The Thousands

Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), the archetypal British rock god Jason Segel invented for Forgetting Sarah Marshall, has got his own movie. Aldous now has a smut-pop-star ex, Jackie Q (Rose Byrne), a spectacular relapse from sobriety and a career in the toilet.

Rookie record exec Aaron Green (Jonah Hill) must shepherd the singer from London to an anniversary show at LA’s Greek Theatre. Being a Judd Apatow production, there’ll be lots of vomiting and uneasy anal humour. But it’s really enjoyable, and smart in its stupidity.

Whatever you think of Brand as a celebrity, Aldous is a wonderful comic creation. He’s lovable and despicable, callous and vulnerable, sharp-witted and idiotic. He oozes charm, but music industry workers will ruefully recognise his petulant ego. Get Him To The Greek is largely an industry satire: the financial gambles; the crass publicity; behind-the-scenes schmoozing and manipulation and bullshitting. Aaron’s mistake is to be too genuine a fan, and Hill is a cuddly, vanity-free delight, without that Seth Rogen asshole edge.

Unexpectedly, Sean ‘P Diddy’ Combs is very funny as Aaron’s preposterously named boss, Sergio Roma. He never entirely loses his creepy, dead eyes, but he warms into an increasingly outrageous role.