Neighbors

Real estate values can plummet overnight. Just ask newlywed Mac Radner (Seth Rogen) and his wife, Kelly (Rose Byrne)—anxious, sleep-deprived parents of an adorable baby girl. Just as the couple are adjusting to living a more adult life in quiet suburbia, they discover that the Delta Psi Beta fraternity has moved into the house next door. Yearning to appear cool to the college dudes, the Radners indulge in friendly, welcoming overtures: a perfectly rolled joint, sharing magic mushrooms, etc. But that doesn't stop frat president Teddy (Zac Efron) and vice-president Pete (Dave Franco) from adopting a defiantly raucous, party-hearty attitude, so it's not too long before the beleaguered pair must summon the police, which leads to a frenzied, ever-escalating neighborhood feud. Lisa Kudrow costars as the university dean, who reveals that the fraternity is already on probation. Filmmaker Nicholas Stoller creates an impressive bacchanal atmosphere, full of pranks, debauchery, slapstick violence, and repeated jokes about smoking pot and penis size. But while energetic and sometimes engagingly stupid, this still doesn't measure up to gross-out predecessors such as Animal House or Old School. Optional. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Partying with the Neighbors” behind-the-scenes featurette (7 min.), a gag reel (6 min.), the production featurettes “The Frat” (6 min.) and “An Unlikely Pair” (6 min.), a “Line-O-Rama” segment (3 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are deleted and alternate scenes (13 min.), an alternate opening (7 min.), an “On the Set with…” segment (4 min.), and bonus DVD, digital, and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a so-so comedy.] (S. Granger)