"Cedar Rapids" is slow. And by that I mean, the humour in the film progresses slowly. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the town, is not slow. At least not to Tim Lippe (Ed Helms) because he's from Brown Valley, Wisconsin. He lives in a world that even those of us from similar towns don't believe that it's really that sheltered.
It's a peculiar brand of humour. One which results from Tim's complete naiveté. He becomes friends with a prostitute, is scared of a black man, and doesn't understand common hotel and airport practices. It's an immature adult comedy involving male genitalia humour, and using marijuana for the first time and then graduating to cocaine within a few minutes. Although it has an original plot (I've never seen a movie set at a Christian insurance convention before), it's a predictable plot. But that's also exactly how the filmmakers intended it to be. You are meant to just sit and enjoy yourself with the characters just as much as the comedic situations.
As the film progressed, it does get much funnier. Tim becomes more comfortable in his surroundings (at times too comfortable) and you become more comfortable too. And it's near the end that Isiah Whitlock Jr. has uttered some of the funniest lines you'll ever hear, John C. Reilly's drunken asshole becomes humanized, and Rob Corddry makes his anticipated appearance with Ed Helms. "Cedar Rapids" takes you to a peculiar place, but a funny and enjoyable one nonetheless.
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