By Robert Scucci
| Published
I never thought there’d be a time in my life when I’d actually root for an insurance agent, but Cedar Rapids actually almost had me for a second. I’ll admit that I initially wrote this movie off as another party movie that doesn’t have much of a plot, but since I was bored and streaming is the opiate of the masses, I gave it a chance and was actually surprised that it had a lot more substance than its theatrical trailer would lead you to believe. I guess by now I should know better than to make assumptions about a movie based on its promotional material, but first impressions are still important, even though they’re sometimes misleading.
How Exciting Can An Insurance Conference Actually Be?
Cedar Rapids is a coming-of-age story even though its primary protagonist, Tim Lippe (Ed Helms), is a full-grown adult.
Tim’s naivety and devotion to his job working as an agent for Brownstar Insurance is immediately apparent when his co-worker, Roger (Thomas Lennon), dies under sexually depraved circumstances just ahead of his expected appearance at the upcoming regional ASMI conference in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Tim denies the circumstances of Roger’s deviant departure despite the evidence because he thinks so highly of him.
With Roger out of the picture, Tim is approached by his boss, Bill (Stephen Root), to attend the conference in order to win the Two Diamonds Award that Roger has successfully won during the previous three years he had attended.
Overwhelmed with the prospect of representing his company at such a high level, Tim confides in his lover, his former middle school teacher with whom he’s ready to give a promise ring, Mrs. Vanderhei (Sigourney Weaver).
Tim’s Innocence Is The Primary Vehicle For Humor
I said earlier that Cedar Rapids makes you see the human side of insurance, and I truly mean that. Tim is not only so naive that he thinks driving a rental Chevy makes him a bigshot, but he also sincerely believes that insurance agents are the front-line heroes that get people’s lives back on track after a catastrophe has the potential to financially ruin them. In Tim’s mind, Roger, who he’s filling in for at the conference, was a model employee who celebrates Christian values – one of the key components in qualifying for the Two Diamond award and winning the good graces of ASMI president, Orin Helgessn (Kurtwood Smith).
In fact, Tim’s so naive in Cedar Rapids’ first act that he plans to follow Bill’s advice to avoid Dean Ziegler (John C. Reilly), an alleged client poacher, based on his word alone.
Cream Sherry!
When Tim finally decides to let his guard down, Cedar Rapids shows you just how fun a regional conference can be after hours. Not knowing how to drink with purpose (or at all), Tim impulsively orders cream sherry at the bar when pressed by Dean, who embraces his innocence and orders a round of the same, and his subsequent intoxication sets off a chain of events that will shake the very foundation of his being as he learns how corruption is at the center of the conference, and how his hero Roger wasn’t the great guy he thought he was.
Caught between his morals and the competitive nature of capitalism, Tim also forms a romantic bond with an insurance agent named Joan (Anne Heche) to the disapproval of his roommate, Ronald (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), who’s trying to stay on the straight and narrow during such a crucial, career defining conference.
Streaming Cedar Rapids For The Name Of Fun
Cedar Rapids is pretty much your by-the-numbers fish out of water stories, but is worth a watch because of its strong characters. If casted differently, it probably wouldn’t be an effective comedy because of how standard it truly is. Thanks to the over-the-top lead performances from John C. Reilly and Ed Helms, you might actually want to go to a work function by the time you finish watching this one, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
As of this writing, you can stream Cedar Rapids on Max.
