Kim Jong Un, since taking power in North Korea in 2012, has both eluded the media and simultaneously maintained the Kim family’s cult of personality. Aside from ruling the country with an iron fist, Kim is reported to enjoy American basketball. In 2014’s “The Interview,” the in-universe Kim Jong Un (Randall Park) is also a big fan of the American tabloid TV show “Skylark Tonight,” hosted by Dave Skylark (James Franco) and run by Aaron Rapaport (Seth Rogen). After learning of Kim’s fanboy status, Skylark Tonight manages to land an interview with Kim in the heart of North Korea. The catch? The CIA has given them an additional task: assassinate the North Korean dictator.
“The Interview” made waves even before it was released. When North Korea caught wind of the news that the movie was being produced, North Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared that the movie’s release would be an intolerable act of war. The threats became so prevalent that Michael Lynton, former CEO of Sony Pictures, said former President Barack Obama chastised him for greenlighting the movie. The release was also the centerpiece of the 2014 Sony Pictures hack, when hacker group “Guardians of Peace” leaked a slurry of data and claimed to have seized over 100 terabytes of information, all with the demand to not release “The Interview,” with the FBI later confirming that the hack was the work of the North Korean government. Meanwhile, threats were made against movie theaters that led to the cancellation of the wide theatrical release.
Suffice to say, North Korea is not happy this movie exists. I, however, am quite happy this movie exists.
Now, don’t take my positive rating as an indication that this movie is somehow a masterpiece, because it is far from it. This movie is a vulgar, only somewhat funny, badly color-graded attempt at recreating the edgy magic that movies like “Team America World Police” thrived on. Rogen and Franco knock it out of the park, though, coming from a fan of both of their work, that isn’t much of a surprise. Franco stellarly plays the naive and hedonistic yet lovable Dave Skylark, and Rogen’s depiction of Aaron Rapaport as a tired media producer and an aspiring reporter feels like it was made for him.
The assassination plot is simple: shake hands with the dictator with a contact-transmitted poison and wait for the rest to unfold. It would have gone swimmingly, had Skylark not become smitten with Kim for the disdain they have both faced from people who don’t understand them. The two men’s similarities are uncanny. Being a looked-down-upon talk show host and ruling a country of starving and suffering people apparently have the same capacity to make one feel truly alone. As they party, with Skylark seemingly forgetting all about the assassination plot and instead being wooed by nude North Korean women, Rapaport grows anxious.
The plot is foiled by Skylark’s naivete, and it isn’t until one of Kim’s close advisors and chief propagandists, the beautiful Sook-Yin Park (Diana Bang), reveals herself as an ally to the two Americans that things get back on track. She orchestrates a new plot: they’ll interview Kim and humiliate him in front of the public to destroy his cult of personality. It is also significant to note that, soon after, she reveals her attraction to the overweight and “hairy” Rapaport (again, played by Rogen) in a passionate scene (can you tell the film was co-directed by Rogen?).
What follows can only be described as the pinnacle of political satire, as a now-enlightened Skylark puts pressure on Kim during his interview. Consequently, Skylark exposes Kim’s weak points to the North Korean public, making him cry and even poop his pants, all on a live, international broadcast. As this is all happening, Park and Rapaport fight off the North Korean soldiers trying to break into the broadcast room. Ultimately, they all escape on a tank, Skylark’s new North Korean puppy in tow.
Even as Kim tries to stop them and preps nuclear missiles for launch, they fire the tank’s artillery at his helicopter and blow him up in a truly awesome slow-motion scene where the fiery wreckage becomes a backdrop for the rolling tank and Katy Perry’s “Firework” adds a nice needle drop to boot. It’s nothing short of self-indulgent fun, and it totally succeeds in this.
Normally, a film like this wouldn’t get much attention and, at times, the depiction of the North Korean attitude and frankly, insecurities, feels overblown, but considering that such a silly, unserious film spawned real cyber terrorism and almost life-threatening terrorism, the North Korean government only proved the movie right in its satirical claims. Park does phenomenally at playing the role of the brutal dictator and simultaneously horribly insecure Kim in the film. Even at its most vulgar or even unfunny moments, the cast’s charm manages to put a gloss on the mediocre script, and its satirical wit ends up being right on the money.
