Sundance 2011 Review: World Premiere of CEDAR RAPIDS

I've gotta admit: I wasn't expecting much from Cedar Rapids. I've never heard of the director (Miguel Arteta), and even though the cast is great - Ed Helms, John C. Reilly, Anne Heche, Isiah Whitlock, Jr. - the posters and marketing for the movie leading up to Sundance 2011 didn't really do it for me. The wide-eyed Ed Helms face on the poster smacked of a 40-Year-Old Virgin rip off, and I wasn't quite sure of the tone of the movie. Man, I love being pleasantly surprised.

This movie balances sweetness and naivety perfectly with broad comedy, inserting small moments of drama, but never letting them drag on too long without a quick joke thrown in the mix. It's the story of Tim (Helms), a well-liked insurance salesman who has never left his hometown until after a...let's say...an incident involving a co-worker, is sent to the big convention in Cedar Rapids to win the company the coveted Two Diamonds Award for the best overall insurance firm. When he's paired with a ridiculous duo (Reilly and Whitlock) and a foxy female rep (Heche), Tim's trip to this innocuous middle American city essentially turns into the equivalent of a Vegas trip. Drugs, hookers, affairs - anything and everything, and the comedy keeps coming at every turn.

Aside from the excellent script by Phil Johnston, the reason the film works so well is Ed Helms is his earnest performance as Tim. He's fresh-faced and innocent - disgustingly so at times - but he's one of the very few working actors able to pull off a performance like this (interestingly enough, I think his co-star John C. Reilly is another who could do something similar). It's easy to see how this movie could have turned into another collaboration between Will Ferrell and Reilly, but it operates on a bit more personal scale than their buffoonish antics in Step Brothers and the like. Helms sells it, and we're buying.

Anne Heche was wonderful as Joan, the object of Tim's affection at the conference. I've always been apathetic toward her work, but she was alternatingly subtle and outlandish here and did some great work. Reilly was phenomenal as the foul-mouthed Dean, spewing vulgarities left and right to hilarious effect. This movie is WAY more vulgar than I anticipated, and though some of the comedy is pretty broad (naked dudes hugging awkwardly, etc.), there were plenty of truly funny moments. Whitlock has a smaller role but is superb - especially in one scene in which he plays a pivotal role mimicking a character from "The Wire."

The supporting cast is filled with recognizable names and faces, like Sigourney Weaver, Tom Lennon ("Reno 911!"), Stephen Root (Office Space), and many more. This is easily one of the funniest films of the festival and also happens to be one of the better movies I've seen here. Fox Searchlight has already picked it up, so make it a point to track down Cedar Rapids if it comes to a theater near you.