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Showing posts with label Pittsburgh. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pittsburgh. Show all posts

Thursday, November 4, 2010

The Next Three Days


Q: What’s the movie about?

A: When a man's (Russell Crowe) wife (Elizabeth Banks) is incarcerated for a crime he knows she didn't commit, he constructs a plan to break her out of jail himself.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Russell Crowe, Elizabeth Banks, Ty Simpkins, Olivia Wilde, Lennie James, Liam Neeson, Brian Dennehy, Helen Carey, Jason Beghe, Aisha Hinds, Allan Steele, Michael Buie, Moran Atias, RZA, Daniel Stern, Kevin Corrigan, Peyton Grace Allen

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: PhotobucketGo! Both the good guys and the bad guys are so many steps ahead of each other, that you get to a point where you're not sure if the good guys are bad or the bad guys are good.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: There's not a lot of room for humor when you're trying to keep the tension high.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Not really, but things sure can get awkward when your mom is in prison. And sometimes, it's really hard not to take it out on her.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Paul Haggis, Russell Crowe, and a November 19th release date... probably.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: I love Elizabeth Banks, especially in comedies, but as hard as she tries in some of her difficult dramatic moments, you never forget that she's acting opposite Russell Crowe, and she's just not on his level.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: It starts out dull and boring, much like the lives of the protagonists, and it ratchets up as the suspense builds.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Paul Haggis is an Academy Award winning screenwriter, and yet there's something about this French remake of Pour Elle that feels like it's simply a translation of the original screenplay. Though, to be clear, that's not an insult to the original film... Which, to be even more clear, I didn't see.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-next-three-days/1441492/trailers

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Thursday, March 11, 2010

She's Out of My League


Q: What’s the movie about?

A: After a broken heart for both of them, a "5" (Jay Baruchel) gets to date a "10" (Alice Eve).

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Jay Baruchel, Alice Eve, T.J. Miller, Mike Vogel, Nate Torrence, Lindsay Sloane, Kyle Bornheimer, Jessica St. Clair, Krysten Ritter, Debra Jo Rupp, Adam LeFevre, Geoff Stults, Hayes MacArthur

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: PhotobucketProceed with Caution. If you enjoyed The 40 Year Old Virgin, this movie wants to be that one. Only that movie is a "10" and this one is only a "6"... so you'll probably enjoy it if you're drunk.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Every comedy writer is looking for a new way to do the hair gel scene from There's Something About Mary or the waxing scene from The 40 Year Old Virgin, and these guys thought of new ways of doing both.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you're a hot girl trying to find that one decent, good looking man, this story could be a sad reminder of how much you're expected to lower your standards for his looks, if you ever want to be treated right.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Best repeated usage of The Finger. For a movie with so many The Fingers, I was surprised at how often I found its placement and direction both surprising and original. Possibly the most original thing about the movie.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: As sweet as Jay Baruchel is, I think I prefer him as supporting cast. Lindsay Sloane deserves a shout out for being one of the most underused and underrated comedic talents in Hollywood. And Alice Eve, while possibly a "10" to some, can't walk in heels! You see, I learned from this movie that everyone feels more comfortable knowing that she has a flaw.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: It's a "7".

Q: How is the story/script?

A: With his looks, job, and car the main character is really no more than a "2", maybe a "3" if his sense of humor is really as good as the other characters claim it is (although that's up for debate). There is no world in which a hard "10"-- no less a "7" or "8"-- would go for this guy, so it's clear to me without even looking at them, that the writers of this script are ugly. I'm glad they had a chance to work through their deep rooted male fantasy, and I hope they will realize that by doing this, they are now no better than those of us women who go to female oriented rom-coms, and come out really believing that there exists a man who is gorgeous, charming, and has the personality of one of your girlfriends.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/shes-out-of-my-league/38533/trailers

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Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Adventureland

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: After graduating from college, James Bennan (Jesse Eisenberg) discovers that his parents can no longer afford to send him on vacation to Europe, and instead he’s going to have to get a summer job at Adventureland, running games and giving out stuffed toys to the winners.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Ryan Reynolds, Martin Starr, Matt Bush, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig, Paige Howard, Dan Bittner, Margarita Levieva, Wendie Malick, Jack Gilpin, Michael Zegen, Mary Birdsong, Josh Pais

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: PhotobucketProceed with Caution. What they’re selling as a comedy from the director of Superbad is actually a coming of age drama about a boy falling in love and smoking dope at work—but not in a funny way, like on That 70’s Show. It takes place in 1987, and is obviously a semi-autobiographical trip down memory lane for writer-director Greg Mattola, but the angst that he must have felt that summer, does not translate in a visceral way to the audience, so aside from the soundtrack—which includes everything 1987, from David Bowie to The Cure to Husker Du—this film won’t feel nearly as nostalgic for anyone who wasn’t actually one of Mattola’s co-workers that fateful—or maybe average-- summer.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Not nearly as much as you expect it to. But then again, Kristen Wiig has about 3 good minutes of screen time, so that at least guarantees 2 ½ minutes of laughter. What I’m saying is that everything she does is funny.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: More like, wanna eat a pot cookie and then a huge plate of pasta, while discussing your future with your parents.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: : I’m gonna give Kristen Stewart the award for Most Interchangeable Performance by an Actress. If she had shot her pouty and brooding performance up against a blue screen, they could easily use it for the sequel to Twilight.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig are hardly in it enough. But Martin Starr (who played the guy growing out his beard in Knocked Up) is a good character with an original voice.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: There are some parts where the movie drags and it could’ve been paced up in editing, because as you can tell from this sentence, a thing can get boring very fast, even when it’s only dragging on for a minute here or there, and it feels like too much because it’s still going, and you don’t really care anymore, because you’ve checked out and you’re thinking about something else now, like your high school sweetheart, or what you’d like to eat as soon as you’re not reading this sentence, or something that you like, or maybe that you don’t like, wow, I could do this forever, but I think you would all stop reading my reviews if I don’t just stop now.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: The biggest problem is that there is no driving force pulling you through the movie. You only casually know what the main characters want, in the big picture. They have personal problems they’re all dealing with, none of which are truly dealt with or resolved, and yet the story has very little conflict, and hardly any obstacles standing in anyone’s way. But again, on a nostalgia level, it’s vaguely satisfying.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/adventureland/30988/trailers

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