POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING. Fame Instead of Brains

Even before the actual screening of Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping begins, the Universal Pictures logo appears on the screen. Nothing extraordinary, as we’ve seen similar visuals in cinemas for a long time. Minor creative modifications to this brief scene are also familiar to us. Filmmakers occasionally like to embellish this standard moment of the cinematic experience, but in this case, there is a subtle metaphor. By mixing the grand Universal music into a rap-pop jingle, the directors reveal not only the comedic nature of their work and its musical theme but also its strongly satirical tone. Popstar is a fantastic, highly inventive spoof, the likes of which have been somewhat missing in recent cinema.

Some viewers may already be familiar with the names Jorma Taccone, Akiva Schaffer, and Andy Samberg, the creators of Popstar. These gentlemen not only appear in films but also form the musical trio known as The Lonely Island, famous for their absurd comedic song lyrics and crude jokes. This time, the trio brings the distinctive character of their work to the big screen, telling the story of a pop musician with the pseudonym “Conner4Real” (Samberg). Taccone and Schaffer, serving as directors, base the plot on “standard” elements of a celebrity’s life. They depict the ups and downs of the protagonist: his beginnings in a boy band, more or less successful solo albums, scandals, bizarre image changes, and collaborations with more famous artists.

The creators tick off various dramatic points borrowed directly from biographical documentaries about musical stars, but each is thoughtfully processed to exaggerate the absurdities that already surround celebrity lives. Conner hires people to handle even the smallest details, boasts about his meals online, and has a hundred (literally!) producers credited on his tracks. The screenwriters especially mock the lyrics of the main character’s songs. To say they’re stupid is an understatement. They are usually just plain ridiculous. Conner sings about social issues he knows nothing about, doesn’t shy away from vulgarity, crude metaphors, and corny rhymes. In almost every scene, the creators mock virtually all aspects of the music industry with exceptional finesse. The parodic exaggeration is very clear but also incredibly funny. The Lonely Island demonstrates remarkable screenwriting talent because Popstar is not just a collection of gags, which would have been easy, but a full-fledged, wonderfully executed satire.

Presented in the form of a mockumentary, this satire is at risk of overemphasizing realism, which can quickly lead to viewer fatigue. Therefore, Taccone and Schaffer deserve praise for their courage and skill not only in creating the film’s screenplay but also in using stylistic devices. Popstar naturally draws heavily from the heritage of cinema verite, showing interviews with real musicians, not paying much attention to image stability, and presenting fictional data about the protagonist’s album sales; the presence of the film crew in the diegesis is also clearly noted. However, the directors are aware of the limited entertainment potential of documentaries, even fictional ones, so in the film’s third act, they make the stylistic elements a bit more transparent.

More often, parallel editing, narrative clichés, or smooth camera movements appear. Popstar then becomes a more traditionally formal comedy, though still organically integrated into the mockumentary whole. This can be perceived as a slight misstep, but this term fits something else better. The level of comedy is somewhat uneven. In Popstar, we experience not only sharp retorts and well-staged scenes from the life of a pop star but also a few moments of straightforward toilet humor that caters to less discerning tastes.

Occasionally, a lack of control over the crudeness is the only real criticism of Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping. The satire is brilliant, sparing no absurdity that can be mocked. Situational comedy, usually resulting from the discrepancy between the near-hagiographic portrayal of Conner and the actual ridiculousness of his celebrity life, works excellently. Such intuition and internal chemistry between the creators are something every film crew should aspire to. The result is superb.