This is the End

I'm sort of torn with how I feel about This is the End. When I left the theater, all I could think about was how damn stupid and pointless it all was. But as days pass and I think about it more and more, I'm left remembering the parts that were really funny. Plus, another movie starring most of these guys - Knocked Up - took quite a while to really grow on me. Now I love it, but that wasn't the case when I first saw it.

This is the End stars real life friends Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, James Franco, Danny McBride and Craig Robinson as themselves. They find themselves at a house party at Franco's new super mansion. Other guests at the party include Mindy Kaling, Michael Cera, Jason Segal, Paul Rudd, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Aziz Ansari, Kevin Hart, Emma Watson, and, even Rihanna. Soon, the apocalypse happens. Jay and Seth only realize this because they take a party break to walk to a convenience store to get some cigarettes. Everyone at the party think it's an earthquake (or, in one instance, that the Lakers won). Soon, just about every one at the party is sucked into hell except our stars who are left to tough out the end of the world at Franco's house with very few supplies and very weird art.

The best parts of This is the End are damn funny. The two moments that stick out in my mind are their homemade sequel to Pineapple Express starring Jonah Hill as Woody Harrelson, and Franco riffing on art (did you know Subway sandwiches are art??). Pretty much every (limited) line that comes out of Michael Cera's mouth is gold, but they make a huge mistake by killing him off in the first ten minutes. I sincerely love every person in this movie and I have since watching Rogen and Franco on Freaks and Geeks, Baruchel on Undeclared and Jonah (my favorite Jonah!) in everything. That's why I wanted to love this movie so badly. This cast is fantastic and you could tell they are friends in real life. They have a chemistry that is so natural and they make fun of each other the way only friends can. Franco and McBride steal the show by a mile. They are both hilarious and over the top, playing wild versions of themselves. McBride is the loud mouth, trouble starter turned cannibal (!!) and Franco is the pretentious art lover with a sort of obsession with Rogen.

But there are problems here. Rogen also co-wrote and co-directed the film with Evan Goldberg (who he also co-wrote Superbad, probably the best comedy of the last decade, with). I'm not entirely sure they know how to direct a movie, but at the very least they know how to string a bunch of you tube worthy clips together into some sort of cohesive entitity that has a very loose sort of plot and a very general good-natured quality. This isn't entirely a compliment. If these guys want to take the step into directing, they are going to need to learn some sort of craft. They could just always count on calling their funny friends to help them out (although, that seems to work for Judd Apatow). The biggest problem with This is the End is that the basic plot is pretty dumb. And it just keeps getting more outlandish (an exorcism scene) and more outlandish (cannibals) and more outlandish (multi-headed dragons!) and more outlandish (the final scene, which I won't spoil, but which is, possibly, the most ridiculous thing you will see on the screen this year, if not this decade).

So, it's sort of shame that they decided to go in such a far out direction with this film. They could have done an end of the world theme where they didn't really show anything happened but kept it all at a house while a bunch of spoiled celebrities tried to survive while talking about masterbation and while Jonah Hill keeps referring to himself as "America's Sweetheart." It would have been a much better movie, in my opinion. And who knows? Maybe I'll watch This is the End again some time and it will grow on me a bit more. But, for now, the ridiculous aspects ruined what was a perfectly funny movie for me.

Grade: C

Eagle Eye, Nick and Norah, How to Lose Friends...

Eagle Eye - At the very least it's entertaining. Entertaining in a "wow, this will never ever happen" kind of way. I'm all about conspiracy theories and corrupt government tales but, geez, even this one is pushing it. I'm not going to give away the big surprise but I will say that it's disappointing to say the least. I am still on the side of the fence that thinks Shia LaBeouf is fantastic. Maybe he's not as good of an actor as someone like Emile Hirsch or Paul Dano but he is charming as hell. He's got that perfect sort of combination of charm, wit and looks. So, watching him for two hours (only it felt like three) was great. I can't say that this movie is good per se but it is exciting at times and it will at least keep your interest, even if it is a little hard to follow at times. Still, it's not a bad way to kill two hours.
Grade: C+

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - The same could be said for Nick and Norah. Not a bad way to kill two hours. It's at times very funny, it's always very hipster friendly but it's mostly predictable and cliche. It's maybe trying too hard to be cool. But, then again, aren't most hipsters trying too hard to be cool? Anyway, the film follows one crazy night in New York City and the adventures of a bunch of teens as they try to make it to a secret show by the elusive band Where's Fluffy. Much ensues, mostly focusing on our hero and heroine, Nick (Michael Cera - wonderfully funny and charming) and Norah (Kat Dennings - not as annoying as I thought she'd be). They have an attraction to one another but both have some issues with exes. Nick is still hung up on the Tris (the beautiful Alexis Dzenia) who broke his heart and Norah is on-again / off-again with Tal (one of my celeb crushes, Jay Baruchel whose very presence makes this a better movie). Anyway, the movie is fun at times and very funny at times as well. Still, we've seen it all before. Mostly the "plus" here is for whoever cast this film because the cast is pretty fricking great - even if they don't always have the greatest material.
Grade: C+

How to Lose Friends and Alienate People - It's pretty sad when I have to type the following sentence... "Thank heavens for Kirsten Dunst." Yeah, I said it. I'm not her biggest fan (or her fan at all, really) but she's really the only thing decent about this movie. Her Alice (or Allison... I'm not entirely sure... that's how much I didn't care about this movie) is the living embodiment of most women in their twenties and she does a damn good job portraying the confusion and frustration. Lead Simon Pegg, usually funny and charming, is trite and boring here. Hottie Megan Fox does a solid job being hot... but that's about it. For being billed as a comedy, the only funny things really come out of Jeff Daniels mouth - and that's not really a surprise. Overall, this movie is pretty boring.
Grade: D

88 Minutes - Why Al Pacino why? I don't even know what to say about this mess. First of all, yes, it's called 88 minutes and it runs for almost two hours. I'm fine with that. There is a deeper meaning to the phrase "88 minutes." I mean, if you can call "lame filler back story" deep then sure. The supporting cast is terrible. The script is terrible. The big outcome twist is apparent to anyone with half a brain. And, really, why Al Pacino? Why?
Grade: D-

...And now back to your regularly scheduled program

Now that my experiment is over, it's back to regular blogging. Let's begin with the best (and worst) of the summer of 2008. It was actually a surprisingly good summer for movies. That - or I managed to avoid most of the really bad movies. Either way, here's the best and worst from Memorial Day to Labor Day...

The Best

The Dark Knight (A) - Brilliant in every major way. Solid directing. Witty and intelligent writing. Spectacular special effects. Great performances (Eckhart, Oldman, Bale, Caine, Freeman). One amazing out of this world performance (Ledger). The best of the summer, for sure. The best of the year, possibly.

Sex and the City (B+) - A fun way to spend two and a half hours. If you are a fan of the show, there is no way the movie could disappoint. It's everything you wanted from a Sex and the City movie and more! These women are not fictional characters. They are friends and it's good to have them back.

Pineapple Express (B+) - Sticks and stones and weed and bombs. First of all, what a great usage of Paper Planes. Second of all, we all know that Seth Rogen is funny but holy shit James Franco! What a hilarious scene stealing performance.

Tropic Thunder (B+/B) - I can't decide if it's the movie I love or just the fact that Jay Baruchel is finally on screen again. He's my current celebrity crush and he's as adorable as ever. Also, kudos to Robert Downey Jr. and his hilarious / controversial / brilliant performance.

The Good

Wall E (B) - Adorable, sure. Clever, sure. Cute, of course. There are certain scenes which are unforgettable (the first twenty minutes or so, the fire extinguisher dance scene) but ultimately it might be a little TOO cutesy.

Wanted (B-) - Off the wall craziness. Is it realistic? Absolutely not. Is it fun as hell to watch James McAvoy be an all around bad ass? Hell yeah! There may be a little too much plot actually. It gets in the way of Angelina Jolie throwing cars at buses and what not.

The Decent

Step Brothers (C+) - It's not the smartest or funniest comedy of the summer but it's still funny in a stupid kind of way. Also, the whole Boats and Hoes thing is ridiculously funny.

Hancock (C) - Hancock is sort of hit or miss. It's half of a good movie. The first half is funny and charming and original. Then it takes a turn and becomes a huge cliched mess. Still, Will Smith is the most charming man in all of Hollywood and Jason Bateman has the most perfect comic timing.

The Disappointing

Mamma Mia (C-) - Mamma Mia sure was fun at times. Seeing Meryl Streep jump around on a bed singing Dancing Queen was a hoot! There were moments of pure joy in this movie. Too bad it was spastic and messy overall.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (C-) - Shia was hot. Harrison can still kick ass. But aliens, really? Plus, it was kind of a rip off of National Treasure which was kind of a rip off of the original Indiana Jones movies. Just give it up.

The Strangers (C-) - A less edgy and inferior version of Funny Games, this movie is not scary in any way shape or form. In fact, it sort of grates on your nerves after a while. Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman sure make a pretty couple but could they be any stupider in this movie?

The Bad

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (D+) - Honestly, it was so bad I fell asleep during it. Boring, boring and then when you think it can't get any more boring, guess what? It gets more boring. I forget why I gave it such a generous grade actually? Maybe it was because of my girl crush on Selma Blair.

The Love Guru (D-) - The only decent thing about this stupid, stupid, stupid movie is Justin Timberlake and his ridiculous French Canadian accent walking around in a speedo. That and the Morgan Freeman voice over joke because I not-so-secretly which Morgan Freeman would narrate my life.

The Worst

You Don't Mess With the Zohan (F) - Not even close to being funny. Close to offensive, actually. Adam Sandler is not funny. I repeat, Adam Sandler is NOT funny. Stop making movies, please. You have enough money. Just leave me alone.