Playing like a small-town Up In The Air crossed with the little-seen Jason Bateman vehicle Extract, Cedar Rapids centres around dweeby insurance salesman Tim Lippe (Ed Helms, The US Office’s Andy Bernard) as he leaves town for the first time to attend a conference, bumping into pretty much every off-kilter American comedy actor in the biz, from John C. Reilly to Alia Shawkat to Anne Heche along the way, and of course learning in a nice, wholesome life lesson as a result. Granted, that actually sounds like a pretty dreadful film, but trust us, it’s great.

Tim Lippe, working for Brown Star Insurance, is the kind of guy who can’t spot an obvious hooker in a lineup of one, and who insists on calling sex “love-making”. He’s a man-child, currently engaged in a weird, Oedipal affair with his high school teacher (hi, Sigourney!) while idolising the big man at work, Roger (I Love You Man’s Thomas Lennon in a brief but marvellous role). Unfortunately, his creepy, basement-dwelling lifestyle is shattered when Roger’s asphyxiwank goes wrong and the boss, played perfectly by the glorious Stephen Root, charges naive Tim with the task of representing Brown Star at a conference in Cedar Rapids. The catch; the Lippe must win Brown Star their unprecedented fourth Twin Diamond Award, or see himself and all his colleagues out of a job.

Considering that none of the US Office’s stars (outside of Steve Carrell) have yet succeeded in opening a big film, Ed Helms does well to carry Cedar Rapids, especially among heavyweights such as Reilly and The Wire’s Isaiah Whitlock Jr. His brand of comedy works best in an ensemble piece and director Miguel Arteta (Youth In Revolt, The Good Girl) gives him plenty to play with, making him the butt or centre of most of the hilarity. The jokes come thick and fast, ranging from countless references to Tim’s naiveté, to the weirdly dad-esque coarseness of Reilly’s Dean Ziegler, and the upshot is that Cedar Rapids succeeds in being a genuinely funny film.

Sure, you could say that Helms’ work in Cedar Rapids is barely a step away from his Andy Bernard, and you’d be right. But if it ain’t broke, stop being a whiney baby, and just enjoy the film. With its heart-warming message just bordering on saccharine, and the rudeness enjoyably in the realm of the bawdy, we reckon Cedar Rapids is a pretty good call for a first date movie. In fact, maybe you could take one of us *tear*.

Anyhow, Cedar Rapids is out now, and if you want to let us know how that first date goes, with pictures, do drop us a line. We’re not pervs, honest.