…And Dip (Chips, 2017)

Chips was an action/drama from 1977 about motorcycle cops Ponch and Jon. I know I watched it as a kid, but beyond Erik Estrada and the other guy? Don’t remember much. But when it was announced that they were making a comedy movie based on the show, it seemed like an odd choice.

Written and directed by Dax Shepard, the update begins with Ponch as an FBI Agent who is sent undercover to bust a drug ring suspected to involve crooked motorcycle cops. He is teamed up with the highly inept Jon, who is trying to save a marriage he does not get is over. Ponch and Jon are constantly at odds to an annoying degree. In what I suspect was intended as a “positive” message, Jon criticizes Ponch of being homophobic which leads to, unsurprisingly, a whole lot of “Eeeew! NOT GAY” type of jokes.

The jokes don’t land and the characters lack chemistry. By the time Ponch and Jon are a team, it feels entirely unearned. The jokes are forced as well. This is a shame, as the cast is the one high point of the film. Michael Peña has great comic timing. And Vincent D’Onofrio is the villain. And yet, neither get to bring their skills to the rather uninspired script. Dax’s Jon is particularly flat. His real life wife, Kristen Bell just has a sweet persona and it is hard to buy she is this terrible marriage destroying wife.

Chips obviously aimed to fall into the same company of 21 Jump Street…but it misses that mark by a great distance.

September 7, 2017 0

Go Ahead and Jump (22 Jump Street, 2014)

After the success of the first film, a second was pretty much inevitable. And so Jenko and Schmidt are on a new mission that goes hilariously awry. This leads into the running gag of the film.

Sequels are soulless cash grabs, which admittedly, they often are. Here, they are told they screwed up the mission and it was just to different. They are sent to the new Jumpstreet. 22 Jump Street to be exact. It has a bigger budget, is in a new location and so on. Same boss, Captain Dickson (Ice Cube) with the same attitude.

They send the boys on a new undercover job at a college to bust a drug ring…you know…like the first movie.

The end result is a movie that manages to live up to it’s successor. What really works, yet again, is the chemistry of Tatum and Hill’s characters. As college relationships seem to pull them apart, they start to fail at their mission. It is only their realization that it is their differences that make them a great team that they can solve the mysteries of the drug ring.

Schmidt meets a girl, Jenko meets a boy and friendships drift apart. There is a gay subtext to the relationship of Schmidt and Jenko, but surprisingly, it is not of the “Eeee!” kind of attitude so frequent in “bro-comedies”. There is even a brief scene were Jenko expresses remorse upon realizing how many gay slurs he used to use in high school.

I was skeptical when they announced the first film…by the end of the second one, I was more than willing for another round.

The end credits are must watch. I was in tears with the running gag of the endless sequels and merchandising. Though, the fact that there is a 21 Jump Street/Men in Black crossover makes the gag a bit ironic.

September 6, 2017 0

Might As Well Jump (21 Jump Street, 2012)

A trend began in the early 2000’s of making movies based on dramatic action shows from the 70’s and 80’s, but treating them as a joke. This has had…decidedly mixed results.

21 Jump Street was part of the line-up of a upstart new network called Fox. It was the story of a division of young cops who would go into schools undercover, posing as students, to bust drug dealers and the like. The show’s biggest claim to fame was that it introduced Johnny Depp to the world.

In the film, we meet loser Schmidt (Jonah Hill) who has a humiliating day at school. He is rejected by a girl and pushed around by his bully Jenko (Channing Tatum) . Except, Jenko is having his own trouble…his grades are so bad, he is not going to be allowed to go to prom. A few years later they are both at the police academy. At first, Jenko resumes his role as bully, but they quickly realize both can help each other get through. As Jenko helps Schmidt with the physical tests, Schmidt helps Jenko pass the mental ones.

They are disappointed to discover their first gig is as bike cops in a park. But an ill fated drug bust leads them to Jump Street, an old program that is being revived. They are sent into a high school to determine who is selling a new and dangerous drug.

The story is not entirely fresh, and yet, this is kind of the point. The filmmakers are seeking to have some fun with both cop and action film tropes. This leads to a lot of entertaining visual gags. The drug ring is run by hip and socially conscious kids. When Jenko tries mocking kids for being concerned about the environment, he is informed that this is just so uncool. In fact, the two friends find their social heirchy inverted. On top of that, they confuse who is which undercover character, forcing both into roles outside their comfort zone.

21 Jump Street is not an outright parody of it’s namesake. It is set in the same universe as the show (with original actors reprising roles from the TV Show), but it sees some of the absurdity in the concept. And it plays with the conventions pretty well (including the very problematic area of the “Inappropriate Love Interest”).

What really holds the film together though is Hill and Tatum. They are a genuinely enjoyable combo with a friendship that is a bit endearing. The action scenes are well choreographed. And, important to any action comedy film? The action and jokes do not step on each other, so to speak. 21 Jump Street is a pleasant surprise, with it’s combination of humor and enjoyable characters.

September 5, 2017 0

How to Be a Dad (Little Evil, 2017)

Gary’s life seems to be going pretty good. He just married his dream girl Samantha and he is working to get to know his new stepson Lucas. Lucas is a special child. As in, he is the spawn of Satan.

Gary does not, of course, accept this right away. But mysterious events and death seem to give signs that Lucas is not all right. Little Evil is a comedy brought to us by the same guy who made Tucker & Dale vs Evil. That film was a funny send-up of slasher films ranging from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre to the Wrong Turn franchise.

One might question where the humor is in the religious horror of satanic kids…but writer and director Eli Craig finds the spot where they can intersect. Ans as with his previous film, does so with some sweetness and heart.

After an Omen-like incident at school, Lucas and Gary are sent to counseling. For Gary, this means a support group for fathers (which is attended by his friend Al…a lesbian struggling with her stepson’s lack of athletic ability). There, he is initially assured that these types of things are normal. But as deeper research finds, there is a lot of tragedy that seems to follow Lucas. And so Gary struggles to find a way to stop the son of Satan.

The cast is a strong comedic group. Led by Adam Scott (Parks and Rec) the character of Gary remains largely sympathetic throughout the film, which is important for those moments when he “veers off the path of good parenting”. Bridget Everett’s Al could have stayed in it’s “Butch Lesbian” stereotype lane…but she brings such an exuberance to the character that Al stands out and of course, brings plenty of humor. Evangeline Lilly (Ant Man and Lost) has a role that could get overshadowed, but she brings the appropriate heart to the role.

Little Evil is a lot of fun, though it does not quite reach the levels of insanity of Tucker & Dale Vs Evil. This is partly due to the narrow nature. They are really parodying the Omen here. Unlike Tucker and Dale, where there was an homage a minute to some slasher film, Little Evil is more restrained.

If you liked Tucker and Dale, you will more than likely enjoy Little Evil. And I would dare say that as long as the subject matter does not make one too uncomfortable? Non-horror fans may enjoy it as well. The film has not gory, and the visuals are not terribly frightening. Afterall, the goal here is not scares. It is laughs and maybe a bit of sentimentality.

September 3, 2017 0

Curses (Logan Lucky, 2017)

Steven Soderbergh retired from directing in 2013. He directed multiple episodes of the Knick after that. He has three more films in the pipeline after this years Logan Lucky. The guy sucks at retirement.

But that is okay for me. Logan Lucky is about Jimmy Logan…should have been football star who hurt his knee and went on to live the blue-collar life in West Virginia. His brother, a one armed bar tender and vet Clyde, believes the Logan family is cursed. Tragedy follows the family everywhere. When he loses his job, Jimmy is desperate to find money to improve his situation. His ex wife plans to move with her husband and take their daughter with them. And this leads us to the heist at a race track on race day.

Like a blue-collar Ocean’s 11, Jimmy (along with Clyde and their sister Mellie) recruits Jimmy Bang (who in turn has them recruit his brothers) an explosives expert. The plan is elaborate, and you almost wonder if the kind but somewhat simple Jimmy can manage it. And here is the weird rub of heist films, for me.

I do not endorse robbing people. I do not believe it is okay to come up with big heists. But I sure do love a heist movie…watching the plan come together, watching the plan get executed…and the inevitable reveals of the stuff I missed.

And Logan Lucky does not disappoint there. It is charming and funny. Part of this is in the cast. Channing Tatum has been one of those guys who I under-estimated. As Jimmy Logan, he is soft spoken and gentle, but not afraid of a fight. And Adam Driver’s Clyde is somewhat heart breaking yet endearing. Riley Keough is the fast driving Mellie…and then there is Joe Bang…played to great comic effect by Daniel Craig. Oh yeah… Farrah McKenzie as Sadie Logan? Adorable little kid.

For the most part, the film loves these characters…the only characters that feel a little to over the top and cartoonish? Fish and Sam Bang…but even they have their moments. Logan Lucky was a lot of fun and even had a few moments that made me tear up. It plays out very in a very satisfying fashion.

The New York Post claims this film does not “get Trumpland”…but frankly? Why should a person who just enjoys a fun movie care about that?

August 27, 2017 0

Wedding Crashing (Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, 2016)

Mike and Dave are brothers who party hard…so hard that their family is frustrated at how they ruin every even. To be allowed at their sister’s wedding, they are required to bring respectable dates. Mike and Dave get the idea to go on TV and put the call out to get some classy ladies. Alice and Tatiana are lazy who cannot hold a job, in part because they would rather lay around smoking weed. They see Mike and Dave and decide to con their way into a free Hawaiian vacation on Mike and Dave’s dime. Crazy adventures follow.

Well, more like “Standard Comedy Misadventures.” As you might suspect, the ruse is discovered, things fall apart and then the leads must fix their screw up. It is a pretty standard trope. The problem for this film is nothing distracts you from the highly predictable beats.

Most of the characters are very loose sketches. And while I suspect it is intentional, Adam Levine’s Mike is far less sympathetic than Efron as Dave. This is mirrored in Plaza’s Tatiana and Anna Kendrick’s Alice. But that ends up working against the film. While there are funny points, nothing makes the movie stand out. It is trying to be in the vein of Wedding Crashers, but feels like a film trying real hard to look like it is pushing envelopes…but even those moments feel heavily cliched.

The film had a lot of potentials, as it has an excellent comedic cast. I went in hoping to really enjoy this film as some crazy farce. Instead, I found long stretches where the film comes to a standstill. At barely over an hour and a half, this is not a good thing.

In the end, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates is a derivative comedy that is mildly amusing…but I suspect will largely be forgotten.

May 17, 2017 0

The Gift of Music (Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, 2016)

I confess, for several years I was pretty lukewarm on Andy Samberg. I recall not finding Hot Rod all that funny. Over the years, I have been convinced I was wrong about Samberg. Especially with his hilarious performance as Detective Jake Peralta on Brooklyn 9-9 (easily one of my favorite comedies from the past few years). In fact, I am thinking of revisiting Hot Rod to see if my feelings on that film have changed.

I was unsure about Popstar, because while the trailers did look funny, I worried it would be unable to sustain the gag. Popstar is about popular pop artist Conner. Conner is from a popular boy band Style Boyz. He went solo and was propelled to even greater success, while his bandmates had…less success.

His second album is a critical and sales failure. He attempts to sustain his career as incident after incident makes it clear his is crashing and burning severely. While Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is not a wholly original idea, it is well crafted. Samberg and writer/directors Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone have packed the film so tightly with jokes, it overcomes the fairly pedestrian plot.

Samberg’s very clueless and shallow Conner somehow manages to still be likable. And this is where the movie shines. Its satire of the world of entertainment is simple but effective. The film could have overstayed it’s welcome, but they clearly knew when to cut a gag or scene that was unnecessary. Just under an hour and a half, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping has a high rate of jokes that hit their mark. I was laughing throughout the film.

Samberg is supported by a strong cast of comedy veterans, such as Tim Meadows (who seems to have comfortably slid into the straight man role) as Conner’s hard working manager. Chris Redd is very funny as Hunter, a rapper on the rise that is opening for Conner’s shows(he tells Conner, “I wanna be you, kind of, but not white. Like black still, ’cause it’s strong. It’s a strong color.”) and then starts to overshadow Conner.

Popstar was an unexpected comedy pleasure for me, delivers a load of laughter.

May 16, 2017 0

The Mother Daughter Bond (Snatched, 2017)

When I first saw announcements for the Amy Schumer and Goldie Hawn vehicle Snatched…I cringed. Kidnapping for laughs is kind of a weird one. And one that has been pretty done to death. Kidnapping for comedy films are, of course, very divorced from the realities of the crime of kidnapping. And some are better than others.

So, I walked into this film a bit hesitant. I had certainly laughed at bits in trailers, and I like Hawn and Schumer. Thankfully, for me the film worked pretty well. A lot of the weight for this falls on Schumer and Hawn, with some terrific backup by Wanda Sykes and (an entirely silent) Joan Cusack.

Goldie has a long career in comedy and knows her trade. This is a real benefit for Schumer since they have a nice chemistry together. Schumer is basically playing a common character for her. The aimless and awkward loser. Hawn plays her over protective and cat loving mother.

Emily (Schumer) gets dumped by her boyfriend (an entertaining but brief appearance by Fresh Off the Boat’s Randall Park) and drags her mother along with her on a non-refundable trip to Ecuador. Once there, they become tricked by a handsome stranger who delivers them to kidnappers who plan to ransom them. What follows is Emily and her mother on the run from a vicious Ecuadorian warlord and trying to get to the nearest American Embassy.

As noted, Schumer and Hawn have a good chemistry, and the film is populated by great character actors. The jokes often hit their target and are entertaining enough to not be distracted by a pretty conventional story about parent and child realizing how much they love each other.

Also, it was really nice watching a comedy and not getting bored because scenes went on to long. Seriously, the most common complaint I hear people make about comedies is “Should have been a half an hour shorter.” Snatched does not overstay it’s welcome, clocking in at a nice hour and a half.

Snatched does not break any new comedy ground, but it was a fun film with a good cast and funny jokes.

May 13, 2017 0

Why Ask Why? (Why Him, 2016)

Written and Directed by Josh Hamburg (most notably the writer of all three Meet the Parents films) addresses a discussion a friend and I were having recently. We were talking about films having familiar plots. My take on this is that I do not generally care if a film has a plot point we “have seen before”. If it does it well? I am not going to be annoyed by it. There are only so many plots, and I cannot think of many films that told a tale that has previously unseen elements. But there is a flip side to this. A story that follows all the familiar points like a rigid map? Rarely is it done well.

Which brings us to Why Him. Like many comedies before it, we are treated to a tale of parents meeting their potential son-in-law and the resulting calamity. Going in? I wanted to like this film…almost desperately. I mean, Bryan Cranston has proven himself as an actor almost always worth watching. And both Megan Mullally and Keegan-Michael Key are gifted comedic performers. James Franco is…well he plays some exaggerated form of James Franco in almost any film he is in…and this film is not much of a change there.

It feels like the film is trying very hard to seem unpredictable and edgy. And yet it follows the rules of family conflict comedies so steadfastly that there is not doubt where the film is going to end. You see it all coming from miles away. There is no point where Why Him swerves right when you expected it to swerve left.

Are there times where I was amused? I guess. Were there any times where the movie surprised me…not a one. This is not a smartly made dumb comedy. This is an uninspired dumb comedy.

May 12, 2017 0

Father-Son Bonding (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, 2017)

Guardians of the Galaxy was a bit of a risk for Marvel Studios. It was really their first film that had little name recognition. It also was their first film not closely tied to the Avengers. And yet, under the guidance of James Gunn, Guardians of the Galaxy succeeded with a healthy dose of humor and action. Towards the end of the film, Yondu mentions knowing who Starlord’s father is. In this sequel, we meet dear old dad.

While fighting an inter-dimensional beast, Rocket steals some batteries from the Sovereign. This results in a chase through space that culminates in Starlord meeting his father Ego. Ego is a “living” planet. He has a human avatar who sired Starlord. In the meantime, they are being hunted by Yondu and the Ravagers to collect a bounty for the Guardian set by the Sovereign.

Volume 2 carries forward with the same tone and attitude of the first film, making it a lot of fun to watch. The opening credits are a blast to watch. Easily one of the best opening sequences for a comic book film. The cast has really come together and it shows in their performances.

The new cast adds to the fun, with Kurt Russell being a high point for…well being Kurt Russell. He is one of those actors you hire because you want a “type” that is specific to a particular actor. Call it the Goldblum Effect if you will. You hire Jeff Goldblum for a movie because you want a “Jeff Goldblum Type”.

In addition, Sylvester Stallone, Ving Rhames and Michelle Yoeh have small but pivotal roles (obviously setting up Volume 3). The film is full of blink and you might miss it fan service, but with James Gunn, it is not distracting (for the most part) and for people unfamiliar with the comics will be unnoticed.

Of course, the soundtrack is integral to this film, each song clearly chosen carefully by Gunn. Marvel was wise to stick with Gunn for the Guardians brand because he has a very specific vision that allows these films to stand out from the Marvel Pack.

A lot of the humor this time around is coming from Drax (Dave Bautista) and Baby Groot. Some of the more surprising emotion comes from Michael Rooker’s Yondu.

Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 2 can be pretty intense and it is not really for young kids. But teens and adults alike will find a lot to enjoy here. Personally, I found Volume 2 to be a very fun film-going experience and find myself anticipating the next outing.

Oh, and by the way…there are five mid to post credit scenes. So do not get up and head for the door right away.

May 11, 2017 0