Movie review: Ted
WILFRED meets Family Guy in this comic tale of a man-child and his foul-mouthed, wise-cracking teddy bear.
Like his hit animated television show, Family Guy's Seth MacFarlane's big-screen debut is peppered with signature gags, salty language, pop-culture references and zany interludes and diversions.
Fans of Family Guy will be in heaven.
MacFarlane voices and plays, via motion-capture technology, Ted, the toy bear who comes alive thanks to a wish by a lonely and friendless boy called John.
Ted welcomes a spell as a celebrity, gracing the covers of magazines and making appearances on talk shows and news bulletins.
But foremost he is John's best friend, his thunder buddy for life and barely leaves his side.
He's crude and lewd, loves women, pot and partying but has a cheeky endearing charm that MacFarlane brilliantly brings to life.
Mark Wahlberg as the adult John who enjoys watching re-runs of '80s shows on the couch while eating cereal out of the box and getting stoned with Ted is perfectly cast.
He seems much more at home playing comical roles rather than fronting action movies.
The pair have a natural chemistry (despite one being an anamorphic bear) and bounce off one another with machine-gun fire efficiency.
Their relationship somewhat resembles Family Guy's Peter and Brian with its ease and zany humor.
Despite the trailer; the bong hits and gross-out humour aren't the backbone of the film, instead it draws its humor more from MacFarlane's offbeat gags and they work surprisingly well against the romantic comedy backdrop.
This is a film with more heart than hard-ons and is a surprisingly touching tale of friendship and the perils involved with navigating adulthood.
If anything Ted leans too much towards the straight and narrow with its core plot line and could have benefited with a splash more of wacky weirdness to make it a true comedy masterpiece.
Ted
- Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Seth MacFarlane
- Director: Seth MacFarlane
- Rated: MA 15+
- Verdict: Three out of four stars
