Get Him to the Greek and My Love of Aldous Snow

Aldous and Aaron, BFF.

I could not tell whether Russell Brand was acting during Get Him to the Greek.  The latest comedy offering from what appears to be a growing Judd Apatow and friends dynasty, Get Him to the Greek is the second film to feature Aldous Snow, the character that made Russell Brand kind of famous.

Aldous Snow is a character created by Jason Segel for the 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Aldous is a recovering drug addict and alcoholic British rock star, hovering somewhere between stupidity and total genius. The concept of Get Him to the Greek is quite simple – Aaron Green, a young, ambitious intern at Pinnacle Records has an idea to get Aldous Snow, lead singer of the band Infant Sorrow, to perform at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles to mark the tenth anniversary of Infant Sorrow’s Live at the Greek Theater. Coming off a disastrous record, “African Child” (called “the worst thing to happen to Africa since apartheid”), which involved a terrible video in which Aldous wanted to look like a “white African Jesus from space,” Aldous is in desperate need of a comeback, and Pinnacle Records is looking to make some serious money.

The only problem is that Aldous, after splitting from his pop star wife Jackie Q (Rose Byrne, who hilariously sings a song about how tight her, you know, is.), has gone off the wagon and is living recklessly in London. Aaron is then sent by his boss Sergio (Diddy, who actually does a good job) to London to escort Aldous to the Greek. What follows is nothing short of the sort of mischief and mayhem that is expected in the Apatow family of films. Aldous brings Aaron along for a no-holds-barred 48 hours of drugs, sex, and debauchery, in turn complicating Aaron’s relationship with his girlfriend Daphne (a very awkward-acting Elizabeth Moss).  The film later turns into a commentary on the importance of love and how it far outweighs the fast-paced rock star lifestyle. This message would have been fine with me, if I weren’t in a perpetual state of romantic cynicism at such a young age.

I’ve decided that Aldous Snow could be one of the greatest characters ever created, even though Russell Brand appears to never be acting. At a key moment in the movie, Aaron points out to Aldous, “you’re nothing more than a junkie, but you’re smart, so you make it sound good.” Indeed, Aldous is a raging idiot with a drug problem, yet very lovable. I’ll expect to see more of him in what I’m dubbing “the Judd Apatow Universe”.

My favorite part of the movie involves a failed drug run, but I left the movie wondering if a “Geoffrey” was a real thing. Please see this movie to find out what I’m talking about.

Grade: B+