Frat House comedies come and go – from Animal House to Old School, the age-old brotherly institution of pledging and hazing has provided a breadth of on-screen laughs but never with much substance.
Nicholas Stoller’s Neighbors stands apart from the rest because it actually has something to say about modern class distinctions and America’s machismo youth culture. Local boy Seth Rogen and the underappreciated Rose Byrne star as a suburban couple who are raising a toddler and trying to keep the romantic spontaneity alive. Their idyllic life is soon interrupted when a boisterous fraternity moves next door, led by a buff and often shirtless Zac Efron and chirpy Dave Franco (James’ younger brother).
After repeatedly trying to curb the club’s all-night partying, Rogen and Byrne engage in a ‘no holds barred’ status war that pits young and hip against old and uncool. The sheer number of gags and rapid fire quips in Neighbors is staggering at times and, while the repetitive physical comedy grows tiresome, the written and improvised script works in nearly every scene.
Rogen still entertains as the bumbling but lovable leading man while Efron and Franco have never been better, flexing comedic muscle and expert timing. However, the film belongs to the scene-stealing Rose Byrne, who proves she is an asset to the genre and one of the wittiest women working in Hollywood.
Stoller keeps the pace brisk, the visuals dynamic and offers a relentless parade of jokes, making Neighbors one of the funniest films of the year.
