Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is like an assorted meat and cheese platter.
Each individual morsel is delicious and satisfying, but if you try to eat the whole platter in one sitting, as great as that may sound, you won’t notice how yummy each bite is and you’ll be left feeling full and a little gassy. Popstar combines the slow, dry humor of a Christopher Guest mockumentary with an extended SNL digital short and Judd Apatow’s structure and over the top scenes that escalate until they have no choice but to explode, ultimately resulting in a movie that lacks cohesion and has too much going on.
Popstar follows artist Conner 4 Real, formally known as Conner, lead singer of the pop boy band Style Boyz. The other two members are his lifelong friends Owen and Lawrence. The Style Boyz dissolved as Conner’s fame escalated and he became solo artist Conner 4 Real, demoting Owen to exclusively pressing play on an iPod behind a DJ booth. Conner 4 Real became a sensation and he won a Pop Award for his rap verse on the hit single “Turn Up The Beef” (sung by the always hilarious Emma Stone). When Conner didn’t thank Lawrence, who had written the verse, he quit the team and became a farmer. But Conner’s momentum began to slow as his new album tanked upon it’s release and his business manager, played brilliantly by Tim Meadows, signed his opening act and up and comer Hunter the Hungry. Conner soon learns that the higher you are the harder you fall, and he eventually finds himself drinking the days away while babysitting his mother’s house. But when he reunites with Owen and Lawrence, he realizes the error of his ways and through the power of forgiveness, they revive Style Boyz and perform for millions at the Pop Awards and all is well.
Now the movie was not without funny moments. The Lonely Island knows how to write a catchy song and make an even better music video. The quirky characters they created were cast perfectly, including Bill Hader as Conner’s roadie and Justin Timberlake as Conner’s personal chef, and the celebrity interviews about Conner’s influence on the industry pushed Popstar further into the wonderful world of mockumentary. One of the best parts of the movie was a nearly flawless take on the tabloid channel TMZ with Will Arnett as the host. If The Lonely Island had honed in and leaned into spoofs that are so unique to the music business in this era of social media and viral fame, into what they do best, they might have found more success.
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping opens in theaters everywhere this Friday, June 3.