VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Her (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Her (2013)

Claire: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Carolyn: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Native ratings: 3.3/5 stars Netflix, 8.1/10 IMDB (Currently IMDB Top 250: #206).

Spike Jonze sure has a range of talent! He wrote (but didn’t direct) Bad Grandpa — a movie that made us laugh harder than any other movie we watched during the year we watched it. He directed (but didn’t write) Adaptation.  He’s been part of the Jackass writing crew forever. He directed Where The Wild Things Are. He was a producer for Synecdoche, New York. He was an actor on The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret. I’m just so totally confused about the amazing range of work he seems to get.

This one is written AND directed by him. That doesn’t happen much for him. It turned out really well.  I’m surprised it’s currently in the IMDB Top 250 movies ever. It’s a sci-fi romance drama, though Netflix tries to act like it’s a sci-fi romantic comedy. It’s not a comedy. It’s a pretty serious movie.

It’s simply a very thought-provoking movie about loneliness and drifting apart from others as you grow and change — not always together.  When we get older, we get so specialized that we often aren’t compatible with others.  Robotic lovers and artificial intelligence companions ARE the future, like it or not. And we will lose touch with each other even further.  This movie is about that.

But it’s also another exercise in seeing how technology may shape the way we live in the future. A little bit Robot And Frank, a little bit Sim0ne, a little bit A.I. [the Spielberg movie], this movie totally explores the philosophy of artificial intelligence, whether they have “feelings”, and how they themselves may come to have motivations and aspirations.

It also challenges the concept of what a relationship can be. Can you have a sex life with someone who doesn’t have a body? (Though I often wondered why Samantha didn’t just draw up plans to place her conciousness inside an articulatable RealDoll — that issue was actually addressed by the reading-a-book metaphor she used later in the movie.)

It’s also weird to have a movie where we only *hear* Scarlett Johansson, instead of *see* her. It really allowed me to elevate my appreciate of her voice more — she could totally do animation. We also get to hear, but not see, Kristen Wiig — but only for a minute. Don’t worry, though — not all attractive women in the film are heard but not seen! There’s plenty of Amy Adams AND Olivia Wild AND we get to see Portia Doubleday at age 25 after only having seen her at age 20. Just saying. A lot of this movie is staring at Joaquin Phoenix talking to himself, but not all of it.

But anyway — a very cerebral, well-written movie in my opinion. Carolyn, not quite being as tech-y as me, didn’t quite like it as much as myself.

Written and directed by Spike Jonze (writer of Jackass, Bad Grandpa movies, Where the Wild Things Are, director of Adaptation, Being John Malkovich, Where the Wild Things Are).

Starring Joaquin Phoenix (The Village, Signs, Hotel Rwanda) as Theodore.
Scarlett Johansson as Samantha, the A.I.
Chris Pratt (Guardians Of The Galaxy, The Lego Movie, Take Me Home Tonight, Movie 43, What’s Your Number?, Jennifer’s Body, The Five-Year Engagement) as Paul, the receptionist coworker.
Rooney Mara (The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo remake movies, Side Effects, The Social Network, Youth In Revolt, A Nightmare On Elm Street (2010)) as Catherine, the ex-wife.
Bill Hader (Saturday Night Live, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, Pineapple Express, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Knocked Up, Superbad, The Brothers Solomon, Men In Black 3, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, The To Do List, Year One, Adventureland, 7 eps of The Venture Bros., 4 eps of The Human Giant, 2 eps of Aqua Teen Hunger Force, 2 eps of South Park, 1 ep of Drunk History) as Chat Room Friend #2.
Amy Adams (Lois Lane in Man Of Steel, American Hustle, Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby, Psycho Beach Party, Cruel Intentions 2, 3 eps of The Office, 3 eps of King Of The Hill, 1 ep of Smallville) as Amy, as Theodore’s friend.
Olivia Wilde (Tron 2, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, The Change-Up, Drinking Buddies, Better Living Through Chemistry, Year One, 1 ep of Tron: Uprising, 1 ep of Portlandia, 1 ep of American Dad) as Blind Date.
Portia Doubleday (Youth In Revolt) as Surrogate Date Isabella.
Kristen Wiig (Young Lucille Bluth in Arrested Development, Date Night, Anchorman 2, Adventureland, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Knocked Up, The Brothers Solomon, How To Train Your Dragon, Saturday Night Live, Despicable Me, Girl Most Likely, 2 eps of The Simpsons, 1 ep of Drunk History) as SexyKitten (the phone sex in the very beginning).

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1798709/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Friended To Death (2014)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Friended To Death (2014)

Claire: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Carolyn: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Native ratings: 5.1/10 IMDB. Not available on Netflix.

Claire’s thoughts: Another interesting movie about post-modern times — this time, Facebook. The Social Network was dry as hell, but very interesting. This is not dry, funny, but not as interesting.

Dude fakes his death to see who his “real” friends are. Reminds me of a guy I knew in college… He always wanted to be bad off enough to go to the hospital, so he could see who his “real” friends were by virtue of who would visit him in a hospital. Well shit… I guess I’m just a bad friend to everybody, then, because I fucking hate hospitals. Totally. But anyway… It also says a lot about social networking, how it’s a substitute for real interaction, and how a tool that should augment peoples’ social lives actually replaces their social lives.

But it’s also funny. The guy is just a prick. He’s a meter maid cop who tickets his own friends’ cars, tickets people a minute or two early, and is just generally full of himself, completely lame and uninteresting, and cringingly unaware of his own hubris. He flails about life, making poor choices… And we watch the trainwreck, and laugh.

Carolyn’s thoughts:  There wasn’t much to this movie.  It had funny moments, with a serious undertone near the end.  It was a good choice for our second movie of the night.

Sarah Smick wrote, directed and starred as Sylvie / Rhune Muhleif.
Also written by and starring Ian Michaels as Kev, the ballz deep douchebag.

Starring:
Ryan Hansen (G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Superhero Movie) as Michael Harris (the main character).
James Immekus as Emile Lewis (the other guy who was fired).
Zach McGowan (Terminator Salvation) as Joel (the “best” “friend”).
Angela Bullock (2 eps of Oz, 1 ep of The Sopranos) as Charlotte Lewis, the blom.
Richard Riehle (Santa Claus in A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, Smiley Face, Extracted, The Beach Party At The Threshold Of Hell, Office Space, Hatchet, Mysterious Skin, Palindromes, Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, Dorm Daze 2, The Man From Earth, 4 eps of The Legend Of Korra, 1 ep of Drunk History) as Dan, the blom’s boyfriend.
Robert R. Shafer (Bob Vance in The Office, 1 ep of Malcolm In The Middle, 1 ep of Titus) as Chuck Henson, the boss.
Pancho Moler (Epic Movie) as Lance, the midget co-worker.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2298186/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: That’s My Boy (2012)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: That’s My Boy (2012)

Claire: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Carolyn: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Native ratings: 3.2/5 stars Netflix, 5.6/10 IMDB.

Carolyn’s thoughts:  The hilarity never stopped.  I guess I still like Adam Sandler movies.

Claire’s thoughts: Yea, I really don’t have much to say either. I was quite surprised after some recent Sandler duds.  Family awkwardness has got to be one of the most contrived forms of situational humor in existence, yet it’s taken to such a ridiculous, over-the-top level in this movie, that it wraps around and becomes high quality. Who’d have thought?

So yeah. I guess I still like Adam Sandler movies. Sigh.

Directed by Sean Anders (Sex Drive).
Written by David Caspe.

Adam Sandler as Donny.
Vanilla Ice as Himself.
Susan Sarandon as Mary McGarricle (Present Day).
Andy Samberg (Bad Neighbors, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs movies, Nick And Norah’s Infinite Playlist, I Love You Man, The To Do List, What’s Your Number?, Grown Ups 2, Saturday Night Live, 4 eps of Human Giant, 2 eps of Adventure Time, 2 eps of American Dad, 1 ep of Portlandia, 1 ep of The Sarah Silverman Program) as Todd.
Leighton Meester (Date Night, Remember The Daze, 4 eps of 24) as Jamie.
James Caan (Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs, Honeymoon In Vegas, Small Apartments, Elf, Dick Tracy) as Father McNally.
Milo Ventimiglia (Peter Petrelli in Heroes, Grown Ups 2, and, get this–Wolverine in the English version of the Wolverine anime) as Chad, the marine brother.
Blake Clark (Grown Ups, Slinky Dog in the Toy Story movies, 50 First Dates, The Waterboy, 23 eps of Home Improvement, 3 eps of It’s Garry Shandling’s Show) as Gerald.
Meagen Fay (Woops! [failed post-apocalyptic 1980s sitcom], 11 eps of Malcolm In The Middle, 12 eps of Life with Louie, 2 eps of Six Feet Under, 1 ep of Nip/Tuck) as Helen.
Will Forte (Abe Lincoln in Clone High, Tim And Eric‘s Billion Dollar Movie, Tim And Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, Sit Down Shut Up, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs movies, Fanboys, The Brothers Solomon, Grown Ups 2, 22 episodes of The Cleveland Show, 8 episodes of Gravity Falls, 5 episodes of American Dad, Saturday Night Live, 1 ep of Drunk History) as Phil, the rival coworker.
Rachel Dratch (Just Go With It, Click, Saturday Night Live, 6 eps of Assy McGee, 2 eps of O’Grady, 1 ep of Superjail, 1 ep of Avator: The Last Airbender, 1 ep of Squidbillies, 1 ep of Aqua Teen, 1 ep of Delocated) as Phil’s Wife.
Nick Swardson (Grandma’s Boy, Grown Ups 2, You Don’t Mess With The Zohan, The House Bunny, Blades Of Glory, Click, Back In The Day) as Kenny.
Eva Amurri Martino (1 ep of Childrens Hospital) as Mary McGarricle (Younger). She’s Susan Sarandon’s daughter, and she plays a younger version of Susan Sarandon in this movie.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1232200/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Bad Words (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Bad Words (2013)

Bad Words (2013) –
Claire: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Carolyn: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Native ratings: 3.4/5 stars Netflix, 6.7/10 IMDB.

Jason Bateman–a bitter, middle-aged, cynic–finds a loophole in the National Spelling Bee rules, and shoehorns his way into a national competition for children. And he aims to win. With malicious, thoughtful, spiteful intent.  What an amazing premise.

Carolyn’s thoughts: This was hilarious, and awkward, and pretty fun for a movie.  Somewhat predictable, but it was worth the ride.  Hilarious!

Claire: Hilarious indeed. Jason Bateman can play a hilarious spiteful middle-aged man really well!  He’s not good-natured, like in Arrested Development! He has a very willful, malicious, spiteful intent. Also unlike in Arrested Develpment: He is actually very capable at being master of the situation, one-up’ing others, and attaining his goals.

And then you throw in a kid?! And it doesn’t totally suck?!?!  Wow. Even with my own cynical bitterness, the kid was good. Fuck. Don’t make me write that, movie!

Directed by Jason Bateman (3 eps of Valerie, 1 ep of Arrested Development, 1 ep of Family Matters).
Written by Andrew Dodge.

Starring Jason Bateman (Arrested Development, The Change-Up, Sit Down Shut Up, The Invention Of Lying, Identity Theft, Hancock, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Juno) as Guy Trilby.
Kathryn Hahn (Wanderlust, The Dictator, Step Brothers, Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy, Wake Up Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie, Step Brothers, Ab Fab, How to Lose A Guy In 10 Days, The Hungover Games, The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty, 1 ep of Bob’s Burgers, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::, 1 ep of Robot Chicken, 1 ep of Childrens Hospital, 1 ep of American Dad) as Jenny Widgeon.
Philip Baker Hall (Bruce Almighty, The Truman Show, Ghostbusters 2, Magnolia, The Amityville Horror, 2 eps of Seinfeld, 2 eps of Curb Your Enthusiasm, 2 eps of Baby Blues, 1 ep of The Life And Times Of Tim, 1 ep of Warren The Ape, 1 ep of Children’s Hospital, 1 ep of 3rd Rock From The Sun, 1 ep of Cheers, 1 ep of M*A*S*H) as Dr. Bowman.
Allison Janney (Juno, Pretty Ugly People, Strangers With Candy, 10 Things I Hate About You, The Object of My Affection, 1 ep of Robot Chicken, 1 ep of Family Guy, 1 ep of Weeds, 1 ep of Frasier) as Dr. Bernice Deagan.
Ben Falcone (Identity Thief, Pretty Ugly People, Smiley Face, Garfield 2, Joey) as Pete Fowler.
Judith Hoag (April O’Neil in the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie (1990), Salt, Armageddon, 1 ep of Weeds, 1 ep of Dream On, 1 ep of Mad About You) as Petal Dubois. Thanks to the IMDB message board for pointing out this tidbit. I would have missed her name. She was one of the parents in the crowd.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2170299/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Neighbors aka Bad Neighbors (2014)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Neighbors aka Bad Neighbors (2014)

Claire: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Carolyn: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Native ratings: 3.7/5 stars Netflix, 6.9/10 IMDB.

From the director of Get Him To The Greek and Forgetting Sarah Marshall, we expected that this movie would be highly entertaining, and it was.  While not quite being 5-star material, it was still chock full of laugh-out-loud jokes and situations.

It had potential to be a great party movie, but it was a little weird, becase Seth and his wife are trying to “grow up” because they have a baby now. So us “Apatow generation” comedy viewers are once again being forced to face the fact that we ourselves are aging.  Seems that the marketing machine targetted at our demographic is growing with us, in order to ensure that we remain a captive audience. And we do, because this shit is funny.  But still…part of the “message” is lost on Carolyn & I, since we don’t want children — or even comprehend the idea of why anyone would.

Definitely a good drinking movie — whether you’re in your early 20s, or late 30s. And a great cast. Talented people all around. Not necessarily the most memorable or unique movie, but it’s a formula that works, and it’s nice to go into a movie knowing what to expect and have it actually be accurate for once. Good times.

Hannibal from The Eric Andrew Show was great as a police officer. I didn’t even notice Natasha Leggero (Callie from Ugly Americans, Ethel from Brickleberry) as a prostitute.
Directed by Nicholas Stoller (Get Him To The Greek, Forgetting Sarah Marshall).
Written by Andrew J. Cohen & Brendan O’Brien.

Starring Seth Rogen (Kung Fu Panda, The Green Hornet, Funny People, Observe And Report, Fanboys, Zack And Miri Make A Porno, Pineapple Express, Step Brothers, Knocked Up, The 40 Year Old Virgin, This Is The End, Anchorman, Young George Bluth in Arrested Development, 17 eps of Undeclared) as Mac Radner.
Rose Byrne (Moira MacTaggert in X-Men: First Class, Get Him To The Greek, 28 Weeks Later, I Give It A Year, The Internship, Star Wars: Episode II, 1 ep of Portlandia) as Kelly Radner.
Brian Huskey (Someone Marry Barry, Chet in Childrens Hospital, This Is The End, The Onion News Network, Step Brothers, Superbad, Fright Night, 5 eps of Bob’s Burgers) as Bill Wazowkowski.
Ike Barinholtz (Disaster Movie, MADtv, The Mindy Project, 6 eps of Eastbound & Down, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::, 1 ep of Childrens Hospital, 1 ep of Weeds, 1 ep of High School USA, 1 ep of Drunk History) as Jimmy, the divorced friend.
Carla Gallo (Undeclared, Get Him To The Greek, Funny People, I Love You Man, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The 40 Year Old Virgin, Superbad, Carnivale) as Paula, the friend’s divorced wife.
Zac Efron (Anakin Skywalker in Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III, That Awkward Moment, 17 Again, The Lorax, High School Musical, 1 ep of Firefly) as Teddy Sanders, the douchy frat president.
Dave Franco (Fright Night, The Lego Movie, Warm Bodies, 21 Jump Street, Superbad, 2 eps of Young Justice) as Pete, the brainy frat dude.
Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe in Friends, Mad About You, Analyze This movies, Dr. Dolittle 2, Clockwatchers, Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, Web Therapy, 1 ep of American Dad, 1 ep of Father Of The Pride) as Dean Carol Gladstone.
Hannibal Buress (The Eric Andre Show, 8 eps of China IL, 2 eps of Lucas Bros. Moving Company, 1 ep of Delocated, 1 ep of Bob’s Burgers) as Officer Watkins.
Christopher Mintz-Plasse (McLovin from Superbad, How To Train Your Dragon, The To-Do List, This Is the End, Kick-Ass movies, Movie 43, Fright Night, Year One) as Scoonie.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2004420/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: The Lone Ranger (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: The Lone Ranger (2013)

Claire: 4.4/5 stars, 8/10.
Carolyn: 4.4/5 stars, 8/10.
Native ratings: 3.2/5 stars Netflix, /10 IMDB.

Carolyn’s thoughts: Fun movie!  I had low expectations because I was like “Lone Ranger? Meh.”  I didn’t remember much from the series that I watched when I was a kid, and didn’t think much of it.  But this movie delivered plenty of fun action and some good comedy splashed in.  I enjoyed it!  Johnny Depp is awesome as usual.

Claire’s thoughts: There was a series? I guess there was, huh? Much like Ninja Turtles, this is something that was around last millennium, but which I’ve never really exprienced until the 2010s. Unlike Caroly, I had no low expectations. I figured explicitly because Johnny Depp worked hard on this — that I’d most likely really like it.  Other peoples’ complaints I filed under the “every remake/sequel has a bunch of fucking whiners attached to it”, and ignored. They only served to make me more interested in seeing it: The more complaints there are, the more there is something they are trying to stop, the more I want to know what that is.

This was fucking hilarious. It was a great adventure movie. I have no regrets. I’d recommend this to anyone who can sit thorugh a 2.5-hour movie.  It’s length really helped mak eit better!

And no, Tonto wasn’t racist. The fucking idians kicked him out because they thought he was crazy. They cover this in the movie! He acted completely different than the rest of them. And there’s an explanation, too. People whining that his depiction was racist couldn’t possibly have seen the movie, are fucking idiots, and should be shot. There. I said it.

Directed by Gore Verbinski (Pirates Of The Caribbean 1-3, Mousehunt).
Written by Justin Haythe (Snitch), Ted Elliott (Pirates Of The Caribbean 1-6, National Treasure 2, Aladdin, Shrek, The Mask Of Zorro, The Legend Of Zorro (2005)) & Terry Rossio (Pirates Of The Caribbean 1-5, National Treasure 2, Aladdin, Shrek, The Mask Of Zorro, The Legend Of Zorro (2005)).

Starring Johnny Depp as Tonto.
Helena Bonham Carter as Red Harrington.
Armie Hammer (Mirror Mirror, The Social Network, 1 ep of American Dad, 1 ep of The Simpsons, 1 ep of Arrested Development) as John Reid (Lone Ranger).
William Fichtner (Date Night, The Dark Knight, Wrong, Drive Angry, Ken Rosenberg in Grand Theft Auto, Blades Of Glory, Equilibrium, Endsville, Armageddon, Black Hawk Down, Go, Strange Days, The Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)) as Butch Cavendish.
Tom Wilkinson (Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, The Green Hornet) as Latham Cole.
James Badge Dale (World War Z, Iron Man 3, Chase Edmunds in 24 (Kim Bauer’s secret boyfriend who was Jack’s partner in the 3rd season)) as Dan Reid, John’s brother.
Ruth Wilson as Rebecca Reid, Dan’s wife.
Mason Cook (The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, Spy Kids 4) as Will, the little boy who old Tonto is telling the story to.
JD Cullum (1 ep of Weeds, 1 ep of Frasier, 1 ep of 24) as Wendell.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1210819/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: That Awkward Moment (2014)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: That Awkward Moment (2014)

Claire: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Carolyn: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Native ratings: 3.2/5 stars Netflix, 6.2/10 IMDB.

I don’t know why it was so enjoyable, because it didn’t seem to be that special of a premise.  It worked as a sweet little movie.. yet we laughed HARD during it.

The “so moment” of a relationship is a good concept.

This movie really isn’t that memorable, but it was surprisingly entertaining for what it was. Perhaps because it is related to Movie 43 ever-so-slightly. Of course, most people hated Movie 43, but we loved it.

I truly don’t remember this movie two weeks later. Carolyn does. I’m bad at remembering things I watch, and waited too long to write my “review”.  Suffice to say… This is better than it sounds.
Written & Directed by Tom Gormican (co-producer of Movie 43).

Starring Zac Efron (Anakin Skywalker in Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III, 17 Again, The Lorax, High School Musical, 1 ep of Firefly) as Jason.
Miles Teller (he will be Reed Richards in a The Fantastic Four reboot that is filming right now) as Daniel.
Michael B. Jordan (he’s going to be Johnny Storm in that same Fantastic Four reboot movie that the other guy is also starring in, 2 eps of The Boondocks, 1 ep of The Sopranos) as Mikey, the black friend.
Imogen Poots (Drummond in Filth, 28 Weeks Later, V for Vendetta, Fright Night) as Ellie.
Mackenzie Davis (Smashed) as Chelsea, the wing-woman.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1800246/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Someone Marry Barry (2014)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Someone Marry Barry (2014)

Claire: 4.4/5 stars, 8.4/10.
Carolyn: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Native ratings: 3.2/5 stars Netflix, 5.9/10 IMDB.

Carolyn’s thoughts:  This was entertainly funny.  Lucy Punch was great.    Richard from Silicon Valley is awkward.  Damon Wayans Jr is the son of one of the Wayans brothers [You don’t say? -Claire].  Nice!

Claire’s thoughts: Nice indeed. Wanted a comedy. Got one. A lot of social awkwardness. Barry, the token “friend lacking a filter”. Tyler Labine & Lucy Punch had great chemistry. This is one of those rare comedy movies that is mostly about a romance, but which you would not call a romantic comedy — because the comedy comes first.  Yea, it has its formulaic moments and twists, but I genuinely liked this better than most of what’s out there.

Written and directed by the relatively-unknown Rob Pearlstein. I’d like him to make more ones like this.

Starring:
Tyler Labine (Dale in Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil, Control Alt Delete, Rapture-Palooza, Zack And Miri Make A Porno, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, 2 eps of Dark Angel, 2 eps of The X-Files) as Barry Burke. He doesn’t fuck any computers in this movie.
Lucy Punch (The Giant Mechanical Man, Bad Teacher, Hot Fuzz, St. Trinian’s) as Melanie Miller. I wish she’d do the red hair again, but I still love her.
Damon Wayans Jr. (1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::) as Desmond (subplot-guy who was fired & not fucking/fucking his wife).
Thomas Middleditch (Richard in Silicon Valley, 2 eps of Beavis & Butt-Head (2011), 1 ep of Ugly Americans, 1 ep of The Office, 1 ep of Newsreaders) as Kurt.
Ed Helms (Andy from The Office, The Hangover movies, The Lorax, Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, 5 eps of Childrens Hospital, 3 eps of NTSF:SD:SUV, 3 eps of Arrested Development, 1 ep of Ugly Americans) as Ben, Melanie’s failed date.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1978532/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Sexy Evil Genius (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Sexy Evil Genius (2013)

Claire: 3/5 stars, 7.4/10.
Carolyn: 4/5 stars, 7.6/10.
Native ratings: 3.4/5 stars Netflix, 5.7/10 IMDB.

So, Jsun mentioned there was a new My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, which led me to the wikipedia page in order to find the title, which led me to read said page, which lead me to notice an “In Popular Culture” section that was surprisingly blank, but said one thing: “Their songs are a major plot device in the dark comedy film Sexy Evil Genius.”

Now, I think people related to the movie put this in there, because it’s NOT a major plot device. It’s not even a plot device.  But the band IS mentioned and talked about more than in any other movie I’ve ever seen, and one of the few songs that I ever temporarily considered “my favorite song of all time” is indeed in the soundtrack – A Daisy Chain 4 Satan (Acid & Flowers Mix). So I don’t feel ripped off about that.

The genre made me feel a bit more ripped off. Netflix more accurately categorizes it as Crime-Thriller, while IMDB says Comedy-Drama-Mystery-Thriller which is just wrong. So we had unrealized comedic expectations hurting us.

But, y’know, it was still pretty interesting. Not as much of an overt comedy, but it still had comedic elements. It was more of an intriguing movie of dialog slowly revealing ulterior motives and mysteries, all while sitting at a bar table. Everyone sat at a table and talked — through the entire movie. One of those. If you took out the various flashback scenes, this could easily be a low-budget play with 4 people.

Yet it still worked, and was still entertaining. Seth Green! Michelle Trachtenberg! Katee Sackoff, from 24! The narrator-in-a-wheelchair from Oz … We finally saw him take a few steps! Good cast to do something like this. Worth it for the Thrill Kill Kult and Trachtenberg-eyes alone.

Carolyn’s thoughts: It was very low-key because it was more about dialogue and flashbacks, but it worked pretty well. There was a very interesting style to it.

Directed by Shawn Piller.
Written by Scott Lew.

Starring Seth Green (Robot Chicken, Family Guy, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Can’t Hardly Wait, Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H., Greg The Bunny, Titan Maximum, Without A Paddle, Idle Hands, 8 eps of Batman Beyond, 4 eps of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, 4 eps of MADtv, 3 eps of Mad, 2 eps of Heroes, 2 eps of Holliston) as Zachary Newman.
Anthony Michael Hall (The Dark Knight, Trojan War, Edward Scissorhands, The Breakfast Club, Weird Science, National Lampoon’s Vacation, 1 ep of American Dad) as Mark Von Dutch. Nice to see our Oz narrator doing something again. He looks slightly different, 10+ years later, but still totally recognizable. Kinda funny that he still doesn’t walk during the entire movie — except when he walks in and sits down. So in two features we’ve seen of him, he’s walked for all of 10 seconds.
Michelle Trachtenberg (Take Me Home Tonight, Weeds, Eurotrip, 17 Again, Mysterious Skin, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, 5 eps of Robot Chicken, 4 eps of Six Feet Under) as Miranda Prague.
Katee Sackhoff (Dana Walsh from 24, Riddick, 7 eps of Robot Chicken, 4 eps of Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Battlestar Galactica, 4 eps of Nip/Tuck, 4 eps of Undressed) as Nikki Franklyn.
Harold Perrineau (the narrator from Oz, 28 Weeks Later, The Matrix 2-3, Snitch, Lost) as Marvin Coolidge.
William Baldwin (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Sliver) as Bert Mayfaire.
Nora Kirkpatrick (5 eps of The Office) as Abby.
Derek Mio (G.B.F. aka Gay Best Friend) as Lead Singer.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1801096/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Pacific Rim (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Pacific Rim (2013)

Claire: 4/5 stars, 8/10.
Carolyn: 4/5 stars, 8.4/10.
Jesse: 4/5 stars, 7/10.
Jsun: 3.6/5 stars. “BIG SMASH MONSTRS IS GOOD”
Evan: 3.2/5 stars.
Native ratings: 3.5/5 stars Netflix, 7.1/10 IMDB.

Watched in 3-D with Jesse, Jsun, and Evan.

I really liked it. Almost loved it. But there were generic aspects. It was good and bad at the same time. But definitely the amusement park ride I was expecting and asking for.

I mean… I barely remember there truly being a story. They fight monsters, then oh no, boss monster! So they fight ’em.  And oh, they came from a portal to another dimension that just happens to exist in a crack in the sea, so that we can have fights in the ocean where there are less expensive things to CGI.

But really… It was an awesome action movie, slightly held back by cheesy dialog and formulaic tropes.  A good choice to watch in 3-D, because it looks awesome, but is lacking in dimension.

Carolyn’s thoughts: It was entertaining. Pretty cool action monster vs. mecha suit movie.
Directed by Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy movies, Mimic).

Written by Travis Beacham (Clash Of The Titans (2010)) & Guillermo del Toro (The Hobbit 2, Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy movies, Mimic).

Charlie Hunnam (Undeclared, Children Of Men) as Raleigh Becket.
Diego Klattenhoff (Mean Girls, The Informers, 2 eps of 24, 1 ep of Smallville) as Yancy Becket.
Ron Perlman (Hellboy, City Of Lost Children) as Hannibal Chau.
Idris Elba (Thor movies, Ghost Rider, Prometheus, 28 Weeks Later, 7 eps of The Office, 1 ep of Aqua Teen Hunger Force, 1 ep of Absolutely Fabulous) as Stacker Pentecost.
Rinko Kikuchi as Mako Mori.
Charlie Day (1 ep of American Dad, 1 ep of Unsupervised4) as Dr. Newton Geiszler.
Burn Gorman (The Dark Knight Rises, Fred Claus) as Gottlieb.
Max Martini (Contact, 3 eps of 24) as Herc Hansen.
Robert Kazinsky (1 ep of Robot Chicken) as Chuck Hansen.
Clifton Collins Jr. (Parker, The FP. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter: The Great Calamity, Crank 2: High Voltage, Star Trek (2009), Traffic, uncredited in Scott Pilgrim Vs The World) as Ops Tendo Choi.
Joe Pingue (Antiviral, Repo Men, The Boondock Saints, 1 ep of Puppets Who Kill) as Captain Merrit.
Joshua Peace (The Big Hit, Interrogation Surveillance Tech in Red) as Officer.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1663662/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: My Cousin Vinny (1992)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: My Cousin Vinny (1992)

Claire: 4.3/5 stars, 8.2/10.
Carolyn: 3.4/5 stars, 7.6/10.
Native ratings: 3.8/5 stars Netflix, 7.5/10 IMDB.

A court procedural… comedy?! This was a zany movie about proving one’s innocence in court in a redneck town when the odds are stacked against you. There’s even a social commentary about how justice is only for the rich — The only reason Vinny is their lawyer is because they can’t afford a real one.

Joe Pescie & Marisa Tomei were great together–and then they never did a movie together again. Where’d their careers go?  Then again, we have Daniel from The Karate Kid, and  Herman Munster as the local redneck judge, so maybe this movie is for people with washed-up careers?  Thing is, Herman Munster was actually really good as a scary redneck judge.  He had some potential as a character actor, and it’s too bad it didn’t really seem to go anywhere beyond The Munsters.

Anyway… Cute story, a bit of 80s-esque gimmickyness and cheesiness. No regrets watching this one.

Carolyn’s thoughts: This was pretty funny, and it had some great moments.

Directed by Jonathan Lynn (Clue, 1 ep of Ferris Bueller).
Written by Dale Launer (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels).

Starring Joe Pesci (Lethal Weapon movies, Home Alone movies, Goodfellas, 8 Heads In A Duffel Bag, JFK) as Vinny Gambini.
Ralph Macchio (Daniel in The Karate Kid movies, The Outsiders, 1 ep of Robot Chicken) as Bill Gambini.
Marisa Tomei (War Inc., What Women Want, Four Rooms, Crazy Stupid Love, an extra in The Toxic Avenger 1, 1 ep of The Simpsons) as Mona Lisa Vito.
Mitchell Whitfield (Donatello in TMNT (2007), 6 eps of Friends, 1 ep of Duckman, 1 ep of Curb Your Enthusiasm) as Stan Rothenstein.
Fred Gwynne (Herman Munster in The Munsters, Car 54 Where Are You?, The Secret of My Succe$s, Fatal Attraction, The Boy Who Could Fly, Pet Sematary) as Judge Chamberlain Haller.
Lane Smith (Perry in Lois & Clark: The New Adventures Of Superman, the original V series, The Last American Hero, 3 eps of King Of The Hill) as Jim Trotter III.
Austin Pendleton (Oz, Finding Nemo, Short Circuit) as John Gibbons.
Bruce McGill (Legally Blonde 2, Animal House, 10 eps of The Cleveland Show, 3 eps of Family Guy, 2 eps of Justice League, 2 eps of Quantum Leap, 1 ep of I Am Weasel, 1 ep of American Dad) as Sheriff Farley.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104952/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: The Hobbit 2: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: The Hobbit 2: The Desolation of Smaug (2013)

Claire: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Carolyn: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Evan: 1.7/5 stars, 3.7/10.
Native ratings: 4.0/5 stars Netflix, 8.1/10 IMDB.

Watched in 3-D with TwoBeans, Amber, & Evan.

This was pretty goddamn kickass, and everything I could have wanted from a movie like this. I’m glad they’re doing these, and I’m glad they are as long as they are. Looking forward to the 3rd, as well as the day I can watch The Hobbit trilogy extended versions for all 3 movies.

Evan’s dissenting opinion: I might be biasedly comparing this to Game of Thrones now that I’ve been watching it, but DoS just seemed lackluster.
I found myself glad they “got rid of” some of the characters later in the flick. Seeing as how there were twins and
triplet dwarves with very similar names, I had trouble keeping track of all of them in the first Hobbit.

The CG stood out to me in the way very few other movies do…in that terrible, shitty awful kind of way. The lighting
on some of the sets was very apparent, thus making the set itself stand out more as fake. This coupled with the
very visible green screen usage knocked a bunch of marks from the quality. It seemed like the Smaug scene was
one of the only things they got right. That and the barrel scene because they seemed to put more effort into it.

Because it only had a couple things going for it, I won’t give it more than 1.7/3.7
My ratings rarely go that low, but the more I think about this flick the more I want to
rip it apart into tiny crappy pieces. :/

Directed by Peter Jackson (Lord Of The Rings movies, The Hobbit movies, Meet The Feebles, Bad Taste, Dead Alive, The Frighteners).
Written by Fran Walsh (Lord Of The Rings movies, The Hobbit movies, Meet The Feebles, Dead Alive, The Frighteners), Philippa Boyens (The Lord Of The Rings movies, The Hobbit movies), Peter Jackson & Guillermo del Toro (Pacific Rim, Pan’s Labyrinth, Hellboy movies, Mimic).
Ian McKellen as Gandalf.
Martin Freeman (The World’s End, Arthur Dent in The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy, Shaun Of The Dead, What’s Your Number?, Hot Fuzz, 14 eps of The Office (UK)) as Bilbo.
Richard Armitage (Captain America: The First Avenger, uncredited in Star Wars Episode 1) as Thorin.
Ken Stott (The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian) as Balin.
Graham McTavish (Erik The Viking, Pandemic, Mikhail Novakovich in 7 eps of 24, Loki in 5 eps of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Sebastian Shaw in 4 eps of Wolverine And The X-Men) as Dwalin.
William Kircher (1 ep of Xena) as Bifur.
Orlando Bloom (The Lord Of The Rings movies, Pirates Of The Caribbean movies, The Three Musketeers, Troy) as Legolas.
Cate Blanchett (The Lord Of The Rings movies, Hanna, How To Train Your Dragon 2, Ponyo, The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, 2 eps of Family Guy) as Galadriel.
Benedict Cumberbatch (Kahn in Star Trek 12, 1 ep of The Simpsons) as Smaug / Necromancer.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1170358/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: American Hustle (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: American Hustle (2013)

Claire’s thoughts: It was interesting, but alas, it was just another movie where a bunch of people with competing angles try to deal with crime in the way that suits that individual. In the end, I don’t think this lived up to all the hype. I’m pretty tired of these kinds of movies, and want to watch them less often.

Carolyn’s thoughts: I think it was interesting, but I agree that it didn’t live up to the hype, but I did enjoy how it narrated the different perspectives of the characters…

Directed by David O. Russell (I Heart Huckabees).
Written by Eric Warren Singer (1 ep of Aeon Flux) and David O. Russell (I Heart Huckabees).

Christian Bale (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, Terminator Salvation, Howl in the English version of Howl’s Moving Castle, Equilibrium, American Psycho) as Irving Rosenfeld.
Bradley Cooper (The Hangover movies, Limitless, The A-Team, All About Steve, He’s Just Not That Into You, Wet Hot American Summer, Stella Shorts, Wedding Crashers, 6 eps of Nip/Tuck) as Richie DiMaso.
Amy Adams (Lois Lane in Man Of Steel, Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby, Psycho Beach Party, Cruel Intentions 2, 3 eps of The Office, 3 eps of King Of The Hill, 1 ep of Smallville) as Sydney Prosser.
Jeremy Renner (The Bourne Legacy, 28 Weeks Later, The Hurt Locker, National Lampoon’s Senior Trip, uncredited in Thor) as Mayor Carmine Polito.
Jennifer Lawrence (Hunger Games movies, Mystique in X-Men: First Class movies) as Rosalyn Rosenfeld.
Louis C.K. (5 eps of Home Movies, 4 eps of Dr. Katz) as Stoddard Thorsen.
Jack Huston (Twilight 3, 1 ep of Tron: Uprising) as Pete Musane.
Michael Pena (Observe And Report, Turbo, 2 eps of American Dad, 1 ep of Andy Richter Controls The Universe) as Paco Hernandez / Sheik Abdullah.
Shea Whigham (Wristcutters: A Love Story) as Carl Elway.
Colleen Camp (Tackleberry’s wife in Police Academy 2 and 4, Four Christmases, Last Action Hero, Sliver, Wayne’s World, Clue, Apocalypse Now, Speed 2, Plump Fiction, 3 eps of Roseanne) as Brenda. I forget who she is in this movie, but it’s interesting that she was in the Police Academy movies.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1800241/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: G.B.F. aka Gay Best Friend (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: G.B.F. aka Gay Best Friend (2013)

Claire: 4.4/5 stars, 8/10.
Carolyn: 4.4/5 stars, 8/10.
Native ratings: 3.8/5 stars Netflix, 6.0/10 IMDB.

Watch it for awkward-mom Megan Mullally trying to bond with her gay son!

From the makers of Jawbreakers, which was itself a poor Man’s Heathers (which is a great compliment), comes… Another movie about the crazy games high schoolers play, and all the complex interactions of everyone’s personal angle in the agenda of their social life.

Carolyn: This was pretty entertaining, and it was funny, but it probably could have been more funny.  But it was enjoyable.

Claire: Yes, this almost made it to 5-star comedy territory.

While both Heathers and Jawbreakers were both about some Mean Girls popularizing another girl AND an accidental death, this movie took a similar attitude in writing, and applied it to being gay and coming out… But without any death or violence. (A nobody still gets popularized, though.)

This is about the games of popular teenage girls will play in order to fight over the school’s first-ever “out” gay person, who is immediately treated like an asset to be paraded around to vaunt the so-called “tolerance” that these popular girls never actually had in the first place (or the second) (or the third).
It’s interesting.

And it’s unique — Outside of Gregg Araki movies, we’re not really seeing a lot of movies with gay main characters lately.

And it’s funny. It’s billed as comedy, not comedy romance. That doesn’t mean no romance; it simply means it’s a real comedy here, not a romantic comedy. And it’s not a marketing lie.

And it’s over the top — right at home with Gregg Araki movies (and Heathers), actually, in terms of ridiculous dialogue. People just don’t talk like that! But lots of movies have people who speak completely unrealistically. It’s part of the charm of the medium.
Directed by Darren Stein (Jawbreaker, also the writer of Jawbreaker, but he didn’t write this one.).
Written by George Northy.
Michael J. Willett as Tanner Daniels.
Paul Iacono (2 eps of Human Giant) as Brent Van Camp.
Sasha Pieterse (teenage girl in X-Men: First Class, 5 eps of Heroes, 96 eps of Pretty Little Liars) as Fawcett Brooks, the main popular girl.
Andrea Bowen (3 eps of King Of The Hill, 1 ep of Batman: The Brave And The Bold) as ‘Shley Osgoode, the Mormon.
Xosha Roquemore (19 eps of The Mindy Project) as Caprice Winters, the sassy black chick.
Molly Tarlov (48 eps of Awkward) as Sophie Aster, the former friend.
Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter movies) as McKenzie Pryce. Clairerecognized her. Carolyn thought she was in something else we watched and Claire recognized her then, too, but now I don’t see her in anything else on IMDB. … Uh, no Carolyn–That was someone else.
Megan Mullally (Childrens Hospital, Axe Cop, Out There, Will & Grace, Monkeybone, Date & Switch, Smashed, Once Bitten, 8 eps of Bob’s Burgers) as Mrs. Van Camp.
Natasha Lyonne (Detroit Rock City, American Pie movies, Scary Movie 2, But I’m A Cheerleader, Girl Most Likely, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::, 1 ep of Weeds) as Mrs. Hogel, the crazy cat lady school teacher.
Jonathan Silverman (The Single Guy, The Hungover Games, Snatched, Weekend At Bernie’s, Caddyshack 2, Stealing Home, The Hungover Games, 1 ep of Caroline In The City) as Mr. Daniels.
Rebecca Gayheart (Jawbreaker, Scream 2, Urban Legend, Santa’s Slay, 8 eps of Beverly Hills 90210, 3 eps of Nip/Tuck) as Mrs. Daniels.
Horatio Sanz (Saturday Night Live, Wreck-It Ralph, The Dictator, Step Brothers, Year One, Road Trip, 3 eps of Gravity Falls, 3 eps of Upright Citizen’s Brigade) as Principal Crowe.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2429074/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Knights Of Badassdom (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Knights Of Badassdom (2013)

Claire: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Carolyn: 5/5 stars, 9.4/10.
Native ratings: 3.2/5 stars Netflix, 6.0/10 IMDB.

So I love GWAR, and Oderus Urungus (RIP) is a star in this show Holliston, which was enough for me to watch it. Holliston is a sitcom aimed at horror fans, and the 2 main characters are themselves writer-directors. We’ve now seen 2 movies from each director. Both directors each released a 5-star movie (this movie, and Adam Green’s Frozen) and a 3-star movie (Wrong Turn 2, also by Lynch, and Hatchet 1, by Green). So that’s the convoluted story of how I decided to watch this movie

And damn. I didn’t expect it to be comedy-horror; I was just thinking it was comedy. This is basically Unicorn City meets Todd And The Book Of Pure Evil.  This is way better than Unicorn City. It takes the same concept, but adds an *actual* supernatural angle… Which is really hilarious, because what the fuck do LARPers know about battling a real demon?  (Ahem…What do any of us know?)

Anyway – Nerds, gamers, D&D-players, fanboys, metalheads, potheads — This movie’s for you. Hilarious and epic. A much-needed pure comedy, existing in a world full of romantic comedies. If you like this, you REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLY need to go and watch the horror-comedy-stoner-metal series Todd And The Book Of Pure Evil.
Directed by Joe Lynch (Holliston, Wrong Turn 2).

Written by Matt Wall & Kevin Dreyfuss.

Starring:
Ryan Kwanten (True Blood, 181 eps of Home And Away) as Joe, the main guy.
Steve Zahn (Diary Of A Wimpy Kid movies, Reality Bites, The Object Of My Affection, Chicken Little, You’ve Got Mail) as Eric, the cleric friend.
Peter Dinklage (Nip/Tuck, both Death At A Funeral movies, Elf, A Case Of You, Game Of Thrones, will be in X-Men: Days Of Future Past) as Hung, the warrior friend.
Brian Posehn as Gilberto.
Summer Glau (River from Firefly, Supergirl in Superman/Batman: Apocalypse, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::) as Gwen, the hot chick.
Brett Gipson (uncredited in Transylmania, 1 ep of The Office) as Gunther.
W. Earl Brown (Being John Malkovich, There’s Something About Mary, Scream, Vanilla Sky, Deep Impact, New Nightmare, 1 ep of Six Feet Under, 1 ep of Caroline In The City, 1 ep of Seinfeld) as Randy, the paintball redneck who got the book on his face.
Michael Gladis (Eagleheart, 1 ep of Xavier: Renegade Angel, 40 eps of Mad Men) as King Diamond.
Margarita Levieva (Adventureland, 23 eps of Revenge) as Beth, the ex-girlfriend.
Jimmi Simpson (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, The Invention of Lying, Date Night, 15 eps of Late Show With David Letterman, 3 eps of 24, 2 eps of Carnivale) as Ronnie Kwok, the gamemaster.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1545660/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Afternoon Delight (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Afternoon Delight (2013)

Claire: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Carolyn: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Native ratings: 2.8/5 stars Netflix, 5.9/10 IMDB.

This was an interesting movie about a couple with a bad sex life + overall boring life. They go to a strip club to liven things up, and the mother (Kathryn Hahn, apparently a better actor than I’d thought) ends up having the stripper (Juno Temple, a personal favorite) live in their house. The stripper is a sex positive individual (duh), getting them into uncomfortable situations that are only uncomfortable because most people ear prudes.

Ultimately, because the stripper fucks people, and because people react so negatively to sex that isn’t in their defined societal parameters — Her character gets fucked over, and blamed for everything she caused. But it was in fact everyone’s attitudes that created these problems in the first place.

And that’s my summary of the whole movie: “So she fucked some people. So what?!”

To quote the IMDB thread at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2312890/board/nest/226117425:

“What started off as a film saying something interesting about people from different walks of life and demographics forming true friendships… turned into, ‘Don’t let slutty girls in your house’. Blech.”

And that’s the flaw. Juno Temple got the shit end of the stick, and it was not good. But the movie was interesting, regardless.

Minor complaint: The writer of this movie was a writer for HBO’s Six Feet Under, and directly plagarized his OWN plot device from (attending a session as a “watcher”) from Six Feet Under for use as a plot device in this movie. To be self-derivative makes it look like straws were being grasped for.

Medium complaint: Was hoping for more of a comedy.

Major complaint: Kathryn Hahn was CLEARLY attracted to Juno Temple. That they did not have sex in this movie is a grave disservice to cinema.

Carolyn’s thoughts: This was an interesting movie, and the dynamics were strange. The unhappy depressed wife who can barely care about her son or her friends or even her husband gets her mind opened by an outing to a strip club. She kept saying she wanted to help the stripper, but there were undertones that she just wanted to help herself. Then she fucked over the stripper because she didn’t want her friend to steal her nanny (I’m a nanny-stealer) and she got weirded out by how sex-positive the stripper was.

Written & directed by Jill Soloway (writer of 7 eps of Six Feet Under, 3 eps of Baby Blues, 2 eps of The Oblongs).

Kathryn Hahn (Wanderlust, The Dictator, Step Brothers, Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy, Wake Up Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie, Ab Fab, How to Lose A Guy In 10 Days, The Hungover Games, The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty, 1 ep of Bob’s Burgers, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::, 1 ep of Robot Chicken, 1 ep of Childrens Hospital, 1 ep of American Dad) as Rachel.
Juno Temple (The Dark Knight Rises, Kaboom, Small Apartments, Mr. Nobody, St. Trinian’s, The Three Musketeers, Year One) as McKenna.
Josh Radnor (200 Cigarettes, Not Another Teen Movie, How I Met Your Mother, 2 eps of Family Guy, 1 ep of Six Feet Under) as Jeff.
Jane Lynch (A.C.O.D., Wreck-It Ralph, The Three Stooges, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Glee, Shrek Forever After, 15 eps of The L Word, 3 eps of Neighbors From Hell, 2 eps of Arrested Development, 2 eps of Father Of The Pride, 2 eps of The Cleveland Show, 1 ep of The Spectacular Spider-Man, 1 ep of The Simpsons, 1 ep of News Radio) as Lenore.
Jessica St. Clair (Wanderlust, The Dictator, It’s Complicated, She’s Out Of My League, 3 eps of Weeds, 2 eps of The Life And Times Of Tim, 1 ep of The Office, 1 ep of Curb Your Enthusiasm) as Stephanie.
Michaela Watkins (In A World, Wanderlust, 15 eps of Saturday Night Live, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::, 1 ep of Robot Chicken, 1 ep of Childrens Hospital, 1 ep of Curb Your Enthusiasm, 1 ep of Mad, 1 ep of Malcolm In The Middle) as Jennie.
Josh Stamberg (Kate & Leopold, The Time Machine (2002), 2 eps of Six Feet Under, 1 ep of Arrested Development) as Matt.
John Kapelos (The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, uncredited in Legally Blonde, 1 ep of Frasier, 1 ep of Seinfeld, 1 ep of Quantum Leap, 1 ep of Lois & Clark, 1 ep of The X-Files) as Jack.
Keegan-Michael Key (Hell Baby, Wanderlust, Just Go With It, Due Date, MADtv, 2 eps of Childrens Hospital, 1 ep of Bob’s Burgers) as Bo.
Annie Mumolo (This Is 40, 1 ep of American Dad, 1 ep of Father Of The Pride) as Amanda.
Suzy Nakamura (Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, Deep Impact, Evan Almighty, uncredited in The 40-Year Old Virgin, uncredited in This Is 40, 5 eps of Curb Your Enthusiasm) as Meredith.
Noah Harpster (Disaster Movie) as Craig.
Eugene Cordero (2 eps of The Life And Times Of Tim, 1 ep of Curb Your Enthusiasm, 1 ep of The Office, 1 ep of Human Giant, 1 ep of Arrested Development, 1 ep of Newsreaders) as Bobby.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2312890/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIE: REVIEW: Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIE: REVIEW;Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013)

Claire: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Carolyn: 5/5 stars, 9/10.
Native ratings: 3.3/5 stars Netflix, 6.7/10 IMDB.

Carolyn’s thoughts:  The franchise is still hilarious.  This was funny all the way through.  It had some commentary on the state of the media also.

Claire: Yes, it’s quite strange that such an absurd franchise can have such poignant commentary on the state of mainstream media. Seriously: There is no fucking point to watching news on the TV nowadays. You may as well be watching Will Ferrell, for all the relevancy of what they talk about. They find a story to distract people, then replay it over and over and over. Watching TV news now actually makes you less informed. And it’s sad that a ridiculous franchise like this actually has a point to make.

Anyway… This was hilarious, as expected.

Directed by Adam McKay (Step Brothers, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Anchorman 1 and Wake Up Ron Burgundy).
Written by Will Ferrell (Step Brothers, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Anchorman 1 and Wake Up Ron Burgundy) & Adam McKay (Step Brothers, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Saturday Night Live, Anchorman 1 and Wake Up Ron Burgundy).

Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy.
Steve Carell as Brick Tamland.
Paul Rudd as Brian Fantana.
David Koechner (The Office, 4 episodes of the 2011 Beavis & Butt-head, 12 episodes of American Dad, Final Destination 5, Sex Drive, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Thank You For Smoking, The 40 Year Old Virgin, The Dukes Of Hazzard, Small Apartments) as Champ Kind.
Christina Applegate as Veronica Corningstone.
Dylan Baker (Fido, Dr. Curt Connors in the recent Spider-Man movies, Solondz’s Happiness, The Cell, Kinsey, Requiem For A Dream, Planes,Trains & Automobiles) as Freddie Shapp.
Meagan Good (Don Jon, Saw 5) as Linda Jackson.
James Marsden (Anchorman: The Legend Continues, Small Apartments, the son in Robot & Frank, Sex Drive, Cyclops in the X-Men movies, Death At A Funeral (2010), Sex Drive) as Jack Lime.
Greg Kinnear as Gary.
Kristen Wiig (Young Lucille Bluth in Arrested Development, Date Night, Adventureland, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Knocked Up, The Brothers Solomon, How To Train Your Dragon, Saturday Night Live, Despicable Me, Girl Most Likely, 2 eps of The Simpsons, 1 ep of Drunk History) as Chani Lastname.
Fred Willard as Ed Harken.
Chris Parnell (Cyril in Archer, Rick & Morty, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story, The Dictator, Turbo, Saturday Night Live, 3 eps of Gravity Falls, 2 eps of The Problem Solverz, 2 eps of Drunk History) as Garth.
Harrison Ford as Mack Tannen, Veronica’s boss.
June Diane Raphael as (NTSF:SD:SUV::, Anchorman 2, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Year One, Girl Most Likely, Ass Backwards, 3 eps of American Dad, 1 ep of Drunk History) Chani’s Boss
Kirsten Dunst as El Trousias Maiden of the Clouds.
Jim Carrey as CBC News Anchor (uncredited).
Tina Fey as Entertainment Tonight Reporter (uncredited).
Amy Poehler as Entertainment Tonight Reporter (uncredited).
John C. Reilly as The Ghost of Stonewall Jackson (uncredited).
Lori Beth Sikes as Tina (uncredited).
Matthew Stanton as Skinny Guy (uncredited).
Vince Vaughn as Wes Mantooth (uncredited).
Kanye West as MTV Host (uncredited).

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1229340/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: A Case Of You (2013)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: A Case Of You (2013)

Clio: 3.4/5 stars, 7.4/10.
Carolyn: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Native ratings: 2.7/5 stars Netflix, 5.6/10 IMDB.

It’s like one of those NBC episodes where someone invents a lie, and then just digs himself into a deeper and deeper hole with it. Plots based on lies annoy me, but then, they are realistic, and it is reality itself that is the true source of annoyance.

So anyway… This is a movie about a shy guy finally trying to get the girl — by stalking her facebook page and trying to become HER ideal man. The ultimate poser. You can imagine how such a lie would get you into bad situations.

And it all happens.

They also have a slight meta-angle, whree the main character is writing a book based on his experiences in the movie. I felt like they could have done more with this, and it was perhaps a bit forced… But I’m still glad they did it. It at least gave a chance for Vince Vaughn to exist.

And then… The movie got super-romantic at the end. I’m kind of surprised it turned out the way it did.

Carolyn’s thoughts:  This wasn’t that special, but it was a nice story.  There were some funny moments.  Peter Dinklage was hilarious.  I totally didn’t recognize Brendan Fraser as Birdie’s ex-boyfriend.  It was cute.  It definitely had that NBC “relies on lies” feel.
Directed by Kat Coiro.
Written by Justin Long, Keir O’Donnell & Christian Long (Justin’s brother).

Starring:
Justin Long (Unsupervised, Youth In Revolt, Funny People, Zack And Miri Make A Porno, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story) as Sam.
Evan Rachel Wood (S1m0ne, 1 ep of Robot Chicken) as Birdie.
Peter Dinklage (Nip/Tuck, both Death At A Funeral movies, Elf, Game Of Thrones, will be in X-Men: Days Of Future Past) as Gerard, the hilariously-weird barista.
Vince Vaughn as Alan, the annoying publicist.
Co-Writer Keir O’Donnell (Miss Nobody, Wedding Crashers) as Eliot, the roommate.
Busy Philipps (White Chicks, The Smokers, He’s Just Not That Into You, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, 2 eps of Undeclared, 1 ep of Arrested Development, 1 ep of American Dad) as Ashley, the roommate’s girlfriend.
Jenn Harris (Better Living Through Chemistry) as Jackie, Birdie’s improv friend.
Sam Rockwell (Zaphod Beeblebrox in The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy (2005), Iron Man 2, Galaxy Quest, Seven Psychopaths, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1, Better Living Through Chemistry, Heist) as Gary. Was he the publicist’s partner?
Brendan Fraser (The Mummy movies, Journey To The Center Of The Earth, Bedazzled, 2 eps of King Of The Hill) as Tony, Birdie’s ex-boyfriend. Seriously? We didn’t recognize him.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1817081/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Better Living Through Chemistry (2014)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Better Living Through Chemistry (2014)

Clio: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Carolyn: 3/5 stars, 7/10.
Native ratings: 3.1/5 stars Netflix, 6.3/10 IMDB.

Clio’s thoughts:  Not quite the outright comedy I’d hoped, but definitely funny, fucked up, drug-fueled, romantic, and with some nice eye candy (Olivia Wilde). The movie is a delayed coming-of-age story for adults in the “arrested development” of being trapped in a bad life, and needing to grow out of it.

Fucked up situations all around, with drug-use ultimately driving the comedy AND the plot. And the plot drove the character development by forcing the character to grow.

For a movie that is basically “romantic comedy plus drugs”, this actually fared pretty well, and had lots of interesting aspects. No regrets watching this, even if it wasn’t great. The cast (Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde, Michelle Monaghan, Ray Liotta) helped make this good.  This is a really good first movie from a first-time director and writer.

Carolyn’s thoughts: This was pretty quirky.  It wasn’t as funny as we were hoping, but it was enjoyable.  It really shows how life can get out of control pretty fast.

Written & directed by Geoff Moore & David Posamentier.

Sam Rockwell (Zaphod Beeblebrox in The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy (2005), Iron Man 2, Galaxy Quest, Seven Psychopaths, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1, A Case Of You, Heist) as Doug Varney.
Olivia Wilde (Tron 2, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, The Change-Up, Drinking Buddies, Year One, 1 ep of Tron: Uprising, 1 ep of Portlandia, 1 ep of American Dad) as Elizabeth Roberts.
Michelle Monaghan (Justice League: War, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, The Bourne Supremacy, Constantine, Mission Impossible 3, 1 ep of American Dad) as Kara Varney.
Jane Fonda as Jane Fonda.
Ray Liotta (Observe & Report, The Details, Youth In Revolt, Hannibal, Good Fellas, La Linea, 1 ep of Family Guy, 1 ep of NTSF:SD:SUV::) as Jack Roberts.
Norbert Leo Butz (Dan In Real Life) as Agent Andrew Carp.
Ben Schwartz (Mystery Team, 3 eps of Starveillance, 2 eps of Bob’s Burgers, 1 ep of Robot Chicken, 1 ep of Arrested Development, 1 ep of Tron: Uprising) as Noah.
Ken Howard (A.C.O.D., 13 eps of Dynasty, 2 eps of Curb Your Enthusiasm, 1 ep of Batman-TAS, 1 ep of The Office) as Walter Bishop.
Jenn Harris (A Case Of You) as Janet.
Harrison Holzer as Ethan Varney.
Peter Jacobson (Transformers movie, 2 eps of Hope & Faith) as Dr. Roth.
Sonnie Brown (Don Jon) as Principal Song-Carmichael.
Ken Arnold (Men In Black 3, uncredited in Cecil B. DeMented) as Ed.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1609479/combined

 

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Big Man On Campus (1989)

VIDEO: MOVIES: REVIEW: Big Man On Campus (1989)

Clio: 3.4/5 stars, 7.4/10.
Carolyn: 3.4/5 stars, 7.4/10.
Native ratings:  6.0/10 IMDB. Doesn’t seem to exist on Netflix, which is weird.

I thought it’d be funnier… But it *was* funny.

Wait… Leading-lady Cathy was Jan (Melora Hardin) from The Office?  WTF?!? I totally didn’t recognize her! She’s all soft and curly and young instead of hard and stark and mature. I think I prefer her mature…More unique.

Carolyn:  I also thought it would be funnier, but it did have its laugh-out-loud moments.  It was entertaining enough, but all the positive reviews on IMDB made me have higher expectations.  It had a 6.0 rating on IMDB, which is pretty high for a comedy.

Clio: Yes. A native 6.0 is a bit misleading. That would generally map to an 8.4-9.6/10 given our personal rating distribution. Instead this was only a 7.4.  However, we knew going in that this would be a gimmicky 80’s comedy, which often means dated and lacking a modern edge.  So while the IMDB seemed misleadingly high, it still surpassed our expectations despite not being THAT great.

Worth seeing. Nice that the Hunchback Of Notre Dame can be done as a comedy…

Directed by Jeremy Kagan (The Journey Of Natty Gann, 1 ep of Ally McBeal).
Written by Allan Katz (6 eps of Rhoda, 4 eps of Blossom, 2 eps of M.A.S.H., 1 ep of Roseanne).

Allan Katz (this is the only thing he’s starred in, except for a movie that is in post-production dated 2013 that he is writing,starring, and directing) as Bob Maloogaloogaloogaloogalooga (Hunchback).
Corey Parker (How I Got Into College, Friday The 13th 5, 5 eps of Will & Grace, 1 ep of Duckman) as Alex. He’s like a Paul Reiser-wannabe in a Mathew Broderick-wannabe body. Not a good combo.
Melora Hardin (Jan in The Office???!?!?!?!?!? totally didn’t recognize her!, 17 Again, Thank You For Smoking, 2 eps of Quantum Leap, 1 ep of Family Guy, 1 ep of Friends, 1 ep of Lois & Clark) as Cathy.
Cindy Williams (Shirley in Laverne & Shirley?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?, Steel Magnolias, 1 ep of Lois & Clark, 1 ep of Hope & Gloria) as Diane Girard, the female psychologist.
Gerrit Graham (Franklin Sherman in The Critic, Police Academy 6, 6 eps of Parker Lewis Can’t Lose, 4 eps of Gargoyles, 1 ep of The Tick-TAS) as Stanley Hoyle.
Jessica Harper (Minority Report, 19 eps of It’s Gary Shandling’s Show) as Dr. Fisk, the evil psychologist.
Tom Skerritt (Alien, Top Gun, Picket Fences, Poltergeist 3) as Dr. Webster.
John Finnegan (Mars Attacks!, Last Action Hero, Vegas Vacation, JFK, An American Tale) as Judge Ferguson.
Bill Morey (18 eps of G.I. Joe, 11 eps of Dallas, 2 eps of Mork & Mindy, 1 ep of Working, 1 ep of Full House, 1 ep of Designing Women) as Dean Crawford.

LINK URL: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096925/combined