Take Me Home Tonight, Fright Night, The Conspirator

Take Me Home Tonight - Super fun 80s movie? Not so much. Actually, Take Me Home Tonight is a boring drag of a movie that isn't the least bit funny. It stars Topher Grace as a recent college grad who tries to impress an old high school classmate (Teresa Palmer, who is a blonde Kristen Stewart). Also wastes the talents of Anna Faris, Chris Pratt, Michael Ian Black and more! The only, and I mean ONLY, good thing about this awful movie is the killer 80s music soundtrack. Don't waste your time!
Grade: D-

Fright Night - A remake of the 80s movie, Fright Night is a hell of a lot better than it has to be. I'm not saying this movie is going to change the world, but it's fun and sexy and a good time at the movies. The ever adorable Anton Yelchin stars as a slightly nerdy high schooler who blows off his more nerdy ex-best friend (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) when he tries to convince him that his brand new neighbor (Colin Farrell, having the time of his life) is a vampire. Turns out, Ed is right! The film takes place in a suburb of Las Vegas, which is the PERFECT place for a vampire to live, using the excuse of working nights on the strip and sleeping all day. The plot is pretty basic: Yelchin must fight to save his mom (Toni Collette) and hottie girlfriend (Imogen Poots) with the help of a drunken illusionist (scene stealer David Tennant). Farrell is fantastic. I've been a fan of his for a long time but never thought he really lived up to his potential. I don't know what has happened to him the last few years but it seems like he stopped taking himself so seriously, realized that he's funny as hell and is now having the time of his life! First he was AMAZING in In Bruges a few years back. Now he is stealing scenes in Horrible Bosses and being delightfully campy in Fright Night. Yelchin is great too, but isn't that always the case with him? Of course, like I said, Tennant steals the show. He is hilarious and all around fantastic. All in all, Fright Night is a fun time and worth checking out.
Grade: B-

The Conspirator - First off, this movie probably has the best cast of the year. I'm not even kidding. Not only are there really quality, amazing actors involved in large roles (James McAvoy, Robin Wright, Tom Wilkinson, Danny Huston, Evan Rachel Wood), but also so many actors that I personally ADORE show up in small roles (Norman Reedus, Shea Whigham, Johnny Simmons, Jonathan Groff). Director Robert Redford sure did a great job casting this movie. The Conspirator is a beautifully filmed, well written, well acted period piece about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the people who may or may not have conspired with John Wilkes Booth. Sure, the film drags now and then, but over all it's a great film and I'm shocked that it didn't get more attention when it was released in theaters. It's definitely one of the better films this year, plus it has such a stellar cast. McAvoy and Wright are amazing in their roles as a conflicted lawyer and a stubborn convict, respectively. But the acting is great all around and the story is compelling and interesting.
Grade: B

Happy Birthday Sean Penn!!!!!!

Today is Sean Penn's 51st Birthday. As you may or may not know, Sean is my favorite actor OF ALL TIME. I love him. I think he's brilliant and sexy and badass and beyond talented and just the best. I can't say enough awesome things about him. Here is my list of his ten best roles. No explanation, just a quick list!

10. The Weight of Water (2000)
09. The Game (1997)
08. Bad Boys (1983)
07. Dead Man Walking (1995)
06. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
05. Sweet and Lowdown (1999)
04. Mystic River (2003)
03. Milk (2008)
02. 21 Grams (2003)
01. Hurlyburly (1998)

Ceremony, Battle Los Angeles, Crazy Stupid Love

Ceremony - Here's the thing about Ceremony: it's awfully cute at times, has a fantastic lead performance but also feels contrived. The film is written and directed by Max Winkler (the son of Henry Winkler a.k.a. The Fonz!), and it's an admirable debut film. It follows Sam (Michael Angarano), a children's book author who makes his best friend Marshall (Reece Thompson) go away with him for the weekend. However, he withholds the fact that his purpose is to ruin the wedding ceremony of the girl of his dreams, Zoe (Uma Thurmnan) to her pompous fiancee, Whit (Lee Pace). If you were going to put Ceremony in a genre, it would be "Quirky Indie Movie" and, boy, is it ever. The problem with quirky indie movies is that sometimes they try way too hard. And that is one of the problems here. For all the moments when Ceremony is brilliant and funny and poignant, it has moments where it feels fake and forced. However, Angarano's performance is so damn good that it's easy to overlook the flaws. He's simple perfection, all bravado and forced confidence and fast talking charm. He's hilarious and heartbreaking at the same time. I've loved his work since his days as the young William Miller in Almost Famous and it's nice to see him grow up into these kinds of roles. I hope he sticks with the indie scene because he's too good of an actor to take shitty supporting roles in bad movies. He could grow up to be a Sam Rockwell type actor. In fact, he's sort of morphing into Sam Rockwell at times in this movie. And I most certainly don't have a problem with that.
Grade: B-

Battle Los Angeles - Oy vey! This movie has zero redeemable qualities. I can't even believe that I wasted two hours of my life on this crap. It's a badly directed, badly written, stupid sci-fi movie that wastes the considerable talent of Aaron Eckhardt. I'm not even going to bore you with a plot. Aliens take over Los Angeles. Blah, blah, blah. Lots of bad action sequences and even worse writing. Stay far away from this movie as it is a complete and utter waste of your time.
Grade: F

Crazy Stupid Love - The romantic comedy genre is lacking, at best. Two years ago, a little indie movie called 500 Days of Summer came along and completely breathed a whole new life into the genre. Crazy Stupid Love isn't quite that good, but it is definitely one of the better romantic comedies made in the last few years. First we meet Steve Carell's Cal, a man who has been with his wife (Julianne Moore) for over thirty years when one day she tells him she wants a divorce. Of course, his life begins to unravel. He starts going to bars and drinking his sorrows away. There he meets Jacob (Ryan Gosling), a young ladies man who takes Cal under his wing and teachers him how to pick up women. Cal seems to know it all... except when he actually begins to fall in love with Hannah (Emma Stone) and doesn't know what the hell to do. Throw in Marisa Tomei, Kevin Bacon, Josh Groban, and Analeigh Tipton (I still can't believe if she is the weirdest looking or prettiest looking girl of all time), and you've got yourself a fantastic cast for a romantic comedy. And it is very funny, which is a plus. You might think Carell gets all the laughs, but it's actually Gosling who all but steals the show (Stone and her awkward goofy adorableness comes in a close second). Plus, the movie just simply has heart. It's not raunchy and it doesn't try too hard to be a certain kind of movie. It stays true to itself and is very sweet. Plus, the cast doesn't hurt. The cast is actually fantastic all around and helps elevate any problems to a different level. There are a few problems, mainly the running time. It feels longer than it is. However, all in all, Crazy Stupid Love is a sweet, funny, great time at the movies.
Grade: B

Friends With Benefits / Cedar Rapids

Friends With Benefits - Yes, Friends With Benefits is pretty much the same movie as No Strings Attached that was released earlier this year. And while, No Strings Attached had a better lead actress (Natalie Portman), somehow Friends With Benefits manages to be a better movie. Is it because of director Will Gluck, who also managed to strike gold with last years infinitely better Easy A? Is it because of the killer supporting cast that bring their A-game (Goddess of the world Patricia Clarkson, Woody Harrelson, Richard Jenkins, my girl crush Emma Stone)? Who knows, but Friends With Benefits wins the war over better comedy about besties who have sex and ultimately fall in love. In this version, Mila Kunis stars as Jamie, an executive who sets out to lure Justin Timberlake's Dylan away from his blog with indie cred and into a high profile job at GQ. In the process, they become best friends and since both of them recently had their hearts broken (by Andy Samberg and a HILARIOUS Stone, respectively) they eventually decide they should have sex without feelings. It works for a while. Then Jamie breaks things off so she can date for real. She falls for Bryan Greenburg's cancer doctor but ends up heartbroken again. After a trip to L.A. to visit Dylan's family, Jamie begins to develop those deadly things called feelings. Dylan is scared, of course, because he's a man and there needs to be a third act hurdle for these two crazy kids to climb over. Needless to say, I'm sure you know how it ends. And if you said, "Giant ass flash mob at Grand Central Station," then you are right! Listen, I'm not trying to sell Friends With Benefits as the greatest movie of all time, or anything. It's not even the greatest movie I've seen this month. But it is cute and fun and funny. It's refreshing to watch a cliched romantic comedy that doesn't take itself seriously and pokes fun at itself. Kunis is endearing and charming. Timberlake is fine, although he's been so much better (Alpha Dog). Then, of course, there is that crazy good supporting cast I spoke of earlier. Clarkson and Stone steal every single goddamn scene they are in. This movie isn't without its problems, that's for sure. It's too long. It spends way too much time being boring at the beginning. And I'm not even talking about the terrible Shaun White cameo. But all in all, Friends With Benefits is a cute, sweet, little movie.
Grade: C+

Cedar Rapids - Then there is Cedar Rapids. I was actually looking forward to watching this movie since it got so much buzz at the beginning of the year. Now, all I can say is, what for?? There is nothing original about this movie. In fact, it's not even funny. I don't even think I laughed once. And this is coming from someone who loves Ed Helms so much more than she should. This dull comedy follows Tim Lippe (Helms) as he travels from his small town to the big city of Cedar Rapids to attend an insurance salesman convention. There he gets a little out of control with his roommates Deanzy (John C. Reilly, trying too hard to be a buffoon) and Ron (Isiah Whitlock Jr.). He also gets romantically involved with a married woman (Anne Heche) and a young hooker (Alia Shawkat, one of the few bright spots in this film) even though he's sleeping with his 6th grade teacher back at home (Sigourney Weaver, another of the aforementioned bright spots). All in all, Cedar Rapids is a big waste of time. It's not as bad as some of the other movies I've seen this year but it was definitely not anything special. If you are into this new trend about high strung men losing their shit and doing stupid stuff while in a strange and different land, then maybe you'll like this. But I'm over that trend.
Grade: D+