Our Idiot Brother (2011)

Movie quotes:
Omar: [slowly] I’m…Officer…Omar…Coleman. I’m…your…parole…officer.
Ned: I’m Ned Rochlin. Why are you talking so slow?
Omar: I just figured, looking at your sheet, that since you sold grass to a uniformed police officer that you must be retarded.

At a glance:
A mildly funny, extremely pleasant actor-fest about a likeable man who naiveté causes problems for his family

Our review (with spoilers):
Our Idiot Brother is a mildly amusing comedy about a naïve man and his mildly quirky family. The title may sound like dumb and dumber, but this is a completely different take on the same type of character. You’d be hard-pressed to believe that Ned (Paul Rudd) could exist as is in real life, but there are certain elements of his character that can be seen in real people, and that gives the story an honesty that many laugh out loud type comedies do not have. Could the script have been improved by being punched up with a few more jokes? Perhaps – but at the risk of making it feel like a script that had been punched up.

The film starts are Ned’s trusting nature leads him to sell pot to a cop – and not a plainclothes cop, but a cop in full uniform. This leads to a jail term that might depress the average person, but Ned just views it as another adventure on the journey of life. When he leaves prison and is rejected by his former girlfriend, Ned turns to his mother and three sisters for a little help. As the different family members share him around, Ned’s honesty reveals hidden, often nasty truths, and soon, virtually every relationship he gets near is placed in jeopardy.

Nothing too deep or humorous happens here, but it matters little, not when you get to watch the immensely likeable Rudd having so much fun with the role, and when the film is, ultimately, as sweet as he is. He is helped immensely by a wonderful supporting cast (Emily Mortimer, who I loved in Transsiberian; Steve Coogan; Elizabeth Banks; Zooey Deschanel; and the wonderful Adam Scott). It’s such a good cast; they lift the script to a higher level than it would have achieved with lesser actors.

Rating: 3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Rudd brings color and dimension to a borderline-simpleton schlub who could have easily become a one-note cliché."
- Alexis Loinaz (Chicago Tribune)

 

Midnight in Paris (2011)

Movie quotes:
John: Well, I’ll be perfectly frank. I’m excited about this corporate merger between our folks and the French company, but otherwise…I’m not a big Francophile.
Helen: John hates their politics.
John: Certainly been no friend of the United States.
Gil: Well, I mean, you can’t exactly blame them for not following us down that rabbit’s hole in Iraq with the whole Bush -
Inez: Oh please, let’s not get into that discussion again -
Gil: We’re not getting in – by the way, it’s fine for your father and me to disagree – that’s what a democracy is. Your father defends the right wing of the Republican Party and I happen to think you’ve almost got to be…like a demented lunatic, but it’s like -

At a glance:
Woody Allen parlays his love of art, history, and nostalgia to create a charming, Paris-based story of a Hollywood writer at the crossroads of his career

Our review (with spoilers):
Gil (Owen Wilson) and his fiancée Inez (Rachel McAdams) arrive in Paris to do some pre-wedding shopping. Gil is in love with the city, particularly with its rich history, while Helen just wants to buy things and return to the good old USA. This is a somewhat unlikely couple; they disagree on the big things, but importantly agree on liking pita bread. One night, while Gil is out walking, he is transported back in time to his cherished 1920s Paris. There, as well as meeting a number of famous artists and writers (for example, Ernest Hemingway) he is instantly attracted to the lovely Adriana (Marion Cotillard). Soon Gil is questioning the decisions he has made in the present as he falls in greater love with the past.

After numerous failures and partial successes, Woody Allen has again done what he has done so many times in the past: he has created a gentle, insightful, funny ‘film’. Almost anyone can create a handful of scenes, but Allen makes a coherent, singular object which tells a story and creates a character arc. Likewise, Owen Wilson rides this great script to produce an Oscar-worthy performance, full of natural joy, humor, and melancholy. There were tears in my eyes from his performance, and from the startling realization that Owen and Woody are back, baby!

Rating: 3.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Woody Allen must have had a great time writing this screenplay."
- Roger Ebert (Chicago Sun-Times)

"An effervescent, witty and absorbing tale lost in time ... Allen rekindles his character love affair that made him such a satisfying film-maker a couple of decades ago."
- Lisa Giles-Keddie (Real.com)

 

My Scary Girl (2006)

At a glance:
This Korean variation on So I Married An Axe Murderer and The 40 Year Old Virgin has enough originality, humor, and good performances to make it worthwhile

Our review (with spoilers):
This Korean variation on So I Married An Axe Murderer and The 40 Year Old Virgin benefits from reusing some of the same themes and presenting them within the context of non-western culture. Hwang Dae-woo (Yong-woo Park) is a studious, unusual man who has somehow made it to his thirties without ever dating a girl. Suddenly he gets the urge. He clumsily hooks up with Lee Mi-Na (Kang-hee Choi), a girl in his building who supposedly has similar interests. But she’s not only lying about her love of art and her study of design – she also has to lie even more when she starts killing various men.

The bulk of the humor is generated by Yong-woo Park’s offbeat, yelling performance. Later in the film, his quirks are mostly ironed out and Kang-hee Choi takes center stage, along with her annoying roommate (played by Eun-ji Jo). This sags the middle of the movie a little, but it improves near the end when the two prospective lovers come back together. It’s not a great film, but it is one with occasional laughs and some cultural originality.

Rating: 2.5 of 4

 

The Other Guys (2010)

Movie quotes:
Terry Hoitz: No, I don't like you. I think you're a fake cop. The sound of your piss hitting the urinal, it sounds feminine. If we were in the wild, I would attack you. Even if you weren't in my food chain, I would go out of my way to attack you. If I were a lion and you were a tuna, I would swim out in the middle of the ocean and freaking EAT you! And then I'd bang your tuna girlfriend.
Allen Gamble: OK, first off: a lion? Swimming in the ocean? Lions don't like water. If you placed it near a river or some sort of fresh water source, that make sense. But you find yourself in the ocean, 20 foot waves, I'm assuming off the coast of South Africa, coming up against a full grown 800 pound tuna with his 20 or 30 friends, you lose that battle, you lose that battle 9 times out of 10. And guess what, you've wandered into our school of tuna and we now have a taste of lion. We've talked to ourselves. We've communicated and said 'You know what? Lion tastes good, let's go get some more lion'. We've developed a system to establish a beach-head and aggressively hunt you and your family and we will corner your pride, your children, your offspring.
Terry Hoitz: How you gonna do that?
Allen Gamble: We will construct a series of breathing apparatus with kelp. We will be able to trap certain amounts of oxygen. It's not gonna be days at a time. But hour? Hour forty-five? No problem. That will give us enough time to figure out where you live, go back to the sea, get some more oxygen, and then stalk you. You just lost at your own game. You're outgunned and out-manned. [pause] Did that go the way you thought it was gonna go? Nope.

Terry Hoitz: Your farts aren't manly.
Allen Gamble: Are you serious?
Terry Hoitz: They sound like a baby blowing out birthday candles.

At a glance:
The Other Guys exploits the cop buddy template to produce some really big laughs, led by the deadpan delivery of Will Ferrell and the raw anger and frustration of Mark Wahlberg

Our review (with spoilers):
Two bumbling cops are teamed up, seemingly just so they can argue all the time. Allen (Will Ferrell) is happy to stay behind a desk and actually volunteers to do the paperwork for the flashier copy buddy teams. Terry (Mark Wahlberg) wants to get out there and be a star, but he’s burdened by his big mistake: while on duty at Yankee Stadium, he shot Derek Jeter, costing the Yankees the World Series. Through a complicated set of circumstances, Allen and Terry latch onto a case that could make or break their careers.

This is a gloriously mismatched buddy teaming. Ferrell gets into a serene nerd zone, while Walhberg is bottled up and seriously angry. If you know a little about Wahlberg’s past, you know that his anger is not acting – it’s behaving – and it feels genuine. And against Ferrell’s comedy deadpan, there’s something hilarious about it.

I don’t think I’ve laughed as hard in months as I did when Allen trumps Terry’s Lion Eats Tuna story with his long soliloquy detailing how he and his school of 800 pound tuna will stalk Terry’s Lion pride back up onto land using jury-rigged kelp to get oxygen. There is also a hilarious scene where Allen and his wife Sheila (Eva Mendez) compare their anal-centric how-did-they-meet story with the supposed anal-centric plot of You’ve Got Mail.

The Other Guys is not perfect. Like many comedies it cannot sustain that high laugh level, and when it gets serious in the second half, that isn’t nearly as much fun. But the laughs that are there are huge, and there’s good supporting comedy work from Michael Keaton and Steve Coogan.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"It runs out of steam in the final third but The Other Guys is constantly kept afloat by a grand cast that includes Michael Keaton as station captain Gene Mauch and Eva Mendes as Gamble's smoldering wife Sheila."
- Allan Hunter (Daily Express)

"There's a wealth of joyously berserk idiot humour, fusing slapstick and satire, surrealism and stream-of-consciousness improv into what could well prove the funniest movie of the year."
- Tom Huddleston (Time Out)

 

Horrible Bosses (2011)

Movie quotes:
Kurt: Then next thing you know, she makes herself a little snack. A Popsicle. Then – a banana. And finally – a hot dog. I mean, c’mon – three penis shaped foods? That – that can’t be a coincidence, right? And - and eating ‘em in that weird order – that’s not a proper meal.
Nick: That’s hot to cold.

Detective Hagan: You wanna explain why you were doing 61 in a 25 zone, one block from the victim’s house, just moments after he got shot dead.
Nick: I was drag racing. I’m a drag racer.
Detective Hagan: You were drag racing? In a Prius?
Nick: I don't win a lot.

Dale: if you didn’t murder someone, what did you do?
Muther Fucker: You guys ever seen the movie, ‘Snow Falling on Cedars’?
Kurt: No.
Nick: I’ve never seen it.
Dale: I love that movie.
Muther Fucker: What happened was, I took a video camera into the movie and I bootlegged it. They was waiting right outside the exit.
Nick; You did ten years for video piracy?
Muther Fucker: They take that shit so seriously.
Dale: Not that seriously.
Kurt: We’ve been taking murder advice from some guy whose biggest crime is taping an Ethan Hawke movie!
Muther Fucker: So you do know the movie.

At a glance:
While perhaps not as funny as the favorable reviews would indicate, Horrible Bosses still benefits from a good concept, some excellent over the top performances, and Jason Bateman’s trademark deadpan delivery

Our review (with spoilers):
Three male friends regularly meet in the bar after work to trade stories about their evil bosses. Nick (Jason Bateman) has been toiling under Dave Harken (Kevin Spacey) for a long time, with the carrot of a promotion dangling in front of him. When that promotion is denied, he is pushed over the edge. Kurt (Jason Sudeikis) is subject to the whims of a cokehead (an unrecognizable Colin Farrell) who regularly brings call girls into his office and makes no bones about his ultimate goal to bleed the company dry. Dale (Charlie Day) works for a female dentist (Jennifer Aniston) who is constantly flashing her body at him and trying to get him to have sex with her, even though he is engaged. Dale’s stories of abuse ("she keeps pushing her naked breasts in my face!") just don’t sound as bad as the stories told by the other guys. In any event, they all agree to off their bosses, and hire Muther Fucker Jones (Jamie Foxx), a scary looking black guy, to do the deed. Needless to say, complications of all types ensue. There’s a lot of mildly raunchy humor in this one, and some great scenery-chewing by Spacey and Aniston. And of course Jason Bateman is a standout for me with his low-key performance. But the other two ‘stars’ (Day and Sudeikis) aren’t up to a leading role in this type of film – and Bateman seems to play down to them, which diminishes his performance as well. In short, I didn’t laugh as much as I wanted to, but it had some great moments.

Rating: 2.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Seeks approval by establishing a sloppy routine of shock and improvisation, slapping viewers with pedestrian acts of misbehavior when something far more macabre was in order."
- Brian Orndorf (BrianOrndorf.com)

"The stars lack the charisma, the comic energy and the overall appeal of the A-listers playing supporting roles. That's a fundamental miscalculation."
- Robert Levin (Film School Rejects)

 

Heartbreaker (2010)

At a glance:
This unique French rom-com farce about a con artist who is paid to break up couples is funny, fast-moving, and a joy to watch from start to finish

Our review (with spoilers):
Movies are littered with compassionate con artists whose hearts are in the right place. Just like the hit men with hearts of gold, these types of people probably do not exist in real life. But I’ve got to admit I have a weakness for the sweet con artists in film. And no one could be sweeter than Alex (Romain Duris). Together with his sister and her goofy husband, their job is to use seduction to break up couples.

The film is wonderfully unconventional, and it is important that you stop reading right now if you haven’t seen it. It begins as a young woman leaves her obviously inferior fiancé by the pool. She wants to explore Marrekech and he wants to drink in a lounge chair and ogle women in wet t-shirts. She is driven to the dunes by a young man who provides medical supplies for needy children. The chemistry between them is instantaneous and strong. He doesn’t need to say much to get her to realize that her fiancé is not the right man for her. When they explore the desert dunes together and share a first kiss, this appears to be a romance film. But it ends there. Alex has done his job, and is not in this for love. The fiancé will be dumped; his mission is accomplished.

His next client is a bit more complicated. Juliette (Vanessa Paradis) and Jonathan (Andrew Lincoln) seem like a perfect couple. By masquerading as a hired bodyguard, Alex manages to get close enough to find out her foibles and fears, and in the process, he is surprised to find that he is falling in love.

Heartbreaker feels exotic if you are accustomed to Hollywood fare; Romain Duris’ scraggly beard and sneering but sincere smile are a welcome change from the leading men of Tinseltown. Light, and occasionally hilarious, it contains action, romance, glamour, and a little dirty dancing. When it ended, I felt I could have just started watching it all over again.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Manages to be such a pleasant little soufflé of a movie that it's hard not to like it on its own terms."
- Ken Hanke (Mountain Xpress - Asheville, NC)

 

Heartbreaker (2010)

At a glance:
This unique French rom-com farce about a con artist who is paid to break up couples is funny, fast-moving, and a joy to watch from start to finish

Our review (with spoilers):
Movies are littered with compassionate con artists whose hearts are in the right place. Just like the hitmen with hearts of gold, these types of people probably do not exist in real life. But I’ve got to admit I have a weakness for the sweet con artists in film. And no one could be sweeter than Alex (Romain Duris). Together with his sister and her goofy husband, their job is to use seduction to break up couples.

The film is wonderfully unconventional, and it is important that you stop reading right now if you haven’t seen it. It begins as a young woman leaves her obviously inferior fiancé by the pool. She wants to explore Marrekech and he wants to drink in a lounge chair and ogle women in wet t-shirts. She is driven to the dunes by a young man who provides medical supplies for needy children. The chemistry between them is instantaneous and strong. He doesn’t need to say much to get her to realize that her fiancé is not the right man for her. When they explore the desert dunes together and share a first kiss, this appears to be a romance film. But it ends there. Alex has done his job, and is not in this for love. The fiancé will be dumped; his mission is accomplished.

His next client is a bit more complicated. Juliette (Vanessa Paradis) and Jonathan (Andrew Lincoln) seem like a perfect couple. By masquerading as a hired bodyguard, Alex manages to get close enough to find out her foibles and fears, and in the process, he is surprised to find that he is falling in love.

Heartbreaker feels exotic if you are accustomed to Hollywood fare; Romain Duris’ scraggly beard and sneering but sincere smile are a welcome change from the leading men of Tinseltown. Light, and occasionally hilarious, it contains action, romance, glamour, and a little dirty dancing. When it ended, I felt I could have just started watching it all over again.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Manages to be such a pleasant little soufflé of a movie that it's hard not to like it on its own terms."
- Ken Hanke (Mountain Xpress - Asheville, NC)

Rubber (2010)

Movie quotes:
"You probably never gave it a moment’s thought, but all great films, without exception, contain an important element of ‘no reason’. And you know why? Because life itself is made up of tons of ‘no reason’."

At a glance:
Rubber twists the crazed killer horror theme by casting a malevolent tire in the lead role

Our review (with spoilers):
A tire awakens in a dump and becomes alive. Starting with baby steps, it soons learns to self-propel. It becomes evident that this tire has only one purpose – to kill everything it encounters. But it also yearns for companionship, and perhaps more – it spares a young woman it initially tried to kill, and instead watches her from a distance.

Also watching is a group of observers – an audience living in the desert, without food or water, who are given high-powered binoculars so they can watch this ‘movie’ as it unfolds. After a full day without food, their minder tosses them a cooked turkey to fight over. Soon, all are dead from food poisoning, except for one wheelchair-bound stalwart who seems wise to the motives of the movie creators.

To say Rubber is an original film would be a vast understatement. Starting slowly, it looks like it will strive for an ‘artsy’ approach. But this supposed ‘homage’ to the ‘no reason’ which is a part of all great films is also a semi-serious horror parody. Never has a movie been more dedicated to being self-aware. Rubber subtly and not-so-subtly takes shots at sheepish audiences, horror films, and actors. It doesn’t say much for your typical action/horror hero when they can be replaced by a steel-belted radial.

Rubber is not hilarious, nor is it perhaps as inciteful as it thinks it is – it’s brimming with self-satisfaction, and seems to be laughing as it tells its joke. But any flaws are amply covered by its exhilarating originality.

Rating: 2.75 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"It's an inventive, silly film when it hits a demented stride, supplying a fascinating blend of bloodshed and ludicrousness, making for a memorable romp with a most improbable killer."
- Brian Orndorf (BrianOrndorf.com)

Please Give (2010)

At a glance:
Writer/director Nicole Holofcener expertly creates characters that portray the difference between caring, pity, and indifference in this gentle New-York-based comedy/drama

Our review (with spoilers):
Wonderful slice of life dramedy about Kate and Alex (Catherine Keener and Oliver Platt), a middle aged couple  who live quite nicely by buying furniture from the children of recently deceased New Yorkers. Kate’s got a conscience, however, that is being exposed by her incessant profit-taking. It isn’t helped when she and Alex buy the next door apartment and have to deal with the ‘direct’ elderly woman (Ann Morgan Guilbert) who lives in it, along with her very different twenty-something daughters.

There are poignant moments as well as some laugh out loud ones in this gentle drama. Keener and Platt are both wonderful, but it was especially great to see Guilbert (who started her career long ago as Millie Helper on The Dick Van Dyke Show) still going. There also good supporting work from Rebecca Hall, Elise Ivy, and Sarah Steele. This is my first acquaintance with writer/director Nicole Holofcener, and it was a pleasant one.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Nicole Holofcener, who writes the most interesting female characters in the movies, delivers another dazzling role to her muse, Catherine Keener, in Please Give, a delightfully dry dramedy about guilt."
- Roger Moore (Orlando Sentinel)

Scott Pilgrim vs The World (2010)

Movie quotes:
Wallace Wells: If you want something bad, you have to fight for it. Step up your game, Scott. Break out the L-word.
Scott Pilgrim: Lesbian?
Wallace Wells: The other L-word.
Scott Pilgrim: ...Lesbians?

"You made me swallow my gum! That's going to be in my digestive tract for seven years!"
- Gideon Gordon Graves

Stacey Pilgrim: I mean, did you really see a future with this girl?
Scott Pilgrim: Like... with jetpacks.

Envy Adams: You are incorrigible.
Todd Ingram: I don't know the meaning of the word.
[Text on screen]: He really doesn't.

At a glance:
Michael Cera is wonderful as a neurotic nerd who fights like a video game character against the evil ex’s of his new girlfriend

Our review (with spoilers):
Extremely original film, that obviously feels faithful to the source graphic novel, about a nerdy bass player (the inimitable Michael Cera) who has to fight seven of his new girlfriend’s ex’s if he wants to be with her. Complicating things are his other current high school girlfriend, his band members (which also include an ex-girlfriend), and his gay room-mate, with whom he shares a tiny apartment, a single bed often filled with his room-mate’s boyfriends. Fights, music, and characters are enhanced by words describing the sounds or by on-screen captions. In some ways, it is almost a perfect film: geared toward a young audience, but accessible and vibrantly enjoyable to anyone., with too many funny and memorable lines to remember.

Rating: 3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Some might see it as a great hipster parable, a postmodern epic for the Nintendo generation; I think it's simply a triumph of dizzying cinematic style, and it never misses a beat."
- Josh Hurst (Christianity Today)

The Joneses (2009)

At a glance:
Consumer culture is skewered in this fabled love story about an unusual family dedicated to getting their acquaintances to buy

Our review (with spoilers):
An affluent suburb in Somewhere, America, has just received a new resident family moving in. Steve and Kate Jones (David Duchovny and Demi Moore) and their two high school aged kids are comely, happy, friendly, and have all the latest clothes, accessories, furnishings, gadgets, and cars – and don’t mind showing them off. They seem to get just a little more chuffed when people they mix with buy the same items they are flaunting. What’s going on here? Is this just normal viral consumerism, or is it something more?

The Joneses’ script relies on one big important secret, and the reveal used to hint at the secret involves the daughter and is quite ingenious – and perverse. And the Joneses success or failure as a film relies on the acquired taste of Duchovny’s underplayed desire for love and family. It works for me, especially when it is balanced by Moore’s similarly underplayed desires. On the surface, she’s all – or mostly – business. But her eyes tell a different story. Both of these people can act. And Duchovny’s easygoing charm perfectly offsets Moore’s slowly eroding ambition.

This latter day Duchovny reminds me more and more of a good friend of mine from my bowling days, Ron Wagner. Ron has the same easygoing charm and nonchalant attitude about almost everything, punctuated by bursts of enthusiasm. Like Duchovny’s Steve Jones, Ron also would have found his enthusiasm stoked by Demi Moore, whose looks and confidence are appealing.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Moore looks fabulous in a role that plays to her strengths as a feisty, independent woman, and she generates on-screen heat with Duchovny to make the conventional happy ending easier to swallow."
- Catherine Jones (Liverpool Echo)

She’s Out of My League (2010)

Movie quotes:
Jack: You know what your problem is Kirk?
Kirk: What?
Jack: You’re a moodle.
Kirk: A moodle?
Jack: A man/poodle. Girls want to take you out on a walk, they want to feed you, cuddle you, but – no girl…wants to do the moodle.

At a glance:
‘League’ starts with a hilarious, original and quirky insightful comedy, but falters when it insists on becoming a more conventional rom-com.

Our review (with spoilers):
Kirk (Jay Baruchel) is a plain looking guy with mild ambitions and medium-level self esteem. Up to now he has settled for a go nowhere airport security job and a cuckold girlfriend. But through circumstance, he becomes friends with fresh-faced beauty Molly (Alice Eve). Against all odds, Molly begins to fall in love with him. And even though everything is going right, Kirk purposefully foils the relationship due to his own lack of confidence.

There are very few great films. Most are flawed in one or more ways, of course. She’s Out of My League is tantalizingly frustrating in this regard, because it is one of those films where the first 40 minutes or so is everything one would want from a comedy. But as sometimes happens, the entire script is not great. There are 40 minutes of great jokes combined with fantastic comic casting. ‘League’ is in many respects a by-the-numbers rom-com, but Baruchel is unique, Eve is well cast and well-performed, and the supporting cast is a deep well of quirk. But League’s need to be by-the-numbers also does it in. Baruchel’s fumbling of the relationship is not believable – not after so many scenes where he had done so well in this regard. Some of his goofs are pale imitations of similar scenes from better films. And the jokes run out when the romance gets more serious. Still, you’re not going to see a better 40 minute snippet of rom-com for some time – so it’s still worth it. And Kirk’s outrageous dad, brother, ex-girlfriend, and their hockey-related humor is priceless.

Rating:  2.75 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Every time I thought it was developing a comic pace, it would stumble, most notably in a few extended, ridiculous gross-out scenes late in the film."
- Brian Tallerico [Movie Retriever]

I Love You Phillip Morris (2009)

At a glance:
Jim Carrey throws his all at playing famous con man Steven Russell in this lighthearted, sometimes hilarious romp through scams, prison, and love

Our review (with MAJOR spoilers):
Note: Please watch the movie first before reading any further!

Steven Russell (Jim Carrey) presents a compelling argument for nurture versus nature. Abandoned as a child, his life is shaped by deception and lies. He seems to be happily, passionately married to Debbie (Leslie Mann), but he’s living a double life. Some of his hidden moves are on the other side of the law. When he is arrested and incarcerated, he meets and falls in love with fellow inmate Phillip (Ewan McGregor), a sweet man whose naive nature has been taken advantage of before. Steven swears to protect him, but the only way he knows how is with money made from scams. Of course, that ends up having the opposite effect.

The film’s first 20 minutes are absolutely hilarious, especially if you have not been spoiled by a review like this one. Directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa set a buoyant, lighthearted tone, deviate from it when required, and return to it, making for a true start-to-finish film experience. There are a couple of moments that may offend some people by making light of illness – but comedy does that sometimes – and it’s worth it for the surprise. Plus it’s based on a true story.

This is a wondrous starring role for Carrey, who gets to combine his gift for comedy (and, occasionally, his talent for bending his body into amusing shapes) with his latter day ability to create a sincere character. McGregor, one of my favorite actors, gets to play gay ‘straight’ here – not taking part in the comic side of things at all. Carrey’s character is based on a true person/story – check out the Steven Jay Russell wiki article for more information.

Rating:  3.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"It's the comic role of a lifetime for Jim Carrey, who apparently worked for union rates in order to help the film get made."
- Catherine Bray (Film4)

Defendor (2009)

Movie quotes:
"When you break the law, you’re a punk. When you break the law with a badge, you’re a punk with a badge. I don’t strike officers. Punks…different story."
- Defendor

At a glance:
Woody Harrelson’s Forrest Gump like performance as a mentally challenged superhero has some amusing moments, but the emotional impact just isn’t there

Our review (with spoilers):
Arthur Poppington (Woody Harrelson) is a simple-minded man named who lives on the fringes of society and believes that when he dons his moniker (Defendor), his black eye makeup mask and elaborate hand-made costume, he’s a better man – and a superhero. He fights crime, corruption, and bullying wherever he finds it in the big city, and in this fictional big city amalgamation of all big cities, it’s easy to find.

Defendor’s powers are somewhat limited (marbles, an ancient bully club, and swarms of hornets) ; his crime-fighting forays often earn him a beating – but there’s no doubt he has the heart and the morals of a superhero. His simple-minded quest to find and defeat ‘Captain Industry’ is not some comic-fueled fantasy, however: it is a deep need within him based on facts from his childhood. And Captain Industry is a real, dangerous drug dealer and cold-blooded killer; it seems like Defendor is in way over his head this time.

During his quest, he is adopted (or vice versa) by Kat (Kat Denning) a young hooker who alternates between doing drugs and dealing with some rough johns. Kat moves in with him for a fee – she provides info on Captain Industry - and their symbiotic relationship slowly grows into a deeper friendship.

Defendor the movie isn’t wholly successful, perhaps because it can’t seem to decide if it wants to poke fun at or sanctify its hero. Through glimpses of Arthur’s childhood, we see a truly sad story of a boy who is neglected and never nurtured. But then, the film itself treats him in a similar manner. Likewise, undercover narc Chuck Dooney (Elias Koteas) is treated similarly – his character is written to be s stupid as to be completely unbelievable. I enjoyed Harrelson’s performance, but the emotional punch just wasn’t there for me. I connected more with Michael Kelly’s supporting work as Arthur’s concerned, brotherly employer.

Rating:  2.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"The low-budget movie continually shifts from comic-book spoof to gritty crime story to mental-health drama, the inconsistent tone preventing it from ever fully working as one or another."
- David Germain (Associated Press)

A Serious Man (2009)

Movie quotes:
Clive Park: Very difficult... very difficult...
Larry Gopnik: Well, I... I'm sorry, but I... what do you propose?
Clive Park: Passing grade.
Larry Gopnik: No no, I...
Clive Park: Or perhaps I can take the mid-term again. Now I know it covers mathematics.
Larry Gopnik: Well, the other students wouldn't like that, would they, if one student gets to retake the test till he gets a grade he likes?
Clive Park: Secret test.
Larry Gopnik: No, I'm afraid...
Clive Park: Hush-hush.

"That's right, things aren't so bad. Look at the parking lot, Larry. Just look at that parking lot."
- Rabbi Scott

At a glance:
A Serious Man, another original entry in the Coen Brother’s oeuvre, uses black humor to prove the futility of contemplating the meaning of your life

Our review (with spoilers):
Larry (Michael Stuhlbarg) is a serious man, and his life is about to unravel, much to his surprise. His tenure is jeopardized by a student who offers him a bribe, and by anonymous letters written to the tenure committee. His wife informs him that things have not been good for some time, and, of course, she has developed a friendship and a bit more with Sy Ableman (Fred Melamed). It’s only logical that Larry move out so as not to disrupt the lives of the two children, one of whom, Danny (Aaron Wolff) is about to be barmitzvahed. Normally, it would be fortunate to be having these kinds of problems and to be Jewish as well, for the Jews can turn to their strong communal faith, and to the shared wisdoms of their rabbis, for guidance (although in this case, the only help Larry receives from his rabbis is in the form of obscure metaphors about parking lots, or unrelated anecdotes about goy teeth.

The Coen brothers have created a wonderful anti-Hollywood movie. Unconcerned with the narrative or with any kind of standard, expected beginning, middle or end, they instead lead you on a journey through a slice of life / collection of vignettes. Some of the best parts of the journey are populated by the lovely, softly deep, mesmerizing voice of Melamed. And, as usual, the Coens have assembled an unusual looking and unusually talented cast of actors (another standout is Sari Lennick as Larry’s wife Judith).

There’s a higher level of accessibility to this Coen Brothers' offering. We can all relate to how that unpredictable thing called life throws random events at us and tasks us to deal with them as best we can – which sometimes is not very well.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"If there is a moral to this story, it is that trying to make sense of life is a foolish endeavor doomed to failure."
- Robert Roten (Laramie Movie Scope)

Up in the Air (2009)

Movie quotes:
"You’re so pretty. You’re exactly what I want to look like in fifteen years."
- Natalie (to Alex)

Ryan: You know that moment when you look into somebody’s eyes and you can feel them staring into your soul and the whole world goes quiet just for a second?
Natalie: Yes.
Ryan: Right. Well, I don’t.

At a glance:
Geaorge Clooney’s Ryan Bingham is a dedicated air traveler who shuns commitments until his ‘empty backpack’ life is affected by love and family, and a sudden need for companionship

Our review (with spoilers):
When I was about to embark recently on at overseas trip, I agonized about having to go through those security checkpoints. I always seem to be so slow to prepare before and to gather all my belongings after – and I can’t seem to work out what goes in the trays, what stays out, and what has to be taken off. And I’m always forgetting to remove some metal object from a pocket or wrist. When I got to LA, I noticed there were two lines: one for casual travelers and one for seasoned travelers. I got on the casual line but I tracked a confident guy in the seasoned line: the way he grabbed three trays, not two; the way he almost slammed the trays down on the conveyor (that seemed to be important); exactly what he removed and how, and where he placed the removals. There’s a similar scene in Up in the Air, where we watch seasoned traveler Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) as he seamlessly preps for security.

Ryan is more than a seasoned traveler. He’s one of the most traveled travelers in the world. He travels 322 days a year, and he always loyally flies American Airlines. He’s about to be the youngest ever American Airlines 10 million miler – a personal goal that means way too much for him. When he touches down, his job is as a professional firer – he flies in fire batches of employees, and then flies out. Needless to say, Ryan’s company is one of the few in the USA that is experiencing a boom.

Ryan has no family, no commitments, and virtually no home. He lives in the air. He is so content with his lifestyle that he pushes his way of life in lectures, and he’s writing a self-help book called "What’s in your Backpack?" But Ryan’s cocoon is about to be punctured. First, he begins a slightly more than casual relationship with fellow traveler Alex (Vera Famiga). Ryan begins to develop stronger feelings toward Alex that go beyond their shared love of the air and their attraction to customer loyalty and credit cards. At the same time, Natalie (Anna Kendrick), a sharp young consultant, is about to convert the army of flying terminators into desk jockeys who fire people remotely using teleconferencing. Ryan’s boss Craig (Jason Bateman) is already convinced that this change should be made, but he first asks Ryan to take Natalie with him on the job to show her how it works.

Up in the Air, expertly directed by the talented Jason Reitman, presents the contrast of youth and experience, family and freedom, job security and job termination, and extreme idealism versus extreme pragmatism. These broad stroke themes are not preached, but are hidden within a well-written story peppered with moments both touching and hilarious.

Clooney has shaped his career by playing handsome, emotionally challenged characters, but there is always an inner depth to the personas he creates. Outward, Ryan appears to be callous; we suspect, and the not-so-subtle signs are there, that inside he realizes he is missing something. The story is ambiguous enough to leave us wondering just how much effect these events had on this man, and we leave wondering whether or not he will continue to fly above us in the night.

Rating:  3.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"It's refreshing to hear characters that display some verbal dexterity and a script that moves cleverly along, entertaining us as it actually works to develop its characters and themes."
- Beth Accomando (KPBS.org)

Funny People (2009)

Movie quotes:
"I masturbate so much with hand cream, I forget people use it for shit other than masturbating. Literally, when I'm in public and I see someone pull out hand cream, I'm like "This guy's about to jerk off!""
- Ira Wright

"I know you sound like a regular joe where you come from, but here, I keep…thinking you’re going to be…torturing James Bond later."
- George Simmons to a thick-accented doctor

Clarke: Little fucka, little fucka, off to a big fucka, then he’s gonna go down to another big fucka, I hate that big fucka…
George: Where are the black guys?
[Clarke and George, watching Aussie Rules football]

At a glance:
There’s plenty of funny and raunchy jokes to cover up the maudlin sentimentality of Funny People

Our review (with spoilers):
George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is a phenomenally successful comedian who has made millions, but he has no friends and no love in his life. He blew his one chance at true love when he cheated on Laura (Leslie Mann). When he finds out that he is dieing from a blood disease, he begins to re-evaluate his car-collecting, groupie-banging philosophy. He takes young comic Ira Wright (Seth Rogen) under his wing. Ira is an employee but is still the closest thing George has to a friend. Complications set in when George’s experimental medicines cure him. He sees this as a second chance in life, and buoyed on by Laura’s dissatisfaction with her marriage, he makes a play for her – despite the fact that she has two daughters and a crazed Australian husband (played with hilarious vigor by Eric Bana) who will kill George if he finds out they are having an affair.

Adam Sandler has created the perfect movie – in some ways. For Sandler fans, they will find him hilarious (I suppose). For Sandler non-fans, he seems to be playing the exact person that we have come to know and not love: a guy who is successful but not very funny. It seemed to me that Sandler gave all of the funnier lines to the other comics – and there are many great comics in the film. This movie has that same feel as The Last Action Hero: a big star trying to parody himself. (It’s also overlong like The Last Action Hero). It doesn’t always work, but there are so many (mostly raunchy) laughs that you can forgive when the romance or schmaltz doesn’t work. Bana is particular is great – as a transplanted American in Australia, I loved the scene when he explains Aussie Rules football in his own unique terms. Overall, I’ve given it a high rating because of its ambitions, even if it fails sometimes in the storytelling.

Rating:  3 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Funny People has some very funny moments but don't expect a joke fest. And don't expect a tight film either. At two and a half hours, it is not one but two films... and at least one of them shouldn't have been made."
- Giles Hardie (Sydney Morning Herald)

"The first part of the film is terrific and very funny. Apatow perfectly captures the ruthless competitiveness of young comics."
- Cosmo Landesman (Sunday Times [UK])

Extract (2009)

Movie quotes:
Dean: Look, you know what you need to do?
Joel: I don’t need any more drugs.
Dean: Dude, I know I kid about a lot, and I’m a little bit of a character, but I’m serious right now. This is real advice, okay? So I want you to listen to me. You should try smoking a little pot.
Joel: That’s a drug.
Dean: It’s not a drug. It’s a flower.

At a glance:
It’s a match made in heaven: Mike Judge (Office Space) and Jason Bateman (Arrested Development) team up to provide a tale that is high on quirkiness and perhaps a bit low on laugh-out-loud moments

Our review (with spoilers):
If you are familiar with the television series Arrested Development, then you already know that there is no one better for playing the sarcastic straight man to a parade of quirky sidekicks than Jason Bateman. Here, Bateman is Joel, the struggling owner of a profit-challenged factory staffed by quirky characters. When they are not bickering or accusing each other of theft, they produce concentrated fruit and nut extracts. Although Joel has plenty of problems involving the business, probably his most pressing issue is his ongoing sexless marriage, and a possible solution: his new-found attraction to Cindy (Mila Kunis), a young woman who is enamored with him but perhaps has ulterior motives.

The funniest scenes involve the byplay between Joel and Dean (Ben Affleck). Affleck shows his comedic talents playing a new-age druggie bartender, and Bateman, in these scenes, is closest to the hilarious role he played on Arrested Development, where he would team up with eccentric characters and respond to every line with a comeback of his own. But most of the other supposed humorous moments in the film are jokes about promiscuity. Most of these jokes are not that funny, and although the cast of characters are quirky, they don’t elicit laughs.

Writer/director Mike Judge achieved tremendous cult success with his little film called Office Space back in 1991. Office Space probably had broader appeal because it focused on the downtrodden office workers, whereas the ‘hero’ here is in management.

Rating:  2.75 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"Smart and affable, but not laugh-out-loud funny. A comedy shouldn't be as grounded as this. Since it's coming from Mike Judge, you expect it to fly."
- Christopher Smith (Bangor Daily News [Maine])

Zombieland (2009)

Movie quotes:
"I haven't cried like that since Titanic!"
- Tallahassee

"I could tell she knew what I was feeling, we all are orphans in Zombieland."
- Columbus

"You're like a giant... cock blocking robot, like developed in a secret fucking government lab."
- Columbus (to Tallahassee)

Tallahassee: Sno-Balls? Sno-Balls? Where the fuck are the God damn Twinkies?
Columbus: I love Sno-Balls.
Tallahassee: I hate coconut. Not the flavor, but the consistency.

Columbus: You know there's a place untouched by all this crap?
Tallahassee: Out east, yeah?
Columbus: Yeah.
Tallahassee: Out west, we hear it's out east, out east they hear it's out west. It's all bullshit. It's like you're a penguin at the North Pole hears the South Pole is real nice this time of year.
Columbus: There are no penguins in the North Pole.
Tallahassee: You wanna feel how hard I can punch?

Tallahassee: [referring to Wichita and Little Rock, who previously hijacked them] They're in the back, aren't they?
Little Rock: [pops up holding shotgun] Just me.
Tallahassee: You got taken hostage by a little girl?
Columbus: She was like a crouching tiger...
Tallahassee: She's twelve!
Columbus: Well, girls mature way faster than boys. She's way ahead of where I was at that age.
Little Rock: Twelve's the new twenty.

"No! She's only famous when she's Hannah Montana! She's only famous when she's wearing the wig!"
- Little Rock (to Tallahassee)

"In those moments where you're not quite sure if the undead are really dead, dead, don't get all stingy with your bullets. I mean, one more clean shot to the head, and this lady could have avoided becoming a human Happy Meal. Woulda... coulda... shoulda."
- Columbus

Little Rock: Have you heard about Pacific Playland? There are no zombies there.
Columbus: The amusement park?
Little Rock: Yep!
Tallahassee: That place totally blows!
[Little Rock and Wichita shoot Tallahassee angry looks]
Tallahassee: ... my mind. Just fun for the whole family.

Little Rock: [as Bill Murray is dying] Do you have any regrets?
Bill Murray: Garfield maybe.

At a glance:
Even non-gore fans will love the constant laughs and the smart scripting of Zombieland

Our review (with spoilers):
Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg, channeling Michael Cera) never liked people very much, anyway, so when mad cow disease turns almost everyone into cannibal zombies, he doesn’t miss the human company all that much. His loner life and anal retentiveness has prepared him to be a survivor. He lives by a long list of rules like "Don’t be a hero" and "Double Tap" (don’t spare ammunition – always shoot until the zombies are dead). Still, he misses his parents and hopes that his home town of Columbus was spared. As he heads there, he meets a cowboy-hat-wearing non-zombie: Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson). Tallahassee’s ‘no fear’ attitude compliments the phobias of Columbus. These guys seem to be savvy survivors, but in a moment of weakness, they are scammed by two con artist sisters, Wichita and Little Rock (Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin). For a while, the battle between human and zombie is usurped by the feud between the guys and the girls.

Zombieland has it all: the movement of a road movie, a witty and often hilarious script, a coming of age story for Columbus, and vomiting, bleeding-from-the-mouth, ravenous zombies. There’s also a big surprise ‘guest’ appearance when the non-zombies choose a Beverly Hills mansion as a rest stop – and I’ve already said too much about that. There are also some quirky touches – like everyone except the big star is referred to by their home. Columbus even calls his first ‘girlfriend’ by her apartment number (406).

Brimming with topical pop humor and movie in-jokes, Zombieland is laugh-inducing – and sometimes stomach-churning – from start to finish, often at the same moments. I am not at all a fan of gore, but if every gore movie was as funny and as well-written as Zombieland, I’d watch them all.

Rating: 3.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"This spoof on the zombie genre literally and figuratively is killer. It's laugh-out-loud funny, the gore is beautifully over-the-top, and the wicked script is laced with a cutting wit."
- Christopher Smith (Bangor Daily News [Maine]

"Very funny, often thrilling and full of neat little touches that should make it entirely rewatchable, Zombieland sees Fleischer join the ranks of directors – Romero, Wright, Raimi, Snyder – whose first films aren’t just zombie films, but great films."
- Chris Hewitt [UK] Empire Magazine

Whatever Works (2009)

Movie quotes:
Perry: She explained to me your theory about life being meaningless.
Boris: Don’t let it spoil your evening.

Boris: It’s uncanny. She exactly the kind of moron you described.
Marietta: You are not the gentleman I was expecting.
Boris: I’m sure not. I’m sure you’d be happy if she married the guy who caught the biggest catfish in Plakemun County.
Marietta: I’d be happier if she married the catfish.

Melodie: Oh, wait…I always carry some Viagra with me.
Randy: That’s alright, I eat a lot of red meat.

John: Who are you?
Boris: I’m her husband. You wanna pass out here, or go in the living room.

John: I can handle the truth: does she hate me?
Melodie: That was a pretty awful thing you did with her best friend.
John: Then she hates me?
Boris: Yes, yes, she hates you! I can’t stand it! I hate you and I just met you!

At a glance:
Although still a faded copy of his greatest films, Whatever Works has perfect casting and enough humor and pathos to rate as Woody Allen’s most successful movie in many years

Our review (with spoilers):
Woody Allen never gets  tired of telling the same Pygmalion-style story. An older, neurotic, intelligent Jewish man crosses paths with a much younger woman – a girl, really. She’s not too bright and she’s naïve, but she’s eager, sincere, and she learns quickly. And, of course, she’s beautiful. She’s easily influenced by this supposedly more intelligent older man, a man who is generous but complains about it. Allen’s script isn’t often funny, but it has two obvious strong points. One: Larry David has the ideal look, personality, and delivery to play the Allen character. He’s got a great ‘I don’t care if I’m funny’ going for him. Two: Evan Rachel Wood is a truly charming screen presence who refuses to play the role as a typical ‘Allen female’ clone. There are a few laugh-out-loud moments, and some heartfelt speeches about life and love. What doesn’t work are the gay jokes, and John’s (Ed Begley Jr.) lightning fast coming out transformation. Don’t compare this to early Allen – it’s obvious now that he’ll never make ‘em like he used to – but for latter-day, Allen, it is the funniest he has written since Mighty Aphrodite in 1995. I’d like to call it a comeback, but this is tempered by the fact that Allen pulled the script from a bottom drawer where it had been sitting since the 1970s.

Rating:  2.5 of 4

Other reviewers said:
"[Larry] David's human sandpaper delivery gives a full, deep voice to Allen's reckless misanthropy."
- Sean Burns (Philadelphia Weekly)