MovieChat Forums > American Ultra (2015) Discussion > This isn't a comedy, it's great, but it'...

This isn't a comedy, it's great, but it's not a comedy

posted 9 years ago by eched
9 replies | jump to latest

My dad and I just saw this. We laughed twice. This isn't a comedy. There wasn't a single joke in the entire film. It was sold as a comedy, I don't know why. This ACTUALLY felt like a super, gritty, dark and grizzly hard R action movie like Terminator, Predator or The Raid, only a lot more character driven(which did slow the film down at times, but it was ok). It's actually one of the more gritty action films I've seen in years.

As for people saying it's funny cause it has a stoner in it? Huh? A guy does drugs, yes, that's actually not a joke in of itself. Actually, it was a plot point. They flat out said they made him a low life, drug user, so he would be easier to handle and less of a danger, which oddly does make a lot of sense in the world of the film. So ya, that's not even supposed to be funny.

I just liked it for it being a good, gritty, old school action movie. It was a darn good one.

Killing must feel good to God too, he does it all the time, and are we not created in his image?

[–] bruce08 9 years ago

I loved it. My only complaint is that it's a little on the short side, and after a second viewing the film seems to rush it's ending once you know what is going to happen, and some of Mike's action scenes seem a bit short. I rented it from redbox, and then a few days later my girlfriend bought me the bluray so maybe this is due to repeat viewings after such a short amount of time.

[–] JahWoo 9 years ago

There were in fact multiple "jokes" in the film. Humor is subjective and you and your dad only laughing twice doesntt dictate what is or isn't comedy and/or a comedy. #Cheers

[–] dbre 9 years ago

I think they wanted it to be a comedy and they had some genuinely funny scenes but it wasn't primary a comedy. At least not from my perspective

[–] wyldeone2 9 years ago

I think the word comedy is added to the genre of many films in order to make it appear in search results. Movies that aren't very good in their primary genre.

I agree that humor is subjective. I watched this movie for free twice on YT over the weekend and didn't laugh at any of the lines. However, the entire premise of a CIA agent being a young stoner is hilarious or an absurd fantasy. It is not meant to be believable.

When did Mike take all of this training he doesn't remember doing? He just went to Langley and knocked on the door and volunteered, right? Told the receptionist he wanted to be like Jason Bourne and be able to defeat a Terminator. They said sure pal come on in, we got an extra $400 million to spend on you. They waived the superior educational and/or ex-military service requirements. Then he went back to West Virginia to go under cover as a quick mart employee to wait for his first assignment while cartooning and staying buzzed with his girl friend.

I did like the psychedelic emporium part of their LSD trip. I do think that a bullet would crack a cast iron skillet in two as opposed to doing a ricochet.That scene may have been meant to be funny. The multiple other movie scene references may have been meant to be funny as in a spoof.
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Books and movies are usually better than real life.

[–] lethalblonde 9 years ago

... the entire premise of how he ended up in the program was explained by Lasseter WITHIN the film... He's not in WV undercover--they dumped him there after screwing with him enough to make him forget the whole thing.

Never settle with words what you can accomplish with a flamethrower.

[–] wyldeone2 9 years ago

I do not recall Lasseter explaining how or why Mike was chosen or the reasons he was qualified to be trained and thus have $400 million spent on just him. I do recall her telling Yates that he was about to destroy a $400 million toy. I did understand that she had the ability to activate him as a Manchurian Candidate.

That is why I went back and watched it a 2nd time the next day, in order to see if I could understand the vague parts better. The John Leguizamo character was one of them.

At the start of the film, Mike said that it all started in Liman, West Virginia. To me that meant this is all a "lie man", so don't believe any of it. On other threads on this board some have said this reminded them of the film Pineapple Express. I have not seen Pineapple but did see Inherent Vice which is another film where a heavy stoner does impossible or unbelievable things.

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Books and movies are usually better than real life.

[–] JameGumbisSilent 8 years ago

Liman, as in Doug Liman, the director of the Bourne movies. Pretty sure that's an in-joke / homage.
Lassiter did explain he was one of a group of 3 strikes people who were given a choice to join the program or go to jail.

it rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again

[–] activista 9 years ago

The film actually is a comedy---a bunch of things that are done in it are funny, like the arrogant young bastard with megalomaniacal delusions who wants off Mike, the fact that his being a stoner is just a cover for who he turns out to really be, his crazy friends---that's what made it funny to me. So it is actually a comedy, but a dark, gritty, and violent one,like the OP said.

[–] Soodinum 9 years ago

It's a comedy. Comedy is broader than you think.

'Then' and 'than' are different words - stop confusing them.