Movie Review The Disaster Artist

The Disaster Artist (2017) 

Directed by James Franco

Written by Scott Neustadter, Michael H. Weber 

Starring James Franco, Dave Franco, Seth Rogen, Alison Brie, Ari Graynor, Josh Hutcherson 

Release Date December 1st, 2017 

Pathos—a quality that evokes pity or sadness.

Pathos seemed to be the defining characteristic of Tommy Wiseau’s abysmal debut feature The Room. The film evoked pathos because it was quite pitiably terrible in every fashion. The film was/is complete and utter nonsense from beginning to end with the witless Wiseau creating a star vehicle for himself despite his complete lack of talent and then directing the whole mess despite his complete lack experience and talent.

Something strange has happened over the years with The Room. No, it hasn’t somehow miraculously improved with time. Rather, it remains terrible, but not pitiable. The film has become a genuine and quite unexpected hit. Fans, yes, real fans, have emerged not to defend the quality of the film but to defend the remarkable experience they’ve had in discovering the film. People quite unabashedly love The Room and by extension its bizarre creator.

Enter The Disaster Artist, a new comic take on the creation of this once pathos-laden effort. The Disaster Artist does not seek to mock the pathos of The Room and Tommy Wiseau but rather, to get to the heart of the genuine side of the appreciation of this once pitiable effort. The Disaster Artist succeeds by reveling in the genuine success enjoyed by the film since it was so poorly crafted and somehow slunk into our collective pop culture in 2002.

The Disaster Artist stars James Franco as Tommy Wiseau. Franco’s Wiseau is a fearless weirdo, probably because he doesn’t’ realize other people find him weird. He has what looks to be a stiff wig of long black hair, an inexplicable accent that he refuses to acknowledge and is deeply paranoid of anyone asking about his life and especially his age. He goes so far as to warn his new friend, Greg Sestero (Dave Franco) to never speak of him in public, never talk about where his money comes from and never acknowledge the enigma that is Tommy Wiseau.

Find my full length review in the Geeks Community on Vocal 

Movie Review Dumb Money

Dumb Money (2023) 

Directed by Craig Gillespie 

Written by Lauren Schuker Blum, Rebecca Angelo 

Starring Paul Dano, Shailene Woodley, Pete Davidson, Seth Rogen, Nick Offerman, Sebastian Stan

Release Date September 22nd, 2023 

Published September 22nd, 2023 

Dumb Money feels like an unearned victory lap for the proletariat. The story of a group of independent investors, led by a Redditor nicknamed Roaring Kitty, upending the Wall Street system by investing in, of all things, Game Stop, a video game retailer run so poorly that it's an absolute wonder how they lasted as long as they did. By finding a blindspot in the arrogance of a Wall Street hedge fund practice, Roaring Kitty, aka Keith Gill (Paul Dano), made millions and drove one billionaire hedge fund out of business, though realistically, only took Gabe Plotkin (Seth Rogen) from a being a billionaire to being a multi-multi-multi-millionaire. 

It's impossible for me not to be cynical about anything related to Wall Street. In my lifetime I have watched Wall Street grow in strength and wealth all while paying off regulators and lawmakers to prop them up to the point where billions of dollars have flowed from everyday Americans into the hands of Wall Street hustlers just to keep those billionaires from crashing the country into a depression so they can keep buying needless numbers of houses, cars and consumer items that add nothing to the everyday economy. 

Not since the age of Marie Antoinette have we seen rich fat pigs rolling in the filth of their own wealth in public the way we do today. We've literally watched billionaires build themselves rockets to take vacations in space while people struggle to have money for food. Jeff Bezos asks us to stand up and cheer for him when he returned from what amounted to a day trip to space. Meanwhile, a mother somewhere in America was scraping pennies together to buy baby food. So excuse me if I don't' view one minor victory over the greedy pigs of Wall Street as good enough. 

And, I'm sorry, that's all that the Game Stop thing was, a very brief victory of the proles over the privileged. All that the Game Stop thing did was provide other billionaires a cautionary tale. Now they know exactly what doors to close behind them to prevent this from ever happening again. I appreciate what Reddit did to game this system for a short time but there is only so much outsiders can do to fight this system. Game Stop provided the billionaires a road map to how to stay rich in the face of any kind of revolt within their own Wall Street system. 

Find my full length review at Swamp.Media 

Movie Review Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem 

Directed by Jeff Rowe

Written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Jeff Rowe, Dan Hernandez, Benji Samit 

Starring Micah Abbey, Shamon Brown Jr., Hannibal Burress, Rose Byrne, Nicolas Cantu, John Cena, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, Jackie Chan, Ice Cube, Post Malone

Release Date August 2nd, 2023 

Published August 6th, 2023 

I watched the 1990 live action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles recently for a review timed to the release of the latest attempt to rebuild the Turtles as a viable movie franchise. What I found was a movie that I absolutely loved. I was too old when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was released in 1990, I was 14 and I thought it was for much younger kids. Look back now, with the wisdom of more than 30 years, I can say, yes, it is a product for young children, younger than 14 even, but it's a wonderful product. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1990 is a ridiculously fun movie. It's filled with wonderful invention and kid friendly action. 

Everything that came after that movie, not counting the television shows that I've never seen, has been a dreary slog. Each new film iteration of the Turtles has carried with it the very obvious burden of corporate exploitation. Each of the various filmmakers who tackled the franchise appeared to be doing so with a studio held gun to their head that dictated exactly how the movie should be geared toward selling merchandise and creating sequels was the only reason these movies existed. Thus, we got a series of joyless, unpleasant live action and animated attempts to leverage a popular I.P into a cash making machine. 

I say all of this to demonstrate the bias that the latest iteration of the Turtles on the big screen was up against in my mind. To say that I was cynical about seeing the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on the big screen again would be a grave understatement. What a lovely surprise it is then to report that the newest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles adventure, subtitled Mutant Mayhem, doesn't completely suck. In fact, it's actually pretty alright. The team of Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and director-co-writer, Jeff Rowe have found a tone and spirit that does well to hide the high level corporately leveraged truth behind its creation. 

Mutant Mayhem is yet another Turtles origin story. We have the back story courtesy of a flashback to the origin of our antagonist, a fellow mutant named Superfly. Superfly was the creation of mad scientist Baxter Stockman. Baxter created the ooze but was killed not long after by an evil organization who wanted to steal his ooze and use it to create their own mutant army. A very young Superfly fought off the baddies, rescued his fellow mutant babies, and fled into the night. He left behind one last tube of ooze which breaks and drips into the sewer. There, it finds the Turtles who are rescued by Splinter (Jackie Chan) who gets into the ooze himself. 

Splinter is rightfully afraid of humans. His first time taking his turtle babies to the surface world nearly ends with them being killed. Thus, Splinter becomes deeply overprotective. He spends the next decade training his Turtles, Leonardo (Nicolas Cantu), Donatello (Micah Abbey), Michaelangelo (Shamon Brown Jr.) and Raphael (Brady Noon), to fight. Using old, abandoned VHS tapes, Splinter trains his Turtles to be able to defend themselves against humans. As the Turtles grow up into their mid-teens however, they've only become more and more curious about humans. They wonder if humans arent't as bad as Splinter claims. 

Read my full length review at Geeks.Media

The Fabelmans

The Fabelmans (2022) 

Directed by Steven Speilberg 

Written by Tony Kushner 

Starring Paul Dano, Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen

Release Date November 18th, 2022 

I am not here to call out any of my fellow film critics. Like what you like and make your review whatever you want it to be. That said, I have made the mistake of reviewing the movie I wanted to see versus the movie that is actually what I watched. I bring this up because I have seen a few fellow critics asking for the new Steven Speilberg movie, The Fabelmans to be a different movie. They want to see Speilberg tell a story about becoming a filmmaker in Hollywood in the late 60s and early 70s. The Fabelmans is, instead, about Speilberg's childhood, the very roots of his dreams of becoming a filmmaker. 

We have to review the movie that The Fabelmans is and not the film we wish it were. I understand the motivation, I really do, because I didn't find The Fabelmans particularly satisfying. This coming-of-age story feels a bit flabby, broad and lacking in insight for my taste. It's not a Steven Speilberg biopic, it's a romanticized, fictional take on the unusual memories that shaped one of our greatest filmmakers. It has moments of grace and lovely intentions, but the feather lightness of the material never gains weight. 

The Fabelmans begins with young Sammy Fabelman seeing his first movie, the Best Picture winning The Greatest Show on Earth. The final moments of that film contain a remarkable train crash the staging of which is why the movie won Best Picture. It's a remarkable achievement that crosscuts miniatures and a real staging brilliantly considering the limitations of technology in 1956. It makes sense that Sammy would find this sequence pivotal, a flashpoint in his life that he never forgot. 

Having become obsessed with this sequence, Sammy takes the toy train set that his father. Burt (Paul Dano), painstakingly assembled for him as a series of Hanukah gifts and recreates the scene. Putting a car on the tracks and his train running at it, Sammy is lucky not to destroy his new expensive toys. While Burt is upset with his son, Sammy's mom, Mitzi (Michelle Williams), sees things differently. She knows that Sammy needs to understand how the train accident was done, the magic of the movie must be recreated. 

Thus, Mitzi gives Sammy his father's camera. She tells him to film it one time and then he won't have to destroy his toys to understand the movie. Sammy, doesn't quite listen to his mom's advice. Instead, he films the scene multiple times from different angles and then arranges the shots in a way that mirrors editing, though isn't quite cutting film. He's able to show it to his mom and she's blown away with his talent and encourages him to keep working with dad's camera. This is the genesis of Sam Fabelman, film director. 

Cut to teenage Sammy, now Sam (Gabrielle Labelle). Now a boy scout and seeking his photography badge, Sam uses his Boy Scout pals to be part of his first movie. Inspired by a showing of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Sam is going to make a western. It's a huge hit with his friends, fellow boy scouts and his family, each of whom are blown away by Sam's talent and dedication. This leads to another movie, this time a war drama that earns tears from his mom and applause from everyone else. 

Find my full length review of The Fabelmans at Geeks.Media. 

Movie Review: 50/50

50/50 (2011) 

Directed by Jonathan Levine 

Written by Will Reiser 

Starring Joseph Gordon Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anjelica Huston, Bryce Dallas Howard, Anna Kendrick

Release Date September 30th, 2011 

Published September 30th, 2011

Cancer is a topic of grave seriousness. To even attempt to place the word cancer near the word comedy could be seen as folly. Yet, we have 50/50 a very funny comedy about a young man who faces death from cancer. The tightrope that 50/50 walks in creating its comedy, a broad swath of Knocked Up style irreverence, Seth Rogan is a co-star in 50/50, and the kind of gallows humor that permeates many war movies.

If you were a casino game, you'd have the best odds

Adam (Joseph Gordon Levitt) is 27 years old, he has a pretty artist girlfriend named Rachael (Bryce Dallas Howard), a great job working at NPR in Seattle, and he has this pain in his back that just won't go away.

That pain turns out to be a malignant tumor attaching to his spine. Adam has cancer and faces the 50/50 odds of survival with a serious course of chemotherapy. First however, he has to survive telling his family and friends.

Rachael seems to take the news as well as could be expected. The relationship is relatively young for such a heavy burden to be placed on it but she takes it on, first buying him a dog and then being there when Adam tells his mother (Angelica Huston).

I'm moving in!

Adam next tells his best friend Kyle (Seth Rogan). Kyle's emotional reaction is indicative of most reactions to Adam's news. Kyle doesn't process the info well and Adam ends up having to console him.

The same can be said of Kyle's mother who is already caring for Adam's Alzheimer's afflicted father (Serge Houde). Mom wants to move into Kyle's house to care for him but Adam tells her that Rachael is taking care of him.

We know, and he will soon know, that this will not be the case. Rachael isn't a very good person but in fairness, who could be prepared for such a shocking turn of events. The fact that the relationship was sputtering before the cancer diagnosis should also be noted.

Humor from the gallows

Though Kyle proves to be a stalwart friend he to struggles with how to help Adam. Being a typically Rogen character, one lacking in maturity or a filter for his thoughts, Kyle's notions of helping amount to helping get Adam laid and getting high with him.

The only people who react appropriately to Adam's diagnosis and offer honest comfort are two men Adam meets in chemotherapy. Played by Phillip Baker Hall and Matt Frewer, their journeys could likely make wonderful movies of their own.

Somewhere in the middle of the appropriate and the misguided is Adam's therapist, Katherine, played by the terrific Anna Kendrick. We get right away that these two have chemistry beyond the patient-therapist relationship; Levitt and Kendrick however, surprise us by underplaying the attraction to great effect.

A very funny movie about a guy who has cancer

Trying to recommend 50/50 is more challenging that it should be. 50/50 is very funny and humane and is populated by terrific performances, especially from Levitt and Rogan. It's just difficult to get past the idea of a 'Cancer Comedy.'

If you can get past preconceived notions about cancer and comedy being mutually exclusive and give yourself over to this being Adam's specific experience of cancer you will be rewarded with a great movie going experience.

Movie Review: Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2009) 

Directed by Kevin Smith

Written by Kevin Smith 

Starring Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Craig Robinson, Tracy Lords

Release Date October 31st, 2009

Published October 30th, 2009

The loquacious Kevin Smith is back with Zack and Miri Make Miri Make a Porno. For his first feature since 2006's Clerks sequel, Smith has ripped a page from the current king of comedy Judd Apatow. Stealing two of the Apatow repertory company, Seth Rogan and Elizabeth Banks, Smith goes for the same mix of foul mouthed maturity that Apatow has turned into a cash machine.

Zack (Seth Rogan) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) have been friends since the first grade. Now nearing 30 they find themselves stranded together in go nowhere lives, living in an apartment they can barely afford in a sex free friend zone. When the power and water get shut off and it looks like they may be booted from their apartment, they need a cash money idea and they need it now.

Over a few beers and following a bizarre encounter with a gay porn star (Justin Long) at their high school reunion, Zack hits on an idea. Make a porn movie. Miri is dubious of the idea but with no idea of her own she allows Zack to convince her if he can find the cash to fund the production. Enter Zack's co-worker Delaney (Craig Robinson).

Delaney has money he saved up for a flat screen TV. When Zack tells him that producing a porno movie could double that amount, and that a producer has to handle auditions involving nudity, he jumps at the chance. Zack writes the script and a ragtag bunch including the impressively tumescent Lester (Jason Mewes), the aptly named Bubbles (Tracey Lords) and bubble headed stripper Stacey round out the cast for what will be a star wars themed porno movie.

Issues arise and force things in a different direction but the biggest surprise of the shoot for Zack and Miri is their reaction to their own love scene which uncovers feelings both have ignored for many, many years.

Kevin Smith directs Zack and Miri with his usual ear for tight, funny, foul mouthed dialogue. Zack and Miri may in fact be even more foul than usual for the master of the f-word laced invective. The curse per line average on Zack and Miri is enough to make the great Sam Peckinpah cringe. It works however because stars Steth Rogan and Elizabeth Banks treat the dialogue as completely second nature. An old hat sort of patter that only old friends could share. Best of all, it's not just foul, it's funny.

That said, Zack and Miri isn't without excess. The casting of Brandon 'Superman' Routh and Justin Long as a gay couple and a scene so filthy that some may have to leave the theater in disgust aren't funny and are really unnecessary. In the case of that truly disgusting scene, Smith is even clumsy in his dialogue, setting the scene twice and tipping his hand repeatedly. I appreciate the warning Kev but the scene was still unnecessary.

Seth Rogan has grown quickly into one of the most likable actors working today. Whether it's his foul mouthed teddy bear veneer or his real talent for dramatic moments, Rogan earns every inch of your sympathy and care even as he can repel some viewers, not me but some, with his overly energetic cursing. Rogan may be an unlikely romantic leading man in the classical sense but in the post irony era Rogan's obscenity laced sincerity is the picture of the modern romantic icon.

Working with a maestro dirty word, Kevin Smith who has made a career of mixing troubled romance with manchild curse-laden coming of age, Rogan is right at home. His ease puts the rest of the cast at ease as seen in Elizabeth Banks' awkward but sweet performance and Craig Robinson's cantankerously loving turn as Zack's other best friend.

Robinson's briefly glimpsed relationship with his wife (Tisha Campbell) reminds me of a quote I heard recently, a well known woman was asked about divorce and said "Have I thought of divorce? No. Murder yes, but not divorce.

Zach and Miri make a Porno is not Kevin Smith's strongest effort. The casting invokes way too much of Judd Apatow's oeuvre and the disturbing sex scenes often cross that barrier between hilarious and creepy. Nevertheless, few writers have Smith's ear for the way characters speak, the way they interact. The dialogue is so natural and so naturally funny that you can't help but get caught up in the fun.

Yes, you will likely walk out of Zack and Miri Make A Porno cursing up a storm, in a good way. Just wait till you  get back to the car to start dropping those F-bombs.

Movie Review Kung Fu Panda 2

Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011) 

Directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson

Written by Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger 

Starring Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu, Seth Rogen, David Cross, Jackie Chan, Dustin Hoffman

Release Date May 26th, 2011

Published May 26th, 2011

I long ago discovered that the best thing about the job of film critic is being surprised. It's also the rarest occurrence in the job. Rarely do movies, especially big time, mainstream blockbusters, surprise people whose job it is to write about movies. "Kung Fu Panda 2" surprised me in a big way. The animation, the story and the laughs were each an astonishing improvement over the original.

Roly Poly Kung Fu Master

Jack Black once again provides the voice of Po the panda aka The Dragon Warrior. Now the leader of the vaunted furious five, including Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Crane (David Cross) Monkey (Jackie Chan), Viper (Lucy Liu) and Mantis (Seth Rogen), Po is still a roly poly panda but now he's great at kung fu.

There is still much for Po to learn however, as Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) explains; Po now must learn inner peace. Lately, Po has been troubled by nightmares that may actually be memories of his past. Never having known his real parents, Po is suddenly becoming aware of what happened to them and how he ended up in the care of Mr. Ping (James Hong).

A Warrior of Black and White

The key to Po's past happens to coincide deeply with the rise of a new villain in China, a peacock named Shen (Gary Oldman). With his new weapon against Kung Fu, Shen intends to enslave all of China but an old soothsayer (Michelle Yeoh) has predicted his doom at the hands of a warrior of black and white.

Simple Yet Complex

I'll end my plot description there to avoid spoilers. Surprisingly, the creators of "Kung Fu Panda 2" have crafted a plot that requires discretion on the part of critics because the plot has complexity and payoffs that are much more enjoyable the less you know going in. Most kids movies forgo such complications but "Kung Fu Panda 2" writers Jonathan Aibel and Glen Berger along with director Jennifer Yuh have pulled off the remarkably difficult task of crafting a plot that is simple enough for kids to follow yet complex enough to involve adults.

The animation has great depth as well as director Yuh combines modern CG animation with touches of old school, Disney style animation. Avoid the 3D version of "Kung Fu Panda 2" and you will be rewarded with bright, beautiful colors that pop off of the screen in far more dazzling ways than a murky 3D image can deliver.

Kung Fu Panda 2 is Very Funny

I should also mention that "Kung Fu Panda 2" is really funny on top of being an involving story. Jack Black wonderfully inhabits Po and the energy and excitement he brings to each line of dialogue is terrific. What he brings to "Kung Fu Panda 2" that was lacking in the original is a slight touch of sensitivity in his voice that really nails the few really dramatic moments of "Kung Fu Panda 2."

There I go again, selling short comedies. Honestly, "Kung Fu Panda 2" is first and foremost a funny kid's movie. The creators have this time merely added a little sophistication to the storytelling, deepened the character of Po and crafted a back story with real resonance that could sustain yet another sequel.

Dreamworks Animation's Best Movie Yet

"Kung Fu Panda 2" is a wonderful movie. Director Jennifer Yuh and her team have given such careful attention to detail and nuance that they have crafted something far better than you could ever expect of a blockbuster sequel. "Kung Fu Panda 2" is funny and sweet with a big heart and a few honestly moving dramatic moments that recall the best of classic Disney and Pixar animated features and may be the best animated feature thus far crafted by the team at Dreamworks Animation, topping even their delightful "How To Train Your Dragon."

Movie Review Kung Fu Panda

Kung Fu Panda (2008) 

Directed by John Stevenson, Mark Osborne

Written by Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger 

Starring Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Ian McShane, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross

Release Date June 6th, 2008

Published June 6th, 2008

With his mischievous eyes and roli poli-ness, Jack Black is like a super cute cartoon character come to life. Real fans know there is an edge to Jables, especially teamed with his pal Kay Gee, but for the little one who knows him from School of Rock and his voicework as the wimpy shark in A Shark's Tale, he is a figure of comic cuddliness.

Who better than to play a giant, cuddly furball who dreams of kung fu glory. In Kung Fu Panda Jack Black stars as Po. As a panda he is not the most likely kung fu master. Nevertheless, when a legendary kung fu master declares that he will, after decades of wait, name the dragon warrior, the master who brings peace to all of China, it is no mistake that Po somehow is the panda for the job.

This despite the presence of the Furious Five, a collection of the greatest warriors in all of China, all trained endlessly for decades by the legendary master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman). Surely Tigress (Angelina Jolie), Monkey (Jackie Chan), Snake (Lucy Liu), Crane (David Cross) or Mantis (Seth Rogan), should be the dragon master.

But no, it's Po and his first great challenge is just days away. The evil Tai Lung (Ian McShane) has escaped from prison and is coming for the dragon warrior. Can Po learn decades worth of Kung Fu in a couple of days or will he give in to his usual laziness and leave the fighting to the Furious Five? You now the answer to that question. Luckily, Kung Fu Panda has other virtues to make it appealing beyond the predictable story. Filled with terrific cartoon slapstick and a terrific all star voice cast Kung Fu Panda is breezy, good natured fun.

Yes, it lacks the kind of intellectual and emotional undercurrents that make the Pixar films so wonderfully memorable and it doesn't have the strong social conscience of March's Horton Hears A Who. What Kung Fu Panda lacks in depth and intellect it nearly makes up for in sweet, child-like good nature.

You and your kids aren't likely to remember Kung Fu Panda long after you see it but while it's on it's a pleasant distraction; perfect for a lazy Saturday afternoon matinee.

Movie Review: Drillbit Taylor

Drillbit Taylor (2008) 

Directed by Steven Brill

Written by Seth Rogen

Starring Owen Wilson, Leslie Mann, Danny McBride 

Release Date March 21st, 2008

Published March 21st, 2008

There are three different movies going amidst the chaos of the new comedy Drillbit Taylor. One is a retreaming of producer Judd Apatow and his writer pal Seth Rogan and their style of raunchy, genital based humor. Another is an Owen Wilson movie starring Wilson in his usual charming rogue comic persona. The last is the most distasterous, an Adam Sandler movie. Stephen Brill, Adam Sandler’s pal and director of Little Nicky and Mr. Deeds, attempts to force the disparate work of Apatow/Rogan, Owen Wilson and Brill’s brand of the Sandler schtick, sans Sandler, into Drillbit Taylor and the result is utterly brutal.

Owen Wilson stars as the title character in Drillbit Taylor, a homeless criminal who accepts a position as a bodyguard for three nerdy High School freshman being bullied by a nasty senior. Nate Hartley, Troy Gentile and David Dorfman play the desperate nerds Wade, Ryan and Emmit who need protection from Filkins (Alex Frost) who has decided to make their lives hell. Offering their whole allowances week after week in exchange protection, the best bodyguard they could afford is Drillbit who claims to be an ex-military ranger and hides his homelessness.

Initially, Drillbit just wants to rob the boys and sets about stealing their stuff under the guise of helping them. Eventually however, after seeing the boys get brutalized, he decides to train them to take care of themselves. His methods are a joke but damned if they don’t give the boys the confidence to stand up to Frost leading to an inevitable final confrontation.

As often is the case my description brings order to a plot where little order exists. Drillbit Taylor stops and starts and sputters through nearly two hours of unfunny violence and cruelty. The script by Seth Rogan and Kristofer Brown plays as if half finished, filled as it is with cliches like the clueless parents and uncaring teachers, just the kinds of characters Rogan and his co-writer pal Evan Goldberg avoided like the plague in his brilliant script for Superbad. Writing with another Apatow protege Kristofer Brown, with an alleged touch up by the legendary John Hughes, the script for Drillbit Taylor features strongly sympathetic kid characters who unfortunately are transported to the Adam Sandler movie world and are repeatedly abused until we just can’t watch, let alone laugh.

Stephen Brill’s direction has the subtlety and grace of an elephant on a frozen lake bed. Scenes slam into and bang off one another in a nearly random order early on as our heroes are kept from meeting Drillbit till the beginning of the films second act. More diversions keep Drillbit out of the school, where Wilson’s charming con man thrives ever so briefly as he romances Leslie Mann’s clueless teacher, until the third act. The third act which then takes forever to play out to a stunningly violent tet still predictable conclusion. .

What director Brill thinks is funny about the abuse he puts these poor kids through is an absolute puzzle. The film lingers on scenes of violence so ugly and scarring that that the movie loses touch with any sort of reality. Drillbit Taylor becomes merely a blunt instrument attempting to bludgeon audiences into submission. Meanwhile, as Steve Brill tries to bend Rogan and Brown’s characters and Wilson’s act to fit his Sandler movie mold it is as if Brill were bullying them into his movie.

Oddly enough dear reader, if Drillbit Taylor had starred Adam Sandler and not Owen Wilson, it might actually have come out better. Wilson simply isn’t cut out to play Drillbit who is called on to be a rude, uncaring, brute who learns to care. Wilson is better suited to playing con men with a heart of gold who can only be redeemed by a good woman as he was in Wedding Crashers or The Big Bounce (not a great movie, but not bad either). No, Drillbit is perfectly suited to Sandler’s manchild, raging id persona who can be believable as an uncaring jerk, as a brutish enforcer and as the teddy bear who learned a valuable lesson.

That is likely due to the direction of Brill who has only really known how to direct Sandler. He was at a loss trying to find a Sandler-esque character in the dismal 2005 comedy Without A Paddle and he is further at a loss in trying to turn Drillbit Taylor into a Sandler movie without Sandler. What you get when he attempts to bend Rogan, Apatow and Wilson to his will is a trainwreck of slapstick violence, low key deadpan and genital based character humor. Oh what an ugly wreck it is.

Movie Review The Green Hornet

The Green Hornet (2011) 

Directed by Michel Gondry

Written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg

Starring Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Cameron Diaz, Edward James Olmos, Christoph Waltz

Release Date January 14th, 2011

Published Janurary 13th, 2011

Seth Rogen does not exactly cut the figure of a superhero. Luckily, that is kind of the point of this reboot of the old school masked hero “The Green Hornet;” he's not the real hero. Though he wears a mask and rolls around Los Angeles in a seriously pimped out superhero car, “The Green Hornet'' is a make believe hero while his martial artist, super-mechanic pal Kato is the real hero; beating down bad guys with a superhuman fighting sense while the Hornet grabs the glory on the front page.

Faux heroism is played for terrific laughs in the at times uneven but overall entertaining “The Green Hornet 3D.”

Seth Rogen stars in “The Green Hornet” as Britt Reid, a 30 something child of privilege who uses his father's wealth as an excuse to remain a teenager for life. Then, suddenly his father (Tom Wilkinson) is dead and Britt has an empire to run. Dad was the founder and editor of the last family owned newspaper in Los Angeles, The Sentinel and though Britt has never even read a newspaper, it's now his to run.

Meanwhile, Britt meets the man who has made his coffee for the past decade. Kato (Jay Chou) was his father's mechanic and coffee hound, he invented a latte machine, and now he works for Britt. Together, Britt and Kato share a disdain for the late Mr. Reid and a bitch session turns into a night of vandalism and then accidental crime fighting. The night is a life changing moment for both Reid and Kato as after saving a couple from some gang members they get a taste for the rush of the hero biz.

The twist in this hero story however is that instead of being good guys, Britt and Kato will be good guys who pose as bad guys in order to get to the bad guys. Using the editorial power of The Sentinel, Britt creates the persona of “The Green Hornet '' as the ultimate big bad in Los Angeles. Naturally, the current big bad, Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz), is none too happy with some nobody usurping his front page headlines. Chudnofsky has spent the past decade shedding blood and selling drugs to get where he is and he's not about to cede the bad guy spotlight.

That's the table setting of “The Green Hornet,” the meal as prepared by director Michel Gondry is a tweaking of the superhero formula that is both true to the classic adventure hero stories and a sly send up of the same in the casting of comic actor Rogan as the pseudo-hero. Rogen, with writing partner Evan Goldberg, wrote the screenplay for “The Green Hornet” and plays wickedly on his lack of hero traits. Some of the biggest laughs in The Green Hornet come cleverly at the star's expense

and as Rogan and Gondry cleverly twist the hero they give new life to the role of sidekick. Jay Chou's Kato is a rather ingenious invention as he bounces well off of Rogan while being a total badass fighter. Chou is a walking special effect and with Gondry’s artful eye for demonstrating his talent, Chou breaks the mold of not just the sidekick but of Asian American movie stars in Hollywood features. 

Badder than Jackie Chan and more fun than Jet Li, Chou may be a martial artist but he's not so serious about it that he can't bust out a chorus of Coolio's “Gangster's Paradise” prior to whipping out some nunchucks and breaking bad guys faces and limbs. Interesting to note, Chou is a pop star in Asia and has a killer closing rap over the credits. Trust me when I say the song is no mere novelty and even fans who don't speak the language will be hard pressed not to nod along to this groove. 

”The Green Hornet '' is not without issues. Christoph Waltz works hard not to be the same colorful villain he was in his Oscar winning role in “Inglorious Bastards and winds up coming off a little flat for the effort. The final action scene set inside the walls of the newspaper as the bad guys chase the good guys, car and all, through the cubicle lined floors of the newspaper goes on a little too long and doesn't pay off strongly enough. 

That said the good more than outweighs the bad in “The Green Hornet.” Seth Rogen's sense of humor is smartly played against a familiar superhero story turned ever so slightly on its ear. Audiences will have to really like Rogan for much of the movie to work but fans of the “Knocked Up” star will be rewarded with a unique evolution of Rogan's clumsy, good hearted galoot character.

Movie Review Pineapple Express

Pineapple Express (2008) 

Directed by David Gordon Green 

Written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg 

Starring Seth Rogen, James Franco, Gary Cole, Rosie Perez, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Bill Hader

Release Date August 6th, 2008 

Published August 5th, 2008

Pineapple Express is arguably the Citizen Kane of stoner movies. In this tiny comedic sub-genre there is little competition to overcome, nevertheless this witty, oddly violent pot comedy squeezes more laughs out of its stoner heroes than 2 Harold and Kumar movies combined. That is likely because of the behind the scenes all star team involved.

The guys behind Superbad and Knocked Up, writer, actor Seth Rogen, his writing partner Evan Goldberg and producer Judd Apatow combine their talent for stoners with a heart of gold with the tremendous directorial skill of indie veteran David Gordon Green to create a stoner comedy that, at the very least, is better than any of the stoner comedies to come before it.

Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) is a pot smoking, talk radio loving, process server who spends his time in costume delivering subpoenas for a living while really living for his next hit. Dale's dealer is Saul (James Franco) a sweet, good natured drug dealer who thinks Dale is his friend when in reality, they wouldn't know each other if Saul didn't sell pot.

Saul has just come into possession of some new weed called Pineapple Express. It is supposed to be grown in such a unique way that it actually gets you higher than any other pot in existence. Saul sells some to Dale who is unfortunately smoking it in front of the home of another drug dealer, Ted Jones (Gary Cole), when he witnesses the dealer kill a man.

Leaving behind his rare weed, Dale is convinced that the joint can be used to find Saul and if they find Saul, that would lead to finding him. And he's right. Ted and a corrupt police officer, played by Rosie Perez, identify the weed and go after Saul who goes on the run with Dale and well, a whole lot of stuff happens and a whole lot of stuff gets smoked.

Pineapple Express is the rare comedy that zigs when you think it will zag. Unpredictability is the film's hallmark as instead of just bumbling through a series of gags, director David Gordon Green goes for edgy comedic violence and often leaves your jaw dropped with it. Some of the violence is painfully funny, some of it is shocking but all of it serves the purposes of the plot that propels from one entertaining scene to the next.

Seth Rogen and James Franco make for a terrific comic team. Exhibiting the kind of male bonded performance that is now the hallmark of the Apatow brand of comedy, Pineapple Express has given rise to the term Bromance to describe the extraordinarily close yet platonic bond between two male best friends. Rogen and Franco do everything short of make out to demonstrate how much they care about each other and the more they push the line, the funnier it gets.

Pineapple Express doesn't reach the comedic highs of Superbad or Knocked Up but as stoner comedies go, it doesn't get much better than this. Terrifically funny, surprising and shockingly violent, Pineapple Express never goes where you expect it to. Rogen, Apatow and now David Gordon Green are at the forefront of modern comedy and now with Pineapple Express they can continue to write their own ticket in Hollywood.

Write it, roll it up and smoke it, if they want to.

Movie Review: You Me and Dupree

You Me and Dupree (2006) 

Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo

Written by Michael Lesieur

Starring Owen Wilson, Matt Dillon Kate Hudson, Michael Douglas, Seth Rogen, Bill Hader

Release Date July 14th, 2006 

Published July 16th, 2006 

Owen Wilson's career is coming to a serious crossroads. The star of Wedding Crashers and charter member of Hollywood's so called frat pack, with his pals Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Will Ferrell; is reaching a tipping point with his good natured slacker persona. How much longer can Wilson continue to play the same relaxed slacker charmer and remain in the good graces of audiences? 

How much longer can Wilson play a variation on the laid back musing hippy that has made him a star. His latest effort, You, Me and Dupree co-starring Matt Dillon and Kate Hudson, gives us a glimpse of Wilson's coming crossroads crisis. Exhibiting the very limits of his appeal, Dupree is typical of the dazed and confused good natured stoner that Wilson has made his bread and butter, he is also however an example of how that laid back stoner can be as irksome as he is charming.

As we join the story of You, Me and Dupree, Carl (Matt Dillon) is in Hawaii preparing to marry his fiancee Molly when his best friend and best man Dupree turns up on the wrong island and needs to be flown in. Dupree has always been a drifting, lazy, slacker but his friends, Carl and Neil (Seth Rogan) have always loved him.

Now that Carl is getting married the whole dynamic of their friendship is changing. Faced with having to watch his friend really grow up, at 36 years old, Dupree finds himself once again in arrested development. Having been fired from his job for attending Carl's wedding without bothering to get time off from work, Dupree is homeless and sleeping on a cot in a bar.

Seeing Dupree's dire straits Carl, fresh from his honeymoon, invites Dupree to sleep on his couch for a few days much to the chagrin of Molly. Naturally, hi-junks ensue as Dupree makes his mark on his new territory. He floods the downstairs bathroom, eats all of the food and eventually nearly burns the house down while sharing intimate relations with a friend of Molly's.

All of Dupree's actions and his completely oblivious attitude make for one truly irritating character. And then the film takes a giant mid-point turn that those of you who are really sensitive to spoilers might want to skip until you have seen the film........

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After all of the horrible things that Dupree does the filmmakers Anthony and Joe Russo decide to try and turn Dupree into the good guy of the movie. It's really rather astonishing. To the half way point you are with Kate Hudson' Molly in wanting to strangle Dupree but then the movie tries to turn him into this slacker with a heart of gold with a philosophy that heals all and suddenly even Molly is on his side while Matt Dillon's Carl turns into the worst variation of a Ben Stiller Jovian afflicted fool. This may work for those in the audience willing to love Owen Wilson no matter what but if you aren't buying Wilson's usual charm as I wasn't the mid-point twist is nearly as irritating as Dupree himself.

The film is pretty well downhill from this point. Michael Douglas joins the fray as Molly's doting dad who happens to hate Carl. This plot line leads into one of my biggest movie pet peeves. The troubles of Carl could be solved completely with one open honest conversation but if he were to do the logical thing and have this conversation there would be no movie. Thus the plot requires Carl to be a fool. This further undermines Dillon who was already stuck with a role it is clear Ben Stiller turned down.

I cannot say that You, Me And Dupree is completely devoid of laughs. With a cast this talented and lovable laughs are going to come no matter how poor the plot or direction. Owen Wilson occasionally emerges from the Dupree character with this wonderful hangdog expression reminiscent of a loving puppy that messed on the floor but doesn't truly realize he's done anything wrong. It's undeniably charming and at times funny.

Kate Hudson is really spot on throughout. Had not the script and direction let her down at every turn her winning smile and ability to adapt to any comic situation could have turned the whole film around. Its unfortunate that she accepted a role in which her character subservient to the whims of her male counterparts. Though she is clearly the equal of her co-stars in terms of star power, the plot relegates her to a dull supporting role that she seems far to big for.

Matt Dillon never should have accepted this role. I'm sure the idea, which came from two of the minds behind TV's brilliant Arrested Development, seemed like a potentially fun idea but he had to have seen the writing on the wall that this was a role meant for the slow boil, comedy of humiliation that is the specialty of Ben Stiller. Dillon is never comfortable in this role which is neither deep enough for his terrific instinctual acting or loose enough for the kind of wild streak that he showed in There's Something About Mary.

In the end You, Me and Dupree turns on the likability and adaptability of Owen Wilson. Sadly he is not up to the task. Dupree exposes the limitations of Wilson as an actor and a persona. Dupree evokes the idea of a stand up comedy routine rather than a fully fleshed out film character. The Owen Wilson persona established in Wedding Crashers, Starsky and Hutch and Zoolander, keeps peeking out from behind the character to wink at the audience and undermine Dupree as a character. You are essentially watching Owen Wilson try out the material of a Dupree character rather than watching a real character develop.

The one word that kept popping into my head throughout You, Me and Dupree was irritating. Dupree as a character and as played by Owen Wilson is irritating. Kate Hudson forced to dial down her star wattage is irritating. Matt Dillon shoehorned into a Ben Stiller character is irritating. The toneless, rhythmless direction of Anthony and Joe Russo is irritating. And at 2 hours in length Me, You And Dupree like it's central houseguest from hell overstays it's welcome and that is truly irritating.

Movie Review Knocked Up

Knocked Up (2007) 

Directed by Judd Apatow

Written by Judd Apatow 

Starring Seth Rogen, Katherine Heigl, Jonah Hill, Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Jason Segal 

Release Date June 1st, 2007 

Published May 30th, 2007 

Television's loss has become the film world's gain. Just think, had either of Judd Apatow's television ventures, Freaks & Geeks or Undeclared become the hit they deserved to be, we might have had to wait for The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up. Thankfully, and yet sadly, both shows were mistreated by hasty network execs seeking quick hit programming, and thus Apatow was pushed to create two of the best comedies of this decade.

The 40 Year Old Virgin is a masterwork in the comedy of discomfort. For all of its lowbrow elements, Virgin thrived on delivering characters with great heart as well as great humor. Judd Apatow's new film Knocked Up shares Virgin's heart and humor but also manages to go a little deeper in analyzing its characters and their flaws. That said, for fans of the off-color humor, there are plenty of dick jokes, vomit jokes, and a birthing scene like nothing you have seen outside of a medical documentary.

Seth Rogan stars in Knocked Up as Ben, a true loser. He lives in a run down house with several of his loser friends. He smokes pot all day and is waiting while his stoner pals try and launch a website dedicated to nude scenes of Hollywood movies. He lives off the profits of a personal injury lawsuit he won several years earlier.

How Ben (Seth Rogan) managed to hook up with a woman like Allison (Katherine Heigl) is entirely about the alcohol. Without a little help from Jose Cuervo there was no way Allison and Ben would end up in bed together. Allison is a gorgeous, highly ambitious, entertainment reporter who, while celebrating her promotion at E! Entertainment television, meets Ben and somehow ends up in bed with him.

The meeting of Ben and Allison should have been for just one alcohol fueled night. However, thanks to condom troubles, Allison ends up pregnant and now she and Ben are tied for good. She has to try and find a way to make things work for the sake of her baby and he must find some way to grow up and become a father.

Written and directed by Judd Apatow, Knocked Up is a foul mouthed yet thoughtful examination of real life issues, parenthood and marriage, and the fears that many people share about growing up and becoming a real adult. The Peter Pan syndrome of many child adults has been a trend in comedies of this decade. Where Knocked Up is different from films like Grandma's Boy, Benchwarmers or Failure To Launch is that Knocked Up is smarter, funnier and features a far more talented group of performers.  

The most important difference however is creator Judd Apatow whose witty insightful writing, leavened by copious amounts of lowbrow jokes, creates characters and situations that are funnier and more believable than those in supposedly similar films. As he did on his terrific, but sadly short lived TV shows, Apatow shows in Knocked Up a level of understanding and good heartedness that often feels crass in lesser talented hands.

His comic timing, the way he mixes the lowbrow humor with the insightful character stuff is a near perfect mixture. Teaming with Seth Rogan, his longtime friend and producing partner, Apatow creates a quick, witty shorthand that never plays like two friends and an inside joke. The shorthand they have together is apparent but they keep all of the humor open and accessible.

If I have any complaint about Knocked Up it comes from a not so surprising lack of depth in the Allison character. It has long been a difficult road for male writers attempting to write fully fleshed out female characters and even a writer as talented as Judd Apatow can't avoid the pitfalls. While Katherine Heigl brings a wonderful inner life to Allison, Apatow fails to flesh out a back story and motivation for her prior to hooking up with Ben.

Why does she live in her sister's guest house? Where are her friends? We meet all of Ben's stoner buddies, but not one of Allison's friends. What about other men? Certainly a woman as beautiful as Allison has had other boyfriends or would attract other men even as she is trying things with Ben. We never learn anything about Allison other than how she reacts to Ben and to becoming a parent with him.

One reason Allison gets the short end of the stick is that this is really Ben's journey told from Ben's perspective and what an interesting perspective that is. Seth Rogan makes Ben so charming and funny that you only question how a schlub like him could win over a goddess like Allison for maybe... half the movie's runtime. But, once we are comfortable with Ben you can't help but be won over. His quick wit, his willingness to make himself the subject of the joke and his relaxed easy going charisma make him a real winner even as his lifestyle and some of his actions betray a loser.

This is the fifth time Rogan has worked with his good friend Judd Apatow, he was on both of Apatow's TV series, had a small role in Anchorman, where Apatow was an executive producer, and co-starred and earned a producer's credit on The 40 Year Old Virgin. The breezy way in which these two work together likely comes from a long honed shorthand.

Paul Rudd is the secret weapon of Knocked Up. Once seen as just another handsome actor, Rudd has in the past 3 years established himself as a tremendously funny supporting player. In Anchorman as Will Ferrell's go to guy and in The 40 Year Old Virgin Rudd showed a terrific flair for self-deprecating humor, a willingness to make jokes about him and a pitch perfect ear  for the one liner.

In Knocked Up Rudd crafts a very human and very funny character that is both self deprecating and confident. His Pete is at first the least complicated character in the film and you feel you know where his secondary storyline is heading. Thankfully, Apatow and Rudd have a number of surprises in store and Pete is much more interesting than he initially appears.

Throughout the middle portion of Knocked Up, as we are getting close with Ben and Allison, we get some very interesting and insightful moments with Pete and his wife, Allison's sister, Debbie played by Leslie Mann. The marriage of Pete and Debbie is counterpoint to Ben and Allison's burgeoning romance and the two relationships are a commentary on one another in a very unique way.

Finally, in a tiny, almost insignificant role, Saturday Night Live star Kristin Wiig is a terrific scene stealer. Playing one of Allison's bosses at the E! Network, Wiig plays a variation on one of her SNL characters, one who feels she must top any story with one of her own. The subtle brilliance of Wiig's performance is almost so low key you could miss it. Pay attention when she is on, you are guaranteed some big laughs.

Yes, Knocked Up is often foul and features a good deal of low humor. However, mixed within the lowest common denominator stuff is a true heart and a great head. The film is warmer and truer than most of the films Hollywood releases in any year, not just comedies. Knocked Up is a terrifically funny movie packed with talented performers and a creator who is a star on the rise for many years to come. As good as both The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up are, I feel Judd Apatow will only get more interesting as he matures. His best work may be yet to come. 

Movie Review Long Shot

Long Shot (2019) 

Directed Jonathan Levine 

Written by Dan Sterling, Liz Hannah

Starring Charlize Theron, Seth Rogan, O'Shea Jackson, Andy Serkis, June Diane Raphael

Release Date May 3rd, 2019 

Published May 2nd, 2019 

Long Shot stars Seth Rogen as the unattractively named Fred Flarsky. Fred is a journalist who just quit his job working as a liberal activist journalist after his newspaper was bought by a right wing media conglomerate. Looking to drown his sorrows, Fred meets up with his pal, Lance (O’Shea Jackson), a rich investor type, who promises to take him for a fancy night out. This night out, with drugs and booze of all sorts, culminates with a fancy party where Boyz II Men is performing. 

While Fred is excited to see his favorite 90’s R & B group, his night gets even more exciting when he spots Secretary of State Charlotte Field (Charlize Theron), in the crowd. Charlotte and Fred knew each other in middle school when Charlotte babysat for the three years younger Fred. Fred relays a remarkably embarrassing story about humiliating himself with a kiss attempt on Charlotte before she actually has him summoned for a chat. Seems she remembers him and the two strike up their old friendship. 

Against the better judgment of her staff, headed up by Maggie (June Diane Raphael) and Tom (Ravi Patel), Charlotte decides to hire Fred as a speech writer. You see, Charlotte is about to leave the job of Secretary of State behind and make a run for the Presidency and one of her weaknesses, according to polling data, is her sense of humor. She hopes that Fred’s writing can make her funny. She also just simply finds his oafishness charming. 

Charlotte has secured the endorsement of President Chambers (Bob Odenkirk), a Hollywood actor who once played the President on TV who somehow became the real President. Odenkirk is a scene stealer on par with the all time greats and he makes this cameo performance a spiky delight, indicting the audience and American politics for being attracted to flashy politicians. Yes, it’s a transparent dig at our current President, but Odenkirk makes it more singular and very funny. Watch for the scene where he describes why he’s decided to leave office. It’s a classic. 

Charlotte is embarking on a world tour and she is bringing Fred along to write her speeches and while that happens, the two develop a genuine bond. The chemistry between Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen is really strong. She’s an incredible actress who really sells why she is attracted to Fred and Rogen is charming enough in a rather far-fetched role to make us buy into why a woman as ungodly gorgeous and smart and unattainable as Charlotte would go for him. 

That’s really the conceit of Long Shot. Sure, there are more than a few political jokes, the film has a particularly left wing view, but the central gag that the film’s plot turns on is convincing us that a goofball like Fred Flarsky could be someone who a Charlotte Field could fall in love with. This is a romantic comedy so these aren’t spoilers. The journey of Long Shot is in how you get there and not where the movie is going. 

The ending is especially hard to swallow but, once again, the winning combination of Rogen and Theron makes it work. I accepted that what happens is possible because these two terrific superstars convinced me that under these remarkably heightened and outrageous circumstances, this story is plausible. The incredible chemistry and the really big laughs of Long Shot easily defeated my skepticism about the plot and the R-rated convolutions needed to make it work. 

Long Shot was directed by Jonathan Levine whose unique career includes the Amy Schumer Goldie Hawn flop Snatched, the underwhelming zombie romance Warm Bodies, and the brilliant comic drama 50/50. That last one, 50/50 gave Seth Rogen a really terrific comic dramatic performance opposite an equally brilliant Joseph Gordon Levitt. Levine indeed tries hard to bring some genuine dramatic beats to his comedies with rather mixed results. 

The dramatic beats of 50/50 work solely because of the brilliant and sharp cast. The few dramatic beats of Long Shot also work because of a brilliant cast that make you forget that there is genuine drama taking place. Long Shot is a great deal more broad and jockey than 50/50 but each film shows a director who knows how to trust his actors to deliver a mix of the real and the broadly comic. Levine is blessed to have the Oscar winning Theron who has proven she can convince audiences of just about anything. 

Long Shot is mostly delightful, even when it is remarkably raunchy and R-Rated. Be prepared, this movie is not for the easily offended. Long Shot goes for some big bawdy, R-Rated laughs regarding sex and drugs and you definitely need to leave the kids at home for this one. The film’s biggest flaw however, is not raunchy humor, it’s length. At more than 2 hours and 15 minutes, the film struggles at times to maintain pace and drags in a few spots. 

Oh, I was wrapping up there, but I cannot end this review without praising O’Shea Jackson. Ice Cube’s son is a brilliant scene stealer. This man is a star in the making. Lance is a wonderful character who is full of life and unexpected comic invention. Even when he is given a questionable bit of forced back story late in the movie, Jackson makes it work and is very funny while doing it. I adore this performance, one of my favorites of the year thus far. 

Movie Review Superbad

Superbad (2007) 

Directed by Greg Mattola

Written by Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg

Starring Michael Cera, Jonah Hill, Emma Stone, Christopher Mintz Plasse, Bill Hader, Seth Rogen

Release Date August 17th, 2007

Published August 16th, 2007

There are moments of the teen comedy Superbad that remind me so much of my own teen years that I would have been red faced embarrassed if I weren't laughing so hard. This latest brilliant comedy from under the shingle of Judd Apatow is the movie that Porky's and American Pie wished they could have been. Smart, funny, and balls out filthy, Superbad has a heart as big as its love of penis drawings.

Written by the team of Seth Rogan, star of Knocked Up, and his childhood friend Evan Goldberg, Superbad is so true and authentic that guys between the ages of 18 and 34 will be in hysterics at just the familiarity of the characters and the situations.

Superbad tells the story of one night in the lives of two best friends. Seth (Jonah Hill) and Evan (Michael Cera) have been friends for over 10 years, something you get quickly from the shorthand of their conversation that seems as if it began a decade before the movie began. This is their last night of High School and the boys have been invited to their first High School party.

The party is being thrown by Seth's longtime crush Jules (Emma Stone). By promising to get alcohol for the party Seth hopes he can entice Jules into a drunken, last night of High School tryst. Also attending the party is  Evan's longtime crush Becca (Martha MacIsaac), she is into Evan but he is clueless how to handle that. He too hopes that a little alcohol will grease the wheels, though his intentions with Becca are slightly less puerile.

To get the booze the boys must rely on Evan's friend Fogell who has promised a fake I.D. Unfortunately, when Fogell produces the I.D his name change threatens to blow the cover. Fogell decided to call himself "McLovin", no last name, just McLovin. Nevertheless, McLovin is the boy's only hope to get the drinks and thereby, get the girls.

On my surface level description Superbad sounds like nothing more than American Pie Redux or maybe Porky's 15. In reality however, Superbad, under the skilled direction of Greg Mottola, is much smarter than the American Pie movies and even more outlandish than Porky's. Superbad is the rare teen comedy that delivers strong characters with the extra strength of low brow humor.

Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg wrote the script for Superbad based on their experiences as teenagers. The two have been friends since junior high and that friendly shorthand lends the film authenticity that most other teen comedies can only imitate. Despite having to compound a high school lifetime of experiences into one night, Superbad never feels overstuffed. Director Mottola along with Rogan and Goldberg escape this trouble by simply ignoring it.

The bedrock of Superbad is the loving friendship of Seth and Evan. This is really a platonic male love story about two guys overcoming social pressures to confess that they love each other. Men in this culture are not allowed to admit their feelings for one another, not without a joking reference to Brokeback Mountain or some anti-gay slur to break the awkwardness.

Superbad throws off the social shackles and allows Evan and Seth to be honest with each other, with the aid of a little booze. They are headed to different colleges in the fall and they are going to miss each other more than even the girls whose hearts they hope to win. Now, before you start to think that Superbad is some touchy-feely, male bonding comedy, trust me, there are plenty of dick jokes. In fact, there is almost a dick subplot. I don't want to get too detailed, just keep an ear out for Seth's reasons for not liking Evan's crush Becca.

A great group of actors mixed with tremendous behind the scenes talent, Superbad is among the best films of 2007. Yes, some will be put off by the truly low brow humor but trust me, they will be missing the point. The lowbrow stuff comes from a good hearted place within these terrific characters. It's all in good fun and only occasionally is it gratuitous. In a year where we have seen The Simpsons Movie and Knocked Up it is Superbad that takes the crown as the funniest movie of the year.

Movie Review: Dr Seuss' Horton Hears A Who

Horton Hears a Who (2008) 

Directed by Jimmy Hayward, Steve Martino 

Written by Cinco Paul, Ken Daurio 

Starring Carol Burnett, Jim Carrey, Steve Carell, Amy Poehler, Seth Rogen, Will Arnett

Release Date March 8th, 2008 

Published March 7th, 2008 

We get a lot of animated movies every years and a number of very good ones. The artists of modern animated features are, more often than not, responsible caring, smart people who have your childrens best interests at heart. That is certainly the case with the team behind the latest Dr. Seuss adaptation Horton Hears A Who.

Jim Carrey gives voice to Horton the elephant, one Theodore "Dr. Seuss" Geisel's most enduring characters. In the land of Nool Horton is popular with the little ones and teaches them about the forest. His non-traditional teaching style is frowned upon by the sour Kangaroo (Carol Burnett) who fears Horton is causing the children to use their imaginations.

The Kangaroo grows even more sour when Horton takes to talking to a small speck atop a flower. You see, according to Horton, there is a tiny population on that speck called Who's. Horton has made contact with the Who's Mayor (Steve Carell) and has vowed to protect the populace and get the speck to the safety of a mountaintop sunflower.

Horton rescued the speck after it was dislodged from another flower, something that has caused big trouble for the who's from earthquakes to massive shifts in weather patterns. If they don't get to safety soon they will be destroyed. Standing in Horton's way is that dyspeptic Kangaroo and her mean sidekick Vlad (Will Arnett) a vulture who vows to destroy the speck free of charge.

The dramatic stakes are high but Horton never gets to serious about it's situation. This is first class kids entertainment with both big laughs and smart subtext. Jimmy Hayward and Steve Martino were the minds behind this adaptation and they have kept much of Dr. Seuss's material intact, not the least is his undying respect and reverence for a child's mind.

The exceptional voice cast also keeps things light and fun. Jim Carrey, Steve Carell and Carol Burnett do a tremendous job finding just the right tones for the lead roles. Meanwhile, Seth Rogan, Jonah Hill and Amy Poehler offer terrific support.

Horton Hears A Who is as smart as it is funny. Underlying the story of Horton and the Mayor's heroic journey are ideas about spirituality and environmental concern that maybe Dr. Seuss didn't intend but become prominent in the expansion of Horton from a small book to a feature length film. The movie is about believing in something whether you can see it or not. It celebrates the imagination but also the capacity to believe in something beyond reason. Horton cloaks faith in the veneer of modern animated humor and somehow never comes off preachy.

The animation of Horton could not be a better representation of Dr. Seuss's classic style mixed with modern animated technology. The opening image of a drop of water on a leaf is breathtakingly realistic and there are striking images throughout Horton. Images that catch the eye without overstatement. Impressive and not overwhelming, a delicate balancing act. This is one terrific little movie. If you have kids then you must have Horton Hears A Who, a new animated classic for your collection.

Movie Review The 40 Year Old Virgin

The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005) 

Directed by Judd Apatow 

Written by Judd Apatow, Steve Carell 

Starring Steve Carell, Paul Rudd, Seth Rogen, Romany Malco, Catherine Keener 

Release Date August 19th, 2005 

Published August 18th, 2005 

The vanguard of TV writing is now headed for the big screen in big ways. J.J Abrams the creator of "Alias" is directing the next Mission Impossible film. Joss Whedon the creator of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and the underground hit, "Firefly", has Serenity in theaters in September and is soon to tackle Wonder Woman. First up, however, is television's most under-appreciated comedy writer, Judd Apatow.

In two network series, "Freaks and Geeks" and "Undeclared", Judd Apatow has had two of the most critically beloved and audience ignored series in history. Two extraordinarily witty and charming shows about growing up and not growing up. Both shows can now be seen as warm ups for Mr. Apatow's switch to big screen comedy in The 40 Year-Old Virgin, another witty and charming story of arrested development.

Steve Carell stars as the title virgin, Andy Stitzer. Andy lives in perpetual teenager-hood. Living amongst his action figures and video games and riding a bike to work, Andy barely even looks his age. At work Andy is the subject of derision and beliefs that he may be a serial killer. When his co-workers, Dave (Paul Rudd), Cal (Seth Rogan) and Jay (Romany Malco) invite Andy to play poker with them, the conversation quickly turns to sex and Andy is outed as a virgin despite his best efforts to the contrary. The trio seem less than sincerely sympathetic to Andy's plight, but eventually they do try and help Andy to relative degrees of success.

Each of Andy's new friends has some very... interesting advice that works in weird ways but almost always to Andy's detriment. While Dave is pining desperately for an ex-girlfriend he thinks Andy can be helped with a big box of porn. Jay thinks the cure is "drunk bitches" and Cal has a surprisingly effective idea: emulate David Caruso in Jade and women won't be able to resist.

Eventually, despite and not because of his friend's advice, Andy meets a lovely woman named Trish (Catherine Keener).  The two spark an immediate connection and thus begins a romantic plot that is smart and adult even as it is conventional romantic comedy. Carell and Keener are very good together and you have to love the way Keener throws herself into this role. She is an outsider amongst the male ensemble, most of whom have worked together before, yet she fits right in.

Judd Apatow directs 40 Year-Old Virgin with a very steady hand. Very well paced and always clever, at times the film is extraordinarily funny and often very crude but in the funniest ways imaginable. The film earns its R-rating with its language and raunchiness but that is perfectly balanced by the wonderfully sweet romance at the center.

The 40 Year-Old Virgin could have gone entirely wrong were it not for the strong lead performance of Steve Carell. The former "Daily Show" correspondent and star of NBC's doomed "The Office" manages to make Andy's virginity more than just a one-note sex joke. The character could have been a caricature akin to Pee Wee Herman or some other outrageous over the top character who you would believe never had sex. Instead Carell paints a very sympathetic portrait of a shy introverted guy who was just unlucky in his youthful exploits with women.  Andy is never a pawn of the plot or of the characters around him. He is fully formed and totally genuine. The film works because we believe in Andy and we align ourselves with Andy.

The supporting cast of The 40 Year Old Virgin is amazing, especially Paul Rudd who gets more and more outrageous and courageous in every role. Here is a comedic actor of real chops and leading man looks who is willing to completely humiliate himself if it means a big laugh, a rare breed. Romany Malco and Seth Rogan round out the top supporting roles and manage to create fully formed characters with depth and humor. The interplay of the four guys is unforced and familiar and almost always hysterically funny. It's no surprise that they have worked together before and the joy they have working together comes off the screen and affects the audience.

The real revelation of 40 Year-Old Virgin however, is director Judd Apatow who takes his place as one of the leading voices in big screen comedy. In a genre that desperately needs a new voice, Apatow is a sight for sore eyes and ears. His talent for character development and ability to sustain big laughs without having to abandon his plot is something a lot of veteran comedy directors could learn from.

Movie Review Paul

Paul (2011) 

Directed by Greg Mottola 

Written by Simon Pegg, Nick Frost

Starring Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader 

Release Date March 18th, 2011

March 17th, 2011 

"Paul" is the "Citizen Kane" of nerd humor, the movie all other nerd movies will be compared to for years to come. "Paul" stars beloved geeks (I use the term Geeks with love) Simon Pegg and Nick Frost as a pair of sci-fi loving Brits on holiday at Comic-Con who decide to road trip to their favorite alien hot spots. Along the way they meet a real alien named Paul (Seth Rogan) who takes them on an exciting and very funny adventure.

Paul was directed by Greg Mottola whose nerd credentials include "Superbad" and the cult romance "Adventureland." Mottola infuses "Paul" with unexpected heart and sensitivity that coexists surprisingly well with uproarious R-rated gags. The script comes from stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost whose geek humor knowledge is seemingly limitless. You will have to see "Paul" twice to capture all of the nerd references packed tightly into the 104 minute runtime.

The geek chic extends to the supporting cast including Jason Bateman from the cult TV series "Arrested Development," Joe Lo Truglio from the cult comedy troupe "The State" and Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader who bring SNL's loyal fan base to the film. Finally, "Paul" ends with a cameo that the trailer spoils but I will not. Let's just call it a shocking and gory appearance by a geek goddess and leave it at that.

"Paul" is an uproarious R-rated comedy that manages to be funny and sweet without lapsing into cloying or pandering. Much of the film's surprising maturity comes from the voice of Seth Rogen who brings his typical foul mouth shtick to the film but also a newfound warmth and tenderness to his voice. Rogen offers a reassuring vocal performance that grounds "Paul" within its wacky alien universe of geek references and broad physical humor.

Paul is one of the funniest movies you will see in 2011, and even though it is early in the year, it will remain one of the funniest movies of 2011. "Paul" is a brilliantly funny sci-fi comedy that never fails to be outlandish and raunchy and sweet at once. Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and the voice of Seth Rogen are a terrific comic trio and with all of the geek cred they bring to the film you have the makings of a cult classic to which all other nerd movies will be compared.

Movie Review Funny People

Funny People (2009)

Directed by Judd Apatow 

Written by Judd Apatow 

Starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann, Eric Bana, Jonah Hill, Jason Schwartzman 

Release Date July 31st, 2009

Published July 30th, 2009 

Comics have their own idiom, a way of speaking that is more often than not aggressive and abnormal. Words are their weapons and they wield them with particular expertise. Listen to comedian Patton Oswalt, a shambling, unkempt often alcohol infused comic whose word use is as precise and exacting as your average marksmen is with a high caliber rifle. The brain of the comic is different always, searching at all times for the absurd in the average, that detail that they can see that the average person misses. That brain gets a thorough and exacting examination in Funny People, Judd Apatow's adroit, mature comedy of penis jokes and honest to goodness pathos.

Adam Sandler is the star of Funny People playing a variation on his real life superstar career. His George Simmons is one of the biggest stars in the world thanks to movies like Mer-Man where he plays, you guessed it, a half man half fish and Re-Do where Sandler's soft ball like skull is placed on the body of a baby by cheesy CGI. You can sense the shame he feels over these movies, made only to line his pockets, and purchase cars he never drives and a large, Xanadu-esque mansion that he doesn't need, and one can't help but wonder if the shame applies in real life to dreck like Little Nicky or Billy Madison. Probably not, but I can dream.

The shame can be seen in George when he see's himself worshipped in the eyes of his new assistant Ira (Seth Rogan). Hired to help write jokes so George can go back to where he feels most at home, the comedy stage, Ira becomes George's only real friend, even if he won't admit it. It's a forced friendship with young Ira carrying most of the burden especially after George reveals he has a rare blood disease and may soon be dead. That's a lot for Ira to carry but he does carry it and soon Ira begins to develop his own talents and find his own comic persona through the mirror of George's age and and hard won wisdom.

Outside of his wealth and privilege, George's life is empty and impending death has only magnified the void. He now longs for all the stuff he took for granted as a younger man, things family and children. Ira helps George reconnect with his parents and sister and even a few of his comic 'friends' who are more like fellow former hostages of some unknown captor. They aren't friends, they just share the same trauma it seems and that bonds them.

The one person George really hopes to reconnect with however, is Laura, the only woman he ever really loved. Laura is now married and living in San Francisco. She comes to George after he reveals his illness and the reunion is emotional in the way one might talk to someone who dying, an exaggerated pseudo-truth that takes conversational reality to a heightened emotional realm. Yes, Laura loved him once and, in his dying state, she forgives him his indiscretions of the past but is he really the love of her life? That could just be comfort food for the dying.

Well, George will find out if Laura is for real. The last 45 minutes of Funny People is dedicated to George surviving his illness and deciding to chase the life he thinks he always wanted. What happens then is for you to discover but thanks to the exceptionally smart and true writing and direction of Judd Apatow you are in for something funny and unexpected. For those trained by The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up to expect a lot of foul humor, your training comes in handy. Apatow's verbiage is as scatological and unapologetically foul as ever. The difference is the level of sophistication in the way these words are used. Comics use foul language in such a secondary, comfortable manner that it's less natural when they don't use them.

Adam Sandler has shown in the past that beneath the juvenile mask is an immensely talented actor. He simply cannot often enough restrain his id and allow that talent some time in the sun. In Funny People the mask is off and the talent shines like never before. His George is a stunningly bitter, brusque and off-putting guy who makes no apologies for being repugnant. He is fully conscious of his disgust for himself and in finding death he turns that disgust toward whatever human target is close by. As in his shame for his movies, George loathes the people who love them as much as she loathes himself for making them love him. He lives the old Groucho Marx maxim "I would never be a part of a club that would have me as a member".

Sandler's performance in Funny People is so raw and remarkable that you must wonder how true it all is to the real life of Adam Sandler. Thankfully, in real life Sandler appears to be happily married with children and close friends. It's very likely however, that Sandler knows a George Simmons and shares a deep sympathy with him. Sandler comes at this role with such ferocity and authentic self-loathing and contempt for the world that it just feels real. Then there is the blurring of the lines when George/Adam criticizes his terrible movie roles and that blurring of the lines becomes an uncanny valley between real life and the funny fiction of Funny People. 

As for Seth Rogen, I loved how Rogen's Ira represents all the hope and joy that has seemingly slipped away from jaded George and the way that Ira's youth and enthusiasm enlivens the mentor-student relationship of Geore and Ira. Rogen plays Ira as his usual foul-mouthed man-child, the persona he has perfected in his short but fast rising career. However, Rogen and Apatow take great care to make Ira the heart of the story and use the character as a mirror to highlight the best and worst of George while deepening both characters through their growth together as friends and colleagues. It's a dynamite dynamic and the chemistry between Rogen and Sandler is outstanding. 

With Adam Sandler delivering a career best performance and Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow showing newfound maturity and complexity, Funny People becomes one of the best movies you will see all year. Funny People is also another maddening symbol of how incredibly talented Adam Sandler can be when he wants to be. It makes me dislike Sandler more when he makes terrible comedies because I have seen a movie like this and I can see how talented he is. It's frustrating to watch him make some of the worst movies in the world when he's capable of making movies like this. 

Movie Review The Interview

The Interview (2014) 

Directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg

Written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg

Starring Seth Rogen, James Franco, Randall Park 

Release Date December 25th, 2014 

Published December 24th, 2014

I was more than halfway through watching the new comedy "The Interview" on my computer when the darn thing just shut off. I had just reached the scene where Seth Rogan's Aaron and James Franco's Dave Skylark are about to interview Kim Jong Un (Randall Park) and are coming to terms with their potential executions when my computer simply shuts down. Thankfully, the issue was not a cyber-attack, but merely an aged laptop overheating. But it does make for a perfect story about watching "The Interview."

No film in 2014 has been discussed in print and by pundits than "The Interview." Having taken center stage in the cyber attack on Sony Pictures, "The Interview" finally arrives for audiences to finally judge just how offensive the film truly is. To the film's credit, there are no holds barred in attacking the myth and legend of Kim Jong Un. That said, the film is not exactly weighty, with most jokes surrounding a concept called "honey-dicking."

"Honey-dicking" is a term used when one man is attempting to seduce another man by pretending to be all the things that the seducer wants in another person. In this case, Kim Jong Un pretends to be cool and gives Skylark his dream friendship based on what he knows about Skylark's affinity for basketball, women, tanks, etc.

So you can see this is not exactly high-minded satire that earned the ire of North Korean leadership. Still, it's not hard to identify what the real Kim Jong Un might find offensive about "The Interview" beyond the simple matter of the premise, which is his assassination. The Supreme Leader of North Korea is portrayed as a borderline psychotic manchild who loves Katy Perry songs and has serious daddy issues.

For his part, Skylark is an easily misled doofus who falls for Kim Jong Un's act very quickly, only to watch in horror when the dictator shows off his crazy side. James Franco is a pure joy to watch in the role of Dave Skylark with his big goofy grin, oddball slang and general flightiness.

It's up to Seth Rogen to ground the humor of the picture and he does an admirable job. Though I would not in any way call the film realistic, Rogen and co-writer/co-director Evan Goldberg create a strong pace and energy for this off-the-wall premise to exist. In front of the camera Rogen is his typically goofball self, only slightly more mature than usual. Slightly more mature.

"The Interview" is quite funny at times, drawing most of its humor from Franco's unique line readings and the terrific enthusiasm of all the performers. Park is a true scene stealer as Kim Jong Un. Park has the same joy of performance that seems to drive Franco, and the two have an exceptional comic chemistry.

Does "The Interview'' deserve to be some kind of celebrated cause? No, it was merely thrust into the midst of chaos rather than actually being the cause of it. The film is rather slight overall, less memorable -- aside from the controversy -- than Rogen and Goldberg’s far superior films "This is the End" and "Superbad."

Take "The Interview" out of the context of the current controversy that swirls around it and it might not have made much of an impression. It's not a bad movie. It's actually a pretty good version of the bro-comedy we've grown accustomed to with Franco, Rogen and Goldberg. It is, however, aside from the controversy, not that much more than a typical bro-comedy that likely would have faded quickly from theaters over Christmas without North Korea choosing to act as an accidental press agent for the film.