Movie Review: Transformers Revenge of the Fallen

Transformers Revenge of the Fallen (2009) 

Directed by Michael Bay 

Written by Ehren Kruger, Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman

Starring Shia LeBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, John Turturro

Release Date June 24th, 2009

Published June 23rd, 2009

As a kid I was a big fan of Transformers. Looking back now as an adult I marvel at the idea: Wow, I was one weird kid. Transformers is one goofball concept. Talking, alien robots come to earth in search of ancient energy and disguise themselves as everyday cars, trucks and electronics.

This concept raises numerous logical questions, not the least of which is: Why would giant alien robots need to pretend to be everyday objects? You're a giant alien robot, why are you disguised as an Ice Cream Truck or a tape player? Identities taken on by a pair of alien robots.

The goofball premise becomes even goofier in the live action movie and sequel Transformers and Transformers Revenge of the Fallen. Adding Shia LeBeouf, Megan Fox and a couple of wacky parental figures for comic relief, director Michael Bay takes a bizarre concept and makes it even more bizarre.

When we last saw the Autobots, good guy alien robots lead by Optimus Prime, they had stopped the evil Decepticons, lead by the evilest of evil alien robots Megatron, from obtaining something called the All Spark. Now, the Autobots and their human friends are prepping for war with the Decepticons once again, this time over something called Energon. Riveted yet?

The key to finding or rather creating energon, maybe, I'm not sure, is inside the mind of college bound Sam Witwicky (shia LeBeouf). It was Sam's seemingly random purchase of a rundown yellow camaro that lead to mass warfare when it was revealed that his car was really the alien robot protector bot Bumblebee. Sam making this discovery automatically drafted him and the girl of his dreams Mikaela (Megan Fox) into the war between Alien robot races.

Now, Sam has a map imprinted in his brain that will lead to the discovery of energon, or something. The Decepticons want to open up Sam's brain and remove the information while Sam needs to lead the Autobots to the energon to stop them.

If that plot doesn't grab you then you should probably skip Transformers Revenge of the Fallen because at 2 hours and 45 minutes you will have to want to be invested in this plot. You will have to work very hard not to be bored or put off by this exceptionally over-complicated and lame plot.

Worse yet are the juvenile, amateur hour attempts at humor. Sam's parents played by Kevin Dunn and Judy White are used as comic filler, first doing a variation on the comic strip Bickersons and then a really odd stretch where mom is whacked out on drugs. None of this has anything to do with alien robots and yet it's in there.

Then there is the robot who speaks jive. The robot who speaks through classic songs on it's car radio and the robot with giant robot testicles. Yes, testicles. Are you laughing yet?

As much as I loathe most of Transformers Revenge of the Fallen even I cannot deny the technical mastery on display. Director Michael Bay cannot tell a good story to save his life  but his special effects work is some of the best in the industry. Optimus Prime is a mind blowing special effect that in a better more daring story would be the lead character.

Here is a sidekick to a group of forgettable human caricatures and one exceptionally beautiful woman. This relegation to the background makes him bland as a character but still extraordinarily rendered. When he is onscreen, especially in battle with the Decepticons, Prime is the kind of star you build movies around.

All of the alien robots are remarkably works of CGI effects. As characters they mostly stink. That however, they have in common with their human counterparts. Shia LeBeouf is a nice actor with a good deal of charisma but his only real character development comes in being in better physical shape than in the first film, the likely result of having to literally run from one special effect to the next, from one on set explosion to the next CGI green screen robot.

There is no denying Michael Bay is a master of effects. If that is appealing enough for you, then see the movie, you might be satisfied. If however, you require a well told story with your massive special effects forget Transformers. See Star Trek a special effects movie that actually bothers to tell a story in between CGI explosions.

Movie Review: Transformers Dark of the Moon

Transformers Dark of the Moon (2011) 

Directed by Michael Bay 

Written by Ehren Kruger 

Starring Shia LeBeouf, Rosie Huntington Whitley, Tyrese, Josh Duhamel, Patrick Dempsey, Frances McDormand, John Malkovich

Release Date June 29th, 2011

Published June 28th, 2011

To say that "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" is the best of the "Transformers" movies is indeed damning with faint praise. The first two "Transformers" films were brutal exercises in filmic excess. Michael Bay banged his metal toys together inches from our ears and eyes and somehow expected us to enjoy it.

For "Dark of the Moon" however, the slamming and banging is rather welcome; especially when it interrupts Bay's abysmal attempts at comedy. The special effects of "Dark of the Moon" have greatly improved from the first two films. The effects editing of "Dark of the Moon" is better, this time we can actually see some of the robot action that before was a blur of whizbang, MTV style, quick cuts.

Sure, the story of "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" remains an incomprehensible bunch of hooey but at least I can make out which robot is Optimus Prime.

Man on the Moon

"Dark of the Moon" picks up with a trip back in time to the original space race. An alien ship has crashed and landed on the moon and President Kennedy authorizes NASA to go find out what it can about this alien vessel. Eight years later, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin arrive on the moon and discover the very first Autobot.

Cut to modern day and to our human hero, Sam Witwicky (Shia LeBeouf). Despite having helped save the world twice Sam can't find a job. He longs to work with his pals Bumblebee and Optimus Prime but for now has to settle for a job in the mail room of a defense contractor; John Malkovich plays the company's wacky CEO.

Meet Carly

Not all is bad for Sam however; he does have a new hot girlfriend, Carly (Rosie Huntington Whitely), who happens to have a great job that keeps them in luxury. Carly works for a venture capitalist named Dylan (Patrick Dempsey) who happens to have a posh car collection. That he also happens to be an evil consort of the Decepticons will only come clear later.

The plot, such as it is, has the evil Decepticons, led by Megatron, looking to use technology stolen from the crashed autobot ship on the moon to import what's left of Cybertron to earth, essentially turning earth into the new Cybertron and turning the humans into slaves.

Which Robot is Which? Do You Care?

You need not know any more than that as what is left is the aforementioned whooey. "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" is not about plot complications or characters; it's about giant robots pummeling each other. Quick question: Can you tell the Autobots from the Decepticons? Sub-question: Do you know the names of the individual Transformers?

I watched the cartoon as a child but for the life of me, I cannot tell any of the robots apart aside from Optimus Prime. There is a new robot added to the mix in Dark of the Moon, Sentinel Prime, and I could tell him apart from the others but only because of the commanding voice of Spock aka Leonard Nimoy.

Regardless of what robot is what, I could not stop myself from enjoying watching them rip each other apart. There is a moment when one robot rips another robots head off and the robot spine was still attached to the robot head; I couldn't hold back my giddiness. It sounds gruesome but they're robots so I don't feel bad for enjoying this glorious carnage.

Michael Bay, YOU'RE NOT FUNNY!

Sadly, Michael Bay keeps up his childish sense of humor in "Transformers: Dark of the Moon." While we settle in to enjoy robot on robot violence, Michael Bay cannot resist childish jokes about sex and sitcom level banter from Shia Le Beouf about his girlfriend troubles, job troubles and car troubles.

As mentioned earlier, John Malkovich shows up in Transformers: Dark of the Moon and when he shares screen time with John Turturro there is fear that the movie could turn into a classic vaudeville routine in which the performers trip and toss each other out of the way in order to take over center stage. This scenario sounds a great deal more fun than it is.

I'm a fan of Ken Jeong but what was he doing in this movie. Jeong plays a scientist with ties to the Decepticons but his real function is to be Ken Jeong and act all crazy. That was fun in the context of the "Hangover" movies, it's less fun in "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" because it feels forced and out place.

Opposing Ideas

Michael Bay has two opposing forces going at all times in Transformers: Dark of the Moon. At once he wants us to take somewhat seriously the notion of an alien battle that may end in the enslavement of all mankind. On the other hand, Bay wants us to laugh at his sophomoric, sitcom jokes. The tone simply never works and the two sides run together like an ugly, head on collision.

Transformers: Dark of the Moon could have been a pretty good movie without the human characters. I get why they are there, our emotional connection to the giant robots is relatively non-existent, but Bay and writer Ehren Kruger have made the human characters so outlandishly goofball that we don't have much emotional connection to them either.

Bottom Line

In the end, all I really wanted was some robot carnage that I could actually see. On that very basic level you could call Transformers: Dark of the Moon a success. Do I recommend the film for a general audience? Not really, you have to really like robots to enjoy Transformers: Dark of the Moon. This is not like Spiderman or Batman where the characters have an appeal beyond their actions.

Movie Review Life as We Know It

Life As We Know It (2010) 

Directed by Greg Berlanti

Written by Ian Deitchman

Starring Katherine Heigl, Josh Duhamel, Josh Lucas

Release Date October 8th, 2010

Published October 9th, 2010

You always have a choice in life but sometimes circumstance intervenes to complicate those choices. For Holly (Katherine Heigl) and Messer (Josh Duhamel) the circumstance is a stunner. When their respective best friends Allison (Mad Men's Christina Hendricks) and Peter (Hayes MacArthur) leave them a gift they could never have guessed, their infant daughter Sophie.

That is the jumping off point for the sweet romantic comedy “Life As We Know It” and while the tragedy of Allison and Peter’s death is given some horribly perfunctory treatment by director Craig Berlanti, hint; the characters reactions to their friends death nearly does upend the whole film by lacking in believable grief, the rest of “Life As We Know It” works hard to make up for the massive flaws with charm and romance.

Holly first met Messer when they were set up on a blind date by Allison and Peter. To say the date did not go well is an understatement. Messer showed up late, made no reservations for dinner and took a call and made plans with another girl while next to Holly in her car. The date didn't get past the attempt to drive to the restaurant.

Naturally, since Holly wants nothing to do with Messer, fate conspires to keep them around each other. When Allison marries Peter, Holly is Maid of Honor and Messer is the Best Man. When Peter and Allison get pregnant Holly is named godmother and Messer is the godfather. And when Peter and Allison die tragically, Holly and Messer are thrust together in the most unexpected way ever.

As godparents Holly and Messer are given custody of Sophie, Peter and Allison's infant daughter. They will give up their respective homes and move into Peter and Allison's home. They will try to raise Sophie while trying to spend all of their time fighting each other over schedules, sleeping arrangements and their general loathing of one another.

We always talk about this when it comes to romantic comedies but it's important to note. The fact that few like to acknowledge romantic comedies is that there is little new that can be done in this genre. There are few twists that cannot be guessed by the audience well in advance and the ending of 99% of romantic comedies is known going in. 

The best of the genre know this, accept it as fact and work around those issues to craft lovable characters, heartwarming moments and big laughs to keep the audience from focusing on the predictable story. Director Craig Berlanti is best known as a major TV producer whose innovative work on shows like Everwood, Eli Stone and most recently “No Ordinary Family,” actually makes him the ideal director to work the edges of a predictable story. 

Berlanti has dealt with the pained atmosphere of the hour-long drama, known mostly for lawyer and doctor shows, by taking chances and giving each of his characters something unique to play. In “Life As We Know It” the unique beats that Duhamel and  Heigl play are small but savvy and build not to major revelations but moments that reveal these characters and best of all keep the audience distracted from the predictable end that is always coming.

Josh Duhamel is an actor I have liked just about every time out. Though I loathe the “Transformers” films it's hard to blame Duhamel for taking a paycheck that merely calls for a lot of screaming and running. He sparked great chemistry with Kristen Bell earlier this year in another, far less appealing, romantic comedy “When in Rome” and then really delivered some unexpected terrific work in a supporting role in the family flick “Ramona and Beezus.” 

In “Life As We Know It” Josh Duhamel works the charm again, along with that megawatt smile, mussed hair and easy going, McConaughey-esque attitude to such great effect he manages to wear down even the sharpest edges of his often shrill and cold co-star Katherine Heigl. 

Though Ms. Heigl would like us to chalk the recent rise of her negative perceptions to a media creation, the fact is her choices have been bad. Whether it was her indelicate exit from TV's Grey's Anatomy, her harsh comments about her star-making comedy “Knocked Up” or her screechy, tone deaf performances in “The Ugly Truth” and “Killers,” Ms. Heigl has earned the downturn of her public persona and the effect it may or may not have on the perception of her film characters. 

In “Life As We Know It” whether by design or not, Craig Berlanti plays to Heigl's shrill side and then uses the softer, more charming Mr. Duhamel to take the edge off. The two are exceptionally well matched whether they are bickering opposites or two people on the verge of falling in love. 

See “Life as We Know It” for Duhamel and Heigl's chemistry. See it for the strong laughs to groan ratio, a solid 3 laughs for every one groan, and see it if you are just a fan of the few good romantic comedies that get made every year. “Life as We Know It” will not reinvent the genre, it may not fix Ms. Heigl's career, but it's a solid, romantic laffer that succeeds in a genre that people really enjoy.

Movie Review: When in Rome

When in Rome (2010) 

Directed by Mark Steven Johnson

Written by Mark Steven Johnson, David Diamond, David Weissman

Starring Kristen Bell, Josh Duhamel, Will Arnett, Jon Heder, Dax Shepard

Release Date January 29th, 2010

Published January 30th, 2010

An explanation: In the past I have been accused of being too hard on kid’s movies while going easy on cheesy romantic comedies. This is not inconsistency or hypocrisy. The fact is that children with their still forming brains in desperate need of development in the area of critical thinking must be protected. Teens and adults, the audiences for cheesy romance, need no such protection.

Fully aware of the dopey clichés of the romantic comedy, the teen and adult audience can safely view even the lamest examples of the genre with little damage. Occasionally, some of these overly familiar, simpleminded romances are so simple and so aware of their limitations that our lowered standards are appropriate and fair ways to judge them. Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel's When in Rome is a perfect example. Dull witted with terrible supporting characters, the film has charms for the forgiving audience.

In When in Rome Kristen Bell stars as Beth a museum curator who is shocked when her little sister Joan (Alexis Dziena) shows up at her door engaged to be married. Joan is getting married to man she met on a plane and has known for about two weeks. He's from Rome and the wedding will be there forcing Beth to drop everything, including an important bit of work, to run off for two days.

At the wedding Beth meets Nick (Josh Duhamel), the Best Man. The two have a couple of charming romantic and funny moments. With Beth flubbing a couple wedding traditions and Nick's penchant for stumbling about, these two bond quickly with each other and we with them.

Naturally, it is too early in the film for them to be together. Thus, Director Mark Steven Johnson separates the two with a typical misunderstanding, this one leaving Beth drunkenly dancing in the Fountain De Amore, the Fountain of Love, where she steals some coins tossed by men searching for love. The coins are enchanted and the men will follow her back to New York to try to win her heart. So will Nick, but is one of the coins his?

Yes, the plot is lame and worse yet, several of the supporting performances are abysmal. Jon Heder plays a terribly unfunny street magician. Will Arnett wears a ridiculous wig and an even more ridiculous Italian accent as a wannabe artist. Dax Shepard is an offensively self involved male model who though enchanted struggles to like Beth as much as he likes himself.

Danny Devito is the only one among the group to salvage any dignity as a sausage magnate tries to impress Beth with gifts of meat. Devito gets a nice moment late in the film explaining the motivation behind his coin in the fountain; it's all that keeps him from being as humiliated as Heder, Arnett and Shepard.

The supporting players are, aside from Devito, pretty terrible but thankfully not so bad that they sink the whole film. That is because Kristen Bell, in her first starring role, and Josh Duhamel have such great chemistry. The two former TV stars, she on Veronica Mars, he opposite James Caan on Las Vegas, are just so darn cute together.

Bell has an edgy almost angry energy that is leavened by a great smile and ability to roll with the punches as the humiliations pile up. Duhamel undercuts his handsomeness with some good solid slapstick. Nick stumbles, walks into walls and drops down shafts and Duhamel plays the pain well. His back story as a former College Football star famous for one shocking moment on the field plays to his clumsiness.

Do not be mistaken, When in Rome is far from great. The film requires a great deal of patience and willingness to suspend judgment but for the willing Bell and Duhamel make a charming and great looking pair. While she smiles and takes her many humiliations in stride, he just stumbles about and they never stop being likable. That was enough for me to recommend When in Rome.

Movie Review Safe Haven

Safe Haven (2013)

Directed by Lasse Hallstrom 

Written by Dana Stevens

Starring Julianne Hough, Josh Duhamel, Cobie Smulders, David Lyons

Release Date February 14th, 2013 

Published February 15th, 2013

I love "Safe Haven." I truly, love this Nicholas Sparks adapted romance starring Julianne Hough and Josh Duhamel. I just don't love it for the reasons that the filmmakers intended. "Safe Haven," directed by Oscar nominee Lasse Hallstom, has an ending that is so balls out goofy it turns an otherwise banal romantic thriller into one of the most gloriously cheeseball movies of all time.

A woman on the run

"Safe Haven" stars former "Dancing with the Stars" pro Julianne Hough as Katie, a woman on the run from a dangerous past. Flashbacks inform us that Katie may have murdered her abusive husband. We find Katie as she is boarding a bus that will eventually whisk her away to the idyllic paradise of Southport, North Carolina.

Southport is a town so small that no one bothers to do background checks or require a proof of ID before giving someone a job and renting them a home; what luck for a woman who may or may not be wanted for murder. Back in Katie's, not her real name mind you, home town in Boston a very determined and sweaty detective (David Lyons) is pulling out all the stops to track her down.

Of course there is a love story

Naturally, while Katie is trying to keep a low profile she will fall in love; this is a Nicholas Sparks adaptation after all. The love interest is Alex (Josh Duhamel), a widower with two adorable tots and an irresistible southern manner. He's smitten immediately but Katie needs a pushy neighbor named Jo (Cobie Smulders, "How I Met Your Mother") before she gives up her seclusion for romance.

For most of "Safe Haven" we are treated to boilerplate Nicholas Sparks romantic drama as Katie and Alex fall in love and Katie's past looms as the final act obstacle to their happily ever after. Then the final minutes of "Safe Haven" arrive and like a phoenix from the ashes of mediocrity "Safe Haven" arises to become an all time cornball classic; a true epic of cheesy badness.

No spoilers, I promise

I will not spoil the ending in this review because I want you to see it for yourself. I realize that this flies in the face of being a professional critic; recommending a bad movie, but I can't help myself; I love how bad this movie ends and I want to share it with you. The ending of "Safe Haven," for those who haven't read Sparks' novel, is joyous nonsense; a twist even M. Night Shyamalan would find contrived.

So wonderfully dumb is this ending that it took me nearly biting through my bottom lip to keep from bursting out in girlish giggles. Until the final 10 minutes, give or take a minute, I was ready to forget about "Safe Haven." Once the final credits began to roll however, I wanted to stand up and applaud and thank Lasse Hallstrom for the gift he's given to bad movie lovers everywhere.

"Safe Haven" is the first, and likely the only, must see bad movie of 2013.

Movie Review: Transformers

Transformers (2007)

Directed by Michael Bay

Written by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman

Starring Shia Le Beouf, Megan Fox, Tyrese Gibson, Josh Duhamel, Anthony Anderson 

Release Date July 3rd, 2007 

Published July 2nd, 2007

The leaps forward for CGI technology in movies have had a few obvious leaps in innovation. Terminator 2 signaled the arrival. The Matrix and Lord Of The Rings are certainly high water marks. And, of course, George Lucas' mindblowing effects work in the modern trilogy cannot be forgotten, even if the movies weren't as well remembered.

Now comes Transformers from director Michael Bay. Though Bay never met a story he could tell well, he is a master of special effects and his work with George Lucas' effects company ILM has provided a new benchmark in the evolution of CGI. The robot aliens of Transformers are an extraordinary sight, a sight so impressive you almost forget there is no real story, plot or characters bringing proper context to these amazing effects.

In some distant universe a pair of alien robot races have fought and destroyed their planet. The impetus for this destructive war is an all powerful cube that has now been lost somewhere in the universe. It has in fact landed on earth and now the evil Decepticons and the caring Autobots are arriving on earth with differing methods but similar goals. The Decepticons, lead by Megatron, will destroy the earth to retrieve the cube, the Autobots, lead by Optimus Prime, will protect humanity, even if it means destroying the cube.

On earth a teenager named Sam (Shia Le Beouf) may be the key to finding the cube. Seems his great grand father actually located the cube some years ago and after an encounter with Megatron, came to know where the cube was located. Now, under the protection of Bumblebee, a rusty yellow camaro that also happens to be an autobot warrior, Sam is about to have the experience of a lifetime, trapped in the middle of an alien robot war; and he gets the girl, Mikaela (Megan Fox).

The cast ofTransformers also makes room for Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson as military heroes who encounter the Decepticons in the Iraqi desert. Jon Voight as the heroic defense secretary. John Turturro tuns up as an X-Files-esque secret agent and Anthony Anderson in the unlikely role of a computer hacker whose technical expertise cracks important Decepticon codes.

The goofball plot of Transformers is pretty much brain or in other words, typical Michael Bay. Director Bay simply does not care a lick for plot, or characters or dialogue. His expertise lies in special effects and everything else be damned. Thus, we get scenes where allegedly smart military types pass up miles of empty desert for their last stand against the Decepticons in favor of a cityscape filled with innocent bystanders.

Never mind a proper motivation that could have been written into the story, fight scenes set in the fictional city of Mission Hills just look cooler than anything that could have been done in the desert. Just one example of Michael Bay's usual logic be damned approach to storytelling.

Transformers is a truly brainless exercise by typical standards of movie criticism. However, from a more coldly technical perspective, Transformers is one of the more impressive feats of Computer Generated Imagery ever committed to film. The CGI of Transformers is leaps and bounds ahead of CGI that we have seen previously.

As Terminator 2 was landmark moment in the development of CGI technology in the early 1990's, Transformers is a landmark of how far we have come with this technology and what may be possible in the future. Working with George Lucas's team at Industrial Light & Magic, Michael Bay has pushed this technology beyond what many thought was possible.

The CGI of Transformers fully integrates these giant alien robots with human characters in ways that simply were not possible less than a decade ago. Building on the foundation that George Lucas built in the modern Star Wars trilogy and what Peter Jackson crafted in Lord of the Rings and King Kong, Bay surpasses them both with the creation of Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and Jazz, giant robots who function as characters as well or better than their human counterparts.

From a technical standpoint, in terms of special effects and CGI, Transformers is a landmark moment in movie history. Never before have CGI characters been so well integrated with human characters. Bay's control of the action and effects of Transformers shows the potential he has as a director. If he paid the same attention and gave the same care to his story and characters as he gives his special effects, he could make a real masterpiece.

As it stands, Transformers is a truly brainless enterprise. An exercise of awesome technical mastery in service of one of the dumber stories told in this decade. See Transformers on the big screen because DVD will only minimize the technique and play up this idiotic story.

Movie Review Ramona & Beezus

Ramona & Beezus (2010) 

Directed by Elizabeth Allen 

Written by Laurie Craig, Nick Pustay 

Starring Joey King, Selena Gomez, John Corbett, Bridget Moynihan, Ginnifer Goodwin, Josh Duhamel, Sandra Oh 

Release Date July 23rd, 2010 

Published July 22nd, 2010 

The movie is called “Ramona and Beezus” but it really could be called just Ramona. Beezus, played by Disney Channel star Selena Gomez, is integral to the plot, but the story is unquestionably about Ramona played by 9-year-old Joey King as whirling dervish of sweet funny chaos. That's not to speak ill of Selena Gomez, she's a charming actress, but up against young Joey King's incredible performance, it's hard for anyone to stand out. 

Ramona Quimby is a precocious kid who doesn't really go looking for trouble but certainly finds it. With her huge imagination, Ramona can turn even the most straightforward activity, like the hanging rings on the playground, into a massive adventure that ends with her nearly missing a class because she has somehow hung herself upside down. There are some who will watch Ramona daydreaming, playing and finding trouble and diagnose her with attention deficit disorder but the movie, directed by Elizabeth Allen, has no time for diagnosing its star. The movie has far more serious and true elements to examine.

In a plot twist that was not part of Beverly Cleary's sunny fun vision of life on Klickitat St. in Portland Oregon, Ramona's dad (John Corbett) loses his job just as the family is building an addition on their already sprawling home. With Mom (Bridget Moynihan) heading back to work, the stress in the house begins to affect Ramona who finds new trouble in trying to help her parents keep their house.

This dramatic plot turn however, does not get overwhelmingly dramatic and for the most part Ramona and Beezus is breezy, warmhearted and sweet. 9-year-old Joey King is wonderful as Ramona, perfectly capturing her unintentional mischievousness and the soulful look in her eyes when she inevitably makes a giant mess of things.

John Corbett is terrific as the father who stays positive, patient and caring even as he seems a little dazed being over 40 and thrust back into the job hunt. Bridget Moynihan has far less screen time but her presence is felt early on. Rounding out the cast is a sweet romantic pairing between Ramona's Aunt Bea played by Ginnifer Goodwin and Ramona's neighbor Hobart played by Josh Duhamel.

Credit Goodwin and Duhamel for putting aside star ego to take minor supporting roles - both could be taking lead roles; Duhamel is in fact hard at work on another Transformers sequel but saw quality in Ramona and Beezus and could not pass it up. “Ramona and Beezus” is wonderful family entertainment. The drama of mom and dad's marriage trouble related to his unemployment is merely the underscore to a story about a big hearted little girl who finds adventure and trouble in equal measure just by being her slightly off-kilter self.

There is a reason that decades after they first appeared on Klickitat Street, courtesy of the pen of Beverly Cleary, why “Ramona and Beezus” are still around. These are quality stories and characters that resonate through time with their radiant, fun loving spirits and big, big hearts. Joey King is wonderfully well cast and though her radiance overshadows Selena Gomez as Beezus, it speaks to Selena Gomez's generosity as an actress that she is such wonderful support to King's lead performance. 

Ramona and Beezus is a delight. 

Movie Review: Win a Date with Tad Hamilton

Win a Date with Tad Hamilton (2004) 

Directed by Robert Luketic 

Written by Victor Levin 

Starring Topher Grace, Kate Bosworth, Josh Duhamel, Sean Hayes, Nathan Lane, Ginnifer Goodwin

Release Date January 23rd, 2004

January 22nd, 2004

There have been a number of films made about big stars coming to small towns and stirring up a frenzy. My favorites are State and Main, David Mamet's caustic, witty satire of Hollywood and Welcome Home Roxy Carmichael, a sadly underrated eighties movies lost in the crush of John Hughes clones. The latest entry into this small sub-genre is Win A Date With Tad Hamilton! starring Kate Bosworth and Topher Grace, a film in the spirit of Roxy but desperately in the need of Mamet's wit.

The Tad Hamilton of the title is Josh Duhamel from TV's “Las Vegas.” Duhamel's Tad is your typical Hollywood bad boy with a serious image problem. His managers, two of them both named Richard Levy (Sean Hayes and Nathan Lane), have to rehab his bad boy image in order to land a plum film role. The idea they come up with is straight out of some ultra-wholesome fifties teen beat style magazine, "Win A Date With Tad Hamilton".

The winner of the dream date is 22 year old Rosalee Futch (Kate Bosworth), a grocery store clerk from a small town in West Virginia. Rosalee is flown out to LA, put up in a great hotel suite and finally has her date with the man of her dreams, Tad. The date is perfectly chaste, especially by Tad's usually debauched standards, but Tad ends up feeling a real connection with the small town girl who has all the good qualities that he lacks.

Once Rosalee returns to West Virginia and to the welcoming arms of her two best friends, Cathy (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Pete (Topher Grace), it seems that Tad Hamilton was a one time adventure. That is certainly what Pete was thinking when he decided to reveal to Rosalee that he's been in love with her for years. Of course, wouldn't you know it, before Pete can reveal his feelings in walks Tad Hamilton.

This sets up a very conventional romantic triangle plot. A plot that has been done a thousand times and isn't much improved on here. What makes it slightly more tolerable in this film is the terrific comic performance of “That 70's Show” star Topher Grace. With his quick wit, neurotic shyness and lack of movie star handsomeness, he evokes a sort of Midwestern Woody Allen. His Peter gets the best one-liners of the film and it's most poignant moments and makes a rather mediocre story better just for having him.

That is not to say the film doesn't have other good qualities but most of the good in Win A Date With Tad Hamilton! must be embellished by the audience. The film introduces some interesting story ideas but only glosses over them without ever exploring them. A scene in a bar between Grace and a bartender character played by Kathryn Hahn introduces an idea about everyone’s romantic ideal and how the Tad character is a representation of a romantic ideal that isn't real. The idea that everyone ideallizes the person they are in love with but that ideal is only in our mind.

The film also has a knowing sense of pop culture and uses it to good effect in it's ending. The idea of pop culture's growing role in the daily lives of younger generations and the way it shapes our memories in celluloid is an interesting idea but an unexplored idea in this film. Had director Robert Luketic, also the director of another piece of pop candy Legally Blonde, decided to further explore either of the interesting ideas the film introduces, this could have been a great movie. As it is, it’s merely another exercise in the teen-friendly romance genre.

Win A Date With Tad Hamilton! is not a bad film but not a great film. What it really is, is an announcement of the arrival of Topher Grace as a leading man. In his biggest film role to date, Grace makes a terrific impression and I really look forward to seeing him on the big screen more.