BARBIE Review

Barbie has its fake plastic cake and eats it too. When the first note of Lizzo's "Pink" drops accompanying the reveal of production designer Sarah Greenwood's "Barbieland" as these real-life dolls dressed in Jacqueline Durran‘s wardrobe descend from their Dreamhouses there is a sense that what we, the audience and spectator, are being welcomed into are images and feelings that possess an equal amount of simplicity and elegance. There is the immediate sense of influence in that one can easily see images and references from this movie integrating themselves into the culture; stills painted in Hollywood murals alongside classics like The Wizard of Oz or characters standing next to Marilyn Monroe. At the same time, there is an adventurous sense that one has no idea what they're truly getting themselves into or at least, where this movie might go both literally and thematically. By the final scene (or two) of the film it is clear this duality of simplicity and elegance is wholly intentional so that the film works on different levels for different audience members whether that be someone who currently plays with dolls, someone who once played with dolls, or even those who always felt too boxed in by expectation to either play with dolls themselves or at least acknowledge the appeal of them. 

Yes, this is a movie about a doll, but the “we’ll sell more toys” aspect didn’t bother or invade my experience because of how intelligently writer/director Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women) uses this packaging to tell the story she and co-writer/life partner Noah Baumbach decided to tell or how it emphasizes the themes they wanted to explore and discuss. In addition to the levels and ideas (or levels of ideas), Barbie is also just a Technicolor fever dream of musical numbers and comedy bits that land with such frequency that even if your sympathy for Ken is maybe greater than it is for Barbie or even if Allan weirds you out a little bit (which we’ll get to) there is plenty here for all to enjoy if not hopefully (eventually) consider.

THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE SECOND PART Review

It was a given The LEGO Movie would eventually get a sequel, but it's kind of crazy it took five years for that sequel to actually happen. That said, Warner Bros. has certainly expanded the LEGO brand by giving LEGO Batman his own feature as well as delivering their only misstep thus far, The LEGO Ninjago Movie. And while there was some trepidation going into this delayed, but inevitable sequel given original directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller were no longer at the helm there was some hope given it was still their minds that conjured up the screenplay. Thankfully, Trolls director Mike Mitchell was brought on board and has successfully converted Lord and Miller's screenplay into a sequel that keeps things in step with if not necessarily surpassing the original. Of course, given the precedent set for the original and what it turned out to be versus the raised bar for the sequel and what it has turned out to be-that's a solid accomplishment and a resounding endorsement. That is to say, upon initially hearing there was going to be a movie based solely around the LEGO brand and the toys and properties they owned it seemed obvious the eventual movie would turn out to be little more than a cash grab; nothing more than one big commercial, if you will. To expect this was ultimately foolish given the creative team behind it as Lord and Miller delivered a witty, colorful, and (per usual) meta piece of cinema that took some unexpected themes and conveyed them in a manner that allowed the children to enjoy the toys coming to life while the adults latched onto those ever fleeting moments of innocence that come with raising children and attaching certain memories to their playthings. The LEGO Movie intentionally evaded everything audiences expected it to be, disrupting the status quo and turning heads, but how was something so inventive and appropriately rowdy supposed to then follow itself up with something as conventional as a sequel? Especially given the abstract qualities of the first and having to continue the same narrative while holding tight to the themes the first film so perfectly encapsulated? It turns out, the trick is to lean into such things even further; deliver the same goods in a different package and through different techniques. And though The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part might feel redundant in certain ideas, the ideas it's pedaling never don't need to be heard...especially when they're this creatively catchy.    

Movies I Wanna See Most: Fall 2018

The fall/winter movie season is always one of those times of the year where it seems there's so much to do and so little time. I've always attempted to find a balance between big-budget and indie fare rather than dismiss the blockbusters and only adore the smaller, more intimate movies and vice versa. That doesn't mean I'm necessarily more excited for Ralph Breaks the Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2 than I am something like Suspiria, but rather that I'm interested in both for very different reasons. While neither of those titles will be on my list I would place each of them just outside my top fifteen along with the likes of the sure-to-be juggernaut of this holiday season, Marry Poppins Returns, and the likely to be overlooked The Hate U Give from director George Tillman Jr. Elsewhere, there is your typical festival fodder like Beautiful Boy, The Favourite, Boy Erased, and Mary Queen of Scots that I'm certainly interested in seeing, but not necessarily overly excited for as I feel as if I kind of know what I'll be getting myself into with each of these (except for maybe the Yorgos Lanthimos experience), but am more than happy to take a chance and spend some time with them as any given movie could come out of nowhere and blow you away; if attempting to watch as many new releases as I do each year has taught me anything it is this.

There are two movies in particular that I had a difficult time grappling with whether they should go on my list and furthermore, where they should go on my list if I were to include them, but ultimately they didn't make it and I'm still not sure if that was the right choice or not. First is Jonah Hill's directorial debut, mid90s, which tells the story of a thirteen-year-old in 90s-era LA who spends his summer navigating between his troubled home life and a group of new friends that he meets at a Motor Avenue skate shop. I think Hill will probably have a rather distinct voice and good handle on conveying his own screenplay given the sheer amount and vast variety of creative people he's worked with, but the subject matter isn't something so near and dear to my heart that I find myself aching to see it. And then there is the first film from writer/director Alfonso Cuarón since Gravity earned him a Best Director Oscar five years ago. Cuarón's two hour and fifteen-minute opus that chronicles a year in the life of a middle-class family in Mexico City in the early 1970s wuill have its festival run, but is set to largely premiere to a wide audience on Netflix in mid-December. This may be the smarter route financially, but the anticipation of such an event and/or return can't help but to feel a little undercut by the knowledge that in my region of the country it's unlikely I'll be able to experience Roma on the big screen. All of that said, you won't find the likes of Bumblebee, The Mortal Engines, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, or that new Robin Hood movie on my list, but like I said, I'm by no means opposed to unabashed blockbusters as is evidenced in my number ten pick...

DADDY'S HOME 2 Review

I will admit, and not necessarily begrudgingly, that I didn't mind 2015's Daddy's Home. One might even say I liked it to a certain extent. Did I understand why stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg were reuniting with something that was a more standard studio comedy rather than following up their 2010 Adam McKay film, The Other Guys, despite the fact it was likely because that film only made $170 million worldwide on a budget of $100 million? No, despite that evidence I still didn't and yet, somehow, Daddy's Home was something I laughed at consistently enough and had a warm enough time with that I was more than happy to recommend it to those looking for a light watch on a weekend afternoon. This was undoubtedly all it was ever meant to be. That was, until that second Ferrell/Wahlberg collaboration ended up going bonkers and making over $240 million worldwide on a production budget of only $69 million and thus is the reason we now have a Daddy's Home 2 that cost just a little more ($31 million more to be exact) with the addition of granddaddies Mel Gibson and John Lithgow present to up the antics of Ferrell's Brad and Wahlberg's Dusty as they try to co-dad in peace. Paramount was also keen to release this sequel prior to the holiday season as a whole thus kind of inadvertently kicking it off itself (Bad Moms Christmas obviously helping with this as well) as the studio looks to capitalize on their family-friendly PG-13 comedy playing through the Thanksgiving break and having collected all it needs prior to Star Wars coming in and claiming all the screens. That said, is this strategic approach going to work? Does Daddy's Home 2 offer the same comforts as its predecessor without succumbing to the stupidity that first film was always on the verge of flirting with or without becoming a carbon copy of that initial film? For the most part, sure. Daddy's Home 2 ups the antics in the way that sequels do without being maybe as consistently funny as it should be given the talent on hand. All things considered though, Daddy's Home 2 does further the story of the scenario set-up in the first film in natural and organic ways while adhering to the wacky tone that first film defiantly established. We are introduced to more family members in order to spice up the proceedings and from keeping it from becoming that total retread of the original while the dynamics of such relationships are explored and caveats of others revealed to add layers to characters we might have imagined we already knew everything about. That isn't to say writer/director Sean Anders (Sex Drive, Horrible Bosses 2) and writing partner John Morris (Hot Tub Time Machine, We're the Millers) have delved into the anxieties of blended families and come up with a film that analyzes the dynamics and struggles of such situations-this is very much of a movie world where no one has any problems except the ones in their personal life as created by their personal life with money being no object-but there is something to be said for Daddy's Home 2 as it doesn't simply rest on the laurels of its predecessor when it very easily could have.

THE HOUSE Review

It's a sad day when one of your comedic icons who you grew up watching seemingly puts the nail in their proverbial comedy coffin, but that seems to be where we're at with Will Ferrel's career. Ferrell needs another Adam McKay collaboration and stat. After a rather stale streak post Anchorman 2 (which I loved) that has included Get Hard, Daddy's Home, and Zoolander 2 I was personally hoping for something of a turn in what would be Ferrell's first R-rated comedy since Get Hard which also happens to be the directorial debut of Andrew Jay Cohen who has written or co-written the screenplays for both Neighbors films as well as last summer's rather surprising Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates. Needless to say, Cohen and writing partner Brendan O'Brien have crafted a premise that is a perfect jumping off point for a Will Ferrell comedy, but it's pretty clear from the get-go that this is going to be one of those comedies that falls into the cheaper-feeling, amateur hour-type category. The House was never going to reach the intelligence levels of Ferrell's work with McKay, but it isn't able to even touch something like Blades of Glory which too felt cheap, no doubt, but was so consistently outrageous that it held itself up. Rather, The House is a movie that would have been a hotly-anticipated comedy five to eight years ago as it is the first time Ferrell has been paired with the ever-endearing Amy Poehler, but as things stand today there are seemingly no other marquee movie stars left besides *maybe* Kevin Hart, but even he has to be in the right vehicle for the box office to reward him. Ferrell is the last of a nearly dead breed and you can see the wear on his exterior as he sleepwalks his way through The House. It's not only a little sad to behold, but disappointing in that I've previously always looked forward to a Will Ferrell comedy and even if no one else in the world might understand why-I was still excited for The House in hopes that Cohen might offer a new voice in the comedy world, someone who was hungry to jump start what has felt like an unusually stale output from the likes of Ferrell and his normal co-horts over the past few years, but instead of reinvigorating anything Cohen has made a film that fits snuggly between the letdowns that have been Ferrell's last few films.

First Trailer for DADDY'S HOME 2 Starring Will Ferrell & Mark Wahlberg

Paramount has timing on its side this week as not only is this weekend Father's Day, but they also have the release of Transformers: The Last Knight which coincidentally stars Mark Wahlberg as well as Warner Bros. The House starring Will Ferrell opening next week and the week after-making this a perfect time to treat audiences to their first look at Daddy's Home 2. Two years ago Paramount released the original Daddy's Home to rather bad reviews, but it proved to be the gift that kept on giving as the film ended up with a worldwide gross of over $240 million on a budget of only $69 million. Needless to say, the studio was quick to get all involved, including Wahlberg, Ferrell, and director Sean Anders (Sex Drive, That's My Boy, Horrible Bosses 2) back on board for another go-around. If you've heard anything about this unnecessary, but totally understandable sequel you probably know that the hook this time involves meeting Dusty and Brad's respective fathers who will be played by none other than John Lithgow and Mel Gibson. It is this new dynamic that the trailer plays up and is all the better for it. I actually didn't mind the original film as much as I'd anticipated, but that was very likely due to the fact I went in with almost no expectations. The trailers made the film look as generic as a comedy could which was a shame as I loved and still love The Other Guys. The Other Guys is, simply put, one of the more underrated comedies of the last decade and while I'd hoped more than just the chemistry between Wahlberg and Ferrell might cross over into Daddy's Home it was always going to be missing that key creative drive in Adam McKay. There is hope in the fact Anders is again directing as each of his credits prior to these films were willing to go the distance for whatever joke needed to be made and while this will most definitely be PG-13, hopefully they can find some way to breathe fresh life into what is now a recycled premise. I'm hoping the effortless quality of comedy the lead duo possesses comes through as Ferrell and Wahlberg are almost as good together as Ferrell and John C. Reilly and there should be more than enough to work with between them and all the bigger stuff studio sequels inherently come with. Daddy's Home 2 also stars Linda Cardellini, John Cena, Alessandra Ambrosio and opens on November 10, 2017.

First Trailer for THE HOUSE Starring Will Ferrell & Amy Poehler

There was a time when a new comedy starring Will Ferrell was something of an event. Those golden years between 2004 and 2010 when Ferrell and writer/director Adam McKay would team up every other year or so to dig up comedy gold yielded some of if not the actor's best roles (of course, I'll always have a place in my heart for Stranger than Fiction, but that wasn't broad comedy and is beside the point). Since McKay has moved on to slightly more prestigious endeavors with films like The Big Short it has seemed Ferrell has more or less given up any ambition of creating anything above middle-brow comedies as his output post-Anchorman 2 has been little more than depressing (Get Hard, Daddy's Home, Zoolander 2). All of that taken into consideration, I've been a Ferrell fan since his days on SNL and became even more faithful after seeing the original Anchorman countless times in theaters at the impressionable age of seventeen during the summer of 2004. While Ferrell might not pull the crowds or excitement he once did I can still appreciate the mans presence in a comedy and when paired with the likes of Amy Poehler and the funny no matter what he's doing Jason Mantzoukas there is no reason for my interest not to be piqued. Making his feature directorial debut here is Andrew Jay Cohen who helped to co-write both Neighbors and Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, both of which I certainly enjoyed. The odds are in this things favor, certainly, but as with many a comedies it's hard to tell how good this might turn out to be or just how much of a stinker it will actually be. I don't think the premise really gels here or is even outlandish enough to mine for legitimate laughs, but hopefully the script has more up its sleeve than it appears and that the cast is on their A-game. The House also stars Nick Kroll, Allison Tolman, Michaela Watkins, Ryan Simpkins, Jessie Ennis, Rob Huebel, Cedric Yarbrough, Jeremy Renner, and opens on June 30th, 2017.

ZOOLANDER NO. 2 Review

I'm not one who necessarily believes that comedy sequels are necessarily going to be horrible. I understand the case that is made for why many of them are and do in fact agree that Dumb and Dumber To may be one of the worst movies ever made, but as a rule of thumb, as a blanket statement, I like to think there is more to this phenomenon than that. No one will argue that comedy is the most difficult genre to pull off successfully and when one does so to the effect that it connects with a large group of people it is hard to not want to return to that well in hopes of capturing those same gracious returns once more. What is strange about this latest nostalgia-fueled sequel though, is that it didn't seem to connect with many people upon its initial release back in 2001. Ben Stiller likely knew this about his dimwitted male model character when he came up with it for a pair of short films for the VH1 Fashion Awards in 1996 and 1997. Stiller knew there was never a real chance the character would catch on or even that his modest comedy would make a boatload of cash, but he clearly loved the material and put his creative mind to the petal to not only come up with something silly, but something topical that provided commentary on the frivolity of the fashion world when compared to something as sobering as sweat shops and child labor laws. Then, something happened that Stiller never would have guessed or foreseen in a million years-Zoolander became something of a staple of the post 9/11 world in that it was released a few weeks after the attacks and provided some much needed silliness to divert our national consciousness away from all the horrible things that were happening. In this regard Zoolander, a film about the titular idiot model becoming the pawn of corrupt fashion executives in order to assassinate the Prime Minister of Malaysia, held a special place in many people's hearts. It didn't hurt that the film was a genuinely good, funny comedy, but that fondness for this safe haven of a comedy has now snowballed into a world dominated by social media that consistently referenced and recapped the original enough that Stiller and co-stars Owen Wilson and Will Ferrell (each who have long since passed their pique popularity) couldn't help but to re-visit these characters in hopes of reaping those gracious returns once more. Instead of being the warm, safe place to return to in times of sadness or stress though, Zoolander No. 2 only makes it clear how sad the reality of these characters lives actually are. Even worse, the legacy of Stiller's once pristine fashion satire is now tainted by having dressed it up in something ugly.

DADDY'S HOME Review

The Other Guys is a brilliant piece of satire that really gave way for director Adam McKay to go in the direction of crafting something like The Big Short. The Other Guys was also helped by the oddball pairing of Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg who proved to have almost as much chemistry as Ferrell and John C. Reilly. So, it was natural for the two to want to reunite given their past success, but The Other Guys Daddy's Home is not. This was clear from the beginning. Whereas The Other Guys felt like a film, an actual, real, weighted film with an objective and a structure that felt inspired without being standard, Daddy's Home feels like a rushed job of a couple of funny men getting together and seeing what they can hammer out. Daddy's Home is a movie and one that has seemingly been dropped off the Hollywood assembly line in hopes that it will appeal to enough people to make it's money back on the broad appeal of Ferrell and Wahlberg. There is nothing particularly insightful about the picture, there isn't even anything particularly funny to the point I'll remember it tomorrow, and the product placement is so abhorrently obvious the whole thing might as well be a commercial, but beyond these heavy complaints lies a movie that still stars the likes of Ferrell and Wahlberg. Both are very likable guys with a supporting cast that includes the always-pleasant Linda Cardellini, the outrageous Thomas Haden Church, a surprisingly funny extended piece enlivened by Hannibal Burress and, of course, a couple of cute kids saying inappropriate things. Given these factors, despite the sub par script and despite the fact the film has little to no visual flair, Daddy's Home comes out the other end being rather enjoyable for what it is. It is a movie one can put on in the background and still keep up with if the need to do other things arises while at the same time guaranteeing a couple of chuckles from friends or family that might also be in the vicinity. Daddy's Home goes a long way on the charm of it's cast making the product as a whole more endearing than it appears on first glance.  

New Trailer for ZOOLANDER 2

I will never forget reading my local newspaper's movie section the weekend after the September 11th attacks and the writer pondering what would become of the movies that were left on the release schedule that year. The main picture on the article was one of Mike and Sully from Monsters Inc.-the family movie that would come out two months later and give us all a good dose of the warm feels we so desperately needed. The story also heavily discussed Arnold Schwarzenegger's Collateral Damage and it's content that would cause it to be delayed an entire year. In the middle of all of this was Zoolander. Two weeks after the World Trade Centers were destroyed Paramount dumped Ben Stiller's third feature directorial effort into theaters and not much was thought of it. At the time, I was fourteen years old and didn't see the movie until early December while attending a friends birthday party where we all decided to see a movie at the local dollar theater. Long story short, I loved it and only came to love it more over the fifteen years since it's release. As the once budding stars of Zoolander have each gone on to have successful comedic careers this sequel is something of a fitting conclusion to the The Frat Pack era while also being something of a re-energization. For example, the new trailer is packed with great cameos and awesome gags that make me more hopeful than I ever imagined I'd be for a sequel to a fifteen year-old cult classic. It's also interesting to note Ben Stiller is listed as the director here rather than Justin Theroux (who was originally hired to direct after writing the screenplay). Zoolander 2 opens on February 12, 2016 and also stars Owen Wilson, Christine Taylor and Will Ferrell.

Teaser Trailer for ZOOLANDER II

It will be fifteen years since the original Zoolander debuted next year it's hard to believe Ben Stiller and his pals were able to get people interested in the male model once again let alone get a sequel made. I will never forget reading my local newspaper's movie section the weekend after September 11th and the writers pondering what would become of the movies that were left on the release schedule that year. The main picture on the article was one of Mike and Sully from Monsters Inc.-the family movie that would come out two months later and give us all a good dose of the warm, comforting experiences that we so desperately needed. The story also heavily discussed Arnold Schwarzenegger's Collateral Damage and it's content that would cause it to be delayed an entire year. In the middle of all of this was Zoolander. Two weeks after the World Trade Centers were destroyed Paramount dumped Ben Stiller's third feature directorial effort into theaters and not much was thought of it. At the time, I was fourteen years old and didn't see the movie until early December while attending a couple of friends joint birthday party where we all decided to see a movie at the local dollar theater. We didn't know what Zoolander was about, but we knew it had the guy from Meet the Parents and the other guy from Shanghai Noon that was also in Meet the Parents, so we were game. It may not have been an instant classic, but over the years Zoolander has come to be the flagship film for the once dominating Frat Pack and a reliable quote factory for people of a certain generation. While what we have here is only a short teaser, the fact it even exists is something of a miracle and hopefully a clear indication that Stiller knows what he's doing in continuing this characters story. Zoolander II opens on February 12, 2016 and also stars Owen Wilson, Christine Taylor and Will Ferrell.

First Trailer for DADDY'S HOME Starring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg

As it was father's day weekend it comes as no surprise that Paramount Pictures decided to release the first trailer for the Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg reunion that will be hitting theaters this Christmas and is appropriately titled, Daddy's Home. Given The Other Guys is one of the most underrated comedies of the last few years and that Ferrell has been hitting a few speed bumps lately (though Sundays Fatal Adoption may be the best move the star could have made for his career while also being the most unexpected) I am really rooting for this one to work, but I can't help but feel about the trailer the same way I did when I saw the initial preview for Get Hard. I want Ferrell to be funny, I want him to be successful so that more people will convert and understand why his fans, myself included, find him as funny as we do, but dammit if this doesn't initially look like another misstep. There is hope in the fact that this might be rated-R (which I'm not saying is necessary to be a good comedy, the aforementioned The Other Guys was PG-13 and flourished, but the R-rating certainly gives the comic actors room to flourish) given it is directed by Sean Anders (Sex Drive, That's My Boy, Horrible Bosses 2). Each of Anders credits are willing to go the distance for whatever joke needs to be made, no matter how dirty and while Sandler's film is my least favorite of Anders trio I still laughed at large portions of it. I'm hoping this effortless quality of comedy comes through in the final product as Ferrell and Wahlberg are almost as good together as Ferrell and Reilly and there should be more than enough to work with between them and this premise. Daddy's Home also stars Linda Cardellini, Thomas Haden Church, Alessandra Ambrosio, Paul Scheer, Hannibal Buress and opens on December 25, 2015.

GET HARD Review

The question I kept repeating to myself as Get Hard continued on and on was how could such a supposedly intelligent man be so stupid? There is a hint of something interesting in the beginning though so let's begin there. It is suggested in the opening credits sequence as the striking comparisons between the morning routines of the wealthy and the working class are displayed, much of the time in split screen, that the balance is more than off. It is imagery that much of who I imagine the audience to be will both recognize from both their real-life experiences and the dreams they have of one day hitting it rich. It demonstrates the reality of our routines and the fantasy that feels just out of reach. The most appealing thing about this choice though is not only that it establishes the worlds of our two leading characters, but also because it evokes a reaction. It is a moment of recognition, one that forces thinking audience members to contemplate not who each of these men are today, but the roads they traveled to arrive at their current destination. Even as the film continues through to after the title card it further demonstrates the reasons these two mean have landed in their current situations are due as much to opportunity and association as they are hard work. This begs the question of how much of a clean slate do we all start out with and if hard work is truly all it takes to get to where you want to be or does having the right people in the right places help significantly. The answer is, of course, pretty clear and it's obvious Get Hard knows that, but beyond this observation and the ability to display it provocatively one would think the film might delve into what it thinks of this predicament, an unavoidable one, really and use that fuel to create satire from the actual downfalls of our society. Instead, writer Etan Cohen's directorial debut, offers little more than a few inspired moments. There are some solid ideas that are glimpsed by the jokes that really land, but much of the time the film skates by on it's over-reliance on vulgarity and close-ups of Ferrell doing his schtick with nothing but the hope you'll laugh at anything Ferrell does supporting it.

First Trailer for GET HARD

If you caught Chris Rock's Top Five last weekend you probably saw the first trailer for the new Kevin Hart and Will Ferrell team-up. It's a nice strategic move for everyone involved as Ferrell has been absent from a solid original comedy hit since 2012's The Campaign while Kevin Hart is bubbling right below the surface of super stardom. Pulling these two together will do nothing but bolster each of their careers. I've been a Ferrell fan for as long as I can remember so I am genuinely excited anytime the guy has something new coming out and while his other 2015 feature, Daddy's Home, reunites him with his The Other Guys co-star Mark Wahlberg and will likely be of a better overall quality than Get Hard I genuinely enjoy Hart as well and am eager to see what their chemistry can bring to the table. In the film Ferrell plays a Bernie Madoff-type character who is sentenced to ten years in a maximum security prison for fraud and enlists the help of the man who washes his car (Hart) to help him prepare him for that sentence. You can imagine how this premise might unspool over an hour and a half comedy featuring these two and I am anxious to see the results of letting these guys just go at one another. Get Hard also marks the directorial debut of Etan Cohen who penned or helped pen the scripts for Tropic Thunder, Men in Black 3 and Idiocracy. Get Hard also stars Tip “T.I.” Harris, Alison Brie Craig T. Nelson and opens on March 27, 2015.

THE LEGO MOVIE Review

Upon initially hearing that there was going to be a movie based solely around the Lego brand and the toys and properties they owned I believed it would turn out to be nothing more than a cash grab, something to build the name (not that it needed it) or possibly expanding the brand may be a better way to approach it. Essentially, I expected this to turn out to be nothing more than one big commercial. There was little reason for it to be more than that, why waste such effort or creative juices on something that would no doubt deliver zero gratification in the end and would only serve as something to decrease further the credibility of Hollywood products and the way in which children's entertainment disparages its audience much of the time allowing itself to get away with body function jokes and funny voices rather than actual, contextual humor? So, why would directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who took something like the beloved 1970's Judi Barrett children's book Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and turned it into a witty, colorful piece of cinema that took some unexpected themes and conveyed them in a manner that allowed the children to enjoy the food falling from the sky while the adults latched onto the insight the story might be re-educating them on, but was at least delivering it to them in a new, almost inspiring light? That these guys went on to direct something like 21 Jump Street, a reboot of an 80's property that no one really put much faith in, and turned it into not only one of the best films of 2012 or one of the better comedies to come out in a good while, but a movie that used its interesting concept to delve into the strange dynamics of male friendships and the actual struggles it takes to maintain those types of friendships as each individual grows up and changes? That film didn't have to be anything more than a re-make slapped together by a board of executives to satisfy humor-hungry teens who move from R-rated comedy to R-rated comedy without a care, but Lord and Miller made it something more, something notable. All of that is to say that the directors have done the same here; they have transformed what could have been that one, massive commercial into something of a reminder, a love letter in ways to the spirit of childhood and how the imagination is just as precious as the adequacy we need to feel as adults. In short, The LEGO Movie is magical and reminds us of how simple it is to feel that little something extra.

ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND CONTINUES Review

I understand that when compared to other genres that those falling into the comedy classification don't really compare no matter how funny or enjoyable they are, but because they are more exercises in pure entertainment than trying to convey raw emotion or serve a bigger purpose. They don't look to teach us anything or expand our minds necessarily and they rarely offer anything innovative when it comes to the world of filmmaking, no, all a comedy really wants to do is make us laugh and while it may seem more admirable to adapt a historical figures life for the screen or create real substance for a man with a cape I'd argue it is probably tougher to make people consistently laugh at the jokes you're spewing. Unfortunately, much of the time the end result proves that and so we don't often get comedies that we feel really connect with a majority of us because 1) humor is extremely subjective and 2) jokes aren't easy to write when you sit down and have to think about them. When looking at the Anchorman films and the group of people collaborating to put these together it becomes clear why they may have more of a pulse on the eclectic tastes of audiences and that is simply due to the spontaneity of it all. There is a freshness to it that doesn't feel forced, no pre-determined jokes that fall flat in execution, but instead just a few master improv artists hanging out, gathering around a central idea and then growing off of it until it reaches ridiculous and often hilarious heights. So, I understand that while most don't consider comedy one of the higher art forms and that films like Anchorman, much less its sequel, don't make critics top ten lists or are hailed as great films for how funny the absurdity of it all is, but the fact of the matter is that I laughed more at Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues than any other film this year and while that still may not be enough in many peoples eyes to verify it as a "film" rather than just your typical mainstream comedy, this is one of the few times in recent memory when upon going into a film with such high expectations that I came out and without any inhibition was able to say that it more than lived up to what I hoped it would be and in many instances, even surpassed it.Yes, in many ways this is better than The Legend of Ron Burgundy, but that is only because it is the continuation of a legend and as I'm sure Mr. Burgundy would attest, "How could it not be MORE legendary?"

Movies I Wanna See Most: Fall 2013

It has been somewhat of a rough year for film. Though at the time of this writing I've found two or three films I absolutely loved this year and left a lasting impression on me with several others being great, but not necessarily anything exceptional. Exceptional is what we are always looking for as we head into the latter part of the year and studios begin to offer up their Oscar bait. 2013 will be no exception, but the surprise this year is just how many blockbusters have been saved for the final quarter. There are usually one or two December releases that stand to be critical and box office champions, but most are more adult fare that do well with critics and have long legs when it comes to box office numbers. While there will be plenty of these kinds of films still vying for a place on the ballot come next February there are also a fair amount of well-made films that are part of franchises that studios are looking to make a pretty penny on. Whether it be Marvel, young adult adaptations, or re-makes there is something for just about everyone on the docket for the remainder of this year. It was a tough task, to narrow down four months of releases to just ten films, so I've naturally included a quick briefing on five extra flicks that almost made the list at the end of this article. As for the big ten, I can tell you that I'm seriously anxious and optimistic for each and every one of them. Also, just because a film didn't make any part of this list doesn't mean I don't think it will be good; it could mean I'm just not as excited for it as the films that did make the list and it could also be due to the fact I haven't seen much from it at this point. Both guaranteed blockbusters such as the next Hobbit film and smaller fare that has received great festival buzz like J.C. Chandor's All is Lost didn't make any part of this list, but that isn't because I don't want to see them. There promotional material just didn't get me as excited for as the films listed below did. The way I look at it, the following ten films are what I would choose to see were I limited to only that amount for the rest of the year. So here we go...

New Trailer for ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND CONTINUES

In what is my most anticipated film of the year (I realize how ridiculous that may sound to some of you, but Anchorman defined the comedy of my teen years) Ron Burgundy returns to the screen for the first time since 2004 and it couldn't be with more excitement that I welcome the news team back for another round. Every single collaboration between star Will Ferrell and writer/director Adam McKay might as well have been a home run. The first Anchorman film is beyond cult status now that the sequel is coming out, Talladega Nights has more quotable lines than anything else I've seen in the past seven years while Step Brothers was the "one for them" that also pleased everybody else and remains as hilarious now as it was the first time I saw it in 2008. Even The Other Guys is an under-appreciated gem that should really get more credit for Mark Wahlberg's comedy renaissance that Ted receives. Because of this track record I have nothing but faith in the Ferrell/McKay team and that they wouldn't risk tarnishing their legacy with anything less than spectacular when it came to making not only their first sequel, but the sequel to the film featuring their most beloved character. If this first trailer with all new footage is any indication we are in for more of the same humor with plenty of new faces and a new decade to riff on that will bring a fresh perspective to the comedy. Paul Rudd looks appropriately ridiculous with his facial hair as Brian Fantana and Steve Carell is already delivering lines as Brick that will be repeated countless times until something new comes along in future trailers or in the film itself. We don't get too much of Dave Koechner's Champ here, but we are given a glimpse of how cameo-filled this film is going to be with Ed Helms, Kristen Wiig, and James Marsden (who actually has a strong supporting role it seems) already popping up here. I am beyond excited for the film, but I am also optimistic about the results as the makers have given me no reason to doubt them. The stars seem to have aligned and hopefully this will deliver as much legacy to the legend as the first film came to do. The film also stars Christina Applegate, Dylan Baker, Meagan Good, Greg Kinnear, and Harrison Ford. Anchorman: The Legend Continues opens on December 20th.

THE CAMPAIGN Review

It was a tad bit disappointing when I realized that this summer there wouldn't be a collaboration between star Will Ferrell and director Adam Mckay. Since 2004 they have made a film every other year beginning with the minor masterpiece and now cult classic Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy. They have since followed up with hit after hit including Talladega Nights, Step Brothers, and The Other Guys. This was the year for their return if they were going by any former schedule but it looks like things have gone a little off course in trying to settle a deal to make a sequel to that grand introduction to Ferrell we received eight years ago. Still, any Ferrell fan should be thankful as we at least have a film at all to go see this summer featuring our favorite man-child. Turns out, its a pretty darn funny one as well. While the news that The Campaign wouldn't be a Ferrell/McKay team-up was disheartening enough I was even more skeptical about the project when it was stated that director Jay Roach would be at the helm. Roach has a resume full of successful comedies including the three Austin Powers films and Meet the Parents, but then again he also made Dinner for Schmucks a couple of years ago. A film that had so much potential to be a great comedy but instead fell flat on its face. Thus, the reason I was so worried for The Campaign. It doesn't seem all that hard to make a funny movie when you seemingly have a bunch of funny people around, but that isn't necessarily the case. While The Campaign could have certainly been slightly more focused and inventive with its comedy it is an effective political satire and an all out comedy that regardless of how, had me laughing from beginning to end. It is, in a word: hilarious.

Marty Huggins (Zach Galifianakis) and his family endure
some tough times in The Campaign.

If there was anything we knew we'd be able to count on going into this film it was that the team-up between Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis would promise well...something. It was clear from the previews that Galifianakis had worked up something special for his character of Marty Huggins while Ferrell was more or less playing his man-child schtick crossed with his impersonation of George Bush. Upon delving into the film it becomes more and more clear that these guys couldn't have done a better job of complimenting one another. It makes the whole thing work. Whether it be polishing their public personas, placing their seasoned knowledge or energized innocence into campaigning, or forgetting the whole point of what they're doing all of it for in the first place, it pretty much all works. They come at it from such different places and all of it gets to the point that it is so over the top we are basically seeing the behind the scenes antics of how ridiculous real-life campaign's of today have become. Granted, both Galifianakis's Huggins and Ferrell's Cam Brady are no doubt exaggerations of multiple real life inspirations the bottom line is the fact they will stoop to any low for the win, even if the job they will take on afterwards matters very little. It is about the image, the reputation. This is where the comedy clearly lies in the situation as Brady and Huggins try to one up each other while pointing out each others flaws to their voting audience. I liked that the film went over the top in almost every aspect, I like that they decided to set the film in the south, I even enjoyed the strong political commentary on how much money it takes to actually run one of these things. While I don't generally know much about the political game even I could take away the stabbing points that The Campaign is mocking.

Marty, Mitch (Jason Sudeikis), Tim (Dylan McDermott),
and Cam (Will Ferrell) face off against one another.

Still, as I sat there and enjoyed the film for the ridiculously vulgar comedy it provided me I became more and more impressed with the tone of the whole thing. I walked in expecting the movie to feel slightly rushed if not a little cheap. It seemed for such a big comedy starring two seasoned comics that the exposure for the film had ramped up rather late in the game and that there wasn't a ton of support behind the movie. Turns out what I at first thought might come to be weaknesses were what the film had in its corners all along. In those early days when first hearing of the project I mentioned I was worried that Roach and co. would lose themselves and his brand of comedy with two such actors combined with subject matter that was both ripe for satire and extremely timely. Little did I know Roach had recently directed more heavy-handed dramas for HBO that included the Sarah Palin inspired Game Change and the Bush/Gore film Recount. This combination of experience with both the subject matter and off-the-wall comedy shines throughout the film. This is clear from the beginning as big money runs everything; here in the form of the Motch brothers (a slyly used John Lithgow and Dan Akroyd) who are no doubt a send up of some actual filthy rich businessmen who are running the government or a certain party with their "influence".

The Motch brothers have, for years, backed Brady who knows how to spout words that sound good to the crowd while not actually meaning anything. Too bad he has a knack for keeping one too many mistresses as well and just before the election, where he usually runs unopposed, he leaves a rather explicit message on the wrong answering machine. This misstep creates the need for the Motch bros to bring in a candidate to oppose Brady. The best they can do is Marty Huggins, the son of a veteran (Brian Cox) who has strong ties to the Motch's. Galifianakis makes Huggins a squirrely and slightly odd guy who is so naive and innocent it is almost hurtful to watch as his assigned campaign manager Tim Wattley (a hilariously subtle Dylan McDermott) transforms him from this humble family man to a politician willing to do or say anything for the win. While Galifianakis makes this transformation seamlessly it is by way of his performance one of the best things about the film. He delivers the laughs, he keeps up the persona without drastically changing the character, but we see him become a different person. It is alarming, while at the same time hard not to laugh at. Which in many ways is all the more unsettling.

Cam Brady will stoop to any level to try and win.

While after a second or third viewing I might have a change of opinion on the film, for the time being I was pleasantly surprised not only by the amount of laughs I got from The Campaign, but also how sharp of a wit the overall film had. We know it is making fun of politics, heck the majority of us don't need comedians playing the politicians to laugh at the whole farce that has become the election process, but if anything this movie makes the pill easier to swallow. It would like to disguise itself as a rather standard Will Ferrell comedy but in reality, if we want to, there is more to look for here. I didn't have high expectations going in. I expected more Bewitched Will Ferrell than I did SNL-era Ferrell, but what we got was a well thought out, funny movie that really had everyone invested in it. There is nothing worse than a comedy where it feels like the makers have simply thrown together a story around two funny guys that they know will bring in the box office returns. As comedies have not exactly been landing record numbers lately (with the exception of Ted) it is nice to see a film where the people behind and in front of the camera are getting the same amount of satisfaction out of their work as they hope the audience will. There are small complaints here and there that one could make about The Campaign, but they are far outweighed by the positive attributes this film carries. You laugh, you learn a little, and you begin to wonder how close this all really is to reality.

        

THE CAMPAIGN Review

It was a tad bit disappointing when I realized that this summer there wouldn't be a collaboration between star Will Ferrell and director Adam Mckay. Since 2004 they have made a film every other year beginning with the minor masterpiece and now cult classic Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy. They have since followed up with hit after hit including Talladega Nights, Step Brothers, and The Other Guys. This was the year for their return if they were going by any former schedule but it looks like things have gone a little off course in trying to settle a deal to make a sequel to that grand introduction to Ferrell we received eight years ago. Still, any Ferrell fan should be thankful as we at least have a film at all to go see this summer featuring our favorite man-child. Turns out, its a pretty darn funny one as well. While the news that The Campaign wouldn't be a Ferrell/McKay team-up was disheartening enough I was even more skeptical about the project when it was stated that director Jay Roach would be at the helm. Roach has a resume full of successful comedies including the three Austin Powers films and Meet the Parents, but then again he also made Dinner for Schmucks a couple of years ago. A film that had so much potential to be a great comedy but instead fell flat on its face. Thus, the reason I was so worried for The Campaign. It doesn't seem all that hard to make a funny movie when you seemingly have a bunch of funny people around, but that isn't necessarily the case. While The Campaign could have certainly been slightly more focused and inventive with its comedy it is an effective political satire and an all out comedy that regardless of how, had me laughing from beginning to end. It is, in a word: hilarious.