Hello, all...
Hope everyone is well today. Please excuse the delay in posting reviews. It's been a busy weekend. The fun kind of busy, which is always good. Please note that the reviews for THE HUNGER GAMES, MINE VAGANTI, WRATH OF THE TITANS, AMERICAN REUNION, and MIRROR MIRROR (among others) will post during the course of next week. We're revising our schedule a little to frontload the new releases. When those are out of the way, we will segue back to our original schedule.
Also, please expect a Summer Movie Preview with trailers and other fun footage sometime within the next two days. It's going to be a great Summer Movie Season. We've got some good entries coming. Just a few examples:
And much more!
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Spotlight On: The Women Of SKYFALL...
Evening, folks... Sorry for the delays in getting the rest of our reviews posted. It's been busy, busy, busy, busy... We're into April now, and will get through the rest of our film reviews by this time next week (or so). Then we will release the April titles - and go from there.
For now, let's talk Bond Movies. One of my favorite things about the Bond Films are its women, and how widely diverse their roles are. More often than not, these women are pivotal to the plot and not the mere eye candy the press often makes them out to be. How each successive adventure will showcase these ladies is always a pleasure to look forward to and discover.
Characters like Elektra King, Natalya Simonova, Pam Bouvier, Melina Havelock, Tatiana Romanova, Anya Amasova, Paris Carver, Wai Lin, Pussy Galore, Miranda Frost, Tiffany Case, Kara Milovy, Christmas Jones, Vesper Lynd, Honey Ryder, Camille Montes, Xenia Onatopp, May Day, and Domino Derval - just to name a few - have made their mark not just with their beauty, but also with their intelligence, courage, humor, and resourcefulness. Sure, there have been one or two klunkers (I'm looking at you, Stacey Sutton - damn, woman: do something besides scream: "James! James! James!"), but for the most part, these women have held their own against Agent 007.
For now, please take a first look below at the Bond Girls, er, Bond Ladies of SKYFALL, the upcoming James Bond film and much-anticipated follow-up to CASINO ROYALE and QUANTUM OF SOLACE with best-ever-Bond Daniel Craig in the role of our debonair spy. This time around, our Bond Ladies are: (1) Eve (Naomie Harris), a tough-minded field agent who allies with Bond; and (2) Severine (Berenice Marlohe), a mysterious French-Chinese babe (go half-breeds!) who just might be in league with the bad guys.
TRIVIA: Eurasian hottie Berenice Marlohe didn't even have an agent when the casting call for Severine's role came out in Paris. She basically looked up everyone she could on IMDB (!) who was connected to the SKYFALL production - and went after the role like it was written just for her. Needless to say - she got it. Go, girl! Hell, if I had tits and a va-jay-jay I'd go after the role of Severine, too. I'd rather play the Bad Bond Girl (or Potentially Bad Bond Girl) than the Good Bond Girl. Just imagine my fat butt as Severine coming down that escalator in the scene below, with my three hulking bodyguards hovering right behind me. Scary thought, eh?
I present to you: Eve and Severine - as essayed by the lovely Ms. Harris and Ms. Marlohe:
Eve (Good Girl) :
Severine (Bad Girl? Hmmmmm, we'll see...) :
Can't wait until SKYFALL comes out later this year: Bond Date: 11/7/2012...
And, again, our tribute to the all the Bond Women who came before Eve and Severine...
Please expect the reviews for MINE VAGANTI and THE HUNGER GAMES to post tomorrow, followed by the ones for CLASH OF THE TITANS and WRATH OF THE TITANS - then rest of the reviews over the weekend. Time to get soccer out of my brain and get busy writing these reviews...
Buona Notte, Mi Amore... :)
For now, let's talk Bond Movies. One of my favorite things about the Bond Films are its women, and how widely diverse their roles are. More often than not, these women are pivotal to the plot and not the mere eye candy the press often makes them out to be. How each successive adventure will showcase these ladies is always a pleasure to look forward to and discover.
Characters like Elektra King, Natalya Simonova, Pam Bouvier, Melina Havelock, Tatiana Romanova, Anya Amasova, Paris Carver, Wai Lin, Pussy Galore, Miranda Frost, Tiffany Case, Kara Milovy, Christmas Jones, Vesper Lynd, Honey Ryder, Camille Montes, Xenia Onatopp, May Day, and Domino Derval - just to name a few - have made their mark not just with their beauty, but also with their intelligence, courage, humor, and resourcefulness. Sure, there have been one or two klunkers (I'm looking at you, Stacey Sutton - damn, woman: do something besides scream: "James! James! James!"), but for the most part, these women have held their own against Agent 007.
For now, please take a first look below at the Bond Girls, er, Bond Ladies of SKYFALL, the upcoming James Bond film and much-anticipated follow-up to CASINO ROYALE and QUANTUM OF SOLACE with best-ever-Bond Daniel Craig in the role of our debonair spy. This time around, our Bond Ladies are: (1) Eve (Naomie Harris), a tough-minded field agent who allies with Bond; and (2) Severine (Berenice Marlohe), a mysterious French-Chinese babe (go half-breeds!) who just might be in league with the bad guys.
TRIVIA: Eurasian hottie Berenice Marlohe didn't even have an agent when the casting call for Severine's role came out in Paris. She basically looked up everyone she could on IMDB (!) who was connected to the SKYFALL production - and went after the role like it was written just for her. Needless to say - she got it. Go, girl! Hell, if I had tits and a va-jay-jay I'd go after the role of Severine, too. I'd rather play the Bad Bond Girl (or Potentially Bad Bond Girl) than the Good Bond Girl. Just imagine my fat butt as Severine coming down that escalator in the scene below, with my three hulking bodyguards hovering right behind me. Scary thought, eh?
I present to you: Eve and Severine - as essayed by the lovely Ms. Harris and Ms. Marlohe:
Eve (Good Girl) :
Severine (Bad Girl? Hmmmmm, we'll see...) :
Can't wait until SKYFALL comes out later this year: Bond Date: 11/7/2012...
And, again, our tribute to the all the Bond Women who came before Eve and Severine...
Please expect the reviews for MINE VAGANTI and THE HUNGER GAMES to post tomorrow, followed by the ones for CLASH OF THE TITANS and WRATH OF THE TITANS - then rest of the reviews over the weekend. Time to get soccer out of my brain and get busy writing these reviews...
Buona Notte, Mi Amore... :)
Sunday, April 1, 2012
# 444 - 21 JUMP STREET (2012)
21 JUMP STREET (2012 - COMEDY / ACTION) ****1/2 out of *****
(Best. Poster. Tagline. Ever.)
CAST: Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Dave Franco, Ice Cube, Brie Larson, Rob Riggle, Ellie Kemper.
DIRECTOR: Phil Lord, Chris Miller
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and a couple of really baby-faced high school seniors with guns - straight ahead (it's okay - they're cops)....
IT'S LIKE THIS: You know how some things are inevitable? Like if you like to dance on tables drunk, sooner or later you're going to fall off and break your ass? Or if you eat enough Beef Gyros, sooner or later you're going to walk by a shop window and be all like "When did I get pregnant? Oh, wait, that's just my fat belly from all the Beef Gyros..."? Well, another one of those inevitable things is this: if you have an 80's TV show that survives enough seasons, sooner or later, some creatively bankrupt screenwriter or studio exec in 2011 is going to be all like: "Hey, dude, remember that TV show about those baby-faced cops who would go undercover at local high schools to bust pot smokers and shit? Why don't we make - wait for it - a movie based on it!"
And so it goes. Which is why in 2012 we end up with 21 JUMP STREET starring Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill as Police Academy fuck-ups Jenko and Schmidt. Let's just say that these two make the Keystone Cops look like hard-ass professionals. When a cop can't recite the Miranda Rights without using a lifeline to ask his buddy for clarification (Jenko), the populace (and the precinct) is in deep shit. And if a cop can't chase down a fat fuck of a suspect who looks one Beef Gyro (ahem) away for a massive coronary and ends up losing him (Schmidt), then... damn, dude. It isn't too farfetched to posit that Jenko and Schmidt are pretty strong arguments for vigilantism. My cats Casper and Guido would make more formidable bad-ass cops than these two. Then again, the bastards have claws from hell and attitudes that would make Damien The Devil's Spawn from THE OMEN look like Mickey Mouse.
But I digress. Anyhow, after Jenko and Schmidt's latest blunder, they are re-assigned to, ahem, 21 Jump Street - a mysterious division of the police department. Our dumbass heroes quickly find out three things about their new office: (1) everyone is as baby-faced as they are; (2) the boss (Ice Cube) is kind of a dick; and (3) their primary job is to pose as undercover cops in high schools to bust young folk doing bad shit - hence the reason everyone is required to be baby-faced. You'd think that two developmentally-arrested dipshits should ace this job, right? If you agree, then clearly you have put too much faith in our dear Jenko and Schmidt, because there isn't a mission that these two couldn't cluster-fuck-torpedo into oblivion without really trying. But, hey, at least it'll be hilarious.
Before you know it, Jenko and Schmidt have gone undercover at a local high school to sniff out the source of a new drug that looks like a Japanese rice cracker - but has the neurological effect of a thousand red bulls blended with speed, crack, absinthe, and some Mexican peyote. In other words, you'll have fun - but you'll look like a jack-ass and end up a YouTube superstar. To further complicate things, our boys discover that the Rule Of High School have now changed. Meaning, the dorks and nerds like Schmidt are now cool - and the jock meatheads like Jenko are now pariahs. Schmidt, not used to being one of the "In-Crowd", kind of lets it go to his head. Jenko, not used to being Hallway Fodder, kind of goes a little ballistic. Especially when School King Brandon (Dave Franco) pretty much declares him Persona Non Grata.
Will Schmidt and Jenko ferret out the source of the drug? Or will they fall victim to it? What happens when they throw an awesome house party with drugs and booze - despite Dickhead Boss' specific instructions not to? Will this mission test Schmidt and Jenko's friendship? Or will it somehow strengthen it? Will they rise to the occasion and defend each other? Who is behind the drugs anyway? Brandon? One of the "cool" kids? Or is it... someone else? Is it... Johnny Depp? Is that why he play Captain Jack Sparrow so well? Because he's all hopped up on that shit?
That's the only explanation I can think of.
BUT, SERIOUSLY: Sometimes the best way to rate a film's value is by how much you enjoyed it when you first watched it. Repeat viewings may not provide the same exhilarating reactions as that first viewing, but does that mean the movie isn't as good as you thought? Not necessarily. A strong positive reaction has to come from somewhere. Familiarity may lessen this reaction, but it doesn't change the fact that it occurred. So - do you give more value to the first reaction - or the subsequent ones? Do you rate a film based on how you felt the first time you saw it - or the following times when the dazzle has faded somewhat?
Such was the case when I first saw DIE ANOTHER DAY (review # 320), the James Bond film that many fans abhor for its "PlayStation" approach to the venerable spy series. I have to agree that, upon repeat viewings, these elements became more apparent. However, when I first saw DIE ANOTHER DAY, I enjoyed it immensely. It didn't have the inventiveness and complexity of its predecessor, THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH, but it was still a dynamic rollercoaster ride that was breathtaking in the moment. And when it came time to write a review of it, I chose to rely on my initial feelings for it.
Fortunately, 21 JUMP STREET holds up a lot better than DIE ANOTHER DAY. While I didn't laugh quite as hard and as loud as I did the first time I saw it, 21 JUMP STREET remains a very funny movie even after a second (and third) viewing. This is especially remarkable since most comedies are lucky to retain their ability to amuse and make the audience laugh after the first time you watch them. 21 JUMP STREET keeps you laughing over and over again, and it's due largely to that wonderful yet elusive thing we've discussed over and over again in countless past reviews: chemistry.
Put simply, Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum have a dynamic comic chemistry here. They have a genuine brotherly/friendly connection that not only sells the gags and pratfalls, but also gives the film a surprisingly solid emotional center - making 21 JUMP STREET one of the most unexpected and unexpectedly moving "Bromances" since KISS ME GUIDO and THE KING'S SPEECH. Tatum is especially effective in a scene where Jenko overhears Schmidt saying unkind things about him to the other students. Tatum vividly plays Jenko's initial unspoken hurt over this, and later when he confronts Schmidt about it, he nails his character's core of fierce loyalty with a single powerful line: "I would've taken a bullet for you."
I have to say that after his surprising "saving grace" performance in the overrated THE VOW (review # 432 ), then his hilarious appearance on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE where he repeatedly lampooned his male-stripper past, and now his touching, funny performance here in 21 JUMP STREET, Channing Tatum is proving his talent quite nicely. His niche seems to be light drama and comedy - and I hope he runs with it. While he is not as dazzling as Chris Evans, Tatum still has some of Evans' combo of sly smarts, mischievous humor, and self-deprecating dorkiness.
But Hill himself is no slouch, either. With his work in THE SITTER and MONEYBALL, Hill is quickly proving himself to be a comic and dramatic actor to be reckoned with. He turns Schmidt into a winningly quirky blend of brains, sincerity, and stubborness. Hill has always struck me as a performer with a rapid-fire wit and restless intelligence, and this quality meshes well with Tatum's innate sweetness and good-natured smarts. Hill is also good at playing Schmidt's weaknesses - such as falling prey to the allure of the "cool kids" that eluded him back in high school, at the expense of this friendship with Jenko. Their ultimate reconciliation scene is played terrifically by both Hill and Tatum and may, believe it or not, bring a tear to your eye.
Bottom line: 21 JUMP STREET is as funny and effective as it is primarily because we can buy, 100%, the friendship between Jenko and Schmidt. Without this emotional hook, the movie wouldn't have the staying power that it does.
Dave Franco (James Franco's little brother) is a strong presence as the King Of The School, and proves to be just as compelling an actor as his more established big brother. Rob Riggle and Ellie Kemper are hilarious as, respectively, the school's kooky gym teacher and a chemistry teacher who develops a crush on Jenko. Brie Larson is suitably sweet as a student that Schmidt falls for. Last, but definitely not the least, Ice Cube is an acidly amusing presence as the head of 21 Jump Street. All in all, a stellar supporting cast that matches the charisma and energy of its two leads.
In the end, 21 JUMP STREET is a wonderfully raunchy and hilarious cinematic adaptation that wisely remembers the key to classic comedy is getting the audience to make an emotional investment in your characters. Once they do, they'll follow them anywhere.
(Best. Poster. Tagline. Ever.)
CAST: Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Dave Franco, Ice Cube, Brie Larson, Rob Riggle, Ellie Kemper.
DIRECTOR: Phil Lord, Chris Miller
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and a couple of really baby-faced high school seniors with guns - straight ahead (it's okay - they're cops)....
IT'S LIKE THIS: You know how some things are inevitable? Like if you like to dance on tables drunk, sooner or later you're going to fall off and break your ass? Or if you eat enough Beef Gyros, sooner or later you're going to walk by a shop window and be all like "When did I get pregnant? Oh, wait, that's just my fat belly from all the Beef Gyros..."? Well, another one of those inevitable things is this: if you have an 80's TV show that survives enough seasons, sooner or later, some creatively bankrupt screenwriter or studio exec in 2011 is going to be all like: "Hey, dude, remember that TV show about those baby-faced cops who would go undercover at local high schools to bust pot smokers and shit? Why don't we make - wait for it - a movie based on it!"
And so it goes. Which is why in 2012 we end up with 21 JUMP STREET starring Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill as Police Academy fuck-ups Jenko and Schmidt. Let's just say that these two make the Keystone Cops look like hard-ass professionals. When a cop can't recite the Miranda Rights without using a lifeline to ask his buddy for clarification (Jenko), the populace (and the precinct) is in deep shit. And if a cop can't chase down a fat fuck of a suspect who looks one Beef Gyro (ahem) away for a massive coronary and ends up losing him (Schmidt), then... damn, dude. It isn't too farfetched to posit that Jenko and Schmidt are pretty strong arguments for vigilantism. My cats Casper and Guido would make more formidable bad-ass cops than these two. Then again, the bastards have claws from hell and attitudes that would make Damien The Devil's Spawn from THE OMEN look like Mickey Mouse.
But I digress. Anyhow, after Jenko and Schmidt's latest blunder, they are re-assigned to, ahem, 21 Jump Street - a mysterious division of the police department. Our dumbass heroes quickly find out three things about their new office: (1) everyone is as baby-faced as they are; (2) the boss (Ice Cube) is kind of a dick; and (3) their primary job is to pose as undercover cops in high schools to bust young folk doing bad shit - hence the reason everyone is required to be baby-faced. You'd think that two developmentally-arrested dipshits should ace this job, right? If you agree, then clearly you have put too much faith in our dear Jenko and Schmidt, because there isn't a mission that these two couldn't cluster-fuck-torpedo into oblivion without really trying. But, hey, at least it'll be hilarious.
Before you know it, Jenko and Schmidt have gone undercover at a local high school to sniff out the source of a new drug that looks like a Japanese rice cracker - but has the neurological effect of a thousand red bulls blended with speed, crack, absinthe, and some Mexican peyote. In other words, you'll have fun - but you'll look like a jack-ass and end up a YouTube superstar. To further complicate things, our boys discover that the Rule Of High School have now changed. Meaning, the dorks and nerds like Schmidt are now cool - and the jock meatheads like Jenko are now pariahs. Schmidt, not used to being one of the "In-Crowd", kind of lets it go to his head. Jenko, not used to being Hallway Fodder, kind of goes a little ballistic. Especially when School King Brandon (Dave Franco) pretty much declares him Persona Non Grata.
Will Schmidt and Jenko ferret out the source of the drug? Or will they fall victim to it? What happens when they throw an awesome house party with drugs and booze - despite Dickhead Boss' specific instructions not to? Will this mission test Schmidt and Jenko's friendship? Or will it somehow strengthen it? Will they rise to the occasion and defend each other? Who is behind the drugs anyway? Brandon? One of the "cool" kids? Or is it... someone else? Is it... Johnny Depp? Is that why he play Captain Jack Sparrow so well? Because he's all hopped up on that shit?
That's the only explanation I can think of.
BUT, SERIOUSLY: Sometimes the best way to rate a film's value is by how much you enjoyed it when you first watched it. Repeat viewings may not provide the same exhilarating reactions as that first viewing, but does that mean the movie isn't as good as you thought? Not necessarily. A strong positive reaction has to come from somewhere. Familiarity may lessen this reaction, but it doesn't change the fact that it occurred. So - do you give more value to the first reaction - or the subsequent ones? Do you rate a film based on how you felt the first time you saw it - or the following times when the dazzle has faded somewhat?
Such was the case when I first saw DIE ANOTHER DAY (review # 320), the James Bond film that many fans abhor for its "PlayStation" approach to the venerable spy series. I have to agree that, upon repeat viewings, these elements became more apparent. However, when I first saw DIE ANOTHER DAY, I enjoyed it immensely. It didn't have the inventiveness and complexity of its predecessor, THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH, but it was still a dynamic rollercoaster ride that was breathtaking in the moment. And when it came time to write a review of it, I chose to rely on my initial feelings for it.
Fortunately, 21 JUMP STREET holds up a lot better than DIE ANOTHER DAY. While I didn't laugh quite as hard and as loud as I did the first time I saw it, 21 JUMP STREET remains a very funny movie even after a second (and third) viewing. This is especially remarkable since most comedies are lucky to retain their ability to amuse and make the audience laugh after the first time you watch them. 21 JUMP STREET keeps you laughing over and over again, and it's due largely to that wonderful yet elusive thing we've discussed over and over again in countless past reviews: chemistry.
Put simply, Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum have a dynamic comic chemistry here. They have a genuine brotherly/friendly connection that not only sells the gags and pratfalls, but also gives the film a surprisingly solid emotional center - making 21 JUMP STREET one of the most unexpected and unexpectedly moving "Bromances" since KISS ME GUIDO and THE KING'S SPEECH. Tatum is especially effective in a scene where Jenko overhears Schmidt saying unkind things about him to the other students. Tatum vividly plays Jenko's initial unspoken hurt over this, and later when he confronts Schmidt about it, he nails his character's core of fierce loyalty with a single powerful line: "I would've taken a bullet for you."
I have to say that after his surprising "saving grace" performance in the overrated THE VOW (review # 432 ), then his hilarious appearance on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE where he repeatedly lampooned his male-stripper past, and now his touching, funny performance here in 21 JUMP STREET, Channing Tatum is proving his talent quite nicely. His niche seems to be light drama and comedy - and I hope he runs with it. While he is not as dazzling as Chris Evans, Tatum still has some of Evans' combo of sly smarts, mischievous humor, and self-deprecating dorkiness.
But Hill himself is no slouch, either. With his work in THE SITTER and MONEYBALL, Hill is quickly proving himself to be a comic and dramatic actor to be reckoned with. He turns Schmidt into a winningly quirky blend of brains, sincerity, and stubborness. Hill has always struck me as a performer with a rapid-fire wit and restless intelligence, and this quality meshes well with Tatum's innate sweetness and good-natured smarts. Hill is also good at playing Schmidt's weaknesses - such as falling prey to the allure of the "cool kids" that eluded him back in high school, at the expense of this friendship with Jenko. Their ultimate reconciliation scene is played terrifically by both Hill and Tatum and may, believe it or not, bring a tear to your eye.
Bottom line: 21 JUMP STREET is as funny and effective as it is primarily because we can buy, 100%, the friendship between Jenko and Schmidt. Without this emotional hook, the movie wouldn't have the staying power that it does.
Dave Franco (James Franco's little brother) is a strong presence as the King Of The School, and proves to be just as compelling an actor as his more established big brother. Rob Riggle and Ellie Kemper are hilarious as, respectively, the school's kooky gym teacher and a chemistry teacher who develops a crush on Jenko. Brie Larson is suitably sweet as a student that Schmidt falls for. Last, but definitely not the least, Ice Cube is an acidly amusing presence as the head of 21 Jump Street. All in all, a stellar supporting cast that matches the charisma and energy of its two leads.
In the end, 21 JUMP STREET is a wonderfully raunchy and hilarious cinematic adaptation that wisely remembers the key to classic comedy is getting the audience to make an emotional investment in your characters. Once they do, they'll follow them anywhere.
Friday, March 23, 2012
The Rest Of The March Reviews....
Hello, folks...
Hope everyone is well this Friday night. Sorry for the delay in getting the rest of the March Reviews posted. With the start of the MLS Season, and the renewed activity of the Sounders on the field, time has become precious. But we knew this would happen, didn't we?
At any rate, please expect the reviews to resume starting tomorrow, starting with the awesome 21 JUMP STREET. Please find below the remaining schedule as a reminder, with some revisions. Some of the reviews may spill into early April, but we also knew that might happen, too. Didn't we?
# 444 - 21 JUMP STREET
# 445 - MINE VAGANTI (ITALIAN TITLE)/LOOSE CANNONS (USA TITLE)
# 446 - THE HUNGER GAMES
# 447 - CLASH OF THE TITANS
# 448 - WRATH OF THE TITANS
# 449 - THE HELP
# 450 - THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
# 451 - MONEYBALL
# 452 - CINDERELLA MAN
The trailers for the above have been posted before, so I won't post them again. And while I have tried to keep soccer and movies separate, blog-wise, I can't help but post a musical tribute to the men of the Seattle Sounders for their awesome victory tonight at Century Link against the Houston Dynamos. All the pictures I took, as good as they are, simply don't capture the essence of the game itself seen live from the stands at Century Link. What a stunner. Suck it, Houston...
I was hoping to find a "Highlights Video" on YouTube already uploaded and waiting, like last Saturday night when we got home from the Sounders vs. Toronto David Estrada Extravaganza. Unfortunately, nothing is out there yet, so for now please accept this humble tribute:
Hope everyone is well this Friday night. Sorry for the delay in getting the rest of the March Reviews posted. With the start of the MLS Season, and the renewed activity of the Sounders on the field, time has become precious. But we knew this would happen, didn't we?
At any rate, please expect the reviews to resume starting tomorrow, starting with the awesome 21 JUMP STREET. Please find below the remaining schedule as a reminder, with some revisions. Some of the reviews may spill into early April, but we also knew that might happen, too. Didn't we?
# 444 - 21 JUMP STREET
# 445 - MINE VAGANTI (ITALIAN TITLE)/LOOSE CANNONS (USA TITLE)
# 446 - THE HUNGER GAMES
# 447 - CLASH OF THE TITANS
# 448 - WRATH OF THE TITANS
# 449 - THE HELP
# 450 - THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
# 451 - MONEYBALL
# 452 - CINDERELLA MAN
The trailers for the above have been posted before, so I won't post them again. And while I have tried to keep soccer and movies separate, blog-wise, I can't help but post a musical tribute to the men of the Seattle Sounders for their awesome victory tonight at Century Link against the Houston Dynamos. All the pictures I took, as good as they are, simply don't capture the essence of the game itself seen live from the stands at Century Link. What a stunner. Suck it, Houston...
I was hoping to find a "Highlights Video" on YouTube already uploaded and waiting, like last Saturday night when we got home from the Sounders vs. Toronto David Estrada Extravaganza. Unfortunately, nothing is out there yet, so for now please accept this humble tribute:
Monday, March 19, 2012
RANDOM HILARIOUS VIDEOS - 21 JUMP STREET Spoof of Jersey Shore!
Evening, folks. Hope everyone's well on this fine Monday evening. Had hoped to post the review for 21 JUMP STREET tonight, but have dinner plans. Saw the flick last Thursday night, but with soccer-related stuff on Friday night, and having to go to the Sounders/Toronto game on Saturday night (plus St. Paddy's day pub crawl), then recovering on Sunday, dinner plans tonight and tomorrow... meaning, well, let's just say the review is a little delayed. You'll see it on Wednesday, though. Rest assured, it is an excellent flick. We laughed so hard we cried (and I slapped my thighs until they were black and blue).
Anyhow, to sate your appetite for 21 JUMP STREET's review on Wednesday, please find below some very funny spoofs of our lovable dorks Schmidt and Jenko (Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum) doing surveillance on the Guidos and Guidettes of the JERSEY SHORE. Watch out for those gold chains and hair cement, boys! And Snooki!
Shout out to the admins on Channing Tatum's official website for these vids: Thanks, folks (and Chan)!
Ha ha. Dorks. Love 'em. Buona serrata, folks. Please expect the review on Wednesday evening.
Anyhow, to sate your appetite for 21 JUMP STREET's review on Wednesday, please find below some very funny spoofs of our lovable dorks Schmidt and Jenko (Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum) doing surveillance on the Guidos and Guidettes of the JERSEY SHORE. Watch out for those gold chains and hair cement, boys! And Snooki!
Shout out to the admins on Channing Tatum's official website for these vids: Thanks, folks (and Chan)!
Get More: Jersey Shore (Season 5), Full Episodes
Get More: Jersey Shore (Season 5), Full Episodes
Get More: Jersey Shore (Season 5), Full Episodes
Ha ha. Dorks. Love 'em. Buona serrata, folks. Please expect the review on Wednesday evening.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
RANDOM HILARIOUS YOUTUBE VIDEOS: Channing, Jonah, Dave, and the Sounders...
Evening, all... Well, actually, more like Good Morning. Ha ha. Anyhow to celebrate the release of the excellent (and deeply hilarious) 21 JUMP STREET, please find below some comedy videos showcasing the comedic talents of its stars Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, and Dave Franco (James Franco's little bro).
Then there's a tribute to the Seattle Sounders for their decisive win against Toronto tonight, er, last night, as well as to David Estrada's hat trick.
Oh, and please be warned that Dave Franco's video is way raunchy. But then again, what are you doing on this blog if you don't like raunchy? Let your Freak Flag fly, Dave!
Channing Tatum:
Jonah Hill:
Dave Franco:
Ha ha ha. These guys kill me. 21 JUMP STREET is, believe it or not, the best 2012 movie I've seen so far. I'm not even ashamed to say it. And Channing, Jonah, and Dave are awesome in it. We haven't laughed that hard since, well, since I first watched Dave Franco's "You're So Hot" video 48 hours ago. Anyway, please expect the review when we finally wake up tomorrow.
And last but, in no way, the least... GO SOUNDERS! Congrats on whipping Toronto's ass! What a spectacular event to behold. As gripping as the highlights below are, it was even more dazzling live at Century Link Field last night. Brought tears to my eyes:
Then there's a tribute to the Seattle Sounders for their decisive win against Toronto tonight, er, last night, as well as to David Estrada's hat trick.
Oh, and please be warned that Dave Franco's video is way raunchy. But then again, what are you doing on this blog if you don't like raunchy? Let your Freak Flag fly, Dave!
Channing Tatum:
Jonah Hill:
Dave Franco:
Ha ha ha. These guys kill me. 21 JUMP STREET is, believe it or not, the best 2012 movie I've seen so far. I'm not even ashamed to say it. And Channing, Jonah, and Dave are awesome in it. We haven't laughed that hard since, well, since I first watched Dave Franco's "You're So Hot" video 48 hours ago. Anyway, please expect the review when we finally wake up tomorrow.
And last but, in no way, the least... GO SOUNDERS! Congrats on whipping Toronto's ass! What a spectacular event to behold. As gripping as the highlights below are, it was even more dazzling live at Century Link Field last night. Brought tears to my eyes:
# 443 - EASY A (2010)
EASY A (2010 - COMEDY / ROMANCE) **** out of *****
(Olive, honey, I feel your pain - but we both kind of asked for it, didn't we, sweetie?)
CAST: Emma Stone, Penn Badgley, Amanda Bynes, Thomas Haden Church, Patricia Clarkson, Stanley Tucci, Cam Gigandet, Lisa Kudrow, Malcolm MacDowell, Ally Michalka.
DIRECTOR: Will Gluck
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and one bewildered, accidental Mega-Whore - straight ahead...
Remember how in our review for MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA (review # 418) I joked that one of its principal characters was my cinematic role model? She is the gracious and elegant geisha Mameha (played by the fabulous Ms. Michelle Yeoh), who mentors the heroine Sayuri on how to become a gracious and elegant geisha herself. Well, Mameha's American equivalent is the heroine of our next review.
She is Olive Pendergast (Emma Stone) and, like Mameha, she is also gracious and elegant, but also highly mischievous, terminally sarcastic, and possesses a drier-than-vermouth sense of humor that people often take seriously - which, in turn, eventually lands her smack dab in the middle of that lovely apparatus called "The Goddamned Rumor Mill". Which makes Olive not so much my Cinematic Role Model - but my Cinematic Alter Ego. But, well, without a dick. And with a much hotter bod.
For me, it started years ago when I was late meeting up with some friends for brunch in Capitol Hill. When asked why I was so late, I deadpanned: "I had a client that just went all night. Dude wore me out. I was supposed to leave his hotel room at midnight, but he wouldn't let me out of bed. It's okay, though. He paid me an extra day's rate. Those fucking Italians are such Stallions."
Obviously, I was kidding. But they, apparently, didn't take it that way. Before you knew it, the following things were happening: (1) some dude came up to me at a party and asked me what my rates were; (2) at a bar, a friend of a friend from that brunch came up to me, asking if the "escort world is competitive" and what he needed to do to "get started" (which, when you think about it, would really have made me like Mameha if I did take him under my wing); and (3) my favorite: a really cute guy (whom we will call Mr. Wonderful) that I hit it off with at a barbeque, asking for the correct spelling of my name to enter into his phone: "Is your name spelled with an H-N at the end, or just an N?" - and before I could respond, one of the dipshits from the brunch "sweetly" interrupted us and answered for me: "It's spelled with a W-H-O-R-E at the end." Thank you very much, you jealous bitch.
Of course, to be fair, I could've nipped the whole thing in the bud when I realized that, Holy Jesus, these fuckers actually do think I'm a prostitute! I mean, when I first cracked the jokes, I never once worried about anyone taking me seriously because, come on, who in their right mind would pay to have sex with me? It's not like I look like Chris Evans, Russell Crowe, Colin O'Donoghue, or Clark Kent. Let me put it this way: I don't have pecs so much as I do "man-boobs", which are exactly what they sound like, and I don't have abs so much as I do "blabs", which are 10% abs and 90% blubber. I ain't exactly a hottie, folks. Which made me confident to josh around about being "Deuce Bigalow: Fat Gigolo". After all, anyone stupid enough to actually believe I was a successful escort deserved everything they got.
All that by way of saying Olive Pendergast has a special place in my heart, because her smart mouth and deadpan humor gets her into all sorts of shit, too. It all starts in the high school's bathroom, where Olive jokingly tells best pal Rhiannon (Ally Michalka) that she fucked some college dude six ways from Sunday. Rhiannon, not being too sophisticated in the art of dry humor, takes that shit as serious as if it were a Congressional Directive. Olive, being the aforementioned mischievous smart-ass, correctly senses her best pal is somehow interpreting this joke as cold hard fact, and understandably twists the knife even deeper. Embellishing the "tryst" with filthy facts that would make even Traci Lords blush, Olive makes it all sound like a rehearsal for a porn film called OLIVE DOES OKLAHOMA.
All of this might've eventually blown over as good old-fashioned "fuck-with-your-friend" fun - except for one rather unfortunate development: inside one of the stalls is another student who overhears the whole exchange between Olive and Rhiannon. But not just any student: Marianne (Amanda Bynes), the leader of the school's God Squad. Olive might as well have been talking dirty in the presence of the Holy Father, The Holy Son, and The Holy Ghost. Or, in this case, the Holy Bitch. Before you know it, the entire student body is gossiping about how Olive drained some frat boy's nuts multiple times over the weekend like she was trying to clock some serious Frequent Fucker Miles.
Further exacerbating the situation is Olive's innate kindness and graciousness - which inconveniently rears its head when gay student Brandon (Dan Byrd) begs her to help him trick the student body into thinking he's straight so they'll stop picking on him. Which translates to Olive pretending she and Brandon have a fuck-a-thon behind closed doors at a huge party. Wait a minute... is this movie set in 2010... or 1910? Brandon, dude, seriously... I went to high school in the late 80's and had a blast. Take it from me: you need to own your Fairy Dust and make magic with it. Not con your peers into thinking you fucked some chick and therefore you're straight.
But whatever. Long story short: Olive does the "good friend" thang and helps Brandon out. The good news (well, not really) is that the whole school now thinks Brandon is straight. The bad news (really) is the whole school now thinks Olive is an even bigger slut than before, which is saying a whole lot since they were already acting like her vagina was the anatomical version of McDonald's - as in: "Millions Served Worldwide!" Sure enough, once the other guys at the school get wind of Olive's racket of fake-fucking anything with a penis, Olive's finds herself, um, rather popular. Which means they are soon paying her with all sort of currency like movie passes, gift cards, and - GASP! - discount coupons to the local "Bed, Bath, and Beyond". Not exactly a week in Maui, but Olive doesn't seem to care.
As you can imagine, Olive's notoriety is met with a vehement response from the God Squad. As in: Marianne and boy-toy Micah (Cam Gigandet) basically launch a tactical smear campaign against our heroine, complete with protests featuring signs blaring "HARLOT!", "JEZEBEL!", "TRASH!", and "QUEEN OF THE TRAMPY WHORE-BEASTS!" Okay, I made up that last one - but you know they only didn't use it because they couldn't find a sign big enough to fit the fucking thing. Fortunately, Olive has at least one supporter/admirer in goofy dork Woodchuck Todd (Penn Badgley), so named because he wears the school mascot uniform at basketball games - and looks hella hot doing it. What is it about a hot guy in a dorky full animal costume that just brings out the horny tiger in me?
Anyway, Todd is the only one who sees Olive for the sweet and gracious person that she is, and stands up for her against Marianne and the rest of the God Squad. But is he enough to turn the tide back in her favor? Of course, Olive doesn't help matters but deciding to fuck with her haters even more by sewing a bright red "A" on her wardrobe like Hester Prynne in THE SCARLET LETTER, and proudly walking around school looking like, in the words of her own parents (Stanley Tucci, Patricia Clarkson), a "high-end stripper".
Will Olive be forever classified as "Class Hussy?" Or will she correct this "Comedy of Whorrors" and set the record straight before the God Squad exorcises her permanently? Will Olive's parents be able to provide her with some guidance? What about Olive's favorite teacher, Mr. Griffith (Thomas Haden Church)? Will he be able to help? Or will it be up to Woodchuck Todd to be Olive's savior? Or is Olive doomed to wear that Scarlet "A" until the end of time? Should we change the title of this movie to EASY LAY?
Who cares? Along as Todd doesn't mind the whole "Accidental Whore" thang, who gives a flaming jalapeno fart what everyone else thinks? Ride off into the sunset and have fun with that Woodchuck costume, kids...
BUT, SERIOUSLY: For a period between 1984 and 1987, American teen cinema was ruled by John Hughes. The creator of such young adult hits as SIXTEEN CANDLES, WEIRD SCIENCE, THE BREAKFAST CLUB, PRETTY IN PINK, FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, and SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL, Hughes wowed an entire generation of teenagers with his singular combo of goofy humor, surprising smarts, and sweet sensitivity. Very few teen films since then have been able to capture this potent combination. A few that have managed to do so are I LOVE YOU BETH COOPER, THE PERFECT SCORE, JUNO, and 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU. To this hallowed list, we add one of the strongest throwbacks to the John Hughes movies of the mid-80's: the terrific EASY A.
With its sharp script, snappy dialogue, and well-drawn characters, EASY A is something of a modern classic. Regarding the characters, they are all fairly atypical and don't fit too snugly in to any one niche. The result is a fresh rather than stale feel. Too many teen comedies peddle caricatures instead of characters: The Sweet Heroine, The Studly Jock, The Geeky Nerd, The Mean Bitch, and The Bland Best Friend, just to name a few. In EASY A, the players are all given quirks and offbeat traits that keep them from becoming stereotypes - and make them feel like unique characters.
Emma Stone delivers a star-making performance here as Olive Pendergast, a girl who is smart enough to march to her own drummer and buck the popular opinion, but also vulnerable enough to second-guess her actions occasionally. Her droll wit combines nicely with her self-deprecating and approachable demeanor to make her instantly likable. A lot of Olive's appeal comes from Stone's own unique appeal. She's beautiful, but in a very down-to-earth way that is disarming. She's smart and sarcastic, but in a winningly funny way. Put simply, Stone is a delight - and her work here coupled with her subsequent work in THE HELP pretty much signifies that a star is born.
Penn Badgley leads the supporting cast as Olive's equally quirky love interest., Todd. Badgley proved what a magnetic actor he is in THE STEPFATHER and the TV show GOSSIP GIRL, and he goes a lighter, goofier route in this film. Whether he's clowning around in the Woodchuck costume as the school mascot, or singing a goofy Happy Birthday song to a patron at the restaurant he works at, or just chatting amiably with Olive between classes, Todd proves to be a refreshing hero: laid-back but tough, cocky but sweet, innocent but smart. Badgley matches Stone's energy and charisma, scene for scene, and they make a highly compatible couple.
The rest of the supporting cast is perfect right down the line. Amanda Bynes manages to avoid making Marianne into a bible-thumping stereotype by showing some unexpected softness late in the film. Similarly, Ally Michalka as Olive's best friend Rhiannon sidesteps turning her into your basic raunchy best friend by giving her some surprisingly conservative traits and reactions. Meanwhile, Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci portray Olive's parents as just as unconventional as their daughter. They never once turn into stereotypical "crazy" parents, but instead come across as fun, open, pragmatic, and understanding. Thomas Haden Church and Lisa Kudrow are similarly atypical as teachers at the school who are ensnared in the rumor mill that Olive accidentally kickstarts. Cam Gigandet, Malcolm McDowell, and Dan Byrd are fine in their smaller roles.
In the end, EASY A doesn't pretend to be an in-depth examination of gossip and how easy it can spread and mutate. Instead, it takes an innocent incident, blows it up in the sharpest and funniest of ways, then lets its smart and appealing heroine find her way out of it. With the help of a smart and appealing hero. Sometimes, that's all you need to create a very good film. Along with a strong cast led by Emma Stone and Penn Badgley.
In closing, some tunes related to EASY A: Lady Gaga's "Poker Face" and Natasha Bedingfield "Pocketful of Sunshine"... Go, Olive and Todd!
(Olive, honey, I feel your pain - but we both kind of asked for it, didn't we, sweetie?)
CAST: Emma Stone, Penn Badgley, Amanda Bynes, Thomas Haden Church, Patricia Clarkson, Stanley Tucci, Cam Gigandet, Lisa Kudrow, Malcolm MacDowell, Ally Michalka.
DIRECTOR: Will Gluck
WARNING: Some SPOILERS and one bewildered, accidental Mega-Whore - straight ahead...
Remember how in our review for MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA (review # 418) I joked that one of its principal characters was my cinematic role model? She is the gracious and elegant geisha Mameha (played by the fabulous Ms. Michelle Yeoh), who mentors the heroine Sayuri on how to become a gracious and elegant geisha herself. Well, Mameha's American equivalent is the heroine of our next review.
She is Olive Pendergast (Emma Stone) and, like Mameha, she is also gracious and elegant, but also highly mischievous, terminally sarcastic, and possesses a drier-than-vermouth sense of humor that people often take seriously - which, in turn, eventually lands her smack dab in the middle of that lovely apparatus called "The Goddamned Rumor Mill". Which makes Olive not so much my Cinematic Role Model - but my Cinematic Alter Ego. But, well, without a dick. And with a much hotter bod.
For me, it started years ago when I was late meeting up with some friends for brunch in Capitol Hill. When asked why I was so late, I deadpanned: "I had a client that just went all night. Dude wore me out. I was supposed to leave his hotel room at midnight, but he wouldn't let me out of bed. It's okay, though. He paid me an extra day's rate. Those fucking Italians are such Stallions."
Obviously, I was kidding. But they, apparently, didn't take it that way. Before you knew it, the following things were happening: (1) some dude came up to me at a party and asked me what my rates were; (2) at a bar, a friend of a friend from that brunch came up to me, asking if the "escort world is competitive" and what he needed to do to "get started" (which, when you think about it, would really have made me like Mameha if I did take him under my wing); and (3) my favorite: a really cute guy (whom we will call Mr. Wonderful) that I hit it off with at a barbeque, asking for the correct spelling of my name to enter into his phone: "Is your name spelled with an H-N at the end, or just an N?" - and before I could respond, one of the dipshits from the brunch "sweetly" interrupted us and answered for me: "It's spelled with a W-H-O-R-E at the end." Thank you very much, you jealous bitch.
Of course, to be fair, I could've nipped the whole thing in the bud when I realized that, Holy Jesus, these fuckers actually do think I'm a prostitute! I mean, when I first cracked the jokes, I never once worried about anyone taking me seriously because, come on, who in their right mind would pay to have sex with me? It's not like I look like Chris Evans, Russell Crowe, Colin O'Donoghue, or Clark Kent. Let me put it this way: I don't have pecs so much as I do "man-boobs", which are exactly what they sound like, and I don't have abs so much as I do "blabs", which are 10% abs and 90% blubber. I ain't exactly a hottie, folks. Which made me confident to josh around about being "Deuce Bigalow: Fat Gigolo". After all, anyone stupid enough to actually believe I was a successful escort deserved everything they got.
All that by way of saying Olive Pendergast has a special place in my heart, because her smart mouth and deadpan humor gets her into all sorts of shit, too. It all starts in the high school's bathroom, where Olive jokingly tells best pal Rhiannon (Ally Michalka) that she fucked some college dude six ways from Sunday. Rhiannon, not being too sophisticated in the art of dry humor, takes that shit as serious as if it were a Congressional Directive. Olive, being the aforementioned mischievous smart-ass, correctly senses her best pal is somehow interpreting this joke as cold hard fact, and understandably twists the knife even deeper. Embellishing the "tryst" with filthy facts that would make even Traci Lords blush, Olive makes it all sound like a rehearsal for a porn film called OLIVE DOES OKLAHOMA.
All of this might've eventually blown over as good old-fashioned "fuck-with-your-friend" fun - except for one rather unfortunate development: inside one of the stalls is another student who overhears the whole exchange between Olive and Rhiannon. But not just any student: Marianne (Amanda Bynes), the leader of the school's God Squad. Olive might as well have been talking dirty in the presence of the Holy Father, The Holy Son, and The Holy Ghost. Or, in this case, the Holy Bitch. Before you know it, the entire student body is gossiping about how Olive drained some frat boy's nuts multiple times over the weekend like she was trying to clock some serious Frequent Fucker Miles.
Further exacerbating the situation is Olive's innate kindness and graciousness - which inconveniently rears its head when gay student Brandon (Dan Byrd) begs her to help him trick the student body into thinking he's straight so they'll stop picking on him. Which translates to Olive pretending she and Brandon have a fuck-a-thon behind closed doors at a huge party. Wait a minute... is this movie set in 2010... or 1910? Brandon, dude, seriously... I went to high school in the late 80's and had a blast. Take it from me: you need to own your Fairy Dust and make magic with it. Not con your peers into thinking you fucked some chick and therefore you're straight.
But whatever. Long story short: Olive does the "good friend" thang and helps Brandon out. The good news (well, not really) is that the whole school now thinks Brandon is straight. The bad news (really) is the whole school now thinks Olive is an even bigger slut than before, which is saying a whole lot since they were already acting like her vagina was the anatomical version of McDonald's - as in: "Millions Served Worldwide!" Sure enough, once the other guys at the school get wind of Olive's racket of fake-fucking anything with a penis, Olive's finds herself, um, rather popular. Which means they are soon paying her with all sort of currency like movie passes, gift cards, and - GASP! - discount coupons to the local "Bed, Bath, and Beyond". Not exactly a week in Maui, but Olive doesn't seem to care.
As you can imagine, Olive's notoriety is met with a vehement response from the God Squad. As in: Marianne and boy-toy Micah (Cam Gigandet) basically launch a tactical smear campaign against our heroine, complete with protests featuring signs blaring "HARLOT!", "JEZEBEL!", "TRASH!", and "QUEEN OF THE TRAMPY WHORE-BEASTS!" Okay, I made up that last one - but you know they only didn't use it because they couldn't find a sign big enough to fit the fucking thing. Fortunately, Olive has at least one supporter/admirer in goofy dork Woodchuck Todd (Penn Badgley), so named because he wears the school mascot uniform at basketball games - and looks hella hot doing it. What is it about a hot guy in a dorky full animal costume that just brings out the horny tiger in me?
Anyway, Todd is the only one who sees Olive for the sweet and gracious person that she is, and stands up for her against Marianne and the rest of the God Squad. But is he enough to turn the tide back in her favor? Of course, Olive doesn't help matters but deciding to fuck with her haters even more by sewing a bright red "A" on her wardrobe like Hester Prynne in THE SCARLET LETTER, and proudly walking around school looking like, in the words of her own parents (Stanley Tucci, Patricia Clarkson), a "high-end stripper".
Will Olive be forever classified as "Class Hussy?" Or will she correct this "Comedy of Whorrors" and set the record straight before the God Squad exorcises her permanently? Will Olive's parents be able to provide her with some guidance? What about Olive's favorite teacher, Mr. Griffith (Thomas Haden Church)? Will he be able to help? Or will it be up to Woodchuck Todd to be Olive's savior? Or is Olive doomed to wear that Scarlet "A" until the end of time? Should we change the title of this movie to EASY LAY?
Who cares? Along as Todd doesn't mind the whole "Accidental Whore" thang, who gives a flaming jalapeno fart what everyone else thinks? Ride off into the sunset and have fun with that Woodchuck costume, kids...
BUT, SERIOUSLY: For a period between 1984 and 1987, American teen cinema was ruled by John Hughes. The creator of such young adult hits as SIXTEEN CANDLES, WEIRD SCIENCE, THE BREAKFAST CLUB, PRETTY IN PINK, FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, and SOME KIND OF WONDERFUL, Hughes wowed an entire generation of teenagers with his singular combo of goofy humor, surprising smarts, and sweet sensitivity. Very few teen films since then have been able to capture this potent combination. A few that have managed to do so are I LOVE YOU BETH COOPER, THE PERFECT SCORE, JUNO, and 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU. To this hallowed list, we add one of the strongest throwbacks to the John Hughes movies of the mid-80's: the terrific EASY A.
With its sharp script, snappy dialogue, and well-drawn characters, EASY A is something of a modern classic. Regarding the characters, they are all fairly atypical and don't fit too snugly in to any one niche. The result is a fresh rather than stale feel. Too many teen comedies peddle caricatures instead of characters: The Sweet Heroine, The Studly Jock, The Geeky Nerd, The Mean Bitch, and The Bland Best Friend, just to name a few. In EASY A, the players are all given quirks and offbeat traits that keep them from becoming stereotypes - and make them feel like unique characters.
Emma Stone delivers a star-making performance here as Olive Pendergast, a girl who is smart enough to march to her own drummer and buck the popular opinion, but also vulnerable enough to second-guess her actions occasionally. Her droll wit combines nicely with her self-deprecating and approachable demeanor to make her instantly likable. A lot of Olive's appeal comes from Stone's own unique appeal. She's beautiful, but in a very down-to-earth way that is disarming. She's smart and sarcastic, but in a winningly funny way. Put simply, Stone is a delight - and her work here coupled with her subsequent work in THE HELP pretty much signifies that a star is born.
Penn Badgley leads the supporting cast as Olive's equally quirky love interest., Todd. Badgley proved what a magnetic actor he is in THE STEPFATHER and the TV show GOSSIP GIRL, and he goes a lighter, goofier route in this film. Whether he's clowning around in the Woodchuck costume as the school mascot, or singing a goofy Happy Birthday song to a patron at the restaurant he works at, or just chatting amiably with Olive between classes, Todd proves to be a refreshing hero: laid-back but tough, cocky but sweet, innocent but smart. Badgley matches Stone's energy and charisma, scene for scene, and they make a highly compatible couple.
The rest of the supporting cast is perfect right down the line. Amanda Bynes manages to avoid making Marianne into a bible-thumping stereotype by showing some unexpected softness late in the film. Similarly, Ally Michalka as Olive's best friend Rhiannon sidesteps turning her into your basic raunchy best friend by giving her some surprisingly conservative traits and reactions. Meanwhile, Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci portray Olive's parents as just as unconventional as their daughter. They never once turn into stereotypical "crazy" parents, but instead come across as fun, open, pragmatic, and understanding. Thomas Haden Church and Lisa Kudrow are similarly atypical as teachers at the school who are ensnared in the rumor mill that Olive accidentally kickstarts. Cam Gigandet, Malcolm McDowell, and Dan Byrd are fine in their smaller roles.
In the end, EASY A doesn't pretend to be an in-depth examination of gossip and how easy it can spread and mutate. Instead, it takes an innocent incident, blows it up in the sharpest and funniest of ways, then lets its smart and appealing heroine find her way out of it. With the help of a smart and appealing hero. Sometimes, that's all you need to create a very good film. Along with a strong cast led by Emma Stone and Penn Badgley.
In closing, some tunes related to EASY A: Lady Gaga's "Poker Face" and Natasha Bedingfield "Pocketful of Sunshine"... Go, Olive and Todd!
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