Sidney Young (Simon Pegg) is a boorish, unlikeable, annoying, inappropriate, douche idiot A-hole. He crashes parties and ridicules famous celebrities in his London magazine. He gets noticed by Clayton Harding (Jeff Bridges) and hired onto the glitzy "Sharps" magazine as the cultural editor. He tries to befriend co-worker Alison Olsen (Kirsten Dunst) and win over starlet fame-whore Sophie Maes (Megan Fox).
Simon Pegg doesn't fit this character that well. Even in 'Spaced', he had a streak of likability. He's an adorable guy. It's a little better when he shows some vulnerabilities later in the movie. For a guy trying to show how shallow everybody is, he's the most shallow of them all. I wish they wade through some of his depths earlier in the movie. The other problem is that he has no chemistry with Kirsten Dunst. She's almost as hopelessly uncompelling as a character. The movie really struggles to find its way in this rom-com formula.
Simon Pegg doesn't fit this character that well. Even in 'Spaced', he had a streak of likability. He's an adorable guy. It's a little better when he shows some vulnerabilities later in the movie. For a guy trying to show how shallow everybody is, he's the most shallow of them all. I wish they wade through some of his depths earlier in the movie. The other problem is that he has no chemistry with Kirsten Dunst. She's almost as hopelessly uncompelling as a character. The movie really struggles to find its way in this rom-com formula.