Review: HOT TUB TIME MACHINE

So this movie is clearly another case of "Snakes on a Plane" aka a film that people are only excited to see because of the absurdness of its title, and its inclusion of some super cool actors. That's a problem. Because that doesn't make for a very good movie.

Hot Tub Time Machine Theatrical Trailer Surfaces

I can't wait for this.

Review: NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: BATTLE OF THE SMITHSONIAN

I enjoyed Night at the Museum because of one reason: it was fun. It was simple, enjoyable, charming, and often times very funny. The only thing it had going against it was its predictability.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian has pretty much the same qualities going for it, except it might have been a bit less funny, and bit more predictable. *Sharp inward breath*

This movie has a comedy ensemble the likes of which I have not seen in a while; Ben Stiller, Amy Adams, Robin Williams, Owen Wilson, Steve Coogan, Eugene Levy, Hank Azaria, Christopher Guest, Alain Chabet, Ricky Gervais and Bill Hader. Not to mention some great cameos from Jonah Hill, Mindy Kaling, Jay Baruchel, Craig Robinson, and Thomas Lennon. Also, I can't believe I'm going to say this, but the Jonas Brothers even have a cameo, and it is nothing short of delightful.

Let's start. Ben Stiller is his lovable Ben Stiller self. He has the rare talent of being able to work well off of every other actor in the movie, especially Hill, Adams, Azaria, and Chabet. He has some really funny one-liners, and to be honest, the movie would be nothing without him. Great job to Ben Stiller.

Hank Azaria, as usual, is hilarious. He plays Kahmunrah, Abe Lincoln, and The Thinker (the sculpture). Azaria just might be the greatest character actor of all time. His accent is amazing, his wit as sharp as his spear. The movie might be worth seeing just for his conversation with everyone's favorite Sith.

I have to give honorable mention to Jonah Hill as well. It's silly, but one of the reasons I didn't love the movie as much as the last one is because he was only in one scene. In it, he and Stiller banter back and forth for about five minutes of absolute comic brilliance. I would have loved to have seen one more bit with him.

Now for Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart. I am incredibly conflicted about my opinion of her character. For one, I want to say how ridiculous it is to have such a young, beautiful actress playing Amelia Earhart. I want to say that in school, I was told that Earhart was mean and grumpy all the time. However, Amy Adams plays her as smart, fun, and incredibly charming. She really is great. I want to say how ridiculous of an interpretation of her the movie had, but she was just too adorable for me to care.

This one was written by Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon. Here's what I think: they should not be making PG movies. Balls of Fury is hilarious, because they don't have to censor themselves. Reno 911! is definitely not censored, and it's great. They need to stick to being filthy; it works much better.

As for Shawn Levy, he has yet to make a movie that really blows me away. He's clearly a very capable filmmaker, so why not try something that has more promise than films like The Pink Panther and Night at the Museum? I know he's got the talent. I'm excited for a project that has some depth to it.

So, Night at the Museum 2 gets a 3. It's not bad, it's just not good enough. Sequels should be better than the previous movie. No one wants to walk out of the theater thinking about their favorite parts of the first movie. And while it is very, very funny, its predictability brings it down. Not to mention the enormous buildup the movie has to an extremely disappointing finale.

Funny, but not the best.

Upcoming Film: HOT TUB TIME MACHINE

Why did I write the title bar in ALL CAPS you may wonder.... well... maybe it is because the movie is called HOT TUB TIME MACHINE. And if that is not the best title ever and enough to sell you on seeing the movie. I don't know what is.

Well, heres a little more info.


The film stars John Cusack, Rob Corddry, and Craig Robinson. It is rumored that Clark Duke is in negotiations to join the cast as well.

Its about 3 guys who lost their mojo and travel back in time in a time machine (in their hot tub) so they can relive their glory days.

It's the same director as Sex Drive (read Wilders review here)

It starts production in April.

God I wish there was a trailer to post below.

Review: MISS MARCH

After falling into a coma on prom night 4 years ago, Eugene Pratt wakes up to find out that his girlfriend from high school is now a playboy centerfold. Now he's gotta win her back.

That's the premise of the upcoming film, Miss March written and directed by, and starring Zach Cregger and Trevor Moore. Maybe you know them from YouTube or their TV series The Whitest Kids U Know. Regardless, they are on the up-and-coming.

Review: ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO

So Zack and Miri made a porno. Then I reviewed it.

Basic Summary (Spoilers May Occur) - not major ones though!

Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) are two friends who have known each other in the platonic way since 1st grade. Now they live in a little loft in the suburbs. However, neither of them have jobs that are that great. Zack works with his best friend Delany (Craig Robinson) at a coffee shop known as Bean-n-Gone, under an unforgiving boss (Gerry Bednob). After work one day, Zack purchases a 'self pleasure' item, and subsequently finds out he cannot pay the bills for the month. The power and water get shut down. So rather than live like hobos, they get Delany to invest as a producer, and decide to join the porn industry with Zack and Miri as the main stars. However... soon it becomes apparent that this media venture will not run as smoothly as it did on paper.

Who Ya Gonna Call?

Hey look it's the Ghostbusters! Thank goodness you guy are here! Wait a sec.... are you Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd? You're not the Ghostbusters I remember...

That's because, soon you will begin to hear a lot about the new Ghostbusters, for the upcoming film "Ghostbusters 3" In case you have no idea what I am talking about, Ghostbusters was an 80's film franchise that starred Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis in 2 films that were pretty much about them building intense machinery and using it to catch ghosts in traps.

This is them.



Okay, now that we are all caught up to date with 80's comedy franchises lets bring this full circle. Harold Ramis wrote and starred in "Ghost Busters" and "Ghostbusters II" (yeah the first movie is two words, the second movie is one word), then many years later he played Seth Rogen's dad in "Knocked Up", which was directed by Judd Apatow.

Judd Apatow is producing Ghostbusters 3.



I think that it will be a very interesting blend as long as Ramis' writes this new installment so we keep the original style of the films. I feel that Apatow is a brilliant choice of producer, because he and his gang of actor-friends essentially is a reincarnation of the 1980's comedy troupes, and even while Apatow has filthy humor, the films essentially progress in similar ways with just as much heart which is why we loved 80's comedies so much.

It is speculated that this film will have the old Ghostbusters come out of retirement in response to a new threat, but when they are too old to handle the occurrence, they bring in some newbies to train. Presumably, those newbies will be: Paul Rudd, Seth Rogen, Craig Robinson, and either Bill Hader or James Franco. Then we will see the fun and games of old Ghostbusters teaching new Ghostbusters who also have their own life problems to deal with but pulling through at the end to stop the threat. And who knows... maybe with the good visual effects that exist these days, we'll get to see what happens when you 'cross the streams'.

More on this when it develops...

I'd get a major kick out of it if Jack Black would make an appearance singing the song below:



Maybe the movie's plot will be about trying to find Rick Moranis... because nobody knows where he has been for the last 7 years... Now that would be a cool cameo.

If you want to see more Ghostbusters sooner, check out the upcoming video game which was written by and stars all the original Ghostbusters!


To give credit where credit is due, the art was done by
jhroberts
and
dr-gore
on DeviantArt.com Check out their stuff!

Kevin Smith Makes a Porno

Why is that the word 'porno' is so much funnier than 'porn'?

Whatever the reason, Kevin Smith knows his comedy, and is back with an all new film, Zack and Miri Make a Porno.

Zack and Miri (Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks) star as two life long friends who, in order to make money to keep their apartment, decide to make a porno. But sex on camera isn't all daises and bundt cake, and soon the two realize that they may have more feelings for each other than they previously expected.

The cast looks great. While not part of the Askewniverse, Smith has endeavored to cast a bunch of his regulars, including but not limited to Jeff Anderson and Jason Mewes.

But the cast is also riddled with Apatow's gang. Besides the obvious Seth Rogen, Smith has cast Justin Long, Craig Robinson, and Gerry Bednob. I haven't seen Bednob in a movie since his memorable cameo in Walk Hard, so I am looking forward to that with great excitement.

This movie is sure to be hilarious. The trailer has been released, so definitely check it out. I know I'll be there opening night.

Here's the trailer. It's Pretty NSFW, but hilarious and Craig Robinson seems to steal almost every laugh.



PS - The poster that I uploaded is pretty great. However, it's the Canadian one. This was banned in the US. Oh, that Kevin Smith.

Zack and Miri discharge October 31.

PINEAPPLE EXPRESS NOW IN THEATERS

THIS REVIEW IS A RE-POST. IT WAS ORIGINALLY POSTED IN THE MAY SECTION OF THIS BLOG.

Lets get to it. Pineapple Express. The most highly anticipated film of the summer for people who like Judd Apatow, Weed, Seth Rogen, Actions, and Comedy. Trust me, Pineapple Express fulfills all those desires. Reuniting for the first time since the short lived television series "Freaks and Geeks" (1999), Seth Rogen and James Franco pair up for the first time on the big screen, and Franco reminds the world that he can be funny as hell if people let him be.

(Spoilers May Occur, but not Major ones)
The film starts off in a World War II era where a unit of the military is deciding if Marijuana should be legal or not, and after an interview with Private Miller (Bill Hader) it is decided that the drug will be permanently illegal. Flash forward to the future, where Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) a process server with an 18 year old high school girlfriend (Amber Heard) drives over to his drug dealers house to get a new batch of weed. The drug dealer is none other than Saul Silver (James Franco), who sells Dale some rare weed, Pineapple Express, because he desperately wants to be friends with him. The weed is so rare in fact that Saul is the only one who has it.

Long story short, Dale witnesses a murder, drops his joint on the scene, and since the weed is so rare, the biggest drug dealer around (Gary Cole) sends his two hit-men (Craig Robinson & Peter Lewis) after him, believing he is working with the other drug lords known simply as 'The Asians.'

Hilarity and non-stop action ensues.

(Spoilers End Here)

The film is successful in every aspect it sets out on, though the relationship between (Gary Cole) and crooked cop (Rosie Perez) is very weak and remains questionable and undeveloped. Seth Rogen plays the same character as always, a delightful stoner, who pulls through in the end, but is is fun as ever to watch him and his improvisational talents. James Franco delivers an excellent performance, full of comedy and wit, and you feel each emotion he throws at you. Of the two leads, Saul Silver is the easiest to identify with.

Danny McBride, new Apatow regular since Drillbit Taylor, plays Red, another drug dealer, who is very much like Fogell from Superbad. He steals the show every scene he is in, but the character has way to much spirit for the way he is treated. However, this always creates a laugh, because he reminds me of the role of Mustafa from Austin Powers (The role that started Will Ferrell's career), in that whatever happens to him he is always alright.

Its nice to see Craig Robinson in a larger role than he has on NBC's "The Office" and that he had in "Knocked Up." The role he creates is hilarious and it can be seen that he created much more for his character than was written in the script.

Essentially this is the exact same script as 2007's "Superbad," also written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, but if you replace the alcohol with weed, Cops for Drug Lords, then you have the same movie down to the last shot in the action. But Pineapple Express has more layers of jokes, which will probably lead to a more re-watch-able DVD.

Joe Lo Truglio (The Creepy Guy at the Party in Superbad) has a delightful cameo as Angie's Teacher in the high school, while Ken Jeong (The Gynecologist in Knocked Up) plays the head assassin for the Asians, which was another nice surprise.

The budget is the highest of Apatow's, probably even higher than "Walk Hard" , and it shows. Each action scene gets better and builds on the last, and when it comes to directorial style, no one makes this film better than David Gordon Green, with very creative cuts and edits, often showing two scenes on screen at the same time.

Review: PINEAPPLE EXPRESS

Lets get to it. Pineapple Express. The most highly anticipated film of the summer for people who like Judd Apatow, Weed, Seth Rogen, Actions, and Comedy. Trust me, Pineapple Express fulfills all those desires. Reuniting for the first time since the short lived television series "Freaks and Geeks" (1999), Seth Rogen and James Franco pair up for the first time on the big screen, and Franco reminds the world that he can be funny as hell if people let him be.

(Spoilers May Occur, but not Major ones)
The film starts off in a World War II era where a unit of the military is deciding if Marijuana should be legal or not, and after an interview with Private Miller (Bill Hader) it is decided that the drug will be permanently illegal. Flash forward to the future, where Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) a process server with an 18 year old high school girlfriend (Amber Heard) drives over to his drug dealers house to get a new batch of weed. The drug dealer is none other than Saul Silver (James Franco), who sells Dale some rare weed, Pineapple Express, because he desperately wants to be friends with him. The weed is so rare in fact that Saul is the only one who has it.

Long story short, Dale witnesses a murder, drops his joint on the scene, and since the weed is so rare, the biggest drug dealer around (Gary Cole) sends his two hit-men (Craig Robinson & Peter Lewis) after him, believing he is working with the other drug lords known simply as 'The Asians.'

Hilarity and non-stop action ensues.

(Spoilers End Here)

The film is successful in every aspect it sets out on, though the relationship between (Gary Cole) and crooked cop (Rosie Perez) is very weak and remains questionable and undeveloped. Seth Rogen plays the same character as always, a delightful stoner, who pulls through in the end, but is is fun as ever to watch him and his improvisational talents. James Franco delivers an excellent performance, full of comedy and wit, and you feel each emotion he throws at you. Of the two leads, Saul Silver is the easiest to identify with.

Danny McBride, new Apatow regular since Drillbit Taylor, plays Red, another drug dealer, who is very much like Fogell from Superbad. He steals the show every scene he is in, but the character has way to much spirit for the way he is treated. However, this always creates a laugh, because he reminds me of the role of Mustafa from Austin Powers (The role that started Will Ferrell's career), in that whatever happens to him he is always alright.
.

Its nice to see Craig Robinson in a larger role than he has on NBC's "The Office" and that he had in "Knocked Up." The role he creates is hilarious and it can be seen that he created much more for his character than was written in the script.

Essentially this is the exact same script as 2007's "Superbad," also written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, but if you replace the alcohol with weed, Cops for Drug Lords, then you have the same movie down to the last shot in the action. But Pineapple Express has more layers of jokes, which will probably lead to a more re-watch-able DVD.

Joe Lo Truglio (The Creepy Guy at the Party in Superbad) has a delightful cameo as Angie's Teacher in the high school, while Ken Jeong (The Gynecologist in Knocked Up) plays the head assassin for the Asians, which was another nice surprise.

The budget is the highest of Apatow's, probably even higher than "Walk Hard" , and it shows. Each action scene gets better and builds on the last, and when it comes to directorial style, no one makes this film better than David Gordon Green.


Pineapple Express hits theaters this August.