Eagle vs. Shark

I used to absolutely despise movies about weirdos falling in love mostly because I was a weirdo who thought she’d never find her weirdo match to fall in love with. 

Plenty of weirdos fell for me, I’ll tell you that. 

My old journal was chock full of those stories.  I want you to forget them.  Especially the one about that guy named Mic Finger who wanted to spank me (in an erotic manner) with my kitchen utensils after watching Jeepers Creepers on our first date. 

I never in my life thought I’d utter the words, “No, I don’t want you to spank me with a rubber spatula” and mean it. 

You might recognize Jemaine Clement from the hit HBO series, Flight of the Concords.  Plenty of people have recommended it to me, but I always feel like I don’t “get it” when I tune in halfway through an episode.  Eventually I’ll start from the beginning and give it another shot.

Eagle vs. Shark has a Napoleon Dynamite feel, but don’t let that turn you off if you weren’t a fan. 

What I liked the most about it is that the social awkwardness of the “quirky” characters feels real.  The female lead is the exact opposite of the “quirky” Natalie Portman character in Garden State.

Lily is a squirrelly fast food cashier who falls in retarded love with a ridiculous video store clerk, Jarrod (Jemaine Clement).  He’s obsessed with a Samoan kid who tormented him in high school, and Lily agrees to travel with him to his hometown where he’ll train to fight him. 

I laughed so loud and hard at some parts that I scared every last animal off of the couch and dislodged every dark chocolate covered raisinet stuck between my braces. 

There’s also a brilliant stop-motion animation that runs parallel to the story that I really got a kick out of.  I wish I could say more, but I don’t want to spoil it. 

Tuck your preconceived notions away for a night, cool guy.