Kristen Wiig. You left SNL for this? "Bridesmaids" was a huge hit and worth every amount of praise it received. But this one? Not worth the $8 I paid for it (But I did get free Skittles).
The Plot
Kristen Wiig starts off as this successful-like woman with a boyfriend and wildly successful friends. Quickly her boyfriend leaves her and she gets fired from her job at a magazine. She tries to look like she has committed suicide early in the film by taking a sleeping pill, complete with a very well written suicide note. She gets thrown into the hospital and eventually back into her childhood home with her gambling-obsessed mother (Annette Bening), her socially awkward loner brother (Christopher Fitzgerald), her mother's mysterious younger boyfriend (Matt Dillon), and a hunky guy who is renting out Wiig's old room (Darren Criss). The story is all about her learning to love her family, herself, blah, blah, blah.
The Cast
Wiig struggles for laughs. Struggles. I don't necessarily think it is all her fault (I think that is all on the snooze fest of a script), but I do blame her for being in this below average film.
Bening was pretty good as a crazy horrible parent, but not memorable enough for me to care to write much about her.
Dillon's character is perfect for him. Though I have this inkling that he is playing himself...
Criss IS playing himself- the happy-go-lucky talented singer who everyone loves. Yeah, that pretty much sums him up.
The Message
It's hard to see under all this depression. That is 99.9% of this movie. Wiig being pathetically depressed. And after a while, you get really sick of it. I wanted Melissa McCarthy to come in and shake it out of her! Get this girl back on her feet because she has become annoying! I don't blame her for wanting to kill herself because her friends are evil, her boyfriend's a jerk, and she should have been taken into the foster system because her mother is such a horrible parent. But please, move on from the depression! It's killing me! People can only take so much of other people being depressed. Unless you too are depressed and then its like a free-for-all party with used tissues and boxes of chocolate scattered around the place.
At the very end of the movie, when you are just about ready to walk out of the theater, there is a moment of substance. There is a circle back to one of our original themes, and we smirk a little bit because there kind of was a meaning to this crappy movie after all. But not enough for us to care to recommend it to anyone we know. I think it had something to do with crabs and self-love?
And the title has nothing to do with anything! Nothing!
Overall
I needed to pop in "Bridesmaids" and some SNL to feel good about liking Kriten Wiig after watching this movie. For the sake of your sanity, don't see this movie. Unless you are depressed, it may help you then. If not, don't see this in theaters and forget about it if you want to laugh and feel good. It's a place where laughs go to die.
The only worthwhile scenes were when Criss and Wiig were together. They have this nice chemistry together and Criss is simply adorable in this role. I also think the ending saved this movie's butt.
It has been a long time since I have laughed that hard. I don't think I laughed that hard while watching "Bridesmaids" (2011). "The Heat" (not the basketball team) was probably the funniest movie I have seen all summer long. After the film, they showed images of scenes in the film and I was still laughing so hard I was crying. And they were just images.
The Plot
Sandra Bullock plays straight-laced FBI agent Sarah Ashburn who always, always, always goes by the book, and is convinced she knows everything. She can sniff out drugs better than the hounds. She has the knowledge to solve every case she is on. Her people skills though, not that great. She's a cat lady, well, sort of. On the other side of the spectrum, we have Boston police officer Shannon Mullins (Melissa McCarthy)- the ball of fire who makes the job of a police officer look like it does in the movies complete with car chases, jumping fences, and harassing witnesses. She always gets her man no matter what. The two are thrown together when they must take down a drug lord. Ashburn's job is on the line if she is unable to play nice. Mullins finds out her family is involved with this craziness. This is your classic buddy cop story, but this time with two women.
The Cast
I have read up a lot on this movie because I am in love with these two actresses. They are part of the reason women are now allowed to be funny on TV and in films. Without them, women would still be the damsel in distress or the femme fatale. Now girls can be hot and hysterical. And now, thanks to Bullock and McCarthy, girls can kick some ass too.
I don't know how these two ladies could shoot this whole movie without cracking up laughing. I have heard that the two have become the best of friends thanks to this film, and I say it's about time! They are a perfect pair and this movie proves it. They NEED to do another movie together, or a TV show or something! I need more Bullock 'n McCarthy! I need more BullCarthy! or Mcullock!
The Message
Another reason why I love this movie so much is it shows how awesome women are as cops. They are calculating, observant, and fearless. There is one character in the film who is constantly putting down the power duo because they are women. I'd like to slap this dude and anyone else who's that sexist. Where did men come from anyway? From women!!
I like that this movie has the same formula as a male buddy cop film just with two women, and much more flack from men telling them they aren't good enough. I love that the director, Paul Feig, didn't feminize the film, making them worry about their appearance or involve a serious love interest. They were just two rock-awesome women who were cops too. There were no damsel in distress moments. No "my life is horrible", periods suck, I love clothes, I need to be sexy for my man moments. But these characters were also not turned into butch, non-feminine women. Just because they were tough and good at a job that is not normally for females doesn't mean that they can't enjoy wearing makeup and being girly. It was all about the relationship between these two women, and how they grew together. Just like a buddy cop movie is.
On top of all of this, the funniest parts are not the ones you see in the trailer! So many comedies fail on this point, but this one has too many funny parts to fit into 4 trailers! Instead you are just going to have to see the whole thing!
I have finally reached 1,000 views!! I began this project four months ago with no idea if anyone would be reading my work. Here I am with 20 (now 21) published blog posts and over 1,000 page views. I am overjoyed!
And I just wanted to say thank you to all you readers. Thank you for reading my blog, for commenting, for sharing it with your friends and family.
Writers have a hard life, especially in this technological world. There are times you feel like your words and thoughts are going out into this dark abyss of information where no one can find your tiny candle.
Thanks to you, my candle has gotten brighter and hopefully lighted a couple other people's burnt out candles.
I love movies and I love writing. I hope to do this for the rest of my life.
Here is a little gem of magical movie moments as gratitude. Keep reading and keep watching movies.
This past weekend, after spending the 4th at the beach and the 5th recovering from the red lobster sunburn I received, my family and I went to the drive-in movie theater at Cascade Drive-In (1100 E. North Ave. in West Chicago).
I had gone to this particular drive-in the week before with my friend to see "Monsters University" (again). We could have also stayed to see "Man of Steel" immediately after "Monsters."
This particular theater plays two films right after each other. It seems to be that they play one kid-friendly movie, starting around 8:30 p.m., and then a more adult film afterwards, starting around 10:15 p.m.
My family and I saw half of "Despicable Me 2" and all of "World War Z." I thought it would be cool to talk to you about my experience at the drive-in instead of writing a traditional review, since I can't give good judgement on "Despicable Me 2" and "World War Z" was a snooze.
My family made the mistake a leaving our house with just enough time to get to the theater on a Friday night. We were a block away from the entrance at 8:30 and did not get in to see the film until 9:30. It took us an hour to go a block. See, the theater is on the wrong side of the median, people have to make a U-turn to get into the drive-in. There is a serious lack of organization when it comes to traffic control at this drive-in. There were three lines going to three pay stations, and it was the most painful experience getting into the drive-in, minus the fact that my 18-year-old brother can't sit still for more than 10 minutes.
Even though I'm not a drive-in-going expert, I wanted to share my wisdom with you.
Stuff to Bring:
-CASH-- I made the mistake the first time of not bringing any cash with me. I had to reluctantly ask my friend to let me borrow money. This place ONLY accepts cash for everything. ($9 per adult, Kids 5-11 $5, Under 5 and pets are free, about $4 for a medium popcorn and more snacks are available).
-BARGAIN TUESDAYS- $14 a carload upon request.
-Blankets/sweatshirts and sweatpants-- It does get colder when the sun goes down.
-Tall foldable chairs, like this one-- You want to be able to see the screen over the other cars and drive-in-goers
-Snacks and Drinks-- this particular theater does sell snacks and drinks, but you know movie theaters. They are all overpriced and the quality is always so-so. So pop your fav popcorn and put it in a Ziplock for later.
-Coolers-- to hold the snacks and drinks
-Bug Spray-- That's what happens in the hot summer nights.
-Directions for how to turn your headlights off-- My family had difficulty with this. They go on by themselves so we never had to learn how to turn them off.
-Pillows-- By the second movie came around, I was getting pretty sleepy...
-Kids-- You can take them to the early show and head out before the other movie starts. You definitely don't have to stay for both.
Stuff NOT to Bring:
-Pets-- You are allowed to bring your pet to this drive-in, but I would not recommend it. My pup is the sweetest thing ever and she loves people. So she could not sit down the whole time we were there. There is also very little grass patches for pouches to go. And when it is crowded, not very much room for them to stretch their legs.
-Beach chairs/low to the ground chairs-- You won't be able to see over the cars.
-Grills-- Not allowed, but they have their own you can use (Bring your own charcoal).
-Hot Food-- Have fun keeping it hot when you are waiting in line for an hour.
-Babies-- Same goes for a regular movie theater. They just don't mesh together so QUIT BRINGING THEM!
-Mchenry Outdoor Theatre, 1510 N. Chapel Hill in Mchenry (open May until September) Website: http://cyouatthemovies.com/mchenry/ -Keno Family Drive-In Theatre, 9102 Sheridan Rd. in Pleasant Prairie WI (open April until October)
Sadly, there are very few drive-in movie theaters left out there. The days of Grease "stranded at the drive-in" are through. But it is still a fun experience to get to go with your family or with some friends.
If you know of any more drive-ins close to the Chicagoland area, please comment! If you have any other tips for the people, comment! Seriously!
(Ignore the subtitles. It's the only one that had the beginning part.)
I saw this movie the first week it came out. The reason that I have not reviewed it yet is because it really wasn't worth telling people about. But to improve my skill, I want to write a review anyway.
Here's a review on a mediocre to low quality movie.
The Plot
Billy (Vince Vaughn) and Nick (Owen Wilson) are best friends and partners in the sales business. They are happily selling watches until one day they find out the company they work for has been closed down (John Goodman makes an appearance as their boss). In desperate search of new jobs and new lives, they turn to the search engines of all search engines, Google. The tech-uneducated pair somehow manages to get an internship for Google.
At the internship, the teens and very young adults are put into teams. The teams must compete in several challenges (including finding the bugs in computer code and playing a game of quidditch). The team that wins the most challenges will all be hired by Google.
Nick ends up meeting a girl (Bridesmaids' Rose Byrne) and Billy struggles with his self-esteem. It's about them growing and learning and becoming better people.
The Cast
Vaughn and Wilson are back after their latest hit as a team, "Wedding Crashers"(2005). And the guys are struggling for laughs. They are trying way too hard to fit into the narrow character-type of old guys who can't learn new tricks. So much so that it damages the chemistry the two clearly have together.
I don't think they have stopped being funny, but I do think this film and this script did not help them get better from "Wedding Crashers". And it's sad to see because that is the only reason half of "The Internship"'s viewers went to see the movie.
I really enjoyed all of the performances of Billy and Nick's team. The team includes: Josh Brener, Dylan O'Brien (MTV's Teen Wolf) , Tiya Sircar, and Tobit Raphael. They all played relatable characters who grew well on screen and were each funny or attractive in their own way. I see bright futures for these kids. Some already have followings (O'Brien).
Aasif Mandvi played the strict head of the Google interns. I wanted to laugh at him so bad. I'm just so used to laughing when I see him. It was hard to take him seriously.
The Message
You can teach an old dog new tricks. Try telling that to all of the people out there who really don't understand computers.
Overall
The only scene I really enjoyed with my whole heart was the quidditch scene but mostly because I wanted to be playing it with the characters. I also liked the scene where they party in a strip club.
But in terms of laughs, I can't think of any worth it. It had heart and only a few chuckles. Rent it. It was too painful to waste my money on what I thought was going to be the second installment of "Wedding Crashers."
