Like many people, I enjoyed “Shaun of the Dead” and the parody of the zombie subgenre it provided. I didn’t think it was the funniest flick in the world, but it was very fun and quite charming. I feel almost exactly the same towards Simon Pegg’s latest offering, “Hot Fuzz”, a parody of the action-cop genre. So if you enjoyed “Shaun of the Dead”, there’s really nothing to keep you from liking “Hot Fuzz”. And pretty much the same can be said if you didn’t like “Shaun of the Dead”, as you probably won’t find this flick very funny.
Sgt. Nicolas Angel (Pegg) of the London Metropolitan Police is the best at what he does. In fact, he’s so good that he made the rest of the cops in London look bad. To remedy this, the London PD transfers Angel to the sleepy rural village of Sanford. Once he gets settled in, Angel begins trying to clean up the mean streets of Sanford, only to find that they really aren’t that mean. Along the way, Angel is joined by local Sanford cop Danny Butterman (Nick Frost) who has virtually every clichéd action film ever made committed to memory. Shortly after arriving, Angel discovers that Sanford has a massive fatal accident rate, which is especially suspicious considering most of these “accidents” don’t look like accidents at all. Angel and Danny get on the case, gradually uncovering a murderous conspiracy.
I thought “Hot Fuzz” was pretty funny, but not in a “laugh out loud” sort of way. It was very clever, well written with lots of subtle gags and charming character chemistry…but none of the jokes had me doubled over in stitches. I felt the same way about “Shaun of the Dead”; it was funny, but not that funny. Still, there’s more than just comedy to this movie.
The interaction between Pegg and Frost is terrific and they really send off a modern day sort of “Abbot & Costello” vibe. The character relations with the rest of the cast are fun, too, particularly Angel and Danny’s unpleasant rivalry with the two Detective Andies. Not every member of the cast shines, though. Olivia Colman pretty much disappears into the background, delivering less memorable scenes than either the dog or the swan.
Like “Shaun of the Dead”, “Hot Fuzz” doesn’t rely entirely on being a parody to draw its entertainment value. The script and story are strong enough that even if it weren’t a parody it would fit fine in the genre. The ending is a blast, as Angel finally decides to go all-out on the action movie clichés and bust some heads. Definitely cool.
“Hot Fuzz” isn’t a movie *I* would buy on DVD, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t any good. Certainly worth a rental at the very least.
Grade: B-
Steve Carell’s ‘Evan Almighty’ Movie Trailer
I think I speak for all of us when I say that Steve Carell is now on our favorite people list. Which is why I made it a priority this morning to get out this new Evan Almighty movie trailer to you, see it here now.
In the film, Carell takes on the role of a newscaster that has recently been elected by Congress & is apparently anointed by God to accomplish some holy missions. Hopefully Carell can pick up the slack that Jim Carrey left in Bruce Almighty, though not really a daunting task there.
Photo Credit
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Blades of Glory – Review
As much as I like Will Ferrell, I have to confess, the guy has starred in some truly terrible movies. While I wouldn’t rank “Blades of Glory” amongst the “terrible” I would definitely file it alongside the “not so good”.
The effeminate Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) is one of competitive figure-skating’s most talented and respected athletes, a bastion of tradition, grace and dignity. Chaz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) is known as the “Lone Wolf”, a badboy rockstar of the skating world who plays by his own rules and performs with a combination of unmatched enthusiasm and vulgar sex appeal. The two polar opposites are naturally bitter rivals and after an incident at the World Winter Games, are banned from men’s singles figure-skating for life. Three and a half years later, Jimmy’s old coach (Craig T. Nelson) brings the two arch foes together to reenter the Winter Games as the first ever men’s pair. Jimmy and Chaz both want the gold yet despise one-another, but if they want to win they’ll have to get along. Meanwhile, the brother-sister team of Stranz Van Waldenberg (Will Arnett) and Fairchild Van Waldenberg (Amy Poehler) will win the event at any cost, and that includes cutting Jimmy and Chaz out of the picture.
So yeah, this movie’s ridiculous, but that’s hardly its problem. Ridiculous comedies are easy to make funny…except something went wrong with this attempt. “Blades of Glory” sets up some pretty good jokes but misses the landing more often than not. The first half the film is definitely the worst, with the majority of the gags revolving around Jimmy and Chaz’s childish brotherly loathing of one another. You know, immature barbs like “You smell”, “Nuh-UH!” Watching them quarrel like a pair of six year-old siblings might have been funny if it had merely been a backdrop while other jokes took the foreground, but alas, it’s the central “funny” of the film’s first half.
The second half of “Blades of Glory” is decidedly stronger. Once Chaz and Jimmy learn to get along and play off one another rather than against each other, and the film’s other plotlines begin taking shape, the humor starts to hit a lot harder. A few of these additional plotlines include the villains manipulating their younger sister, Katie (Jenna Fischer), into reluctantly playing with Jimmy’s heart to break up the team and one about the duo’s coach teaching them a forbidden, possibly fatal technique known as the Iron Lotus. These extra threads help to improve the film immensely and add some decent change-ups in the comedy bits. Still, even then, the film will make you chuckle more than it will make you laugh-out-loud.
I will give “Blades of Glory” some credit, the entire “chase scene” between Ferrell and Arnett towards the end of the film was absolutely hilarious and the strongest moment of the whole movie. Very memorable and well done, though it doesn’t save the entire flick.
“Blade’s of Glory” is a rather subpar comedy. Not terrible but not really worth the $10 movie ticket, either. I’d recommend renting it on video if you’re in the mood for a new comedy and you like Will Ferrell, otherwise save your money.
Grade: C-
I Think I Love My Wife – Review
I can’t say I was anxiously counting the days of this film’s release, because then I’d be lying. And I can’t really say I’m a fan of Chris Rock, because then I’d also be lying. And I certainly can’t say that I’m into Fox Searchlight Pictures artsy comedies, because then I’d be lying hard enough to make Baby Jesus flood Heaven in tears. So then why one Earth did I go see this ill-marketed Fox Searchlight Pictures artsy comedy starring Chris Rock? Beats me.
Richard Cooper (Chris Rock) is your painfully average every day suburbanite male. He has a pretty wife (Gina Torres), two kids, a high-paying white collar job…the works. And he hates it. It’s not the kids or the job or the house that he loathes, but the monotony of it all. Oh, and the fact that his wife (who loves him) no longer wants anything to do with him sexually. The temptation of a single life is driving poor Richard mad, but what finally sends him over the edge is the arrival of an old flame, the ravishing Nikki Tru (Kerry Washington). Richard is drawn to Nikki not only for her charms and all they share in common, but for the shear adventurous curveball her presence throws into his life. However, deep down inside, Richard’s appetites battle with his conscience for dominance, as he’s not sure whether he prefers a stable, boring life with his loving family, or an uncertain future with the sultry girl of his dreams.
So I’ve established that this isn’t my type of movie, but that aside, there were things I enjoyed about this film. For a romantic comedy without any explosions or buckets of blood, it wasn’t half bad. It states at the very beginning of the film that in order to fully appreciate the story and the situations, you kind of have to have experienced married life. So right then and there I knew the movie wasn’t really aimed in my direction. However, I found its portrayal of married life and the various temptations that accompany it to ring quite true, even as someone on the outside looking in. So all you married men out there who have suffered similar slings and arrows as Richard Cooper, you’ll probably spend the flick nodding your head and chuckling at all the little things.
The cast is strong and carries the film from beginning to end with very few slip-ups. Kerry Washington’s portrayal of the gold-digging wild girl, Nikki, was quite good. Nikki is an interesting character as you’re not sure you want to love her or hate her. Steve Buscemi plays a supporting role as Richard’s coworker, George, and does his usual excellent job. I can’t say he did anything to stand out, though, and while he delivers some funny lines and provides a few memorable moments, he’s just sort of there.
Now this is a Chris Rock movie through and through. He wrote it, he directed it and he starred in it. Your enjoyment of this film will likely ride entirely on whether or not you can stand Chris Rock. I can stand Chris Rock, sure…I just don’t really like him all that much. From a writing and directorial point of view, he does an excellent job. Even though the movie is a remake of an earlier film called “Cloe in the Afternoon”, his script (co-written by Louis C.K.) is still quite strong with a lot of subtle humor and several memorable lines (I especially liked Mr. Landis’ line about chasing women and chasing money). The script and direction were solid, so that just leaves Chris Rock as the leading man…
Chris Rock can be funny. He can be very funny, which is one of the reasons why I don’t hate the guy like I do other loud and obnoxious comedians (Chris Tucker). However, in true Chris Rock fashion, he can’t go ten minutes in any role without insulting white people and portraying all black people as hideously oppressed. I know it’s your “thing”, but c’mon, Chris. You had a strong, engaging script; did you really need to draw a few cheap laughs at the expense of alienating and entire skin color?
Why am I even asking this? We’re talking about Chris Rock, here. Making fun of white people is his claim to fame.
Anyhow, endless “white people suck!” jokes aside, was this movie very funny? Sometimes, but not often. It was more a drama than a comedy, honestly, and wasn’t sure what kind of humor it wanted to use. Sometimes it was the aforementioned stale anti-white stuff, sometimes it was lowbrow sexual humor of the nasty variety, sometimes it was bizarre “wha?” humor and sometimes it was just plain old witty dialogue. It felt a bit inconsistent and went long periods without even cracking a single joke. At other times it included completely unnecessary gags that did nothing to enhance the story and felt tagged on at the last minute, such as the entire Viagra segment.
For what it was, “I Think I Love my Wife” was okay, but there was far too much wasted potential. If Rock could have stuck with the strength of his script, cast and story rather than hurling unnecessary penis and cracka jokes then the entire film would have been better for it. As it stands, “I Think I Love my Wife” came out rather luke warm.
Grade: C-
