Ten Quick Thoughts on...Beginners

1. Would probably call this a fairly average low-budget indie. I didn't think it was a bad movie, but now that I am getting time to write about it, I am struggling to come up with much to say. It certainly didn't stick with me in any sort of lasting way.

2. The film is directed by Mike Mills, who also made the film Thumbsucker, which I am almost 100 percent sure you never heard of. The film, which is about a graphic designer/album artist struggling to move on in the wake of the death of his father who had recently came out about his homosexuality, is largely autobiographical. And yet he makes no mention of his stint as the bassist of R.E.M. Odd.

Ten Quick Thoughts on...Horrible Bosses

1. My wife actually thought this flick was better than Bridesmaids. I definitely didn't think that Bridesmaids was as spectacular as most people did, but I would have to agree to disagree with her on that thought. It had a few funny moments, but for the most part it was run-of-the-mill.

2. Definitely think it is past time for the whole "get a bunch of funny guys together, throw out the script, and let the actors improv the whole movie" school of filmmaking to go away. Sometimes the jokes are funny, but for the most part it just seems like what it is: guys indulging themselves, throwing stuff at the wall trying to see if anything sticks. Guess we have to blame Judd Apatow for this new genre?

3. How bummed is Jason Bateman that Arrested Development didn't just run forever. Ever since that show went away, he has been stuck doing idiotic movies with actors that have nowhere near the smarts and comic timing that he is capable of generating. Not to say that he is good in the flick. Basically, he just seemed bored.

4. Jason Sudeikis is not a movie star. But then again, I'm not even prepared to say that he has ever been hilarious on TV. Has he ever created an indelible character on Saturday Night Live? The fact that he actually pops up in movies is kind of inexplicable. Who is he bringing to the box office?

5. Charlie Day was OK. He pretty much recycled his shtick from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Of course, he's much bettter there since the material is hilarious, brave and unpredictable, while this one is the same buddy movie you've seen a million times over.

6. Colin Farrell WAS actually horrible in this movie. So was the person who made his hairpiece. It actually looked like he was wearing a football helmet. I'm not sure the "director" should actually get a director credit in this movie. Farrell was basically able to do pretty much anything he wanted with his wild-eyed character and I would say that maybe 12.74 percent of his antics were funny. Not a good percentage.

7. In the literal definition of the term "Oh, how far the mighty have fallen," Kevin Spacey pops up as Bateman's boss. He has decent moments, but for the most part, he sort of just stands there with a look that says, "For f*ck's sake, why can't Alan Ball write another decent part for me so I can stop doing dumbazz roles in forgettable movies?"

8. I could repeat the same exact paragraph for Jamie Foxx only he never acted in a film written by Alan Ball and he didn't play Bateman's boss. Instead he played an ex-con named M*therf*cker Jones. Let's just say, it's a long way from Ray (in which his performance was overrated and he stole Leonardo DiCaprio's Oscar for The Aviator). I'm scared that he will soon be acting in Tyler Perry movies.

9. Probably giving the best performance in the film is Jennifer Aniston, who plays wonderfully against type as a dentist who has the hots for Day's attached dental assistant. She is actually a hoot as she sprays Day's crotch with water, mounts patients while they are knocked out, and generally makes you wonder why Day wouldn't just get with her and dump his mousy spouse. I mean, she's a little psycho, but still. She looks like Jennifer Aniston.

10. By the way, remember way back when Angelina Jolie stole Aniston's man and everybody was taking sides as to who they were backing in the conflict. Team Aniston vs. Team Jolie! Well, take a look at Aniston in this movie. Then take a look at Angelina Jolie at just about any award show she appears at these days. Or more like any awards show where her skeleton appears. There's no doubt about it, man. Brad Pitt done picked the wrong horse.

--

The Pizza Project
Just a nibble: http://twitter.com/ThePizzaProject
Single slice: http://www.facebook.com/ThePizzaProject
The full pie: http://thepizzaproject.blogspot.com/

Ten Quick Thoughts on...Crazy, Stupid, Love.

1. For the most part, this is a quality relationship comedy. The first 90 minutes (or so) of its two-hour running time is witty and fun, but it kind of falls off the wheels in the final half-hour and gets ridiculously cheesy in parts. The ending seeks to tie up way too many bows, and it just doesn't work.

2. I've liked Ryan Gosling in stuff he's done before (Blue Valentine jumps quickly to mind) and after seeing his performance as a highly skilled lothario in this one I am excited to see some of the other movies he put out this year, such as The Ides of March and Drive. The guy just seems like the consummate movie star. He is equally efficient in comedy and drama, and he simply exudes charm. He strikes me as the type of guy who has the potential to become as huge as a George Clooney or a Brad Pitt. I simply wonder if he will be willing to do the sort of schlock that they had to do early in their careers before they gained the ability to hand-pick their scripts and directors (although he may already be there). For examples of Clooney and Pitt schlock, see One Fine Day and Meet Joe Black, respectively.

Ten Quick Thoughts about...True Grit (2010)

1) I am certainly not a fan of the whole sequel/remake/reboot fascination that is running rampant through Hollywood in this foul era of our cinema (heard today they are remaking Total Recall), but this is one that I think was well worth the effort. Supposedly, the film is more loyal to the intent of the book than the 1969 version that starred John Wayne so it doesn’t really count as a remake; it is better termed a reinterpretation (I must be honest and say that I have not read the novel by Charles Portis, nor have I seen the entire film – saw enough to see that John Wayne was good fun, but probably not award-worthy, and that the girl playing Mattie Ross was kind of annoying and awkward). In any event, the new version is a strong story of retribution with the customary dark wit of the Coen Brothers.