Rather than mine laughs from crazy hijinks, writer-director Jody Hill prefers troubled protagonists. In his cult-favorite debut, The Foot Fist Way, he earned yuks at the expense of a crazed karate instructor. Now he’s back with the violent and funny Observe and Report. Think Apatow by way of Tarantino.

Describe Observe and Report.
“The idea is a vision of darkness that’s like the comedic Taxi Driver. I actually took out stuff that seemed too comedic. I wanted everything to be darker and taken totally seriously. My original idea was to cast Seth and then no other comedic actors. But then you have Ray Liotta, who…Shit, Ray ain’t funny [laughs].”

Are we talking Goodfellas Liotta or Operation Dumbo Drop Liotta?
“Straight-up Goodfellas Liotta—angry and kicking ass. He’s a detective, and there’s a turf war between him and Rogen. Crazy shit goes down in the mall.”

Is the world ready for such depravity?
“Probably not. But I hope I’ll at least bring some danger back to movie comedy.”