Kick-Ass

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A high school nobody (Aaron Johnson) decides to become a superhero, by buying a skin-tight outfit and making pathetic efforts to fight crime. But soon, he gets mixed up in some trouble that goes all the way to the top of the mob.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Aaron Johnson, Chloe Grace Moretz, Nicolas Cage, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Lyndsy Fonseca, Mark Strong, Clark Duke, Evan Peters, Michael Rispoli, Omari Hardwick, Xander Berkeley

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! It's a fun, fast-paced ride, filled with geek power and girl power. But be warned, it's not rated R by accident. The violence is in your face, and at times really hard to stomach.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: The humor is both dark and broad, which is a rare combination, almost never seen in an action comedy.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Rarely has death been treated so nonchalantly.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: I can't see any reason why it wouldn't be nominated for Best Fight at the MTV Awards. And Best Batman costume at a local Halloween party.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: You heard it here first, folks, Aaron Johnson and Logan Lerman are the same person. And you thought it was hard to tell Naomi Watts and Maria Bello apart! Oh, and lookout Elle Fanning, there's a new totally adorable, miniature actress in town: Chloe Grace Moretz is kick-ass.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Super-duper-excellent. Great action, and some of the best transitions I've ever seen.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: The story is mostly predictable and there's a lot of unexplained suspension of disbelief (especially when it comes to questions of reality, like "Why isn't anyone going to jail for this stuff?" and "How come child services hasn't taken Hit-Girl away from Big Daddy?"), so in the hands of the wrong director, this script could've gone down a very ugly road.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/kick-ass/39243/trailers

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The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A master car salesman (Jeremy Piven) is called into a struggling car dealership to save them from bankruptcy, and there, he is forced to face his own difficult past.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Jeremy Piven, Ving Rhames, James Brolin, David Koechner, Kathryn Hahn, Ed Helms, Jordana Spiro, Tony Hale, Ken Jeong, Rob Riggle, Alan Thicke, Charles Napier, Jonathan Sadowski, Noureen DeWulf, Craig Robinson, Wendie Malick, Will Ferrell (uncredited)

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. If you can get past how incredibly stupid and ridiculous this movie is, it actually kind of grows on you.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: If you can get past how incredibly stupid and ridiculous the humor is, it actually kind of grows on you.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you can get past how incredibly stupid and ridiculous the emotions are, they actually kind of grow on you.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: I see some Golden Popcorn in this movie's future. Mostly because they have a category called Best WTF Moment.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: This movie has the greatest smattering of B-level character actors to ever grace the screen at one time, in the complete absence of any A-listers... Or at least not any that are credited.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: They say casting is 90% of the director's path to success, and in this case the director got the cast 110% right. If my math is correct, 110% of 90% is 99%, which leaves only 1% of room for failure. Director, Neal Brennan takes full advantage of his margin for failure, as he uses it toward being off on the timing for some of the jokes.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: This story has got a lot more story than most of the stuff that Will Ferrell and Adam McKay have put out recently. Not only are there A stories, but there are even B stories and C stories. Nothing too deep, but all of it supported by specific backstories! I'm sure even they were surprised to find out that despite all that yucky story structure, sometimes jokes can still be funny.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-goods-live-hard-sell-hard/34811/trailers

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I Love You, Beth Cooper

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: The nerdy high school Valedictorian (Paul Rust) professes his love to the head cheerleader (Hayden Panettiere) during his commencement speech, and before he knows it, they are spending their celebratory graduation night getting to know each other.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Paul Rust, Hayden Panettiere, Jack T. Carpenter, Lauren London, Lauren Storm, Shawn Roberts, Alan Ruck, Cynthia Stevenson, Andrea Savage,

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Stop! This is the kind of movie that's only enjoyable when you accidentally catch it on cable television sometime between 2 and 4 in the morning, because it's light, cheesy, and unoriginal, and if you fall asleep watching it, you won't wake up wondering what you've missed.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Yes, but not because it's funny. More because you're uncomfortable with how bad it is.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you paid full price for it at the movie theater, like I did, it might. After all, we are in a recession, and money is not to be wasted.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Unfortunately, it's not quite high profile enough to be noticed by the Razzies.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Some of the worst I've seen in a professional movie since the 80s. The actors, in particular Panettiere and her supposed boyfriend, played by Shawn Roberts, glare, and they stare, and they blow the house down. And I mean: blow! You actually feel bad for Cynthia Stevenson and Alan Ruck, who are quite good in their small roles, as the parents. Paul Rust does a decent job, too, in a role that was obviously written for Michael Cera, but he is no Michael Cera, and you leave the theater wishing he had been, because Michael Cera is magic. And he would've been the only chance this movie had of coming out from under this red light.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Certainly nowhere near the best work of Chris Columbus, especially when you consider Mrs. Doubtfire, Home Alone, and discovering America.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: I spent most of the movie wondering how this script got greenlit. Was I just being bitter, because this same studio had passed on a script of mine, in the same genre, that was clearly funnier, more inventive, and better constructed? In my effort not to play the part of the ugly, angry screenwriter who's been scorned, I chose not to say anything out loud. So I was relieved and vindicated when we left the theater, and my friend, Ondrea, who is not even in show business, asked me "How can a movie like that get financed, when people like you are writing stuff that's so much better?" It was completely unsolicited. I swear to God. So I guess you really don't need over 10 years of experience in this business to know how messed up it is.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/i-love-you-beth-cooper/32640/trailers

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