00s Movie Review - Tropic Thunder

Director: Ben Stiller
Genre: Action/ Comedy
Runtime: 107 minutes
Year: 2008
Starring: Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr., Jack Bacl, Jay Baruchel, Nick Nolte, Danny McBride, Steve Coogan, Tom Cruise, Matthew mcConaughey, Bill Hader

Description: Through a series of freak occurrences, a group of actors shooting a big-budget war movie are forced to become the soldiers they are portraying.

Review: We all know the prototype war movie: the brave leader, the cursing black guy with a big heart, the scary newbie and the villainous opponent. We also know the prototype actors: the tough action hero on detour, the lame comedian who only knows to tell one joke in many different ways, the serious Oscar winner and the rapper that wants to explore his acting career. “Tropic Thunder” mocks both of those groups, but also Hollywood, agents, producers and entertainment shows.

The film, that starts after a few fake trailers, is about the filming of war movie Tropic Thunder. It’s the fictive memoire of Vietnam veteran ‘Four Leaf’ Tayback. Director Daniel Cockburn can’t control the actors in his crew. He’s dealing with action hero Tuff Speedman, whose try on more serious acting failed. But also the Australian method actor Kirk Lazarus and the addicted-to-many-things comedian Jeff Portnoy. To control them, they are send to the real jungle, where they unfortunately also have to deal with real drug dealers.

The most interesting and elaborate storyline is the one of Lazarus. An actor who always stays in character and even had a procedure to make his skin darker so he can play the role in Tropic Thunder. It sounds harsh and an easy way to provoke, but it’s deeper than that. The other characters aren’t thought through as much. Jack Black does nothing new, hysterical and over the top. But that doesn’t make it less funny. And Ben Stiller’s character is mocking Tom Cruise, a bit too much sometimes. Tom Cruise himself also shows up, as the fat, bald and cursing producer. Funny? From time to time.

The movie is overall very funny and Robert Downey Jr. is just fantastic in his part. And the many supporting actors, Jay Baruchel, Steve Coogan, Danny McBride, Matthew McConaughey and Nick Nolte, are all good. “Tropic Thunder” is always praised and I like it too. But not as much as most people.

Rating: 3,5/ 5 

Movie Review - The Mitchell's Vs. the Machines

Director: Michael Rianda, Jeff Rowe
Genre: Animation/ Family/ Adventure/ Science Fiction/ Action
Runtime: 114 minutes
Year: 2021
Starring: Abbi Jacobsen, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Michael Rianda, Olivia Colman, Fred Armisen, Eric André, Beck Bennett, John Legend, Chrissy Teigen, Conan O’Brien

Description: A quirky dysfunctional family’s road trip is upended when they find themselves in the middle of the robot apocalypse and suddenly become humanity’s unlikeliest last hope.

Review: Thanks to a selfish tech slouch in Silicon Valley, all robot and machines are tuning against humanity. There seems to be only one family that can stop the evil this man has wrought. Let that be a dysfunctional family of awkward misfits. “The Mitchell’s Vs. the Machines” is full of witty jokes about the evils inflicted on humans by big tech companies, but then seems to negate these criticisms with the decidedly meme-like aesthetic regularly chosen.
Katie Mitchell is different from others, but that’s really true of her entire family. Katie makes crazy videos, which she uses to get accepted to film school. Father Rick doesn’t quite get these videos, but he doesn’t seem to be able to get a grip on the internet and his growing daughter anyway. Brother Aaron has a very big obsession with dinosaurs and mother Linda tries to keep the family together with her patience and love. When the robots seize power, this seems like the last family that can offer any hope of saving humanity.  
Chaos is already rife when destructive robots fly around, but when a vengeful siri variant decides to shut down the global wifi, panic really breaks out. “Will someone take pictures of my food”, screams a woman desperately as the world behinds her burns. These are the kinds of highly visually elaborate cynical jokes that the film is full of, providing and extremely witty take on humans and their technologies. When murderous Furby’s, dryers bent on massacre and aggressive robot vacuum cleaners also come along, the film proves truly hilarious.
The makers also seem to want to appeal to a younger audience, it is after all a children’s film. However, they do this with an aesthetic what is midway between Snapchat filters, memes and TikTok movies. This form of animation withing animation not only looks very annoying, it sometimes actually ruins successful jokes and undermines the fiilm’s strong criticism Big Tech. the result is king of a cacophony of memes that are projected in between the successful animations when you weren’t actually looking for them. But still, because of many hilarious scenes and top-notch cast, the makers are forgiven.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Aloha

Director: Cameron Crowe
Genre: Drama/ Romance/ Comedy
Runtime: 105 minutes
Year: 2015
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, John Krasinski, Bill Murray, Danny McBride, Alec Baldwin, Bill Camp, Jaeden Martell

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2020 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 21: A MOVIE WITH YOUR FAVORITE ACTRESS

Description: A celebrated military contractor (Bradley Cooper) returns to the site of his greatest career triumphs and reconnects with a long-ago love (Rachel McAdams) while unexpectedly falling for the hard-charging Air Force watch-dog (Emma Stone) assigned to him.

Review: Cameron Crowe directed movies like “Jerry Maguire” and “Almost Famous”, which were both great successes. He got together a fabulous cast for “Aloha”, including Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray, John Krasinski and Danny McBride. But this film proofs that a strong cast doesn’t necessarily make a great movie.
Brian Gilcrest used to be a much celebrated fighter pilot and astronomer, but after an incident in Kabul he can’t work in the field anymore. He now uses his expertise while working at Global One, a private company lead by billionaire Carson Welch, who wants to help the America army. Welch wants the entire world to have free access to the internet and Gilcrest is send to Hawaii, to get the blessing from an officious king. Together with his liaison Captain Allison Ng he has to make sure the natives aren’t going to be any trouble. And then there is Gilcrest’s ex Tracy, now married to another pilot Woody and mother of two kids. It’s clear their relationship didn’t end well, but there is also something between Gilcrest and Allison.
It's not really clear what the movie is trying to tell you. What is clear is the lack of knowledge of the Hawaiian culture.
The cast is fine, it does what it needs to do. But with such a big group of names, you except more. Bradley Cooper isn’t challenged enough in his role and Emma Stone has been better. Rachel McAdams does fit her role and her role is convincing enough. John Krasinksi can do much more than this and Bill Murray was probably just added to draw attention. He doesn’t get that much to do.
“Aloha” is not a terrible movie, but the film lacks logic and meaning. It sometimes even drags. And such a talented group of actors deserved a better script.

Rating: 2,5 / 5

10s Movie Review - This is the End

Director: Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen
Genre: Action/ Comedy
Runtime: 107 minutes
Year: 2013
Starring: James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, Jason Segel, Danny McBride, Michael Cera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Craig Robinson, Paul Rudd, Mindy Kaling, Aziz Ansari, Kevin Hart, Rihanna, David Krumholtz, Emma Watson

Description: While attending a party at James Franco's house, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel and many other celebrities are faced with the apocalypse.

Review: Relaxing with his friend Seth Rogen, smoke some weed, play video games and eat junk food. That’s the weekend Jay Baruchel had in mind in “This is the End”. Sadly for him, that chill weekend ends up in the apocalypse.
Against his will Jay joins Seth for a house warming party at James Franco’s house. The new mansion is filled with Hollywood’s finest. When Jay and Seth quickly go to a store, they witness a weird happening where people are sucked into the sky. It’s followed by a giant sink hole in front of Franco’s house.
“This is the End” is a comedy that can go two ways: you either love it or you hate it. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg have proved themselves before, with the comedy “Superbad”. And again they manage to make us laugh. It’s the end of days, packed with simple, tasteless jokes and pretty enjoyable (sorry to say) death scenes of famous movie stars. By mocking themselves and Hollywood, “This is the End” never has a dull moment.
“This is the End” is a film that is self-aware and not to be taken too seriously. The actors exaggerate their own character, and that’s why it’s a fun movie that I love. A guarantee for laughs.

Rating: 4/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 90: Sausage Party

Director: Greg Tiernan, Conrad Vernon
Genre: Comedy/ Animation/ Adventure
Runtime: 89 minutes
Year: 2016
Starring: Seth Rogen, Michael Cera, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill, James Franco, Danny McBride, Edward Norton, Craig Robnson, Nick Kroll, Paul Rudd, David Krumholtz, Salma Hayek

Description: A sausage strives to discover the truth about his existence

Review: If you put the creative minds of Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and Jonah Hill together, before you know it you get another hilarious concept. And I think there had to be some weed involved when the idea for “Sausage Party” was born. An animation about talking food, that has to run before they get eaten. It sounds super weird and it somehow is, but it’s damn funny.
“Sausage Party” is not the kind of animation you want to watch with your children. It’s adult humor. And it’s a giant wink to Pixar and Disney. The food in the Shopwell supermarket starts their day with a song, every day. If people buy them, they are chosen. But none of them know what happens to them. Sausage Frank and bun Brenda happen to fall out of the cart, right before the registry. And soon they are about to find out what their actual fate is.
“Sausage Party” is child unfriendly. It’s politically incorrect, sexist, stereotypical, has unsubtle sex jokes and many food related word puns. There is a very macabre scene where the food finds out what really happens to them and there is off course that so-called food porn at the end of the film. And the fact that the villain in the film is a vaginal shower, says enough.
Rogen and Goldberg give the finger to anyone that claims animation is only for kids and that there is always supposed to be a message hidden somewhere. So you shouldn’t take “Sausage Party” too seriously. What “Sausage Party” is, is original, fun and crossing the line. And I like it!

Rating: 4/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2017 - # 67: Alien: Covenant

Director: Ridley Scott
Genre: Horror/ Science Fiction/ Thriller
Runtime: 122 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, James Franco

Description: The crew of a colony ship, bound for a remote planet, discover an uncharted paradise with a threat beyond their imagination, and must attempt a harrowing escape.

Review: After a pause of 20 years and a prequel, it’s finally here: a new Alien film. It’s a sequel to “Prometheus” and a prequel to “Alien”. “Prometheus” got mixed reviews, but director Ridley Scott manages to make up for that with “Alien: Covenant”. The spaceship Covenant is on a colonial mission. They are traveling to another planet to start a new civilization there. They have some hiccups, where several people on board die. When they discover another planet, which is closer by, they decide to check it out. Off course, that’s a bad decision.
The film looks amazing, but that’s not a surprise. The film is scary and bloody, but because most of the film is set outside or in larger areas, it doesn’t give you that claustrophobic feel. Only when they are in the spacecraft. We get Xenomorphs and the so called Facehuggers, but also Neomorphs. This is a smaller albino alien, which are just as dangerous as the other two.
The cast is not always convincing. The one that shine are Katherine Waterston, Danny McBride and Michael Fassbender. The last one even has a double role. The rest of the cast is forgettable and their characters never get any depth.
The twist at the end wasn’t as surprising, but I liked the ending anyway. “Alien: Covenant” is a good film, much better then “Prometheus”.

Rating: 4/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 84: As I Lay Dying

Director: James Franco

Genre: Drama

Runtime: 105 minutes

Year: 2013

Starring: James Franco, Tim Blake Nelson, Jim Parrack, Ahna O’Reilly, Lofan Marshall-Green, Brady Permenter, Danny McBride, Beth Grant

Description: Based on the 1930 classic by Faulkner, it is the story of the death of Addie Bundren (Beth Grant) and her family's quest to honor her wish to be buried in the nearby town of Jefferson.

Review: James Franco is a multi-talent. Sometimes he chooses blockbusters like “Spider-Man”, he starred in Oscar winning flicks “Milk” and “127 Hours” and he had a guest role on the soap opera “General Hospital”. Franco isn’t only an actor, but also a very talented director, writer and producer. For “As I Lay Dying” he directed, but also helped writing the scenario and he portrays one of the lead characters.

“As I Lay Dying” is an adaptation of the book by William Faulkner. It’s the story of Addie Bundren, who dies, and is transported by her family to give her the final resting place she was promised. During that journey the story is told from different perspectives of the family members.

Franco never chooses the easy way out, because “As I Lay Dying” isn’t an easy story to translate to film. This movie isn’t a crowd-pleaser. Fans of the book might like it, but I think the average viewer could be bothered by the split screen that Franco uses, to show us the different perspectives. It could be seen as a smart way to tell the story, but also confusing to follow the story. And the handheld camera could also throw you off, but it does give it a more realistic look.

The acting isn’t always very strong. Franco does a good and solid job and Beth Grant, with only a minor role, shows us some great acting as well. The other performances aren’t that memorable.

Like said before, “As I Lay Dying” isn’t an easy book. Sometimes it’s hard how to interpret some scenes. Sometimes you don’t know if it’s meant to be funny or if it’s just sad. Franco stayed true to the novel, but unfortunately this movie is (like the book) for a specific audience.

Rating: 2,5/ 5

Movie Moments: This is the End

This movie could go in two different directions: it was either going to really bad or brilliantly funny. Thank God it was the last, because some of my favorites are in here. James Franco and Seth Rogen are amazing, I really enjoyed this movie. So here are my favorite moments from “This is the End”.

 

Moment # 1: Cleanse

Seth just picked up Jay from the airport. Jay wants to get hamburgers, but Seth tells him he’s on a cleanse. He’s not supposed to be eating glutens. Jay thinks it’s a load of crap and the two start a discussion about it.

Moment # 2: The end begins

Jay and Seth go out to buy cigarettes, then all of a sudden blue beams come from the sky and start sucking people up in the sky.

Moment # 3: Michael Cera dies

L.A. is on fire and Michael Cera starts worrying about his phone. Someone took it. But that’s the least of his worries, because he gets skewered by a telephone pole.

Moment # 4: Milky Way

The guys list their food supplies and start fighting over a Milky Way.

Moment # 5: Emma Watson

Emma Watson shows up at the house and just wants to get some sleep. She overhears a conversation between the guys, but mishears it. She decides to get the hell out of there and take some provision with her.

Moment # 6: Magazine

James gets angry when he finds out someone masturbated onto his porno magazine. It appears it was Danny who did that, so the two start a heated discussion about masturbation.

Moment # 7: Closet

Jonah has been possessed and is now chasing James and Seth. They hide in a closet, but Seth’s a very heavy breather so they soon will be found.

Moment # 8: The exorcism of Jonah Hill

The guys decide to perform an exorcism on Jonah Hill. Jay knows how to, because he saw the movie “The Exorcist”.

Moment # 9: The Backstreet Boys

Jay and Seth made it to heaven and they can make any wish they want. Seth wishes for a Segway and Jay for the Backstreet Boys.

 

 

 

Favorite Moment: Moment # 7 : The Closet

Movie Moments: "Pineapple Express"

I’ve wanted this movie for this item for a while now, I just had to rewatch it first. I did so I decided to pick my favorite scenes from “Pineapple Express”.

Moment # 1: Crossjoint
Dale visits Saul to get some weed, when he finds a crossjoint. You light it at three points. They smoke it and say it’s great, but they almost choke on their own coughs and don’t sound like they are enjoying it at all.

Moment # 2: Dale witnesses a murder
Dale is supposed to visit Ted Jones for work, but instead he witnesses him killing someone while sitting in the car. Jones is with a female cop. Dale wants to drive off, but instead he hits two cars which draws the killers’ attention. Dale manages to get away eventually, but he’s in big trouble.

Moment # 3: Getting rid of the phones
Saul thinks it’s better to lose their cellphones, because he thinks the cops will track them down and find them. They have all kinds of ideas like tying the phone to an animal or building a hot air balloon. Dale smashes his phone and Saul wants to smash it on a tree. Instead he throws it in the woods and the phone is lost. Saul’s genius idea to find it: call it.With what Saul?

Moment # 4: Saul, Dale and Red fight
Saul and Dale visit Red. Saul trusts him, but Dale doesn’t. They start a fight, which ends up with Dale punching a hole in the wall and Red being tied up with ducked tape.

Moment # 5: In the dumpster
Saul and Dale are running away and try to hide. In panic Saul jumps in a dumpster, but Dale doesn’t think it’s a good idea. Saul thinks they should still hide there, because he’s in the dumpster already.

Moment # 6: Fork
Dale is trying to tell his girlfriend Angie that she’s in danger, when Saul walks in to warn them. Angie thinks Saul is a bad guy and stabs him with a fork in the back. Saul screams like a girl.

Moment # 7: Police car
Because Saul spilled slushies all over the front window of the police car, he can’t see where he’s going. Saul kicks in the window with his foot, but can’t get it out. Now he has to drive with one foot sticking out of the front window.

Moment # 8: “I love you”
Dale calls Angie to tell her he loves her. Angie takes him back and tells him she wants to marry him. Dale than realizes that she’s very shallow and superficial if she takes him back, because he made a mess.

Moment # 9: Dale’s ear
Matheson, one of the bad guys, shoots Dale in the ear and now there is a piece missing. Dale tries to put it back on.

Moment # 10: Dale saves Saul
While all the weed and the barn it’s in is on fire and Saul is unconscious, Dale has to save him. His pants catch fire, so Dale takes them off. Saul won’t wake up, so he carries Saul outside… in his underpants.

Favorite Moment: Moment # 7 : Police car

In the Picture: The Characters from "Your Highness"

This movie got a lot of critics, but I think most people take the movie too seriously. Just don't. It's a fun film and its characters are even more fun.

Thadeous
Played by: Danny McBride
Thadeous is the king’s youngest son. He is lazy and ineffectual with both an inferiority complex and poor track record in quest taking. He hates the fact that everyone loves his older brother Fabious so much, but Thadeous doesn’t do anything to make the people love him too. When he meets Isabel, the true hero in him unravels.

Fabious
Played by: James Franco
Fabious is the handsome prince and next in line to be king. He is dashing and skilled and seen as a real hero by the people of his kingdom. Fabious is determined to save his love Belladonna and secretly looks up to his Thadeous’ lifestyle.

Isabel
Played by: Natalie Portman
Isabel is also on a quest when she meets Thadeous and Fabious. First she doesn’t want to have anything to do with them and she uses their information for her own good. When Thadeous tells her he’s looking for his brother, they join forces. Isabel is a very strong woman who’s fearless.

Belladonna
Played by: Zooey Deschanel
Belladonna was captured most of her life and was saved by Fabious. They fall in love and get married, but is then captured again. Belladonna is a pure woman, kind at heart but doesn’t know much of the outside world yet.

Leezar
Played by: Justin Theroux
Leezar is the evil sorcerer in the kingdom and holds Belladonna hostage. He has to mate with her, so he can fulfill a prophecy. Leezar is an evil man, but has his insecurities and Belladonna doesn’t always take him very serious.

Julie
Played by: Toby Jones
Julie is Fabious’ trustee and he can’t stand Thadeous. While on the quest together with the brothers, we find out that Julie secretly works for Leezar and gives him information of the quest.

Boremont
Played by: Damian Lewis
Before Thadeous went on quests with Fabious, Boremont was that guy. After not asking him to be his best man at the wedding, Boremont decides to turn against Fabious and together with Julie he now works for Leezar.

Favorite Character: Isabel