A few thousand posts ago, I mentioned winning some tickets to the premiere of I Love You, Man. Well, that premiere came and went, and your loyal hero totally missed the ball on hyping you up to see this soon-to-be Apatowian classic. I won’t bore you with amazing details, in just 3 short sentences, I’ll catch you up on that fateful night.

I stood in line with friends and waited to get tickets. I ran to the press line in the hopes of meeting Seth Rogen, who was not in attendance. I tried to get Jason Segel’s autograph but was soon swallowed by the crowd. However, it was cool catching a glimpse of him in real life. He is a younger, taller Judge Reinhold and that’s a compliment because Judge Reinhold is the cat’s pajamas in Danger’s opinion.

After that failed pursuit, I turned my attention to the arrival of Paul Rudd, who—contrary to what I had imagined—is not six feet tall, but is indeed very handsome. I made my way back into line and was eventually escorted inside the glorious Mann Village Theatre. While waiting for a friend to use the bathroom, I spotted the man, the legend, Weird Al Yankovic. He was casually noshing on popcorn. I interrupted, showered him with praise, and got to take a photo with him. Highlight of my night!

Finally, we got to our seats and stargazed until one of my friends went out to buy us some soda, and came back saying that concession was free. Highlight #2! 

Then the lights dimmed. The screenwriter/director gets up for the movie’s introduction, and we are thrust right into the bromance of the year (until July 31st when Funny People arrives in theaters.)

The movie has a nice Californian pace and the laughs are aplenty. Paul Rudd plays Peter Klaven, a man in love with the idea of being in love, devoting so much time to the lady in his life that he forgets to maintain friends of his own. He proposes to his girlfriend, played by Rashida Jones, and shortly after realizes he hasn’t any friends, so who will be his best man?

Cue a full-on hunt for a makeshift best man. After striking out a few times, Klaven, a real estate agent, holds an open house for Lou Ferrigno’s estate, where he meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel) and they immediately hit it off. The bromance begins, brimming with Vespas, Ugg boots and jackoff stations. Stuttery, awkward yet perfectly executed, Rudd breathes life into a man we don’t often encounter in the movies. A guy without friends.

Stammering and hopeful, he begins to court Fife, finding common ground and opening up to this stranger in hopes of landing a best man for his nuptials. Fife is just as smitten but can hide it way better. Segel takes his character on as a guy who is brutally honest, caring, masculine, and without inhibition.

This dynamic duo, however, is not the only reason to watch this movie twice. Joe Lo Truglio is great as the voice cracker, Lennon is razor sharp as the guy whom Peter smites at the beginning of the movie, and Jaime Pressly and Jon Favreau are the couple who hate/love each other. Andy Samberg doesn’t get nearly enough time to flex his comedy muscles as Klaven’s gay younger brother, but we take what we can get!

Rest assured, the DVD will be chock-full of unrated glorious tidbits and deleted scenes for your home viewing pleasure. But do not wait for the DVD! Watch this movie in the theater now. It’s great for a dudes night out or a romantic date.

Rudd and Segel make for an amazing comedic coupling, fresh and charismatic, which is why this movie should have taken the top slot at the box office. A light comedy featuring great music and a slew of cameos, should have pounced on the twice-yearly Nic Cage suspense/thriller. Show the studios that it doesn’t take a disaster movie to get people into a theater. A little late now, but there’s always “Funny People” in July. It’s time to let the funny guy win for a change.