Ted Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: Little boy wishes for his teddy bear to come to life and the unexpected life consequences of such a wish being granted.

Review: I really wanted to like "Ted" since it is an amusing premise, and I am fan of Seth MacFarlane, but the jokes just weren't that funny. For the most part, it is standard fare to a veteran of Family Guy. The times I found myself laughing a little were when there was a subtle joke in passing rather than one of the many elaborate setups like when Ted is trying to brush off a stalker lurking in the parking lot. I would say my most general complaint is wasted opportunity. The John character (played by Mark Wahlberg) is stupid and could have been more interesting considering he grew up with a living teddy bear. Ted himself is the origin of most the jokes and those are either hit or miss; mostly he is just a doll version of Peter Griffin. Lori, John's girlfriend (played by Mila Kunis) is equally wasted as she seems to be completely unimpressed by the fact that she is dating a guy whose best friend is a living teddy bear. There are other semi-famous actors and cameos that get wasted like Joel McHale as Lori's boss who doesn't really serve a purpose except to keep the plot moving from one setpiece to the next. All of this doesn't mean the movie was bad per se, but this was just an overall disappointment from start to finish. I think I rated it even lower than I would have had my expectations not been so high, but I really thought they would make better use of the material and use more creativity with such an over the top premise like this. If you like Family Guy or Seth MacFarlane I'd say give this one a view to see if it's on par to what you'd expect. Maybe others will find this more funny than I, but the gags just couldn't do it for me. This is an easy pass for casual fans.

Notable Moment: When John and Ted meet Sam Jones aka Flash Gordon and get high. The party scene in general in which this happens is the only real highlight of the movie.

Final Rating: 5/10