MOVIES: Seth Rogen in “Neighbors”

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Elizabeth DeCicco

Unlike his usual characters, witty Hollywood comedian Seth Rogen plays the role of a happy family man with a newborn, settling into a suburban neighborhood, but the plot eventually resembles the 1978 frat comedy, “Animal House.”

In Rogen’s new comedy, “Neighbors,” a raucous college fraternity including Zac Efron’s antagonist character, suddenly moves in next door and the hilarious battle and R-rated raunchy humor between two distinct generations begins.

Directed by Nicholas Stoller (“Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” and “The Five-Year Engagement”), “Neighbors” definitely provides the audience plenty of laughter and the typical Seth Rogen humor that often applies sex and the use of illicit drugs.

Rogen, Efron (“That Awkward Moment”) and Rose Byrne (“Bridesmaids”) lead the story, along with James Franco’s younger brother, Dave Franco, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Jerrod Carmichael.

Rogen’s character, Mac Radner and his wife Kelly (Byrne) try to make a cool impression on the fraternity, out of fear that they would appear as a grown up couple, married, with a baby.

Efron’s character, Teddy, is the fraternity’s president whose perfectly built abs and glossy eyes represent the “Delta Psi Beta” fraternity. Rogen’s character knows how to enjoy a party, but after frequent all-night ragers, the new parents take extreme measures to try to destroy the chapter and evict them.

Even though “Neighbors” was a classic Rogen comedy, I wouldn’t mind neighboring next door to Rogen, considering his jocose persona and his infamous chuckle.

There were a few humorous moments when I barely giggled but more moments that made me hysterically laugh out loud. I would recommend this movie only to fans of “Superbad,” “Pineapple Express,” and especially “This Is The End.”

Elizabeth DeCicco can be reached at [email protected]