'Cedar Rapids' on the silver screen leaves ’em laughing in real-life setting

CEDAR RAPIDS - “Cedar Rapids” the movie won more than just two diamonds with the full house gathered for a sneak preview last night.

The 253-seat theater at the Galaxy 16 Cine was packed with laughter from beginning to end, from Sigourney Weaver's hilarious turn as a cougar to John C. Reilly's sophomoric high jinks as the credits rolled.

The event drew a mix of ages, with everyone clutching the golden tickets they'd won in media giveaways this week.

Demetrios Hadjis, 59, of Cedar Rapids, a veteran of Theatre Cedar Rapids performances, said he was “excited to see what they've done with the movie.”

He wanted to walk into the movie with no preconceived notions.

“I'm trying to keep my eyes closed” to the hype beforehand, he said, “so I can have my first impressions without the reviews and trailers.”

He couldn't help but hear, however, that shooting moved to Ann Arbor, Mich., after the collapse of the Iowa film tax credit nearly forced the movie to be scrapped entirely.

“With the potential acting opportunities for the local people lost, it's sad,” he said, “not to mention the restaurants and hotels” that would have profited had the film been made here. “It's a big loss to the community.”

Having a scattering of local icons on-screen helped buffer that disappointment for Josh Willia, 30, of Cedar Rapids.

“The Cedar Rapids shots made it real,” he said, “and the humor was very original. Cedar Rapids was very well portrayed.”

His wife, Lizette, 27, agreed. She especially liked the shots of Quaker and the talk about the floods of 2008.

The plot follows naive Tim Lippe (played by Ed Helms) as he steps out of his small-town world in Wisconsin into a big city of opportunities at a regional insurance convention in Cedar Rapids. Compounding his angst, he's trying to bring home the coveted Two Diamond award for his company. That's more pressure than he has ever faced.

Lippe's dumbfounded blank looks drew as many laughs as the raunchy humor hopping out of his hotel roommate's mouth (Riley). Some lines and antics even drew applause, especially when Lippe attempted to scale a rock climbing wall at Westdale Mall.

Among those laughing on the way out was Sheryl Bequeaith, 65, of Cedar Rapids.

“It was funny - it really was,” she said. “It made Wisconsin look worse than us.”

“Cedar Rapids” opens today at the Galaxy 16 Cine and the Wynnsong 12 in Cedar Rapids.