Ted is the feature film directorial debut from Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane. The talking dog of the TV series is essentially replaced by a less refined teddy bear, but the similarities don’t end there.
John Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) had been dating Lori (Mila Kunis) for four years, and she’s waiting for a proposal. The trouble is that when John was a young boy he made a wish that brought his teddy bear, Ted, to life. What was once a sweet toy has been through 27 years of the real world, the failure of expired fame, and Ted’s spiral has been holding back John.
Anthropomorphic characters aside, John is an average underachiever just like Peter Griffin of Family Guy. Lori is the intellectual equivalent to Lois, always ready to order around her man. There are anecdotal flashbacks used for comedy—which I have always found cheap. Many of the voices from the show are heard one way (the actor or actress has a role) or another (MacFarlane himself channels the characters he voices on the show).
In recent years Mark Wahlberg has blossomed into quite the dependable comic. I’m amazed at how his casting in Ted isn’t met by muscle jokes or abdominal shots. He’s the straight man, not a glorified version of himself. Kunis could have been anyone, but she’s present as her romcom star is shining and she provides a voice on the program.
If you love Family Guy you may be in for a wakeup call as uncensored Seth MacFarlane isn’t for everyone. The network censors at Fox must have their hands full, because left uncheck MacFarlane squeaks out jokes the FCC wouldn’t allow. There is a beauty to the presentation though, making Ted a far more skillfully crafted movie than contemporary gross out comedies. Clichéd touching moments are played up, usually with the juxtaposition of a dirty line from Ted. Ted himself is a CGI created effect. His visuals are serviceable, but far from Oscar worthy. Then again I do recall talking polar bears beating out photorealistic transforming robots.
MacFarlane loves to reference ‘80s nostalgia, and in the case of Ted this can be as subtle as an Indiana Jones musical cue or as blatant as an entire subplot involving Flash Gordon. Even with great familiarity with the formula, it’s nice to be caught off guard on occasion. Ted offers some of the best laughs of the summer, but it may not necessarily be for every Family Guy fan. ***
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