Funny But Random: The Ten

The Ten (Advance Screening)
Directed by David Wain
To be released August 3, 2007

"The Ten," from NYU alum and "Wet Hot American Summer" director David Wain, is an extremely funny but altogether scatterbrained comedy. The film is very much like "Summer" but even less linear and a film that could have worked so much better if tied together in a more believeable way. The point is to be absurd, yet the film's funny moments could have been amplified and put to better use if the script was more conscious of a cohesive plotline.

Wain has amassed a remarkably impressive cast, though their roles do not necessarily do justice to their acting abilities. Gretchen Mol, a breakthrough in last year's "The Notorious Bettie Page" and who delivered an excellent performance in this year's "Puccini for Beginners," is wasted as an eager young woman who travels to Mexico and meets a suspiciously talented man named Jesus. Liev Schreiber, on the other hand, excels in his scenes as a police detective and a jealous neighbor. Paul Rudd does a respectable job hosting the whole show.

The film is composed of ten short films, each framed by Rudd's narration. Some are wholly preposterous, though wildly funny, while others are pretty well-written. Each centers around inspiration from a different commandment. Two standouts include warring neighbors who covet each other's excessive purchases of CAT Scan machines and a group of men who spend their Sundays at home reveling in their nakeds instead of going to church. Overall, the film is heavily uneven, but a good deal of fun to watch.

C