this is where i leave you: book vs movie

It's rare that I can watch a movie, then read the book nearly immediately after, but I was able to do so with "This is Where I Leave You".

Written by Jonathan Tropper in 2009, the novel chronicles the Foxman family, who is forced to come together for a week of sitting "shiva"--a Jewish tradition where the family greets mourners for 7 days--when the patriarch of the family passes away.

 

The main protagonist of the story is Judd Foxman, third oldest of the four children in question, who finds his life simply falling apart when he discovers his wife in bed with Wade, his boss, a radio shock jock who show Judd produces.

Judd finds himself renting a shoddy room from an Asian couple, while still paying the mortgage on the house that his wife Jen and Wade are now living together in.

The cast also comprises of Wendy, the oldest of the children and only girl, who's husband is a business only executive and is starved for attention... Paul, the eldest brother, who stayed behind to help the now deceased father with an electrician business... and Phillip, the youngest, the wildest and considered the family screw up. Phillip seems like a good guy, but can't stay away from women and trouble.

The mom, Hillary, is the author of a parenting book from a way, way long time ago, who used her own children as examples in the book of dos and donts, of which all four kids suffered humiliation from classmates because of it. Across the street is Horry, an old flame of Wendy who suffered an accident some years ago, and has brain damage. Horry lives with his mom, Linda, who is very close to Hillary.

The spouses join the cast too.. Barry, the aforementioned hubby of Wendy, and Alice, Paul's wife, who is a bit flaky and is desperate to get pregnant. As for Phillip, well he shows up with his girlfriend, a mid-40s therapist knockout named Tracy. And finally, there is Penny, a close friend (with benefits) of Judd's from his teenage years, who still lives in town and who Judd develops an eye for.

Got all that? Good.

The cast of characters is marvelous. Tropper does a great job of giving each one their own distinct personality, their own sarcastic streaks and their own soft spots. As wise-cracking as Wendy is, she has a couple of deep, touching chats with her brother Judd, while Paul, seemingly the even keeled brother of the family, nearly comes unglued at the end due to several past and present incidents.

The book is filled with comedy--and language--and many heart warming moments as you can see the dysfunction of the family from the first few pages, as well as Judd's life completely falling apart one by one. His discovery of Jen, the wife, and Wade, the boss, in his own bed is one thing... how he reacts is both sad and hilarious at the same time.

The book is not one long plotline... there are several subplots along the way--how does Wendy really feel about Horry? Where does Linda fit into all of this? What extreme measure will Alice go to to have a baby?--but it flows nicely, and I found myself eager to get to the next chapter... and a day after finishing it, I kinda wished it had gone a little further.

The movie version has a steller cast... a bearded Jason Batemen is perfect for Judd Altman (changed from "Foxman"), as his body language and reactions are just as great as his vocals... Tina Fey plays Wendy, and though she seems a bit more sardonic and mean spirited in the book, I do love me some Tina Fey, so I was happy with it... Corey Stoll, a character actor in movies and some TV shows, takes on Paul, and does fine, while Adam Driver, who you might know from the HBO show "Girls" (I wouldn't know, because I don't watch it) but you may have heard about because he'll be a villian in Star Wars Episode VII, coming December 2015, is absolutely brilliant as Phillip.

Jane Fonda is nearly perfect as the oversexed mother of the clan, Hillary.  Then, bring in Connie Britton, who is gorgeous, as Phillips older, saddened lover Tracy, Timothy Olyphant as a quiet Horry, Dax Shepard as the very unlikable jerkface boss Wade, Kathryn Hahn as a subdued version of usual antics as Alice, and Rose Byrne as Penny, and you've got yourself a great cast.

Kathryn Hahn intrigues me, because in the movies I've enjoyed watching that she happens to be in, like "We're the Millers" or "Anchorman" or "Wanderlust", she's all over the place. She's loud, screechy, annoying and many times, dressed down or fluffed up where she's nearly unlikable. I've now seen two films, the very good "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" and this film, where she is wonderfully loveable. I hope this continues. I like normal Kathryn Hahn.

And while my Hollywood girlfriend is Amy Adams (whom I'm in love with), if I ever decide to take my affections across the pond, I'm not sure who'd win between Emily Blunt or Rose Byrne for my affections. Just sayin.

Back to the film...

The book goes in directions that it's obvious the movie cannot go, hence it risk a very hard R, or even an NC-17 rating... that's not to say the book is dirty, but... Alice, who wants a baby so bad she can't stand it, does one thing in the movie to help her have a baby... and in the book, does that very thing, but ten times worse. Judd's reaction to finding Jen and Wade together, while both are upsetting, are markedly different between the book and the movie.

Plus, there is an entire subplot that outlines the chasm in the relationship between Paul and Judd in the book that the movie never even approaches... probably for time, but it's a great story told, and it gives you a little more understanding into both characters.

Overall, I loved the book. Loved the way it was written, loved the story it told and how it told it. I can tell you that I liked the Paul in the book better than the Paul in the movie, but I would have loved to have seen this cast performing the book itself. Tropper did write the script for the film, and did a fine job, but of course, the book has more.

Glad I read the book, may never read it again... glad I saw the movie, will probably watch it when it comes on Starz in Batement in July of 2015--I mean, Rose Byrne, Tina Fey and Kathryn Hahn? I say yes.

And soon enough, I just saw "Gone Girl", and I'm halfway thru the book (though I stopped it over a year ago, so I'll likely start at the beginning again)

the edge of a dozen movie dash

Here's what I like to call "The Dozen Movie Dash"... a quick review on 12 movies I've seen recently, some new, some old...

MALEFICENT (2014)... If you love the original film, you may have an issue with this retelling of the Sleeping Beauty story. Well, not if you love it, I mean, if you are a loyalist to the original animated film... because this takes that film, flips it over like an Etch-a-Sketch, shakes it, and redraws a new tale... and this tale is very polarizing, as most people either love it or hate it. I don't know that I loved it, but I liked it very much.

Those cheekbones are a little weird... but overall, she's fantastic in this role.

We see Maleficent as a young fairy, meeting Stefan for the first time, forging a friendship and growing up together... and we see the heartbreak Maleficent had when Stefan forgot all about her, in order to chase his dream of being a human king. As the original story goes, a daughter is born (by a queen we see for a few minutes, and then hear that later, she's sick), is cursed by Maleficent, and is put into the care of three bumbling fairies named something, another and whatever (not the Fauna, Flora and Meriweather we all know and loved). The story does take a turn somewhere towards the end, though you might predict the "True Love Kiss" aspect of it, especially if you've seen "Frozen", and ends in a big battle scene, complete with the requisite dragon and everything.

The star of this film, though, is Angelina Jolie... she is completely mesmerizing. I'm one of about four guys in the entire world of 7 billion people who doesn't find Jolie all that attractive (she looked her best when she looked all mussed in "Gone in Sixty Seconds"), but in this film, I was just captivated. When she's onscreen, you can't look away, as they put her perfectly sculpted face and ruby red lips front and center each time. Even the cuteness of Elle Fanning as Aurora can't take anything away from AJ... and I'm okay with it. "Maleficent" is Angelina's movie, as I cannot think of anybody who could have done this film as well as she did.

Love it, like, dislike or hate it, this isn't a movie you'll forget, especially Angelina in the title. role. Rated PG for fantasy violence.

EDGE OF TOMORROW (2014)... There are three things that I learned about this film. First, Tom Cruise still has it. He's excellent in this, he plays cowardice (early in the film) wonderfully, and we know he can be the hero (the rest of the film) from all the other movies he's been in. Second, despite what you hear, this isn't "Groundhog Independence Day", though I could see how one might think it. The whole plot centers the planet Earth, in the midst of an alien invasion, and a solider named Cage (Cruise) who ends up replaying the same day over and over... when he dies in battle, and in the beginning, it's very quickly, he wakes up again the day before, in the same spot. Only every time he starts over, he has learned a little more. Unlike "Groundhog Day", you learn in "Edge" of exactly why he is coming back again and again. And the story itself isn't entirely living the same 24 hours over and over again... the plot expands, and it's very well written, comical at just the right time, and a great popcorn movie to be enjoyed.

Emily Blunt and Tom Cruise facing off in their battle gear.  As long as
Tom stays away from "Oblivion 2", we're okay.

Oh, the third thing I learned? Emily Blunt is beautiful. Well, I already knew this, but she's great in this. PG-13 for language and science fiction violence.

MILLION DOLLAR ARM (2014)... In this typical Disney sports film of overcoming the odds, Jon Hamm is JB, a sports agent who has seemingly lost the account that will save his agency. Things look grim, things look bleak, things look downright impossible... and yet, one night, while randomly watching Indian cricket with his friend and business partner Aash, he gets the stroke of inspiration he needs... hold a talent competition in India to find the next, great Major League Baseball pitcher. Off he goes, and first it doesn't work out, then it starts to, and then there are trials and tribulations and toss in Alan Arkin being crotchety as usual, then Bill Paxton in a low key coaching role and the gorgeous Lake Bell for eye candy, plus a few unknowns from Bollywood... and you have this movie.

I liked it okay enough, but I won't remember it in six months. PG for language and drinking and such.

AMERICAN HUSTLE (2013)... I loved this film. I thought it was great, it was inventive, it was funny, and it was so, so well written. The all star cast includes Christian Bale, Amy Adams (whom I'm in love with), Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper and Jeremy Renner, who has gotten no love in the last awards season for his part even though his hair alone was amazing... of course, the movie itself got no Oscar love either, nominated for 10 or 11 awards, and won absolutely Zero of them.  The director is David O. Russell, who did The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook... and yeah, those movies contain a many of the aforementioned cast.

Lots of cursing, as you'd expect from a Rated R film to contain... now, the story is a con movie. Who's conning who, who's telling the truth, who is lying, and so on. I figured it about 2/3rd of the way through, but that didn't lesson the enjoyment of the film at all. If you liked The Fighter or Silver Linings Playbook (both are superior films), you should enjoy this--the performances, which are marvelous, outdo the story itself.

PAIN & GAIN (2013)... I'll watch anything with The Rock, and am a big fan of Mark Wahlberg as well, so this had potential. Set in the mid-90s, Daniel Lugo (Wahlberg) recruits his friends Paul (The Rock) and Adrian (Anthony Mackie) to help kidnap a millionaire (Tony Shalhoub) because they all feel like they deserve more, and "they are doers". Full of random comedy, yet wanting to be a crime story too, it sorta works. A little long for my tastes, and its hard to believe the characters are as stupid as they are--of course, it was based on a true story. One of the funniest parts sees one The Rock actually grilling hands that have been cut off from dead bodies... to remove the fingerprints. Suddenly the scene freezes, and the words "THIS IS STILL A TRUE STORY" are shown on the screen... and I laughed heartily. Rated R for lots of language, some random boobage, and lots of violence.

300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE (2014)... Following the success of 300, which was a great movie, this is not only a prequel, but its a sequel... and a... concurrentqual? The storyline of Rise of an Empire begins before the events of "300", during the events of "300" and continues after the ending of "300", with many callbacks to the "300" characters, notably Leonidis (Gerard Butler). His widow, played by Lena Hedley, plays a big part in this one, as well as former Bond Girl, Eva Green. Honestly, I couldn't decide if I found Eva Green attractive, or if I was terrified of her. Not as good as "300", but not as bad as you think it would be. Rated R for language and boobs. And violence.

 

You'll find yourself singing that "Everything is Awesome" song a whole
lot after you see it.  It's addicting, as it should be.

THE LEGO MOVIE (2014)... Everything is awesome! Everything is awesome when you see this film... Everything is cool when you are watching this film, everything is awesome! This movie is great... I mean, just great. Its fun, its original, its funny, its filled with hidden jokes, the cast is perfect (Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Morgan Freeman, Will Arnett, so many more), and the ending scene has a great twist that I did even see coming... I know a few people who don't like this movie, and I just don't get how you can't at least find this movie mildly amusing. Its great. Rated PG.

CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (2013)... This film is excellent. I mean, just excellent in so many ways. The cast is brilliant--Tom Hanks shines as Captain Phillips, while newcomer Barkhad Abdi is the lead Somali pirate, Muse, is both creepy and menacing and sympathetic and pitiful all at the same time. It took a slightly different direction than I expected about halfway through, though the movie is all the better for it... based on a true story, this movie is thrilling and pretty much non-stop all the way through. Rated PG-13 for violence.

THE INTERNSHIP (2013)... Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn play two dudes who need some direction in their lives, and they end up applying for an internship at Google... there is this summerlong program where people compete in teams, with the winning team landing jobs at the Google empire. Of course, Owen and Vince get placed on a team of misfits (like Dodgeball... or The Watch... ), and though I won't spoil it for you, you can guess where this leads... especially when you toss in Pretty Girl that Seems Unattainable But You Know Will Be Attained and Arrogant Dude That Always Gets His Way Until This Movie, Where He Will Get His Come-Uppance characters. Typical, predictable, yet Owen and Vince are charming enough to make is sorta funny. We enjoyed it, but we also like those guys alot, which might have helped. Rated PG-13

Here is the DIVX cover.  It's all bad.

FIRESTORM (1998)... After the success of Christian Slater and John Travolta in the military plane "Broken Arrow" (a film that is awful awesome awful awesome), someone said, "Hey... Howie Long did pretty good as Travolta's sidekick. Let's give him a movie!" Then someone else said, "Hey! Let's put fire in it!" and then someone else said, "Oh, fire in the wilderness!" and then some big suit down at the end pounded the table with a closed fist, saying, "Dang it! That's it! We make Howie a fire fighter in the woods! By jove, we've got it!" And so they made it. And the results are pretty stinkin' awful. I mean, its bad. Rated R for language and violence.

ENOUGH SAID (2013)... Out of all the great performers we've lost in the last year--Dennis Farina, Larry Hagman, Philip Seymour Hoffman--one of the biggies was James Gandolfini. He was such a versatile actor, and in this romantic comedy-drama, he shows even more range. A divorced father ends up meeting a divorced mother, played perfectly by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and somehow they hit it off. Things get complicated when they end up knowing the same people, and try to make a relationship work, even though neither have dated for a long time. The movie is sweet, and funny, and bittersweet all at the same time. It never tries to bill the characters off as sexy or hot or perfect, or even likable, though they are very likable. The movie just shows them as real people, which is what makes this movie so fun and real. I loved this film, and at the very least, you have to appreciate the performances by both Julia and the late, great Gandolfini. Rated PG-13 for language and sexy stuff.

MONUMENTS MEN (2014)... With a cast like George Clooney, Matt Damon, John Goodman, Bob Balaban, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, that guy from The Artist, and more, how can this movie not be the best movie like, ever. The premise is that in World War II, there were a group of soldiers commissioned to track down and save priceless works of art, those paintings and sculptures and more that Hitler had seized and stolen, to open his own self-aggrandizing museum in Germany. This is based on a real story, from a real book that I read earlier this year.

And like the book, this movie just didn't do it for me. It felt like a series of vignettes that were only slightly connected to each other. It ran long, parts were just uninteresting, and though the book itself tells you of the hundreds, maybe thousands of men who were a part of this Monuments Men team, the movie doesn't even refer to anyone else but the immediate team. Just eh. Disappointing more than anything, because the cast itself almost promises you a better film, and it breaks that promise.

And a bonus...
NEVER SLEEP AGAIN (2013)... On The Deucecast, we do an Assigned Films segment, where we assign each of the other two co-hosts a film to watch and be prepared to discuss them on the next episode. Sometime we get funny, and give movies to each other that we know they will hate, just for laughs, and other times we hand off movies that we genuinely think the other person will like. And then, for fun, sometimes you get handed a 3 hour and 58 minute documentary about "The Nightmare on Elm Street" films. So, over the course of the last week or so, I watched it via Netflix, in bits and pieces, when I could.

And I loved this movie. Every second of it. Now, I'm not a huge Nightmare on Elm Street fan... I liked the original, I thought the third one was pretty good, and the seventh, "New Nightmare", in which all the actors actually play themselves, suddenly terrorized by Freddy Krueger, who has escaped imagination and entered the real world, was just cool.

Though the 238 minute running time is itself a nightmare, it's really an extremely easy watch--it's broken up into 15 and 20 minute segments, each concentrating on a different film in the series. Starting with the first, then the second ("Freddy's Revenge"), then then third ("The Dream Warriors"), then fourth ("Dream Masters), fifth ("The Dream Child"), then the sixth ("Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare"), then the finale ("Wes Craven's New Nightmare") and ending with the encore ("Freddy vs Jason").  Somewhere in the middle, the film even has a segment devoted to the short lived late 80s TV series. 

Along the way, you get great interviews with the actors in each movie, some of them with characters that die in the first few minutes, others that live through multiple films, and of course, lots of Robert Englund (who plays Freddy), Wes Craven (the creator of the series) and Robert Shaye (the former CEO of New Line Cinema, who released the films).

For anyone is even a passing fan of the Elm Street series, this movie is worth a watch, even if you only catch it segment by segment. It goes by much quicker than you think, it's entertaining and it's full of behind the scenes tidbits on how to make scary movies on practically no budget whatsoever.


So there ya go... twelve thirteen movies for your enjoyment... choose wisely.

a dozen movie dash

Well, here it is… its Post 900 Eve. As in, Post 899… so I thought I’d give you a quick dash through a bunch of movies I’ve seen . Twelve paragraphs, twelve movies.’

Argo… Simply the best movie I’ve seen so far in a long, long time. This is based on the true story of “The Canadian Caper”, which is when the Iranians took over the US Embassy in 1980, capturing over 50 hostages… 6 people escaped from the Embassy and took refuge at the home of the Canadian ambassador. While the hostages were on tv all the time, and a bargaining chip between the US and Iran, no one knew about the 6 escapees, which meant they were completely expendable. Ben Affleck, which has turned into one heck of a director after “The Town” and now this, plays one of the leads, the CIA agent who works with a few Hollywood bigwigs—John Goodman and surely to be nominated for a Supporting Actor Oscar, Adam Arken—to come up with a fake movie, one called “Argo”, that provides a cover for the 6 to be rescued. The story moves at a fast pace, and is over almost too soon. Its also very tense, and even though you are pretty sure that you know how it ends, you still find yourself a little nervous at the end as they are almost—almost—home free. The cast is fantastic, the dialogue is sharp and not wasted, and both Arken and Goodman provide some great comic relief to a suspenseful story. I loved this movie, and I chalk this and “The Avengers” as to very real candidates to be elected into The Dave100 in the future. Walking out of the theater, I told The Lovely Steph Leann, “I’d watch that movie again, like, right now.” Can’t ask for higher praise than that.

 

Looper… This movie gives me faith that there are, in fact, original ideas in Hollywood. Looper is the story of Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt… or is it Joseph-Gordon Levitt?), who is a “looper”, which means that people are sent back in time from 30 years in the future, and Joe, a looper, assassinates them. He collects his silver, and goes about his shady life, including frequenting a house of ill repute where Piper Pirabo is a dancer. Things go haywire, however, when the Future Joe (Bruce Willis) is sent back for Present Day Joe to kill—and Future Joe escapes. Suddenly, the chase is on and… and then, it becomes more than a cat-and-mouse chase movie. It becomes an original story of the future meeting the present, and it takes time travel in a gritty direction. Time travel isn’t looked on as this miracle feat, its illegal and an underground event used for bad things by very powerful people. And then, the wonderful Emily Blunt comes along, and then the movie goes in another completely different direction and… and its awesome. Everyone I know who has seen this movie tells me they didn’t think it would go the direction it did, but they are glad it went there, and I’m in the same boat. JoGoLevitt had prosthetics on his face to better resemble a younger Bruce Willis, and he studied Willis movies to pick up the mannerisms and facial expressions--and he succeeds.  Also has Jeff Daniels, who is turning out to be a great actor of our day.  Rated R for language and violence, and a random, probably unnecessary boobage scene with Piper Pirabo that could have been done just as well covering up her lady parts. Just my thought.

 A Thousand Words… The latest Eddie Murphy flick follows this trend of “fantasy type films”--Shrek films, Imagine That (where his toddler daughter makes financial decisions for him), Meet Dave (the little guy living in his head), etc—and its premise finds him as a slick tell-em-what-they-wanna-hear book agent who attempts to sign a mediation spiritual celebrity and winds up with a tree in his backyard. A tree that drops a leaf every time Jack says a word. At the end of the leaves, it’s the end of Jack’s live, which forces him to re-evaluate everything. The movie takes away one of Eddie’s biggest assets, which is his hilarious voice and line delivery, and doesn’t quite make up for it in his silent action. The first half of the movie is a comedy that its actually kind of amusing, but somewhere around the midway point, it takes a semi-serious tone as the movie’s message starts to come through and Jack begins to figure out what has been going wrong in his life. While its not the greatest Eddie movie ever (I’d give that to Trading Places, easily), its sorta funny and will do when you’re in a mood for something silly and at least attempting to be thought provoking. PG-13 for language.


The Five Year Engagement… Tom (Jason Segel) and Violet (the wonderful Emily Blunt) meet at a party, date and suddenly get engaged. And thus the movie kicks in, as we chronicle their relationship through struggles, jobs, watching other people around them get engaged and married, kids, family issues and more. Whether you like this film or not will depend on whether you like Jason Segel and Emily Blunt, because this movie rests entirely on their shoulders… and I think it is because of their chemistry that this movie works on a lot of levels. Like a real couple, they face the hardships of consequences that come because of decisions they make, especially when it comes to their careers. And there is, of course, temptation in the form of a college professor that has taken a shine to Violet in her graduate program. I laughed out loud several, several times and found the story to be engaging, entertaining and though a little “over the line” a couple of times, nothing like the gratuitous humor you’d seen in “The Hangover” and the like. We watched the “unrated” version of this, and its full of language and though there aren’t any nudie shots, there are a few sex scenes. Unrated for language.


The Vow… Okay. I’ll admit it. I kinda liked this movie. When married couple Paige (Rachel McAdams, who makes everything better) and Leo (the surprisingly charming Channing Tatum) get into an accident, she comes out with some sort of selective amnesia. And because of the amnesia, she doesn’t remember the fact she’s married to Leo, which means he now has to start all over with her. Throw in the fact that her family has never met him—and they already don’t like him—and therefore think they should be her caretakers, plus an ex-boyfriend who is actually the person she remembers dating and all the other travails of life, and all you can do is feel horrible for Leo. He’s a loving husband trying to win back his wife, who doesn’t know anything about loving him. It can be a little brutal, but it’s a good date movie. Rated PG-13 for language and some suggestive hanky-panky.

Harold & Kumar’s Very 3D Christmas… Don’t. Just… well, just don’t.


John Carter… Having heard about this movie, mostly from critics, I had a very low set for this film. The few people I knew that had seen it told me they thought it was okay, or pretty good or something like that. For the most part, critics hated this flick, and the box office returns were pretty terrible (Disney ended up doing something like an 84 million dollar write off, and expected to lose about 200 million in total from this movie). Having said that, it wasn’t a bad movie. It wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible. A sci-fi epic set in the late 1800s, John Carter is a Civil War vet that is transported to Mars and dropped right in the middle of a planet-wide war amongst the several different races where he goes from outcast and strange being to hero and warrior (of course). This took a while to get into, and while it never kept my full attention (I kept doing other stuff), it was entertaining, I guess. It’s a little overly long, and has more special effects and CGI than it probably should have, but there it is. Its not as bad as critics made it out to be, but not a great film. Just eh. PG-13 for science fiction violence and some language.


Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter… So, you know when you are in high school, and like, there is the popular kids group that hang out together at lunch and at recess and such, and like, there is always this one kid who wants to be popular but just can’t quite pull it off, and he goes out and buys the right clothes and listens to the right music and tries to say and do the right things, but all the popular kids can see right through it and know that deep down inside, he’s still just that dorky kid, and they even make fun of the kid when his back is turned? You know, that kid? Well, that’s Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. This film wants to be The Dark Knight Rises and The Avengers and The Amazing Spiderman so, so badly—but its just the dorky kid who wants to be popular. What does that mean? This movie is kinda goofy, not in a good way, not in an intentional way, but in a way that it tries so hard to be the cool movie, but in its efforts, just comes across as something that isn’t very good, or very interesting.

What To Expect When You're Expecting... A huge ensemble cast, including Liz Banks and Chris Rock and Cameron Diaz and the choir guy from "Glee" and Jamie Foxx and I love Anna Kendrick and Dennis Quaid and J-Lo and Brooklyn Decker and its all about the highs and lows of pregnancy and it tells intersecting stories (of which Banks and Ben Falcone's are the best) of families and single parenting and unexpected babies and families and so on... and... wel... I hate to admit it... but... well I... uh... I mean... I... okay, fine... I LIKED THIS MOVIE.  I'm so ashamed.  PG-13 for language and adult situations.


Battleship... For all the talk about what a bomb this movie was, I gotta tell ya, its not that bad.  Well, like "John Carter", its not that great either, but I will say the re-watchability factor on this movie is much higher than "John Carter".  Seriously, its an alien invasion movie that is confronted by the warships from non other than our own US Navy.  Liam Neeson, though billed as a major character, is actually somewhat minor, while Taylor Kitch is forced to carry the film.  And Brooklyn Decker thrown in there for scenery, with some big dude with no legs.  Go figure.  Anyway, to watch this movie, you need to slog through the first 30 minutes or so... its terrible.  Bad acting, bad story, silly exposition.  In fact, the movie really doesn't take off until the aliens start coming down.  I can't tell you the payoff is grand, but its still sorta entertaining, if only because alien explosions in the ocean are cool.  And this is despite the face Rihanna is in it.  PG-13 for alien violence.


Prometheus... Um... well, its pretty good, I guess.  Ridley Scott returns to his Alien roots and does this film, a prequel of sorts to the Alien franchise, which by the way, if you've never seen Alien (my 111th favorite film of all time) or the sequel, Aliens (#60 on The Dave100), do yourself a favor and watch them both--the former is a horror film in space, the latter is a big sci-fi epic with a little bit of scary to it... anyway, back to Prometheus.  it is a little long, it drags somewhere in the middle, Michael Fassbender as the android David is pretty fascinating, and the special effects are good... Noomi Rapace is the lead, as Elisabeth Shaw, with Charlize Theron playing what would be the villain character, but she's not really evil, she's just self-absorbed.  Anyway, watch it to say you did, but don't build your expectations too high.  PG-13 for alien violence and language.


Jack & Jill... This is Adam Sandler's 2011 release.  This is the one where he plays not only his character, Jack, but also his twin sister, Jill.  This movie is a complete disaster.  I laughed once, but that was because an old lady got hit in the face with a soccer ball, and it was funny.  Beyond that... yeesh.

And Finally... a bonus...


The Sitter... Wow, this movie was crap.  Jonah Hill plays Noah, a slacker dude who lives with his mom and is just trying to score with his girlfriend, who really isn't a girlfriend at all, and just uses him for whatever she needs.  He is roped into a babysitting job where he is taking care of a little girl who looks straight out of Toddlers & Tiaras, a neurotic boy who is manic depressive, and an adopted kid who likes to set lots of fires.  Full of language and crude jokes and bad acting, this movie is a mess.  Richard Roeper called it the worst of movie 2011, and though I'm not sure I completely agree, I will say its pretty bad.  Full disclosure, when the kid peed on the dance floor and the old lady slipped in it, that was kinda funny. Rated R for being a crappy film. 

Next stop... Post 900.