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by Chris K
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posted Nov 2 2011 7:24PM
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 Teenage hearts everywhere are beating just a little bit faster today upon the announcement that Justin Bieber is making his debut on the big screen. That's right, Bieber, in the movies! Â OMG! Â Well, sort of. Â He's starring in a movie about himself. Â And he's playing himself, which shouldn't be too much of a stretch (Justin will be honing his budding acting skills on the small screen in next month's season premiere of NCIS). Â Okay, so I guess it's more of a documentary then. Â Potential moments to catch on film: What's it like backstage with Justin before one of his shows?? Â What does Justin eat for breakfast?? Â How does Justin escape the constant throngs of adoring fans which surround him seemingly wherever he goes?? Â It all sounds fascinating, doesn't it? Â Oh yeah, and did I mention that it's in 3-D? Â Double OMG!!
Alright, I admit I'm being a little sarcastic about all of this.  I mean, c'mon, did NSYNC or the Backstreet Boys have a movie during their heyday?  What about the Jonas Brothers, who until only recently were on the receiving end of many of the same screams that the Bieber is currently getting.  Sure, Jonas had their campy Disney Channel movies, but that's not exactly big screen material.  Hilary Duff and Miley Cyrus both had their concert movies, but I'm thinking, based on what I've heard about Justin's movie so far, that this is going to be oh so much more.  Here's the facts: the Bieber is teaming up with Paramount Pictures, MTV Films and his record label, the Island Def Jam Music Group, to release a 3-D film currently scheduled to hit theaters on Valentine's Day weekend 2011.  Oh yeah, and Justin is also starting his own production company to work on the film.  Sure he is.  Because... he's so good at movie production?  Please rise everyone, the Bieber would like to speak, "When the idea for a movie first came to us, we knew immediately this was our chance to give something very special back to the all fans who have been a huge source of inspiration and support throughout my entire career thus far (editorial note: that's been about 10 months so far).  They simply make my dreams come true every day.  I cannot wait to share all the great experiences I've had over the last few years with them."  Me neither.
Now I don't mean to demean the Bieber, after all, he was one of the big stars at our Jingle Ball last year, and he seemed like a nice kid.  No doubt he is currently object of affection #1 for teenage girls around the globe.  I guess I'm not sure why this all strikes me as odd.  I mean, I suppose we should be used to this by now, right?  People trying to cash in every possible dollar while the Bieber is still hot.  They've even got a "big name director" attached to the project, one Davis Guggenheim, who also produced and directed Al Gore's propaganda, err, documentary, An Inconvenient Truth.  I see that he also directed the pilot for the already canceled Melrose Place revival last year, which begs the question...  which was the bigger pile of crap?
So the countdown is on, just over 6 months until Justin is unleashed upon us in 3-D. Â Who knows, maybe this will be cinematic brilliance. Â But then again, it probably won't.
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by Gavin
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posted Nov 2 2011 7:19PM
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 Ever since Juno came out and made a huge financial and Oscar splash, there has been an avalanche of quirky romantic comedies that have been greenlit from studios that feature new indie directors that can bring their artistic sense to the visuals that reflect the love between the cute, awkward boy and the overly confident girl who both talk like intellectual and cultural elitists that are on a level that is way above their age. Â Some of those have been GREAT (ie: (500) Days of Summer) and some have been AWFUL (ie: Bart Got a Room). Â Luckily for us Youth in Revolt is on the great side! Â Michael Cera is here again starring as...well...Michael Cera. Â His schtick of playing the same role in every movie he's ever done kind of stops here. Â In this film, which is based on the cult book of the same title, he plays two parts; one is an awkward, love-struck, shy guy named Nick Twisp and the other is a smooth, rebellious, rock star named Francois Dillinger. Â To avoid confusion here you have to understand that he doesn't play two characters, he plays two personalities of the same character; think Fight Club if Fight Club was a comedy about being in love. Â The alter ego of Nick is the most acting we've seen from Cera in anything and not just because he has blue eyes, a pencil-thin mustache and 5 o'clock shadow...or at least as much as Cera can naturally grow. Â This made me pleased to see and gave me hope that Cera will have a longer shelf life if he continues this instead of his one-trick-pony routine. Â Cera is also just the lead of the VERY impressive comedic cast that consists of Ray Liotta (Observe and Report), Fred Willard (Best in Show), Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover), Steve Buscemi and more. Â One of the greatest finds from this movie though is actress Portia Doubleday, who plays the lead love interest in this. Â Despite having almost no acting credits to her name, she does a fantastic job at being sexy, strong, tender and funny. Â Another treasure to come from Youth in Revolt is director Miguel Arteta! Â This guy came mostly from directing TV shows like The Office and Ugly Betty but seems to have finally gotten a chance to flex his talent on this project. Â He allows for some really genius moments to be even funnier than I'm sure it was on paper by infusing animation, CGI, claymation, ultra slow motion shots and a quirky, dated soundtrack to not only execute the tone of the film, but also capture what it feels like to be a teenager in love. Â It's impressive to me that Youth in Revolt did that AND made me laugh hard enough to set the bar for the rest of the comedies this year very, very high.
Youth in Revolt (Rated R)
Gavin Grade: A |
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by Gavin
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posted Nov 2 2011 7:19PM
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 This movie is shocking on several different levels.  Some of those shocks are good and some of them are bad.  In case you didnât know, this is the true story of NFL player Michael Oher.  Now before all the women reading this tune out thinking itâs a football movie, understand that his story is one of heartbreak, tragedy, kindness, and loveâ¦and a little football.  One of the positive shocks to come from this was star Sandra Bullockâs performance.  Get this - she was actually good!  This might be one of the best performances of her career, but thatâs not saying much since the bar wasnât very high to begin with.  She plays a plucky, strong, WASPie, Southern Belle that runs the wealthy family that saves Oher from his ghetto war zone he roams night after night as a teenager.  Another positive shock was the performances from country singer Tim McGraw, who plays Bullocks husband, and the gentle giant, Quinton Aaron, who plays Oher.  Aaron is relatively new to acting but could have a career as big as his stature if he continues to get roles like this.  Heâs able to convey so much sadness and defeat without saying a word, which works out for him since he only has about 25 lines in the whole film.  One of the negative shocks is how long this movie is.  It has a runtime of over 2 hours and as far as I could tell has no need for all that.  The other negative shock is the casting of child actor Jae Head as the youngest member of The Tuohy family.  Every scene this kid infects drips with hair-pulling schticks that wouldâve made even Macaulay Culkin in âHome Aloneâ roll his eyes.  I could be in the minority on this since he seemed to earn laughter from most of the theater, but I couldnât stand his annoying, hammy performance the entire movie.  Another shock that I had in the movie, that was neither good or bad, was how overtly Christian it was.  It almost seemed like it was made by a church group or Kirk Cameron.  There is heavy emphasis put on the fact that the wealthy Tuohy Family takes Michael Oher in because itâs their âChristian Duty.â  And in case you miss hearing that the first time in the film, donât worry because they say it over and over and over again.  I kept wondering why.  Was it because they are trying to insinuate that more Christians need to be as charitable as that and many arenât?  Is it because they wanted to take the emphasis off of the idea that maybe The Tuohys did it out of White Guilt?  Or was it to make you forget that The Tuohys were investigated by the NCAA for their role in raising Michael.  I donât know.  But what I do know is that âThe Blind Sideâ is a harmless and delightful movie that will make you appreciate what you have and want to help those who have nothing.  It âHollywoods Upâ the true story to a level that Iâm sure isnât 100% accurate but when looking at the actual photos of the family during the end credits you canât help but to tear up a little bit.
The Blind Side (Rated PG-13)
Gavin Grade: B |
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by Gavin
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posted Nov 2 2011 7:19PM
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 There isn't anyone working in Hollywood that has more experience at destroying the world than Director, Roland Emmerich. Â In fact, I can't think of anyone who does it better either. Â The man seems to have a sick fascination with it. Â He's done "Independence Day," "The Day After Tomorrow" and "Godzilla."
His latest apocalyptic orgy is "2012" which is the movie adaptation of the crazy Mayan Calendar theory that the world will end on 12/21/12 because...um...well, we don't really know. Â The movie attempts to explain why the world would end on that day with talk of solar flares from the sun, magnetic reversal of the poles and the shifting of the Earth's crust but none of that really makes any sense and let's face it...it doesn't have too. Â It stars John Cusack (who's slumming it in this movie only because he needs the money, I'm guessing), Woody Harrelson, Oliver Platt ("Year One") and Chiwetel Ejiofor (who was awesome in "American Gangster" and "Children of Men"). Â Danny Glover also shows up as The President, but if Obama looks that old and weathered before his next term, I feel bad for him. Â Let's get right down to it, this movie is awful. Â It might be the most expensive B-Movie ever made. Â Usually these FX-laden eye parties are reserved for the mindless quagmire of the Summer, but the fact that the studio released it during Oscar season just makes it more laughable. Â In fact laughing is what I did for most of the movie and I wasn't alone. Â Sections of the theater were laughing at the screen during sequences that were clearly meant to be thrilling or sad. Â I think the reason why is because the movie lives in such a stereotypical "disaster movie" world that even your most casual of theater-goers will recognize the cliches. Â The unlikely hero who's still in love with an ex-wife he must save. Â The characters with the ability to outrun earthquakes, out drive volcanic, nuclear clouds and out fly a crumbling city even in the face of no flying experience. Â The plucky characters that are there for comic relief. Â The cute kids that either have to overcome a physical malady or learn to respect their father again (in this movie it's both). Â And who could forget the illogical explanations of scientific "facts" that are there just to move the plot forward. Â It's all there wrapped up in a slick, expensive, CG wonderland of death and destruction that sits at a running time of over 2 and a half hours long. Â Worth the price of admission? Â Only if you're drunk with some friends and want to have a blast making fun of a bad movie; and let's face it, that could be some of the most fun you'll ever have at the movies.
2012 (Rated PG-13)
Gavin Grade: D+ |
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by Gavin
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posted Nov 2 2011 7:19PM
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 You have to be a really weird movie to even come close to living up the hype that a title like "The Men Who Stare at Goats" has. Â The story, which claims to be true, is about not only what the title is about but also how America financed a secret group of soldiers who were perfecting their "supernatural powers." Â Sadly, the movie doesn't live up to the title. Â In fact there are some parts that are almost so believable and rooted in reality that it no longer lives in the realm of absurd humor and is actually kind of sad and dark. Â George Clooney and Ewan McGregor star in it as some sort of weird buddy team roaming the Iraqi desert on a mission, perhaps to find the plot of the film. Â Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey round out the cast acting as if they are each working off of different versions of the same script. Â There's a huge disconnect in this film that resonates with everything about it. Â It seems like this was a movie that was started but had no finished script to work on but it was too late to stop. Â That's the only thing I can think of since the cast is full of the kind of talented actors that can go from drama to comedy in one flawless swoop. Â I can't tell if the fault of the movie not making a solid landing on its own feet was first-time director Grant Heslov's, or the script itself which was co-written by Jon Ronson, for whom the story is based on. Â If the movie is any indication as to what it was really like for Ronson to go through this (if it's real at all), I'm sure it was a confusing, trippy experience that was perhaps too bizarre to recount in written form in any logical sense. Â The film drifts from scene to scene with very little glue holding the story together or explanation as to why things are happening. Â That's not to say that it's not funny though. Â Clooney plays deadpan comedy so well that it makes it such a treat when he takes a role that allows him to do it. Â The situations that he talks about, mixed with McGregor's narration, make for some very funny montages. Â The use of quick flashbacks as an almost live-action version of "Family Guy" at times generate some of the biggest laughs in the movie. Â But those aren't enough to make the movie good. Â At only 93 minutes long, it feels more like over two hours. Â In the film the men who stared at goats apparently did it for hours and hours and hours trying to kill them with their minds; I wonder if us staring at this movie for just one hour killed OUR minds.
The Men Who Stare At Goats (Rated R)
Gavin Grade: C | | | Tags : Social : Army, Ewan McGregor, Gavin, George Clooney, Goats, Iraq, Jeff Bridges, Kevin Spacey, Men, Reviews, wake up call
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by Gavin
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posted Nov 2 2011 7:19PM
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 Apparently this is the first movie in a gothic book series for teens called "Cirque du Freak." Â The series has its fans but I can't imagine it being very popular since I never even heard of it before. Â I'm not sure if the book jumped on the vampire bandwagon or it preceded it, but the movie clearly was made to strike while the fanged-iron is hot. Â The story is about a young boy who becomes (you guessed it) assistant to a vampire who travels with a Freak Show after he reluctantly sucked (ha) into a world of feuding ghouls. Â Imagine "Harry Potter" meets "Twilight" only with a lot more silliness. Â Acting veteran John C. Reilly stars as the vampire Larten Crepsley. Â I love Reilly and think he never gets the credit he deserves. Â He's proved his dramatic chops ("The Hours"), his comedic chops ("Walk Hard") and even his musical ones ("Chicago") but never gets the accolades. Â In "The Vampire's Assistant" he doesn't get to use much of any of those chops though. Â This film has such a horrible script that it doesn't give the actors a chance to do much of anything with it; even with great performers peppered in like Salma Hayek, Willem Dafoe, and Ken Watanabe. Â But even if the script was penned by Shakespeare himself, the star of the film who's a newcomer named Chris Massoglia, would still find a way to make it look like high school theater. Â I'm not sure who's nephew, son or friend's cousin he is, but how he landed this gig is a mystery to me. Â He is absolutely terrible! Â He plays through the different scenes that involve action, comedy, horror, drama and suspense with the same dumbfounded, wallpaper face that makes you think you're being punked by sitting through a movie with him as the star. Â But I did think the same thing of Daniel Radcliffe when I saw him in the first "Harry Potter" movie though and he got better. Â I do hope that this movie does well enough to earn the sequels it has planned. Â The story and characters are engaging, dark, funny and odd. Â It's the kind of movie that I would've loved as a 13-year-old. Â I'm interested in what comes next and I want to see how it all plays out. Â This first film in the episodic story is all set up and no conclusion, but is different enough to at least keep me watching to see where it goes from here. Â (Of course I could read the books, but who wants to do that.) Â It intrigues with questions but doesn't answer any. Â In a way I'm glad that it's not super great or ultra compelling because that would just be torture to have to wait for the next one. Â So in that respect I'm thankful, but taking what I imagine is a very engrossing, fun gothic teen tale and watering it down to this, I am not.
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (Rated PG-13)
Gavin Grade: C+ |
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