10s Movie Review - This is 40

Director: Judd Apatow
Genre: Comedy
Runtime: 134 minutes
Year: 2012
Starring: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Chris O’Dowd, Megan Fox, John Lithgow, Albert Brooks, Maude Apatow, Iris Apatow, Jason Segel, Lena Dunham

Description: Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann) are both about to turn 40, their kids hate each other, both of their business are failing, they’re on the verge of losing their house, and their relationship is threatening to fall apart.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2025 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 38: A FILM WITH LESLIE MANN
 
Review: “This is 40” is a personal dramedy by Judd Apatow, a spin-off of “Knocked Up”, which explores the life of a couple that is about to turn 40.

Although my life is very far from theirs, many things are relatable when it comes to turning 40. The film show everyday family life with honesty and doesn’t shy away from topics like the struggles of parenthood, financial issues and relationships.

It is a comedy and it does have some really fun moments, many of the humor feels a bit juvenile and tasteless. Also, the film is over two hours long, which is way too long for a comedy like this.

I think the film is a mixed bag. I like the relatability of the film, and Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann are really good together. But the runtime is too long, and some of the jokes are questionable.

Rating: 3/ 5

Netflix Friday - Volume 48

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.

Action: Shooter (2007)
A marksman (Mark Wahlberg) living in exile is coaxed bac into action after learning of a plot to kill the President. After being double crossed for the attempt and on the run, he sets out for the real killer and the truth.
 

Drama: Unbroken (2014)
After a near-fatal plane crash in WWII, Olympian Louis Zamperini (Jack O’Connell) spends a harrowing 47 days in a raft with two fellow crewmen before he’s caught by the Japanese navy and set to a prisoner-of-war camp.
 

Comedy: This is 40 (2012)
Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann) are both to turn 40, their kids hate each other, both of their business are failing, they’re on the verge of losing their house, and their relationship is threatening to fall apart.
 

Animation: From Up On Poppy Hill (2011)
A group of Yokohama teens look to save their school’s clubhouse from the wrecking ball in preparations for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.
 

Romance: The Hero (2017)
An ailing movie star (Sam Elliott) comes to terms with his past and mortality.
 

Horror: Ouija (2014)
A group of friends must confront their most terrifying fears when they awaken the dark powers of an ancient spirit board.
 

Science Fiction: Aquaman (2018)
Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa), the human-born heir to the underwater kingdom of Atlantis, goes on a quest to prevent a war between the worlds of ocean and land.
 

Crime: The Town (2010)
A longtime thief (Ben Affleck), planning his next job, tries to balance his feelings for a bank manager (Rebecca Hall) connected to an earlier heist, and a hell-bent F.B.I. Agent (Jon Hamm) looking to bring him and his crew down.
 

Thriller: Secret Window (2004)
A successful writer (Johnny Depp) in the midst of a painful divorce is stalked at his remote lake house by a would-be scribe (John Turturro) who accuses him of plagiarism.
 

Documentary: Seaspiracy (2021)
Passionate about ocean life, a filmmaker sets out to document the harm that humans do to marine species, and uncovers alarming global corruption.

Family: Instant Family (2018)
A couple (Mark Wahlberg, Rose Byrne) find themselves in over their heads when they foster three children.

Movie Trailer Sunday (35)

This weeks trailers are about a spooky hotel, the Bondurants brothers, a couple going to therapy, a woman returning to her hippie mother and a couple struggling to be 40.

Hotel Transylvania
Description: Welcome to the Hotel Transylvania, Dracula's (Adam Sandler) lavish five-stake resort, where monsters and their families can live it up, free from meddling from the human world. But here's a little known fact about Dracula: he is not only the Prince of Darkness; he is also a dad. Over-protective of his teenage daughter, Mavis (Selena Gomez), Dracula fabricates tales of elaborate dangers to dissuade her adventurous spirit. As a haven for Mavis, he opens the Hotel Transylvania, where his daughter and some of the world's most famous monsters - Frankenstein and his bride, the Mummy, the Invisible Man, a family of werewolves, and more - can kick back in safety and peace. For Drac, catering to all of these legendary monsters is no problem, but his world could come crashing down when one ordinary guy stumbles on the hotel and takes a shine to Mavis.
Director: Genndy Tartakovsky
Starring: Adams Sandler, Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg, Kvin James, Fran Drescher, Cee-Lo Green, Steve Buscemi, Molly Shannon, David Koechner
Trailer: Trailer "Hotel Transylvania"

Lawless
Description: We follow the freewheelin' Bondurants brothers, bootlegging siblings taking the law into their own hands. This is the story of the rural hard-men that created the big city gangsters. Brazen and fearless, these young rebel brothers helped build the American Dream in this exuberant tale of what was to become crime's first major gold rush. The youngest brother, Jack (Shia LaBeouf), fancies himself the next Al Capone; he dreams of sharp suits, guns, girls and fast cars, no matter the cost. Ambitious and impulsive, he takes the family's small-scale moonshining operation to the big leagues, to impress the gorgeous but off-limits Amish girl, Bertha (Mia Wazikowska). The middle brother, Howard (Jason Clarke), is the brawling muscle - loyal but reckless - never one to turn down a taste of white lightning. And eldest brother, Forrest (Tom Hardy), reluctantly accepts the changing times with grace and grit, leading the family with strength of character and silent determination against the beginnings of corporate greed. An enigmatic and stunning Maggie (Jessica Chastain) comes to town with a hidden past, igniting his passion and almost saving him in the process. As the Bondurants' legend grows, so too does the danger, and it's not long before the brothers must face the consequences of their transgressions, or rewrite the myth and the law themselves.
Director: John Hillcoat
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Mia Wazikowska, Jessica Chastain, Gary Oldman, Guy Pearce, Jason Clarke
Trailer: Trailer "Lawless"
Comment: It's been a while since we saw Shia LaBeouf in a movie (not counting the sucky "Tranformers" franchise). And To Hardy and Jessica Chastain are our new rising stars.

Hope Springs
Description: Kay (Meryl Streep) and Arnold (Tommy Lee Jones) are a devoted couple, but decades of marriage have left Kay wanting to spice things up and reconnect with her husband. When she hears of a renowned couple's specialist (Steve Carell) in the small town of Great Hope Springs, she attempts to persuade her skeptical husband, a steadfast man of routine, to get on a plane for a week of marriage therapy. Just convincing the stubborn Arnold to go on the retreat is hard enough, the real challenge for both of them comes as they shed their bedroom hang-ups and try to re-ignite the spark that caused them to fall for each other in the first place.
Director: David Frankel
Starring: Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carell
Trailer: Trailer "Hope Springs"
Comment: I always liked Meryl Streep for her viariety of roles.

Peace, Love and Misunderstanding
Description: Diane (Catherine Keener) is a conservative New York City lawyer who is in desperate need of an escape after her husband asks for a divorce. Along with her two children (Elizabeth Olsen and Nat Wolff), she takes refuge at her estranged hippie mother Grace's (Jane Fonda) farmhouse, where she is exposed to a motley crew of free thinkers. What was meant to be a stress-free getaway quickly turns into a reminder of why Diane escaped her mother's hippie lifestyle in the first place, but the reunion forcers her, her children, and Grace to search for peace with each other and with themselves.
Director: Bruce Beresford
Starring: Jane Fonda, Catherine Keener, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chace Crawford, Elizabeth Olsen, Nat Wolff
Trailer: Trailer "Peace, Love and Misunderstanding"

This is 40
Description: We follow Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann) (from the movie "Knocked Up") as we see first-hand how they are dealing with their current state of life.
Director: Judd Apatow
Starring: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Megan Fox, John Lithgow, Jason Segel, Iris Apatow, Maude Apatow, Melissa McCarthy, Albert Brooks
Trailer: Trailer "This is 40"