Posts Tagged ‘Botox’
2 items.
Sorry I didn’t come back and finish my thoughts on Jersey Girl and The Ladykillers like I said I would on Monday. I came home that evening and was feeling really sick. I think it was the weather screwing with me. Can barometric pressure DO that?
Anyway, to make up for things (in a typical, American half-ass way), I thought I would give you a quick synopsis of both films.
Jersey Girl: A fine romantic comedy by most standards, but because it was penned and directed by Kevin Smith, I judge it by a different set of standards. Smith betrays his talent for dialogue by using cheap cliche’s throughout the movie. There are scenes in the movie that feel tossed in to help retain Smith’s edge, but he should stop trying to play to two audiences. He could really do anything he wants, but he shouldn’t compromise. Jersey Girl feels like a compromise.
Liv Tyler comes off well. So does George Carlin. But this will not be the hit – or the performance – that will save Ben Affleck’s floundering career.
The Ladykillers: Typical Coen Brother’s fare. A kind of mash-up of O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Intolerable Cruelty. A southern-fried caper flick filled with untrustworthy people. The humor is very black and the overall message is very cynical. Tom Hanks delivers a very fine performance, but it’s all “actory” twitches and gimmicks. Nothing substantial. One character suffers from I.B.S. – Irritable Bowel Syndrome – and it manifests during unfortunate times. Since when did the Coen’s have to resort to toilet humor?
Hmm… those short recaps were a little longer than I thought. Anyway, those were my takes on this weekend’s cineplex fodder.
Lots of good stuff coming out this weekend. Hellboy and Walking Tall being the two I’m most interested. I’ll have more to say about Hellboy on Friday, but I’m thinking of renting The Rundown before seeing Walking Tall as a kind of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson action movie primer. I never saw it in the theater and regretted it. I’ve heard nothing but good things. Walking Tall seems to play in a similar vein and it looks really good to me. Is it odd that Cami agreed to see Walking Tall and not Hellboy with me this weekend?
I’ll probably have to end up seeing The Prince and Me at some point, so I guess fair is fair.
I was hoping to have some big news for you associated with today’s post, but it’s been postponed a little while. If I can get my business together, you should be hearing something about it relatively soon. Sooner, at least, than my Jersey Girl/Ladykillers reviews.
Trust me. It’s a big deal. You’ll want to keep checking this space to find out what I have in store.
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I realize that describing George Clooney’s Leatherheads as a movie about 1920’s football players who wear leather helmets simplifies things a little bit. But beyond the romantic rivalry aspect, I can’t figure out what this film is supposed to be about? Is it about guys playing football before there were rules? I’m not sure I understand the incentive behind seeing this?
I suppose star power is supposed to be the draw. I like Clooney. I like him a lot. He has a relaxed charm and he’s fun to watch on screen even in bad movies. I also like John Krasinski and I think he’s an excellent comedic sparring partner. Renée Zellweger is in the film and I’m kind of meh about that. There really hasn’t been a picture I’ve enjoyed her in. Too much squinting.
Joe and I talked about this during Monday’s Triple Feature podcast, but I also kind of resent how she’s become the go-to gal pal of 1920’s and 1930’s period pieces. Between Chicago and Cinderella Man, she’s starting to corner the market. Quit encouraging her, people! Before you know it, she’ll start to think she has moxy or… or PIZAZZ – and we’ll never get rid of her!
Dan Hopper over at BestWeekEver.TV has a fairly thorough breakdown behind the reason why he thinks Leatherheads might not be very good and I found myself agreeing with his position. Like him, I was excited about the film when I first heard about it, but the more I see of it, the less I like. It has the look of a one-trick pony and I still haven’t gotten over the hurt of watching Clooney fall into a similar guise in Intolerable Cruelty. Look, I know the whole sun-dappled sepia tone romp vibe worked out great in O Brother, Where Art Thou – but this one doesn’t look up to snuff.
Cami has expressed interest in seeing Leatherheads this weekend, which kind of surprises me considering its sports theme. I don’t know if we’re going to go to the effort of arranging a babysitter when Smart People comes out next week. That movie feels more our speed. We’ll see.
That’s about it for me today. I hope everyone has a great Wednesday!
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