Seth Rogen’s comeback in the past few years has been nothing short of extraordinary, with a wide gamut of projects (namely superb films 50/50 and This Is The End) that show off his willingness to tell unconventional stories with heart, sharp writing and a terrific dose of raunchy jokes. Neighbors is the newest chapter in Seth Rogen’s resurgence, and like those two projects, brings an unconventional storyline to hilarious life.

Unfortunately, the story, which deals with married couple Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly (Rose Byrne) dealing with a fraternity next door, takes a bit to get going. While this is supposed to set up a mundane environment to contrast with the forthcoming neighbors, it’s still a pity that only one gag (Seth and his co-workers codenames for doing pot during work hours) lands heavy laughs for a while there, but thankfully, Rogen and Byrne have excellent chemistry that makes things more than watchable in the film’s first scenes. However, the moment the fraternity (led by Zac Efron) arrives, it’s a non-stop yuks riot. The shenanigans the frat indulges in, including one scheme to earn money that involves shaving and 3D printing, are relentlessly amusing, especially since Rogen and Byrne do a superb job of juxtaposing themselves against the fraternities lifestyle.

I was wondering how those two (who are only 32 and 35 in real life) would convincingly play the kind of crotchety “get-off-my-lawn” type folks who would get mad at partying youngsters, but the movie smartly plays them up as young folks who are scared of growing up too fast and use their agitation at the frat to retain some of their youthful rebelliousness. This kind of thoughtfulness is also given to Efron’s character, who is given some nicely deep material at the end of the film that really does a great job of making the movie even better.

So yes, the movie has some pathos, but fear not, for the movie is also easily one of the funniest I’ve seen all year. Anytime Rogen and Efron get in a room together in this thing, I can assure you you will be laughing until your sides hurt, especially in their epic fight scene in the third act. Plus, Rose Byrne owns every humorous line she’s given, to the point where I’d call her perhaps the best thing of the movie. No wait, the best thing about the movie is the conversation about which Batman is better, or perhaps it’s the terrible doctor Rogen and Byrne have to visit. Looks, let’s be blunt here guys, in terms of  storytelling Neighbors gets episodic and clumsy, but it’s got plenty of perfect laughs to at least mildly compensate for that.

And yes ladies; Zac Efron is shirtless in it. Many times. And so is Seth Rogen.