Trouble bruin

Seth McFarland is nothing if not a multitasker. Most know him for being the creative force behind three of FOX's wildly popular Sunday animated shows (Family Guy, American Dad, and The Cleveland Show). He's also been known to dabble in music, releasing an album recently of him crooning like Sinatra. In his latest effort, Ted, he's the writer and director, as well as provides the voice of the titular talking teddy bear. With his first foray into film, McFarland proves he's can successfully bring his brand of comedy to the big screen.

The film is about a boy named John Bennett, who after struggling to make real friends, wishes that his stuffed teddy bear could come to life. Lo and behold, his wish comes true and the two become best friends all the way into adulthood (Mark Wahlberg plays the adult John). The pair become quite the duo of raunch and debauchery as they drink, smoke weed, and curse up a storm (and curse at a storm even, given their fear of thunder). All of this comes at the dismay of John's longtime girlfriend (played by Mila Kunis), who would like to see him settle into adulthood.

With a film like this, you come for the premise and stay for the jokes. In the case of this film, the humor is a mixed bag. What was remarkable though was that as I sat in a crowded theater, there were really no jokes that fall flat. McFarland's humor is a scattershot attack on everything, which resulted in every joke earning laughs, but not from everyone in the crowd. I for one really enjoyed a running gag about Tom Skeritt, that few other people seemed to appreciate, yet there were other jokes that earned big laughs from other viewers while I saw the punchline coming a mile away. I can't guarantee you'll laugh at everything here, but you're bound to find at least a few jokes that tickle your funny bone.

Of course this wouldn't be a Seth McFarland production if he didn't bring along a number of the people who have worked with him on his tv shows. Alex Borstein, Patrick Warburton, Patrick Stewart, and a whole host of others (plus Kunis) all contribute to the hilarity in some form or another. In addition, there are several other familiar faces new to the McFarland universe including Joel McHale and Giovanni Ribisi, plus some other surprise cameos that I won't spoil here.

But for as much as I laughed, there are still some weaknesses. For one, as much as I like Wahlberg and Kunis individually I didn't find them to have particularly strong chemistry and they just didn't have an overall good fit. More importantly, the film struggles from a narrative perspective. The central theme of growing up and choosing love over friendship doesn't feel particularly fresh and has been done better by other films. You also have the ADD nature to McFarland's storytelling that is problematic in his TV shows as well. Thrown into this film are subplots involving Kunis' lecherous boss (McHale) and a stranger (Ribisi) obsessed with having Ted be a toy for his son. Each of these serve as a distraction rather than an enhancement for the central plot. Lastly, while I respect McFarland for wanting to have this truly be his film, I did not think much of his work as a director. The film has somewhat of a cheap look to it and it could have come off so much better in more capable hands.

In the end though, most people are not coming for cinematography and in-depth plot development, so the film's weakness are not likely to keep people away from seeing this film. What you get here is basically an extra long episode of Family Guy with no restraints as to what can be said or shown. For most, and that includes myself, that's certainly enough. If the previews don't make it clear enough, this film definitely earns all of its R-rated, so leave your morals at the door when you watch this movie. McFarland lets the fur fly here and the result is a bear-y funny movie. Grade: B