I’m  be really vulnerable for this review. Family has always felt like a struggle to me. In some ways, I connected with Ben Greenbaum (Seth Rogen) on a spiritual level in this movie. Like every emotion his character went through, I felt it deeply – the good and bad. Though, recently, I’m trying to change that. It’s really hard for me to admit that my personal journey aligns so closely with Ben’s. I mean I’ve never set someone up for a crowd chasing after them. Though, I can be a bit unintentionally short with my family. If you’re reading this now, and you’ve experienced this from me, I just want to say I’m honestly sorry. I had things in my life that I didn’t realize until a few weeks ago, in all honesty.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of welcoming my younger sister and her husband onto the podcast. Originally back in April, they were supposed to get married. Unfortunately, due to the circumstances of COVID-19, they opted to have a late July wedding instead. They came on to share their experience with planning a wedding during these crazy times. My sister getting married, it’s still a weird concept for me to wrap my head around. The fact that I have a brother-in-law now is just straight bizarre to me. Though, their wedding, brought me to an unexpected crossroad I probably should have experienced a long time ago. Family is important. They are to be cherished; you never know when it could be taken away from you. Some relationships are easier than others, but you have to understand sometimes family is all you have.

Sometimes it takes a monumental life change to place that in perspective. What if that life change happened to be your grandfather waking up from pickle brine and living in the modern age? That would be kind of weird but it’s the reality that Seth Rogen faces in his new movie, An American Pickle. Rogen pulls double duty as both the aforementioned Ben and his grandfather, Herschel. Pickle depicts the bond and tension that comes between the two while Herschel rises to fame through his pickle empire. Rogen is an acquired taste to some. Though, in recent years, he’s seemingly shed the “guy’s guy” movie image in favor of roles like this and last year’s The Longshot. Rogen is terrific in this dual nature. However, he feels limited in some ways.

The Herschel character is a fish out of water and feels like the most appropriate element to bring in the humor. Unfortunately, a great deal of the humor comes from Ben. It’s forced in every way that you would imagine. The jokes here feel stale. As does the plot. When I finished my viewing of An American Pickle, I will say I was genuinely entertained. I loved both of the parts that Rogen plays but this feels familiar. Even worse, it feels forgettable. In its’ brisk 90 minute runtime, Hershel manages to build an empire, while Ben is attempting to build his own. Thus, enters the tension. As Hershel continues to rise to fame, Ben is making every attempt at destroying him. We’ve seen this formula before. Though, I will say as forgettable and formulaic as this is, it has tremendous heart.

Overall, An American Pickle doesn’t break any new ground. It entertains from start to finish, manages to establish a laugh or two. More than anything else Pickle has an enormous heart. The tension and bridge to said heart make for a charming movie. I wish that the heart of this movie could have been a bit bigger to escape its’ formulaic roots. Some of the jokes fall flat. Only feeding into its’ forgettability. For as good as Pickle may be, it still remains average cinema at its best.

RORSCHACH RATING:

If you or someone you know is reading this right now and you are struggling with suicide, depression, addiction, or self-harm - please reach out. Comment, message or tweet to us. Go to victimsandvillains.net/hope for more resources. Call the suicide lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Text "HELP" to 741-741. There is hope & you DO have so much value and worth!

Victims and Villains is written Josh "Captain Nostalgia" Burkey (and produced by), Caless Davis, Dan Rockwood, & Brandon Miller. Music by Mallory Johnson and others. This post was edited by Erica Burkey. An American Pickle is property of HBO Max & Sony Picture. We do not own nor claim any rights. An American Picle is streaming exclusively on HBO MAX.

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