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+

Bad Teacher

The problem with Bad Teacher is that it's not nearly as funny as it thinks it is. There are some good laughs, sure, but for every minute of laughter, there are ten minutes of boring, badly written, trite nonsense. That doesn't really add up in the end. The actors are definitely the saving factor here because the script really isn't good. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Thank God for Jason Segel!

Bad Teacher follows Cameron Diaz as Elizabeth Halsey, a first year teacher who makes a big to-do at the end of the year celebration about leaving to get married. However, moments later, she gets dumped by her super rich fiancee because he realized what a gold digging bitch she really is. Flash forward to the beginning of the next school year, when Elizabeth returns to her true calling as a teacher. No, not really. She's pretty much the worst teacher ever, as you have already garnered from the trailer. She doesn't learn her students names. She drinks and smokes weed on the job. She thinks teaching is equivalent to showing Dangerous Minds in class. But she is determined to save enough money so she can get a boob job and meet a rich man. Then she meets Justin Timberlake's brand new teacher. Seems he is the heir of a watchmaking fortune and Elizabeth hones in on him, even though he is the biggest douchebag in all of teaching. Throw in Lucy Punch as a perky rival teacher and Jason Segal as the hilarious gym teacher with the hots for Elizabeth and you've got yourself a semi-raunchy predictable comedy.

Like I said, the writing is bad, but the actors do their best with what they've been given. Diaz is very good at playing unlikeable. Her character is sort of a walking disaster and she does a lot of very terrible things, but you still somehow manage to find yourself cheering for her. I have been praising Timberlake's talents as an actor for a very long time. And while I wasn't as impressed with him in The Social Network as everyone else was, I think he was damn near perfect in Alpha Dog a few years back. His character here is so under developed and badly written, that it's not entirely his fault that his performance is sort of lackluster and one-note. Lucy Punch all but steals the show as the perky, perfect rival to Elizabeth. She is absolute perfection and a bonefied scene stealer. Then there is Jason Segel, who I love so much, as the sweet and funny gym teacher who is a little bit naughty and completely endearing. I wish Jason Segel could be in every movie, honestly. Throw in a few small roles by Molly Shannon (completely pointless) and Eric Stonestreet completely and utterly unrecognizable as Cameron from Modern Family) and you've got yourself a completely average in every way comedy.

In conclusion, Bad Teacher is not something you are going to remember for a long time. Heck, I'll probably forget about it by the end of the summer. That's not to say it's without merits completely. There are very funny parts of the film. Still, it's predictable and average in every way.

Grade: C

[In case anyone actually reads this, I'll be away from the blog for three weeks. I'll be back sometime after July 22.]

The Social Network

Or: Okay, Rooney Mara, I will allow you to play Lisbeth Salander in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.
All the best picture of the year talk surrounding The Social Network is no joke. It just may be. It's fresh, relevant, fast-paced, witty, clever, funny and a damn good movie. When I first heard they were making a movie about facebook, I thought it was a stupid idea. Then that first trailer came out, you know, the ominous one with the acapella version of "Creep" playing? That got me interested. Then, of course, the buzz started. But The Social Network isn't just about facebook. It is, of course, a movie that defines a generation but it is also about a lot of topics that are much more simple: power, backstabbing, manipulation, betrayal.
The Social Network stars Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg, a brilliantly intellectual Harvard under grad who has absolutely no social skills whatsoever. It's a little ironic that someone who has no idea how to interact with people in real life created the most interactive social site of all time. In the beginning of the film, Mark gets dumped by his Boston University girlfriend Erica (Rooney Mara). And he gets dumped in a sort of spectacular fashion. After a back and forth that lasts nearly 10 minutes, Erica ends things by saying, "You're going to go through life thinking that girls don't like you because you're a geek. And I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that that won't be true. It'll be because you're an asshole." And so the relationship is over. Mark isn't so happy and he goes back to his dorm room and writes a lot of mean things about Erica and her bra size on livejournal. Then, while all the rest of Harvard is partying the night away, Mark and his geek friends create the precursor to facebook - facemash - in which they put pictures of two Harvard girls side by side and make guys pick who is hotter.
Mark and his friends crash the Harvard server and gain a lot of notoriety. A pair of super rich, rowing twins named Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (both played by Armie Hammer) hire Mark to program a website for them. The idea the Winklevi, if you will, have is to create an elite Harvard dating site called Harvard connection. Mark takes the idea back to his one and only friend Eduardo (played to utter perfection by future Spiderman Andrew Garfield) and they use it as a basis for facebook.
So that's the basic story. But the filmmaking is so damn good that it turns a simple story of a nerd who created a website into a thrilling masterpiece of cinema. The story flips around from those days in 2003 and 2004 when facebook was created to two seperate lawsuits Mark is involved in, one involving Eduardo who was hardcore screwed and one involving the Winklevi, who are clearly not happy with Mark. The filmmaking is so damn perfect that it elevates an already incredible script into something you might want to call "perfection." Director David Fincher and writer Aaron Sorkin are at the top of their games and together, they are amazing.
The cast is nothing short of amazing either. Rooney Mara manages to break hearts and steal scenes with her limited screentime and it's refreshing to me. I've been underwhelmed by her previous work, but here, she proves to me that she is able to handle a bigger role (Lisbeth!). I am now truly excited to see what she brings to that role. Justin Timberlake shows up about halfway through the movie as Sean Parker, the founder of Napster, who all but seduces Zuckerberg into a world of beautiful women, hot night clubs and lots and lots of money. He's a sweet talking charmer who is also a paranoid liar, but Timberlake nails it. Armie Hammer plays the Winklevoss twins so perfectly. I know a lot of it is screen magic but he's better than he needs to be. I don't know how Fincher made him play twins but then again, this is a man who put Brad Pitt's face on a baby so I trust that he knows what he's doing. Jesse Eisenberg finally, finally, FINALLY got a role worthy of his talents. He's always been a wisecracking, indie fixture who was enjoyable to watch but here he becomes something so much more. He is perfection as the complicated Zuckerberg who seems like a total douche one minute and a misunderstood genius the next. But, I think, best in show has got to go to Andrew Garfield. I haven't been so impressed by a performance all year long. He's got the perfect amount of everything needed to pull off the role of the likeable best friend who gets royally screwed. Plus, he gets to deliver the movie's best line. "Lawyer up, asshole, cause I'm not coming for my 30 percent. I'm coming for everything."
All in all, The Social Network is the kind of highly entertaining, highly enjoyable masterpiece of a movie that only comes along once in a blue moon.
Grade: A

Hancock, Wall E + more

Hancock - Will Smith is perhaps the biggest movie star in the world. He's got more charm and charisma in his left arm than most people have in their whole bodies. It's really a hoot to see him playing a drunken, mean, smart ass superhero. Smith is surrounded by some pretty great co-stars as well. Charlize Theron is beautiful as ever and downright capable of representing for the ladies. And Jason Bateman, well, Jason Bateman is just a master at line delivery. Everything that comes out of his mouth is pitch perfect. Too bad this great cast was only surrounded with half of a good movie. I'm not saying that Hancock is bad, per se. It's just not great either. There are moments of greatness where the movie is genuinely funny or genuinely touching or genuinely action packed. Then there are the moments when it's genuinely boring as hell. The premise is certainly interesting enough - an industructable super hero, the last of his kind, struggles with his own demons (alcohol, self loathing) while trying to help the ungrateful folk of Los Angeles - although the script is largely flawed. The overall idea of the mean spirited and unwilling superhero is enough to sustain the movie for the first half hour or forty minutes or so. However, the end isn't nearly as thought out as it should be and falters greatly. The big surprise twist is neither surprising nor very thought out. There are mind-boggling gaps of logic and the script feels so badly mapped out near the end that it shortchanges what could have been a pretty great movie. That said, it's still worth seeing, if only for Smith and Bateman and their overall awesomeness.
Grade: C

Wall E - Okay. Wall E is pretty adorable. Still, contrary to popular belief, it is not the be all end all of movies. I will admit that the first twenty minutes or so are downright perfection. Wall E is, quite possibly, the most ridiculously adorable star of a movie ever. The scene near the end (let's call it the fire extinguisher dancing scene) is perfection as well. Parts of the movie even managed to melt my black heart. Still, it's really not one of the best movies ever. Maybe it's just me, because I've never been a fan of animated movies in general (even when I was little... I was more interested in Halloween than Cinderella). And Wall E is an intelligent, well done, emotional little movie about the end of the world. It's charming. It's unique. It's beautifully animated. Still, I found it to be lacking eventhough I can't quite put my finger on way. Maybe it's because I'm not a Pixar fan girl. Or maybe it's because of my weariness against animated films. Or possibly it's because I tend to lean more toward the dark side of human nature and stay away from all this gooey sentimental nonsense. Whatever it is, I seem to be in the minority of people who didn't fall head over heels in love with Wall E. Yes, I highly recommend it. Yes, I think it's adorable and sweet and great. No, I don't think it's one of the best movies ever made (like some are saying).
Grade: B
[And possibly I'm being harsh but someone has to balance out all the people heaping praise on this movie.]

The Love Guru - Stay as far away from this movie as humanly possible. There were two good things and exactly two good things about it. 1) Justin Timberlake. Love this guy, for real. 2) The joke about the Morgan Freeman voice over machine. Perhaps I'm the only person who finds it funny though because I not-so-secretly wish Morgan Freeman was narrating my life. Would make things a hell of a lot more interesting.
Grade: D-

Cassandra's Dream - Woody Allen is back! This guy almost never disappoints me. I would seriously recommend anything by him as long as it doesn't have the words 'Jade' or 'Scorpion' in the title. Woody's story about two brothers (Colin Farrell and Ewan McGregor) and their quest for money (different reasons - Farrell has a gambling problem, McGregor needs to impress his new actress girlfriend) which intwines them in a dangerous life. With a shockingly dark ending, Woody is still the king.
Grade: B+

Charlie Bartlett - Anton Yelchin is pretty knockout great in this movie. Robert Downey Jr. is fantastic as well. Overall, it's a pretty smartly written and well acted film. Still, at times it feels like it's trying a little too hard. Still worth checking out though.
Grade: B-

Be Kind Rewind - So uneven it hurts. There are parts of greatness in this movie. The premise itself is pretty great - after an unfortunate incident, all the video tapes at a local store are left blank and the desperate employees are forced to recreate films like Ghostbusters and Rush Hour 2. Mos Def is pretty solid in the lead. Jack Black almost ruins the whole movie for me. Mia Farrow is a goddess. Boring as hell at times.
Grade: C-

The Other Boleyn Girl, Southland Tales, Drillbit Taylor

The Other Boleyn Girl - Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson are probably two of the most talented young working actresses. Sure, they are hit or miss. Scarlett was fantastic in Lost in Translation, but for every Woody Allen movie there's something like The Island that balances it out. Natalie gave her absolute best performance in Closer but for every Goya's Ghost there is a Star Wars prequel to discuss. Still, they both have potential. In The Other Boleyn Girl, they play roles you think maybe should have been reversed. In real life, anyway, it seems Natalie is the meeker of the two while Scarlett is a little more extroverted. In the film, Scarlett plays soft-spoken, kind-hearted Mary Boleyn and Natalie plays manipulative Anne Boleyn. One performance works completely, the other not so much. Scarlett is all over the place in her portrayal. One moment she's great but the next her accent seems fake, her expressions are painful, etc. Meanwhile, Natalie is just great. She starts out the film as a flirtatious young troublemaker. At one point, her character is sent to exile in France. When she returns, she's a total bad ass. That's when the film really comes to life, as well. The beginning of the film is boring and long but the second half is much more enjoyable. Kristin Scott Thomas also dazzles as a sort of feminist before her time, playing the mother of the children. Eric Bana plays the mecurial Henry the VIII, although I'd rather Jonathan Rhys Myers anyday. Jim Sturgess rounds out a pretty solid cast as the brother of Anne and Mary (and try not to cry for his pretty, little head). The film is very soap opera-ish but that's not necessarily a bad thing. The editing and directing decisions aren't exactly good enough. The ending sort of assumes that everyone watching the movie is a moron (probably because most of them are). Still, the movie is not entirely bad. In fact, it's mostly interesting and entertaining. I just wish it would have gotten an R-rating so it could have been a little racier. What's the point of all the bed hopping if it's PG-13?
Grade: C+


Southland Tales - When the movie ended, my friend asked, "Did you like it?" I wasn't sure what to say at the time. Southland Tales, from Richard Kelley, the director of Donnie Darko, is by far the strangest movie I have ever seen that wasn't directed by David Lynch. However, the more I think about it (and it does stick with you whether you like it or not), the more I think I absolutely loved it (think is the operative word). What is Southland Tales about, you ask? Well, I kind of have no idea. The easiest way to explain is to say it's about the end of the world. At one point in the film, about half way through, there is a sort of musical intermission where Justin Timberlake lip synchs to a song by The Killers. Sarah Michelle Gellar plays a porn star who wants to be a pop star who sings a song called "Teen Horniness is Not a Crime." There is a scene of two SUV's having sex. Seann William Scott plays twins - one's a racist cop, the other has no memory (I think). The Rock plays an action star named Boxer who is married to the daughter of a Republican senator (Mandy Moore) but sleeping with Sarah Michelle Gellar's Kristy Now (who's tag line is, "If you want to f**k me, f**k me now."). At one point, the Rock also says the following line, "I'm a pimp. And pimps don't commit suicide." Like I said, it's a strange, strange movie. Still, it was over two hours long and it didn't feel like it. It kept my interest and it was, at the very least, unique. After much thought, I think it was actually one of my favorite movies of last year. So, at first, I had no idea what grade to give it. Now I think I've made my decision and most people won't agree with it but I don't care. This is definitely not a movie for everyone.
Grade: A

Drillbit Taylor - I can't think of any reason why Owen Wilson would want to make this movie. But I am glad that he did because without his natural charm and likeability, this movie would have been just crap. I mean, it has it's moments. Unfortunately, there aren't many of them. The three kids have a sort of natural chemistry that is nice and there are, maybe, two scenes which are actually laugh out loud funny. Other than that it's amusing at best and boring at worst. I think the Judd Apatow machine may finally be falling apart. Although, this is minor Apatow - watered down, rated PG-13, no Jonah Hill. It's pre-Superbad, but not nearly as funny. There's really not much to say about the movie. It's nothing special and not very funny. Skip it!
Grade: D+

Black Snake Moan

If you have been looking for a film where an out of control nympho gets chained to a radiator by an extremely religious southern man, then look no further than Black Snake Moan, the new film from Hustle & Flow director Craig Brewer. Not exactly what you're looking for? Well, go see it anyway. As long as you are open minded and don't take everything too seriously, there's no reason you won't leave the theater glad you saw this movie.

Brewer, who, as I said, is repsonsible for my very favorite movie of 2005, takes the audience to the deep south where, as the tagline claims, everything is hotter. And, indeed it is. We are introduced to the God-fearing bluseman, Lazarus played by Samuel L. Jackson and the almost always half naked Rae; a role bravely taken on by Christina Ricci (and, I mean, who else could possibly play this role? Who else would even consider taking this role? I know Ricci has had her share of missteps but she sure is much more fearless than the likes of Natalie Portman and Kirsten Dunst... anyone can play Marie Antoinette. No one else could have played Rae). After Rae's military bound boyfriend leaves for duty, Rae partakes in some drinking, drugs and sex then gets beat up by his best friend and left on the side of the road wearing a half shirt and some underwear. This is how Lazarus comes to meet Rae, take her in, care for her and... chain her to his radiator. The unlikely pair cross paths just long enough for their characters to learn a lesson from one another. Both lessons ultimately convey the message that, no matter what, we are all human. No one is perfect, we're all a little fucked up, as Rae says, and, if everyone would just realize that, then we'd be a lot better off. The question is, however, if this message will be accepted, or even understood, by all who see the film. That's another story.

One thing not up for debate is how great Jackson and Ricci both are here. You'd think with the role of a sex-crazed woman, overacting would be a given but not here and not in the least. Ricci is astounding and demonstrates her true talent with a raw performance that, despite being in dozens of films, is her best to date. Then there is Jackson who, for the first time in a long time, makes us forget who he even is. He's done the Samuel L. Jackson shtick so much lately that it's truly great to be reminded of what a wonderful actor he really is. Justin Timberlake is solid as well. He didn't reach the same level that he did in January's Alpha Dog, but this is still a strong outing from an actor who is just starting out.

The efforts of Craig Brewer can not go without mention. His last film was Hustle & Flow - a film that had such low expectations and surpassed them all gaining critical acclaim and putting him, and Terrence Howard, on the map. What he has done with Black Snake Moan will be what sets him apart from other new directors in the industry. He wrote and directed Moan and the end result is a story that is surprising and clever. As you watch you feel lik you know exactly where it is headed despite its valiant composure. Just as you think you've predicted the next move, Brewer shifts gears and takes an entirely different route. In an industry where everything is predictible, it's nice to see this in a film. There are just two problems that I can think of: the background characters are drab and uninteresting and the ending may disappoint some (although I actually really liked it) who are looking for something more exciting. While Ricci and Jackson should be praised for their fearless work, the absolute best thing about the movie has got to be the music. It's a Southern folk and rock and blues soundtrack that hits all the right notes.

Grade: A-

Alpha Dog

This movie was supposed to come out last year at this time. I remember reading a story about it a year before that, so, more or less, I have been waiting to see this movie for two years. This movie could very easily have let me down because I had it so built up in my head. However, it did not in the least. It was well worth the wait. It's the sort of movie that sucks you in, entrances you, and then hits you over the head with a baseball bat. It's full of characters who are not too likeable, yet we somehow feel for most of them because they are free in ways that most people are not. Nick Cassavetes (who follows up The Notebook with this movie!) really does a wonderful job capturing the essence of this true story. The way he puts you into the prospective of what happened, the way you see what happened as though you are actually experiencing it yourself, is absolutely brilliant.
The story is true, as most people know by now. In an interview, Cassavetes said that this is as true to what happened as could possibly be. The only thing that he changed were the names. So, instead of Jesse James Hollywood, Emile Hirsch plays Johnny Truelove, a young drug dealer who sells various drugs to most of his teenage friends in the sunny, barren wasteland of San Gabriel, California. He's got a group of drug addicted, tough guy friends including Justin Timberlake as Frankie and Shawn Hatosy as Elvis. Ben Foster and his character of Jake Mazursky is sort of the catalyst for everything that happens in this film. It seems Jake owes Johnny money and after a few days of back and forth retaliation between the two (breaking windows, stealing televisions, using the living room carpet as a toilet...) things really spiral out of control when Johnny decides it would be a good idea to kidnap Jake's innocent and sweet little brother Zack (Anton Yelchin) who they happen upon en route to Palm Springs for Fiesta Weekend. They bring little Zack along for the ride and he doesn't mind so much because he gets to play video games, drink and smoke, have sex with two girls and all around feel like one of the crowd. If you've read anything about the true story, then you know what is going to happen next. Still, even if you see it coming a mile away, it still knocks you out of your seat. The relationship between Timberlake's Frankie and Yelchin's Zack is really the backbone of the film. They genuinely become almost friends and that final scene with the two of them will easily break your heart.
There's a mood and energy, a style that Cassavettes so easily captures and portrays that makes this film so far removed from any cliched studio product geared toward the teenybopper set. The film feels honest and genuine and has a lot of unexpected heart and soul, and that makes all the difference in the world. Cassavettes also does a lot of creative things in the movie including interviews to make it feel more like a documentary than a drama, split screen camera tricks, a run down of the dates and times that everything went down, and the part I loved the most, a running count of all the witnesses who saw the kidnapped boy over the three day period. To say that these kids are stupid is a huge understatement. But that's the point. They are a bunch of drugged out, tripping young kids who think they rule the world, because in a strange sort of way, they do. They think they can do anything they want and get away with it. This is, essentially, a story about a group of people who make one bad decision after another until it spirals so far out of control they have no idea how to get out of the mess they created. And, of course, they choose the worst possible way to try to get out of the situation.
The performances are really most impressive. This is a sprawling cast with a ton of wonderful performances. It's nearly impossible to pinpoint any one person specifically because I don't really think there was a star of the movie. This is ensemble casting at it's best. There are wonderful performances from Shawn Hatosy, Emile Hirsch, Chris Marquette, Sharon Stone, Dominique Swain, Olivia Wilde, Bruce Willis, and Anton Yelchin (whose last few moments on-screen are gut wrenching). Everyone just really does a great job. Justin Timberlake is the most surprising, of course. Surprise, surprise: the guy can act! Forget everything you think about him, all your preconceived notions of the boy bander or whatever. He crackles whenever he's on screen and he has all the right ingredients for a stellar acting career: charisma, screen presence and natural acting talent. But, the standout performance, for me anyway, was from Ben Foster. I remember watching a documentary a few years back about meth addicts and Ben Foster just nails it. He's so on spot in every single scene. He's almost frightening to watch. He's stunning and terrifying. I never thought that little Tucker James from Flash Forward would scare me so much but he does. He's just simply wonderful. He gives one of those rare performances that you won't soon forget.
Grade: A