Paul Unrated (and Naked) - Mobile Edition

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Paul Unrated (and Naked)
By Hervé St-Louis
August 4, 2011 - 23:59

Studios: Universal Pictures, Relativity Media, Working Title Films
Writer(s): Simon Pegg, Nick Frost
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader, Blythe Danner, Joe Lo Truglio, John Carroll Lynch, Jane Lynch, David Koechner, Jesse Plemons with Sigourney Weaver, Seth Rogen
Directed by: Greg Mottola
Produced by: Nira Park, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner
Running Time: 1 Hour 44 minutes
Release Date: August 9, 2011
Distributors: Universal Studios Home Entertainment

Paul is the ultimate alien. He’s the grey green guy we’ve been seeing on all types of images and products over the years. He crashed landed on Earth in the 1940s and has been helping the US government ever since. But upon learning that he was about to be terminated so he could be dissected, Paul managed to escape and that’s he met two nerds, fellow comic book fans Graeme Willy and Clive Gollings back from the San Diego Comic Con. But men in black are after Paul to return him to the dissection chamber. Will Paul escape them and return to his homeworld?

This film attempts to play with geek culture and mixes it with an actual alien. As Paul says to Gollings, he should be his biggest fan and natural ally as Paul is the subject of interest of Gollings – in theory. The film is mostly funny and the unrated version only adds a few swear words here and there. There’s nothing pretty major here. This is not the Hangover. Still Paul is quite charming and for once, you manage to forget that Seth Rogen is playing a role. Usually Seth Rogen just plays Seth Rogen and annoys. He’s actually close to annoy me as much as Nicolas Cage at this point. As for the two British actors, what can I say? British actors are all the rage nowadays. It’s what sells. At least these two are playing Brits and not just trying to mimic an American accent. The bad guys are silly and this film would have easily been kid-friendly because of them, if it wasn’t for some of the swearing and the usual kick in the groin type of jokes which it is full of.

I got the Blu-Ray DVD digital copy release which is the best combo of all as you can guess. More and more studios are doing these kinds of releases following the lead of Disney and Warner. I’m not complaining here. The package also have chockfull of extras that will keep you busy for hours, including some interactive material and even app-based contents although my tablet and phone running HP webOS are not supported, so I don’t care about these mobile features. The commentaries are quite intelligent and with some of the main cast of the film, making it very interesting. There are also many features explaining how they achieved the integration of Paul as a 3D character on film interacting and looking natural with the rest of the crew. If you like Paul earlier this spring or haven’t seen it yet, this is the package to get.

BONUS FEATURES EXCLUSIVELY AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY™ COMBO PACK:

•   Between the Lightning Strikes: The Making of Paul
•   Behind the Scenes Featurettes:
•   RV Doorway: The Cast of Paul On-Location — The cast is just as funny off-screen as they are in front of the camera.
•   Runway Santa Fe: An Interview with Nancy Steiner — Follow Nancy Steiner, the costume designer, as she chooses hilarious T-shirts and wardrobe for the cast.
•   Smithereens — Blowing up a house on location causes excitement among the cast.
•   5th Date Level Direction: The Cast on Greg Mottola — The cast talks about the fun of working with Mottola, who also directed Superbad.
•   Mexico Zero: The Locations of Paul—Mexico Zero is the nickname the cast gives to New Mexico, where the majority of filming was done for Paul.
•   The Many Pauls — To create Paul, the filmmakers used all the tricks of the trade, from capturing Seth Rogen’s facial expressions and movements, to using a child dressed up as an alien while on-set.
•   Paul: The Musical — The cast joins together for an impromptu musical version of the film.
•   The Traveler Beagle — A look at all the different RVs used on the set of Paul, from fully functioning vehicles to a mock-up on a Hollywood soundstage.
•   BD-LIVE™: Access the BD-Live™ Center through your Internet-connected player to watch the latest trailers and more.
•   pocket BLU™:   The groundbreaking pocket BLU™ app uses iPhone®, iPod® touch, Android™, PC and Macintosh to work seamlessly with a network-connected Blu-ray™ player. Also available on the iPad®, owners can enjoy a new, enhanced edition of pocket BLU™ made especially to take advantage of the tablet's larger screen and high resolution display. Consumers will be able to browse through a library of Blu-ray™ content and watch entertaining extras on-the-go in a way that's bigger and better than ever before. pocket BLU™ offers advanced features such as:
•   Advanced Remote Control — A sleek, elegant new way to operate your Blu-ray™ player. Users can navigate through menus, playback and BD-Live™ functions with ease.
•   Video Timeline — Users can easily bring up the video timeline, allowing them to instantly access any point in the film.
•   Mobile-To-Go — Users can unlock a selection of bonus content with their Blu-ray™ discs to save to their device or to stream from anywhere there is a Wi-Fi network, enabling them to enjoy content on the go, anytime, anywhere.
•   Browse Titles — Users will have access to a complete list of pocket BLU™-enabled titles available and coming to Blu-ray™ Hi-Def. They can view free previews and see what additional content is available to unlock on their device.
•   Keyboard — Entering data is fast and easy with your device’s intuitive keyboard.

BONUS FEATURES ON BLU-RAY™ AND DVD:

•   Bloopers
•   The Evolution of Paul — An inside look at how Paul became a living, breathing alien.
•   Simon’s Silly Faces — Simon Pegg makes an assortment of wildly funny faces for the camera.
•   Who the Hell is Adam Shadowchild? — Find out about the legendary sci-fi writer from the characters in Paul.
•   Feature Commentary with Greg Mottola, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Bill Hader and Nira Park
•   Photo Galleries, Storyboards and Posters
Rating: 8/10