Movie Review: Run Fatboy Run

Hey all,

Had the chance to catch Run Fatboy Run over the weekend and I gotta say that I loved it. Simon Pegg is quickly becoming a very good comedic actor on my book. Somehow his movies are real low budget and yet carry a good blend of English and American humor that is both smart and funny, staddling that fine line of over the top antics and reality.

Run Fatboy Run is about Pegg, a man who made a horrible mistake of running on on his pregnate girlfriend 5 years before and realizing afterward that he made a great mistake. His girlfriend. played by Thandie Newton, raises there son but has consented to give his some visitation. Eventually she starts dating and gets engaged to a new boyfriend, played by Hank Azaria, who is smart, sucessful, handsome, and in great shape, factors that Pegg lacks. Pegg is desperate to get Newton back and makes a wild claim. Since Newton thinks he can never finish what he starts, he thinks he can prove to her that he has changed by running a marathon, something Azaria does all the time. There is plenty of comedy in Pegg training for the run with his grumpy Indian landlord and his best friend, Newton's cousin played by Dylan Moran. The run, orginally just a ploy to get back with Newton, becomes more than that for Pegg as it becomes a metaphor for his whole life and the change it involves.

Pegg is great at playing the unfit everyman, a down on his luck slob who just wants to atone for the biggest is take of his life. Azaria is perfect as the snarky rich jerk who is swooping in to steal the girl. Thandie Newton for me seems a bit oit of character in this comedy, mostly known for serious or dramatic roles I don't know if she was the riight person to cast in her role, but its really a small complaint as she is mostly the foil for Azaria and Pegg. There is a great training scene with Pegg dealing with the rigors of long distance running (especially when you've never run one before!) Coping with blisters, rashes, and nipple chaffing aside, Deep down Run Fatboy Run is a comedy with a lot of heart and makes you feel good. I whleheartedly recomend this film.

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Gerrad!