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Something Borrowed, Something Blew

29 Apr

The mild and easygoing Made of Honor is certainly entertaining enough. But don’t get any ideas: This is no My Best Friend’s Wedding Lite. Sure, it’s basically the same story in reverse — a guy realizes he’s in love with his best friend just as she’s about to get married to someone else, and he tries to break up the wedding — but it’s not as good. Not that it doesn’t have its charms. Patrick Dempsey makes an appealing lead, and he and Michelle Monaghan have good chemistry. But too many of the plot points feel tired, and overall, the film feels longer than its 97-minute running time. So I’ll give Made an average grade of C. Not terrible, not great. But not worth paying admission to see.

High Times

26 Apr

How much do you really need me to tell you about Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay?

If you liked the first film, you’ll like this one too.

It’s got laughs, racial humor, an obvious but still amusing scene where George Bush gets high, and lots of jokes about the U.S. overdoing the post-9/11 security.

Oh, and yes, it’s also got Neil Patrick Harris back again, tweaking his image in hysterical fashion.

I don’t think Guantanamo as good as I remember White Castle being, but it’s certainly enjoyable. And that’s probably all you really need to know.

I’m giving the movie a B.

Pregnant Pause

13 Apr

In the category of Pleasant Comedies, you can add Baby Mama. It’s a better than average film, with some decent laughs — none of which come close to, say, Forgetting Sarah Marshall — that’s never quite as good as you want it to be. That’s because the script isn’t as sharp as it should be; unfortunately, it strands stars Tina Fey and Amy Poehler in Mediocre Land. We’ve definitely seen them better on “Weekend Update” back on Saturday Night Live.

Baby Mama is the story of Kate (Fey), a successful single woman who has decided that after years of putting her career first, she now wants a baby. Learning that she is unable to conceive, Kate hires Angie (Poehler), a working-class woman of questionable morals, to be her surrogate. This seems like a setup that could let Fey make fun of celebrity adoptions and career women and other timely subjects. If she had written the script, maybe she would have. But instead, writer/director Michael McCullers aims his arrows at subjects like Jamba Juice and Whole Foods–like stores, and they don’t really stick. Fey and Poehler have real chemistry and are generally enjoyable to watch — more so than Steve Martin, who looks embarrassed in an unbilled role as Kate’s boss — but they almost look pained to be put in such lame situations. Hopefully these two will get the chance to star in a Fey-written comedy in the future. (That is, another Fey-written comedy — both appeared in Mean Girls.) For now, their Baby Mama only rates a B– from me.

Not So Smart

10 Apr

Full disclosure: I also saw Smart People this week, on Monday night.

It’s the story of a dysfunctional family with all kinds of Independent Movie Quirks, and there’s not too much of a plot, and I wasn’t really enjoying it, and, well, I fell asleep in the middle, so I missed about a third of it.

(What? I was tired from the move.)

I’m not going to bother giving the movie a grade (though C comes to mind), but I wanted to at least mention that I’d seen it, just in case you saw it advertised and wondered what I thought.

Breaking Up Is Hard to Do

9 Apr

Anyone who’s ever been dumped knows how hard it is to get over someone you love. For Peter Bretter (Jason Segel), it’s near impossible. His girlfriend, Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), is seemingly perfect, and even though she has the lack of courtesy to break up with Peter while he’s completely nude (not the last time he’ll be nude in this movie, by the way), he still pines for her. To escape the constant reminders of their relationship, Peter goes to Hawaii, where, what d’you know, Sarah’s there with her new boyfriend. It turns out Forgetting Sarah Marshall is more challenging than Peter thought.

Thankfully, liking this movie is much easier. Written by Segel, it includes many quotable lines and doesn’t fall for the typical romantic comedy cliches. Yes, Peter meets an equally engaging young woman (That 70s Show‘s Mila Kunis) and sure, Sarah’s new boyfriend is an idiot, but things don’t always go as expected with this foursome. Delivering the dialogue is this very appealing cast, led by unexpected leading man Segel. As with Knocked Up, the leads here are a pretty unlikely couple, but you can believe why they’d actually be together. Knocked Up writer/director Judd Apatow produced this film, and things are rounded out by amusing performances by a supporting cast that includes his regulars Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, and Paul Rudd. The laughs here aren’t as big as Knocked Up or Superbad, but FSM is definitely worth seeing. I’m giving it a strong B.

In Fact, It’s a Gas

6 Apr

As with the recent U2 3D film, Shine a Light is a document of big-time performers that must be seen on a very big screen.

This film of two 2006 performances by the Rolling Stones at New York’s Beacon Theater does more than just demonstrate why the Stones are such a legendary band; it also, ahem, shines a light on the men in the band, giving us insights into why they’ve stuck together all these years.

Director Martin Scorsese is a huge Stones fan; he uses a song by the band in most every movie he makes. In fact, in recent interviews, Mick Jagger has joked that Shine a Light may be the only Scorsese film that does not include “Gimme Shelter” in its soundtrack.

Point is, this is a guy who knows his subject. Continue reading →

Touchdown, But No Extra Point

1 Apr

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: you’ve gotta love George Clooney. Nearly everything the guy does is classic and cool, not to mention totally retro. The way he dresses, the way he interacts with the press and the public, and especially the choices he makes in terms of movies — it’s all a throwback to a way things used to be.

His first two directorial efforts, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind and Good Night, and Good Luck were informed by a classic sensibility and took place in an earlier time. Now, with Leatherheads, Clooney’s third film behind the lens, it’s clear he’s not quite done with the past. And I’m not complaining.

Continue reading →

Shabbat Shalom, Y’all!

28 Mar


Don’t watch this if you’re SHOMER SHABBOS! Especially not if you’re SHOMER F’ING SHABBOS!

Interesting

25 Mar

I must really be tapping into something here. Yesterday Boston.com and UniversalHub.com linked to me, driving more than 500 hits to this very blog. Now today, Globe critic Ty Burr is linking here from his own blog on Boston.com. I guess I must be doing something right. And thanks to someone named Brian Keaney for alerting Ty about my post.

Hi There.

24 Mar

If you’re reading this, there’s a very good chance you’ve come here from either UniversalHub.com or Boston.com, both of which have provided links to my site today.

UHub is linking to my graffiti post. The link on Boston.com (which is in the right-hand column, about halfway down the screen, under “New England Blogs”) directs you to my packing and purging post.

So if you’re new to my site, I just wanted to say “Welcome!” I hope you’ll come back often.

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