Cedar Rapids

Fish-out-of-water comedy about a naïve insurance agent sent to a trade conference after the company’s original representative dies.  Occasional raunchy humor is infused with a surprising amount of warmth that runs throughout the picture.  Star Ed Helms is Tim Lippe, a blissfully naive salesman.  The plot takes off when our hero arrives and forms a friendship with three of the convention veterans.  John C. Reilly is the obnoxiously crude one, Isiah Whitlock Jr. compensates by being unexpectedly conservative and kind of square.  But most atypical of all is Anne Heche who has never been this genuine and likeable.  She’s practically wholesome save for the fact that she plays a cheating spouse.  The camaraderie of this foursome is infectious.  They grow on you.  I’m not sure why, but their exploits which involve drinking, drugs and a prostitute, feel somehow poignant. The story is awfully slight.  But as a document of an innocent who is tempted by debauchery, it easily becomes a celebration of sweet middle American charm.