But… wait. There’s more.

If you were to avoid the movie because of his appearance, you’d be making a mistake. Why? Well, two reasons. A) Forgetting Sarah Marshall is a well-acted, superbly observed, snort-into-your-popcorn comic romp that intertwines both sharp characterisation and penis gags with winning effect. B) Russell Brand isn’t actually that bad in it. No. Seriously.

Don’t get hecklerspray wrong – we’re not suddenly fans of his. It’s just that his role as an egotistical rock star is supposed to be annoying. Therefore it works. Got that? Good. Just so we’re clear.

The main narrative revolves around TV music composer Peter Bretter (Jason Segal) whose girlfriend Sarah (Kristen Bell) also happens to be the star of the show he writes for. The show itself – Crime Scene: Scene Of The Crime – is a spot-on parody of the glut of CSI shows presently being churned out by US television, and gives Sarah Marshall a satirical edge that wasn’t quite so prominent in Knocked Up or Superbad.

Satire will only get you so far, though, which is why the rest of the movie simplifies things to a straightforward – and arguably ingenious – setup. Peter is dumped by Sarah, so decides to forget his troubles by holidaying in Hawaii. The only trouble is that Sarah and her new boyfriend – Brand himself – are on vacation there too. Hence all sorts of embarrassing scrapes and encounters.

Don’t worry: while this sounds like the premise for a dodgy eighties sitcom, it actually allows for a number of highly funny set pieces and great side characters – Bill Hader and Paul Rudd make excellent turns as geeky friend and beach bum stoner, while the staggeringly beautiful Mila Kunis adds a second love interest to proceedings, proving along the way that she’s about as far from the character she voices in Family Guy as possible.

It does have flaws – it’s overlong, and things get a little more predictable towards the end – but otherwise it’s a fresh, funny and surprisingly sweet take on the nature of relationships that made even a cynical wreck like hecklerspray feel good.

You don’t get much more of a glowing endorsement than that, trust us. So go check it out.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall opens in the UK on April 23.