"I really don't drink."

Title: Paul Blart: Mall Cop
Format: DVD
Rating: A-

Hilarious! I'm not sure if it deserved to be number 1 in the box office, or to stay in theaters as long as it did, but it was hilarious!

Description (from Barnes & Noble): A New Jersey rent-a-cop gets his moment to shine as the holidays approach and Santa's little helpers stage a coup at the local shopping mall in this comedy starring King of Queens' Kevin James. Paul Blart (James) is a single suburban dad attempting to make ends meet by working as a mall security guard. Paul takes his job very seriously; unfortunately the same can't be said for the shoppers he deals with on a daily basis. That all changes the day that Santa's little helpers shut down the mall and start taking hostages, including Paul's daughter and his main squeeze. Realizing that no one knows the mall better than the man who's paid to guard it, Paul mounts his Segway and speeds to the rescue.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

No need to expand on the plot. The description pretty much says it all.

I watched this movie with a group of friends on Sunday (this is definitely a group movie, not a watch-on-your-own movie), and I was blown away. It helps that I had very low expectations for Paul Blart. I expected something dumb and unoriginal, and I was half right. It was indeed dumb, but since it wasn't also unoriginal (at least not to me), the stupidity was funny. I mean, I don't know if it's been used before, but this was the first time I ever saw hypoglycemia used as a comedic element. And who doesn't dream of riding a Segway? I got to ride one in Disney World, and now I wish I owned one. They are so much fun!

Like Lost in Austen, this wasn't something I'd watch with my youngest sister. Which is sad, because I think it would be an awesome family movie. I know it's rated PG, but I'm old-fashioned (that's right; old-fashioned at 22), and when I see PG, I immediately think of what PG meant for the family films of the 90s-- practically G. So while I loved this movie, and I will definitely watch it again, I wish they'd left out those couple of moments so that the littlest in the fam could enjoy it too. A-