AIIW: That's Not Us

Movie Stats:
Released 2015 (USA)
American, in English
Director - William Sullivan
Stars - Mark Berger, Elizabeth Gray, Tommy Nelms, Nicole Pursell, David Rysdahl, Sarah Wharton

Plot Summary:
When three couples - lesbians Jackie (Pursell) and Alex (Wharton); gays James (Berger) and Spencer (Rysdahl); and straights Liz (Gray) and Dougie (Nelms) - spend a weekend together at a beach house, all of their problems are magnified.

Warnings:
Lots and lots of blue language; lots and lots of sexy times; female nudity (breasts and butt) and brief male nudity (butt only); a drug reference.

Bad Stuff:
BORING.

I’m admittedly high on the prude scale when it comes to the sex lives of people I know. That is to say, I don’t want to know anything about what my friends do in the bedroom. I certainly don’t want to see it or hear it. So I was completely turned off by these people doing it like bunnies, in common areas and in rooms where their friends could hear, and talking about it openly. It took me out of the movie as I kept wondering, “Do people really do it this much on vacation? With their friends in the next room? Aren’t their parts starting to hurt?”

I saw the plot twist (it was a small, inconsequential one) coming a mile away. It was so obvious that I kept wondering if the characters were really stupid, since they couldn’t figure it out.

It feels a bit like a student film.

Good Stuff:
I liked the central message about communication. All of these people had problems in their relationships, and all of them had a difficult time expressing that to their respective partners. I thought it was interesting that most of them could easily articulate to their friends, but not their partners, what was wrong. It was insightful and it resonated with me.

The arguments felt realistic - difficult and full of frustration, but not crazed screaming matches, like you see in a lot of films.

The Verdict:
I must have started and stopped at least three films before landing on this one. It wasn’t that any of those films seemed bad from the five minutes I watched of each of them. It was more that I wasn’t in the mood for that type of film at that time. “British heist movie a la Lock Stock? Nah. Intellectual indie sci fi? Definitely not right now.” I’m not sure why “talkie relationship drama” felt like it fit the bill, but at least I learned something about myself. I don’t like talkie relationship dramas. Apart from the central message, there wasn’t much that was good about this film. For the most part, it was slow and utterly, painfully boring. All the sex scenes in the world couldn’t jazz it up.

I give it 2 stars.

AIIW: Populaire

Once again, it’s been a while since I wrote a review for this series. Click HERE for a refresher on what it's about. You may be seeing more of these reviews for a few weeks while I adjust to life in my new city.

Movie Stats:
Released 2012 (France)
French & Belgian, in French (small amounts of English & German; everything subtitled)
Director - Regis Roinsard
Stars - Romain Duris, Deborah Francois

Plot Summary:
In 1959 small-town France, insurance agent Louis Echard (Duris) quickly discovers that his new secretary Rose Pamphyle (Francois) is terrible at her job, with one notable exception: her crazy good typing skills. Speed typing contests and romance ensue.

Warnings:
Very brief female nudity (breasts only); minor, non-graphic violence (slapping, a punch); minimal blue language.

Bad Stuff:
It’s too long for a frothy romantic comedy. Definitely could have used fewer scenes of women frantically typing.

The storyline involving Louis’s feelings for his now-married childhood love Marie (Berenice Bejo) seemed unnecessary to me. Other aspects of his past/family life were enough to explain why he might be reticent to chase after Rose. Marie felt like an afterthought.

Good Stuff:
All the “background” stuff was PERFECT. The set design, costuming, cinematography, and music made me instantly fall in love with this film. I want to own every single thing that Rose wore.

I really enjoyed everyone’s performances, but particularly liked Shaun Benson, who played Louis’s American best friend Bob (who is also Marie’s husband). He was incredibly charming. I was amused by how his character was so “1950s American male as viewed by the French.”

It’s so cute and sweet!

The Verdict:
This movie was in my queue for years, and I think this is definitely a case of “right movie watched at the right time.” Mentally and emotionally depleted from our recent, sudden move (short version for those not in the know: husband lost his job when company unexpectedly folded, got a new job an hour and a half away from where we were living, we moved, whole thing took place in less than a month), I really needed to watch something that I knew would have a happy ending. This fit the bill perfectly. It was such an adorable homage to 1950s romantic comedies. It’s neither deep nor meaningful, but it’s not trying to be. It’s the kind of movie you watch so that, at the end, you can say to yourself, “Now that was satisfying.” If you like cute romantic comedies, choose this one when you need a pick-me-up.

I give it 4.25 stars.

AIIW: Knights of Badassdom

Movie Stats:

Released 2013 (Israel)

American, in English

Director - Joe Lynch

Stars - Ryan Kwanten, Peter Dinklage, Steve Zahn, Jimmi Simpson, Summer Glau

Plot Summary:

Friends Joe (Kwanten), Hung (Dinklage), Eric (Zahn), Ronnie (Simpson) and Gwen (Glau) accidentally summon a rampaging succubus while at a weekend Live Action Role Play event in the woods.

Warnings:

Blue language, extreme violence, heavily implied sexy times, and drug use.

Bad Stuff:

It’s a tad boring.

There are only two female characters, Gwen and Beth (Margarita Levieva), and neither of them is particularly well developed. Who is Gwen? The only thing you learn about her is that she’s there to chaperone her cousin Gunther (Brett Gipson), who takes the whole thing far too seriously. I wanted to know more about her.

[SPOILER]

I guess this is a spoiler because it mentions the fate of this character. Speaking of Gunther, I didn’t understand him at all. Gwen says that he’s “always” in character (I guess that’s why he needs a chaperone since he’s apparently mentally ill) but a follow-up card at the end of the film says that after fighting a real-life demon, Gunther now thinks he’s always in-game. Didn’t he already? It didn’t make sense.

[SPOILER]

Good Stuff:

I liked that it didn’t always do the expected thing, especially in terms of who lived and who died. It gave me a sense of anticipation.

There are some very funny moments.

A lot of times, a character like Ronnie will quickly descend into caricature territory: the villainous, power-hungry nerd (see: Ken Jeong’s character in “Role Models”). Ronnie had more nuance than that, which I really enjoyed. I suppose it helps that I’m a big fan of Jimmi Simpson.

The Verdict:

We all know that this isn’t the kind of movie you go into with high expectations. You don’t watch movies like this for depth or meaning. You watch them to enjoy yourself. In that sense, this movie is immensely entertaining. It feels like one of those films that a bunch of friends got together and made. They looked like they had a blast doing it. Whenever I see a movie like that, I tend to enjoy it more.

You’ll probably get more out of it if you’ve either played D&D and/or are a LARPer or know people who LARP. It was certainly funny to me for those reasons because of how close to the truth it strays. During the big battle scene, I said to my husband, “This is basically every LARPer’s wet dream.” He agreed. 

I give the movie 3 stars.

AIIW: Goon

Movie Stats:

Released 2011 (Canada)

Canadian & American, in English

Director - Michael Dowse

Stars - Seann William Scott, Jay Baruchel, Liev Schreiber

Plot Summary:

A not-so-bright bouncer, Doug (Scott), finds his calling as a hockey enforcer, aka “goon.” Baruchel co-stars as Doug’s BFF Pat and Schreiber as Ross Rhea, an elder statesman “goon” on the verge of retirement.

Warnings:

Lots of blue language, including what felt like a billion f-bombs (IMDB lists the actual number as 263 lol); extreme violence; sexy times; brief female nudity (breasts only); and IMDB tells me some drug use but I don’t really remember it.

Bad Stuff:

I gather that it’s supposed to be funny but I didn’t find it funny at all.

Anyone who knows me in real life can tell you that I’m certainly no prude when it comes to blue language but it really felt over the top here. It actually got kind of annoying.

I really hated the way that every time they mentioned Doug’s brother Ira (David Paetkau), they had to say that he was gay. Every. Single. Time. It was so weird, like they wanted to make up for all the homophobic “jokes” by having a gay character but since you only see him kiss a man once (chastely, I might add), they had to keep talking about how gay he was. It made the movie feel like one of those bigots who insists they can’t be a bigot because they have a “black friend.”

Good Stuff:

I liked the central message that once you find something you’re good at, and which you also enjoy, you should pursue it in spite of objections you might receive from the people you love and/or society.

I really enjoyed the character of Doug. It was refreshing to have a lead who was dumb but likable, and not in the goofy “Dumb and Dumber” way but in a genuinely “not bright” way. I loved that Doug was unfailingly kind, loyal, and genuine.

I liked Scott in this role. I know he often plays dumb, but he also usually plays wild/crazy/wacky on top of dumb and I felt that his performance here was really understated.

The Verdict:

Side note: Do you know how difficult it is to convince your computer that you really are trying to say, “Liev” not “Live”?

This movie has been in my queue for a long time. My husband watched it once while I was away and liked it enough that when my visiting brother chose it to watch on the final night of his stay, hubby sat down and watched it again with us. I have to admit that I don’t really see the appeal. I like “gross out” comedies, toilet humor, and “boy” movies as much as the next person, but this one just didn’t do it for me. The strange thing is that it has this heart-warming quality at its core. I ended up liking Doug, and rooting for him to succeed, which prevented the movie from being completely awful. However, it simply wasn’t funny, and that sunk it. 

I give the movie 2.5 stars.

AIIW: The History of Future Folk

Note: It’s been a long time since I’ve done a review for this project so in case you’ve forgotten what it’s about, here’s the original post.

Movie Stats:

Released 2012 (USA)

American, in English (minor non-translated Spanish)

Directors - John Mitchell & Jeremy Kipp Walker

Stars - Nils d’Aulaire, Jay Klaitz

Plot Summary:

When his home planet, Hondo, is threatened with total destruction by a comet, General Trius (d’Aulaire) sets out across the galaxy to find a suitable new planet to colonize. He’s been given a deadly virus to release on the unsuspecting current inhabitants of the planet, but when he reaches Earth and discovers music for the first time in his life, Trius finds himself unable to go through with the plan. Klaitz co-stars as Kevin, a fellow Hondonian sent to investigate when no one has heard from Trius for several years.

Warnings:

Extremely minor blue language (I think I heard one or two “bad” words); minor, non-graphic violence (fisticuffs mostly).

Bad Stuff:

This is sci fi lite and therefore requires a significant amount of suspension of disbelief, which I don’t necessarily mind. However, there were some real-world scenarios that played out in a way that had me saying, “Life doesn’t work like that!” and therefore took me out of the scene in question. For example, [SPOILER] I’m incapable of believing that, after breaking into an aerospace museum and setting off a nuclear missile, Trius and Kevin would just be allowed to go back to their regular lives, although it made for a likable ending. [SPOILER]

Some of the acting was a little iffy.

Good Stuff:

As a lover of music myself, I absolutely adore the idea that a person’s mind could be swayed by the power of music. Or, if you want to get more esoteric about it, I like the idea that the art we create is the best reflection of who we are, and that people will respond positively to that reflection. The best scenes in the movie were the ones where Trius and Kevin each discovered music.

I’m sure that this film is low budget but it rarely felt like it was. It looked good, the soundtrack was great, and the writing was pretty tight.

It has Dee Snider (as bar owner Larry)! He seemed like he had a blast filming this.

The Verdict:

I brought my “Adventures in Instant Watch” series out of unintentional retirement (I just didn’t have the mental energy to do it while I was also doing the Best Picture project) in order to showcase this film because it’s so delightful. It’s sweet and charming and light-hearted and fun. I’d kind of been having a bad day when I sat down to watch it and it honestly turned my day around. I grinned the whole way through it. Don’t be turned off by the sci fi aspect of it. It’s not “hard” sci fi at all, so it’s not difficult to follow, and it’s set on Earth, so there’s nothing weird about it. It’s also short (slightly less than 1.5 hours), so it’s not much of a time commitment. If you like to watch movies that make you smile, you should give this one a chance.

I give it 4.25 stars.

AIIW: The Adventures of Tintin

Movie Stats:

Released 2011 (USA)

American, in English

Director – Steven Spielberg

Stars – (voices only) Jamie Bell, Daniel Craig, Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg & Nick Frost

Plot Summary:

In case you’re unfamiliar with Tintin, I’ll tell you that this movie is based on a series of comic books written by the Belgian artist Georges Remi, who wrote under the penname Herge. The books are very popular in Europe (I was introduced to them when I lived in Germany). I’m unclear on how well the American audience knows them.

In this animated adaptation, young reporter Tintin (Bell) and his loyal companion Snowy (a dog) purchase a model ship at a flea market, ignorant of the ship’s secret: that it holds the key to finding a hidden treasure. This lands Tintin in hot water with the nefarious Sakharine (Craig), who abducts the young man and drags him along on his quest for the treasure. However, Tintin manages to get free and join forces with Captain Haddock (Serkis), who holds his own secrets, to beat Sakharine at his game. Simon Pegg & Nick Frost provide the voices of Thompson & Thomson, Tintin’s bumbling detective friends.

Bad Stuff:

As with Video Game High School, consider this section more along the lines of minor quibbles than hardcore complaints.

It was a bit too long & definitely dragged in some bits, especially the last third or so of it. This would be my biggest complaint.

The animal companions are too smart for me to suspend my disbelief. I know that’s kind of stupid, but it’s something that annoys me in movies, and it seems to be a bit of a trope with Spielberg.

[SPOILER – SORT OF. SKIP TO GOOD STUFF IF YOU DON’T WANT ANY SPOILERS]

I’m a little uncomfortable with how Haddock’s obvious drinking problem was addressed. It was made clear that Tintin was rightfully concerned about it. However, it was also used as the butt of several jokes. I guess I just don’t find alcoholism very funny.

Good Stuff:

The opening credits were absolutely fantastic.

I thought the story, if somewhat predictable, made a lot of sense. It’s a great adventure tale, full of action and derring-do. I’ve read some reviews where it’s compared to Indiana Jones, which I suppose makes sense, given the director. Also, the violence is fairly mild. I thought the bear in Brave was scarier, so I think it would be suitable for most children.

There’s great voice work from pretty much everyone. I thought Pegg & Frost in particular were excellent. I’ve seen practically everything the two of them have been in together, and I couldn’t tell which one voiced which Thompson/Thomson. Serkis was also particularly good; he didn’t sound at all like Gollum, which was a relief. Can I also say how much I enjoy Jamie Bell’s voice in general?

I’ve seen some criticism of the animation (not enough like Herge’s work), but I thought it looked beautiful. It was occasionally easy to forget that it wasn’t a live-action film.

The Verdict:

I have a soft spot in my heart for Tintin. I also try to watch pretty much everything Simon Pegg is in, so I was very excited when I heard this was coming out. However, it seemed to generate virtually no buzz. Somehow, I got the impression that it wasn’t very good.

So color me shocked when I finally watched it, only to discover that it’s actually quite good. Afterwards, I went online to several review sites and saw that it tends to get very solid reviews. I’m not sure where I got the impression that I wouldn’t like it.

I can’t say whether or not it sticks close to the books – it’s been too long since I’ve read them – but I thought this movie was delightful. It’s fun and sweet and full of remarkably little angst. It’s a nice way to spend a lazy couple of hours on a rainy afternoon.

I give this movie 4 stars.

AIIW: Video Game High School

Movie Stats:

Released 2012

American, in English

Directors – Matthew Arnold, Brandon Laatsch, and Freddie Wong

Stars – A bunch of kids whose names you probably won’t recognize, but who you may have seen in their various parts on both the big and small screens; Zachary Levi (of “Chuck” fame); and Freddie & Jimmy Wong, brothers and YouTube sensations.

Plot Summary:

In a world where people who excel at video games are revered, nerdy Brian D (Josh Blaylock) is considered your typical hapless loser until the day he accidentally scores an in-game kill against The Law (Brian Firenzi), the most awesome player around. This lucky shot lands Brian a place at Video Game High School (the Hogwarts of this ‘verse), where he quickly falls for the lovely Jenny Matrix (Johanna Braddy) and meets his new best friends, Ted Wong (Jimmy Wong) and Ki Swan (Ellary Porterfield). However, life at VGHS is fraught with danger, particularly since The Law is also there. Zachary Levi plays Ace, a VGHS teacher, and Freddie Wong plays Freddie Wong, also a teacher & Ted’s father.

Bad Stuff:

Consider any criticism listed here as more like minor quibbles, because I truthfully enjoyed the heck out of this movie.

I could see how this movie might not be accessible to a non-gaming audience, as it uses a lot of gaming jargon and in-jokes. While I’m not a gamer, my husband is, so I still got most of the references. On the flip side, I could see how the movie might annoy some who are really into gaming, especially those who take it all a bit too seriously, as it’s rather goofy & over-the-top.

It’s pretty cheesy, but I’m 99.9% certain that was the point.

The robot character is super annoying. Thankfully, he’s not in it very much.

Good Stuff:

The special effects were fantastic. The other night, the husband and I were actually watching some of Freddie Wong’s YouTube videos. At the time, I was unaware that Wong and his video-making partner Laatsch were two of the directors of this film. I could definitely see their influence here.

There were some great performances. I particularly enjoyed Firenzi’s portrayal of devious villain The Law, Rocky Collins’s hilarious turn as the Drift King, and Benji Dolly’s ultra-suave and yet ultra-trying-too-hard Games Dean. Also, there was excellent chemistry between Blaylock & Braddy, who I’ve heard are a real-life couple.

It was simply a lot of fun. This movie has heart and a lot of humor. There are some great laugh-out-loud one-liners. The makers really seemed to enjoy playing with a lot of different themes. I think we’ve all heard how grueling movie-making can be, so I tend to like films where it seems like everyone involved had a good time bringing the material to life.

The Verdict

I’ll admit that the plot doesn’t cover any new ground. This is a classic underdog-makes-good story. Even so, it’s definitely not for everyone. I’ve been reading some reviews online. It seems like most folks either love it or hate it; there don’t seem to be a lot who feel “meh” about it. I happen to fall into the love category. It’s not a cinematic masterpiece. It won’t be winning any awards. However, it was far more enjoyable than most movies I’ve seen in the last couple of months (and that includes the dreary Skyfall).

I give this movie 4.25 stars. Shut up, it’s my blog, I can give movies quarter stars if I want.

AIIW: Holiday Edition

While I’m stuck on a surprisingly long wait list at the library for my next Oscar winner, Gone with the Wind (Seriously? I thought I was the only one who’d never seen this movie.), I’ve been watching more stuff on Netflix lately.

‘Tis the busy season at work, which means I’ve been spending my extended shifts entirely on my feet, running around like a chicken with its head cut off. I’m pretty brain dead these days. That means that I don’t have much energy or attention span, so my interest has turned to the truly important things in life, like watching cheesy Christmas movies. Here’s a recap of the 3 I recently watched:

Santa Claus: The Movie

Released 1985 (USA). Stars: Dudley Moore, John Lithgow, David Huddleston & Judy Cornwell. Director: Jeannot Szwarc.

The first half of the movie focuses on how Santa & Mrs. Claus (Huddleston & Cornwell) get the “job” of distributing toys to all the children of the world. The second half focuses on the conflict between Santa and his eager elf Patch (Moore), who has a lot of modern, innovative ideas, which Santa chooses to ignore. When Patch feels unappreciated, he runs away and naively joins forces with the evil toy-maker B.Z. (Lithgow), hoping to prove to Santa how useful he can be.

This is truly a kids’ movie. I know I saw it once when I was a child. It’s dopey and sappy, full of both plot holes, cheese whiz, and stuff that's not remotely believable. And yet, I find a certain charm in it. I think the movie is both slow & cumbersome in the first half, but I enjoy the second half when it focuses on Dudley Moore. I especially enjoyed the interaction between Moore & Lithgow, who play very well off of one another. Also, Lithgow is at his mustache-twirling, over-the-top best in this one.

If you have no tolerance for cheesy movies, I don’t recommend it (actually, I don’t recommend practically any Christmas movie then, haha), but I enjoyed it enough to give it 3 stars.

Holiday Engagement

Released 2011 (USA). Stars: Bonnie Somerville, Shelley Long, & Jordan Bridges. Director: Jim Fall.

Okay, you’ve certainly heard this one before. Hillary (Somerville) is constantly hounded by her mother (Long) about how she needs to finally settle down and marry the perfect man. So when her fiancé Jason (Chris McKenna) breaks up with her just days before they’re supposed to spend Thanksgiving weekend with her family, she hires actor David (Bridges) to play the role of Jason. Hilarity (not really) ensues. And of course, Hillary and David fall in love for reals.

Honestly, there’s no new ground covered here. You’ve heard it all before. It all wraps up in a nice tidy bow, way, way more nicely & quickly than things tend to work out in real life. However, sometimes I find that I really enjoy just sitting down & watching something that I know is going to turn out happily. The acting is pretty good in this one. Jordan Bridges is dang cute (yes, he’s one of the Bridges). Additionally, I admired the movie for trying to take on a more serious theme, about loving the one we deserve rather than loving the one we’re with, i.e. you don’t have to date a jerk just because he/she is “perfect” on paper.

On a side note, wouldn’t it be nice if there were more movies that had the message: “It’s totally fine if you never get married, as long as you’re happy”? I digress.

I’d say that this movie is pleasantly rote. It’s what I like to call “a light bit of confection.” I give it 3 stars.

Christmas Cupid

Released 2010 (USA). Stars: Christina Milian, Ashley Benson, Jackee Harry, & Chad Michael Murray. Director: Gil Junger.

Sloane Spencer (Milian) is a self-centered publicist bent on “trading up” on men until she can find the right one to further her career & life. Her current project is throwing the premiere party for her troubled celebrity Caitlin Quinn (Benson), thus earning herself the coveted VP position at her firm. However, when Caitlin dies in a drinking mishap, she returns to Sloane in the form of a ghost, charged with helping Sloane see the errors of her self-centered, man-eating ways. Jackee Harry plays Sloane’s mother & Chad Michael Murray plays an old love, “the one who got away.”

It’s “A Christmas Carol” meets a stupid romance movie, and it’s pretty awful. The story is a jumbled mess. Random, large amounts of time pass where Sloane apparently works really hard at her job, which we never see. Sloane is such a horrible person throughout 95% of movie that I found myself kind of hoping she would end up dying alone in the hospital after all. Her redemption in the last 5 minutes of the film wasn’t believable, nor was the Murray character’s forgiveness of her (seriously, what she did to him in this movie, no sane person would have forgiven her). Christina Milian was terrible. I’ve never seen her in anything else, so I don’t know if it was a typical performance. Chad Michael Murray looked like he was in physical pain throughout the whole movie.

At least Ashley Benson was delightful. I give this movie 2 stars (it wasn’t Metal Tornado levels of bad, after all).