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McCoy on Movies

McCoy on Movies: The Jungle Book

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Rudyard Kipling’s beloved collection of short stories gets brought to life in grand fashion in Disney’s latest offering

“Please … For the love of everything … Don’t make this a horror movie and eat me!” Mowgli (Neel Seethi) shares a moment with his adoptive wolf mother Raksha (voiced by Lupita Nyong’o) in a scene from director Jon Favreau’s live-action adaptation of the Rudyard Kipling classic THE JUNGLE BOOK. Credit: © 2015 Disney Enterprises. All rights reserved.
 



WATCH THE TRAILER(S) HERE:





KEY CAST MEMBERS: Neel Seethi, Bill Murray, Idris Elba, Ben Kingsley, Lupita Nyong’o, Giancarlo Esposito, Garry Shandling, Brighton Rose, Scarlett Johansson, and Christopher Walken

WRITER(S): Justin Marks (screenplay); Rudyard Kipling (novel on which the movie is based)

DIRECTOR(S): Jon Favreau

WEB SITE: http://movies.disney.com/the-jungle-book-2016
60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Based on part of Joseph Rudyard Kipling’s best-known collection of short stories, the live action version of The Jungle Book stars newcomer Neel Seethi as Mowgli. Mowgli is a “man-cub,” a boy raised by wolves in the jungle after being discovered by Bagheera (voiced by Ben Kingsley), a black panther who discovered him all alone in a cave. While serving as a mentor of sorts, Bagheera turned the young boy over to Raksha (voiced by Lupita Nyong’o) and Akela (voiced by Giancarlo Esposito), a pair of wolves who in turn raised him as one of their own. And all is well.


That is until Shere Khan (voiced by Idris Elba), a tiger with burned face, lets Akela and Raksha that he wants Mowgli turned over to him at once – or face dire consequences. 


Doing what they think is right, Akela and Raksha ask Bagheera to lead Mowgli out of the jungle, which is a tough moment for the young man-cub since he doesn’t want to leave the only mother and father he’s ever really known. But once he’s out on his own, Mowgli will discover a side of the jungle he’s never known, full of characters from the slithering Kaa (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) to the lazy but ingenuitive Baloo (voiced by Bill Murray) and the loquacious King Louie (voiced by Christopher Walken), all of which may make the man-cub have to face a decision he never anticipated:


Is he a man-cub or a man – and if so, what does that mean for him in regards to his place in the only home he’s ever known.  

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? People who enjoy films with gorgeous visuals; those who enjoy live action films where the the story moves at a snappy pace; those who felt that the animated version of The Jungle Book is a bit too over-the-top happy/sappy; people who want some realistic “edge” to a tale that should, by its very nature, inherently have some. 

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? People that find animals talking creepy and/or weird; anyone who believes older, revered films shouldn’t be remade for any reason; those who find the action scenes a bit too intense for young children (or his or her self); anyone who feels a more “hard-edged” Jungle Book is not needed
SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? A film that brings a maturity to a coming of age tale that by its very nature needs to embrace its animalistic nature, The Jungle Book is a very well done tale that brings its subject matter to life in a way where the call of the wild is answered loudly and vividly.


Child actors are a very mixed lot; while some make a breakthrough performance in their debut film (see Osment, Haley Joe), others often go on to fail to live up to and/or embrace the talent they show in that role thereafter (see Osment, Haley Joe) or worse (see Lloyd, Jake for a recent example). Newcomer Neel Seethi doesn’t do anything remarkable to show superstar potential as the man-cub of the jungle, but he does a very competent job in bringing the essence of Mowgli – a young boy in a world that is clearly not his by birth but becomes his by his actions and spirit – to life. 


What really makes the movie, however, is the synchronicity between the vocal performances of the film’s animal stars and the animation under director Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Elf, the big guy from Swingers and Chef – don’t get mad at me; he was heavy in both movies!) Whereas Nyong’o brings heart, depth and a mother’s love to her role as Raksha and Kingsley adds a stern, old world father sensibility, Murray brings a terrific sense of humor to Baloo that makes the character lovable at each turn while Walken brings a fantastic balance of blowhard and boyish enthusiasm to his role. 


Still, what brings everything together so well is the coordination of the action, emotion and humor under Favreau’s watch, all of which makes for a wonderfully entertaining package enjoyable for adults and children alike. The intense scenes are truly intense, the heartfelt ones are touching without being sappy and the humor comes at the right times without ever being insulting to your intelligence, no matter your age.


And as far as remakes of films you never thought you’d ever want to see go, The Jungle Book delivers a wild and wonderful romp through the jungle with moralistic undertones of which Kipling himself would likely be proud.

OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

 

McCoy on Movies: The Boss

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THE BOSS

“You think I look crazy? You should have seen what happened the last time I had a taco salad!” Orphan-turned-entrepreneur Michelle Darnell (Melissa McCarthy) gets some help with her teeth whitening ritual from her assistant Claire (Kristen Bell) in a scene from co-writer/director/McCarthy’s husband Ben Falcone’s comedy THE BOSS. Credit: Hopper Stone. © 2015 Universal Pictures. All rights reserved.

WATCH THE TRAILER(S) HERE: 


 



KEY CAST MEMBERS: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Bell, Peter Dinklage, Kathy Bates, Tyler Labine, Ella Anderson, Cecily Strong , Annie Mumolo, Kristen Schaal, Timothy Simons and Eva Peterson


WRITER(S): Ben Falcone, Steve Mallory and Melissa McCarthy

DIRECTOR(S): Ben Falcone 

WEB SITE: http://www.thebossfilm.com/
60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Michelle Darnell (Melissa McCarthy) had it rough growing up in Illinois. Abandoned/orphaned by her parents in her youth, Michelle has overcome her rough upbringing to become the 47th wealthiest woman in America. Now a powerhouse  as the CEO of three various companies, Michelle is on top of the world. Her success hasn’t made life an easier for Claire (Kristen Bell), Michelle’s top assistant, the Smithers to her Mr. Burns who is also a single mother to Rachel (Ella Anderson), a nice young girl who spends most of her free time with her Dandelions youth troop.


Then her former lover and top rival Renault – a.k.a. Ron (Peter Dinklage) – gets her busted for insider trading, which lands her in federal prison for 5 months and her empire in shambles.


Now with nowhere else to go, Michelle comes looking for refuge at the home of her former assistant, who reluctantly agrees to take her in until she can get back on her feet. But as one might expect, going from the penthouse to the proverbial outhouse of Claire’s tiny two-bedroom apartment. But Michelle is a woman with grit, determination and a never take “no” for an answer attitude, so once she sees an opportunity to re-establish herself, she is ready to seize it – even if that means shaking up Claire and Rachel’s world to no end.


And that’s because she’s the boss – and a boss does what a boss has to do to stay on top.

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Melissa McCarthy fans; people who enjoy watching children – and to lesser extent, adults – behave inappropriately for their age; people who enjoy movies where the nice guy gets a break; people who like movies with characters that, while they may not be well-developed, are fun

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? People that will find Peter Dinklage and/or his character creepy; Anyone who doesn’t find likable characters enough to carry the film’s rather ludicrous third act; people who believe that McCarthy (whether fairly or unfairly) tends to play the same type of characters, anyone who hates when Saturday Night Live sketches seem to run on too long. 
SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? A movie with some really likable characters that aren’t exactly placed into a great movie all the time, The Boss is entertaining enough to be forgiven for its shortcomings … Which is why at times it feels like an overly long SNL sketch.


McCarthy is very good at playing characters who appear to be one thing but have a little more going on underneath the surface than one might think at first glance. The Boss continues that streak by adding layers to her character, who is all bluster at first before a more sensitive side is eventually revealed. However, given how Dinklage was either asked or chose to play his character in ridiculously creepy fashion, you might find yourself unsettled or at the very least a little freaked out at times and not so much comedically as McCarthy’s husband/co-writer/director Ben Falcone intended. I’m sure the creative team of the McCarthy. Falcone and Steven Mallory were thinking of a Zoolander– or Anchorman-like level comedic foil for McCarthy, but … Nah, it just doesn’t always come off that way. 


Likewise, Bell is capable at playing the straight woman to McCarthy’s antics as her character is supposed to be a dull single mom … And MAN does she nail it almost to the point where you care about everyone around her more than her. She’s too much of the straightwoman at times, which in turn makes you feel her pain way too much. She’s not bad; it’s just that her character has no value on her own and is only best when paired with McCarthy’s or Tyler Labine as her co-worker/potential would be love interest. While we know everyone around Claire is having fun, it gets to a point where EVERYONE but Claire is having fun.


Fortunately, McCarthy has enough to gumption to keep things moving along and both the supporting and younger cast really shine in the lunatic situations in which they are placed. The aforementioned Labine is terrific in representing the everyman who works in a boring job and is a nice guy who deserves better while never coming off as a lovable loser and McCarthy’s female co-stars – Kristen Schaal, Cecily Strong and Annie Mumolo bring a lot of the party as zany/over-the-top sparring partners for McCarthy, Mumolo especially as a would be power mom of an ambitious girl scout-type. (Eva Peterson plays a scary, foul-mouthed teenage girl about as well as you can comedically, so The Boss could be a start of a nice career for her.)


In short, The Boss is entertaining at its best – there’s a rumble sequence that’s phenomenal – but it’s far fro a perfect film by any means. Dinklage’s character is supposed to be over-the-top, but whether or not you find it funny or just dumb remains to be seen. Likewise, there are a lot of lulls between the funny moments and some are much funnier than others, so depending on your attention level you may find the boss somewhere between “good” to “just okay” on your entertainment scale. 


If nothing else, The Boss will serve as a nice palate cleanser to anyone who has found spring’s early offerings at the theaters to be a bit … Well, not suitable for full-time employment. 

OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

McCoy on Movies: The Divergent Series: Allegiant

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The first installment of the two-part finale of the Divergent series is here. But is it a post-apocalyptic masterpiece or a dystopian dud?

“Hold me … Now put on that song by The Wknd you know I love so much …” Four (Theo James) and Tris (Shailene Woodley) in The Divergent Series: Allegiant. Credit: Dan McFadden. © 2016 Summit.


KEY CAST MEMBERS: Shaliene Woodley, Theo James, Ansel Elgort, Maggie Q., Naomi Watts, Miles Teller, Zoë Kravitz, Miles Teller, Jeff Daniels, Octavia Spencer and Bill Skarsgård

 

WRITER(S): Josh Campbell, Matthew Stuecken and Damien Chazelle (screenplay); Josh Campbell and Matthew Stuecken (story)
DIRECTOR(S): Robert Schwentke
 
60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): The first of the two part , big screen finale adaptation of the Hunger Games Divergent novel series, Allegiant finds our hero Tris (Shaliene Woodley) and her fellow renegade boyfriend Four (Theo James) ready to venture outside the walls of Chicago. No, not Wrigley Field-loving, deep dish pizza Chicago – this is dystopian, the Cubs finally won a World Series and hell-has-frozen-over Chicago. The evil Jeanine (formerly played by Kate Winslet) has been defeated, but a new potential has risen her place in the form of Four’s mother Evelyn (Naomi Watts), who is warring with Johanna (Octavia Spencer) and her new Allegiant group (the old faction system has been taken down). Caleb (Ansel Elgort), meanwhile is preparing to stand trial for his alleged crimes under Jeanine’s rule ….


While they wish to save Caleb, Tris, Four, Christina (Zoë Kravitz) and Peter (Miles Teller) also have their eyes on a greater journey: Venturing outside the walls to discover who has contacted them and saying they are needed. They soon discover that the man who has been calling them is David (Jeff Daniels), the director of the Bureau of Genetic Welfare who explains to Tris how and why the faction system ever came into existence in the first place. 


But what she doesn’t know is the true nature of David’s plans for the future … And how she is the key to unlocking them all. 
 
WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Shaliene Woodley and Theo James fans; people who absolutely love the first two films and/or the book series enough to want to see the final two films
 
WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? Jeff Daniels and Naomi Watts fans; Hunger Games fans who feel Divergent detracts from that series; people who hate films with poorly constructed dialogue and/or spotty acting; just about anyone not covered in the groups that will like this film

 

SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? A movie series that started off strong and has continued to peter out of steam with each installment, the best thing about Allegiant is that its release means there’s only more film to go in the Divergent series. And if that sounds harsh, there’s a reason: It should – because Allegiant is really just not that good.

Poor Theo James. It must be hard being the only actor fully committed to a movie littered with weak, junior high-level dialogue, lackluster efforts from Jeff Daniels, Naomi Watts and what is easily Miles Teller’s worst performance in eons (yup, even worse than that superhero movie from last year that we shall not speak of) and a plot which is executed in a muddled, unexhilirating fashion.


As the Hunger Games series wore on, it did lose a little intrigue each time, but at least it never felt as stale and anti-climatic as the Divergent series has. Woodley, like many of the characters now, unfortunately just feels like she’s along for the ride instead of leading these excursions and the adults have a very obvious going through the motions feel from start to finish. Having not read the books, I cannot obviously say with certainly if they are less muddled than the films, but Allegiant is so jumbled up that by the time you reach the climax, you’re already over it. That may come as bad news since this film is the first of the two-part finale, which has a LOT of work to do to make its villain seem truly threatening and its heroes, well, heroic. For this paint by numbers affair is loaded with tired tropes (the love conflict story, the guy who isn’t what he seems at first, the former coward that does something to redeem himself by acting unselfishly) that if they are this bland in the novel – which is not the same as the story here (it’s true, Google it!) – then one would have to wonder how the Divergent series can hope to offer up anything fresh.


You’d be better off being allegiant to a better to a better teen dystopian series … Or just embracing the apocalypse altogether. 


 


OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

McCoy on Movies: 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE

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The unexpected companion film to 2008’s Cloverfield is here …

“So, the plan for the actual last season of Roseanne was – wait, you’re not Becky!” Howard (John Goodman) and Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) share a moment beneath the surface in a scene from 10 CLOVERFIELD LANE. Credit: Michele K. Short © 2016 Paramount Pictures. All rights reserved. 


KEY CAST MEMBERS: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman and John Gallagher, Jr.

WRITER(S): Josh Campbell, Matthew Stuecken and Damien Chazelle (screenplay); Josh Campbell and Matthew Stuecken (story)DIRECTOR(S): Dan Trachtenberg

WEB SITE: http://www.10cloverfieldlane.com/60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): A companion to 2008’s hit “scramble cam” sci-fi/horror/monster movie Cloverfield, 10 Cloverfield Lane stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Michelle. Who is Michelle? She is an engaged Louisiana resident who is less than happy with her boyfriend Ben (to put it mildly). That’s why she has split and hit the road heading north … At least she was heading north until she is involved in a major car accident leaving her red Jetta turned upside in the middle of a field.


As you might imagine, Michelle is a bit distraught as a result of the crash – but not as distraught as she is when she wakes up to find herself chained at the knee to a wall with a mysterious IV in her arm. This is when she eventually meets Howard (John Goodman). Who is Howard? Well, he’s the former Navy satellite specialist who has built a doomsday bunker with help from Emmett (John Gallagher, Jr.) to deal with the potential end of the world threat he’s long suspected will one day happen. And that’s when Howard and Emmett deliver the bad news to Michelle that there has been an attack on the United States and pretty much everyone she ever knew outside is dead. 


But as scared and frightened as she was once she woke up in Howard’s bunker, she has no idea of what lies ahead. For as the film’s poster says, “monsters come in many forms” …

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? John Goodman fans; Mary Elizabeth Winstead fans; fans of 1970s low budget thrillers where story and performance were more important than special effects; people looking for a thriller in a market flooded with a lot of the same type of movie

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? People expecting something exactly like the first Cloverfield film; those who find the story tense but too predictable 

SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? A film that is a slow burn homage to monster/claustrophobia films of days gone by, 10 Cloverfield Lane is an extremely tense, smart and well-acted old school thriller that proves when done right, there is still some life left in a monster movie – especially when you’re not sure who the bigger monster is.


Now, if you skewer Lane with a fine-toothed comb, there is a LOT of foreshadowing that, depending on how closely you pay attention, could put a damper on your overall enjoyment of the film. However, thanks to strong performances on the part of Howard and Goodman, you likely won’t mind so much as they work so well together that their weird father/daughter-or-is-it-pervert/captive-or-perhaps-even-man trying to make up for some crazy past incident/woman who isn’t sure who to trust but maybe he’s not a psychopath interactions will keep you enthralled. This is slow burn theater where each scene is like a someone slowly poking a bear before the bear goes mad. 


It’s hard to truly articulate just how well Winstead and Goodman enact their roles, for seeing is truly believing. Whereas Winstead starts out following the typical tropes of a young white woman in distress in a situation with no way out, she progresses and grows her character into a very capable and formidable figure. Goodman, however, gets a chance to shine in playing against pretty much almost every type he’s known for by bringing the perfect mix of a creepy yet disarming until he is absolutely alarming physical presence. But in playing Howard as a man who may actually know more than he lets on but believes everything he is doing is not only right but necessary, Goodman delivers the type of performance that should be considered for an acting award even though the genre of the film virtually guarantees he never will be. None of this is designed to serve as a slight to Gallagher, Jr., mind you as he serves as a terrific bridge between Goodman and Winstead’s characters and the drama/danger that surrounds them all as the well-meaning but possibly too naive for his own good guy in the middle.


Saying much more would ruin the fun of the film; of course, in a world where The Walking Dead has delivered end-of-the-world devastation to millions on a weekly basis, 10 Cloverfield Lane may not be the scariest flick on the block, but it might be the best. It’s 90-plus minutes of intense, well-paced and even better performed tension with (thankfully) no gimmicky, shaky camera action to be found.
 
OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

 

McCoy on Movies: TRIPLE 9

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TRIPLE 9
Crime thriller delivers cool characters, but light on story save for some basic cops n’ robbers action

“Are we seriously gonna sit here and let this dude give us secondhand smoke?! I’m trying to enjoy my beer over here!” Marcus Atwood (Anthony Mackie) and Chris Allen (Casey Affleck) unwind at a local bar in a scene from director John Hillcoat’s action thriller TRIPLE 9. Credit: Bob Mahoney. © 2016 Open Road Films.

 


WATCH THE TRAILER HERE:
 


KEY CAST MEMBERS: Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie, Woody Harrelson, Kate Winslet, Norman Reedus and Aaron Paul with Gal Gadot and Blake McLennan

WRITER(S): Matt Cook

DIRECTOR: John Hillcoat

WEB SITE: http://triple9movie.com/

60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Triple 9 stars Casey Affleck as Chris Allen, a rookie detective with the Atlanta Police Department where his uncle Jeffrey (Woody Harrelson) is a top cop (his position is never fully reveal but let say he’s a chief). Now fully in the police fold, Chris finds himself in a partnership with Marcus (Anthony Mackie), who would rather not work with a rookie on his beat in the urban, gang-infested streets of Hotlanta. However, Marcus realizes that his new partner might just be the perfect person to help him out – not with a case, but with something much more sinister.


You see, Marcus – like Rodriguez (Clifton Collins, Jr.), Gabe Welch (Aaron Paul), his brother Russell (Norman Reedus) and his best friend/fellow former military soldier Michael Atwell (Chiwetel Ejiofor) – is a actually a criminal. Yes, like homicide detective Rodriguez (and formerly Welch), Marcus wears a badge, but is a member of a gang that recently pulled off one of the biggest bank heists in the city’s history. Why? To retrieve information from a safety deposit box for Irina Vslalov (Kate Winslet), wife of a currently incarcerated Russian mob boss who has taken over in her husband’s place. Irina is also the sister of Elena (Gal Gadot), who just so happens to be the mother of Michael’s son Felix. (And now you know why Michael is doing jobs for Irina.)


However, just when Michael thinks he and his boys are out, Irina pulls a bait-and-switch by informing him he has to do one more job so that she can get the information she needs to spring her husband from prison … Unless he never wants to see Felix again and risk them all be mob targets, that is. To pull it off, Michael and his crew realizes there’s only way to create a big enough distraction to draw away the police so they can do the crime: A “triple nine,” or a call to an officer down at the scene of a shooting.


And guess what rookie detective seems like the perfect candidate to suffer the fate of Michael and company’s wrath?

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Casey Affleck fans, Woody Harrelson fans; Chiwetel Ejiofor fans; people who enjoy crime/heist movies and don’t need too much more than cops and robbers to be happy

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? Russian Americans; Anthony Mackie and Aaron Paul fans; people who hate crime flicks that could have been better with a little tweaking; police departments worried this man give some criminals ideas …


SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? Triple 9 is a movie that features some really great performances … In a movie that in and of itself is solid but not that memorable overall. Instead of taking the time to fully develop the story through one or perhaps two characters’ eyes, Triple 9 that tries to cram in too many characters in one setting, which kind of wastes the performances of Harrelson, Ejiofor and Affleck, which are excellent. 


While Affleck’s is the character you are seemingly supposed to care most about on the surface, you are given so little about his background and motivations (other than being a good cop) that he has to rely on his sheer quiet intensity to carry you through. We’re not certain why he is a new member of the Atlanta PD, where he came from (apparently he may have been in the military at one point) and the nature of he and his uncle’s relationship and how it led to this situation. Likewise, Harrelson’s character gets to say a lot of cool lines (which fortunately don’t come off as corny at all), but his character does so much foreshadowing that a lot of conflicts that could have been cool to watch play out unfortunately come off predictably or at the very least, expected. While Affleck’s low-key but steady intensity keeps him compelling, it would be nice for him to have more to work with than a very cool demeanor. 


Ejiofor’s character is the one that sadly suffers the most because of this, as his is by far the most interesting character in the mix. But instead his character – who IS the most well-developed of the three mentioned – is given a bit of a mixed presentation to the audience and becomes the most sympathetic one in the entire film. But instead of really going for it, director John Hillcoat seemingly instead chooses to boil it down to a rather bland power struggle between he and Winslet’s character. Sure, there is a payoff, but it’s not as great as it could have been potentially. 


Fortunately, these things are not enough to derail the film, which does deliver entertaining, traditional good guys and bad guys style action sequences with enough flavor to keep you interested even if you always seem to be one step ahead of its characters in terms of what’s happening. The performances of Affleck, Ejiofor and Harrelson are compelling enough you are able to stay engaged and the well executed heist and gun battles scenes deliver much needed shots of adrenaline when necessary. It’s not spectacular, it doesn’t have a Training Day style character or intensity that stands out, but it’s solid enough.


Whether or not you find it solid enough, however, remains to be seen – but chances are good if you choose to see it, you’ll be satisfied with your choice. 

 
OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

Tabari McCoy (http://mccoyonmovies.blogspot.com)
 

McCoy on Movies: HOW TO BE SINGLE

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HOW TO BE SINGLE

 

“Man, if this movie isn’t good they’ll have to replace this prop with a real bottle!” Robin (Rebel Wilson) and Alice (Dakota Johnson) enjoy a night out on the town in a scene from director Christian Ditter’s romantic comedy HOW TO BE SINGLE. Credit: Barry Wetcher. © 2016 Warner Bros. Entertainment and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. and Ratpac-Dune Entertainment, LLC. 

 


WATCH THE TRAILER HERE:
 

 



KEY CAST MEMBERS: Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Leslie Mann, Alison Brie, Nicholas Braun, Damon Wayans, Jr., Jason Mantzoukas, Jake Lacy and Anders Holm

WRITER(S): Abby Kohn & Marc Silverstein (screenplay); Liz Tucillo (novel on which the movie is based)


DIRECTOR: Christian Ditter

WEB SITE: http://howtobesinglemovie.com/

60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Alice (Dakota Johnson) is dating Josh (Nicholas Braun) and everything is fine. Then Alice, much to Josh’s dismay, decides that they should go on a break so that she can find herself. So naturally she moves to New York and gets a job as a paralegal at a law firm which her new loquacious, free-spirited co-worker Robin (Rebel Wilson) describes as “two guys and a Jewish guy – just kidding: they’re all Jewish.” And while Robin does her best to get Alice out into the city to go party, Alice’s sister Meg (Leslie Mann) is all about her job as a doctor delivering babies, even though she has no desire to have one of her own.


Meanwhile, Tom (Anders Holm) is busy running his bar … And Lucy (Brie Larson) is busy stealing his WiFi signal to run the dating algorithm she’s constructed to help her find the perfect mate … On one of the 10 online dating apps she is using. And poor Ken (Jake Lacy)? He just wants to date Meg, even if he is completely unaware of the decision she has already made by the time he meets her.


But no worries – they’re all about to get a valuable collective lesson in the title of this movie.

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Rebel Wilson and Leslie Mann fans; older women trying to talk themselves into dating younger men; people to see a depiction of an interracial couple in a mainstream film where their race is not a focal point of their relationship; people looking for way to either start or end a friends with benefits relationship

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? Rebel Wilson fans who feel her character is one note; people who would like to see Dakota Johnson in something where she can show a better range of her acting talents; those who feel the film’s casual sex depictions are way too casual; people who dislike films where the characters make decisions that feel unnatural/forced for the sake of the story and not based in any real reality; people who like consistent storytelling and/or would prefer for the movie to be much closer to the story in the original novel.


SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? How to Be Single is a lot like real dating in the modern world: There are times when it doesn’t make sense, it’s loaded with people that are a mix of self-loathing, psychopathic and, for the most part, self-destructive even when their behavior obviously is. 
In other words, it’s got some nice parts jumbled up with a whole lot of bad ones that – once again like a real relationship – the movie wants you to overlook even though they are killing your enjoyment of it. 
 
How to Be Single‘s characters aren’t really that likable. That’s kind of a problem because you never really care about what happens to most of them, especially by the time the film tries to come around to making them redeemable. Johnson’s put-on helpless romantic casually jumps from one relationship to the other with fool-hearted whimsy, only to watch it of course blow up in her face – but not because of anything she does, mind you. No, that’s up to the dudes to do whether immediately or later as they are pretty much as one note as can be (save for Jason Mantzoukas as one of the suitors for Brie’s character). 


Wilson’s character is there to serve as the comic relief … But other than a barrage of jokes about how promiscuous she is or feels Johnson’s character should be, there’s not much to her. Whereas sometimes you have the “she’s-fun-because-she’s-so-outrageous” vibe with a character, Wilson’s is more of the “I’d watch this person from a distance but never really wanna hang out them because she’s annoying and not a good person.” In short, her character is just a garden tool  – and no, I don’t mean a rake – that says inappropriate things and then is supposed to be “fun.” This is another main problem with the film as the characters come off either severely undeveloped or illogical thanks to weak storytelling (see the character portrayed by Damon Wayans, Jr.), the others come off as one-dimensional (see Johnson), fun but dumb and one dimensional (see Wilson) or way too good of a person to be in the situation they are in so you’ll root for them because they deserve better (see Jake Lacy). 


Now, will the film make you laugh? A bit – I can’t deny that there aren’t funny parts as Lacy and Mann have a good chemistry together and fans of Mantzoukas work of the FX show The League will be happy to see he can channel his inner Rafi in a calmer, nicer character without losing his comedic edge. However, since Johnson is neither the funny one or one you feel enough care for to get completely invested in her and her alone, she’s kind of just there to take the punches for the most part. 


The fault for that falls squarely on the shoulders of director Christian Ditter and the film’s screenwriting team. By trying to cram so many stories in at once, they fail to really make one of them standout before wrapping everything up at the end in a “see, it all makes sense now, see?!” fashion. (Maybe diverting from the source material wasn’t such a good idea, hmm?) 


In summary, How to Be Single is a movie that’s not bad enough to hate, but definitely not good enough to love or recommend or more than a silly diversion (at a matinee price). However, if you are currently dating someone and have a desire to be single, take them to this movie under the guise of thinking it’s a must-see romantic comedy.


You’ll likely be single by the time the credits roll.
 

OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

The most insane superhero antihero movie of all time hits the big screen … But should you see it?

By

DEADPOOL
The most insane superhero antihero movie of all time hits the big screen

“Oooh – this movie blogger thinks he can come up with a better snarky caption for my own photo as I break the fourth wall?! Good luck with that there, butter – I hope you and your four readers enjoy this!” The titular character (Ryan Reynolds, center) prepares to break the fourth wall before heading into battle with Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) and the aptly-named Colossus (voiced by Stefan Kapicic) in a scene from director Tim Miller’s debut feature DEADPOOL. ™ & © 2015 Marvel & Subs.  ™ & © Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All rights reserved. 

WATCH THE TRAILER HERE:


 

 


KEY CAST MEMBERS: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J. Miller, Gina Carano, Karan Soni, Leslie Uggams, Jed Rees, Brianna Hildebrand and the voice of Stefan Kapicic

WRITER(S): Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza (character); Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (screenplay)

WEB SITE: http://www.foxmovies.com/movies/deadpool


60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): A most unconventional movie that was a LONG time in the making,  Deadpool stars Hal Jor-, er, Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson. Who is Wade Wilson? He’s just your average former special forces mercenary turned man for hire. The notorious “merc with a mouth” is living a pretty low-key life, hanging out a bar run by a guy simply known as Weasel (T.J. Miller) that is unlike any other in town. 


Then he meets Vanessa (Morena Baccarin), a woman just as seemingly sick and twisted as he is with whom he of course falls madly in love with. 


However, as Wade is telling all this to his cab driver Dopinder (Karan Soni), he’s actually preparing for something more than just a leisurely ride: Getting revenge on Francis a.k.a. Ajax (Ed Skrein), the “doctor” the recruiter (Jed Rees) told him he would cure him of the cancer that was bound to kill him. And while it did cure of him of his cancer, the treatment had some serious side effects that no 30-second commercial could fit into that tiny disclaimer text at the bottom of the screen. Getting to Ajax won’t be easy, though, since his female enforcer Angel Dust (Gina Carano) is strong enough that she would make what Holly Holm did to Ronda Rousey look like a proverbial day in the park … And if that wasn’t bad enough, Colossus (voiced by Stefan Kapicic) and the girl with what Wade admits is the coolest name ever, Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianne Hildebrand) – two devotees of a certain bald professor you may have seen before – are determined to keep Wade and is rebellious ways in check. 


Yeah, you might wanna get ready for what follows as you’ve definitely never seen a superhero – make that anti-hero – movie like this before.

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Ryan Reynolds fans; T.J. Miller fans; Pretty much anyone who likes the Deadpool comic books, the 2013 video game or saw the test footage short (that ended up in the movie) on YouTube and went “WHAT WAS THAT?”

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? Parents who want to drag their underage kids along and then are upset at how much they have to block their child’s eyes and/or ears during the hour and 40 minutes-plus run time; people who hate foul-language and/or extreme violence; those who want Deadpool’s origin story to stick 100% to the comic book’s canon; anyone who finds Ryan Reynolds annoying


SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? Arguably the most anticipated Marvel movie debut* (yes, any dedicated Marvel movie fan knows that Wade Wilson has appeared in other X-Men movies but we mean solo movie centered around him) since Iron Man, Deadpool delivers the most insane, ridiculous super – or anti-hero, rather – movie you could possibly imagine. 


Fortunately, that is a very, very good thing: Because Deadpool is a can’t miss love story that is perfect for anyone looking for a Valentine’s Day treat … Provided they don’t mind the profanity, gun violence and sexual innuendo to make Amy Schumer blush.


Deadpool, much like Reynolds breakout eponymous character in Van Wilder, is the superhero equivalent of the 1980s high school cool kid who cracks wise and has no one who can tell him what to do yet underneath it all is actually a good dude. In this case, however, he’s just an extremely foul-mouthed, prone to fits of violence, heckler-who’s-funnier-and-much-more-self-aware-than-the-comic-on-stage-and-knows-it good dude who is going to get the last word by hook or crook. Reynolds plays the character with pretty much all the wiseass yet sensitive exuberance needed to bring him to life, nailing each bit of the action along the way. When Deadpool breaks the fourth wall, Reynolds makes sure to do it in the way that the character shows he knows you know what the joke is. Likewise, when he cracks wise or curses, Reynolds is sure to do so in a way that either goes right for the burn to whoever the target of his verbal slice is and in similar fashion when the film enters its serious territory he adeptly conveys why what’s going down is serious business.


Of course, the movie wouldn’t work without the expert level performances of the surrounding cast as Skrein’s banter with Reynolds’ character comes off in a spirited, almost seemingly serendipitous fashion. Likewise, whereas Soni does a phenomenal job in becoming caught up in Deadpool’s world and worldview, Miller does what he does best – being a calmer, thinner and more intellectual version of Seth Rogen in Judd Apatow movies – as Deadpool’s confidant who before and after his transformation. The same can be said for Kapicic as the voice of the CGI-created Colossus, who’s attempts to make a true hero out of Deadpool fail in vain in nature as much as they are fodder for comedic enjoyment, which is often.


Thankfully, the ladies are not left out in the Deadpool world as they are critical – and entertaining – parts of the story as well. Whereas Baccarin delivers on providing the former Wade Wilson a strong – and more importantly, 100 percent believable – love interest (these two characters are made for each other), Carano and Hildebrand provide two interesting characters who prove you can make a big impact on screen without having to say that much. Throw in screen veteran Leslie Uggams as Wade’s elderly blind roommate and the ladies of Deadpool add enough testosterone-friendly estrogen to the mix to make it appealing to men and women alike. 


For a man making his directorial debut, Tim Miller really shines in keeping all of the chaos of Deadpool to a high level of enjoyment. The action sequences snap with a dynamic mix of adrenaline and inappropriateness fitting of its subject, the visual effects never feel out of place and the actors deliver dedicated, inspired performances at every turn. The bullets, swords, fists and … Well, Negasonic Teenage Warheads fly with purposeful intent, the dialogue is full of “Wait, he/she said WHAT?!” moments and the story is told with a skill to make all of the insanity make as much sense as possible to have you develop both interest and empathy for its protagonist. Throw in a tight interweaving of the past and present to show the viewer how Deadpool went from a simple (alright, NOTHING about him is “simple”) mercenary to an enhanced superhuman and Miller’s debut piece is one future superhero movie directors would be wise to emulate. Make no mistake: Deadpool is not a movie for everyone. There is a ton of profanity, sexual situations (that means nudity!) and some liberties taken with a few of the characters, Deadpool included. (Spoiler alert: his signature vehicle is not seen in the movie unless it’s in a post-credit scene, I guess you’ll have to settle for this in the meantime.) Those minor issues notwithstanding, Deadpool is a movie that was largely made in part by the fans and in turn pays them back by giving them pretty much exactly what they want: A cool guy in a suit with superpowers who makes them laugh while kicking a lot of ass in the process, but still has a good heart underneath it all.Don’t believe me? Watch the movie – he’ll likely tell you that himself.

OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

 
Tabari McCoy (http://mccoyonmovies.blogspot.com)

McCoy On Movies: PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES

By

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES
The audacious send-up of Jane Austen and the modern zombie phenomenon delivers a delectable bite of camp, comedy and cult classic entertainment

“This will teach you disrespect the good name of the house of Bennett!” Jane Bennett (Bella Heathcote), right, and her sister Elizabeth (Lily James, center) lead their sisters through a battle in a scene from screenwriter/director Burr Steers take on the Seth Grahame-Smith’s best-selling remix of Jane Austen’s best-known novel PRIDE AND PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES. Credit: Jay Maidment. © 2016 CTMG, Inc. All rights reserved.
WATCH THE TRAILER(S) HERE: 


KEY CAST MEMBERS: Lily James, Bella Heathcote, Sam Riley, Douglass Booth, Jack Huston, Matt Smith, Douglass Booth, Charles Dance, Sally Phillips, Suki Waterhouse, Ellie Bamber, Millie Brady and Lena Headey
 
WRITER(S): Burr Steers (screenplay); Jane Austen (novel) and Seth Grahame-Smith (novel based on the original novel on which the film is based 


DIRECTOR(S): Burr Steers


WEB SITE: http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/prideandprejudiceandzombies/
 
60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): The film adaptation of writer/director/actor/author Seth Grahame-Smith’s audacious re-envisioning of Jane Austen’s classic novel, Pride And Prejudice & Zombies stars Lily James as Elizabeth Bennett. Elizabeth is one of five sisters who’s mother (Sally Phillips) has one common goal for them all: Get them married to someone rich as soon as possible. So, when the handsome and rich Mr. Bingley (Douglas Booth) takes a fancy to Elizabeth’s sister Jane (Bella Heathcote), her family is delighted. Darcy (Sam Riley), Mr. Bingley’s best friend, however, is not … For he is the epitome of upper class prejudice, a fact not quickly lost upon Elizabeth at first glance. 


With a budding romance in the air, Jane and Mr. Bingley find the couple becoming closer and closer, which prompts Jane to go visit him at his sizable estate … Only to have an accident. Of course, an accident riding across town is bad enough, but there is one particular detail that makes the situation much worse than usual …


London, where they live, is in middle of a zombie outbreak with the dead walking the earth.


Sent to the Far East to train to defend their selves against such a problem, Jane, Elizabeth and the rest of the sisters are fully prepared to slay the undead, as is Darcy. And once zombies begin to pour out of every nook and cranny on their to potentially taking down the fortified walls of London, Elizabeth and Darcy must put aside their differences if they and the rest of mankind is to survive …

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Zombie movie fans; people who found previousPride and Prejudice films in need of something more lively (no pun intended); people who will be happy the film stays true to the spirit of Austen and Grahame-Smith’s original works, Matt Smith fans; Lily James fans; people who will see it as a bit of modern feminist chic WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? People suffering from zombie hangover; those wanting it to stray away from Austen’s original themes and dialogue; people who feel like Austen’s classic work should never have been abominated in this fashion; those who feel the incorporation of Asian martial arts into the piece is somehow offensive

SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? A film that should never have worked based upon a book that should have never worked when considering the original novel on which it is based, Pride And Prejudice & Zombies (PP&Z for short from here on out) might arguably be the best adaptation of Austen’s work ever. If that’s not true, well, it’s at least the most entertaining one thanks to a mix of well-crafted characters, performances, dialogue and fight sequences that may finally bridge the gap between lovers of classic literature and comic books.

The cast of PP&Z could not have done a better job in infusing the right mix of humor, camp, seriousness and edge in the film as the dialogue and its delivery remains true to the spirit of Austen’s work while delivering the zest and energy of Grahame-Smith’s unique take. The zombies are not used as a crutch; instead, the cast plays things out while maintaining the traditions of the era, the quirks of each particular character – James, Smith and Riley standing out exceptionally well in this task – while at the same time making the story feel fresh. The conflicts of upper and lower society, what constitutes love … And of course, the necessities of what makes for a proper young woman (in this case, casting aside one’s martial arts training, sword and/or pistol to be a wife) are all present and expertly incorporated into the mix.

Whereas Heathcote and James present a great chemistry as sisters with different outlooks on life, Riley and James are downright dynamic in their juxtaposition as diametrically opposed zombie slayers and protectors of their family/friends. Likewise, Smith plays his role much like Elizabeth Banks’ Hunger Games approach to her Effie Trinket character, pompous, prim and proper all the way along that he is so perfectly campy his Doctor Who fans will beg for more screen time. Even Headey is great in her role as a legend akin to a zombie-slaying, all powerful Oz take on the role of Lady Catherine de Bourgh, especially when she is put to test to prove Elizabeth’s worth.

Screenwriter/director Burr Steers, however, is the one that serves to come out as the biggest winner from PP&Z as there is rarely a dull moment in his take on the insane-on-the-surface-but-intriguing-and-compelling-in-practice comedy/romance/drama/zombie movie. His cast performs top notch under his watch, he balances with a near perfect hand the mix of slasher camp and courtesan cinema and the fight sequences deliver true, enthralling action with just the right mix of tension and comedy. Had there been a few more threatening moments of zombie action, the film might just be perfect.

Or at least as perfect as any film with a premise this outrageous could ever hope to be, that is. Anyone thinking otherwise has too much pride and an unjust prejudice against a future cult classic that might arguably be the best film released so far in 2016.

 
OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

 

 

 

 

McCoy on Movies: The Finest Hours

By

THE FINEST HOURS
Disney’s latest is an adequate but not awe-inspiring telling of Coast Guard heroics

“OK, so if I pull this hard enough, I get to be the next Batman after my brother?” Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) attempts to keep his ship, the SS Pendelton, from sinking in a scene from Disney’s THE FINEST HOURS. Credit: Claire Folger. © Disney Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved.



WATCH THE TRAILER(S) HERE: 


 




 
 
KEY CAST MEMBERS: Chris Pine, Holliday Grainger, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Graham McTavish, John Ortiz, Abraham Benrubi, Rachel Brosnahan, John Magaro, Michael Raymond-James and Eric Bana
 
WRITER(S): Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson (screenplay); Casey Sherman and Michael J. Tougias (book on which the movie is based).
DIRECTOR(S): Craig Gillespie
 
 
60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Based on true events taking place on the evening of Feb. 18, 1952, The Finest Hours stars Chris Pine as Bernie Webber, a rather unassuming member of the U.S. Coast Guard’s station in Chatham, Mass. Despite his rather quiet nature, there’s something about Bernie that appeals to Miriam (Holliday Grainger), a woman who takes a quick liking him to enough to propose to him. Being a member of the Coast Guard, however, Bernie takes his job very seriously, which is why he will be sure to ask his commander, Cluff (Eric Bana), before he can actually tie the knot with Miriam.


He quickly discovers his request will have to wait, however, once a distress call comes in across the radio saying an oil tanker, the SS Mercer, has been split in two by a colossal storm just off the coast. Of course, that would be a problem in and of itself if it weren’t for the fact that a second oil tanker, the SS Pendleton, has suffered a similar fate – and taken its captain down to the bottom of the ocean’s depths in the process. Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck), has a plan to keep the ship from sinking – but he’s running out of time to do so. Going out to save the crew of the Pendleton in these conditions is seemingly nothing short of a suicide mission, yet Cluff – who has yet to win the hearts of his unit – sends Bernie out in the storm anyway. And being the company man determined to always do the right thing, Bernie goes, taking volunteers Richard Livesey (Ben Foster), Andy Fitzgerald (Kyle Gallner) and Ervin Maske (John Magaro) with him. 


What follows is what constitutes what is widely considered the greatest small boat mission in the history of the Coast Guard to this day …

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? People who like movies with strong female characters; people who enjoy endurance pictures; those who love a classic Disney ending; Casey Affleck fans; those who enjoy 3D films where the special effects are an enhancement, not a distraction
 
WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? Chris Pine fans coming in expecting him as a young Captain Kirk on the high seas; people who hate hokey endings; those who would rather watch a documentary about a historical event than a Hollywood novelization; Eric Bana fans; anyone with a fear of boats or easily gets seasick; anyone not interested in another boat movie after In the Heart of the Sea 
 
SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? Ever seen one of those movies where for the first 30 minutes or so, you’re not emotionally invested in the story at all even though you can tell the filmmakers are building towards something that might be decent? If your answer is “no” or it’s been a while since you have, The Finest Hours will serve as a quick study in this phenomenon as the cliché idea of a film being a mixed bag has rarely been so fitting.


For a film that wants you to be enthralled with the idea of perseverance and romance, The Finest Hours sure doesn’t seem to be concerned with actually delivering it on a compelling level until very late in the film. Chris Pine nails being a working schlub so much that he, well, feels like a working schlub you have a hard time investing in emotionally. Sure he’s a nice enough guy it seems, but there is nothing inherently compelling – either on a surface level or deep-seeded in his emotions – that really makes you go “I feel him.” This wouldn’t be such an issue if Holliday Grainger wasn’t so fully committed to her role that she becomes the most intriguing figure in the film – and her only time on the water comes early and uneventfully. She steals the film as its emotional center even though her character is essentially reduced to being a headstrong woman who pines for her guy’s safe return home, so it shouldn’t be surprising that it’s fairly disappointing, really, that Pine’s understated performance actually, well, drags. Throw in Bana’s rather banal, maybe-it’s-supposed-to-be-comic-relief? performance as the overmatched Cluff and the only thing compelling about the finest hours is watching how things play out versus caring about why.


Casey Affleck fortunately provides a compelling character with subtle nuances to make him a guy you want to root for, making sure Sybert doesn’t fall victim of the trope of “he’s forced into this, now let’s heavy-handedly show you how he responds.” He provides a much-needed dosage of testosterone-fueled gumption, which is sorely lacking. The visuals of the film also do a solid job of keeping your attention as you watch the events unfold, which in turn give Affleck the best scenes to move things along. 


Other than that, though, you have too many elements that feel a bit stale to make the film rise above (no pun intended) “average” filmmaking. There’s the happy ship guy, the near-mutiny guys who have to learn the hard way to let the level-headed guy (Affleck) take charge, there’s the aforementioned guy who’s in charge who shouldn’t be (Bana) and just a general sense of 50s camp that doesn’t feel like nostalgia, but just pure camp. Sure, your grandparents will likely love it, but unless you’re a hopeless romantic, it’s not exactly Titanic or The Poseidon Adventure that they’re crafting here. I don’t mean to make it sound like I’m knocking the movie as it is quite watchable … It’s just that once you’ve finished the voyage, you can’t help but feel like there was something more that could have been.


A pure Disney movie at its best and worst moments, The Finest Hours isn’t exactly the best two hour jaunt into the dangerous seas, but it’s got enough solid components to entertain the average moviegoer once the tide starts to come in. 


OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

 

McCoy on Movies: DIRTY GRANPDA

By

Robert De Niro and Zack Efron team up for raunchy, raucous buddy comedy

“Sorry about your jaw … But you gotta memorize your lines!” Jason Kelly (Zac Efron) shares – uncomfortably from the looks of things – a bed with his retired military officer grandfather Dick (Robert De Niro) in a scene from Dan Mazer’s comedy DIRTY GRANDPA. Credit: Bob Mahoney © 2015 Lionsgate Pictures. All rights reserved. 

WATCH THE TRAILER(S) HERE: 



 




KEY CAST MEMBERS: Zac Efron, Robert De Niro, Aubrey Plaza, Jason Mantzoukas, Danny Glover, Dermont Mulroney, Julianne Hough, Jeffrey Bower-Chapman, Zoey Deutch, Brandon Mychal Smith, Michael Hudson, Jake Picking, Henry Zebrowski and Adam Pally


WRITER(S): John Philips


DIRECTOR(S): Dan Mazer

WEB SITE: http://www.dirtygrandpa.movie/

60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Jason Kelly (Zac Efron) seemingly is about to solidify his ticket to the good life. After all, he has a great job as a lawyer – specializing in SEC compliance – at the law firm his dad (Dermont Mulroney) works at and he’s set to be married to his fiancé Meredith (Julianne Hough) in a week.


Then his grandmother dies.


Re-united at the funeral with his cousin Nick (Adam Pally), Jason gets an unexpected request from the widow of the deceased/his estranged grandfather Dick (Robert De Niro) – drive him to Boca Raton, Florida per the trip he was supposed to take with his wife. After some poking and prodding, Jason reluctantly agrees and set out to hit the road from Atlanta to Florida. Then he makes an unexpected discovery, the less said about that, the better.


Stopping at a diner along the way, Jason finally learns of his grandfather’s true intentions of going to Florida: Going to spring break to party. And once he and Dick meet up with Bradley (Jeffrey Bower-Chapman), the easy – to put it nicely – Lenore (Aubrey Plaza) and Jason’s former classmate Shadia (Zoey Deutch) outside the diner, Jason quickly realizes he’s in for a lot more than he bargained for.


Grandfather-son bonding may never be the same again.

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? People who enjoy raunchy, bawdy, politically incorrect comedies that have a surprising amount of heart and modern ones like Sisters, Trainwreck, Project X, Revenge of the Nerds and The 40 Year-Old Virgin; Aubrey Plaza fans who loved her work in The To Do List; Robert De Niro and Jason Mantzoukas fans

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? People who hate  enjoy raunchy, bawdy, politically incorrect comedies like the one mentioned above; possibly the LGBT community and the NAACP; Robert De Niro and Zac Efron fans who feel they should be above films like this; any parent who takes their child to this film and then feels compelled to need to cover their child’s eyes and/or have an uncomfortable ride home 

SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? A movie that lives up to its “R” rating in just about every sense imaginable, Dirty Grandpa is raunchy, rowdy, politically incorrect … And if that doesn’t bother you, you will also likely find it to be something its TV commercials likely might make it seem hard to believe: Funny – jaw-droppingly funny.


I’ll admit it: When I saw the trailer for Dirty Grandpa, my first thought was “Why in the world is Robert De Niro in this?” Watching the movie, the answer becomes pretty clear: He must have known it would be a lot of fun to play Dick, a dirty (both in language and tone) old man who is still full of life and underneath it all has a pretty decent heart. De Niro shines from start to finish as the bawdy senior citizen who says exactly what is on his mind regardless of who is around but eventually proves himself to be cool because he actually gets people and takes them as they are. Efron is there to play the straight man and does so well, furthering distancing himself from his Disney days, much like Hough who plays the pretentious … princess effectively to spur his actions. Jason Mantzoukas plays his character, which if you are familiar with his work on The League won’t come as a surprise, effectively crazy to the point his lunacy – while ludicrous in terms of believability in a real world sense – works well. Mantzoukas makes his beach shop owner a lovable lunatic, acting as a nice bridge between De Niro and Efron to allow them to keep their characters (somewhat) grounded in reality. Then again, Aubrey Plaza shows that her work in the under-appreciated The To Do List was not a one-time thing as she and De Niro pull of the most insane, filthy – and hilarious – series of exchanges since Steve Carell and Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd were all sitting around together playing video games in The 40 Year-Old Virgin. Plaza commits 100% to the role fully just like De Niro and Mantzoukas, which makes for a cavalcade of crazy comedy.

Of course, like almost every road trip/buddy comedy, Dirty Grandpa tries to insert a bit of a moral/life lesson at the end that Dick teaches his grandson, which is a nice touch … But let’s be realistic. NO ONE is going to leave Dirty Grandpa talking about the wisdom Dick passes along to his grandson. What they will be talking about, however, is the copious amounts of “did they just say that?!” moments found within the film. De Niro and company hold nothing back – vocally OR anatomically – in going for the most inappropriate (and in turn, hilarious) laugh possible. Race, sexual orientation, ageism … None of these things is off limits for Dirty Grandpa; the key is that as the film eventually goes on to prove is that there is no malice behind the jokes. Laughs are not made at the expense of others’ feelings in saying that any group is inferior to another, they are simply “here’s something about you ripe for comedic fodder” – and therein lies all the difference.

Then again, if you are offended/prefer not to see a 70-plus year-old man hitting on college age girls, are uncomfortable with anyone using racially-charged words in any capacity if they are not members of the ethnic group deemed “allowed” to use them and/or an admittedly graphic amount of graphic language, avoid Dirty Grandpa at all costs. Likewise, if you find the premise too outlandish, fear the sexual content will be too intense/perverse, you likely will be best served by staying away from the film.

Should those happen to not be issues, however, Dirty Grandpa will make you laugh possibly till your sides hurt … Or at least long enough to make you feel like you need to go to church to make up for watching and enjoying it.

OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):

 

McCoy on Movies: Ride Along 2

By

RIDE ALONG 2
Kevin Hart, Ice Cube team up again for another comedic tale of law and in-laws … But is it it worth it to ride along with them and watch?

“Wanna know how come I got the Hangover role instead of Jackie Chan? Listen closely …” Ben (Kevin Hart, left) and James (Ice Cube) react to the latest revelation of AJ (Ken Jeong) in a scene from director Tim Story’s RIDE ALONG 2. Credit: Quantrell D. Colbert © 2015 Universal Studios. All rights reserved. 

WATCH THE TRAILER(S) HERE: 


 


KEY VOICE CAST MEMBERS: Ice Cube, Kevin Hart, Olivia Munn, Benjamin Bratt, Ken Jeong, Olivia Munn, Bruce McGill, Tika Sumpter and Sherri Shepherd 

WRITER(S): Phil Hat and Matt Manfredi (written by); Greg Coolidge (characters)

DIRECTOR(S): Tim Story

WEB SITE: http://www.ridealong.com/

60 SECOND PLOT SUMMARY (OR AS CLOSE TO THAT TIME AS ONE CAN MAKE IT): Back for a second adventure after 2014’s surprise box office hit, Ride Along 2 once again stars Kevin Hart as Ben Barber, a video game enthusiast who has finally become a member of the Atlanta Police Dept. … As a low level beat cop. His soon-to-be brother-in-law James (Ice Cube), however, is what Ben really wants to be: A detective. And even though James has softened his stance on his sister Angela (Tika Sumpter) marrying him, he has no qualms about telling Ben he is just not detective material.


Of course, Ben ends up interjecting himself into James’ latest case tracking down a drug dealer who has a mysteriously encrypted flash drive on him. That flash drive leads James to need to travel to Miami to track down a hacker simply named AJ (Ken Jeong), which gives Ben the perfect opportunity to tag – er, make that ride – along with him to show he has what it takes … As well as let Angela and Cori (Sherri Shepherd) finish planning the wedding in peace.


So what happens when Ben and James – a.k.a. the “brothers-in-law” – hit South Beach? As you might expect, nothing goes quite like they expect …

WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST? Die-hard Kevin Hart fans; people who enjoy staring at Olivia Munn; people who like Ken Jeong; people who have spent too many hours playing Grand Theft Auto-style video games 

WHO WON’T (OR SHOULDN’T) LIKE THIS MOVIE? People tiring of Hart’s same-natured film projects and/or find them a bit uninspired; people who didn’t like the original Ride Along; Olivia Munn fans who wish she had more to do in the film; Benjamin Bratt fans who think he would be above a project like this

SO, IS IT GOOD, BAD OR ABSOLUTELY AWFUL? “Harmless albeit familiar fun.”Those were the words I found ruminating in my head after finishing Ride Along 2, which attempts to break no new ground while being just entertaining enough to keep you from completely detesting it. It’s by no means a “good” movie by good movie standards, yet it finds a way to keep you watching it the entire time.

Hart and Cube have a weird chemistry – not good, not bad, but … weird. You understand why Cube’s hard-edged James does not like him, for his character has all the same critiques about Hart’s character Ben as many of Hart’s detractors have about him as a real person. (He’s loud, he’s annoying, he’s always doing something when he should just chill out a minute yet while nine things he does are ridiculous, the tenth may be, as Cube’s character says, “genius.”) While there is nothing genius about Ride Along 2 – the thin plot is well, thin, Sherri Shepherd’s role as Ben and Angela’s wedding planner doesn’t really make sense given how she argues with both of them and the less said about the scene with the alligator, the better – director Tim Story delivers a competent enough story to keep you enticed enough to watch it to completion.

Then again, if you’re coming to Ride Along 2, you’ve likely seen Ride Along – which means you likely aren’t coming for the story as much as you are to watch Hart be hyperactive, watch Cube make that scowl he’s made since the days of Amerikkka’s Most Wanted and see Jeong do what he did with the Hangover sequels, Community and what the real-life doctor-turned-stand-up-comic-turned-actor is trying to do on Dr. Ken: Save subpar material with his “Go-for-it” personality. Sadly, Olivia Munn does her best to keep things moving with as Detective Maya Cruz and staying in character … But the character seems just slightly out of place with the Cube/Hart/Jeong dynamic. (The fact she seems to be channeling Stephanie Beatriz’s Rosa Diaz but not as well is also a potential whoopise.)

Director Tim Story has a nice little video game sequence in the film that works, Cube and Hart make their weird chemistry watchable, Sumpter and Munn do the best they can to keep it together and Jeong does enough to make the piece salvageable. It makes Ride Along 2 one of those movies that if you happened to be flipping through the channels on a Saturday afternoon, you’d watch … Until you find something else better to do.

Hopefully, Hart has something better in him – or at least will find it before Ride Along 3 likely gets greenlit and it suffers from sequel-itis even though this one is better than its predecessor – even though that’s not really saying too much. Much like Hart and Cube their respective selves, Ride Along 2 is likable … enough. It’s just not their best work.