Film Review: "Ted 2"

Earlier today (saturday the 27th of June) while running weekend errands, I picked up some dry cleaning. I attempted to pay with my debit card but the point-of-sale machine wasn't working. "Our network connection has been f**king sh*t all day" said the attendant. I laughed at the remark and went next door to a bank to withdraw cash from the ATM.

Now, as an advocate of foul language when the situation calls for it (mainly frustrating moments but conversely, moments of exhilaration, and heck, even to emphasize a point without being on either end of the emotional spectrum), I had no problems with the dry cleaning attendant's use of foul language. More context reveals I've been patronizing their business for a little while and formed a friendly relationship with the attendants. But what if I, as a customer, was instead my more conservative sister or perhaps an older customer like my Father? I wondered how much factors like my age (I'm still under 35), the age of the attendant (she looks under 35), and the familiarity built up during the months of our business/customer relationship contributed towards the words she chose to describe her p.o.s irritation. 

Mind you, this is in the great West African nation of Nigeria. A conservative country that seems to be experiencing a subtle liberal tilt, going by what looks like a growing societal acceptance of dropping F-bombs in everyday conversation. Or perhaps that's just my bias talking. Anyway, I did wonder if the foul mouthed dry cleaning attendant had seen the foul mouthed movie "Ted 2" which was released yesterday in the United States and in select countries around the world. I saw it last night and there was a noticeable split in my theater as we took in the latest offering from Director (and star) Seth MacFarlane, who plays Ted.

A bit of background on Mr MacFarlane; He is an Emmy award winning television series creator that dabbles mostly in animation and comedy. He is the creator of the popular animated series "Family Guy" and co-creator of two other tv series, "American Dad!" and "The Cleveland Show." If you watched the 2013 Oscars, Seth MacFarlane was the host. His brand of comedy is in-your-face and unapologetic. While he has to tone it down for network television, movies like "Ted" and "Ted 2" give him free reign to execute the most vulgar, x-rated jokes imaginable. These jokes, I must add, are hilarious and executed in fine form. Just in case you haven't seen it, below is the trailer for "Ted" released back in 2012. 

"Ted" was made with a production budget of $50 million. Domestically, it grossed $218.8 million while overseas it did even better with a $330.5 million gross for a massive total of $549.3 million. A half billion dollar return for a $50 million movie meant "Ted" is the second most successful R-rated comedy of all time behind only the $586.6 million worldwide gross of 2011's "The Hangover 2."

As you can glean from the above trailer, (which, by the way, is narrated by Patrick Stewart aka Captain Jean-Luc Picard of "Star Trek" and Professor Charles Xavier of the "X-Men") Ted is the pot smoking, childhood-toy-turned-best-friend of Mark Wahlberg, whose girlfriend (played by the adorable Mila Kulnis) has asked him to move out of their shared apartment because he was becoming a nuisance. The film follows the journey Ted takes to an independent life. Now check out the trailer for the subject of this blog (You're thinking "finally!", right? What was the point of all the drivel leading up to this point, anyway?).

The trailer lays out the premise: Ted marries his girlfriend from the first movie and they intend to have a baby. This intention is complicated by the obvious fact that he is a stuffed toy Bear. So they look for a sperm donor and all sorts of adult hilarity ensues until the state of Massachusetts (the film is set in Boston) ups the ante by telling the couple they can't have a child because Ted is not a person, but rather, property. From here, the movie takes on a social justice angle as Ted hires a lawyer (played by Amanda Seyfried) to fight the State for his right to be recognized as a person.

I'm wondering if the film will benefit from word-of-mouth since it was released on the same day the United States Supreme Court made the historic decision to declare same-sex marriage legal in every State. "Ted 2" could fuel the equality narrative at least among those that see the film. Speaking of those that saw the film, I mentioned earlier there was a noticeable split in my theater. More than half of us were damn near falling out of our chairs in laughter while the other half didn't flinch. Seth MacFarlane really swung for the fences with the over-the-top adult dialogue and gags and his liberal ideologies were on full display. 

How you react to the material could be juxtaposed with how you'd react to the obscenities uttered by your local dry cleaner in 2015. Ideologies aside, I enjoyed the film. I liked the underlying message thrown in with the comedic chaos on screen. I also liked the celebrity cameos (I won't give any away) who weren't just thrown in to smile but were given great dialogue to work with. One particular cameo that took place in the Grocery store where Ted works was fantastic. Speaking of the dialogue, the winning element for me in this movie were the jokes. They're littered with pop culture references and executed very well. My favorites involved authors F. Scott Fitzgerald and J.R.R Tolkien. Also, since "Ted 2" is distributed by Universal Studios, the theme song from another popular film from Universal was borrowed (along with a memorable line) for comedic purposes and treated with a knowing wink by MacFarlane. I thought this added to the film's appeal.

Ultimately, this is a sequel which, like all other sequels, has to face up to the challenge of topping the original which preceded it. The first "Ted" movie in 2012 was about a foul mouthed, marijuana smoking Teddy bear. "Ted 2" is about a foul mouthed, marijuana smoking Teddy Bear. Nothing new on offer in that regard. As of this writing, the movie's friday performance at the box office suggests it will underperform the $40+ million projection it was expected to gross this weekend. It pulled in $13.2 million on friday and is now expected to bring in about $34 million for the weekend. That's a 37% drop from the $54 million pulled in by the first movie in its weekend debut which was enough to top the box office back then. This time, with tough competition from "Jurassic World" and "Inside Out," a third place finish is all but assured for "Ted 2."

Remember, the first film cost $50 million and it made its entire budget back plus $4 million extra in only 3 days back in 2012. This time, it's going to need a few more weekends plus help from overseas ticket sales to make its money back.The larger budget for the sequel has reportedly ranged between $65 to $85 million. Still, I think this sequel has enough legs to stand on its own. It won't make a half billion dollars like the first film but I think there is enough material here to satisfy audiences and turn a profit for Universal Studios. 

Universal, by the way, is having a bumper year. "Furious 7" (released in March) has grossed $1.5 billion globally and is in the top 5 biggest movies of all time. The aforementioned "Jurassic World" has also made over $1 billion worldwide and it's only been out for 3 weeks. Yet to come is "Minions" which is an offshoot of the animated "Despicable Me" franchise and is expected to bring millions more into the flowing coffers of the studio. So even if "Ted 2" turns out to be a financial disappointment, the studio is already in position to offset the loss.

But I don't think "Ted 2" will be a disappointment. I think it is a well made comedy that should be enjoyed with an open mind and appreciated for its message on equal rights. Enjoy!