I knew the Sex and the City screening was going to be some kind of surreal experience. Here I am, a 26-year-old straight male – the last demographic on the planet for this material – and I’m supposed to sit through two hours of girly girl tripe. Granted, Sex and… Continue reading
Harold & Kumar go to White Castle came out of nowhere and exceeded most people’s expectations four years ago. While a good portion of the country didn’t even know what White Castle was (as a native Ohioan, I’m more than familiar with the infamous “sliders”), the film nevertheless grew a… Continue reading
I realize the divorce rate is 50% here in the States, but does that mean that nearly every Indie flick has to be about dysfunctional families? I’ve had about enough of these sad sack snobs – and as a film critic I’m supposed to be one! Smart People, whose title… Continue reading
I have no doubt that a 70’s funk-style basketball comedy starring Will Ferrell with giant, frizzy hair sounded great at a pitch meeting. Had a script been written, I’m confident that we could have had a great comedy on our hands. Instead, we get what largely looks to be drawn-out… Continue reading
Ah, the romantic comedy. I have a love/hate relationship with this drama, as it does have the capacity to spew out some of the worst garbage of the year. When done, correctly, however, it can be one of the most winning trips to the movies couples can make. How is… Continue reading
I’ll give Martin Lawrence credit; the dude tries. That’s more than can be said for a lot of so-called comedians out there, but why must he continually subject himself (and us) to these sappy, over-the-top, slapstick-riddled sitcoms-turned-movies? Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins really only differentiates itself from Lawrence’s past few efforts… Continue reading
What’s with this trend where sitcoms get to be movies? It’s one thing to adapt a sitcom or TV show (and it’ll more than likely be a big mistake), but to deliberately take ideas and scripts that would barely pass a Screenwriting 101 class and green light them for the… Continue reading
27 Dresses is about as standard of romantic comedy fare as you can get, but some very likable and funny performances push it into recommendation territory. Best of all, it doesn’t resort to poorly-executed slapstick (okay, it does a little) or preachy anti-male tirades for laughs. Sure it’s predictable, but… Continue reading
A SNL skit stretched out by about eighty-five minutes, First Sunday is a comedy of the most desperate type. It goes for slapstick. When that doesn’t work it tries one-liners. When that doesn’t work it goes for sentimentality. Stuck in the middle are Ice Cube and Tracy Morgan, two occasionally… Continue reading
Confusions of an Unmarried Couple is my first encounter with the Butler Brothers, who are quickly rising in the Indie ranks with their talky, and often profane, films about relationships and sex. My initial feeling after the screening was as if I had just discovered a stock that’s about to… Continue reading