Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping Movie Review

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016)

Buy Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping on Amazon Video
Written by:  Andy Samberg & Akiva Schaffer & Jorma Taccone (written by)
Directed by:  Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone
Starring: Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, Akiva Schaffer, Sarah Silverman, Tim Meadows, Maya Rudolph
Rating: R

My rating is simple, Watch It, It Depends, Skip it. Read my previous movie reviews!

Plot
When it becomes clear that his solo album is a failure, former boy band member Connor 4 Real does everything in his power to maintain his celebrity status.

Verdict
This isn't high level cinema, but it's never less than entertaining. Typical of Samberg comedies, it gets raunchy at times, but it expertly parodies the music industry and its current stars while contributing over the top and ridiculous songs. It feels like a well produced, long Youtube video.
Watch it.

Review 
I was apprehensive about this movie. I didn't like 7 Days in Hell (2015) (read my review), but Netflix's Michael Bolton’s Big Sexy Valentine’s Day Special (2017) (read my review) was the right balance of length and ridiculousness.

This parodies the music industry, and I was surprised at how many performers were in this. This movie cuts hard, from the fake personas, the copycat music, and the fan relationship. It's skewing everything.
It's poking fun at Justin Bieber to a large degree as he has to be the inspiration for Connor 4 Real. This is in the similar category of This is Spinal Tap (1984), though it's still a full standard lower and nowhere near as clever.

Connor 4 Real releases his highly anticipated album and it's woefully out of touch. This propels him to try any number of stunts to garner publicity for his tour. The songs are incredibly raunchy, but also catchy. Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song) is easily a standout, joining two subjects that are absolutely absurd together.

This is one crazy scene after another, inundating you with jokes. Nearly everything is something that's happened in reality. Justin Timberlake is Connor's chef, Seal helps him with a marriage proposal and is then attacked by wolves. This throws a lot of jokes at you, opting for quantity over quality, but being so over the top helps. This is what gives it a Youtube feel, but it has enough budget to run wild and fully develop the crazy antics. It can be called a dumb movie, but it's certainly enjoyable and entertaining.