article showed me is, old people don't know how to use snapchat but they sure know how to use the NYT comment section."

and

"People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along?"

I want to see Samberg, Timberlake, and, say, Beyoncé, remake to the Crosby/Hope Road movies. Make it so.

The genius of Samberg and Co is not the general goofiness, but the preciseness of the jokes--especially the lyrics of the songs they create. In my opinion, "Never Stop Never Stopping" is genius-level wordplay because it's a hall of mirrors reflection of a a near-universal trope of the genre.

"Mr. Taccone and Mr. Schaffer seem to have long since made their peace with being the less charismatic members of the outfit, but they are also quick and clever ensemble players. They also share the directing credit."

I wonder if Scott had a chance to read the big feature on Lonely island in this week's New York magazine.. Schaffer is the director and editor of the group. They all (very much including Samberg) agree that Schaffer's editing, especially his sense of comic timing, is the real reason that Lonely Island's digital shorts work so well.

"But the Lonely Island does not traffic in trenchant topical satire. Not on purpose, anyway."

Well, except for "Iran So Far."

I haven't seen the film yet but I appreciate its take on the biggest hit "Humble" -- it's always a little disturbing to see an artist and the PR team around the artist constantly promoting the importance of "staying humble" and "down to earth" in order to "handle the fame," all the while raking in millions of dollars from teens and the teen-minded who idolize them enough to believe it. The very idea of being a popstar/diva and being "humble" are pretty much mutually exclusive, no matter how well the contrary is marketed, especially in a time when a performer's personality and lifestyle tend to overrule any mediocrity or lack of actual talent. Any person who has been made into a brand cannot possibly be lacking an above-average sense of self-importance.

Andy Samberg starring in [7 Days In Hell] is funnier than anything and everything that Adam Sandler has ever done, or will do.

I think that is important to note...

Dunno about the movie but the SNL Digital Short "$%^& me like the US military %^&$#$ Bin Laden"was brilliant!

Andy does great digital shorts. Was glad to see one on the season final of SNL. They are the bomb!

"...sends up everyone from Justin Bieber to Justin Timberlake..."

LOL. Does Mr. Scott really think there is some great chasm between those two?

Sorry, I'm too old.

Watched the trailer, pretty much saw the whole movie..

"It’s a celebration of the curious authenticity — the innocence, the sweetness, the guiltless pleasure — of music whose badness is sometimes hard to separate from its genius.' Nice to sometimes be reminded how good a critic Mr. Scott can be when he's not strangling himself in political correctness.
BTW NYT, how about giving J. Hoberman, a great film writer, the chance to write more than just DVD reviews? His refreshing critical approach to films as works of art, as opposed to the obsessive way your senior reviewers seem to see every movie according to how they fit (or not) into their personal political posturing, would be so welcome in these pages.

'“Popstar” takes aim at everything that is artificial and plastic in contemporary pop in a spirit of love rather than spite. It’s a celebration of the curious authenticity — the innocence, the sweetness, the guiltless pleasure — of music whose badness is sometimes hard to separate from its genius.' YIKES.

Samberg has to be a cousin of Alfred E. Neuman.