MOVIE REVIEW: The Road to Cedar Rapids

The first well-written comedy of 2011 tells the tale of a Wisconsin insurance salesman going to a conference he’ll never forget!

Tim Lippe (Ed Helms) is a mild-mannered insurance salesman who was suddenly thrust into the spotlight when a fellow colleague was killed in a horrific accident. He will go away, for the very first time of his life, to the regional insurance conference in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where his job is to maintain the company’s glowing Two-Diamond performance record. While at the conference, Tim meets some quirky brethren including straight-laced Ronald (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), fun and flirtatious Joan Ostrowski-Fox (Anne Heche), and boozing, skirt-chasing Dean Ziegler (John C. Reilly). These insurance conference veterans will show Tim a life that is less ordinary and very unconventional for his standards.

Cedar Rapids brings the familiar dynamic of The Hangover without any major hangover involved. Helms did a wonderful job as Tim Lippe. He carried the whole film declaring his moral standards from the get-go while coming out of his shell for the first time of his life. Reilly continues to delivers his comedic timing. From his rock & roll status in Walk Hard to being Ferrell’s buddy in Talladega Nights, you cannot expected anything less from his life-of-the-party role. Although Heche and Whitlock played the voices of reason for Tim, they had their special moments. Look out for Whitlock’s character putting all that watching his show, The Wire, to work for rescuing Tim and Heche’s charming appeal.

If you are looking for a good movie to start off the 2011 season, take the next exit to Cedar Rapids and make it a great time to enjoy life!

GRADE: B+

"Cedar Rapids," a Fox Searchlight Picture release, is rated R for crude and sexual content, language and drug use. Running time: 86 minutes