Nicholas Stoller, 15 (109min)
With the exception of, say, Frasier or Sacha Baron Cohen’s Borat, the spin-off project is a creative dead end. In these films a memorable supporting character, such as the Scorpion King from The Mummy Returns, is exposed for being too shallow to sustain an entire feature. So it’s a minor miracle that a star turn from Russell Brand and a few choice one-liners save Get Him to the Greek from serious failure, though only just.
The film is a spin-off from the 2008 comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall, in which Brand savoured the gags and the minor limelight by playing a ribald rocker called Aldous Snow. This time, however, he is centre stage, playing Snow as a brittle, drug-addled hedonist who is dragged from London by his eager assistant Aaron Green (Jonah Hill) to LA’s Greek Theatre for an anniversary concert. The premise doesn’t get any more textured, but it does allow Brand plenty of time for mugging with famous co-stars (Pink, P.Diddy), just before a soppy volte-face that includes the earnest line: “This is not working as a lifestyle choice anymore!” Meanwhile, co-star Rose Byrne’s turn as a Posh Spice/Cheryl Cole hybrid called Jackie Q is priceless. Her spin-off movie is guaranteed.