First off, I understand that I might have chosen a chick flick for today, but it is a comedy and it features Rebel Wilson (Pitch Perfect). The other thing is that the film also features the very beautiful Dakota Johnson and with that being said How To Be Single is today’s film. Alice (Johnson) has been dating Josh (Nicholas Braun) all throughout college and she just wants some time apart from him to make sure that he is the right guy for her. So, with the help of her new friend and co-worker, the wild and voluptuous Robin (Wilson), she throw herself on the dating scene. After figuring out that maybe it isn’t for her, she tries to go back to Josh, but discovers that it’s too late cause he has moved on. Now she has to figure out what to do before she stays single for too long. The film also stars Leslie Mann (The Other Woman) as Meg, Damon Wayans Jr. (Let’s Be Cops) as David, Anders Holm (The Intern) as Tom, Alison Brie (The Lego Movie) as Lucy, Jason Mantzoukas (Dirty Grandpa) as George, Jake Lacy (Balls Out) as Ken, Colin Jost (Staten Island Summer) as Paul, Brent Morin (Undateable) as Lucy’s Date, and the film was directed by Christian Ditter (Love, Rosie).
While this film is definitely a chick flick, it has some redeeming qualities to it. It may seem like it bashes guys because it’s all about how their relationships aren’t working or you the fact that you don’t want to get caught as Rebel puts it in the “Dicksand”(dick quicksand). There are some moments when they look absolutely crazy or when the bartender argues that you can’t find chemistry from an online dating app. I love Rebel Wilson because she plays the drunk, crazy, Aussie or Brit very well in every film that she is in and she does have some hilarious moments in the film. The thing I really liked about the film is the fact that it doesn’t just focus on Dakota Johnson’s character, but also on Leslie Mann’s who is trying to deal with the fact that she has put work ahead of her personal life and Alison Brie who believes in using dating apps. The film is kind of like six degrees of the bartender Tom because he is connected to all of them somehow a she tries to figure out his life after a girl wakes him up. So, there is plenty of subplots to drive the story forward and it moves pretty well. It’s just that I am not completely into chick flicks so women may enjoy the film more than me. Having Jason Mantzoukas in the film was definitely clutch by me because his character was hilarious. I am going to go ahead and give the film an B+ for a final grade only because it’s one I probably wouldn’t watch again.
Today’s film that I chose was one that I really wanted to read the book before going to see it, but I never got the chance and it was officially released today. So for today, I chose to watch Mike And Dave Need Wedding Dates which stars Adam Devine (Pitch Perfect) and Zac Efron (Neighbors) as Mike and Dave Stangle. The Stangle brothers are a couple of guys that are absolutely inseparable. They work together, they party together, and they screw stuff up together, but there are people that want it to stop. You see their sister Jeanie (Sugar Lyn Beard) is getting married in Hawaii and their parents are worried that they are going to screw it all up. The only way they can go is by finding wedding dates, but when they do they get more than they expected. The film also stars Aubrey Plaza (Dirty Grandpa) as Tatiana, Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect) as Alice, Stephen Root (Office Space) as Burt, Stephanie Faracy (Hocus Pocus) as Rosie, Sam Richardson (Veep) as Eric, Alice Wetterlund (Girl Code) as Cousin Terry, Lavell Crawford (Breaking Bad) as Keith, Kumail Nanjiani (Silicon Valley) as Keanu, Jake Johnson (Let’s Be Cops) as Ronnie, and the film was directed by Jake Szymanski (7 Days In Hell).
I was a little skeptical about the film heading in because I thought it was going to be one of those films where the trailer was funnier than the film itself.That was definitely not the case whatsoever with this film. This definitely has to be a contender for comedy of the year and I know there’s a lot of time left, but I couldn’t stop laughing. If Adam Devine and Zac Efron weren’t making you laugh, Aubrey Plaza and Anna Kendrick were definitely there to provide some laughs as well. There was just a lot of great chemistry going around in this film and you could definitely see it all around with every moment in the film. It’s hard to choose a favorite scene because any moment with the Stangle brothers was absolutely hilarious like the push pop scene or even the ATV aftermath scene was great. Sugar Lyn Beard has her moments in the film too tat were great whether it be with the masseuse or getting high on Ecstasy. After seeing this film, Zac Efron has definitely grown on me and he plays the role of funny, but sensitive dumb jock guy every well in some of his movies. The proof is in the pudding with the Neighbors series and this. I’m not sure I like where Aubrey Plaza is going with her career, but I an’t complain cause I am a huge fan of hers. I didn’t realize until now that this is the second straight film I have watched and reviewed that takes place in Hawaii. Maybe this is a sign of a new vacation spot that I should go to. Nevertheless, this is definitely a comedy to check out and with that being said I am going to give the film an A- for a final grade.
I love dirty raunchy comedies just as much as the next guy if you have noticed from the list of films I have seen in the past. So, I was super excited to see that Robert De Niro (Goodfellas) and Zac Efron (Neighbors) were going to be starring together in Dirty Grandpa which is today’s film. Jason Kelly (Efron) is a sort of successful corporate lawyer who is about to get married to what seems like the perfect girl. After losing his grandma, Jason agrees to take his now single Grandfather Dick Kelly (De Niro) down to Boca, Florida to see an old friend and try to make it back in time for his wedding. No the keyword there is if he makes it back in time for the wedding because things get complicated when his Grandpa gets horny and he sees an old college friend. The film also stars Zoey Deutch (Everybody Wants Some!) as Shadia, Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) as Lenore, Jason Mantzoukas (Neighbors) as Tan Pam, Dermot Mulroney (Insidious: Chapter 3) as David Kelly, Julianne Hough (Footloose) as Meredith, Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman (Grave Encounters 2) as Bradley, Brandon Smith (Gridiron Gang) as Tyrone, Adam Pally (Iron Man 3) as Cousin Nick, Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon) as Stinky, and the film was directed by Dan Mazer (Brüno).
As far as the film is concerned, I love the idea of it and I love the people who star in the film for the most part. I just don’t think it’s the greatest comedy ever, but it’s a good one. I say that because at one point I thought the film was too long even though it said it was about 108 minutes (that’s 1 hour and 48 minutes for those who need to know). There’s a lot of stuff in the film that was just pointless that they threw in to try and make you laugh and then there was the stuff that was golden that made you laugh. Robert De Niro was great in the film and he had great chemistry with Efron and even Plaza when they did have scenes that they interacted in. I even thought Zoey Deutch (who I found out is the daughter of Lea Thompson) was even great in the film and her chemistry with Efron was on point. I just thought of plenty of stuff that I would have cut out that would save you ten minutes. I never saw the theatrical version of the film, I watched this which was the Unrated version which should always be raunchier, but Zac Efron has by this point grown on me and I am willing to forgive him for his Disney past. I am excited to see him in Neighbors 2, but I can definitely say that this one could be a contender for Comedy of the year when the Monster Entertainment Awards happen next year. With that being said, I definitely think that it’s a film that is worth checking out if you are a fan of comedies and especially De Niro in comedies. I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade.
I thought for a very long time that I was the only person n the whole wide world that was waiting for some sort of sequel to the 1994 Richard Linklater (Boyhood) classic Dazed And Confused. Go 22 years into the future and now we have our spiritual sequel (Linklater has stated) to the classic film in Everybody Wants Some!! which takes place in the 1980’s (or at least the beginning of the decade). The film follows incoming freshman Jake (Blake Jenner) and his ragtag baseball teammates as they navigate through the life of college and everything that comes with it like partying, sex, and anything else you can think of as it’s all unsupervised by adults. Will they survive that three day weekend before classes start or will we have some casualties along the way. The film also stars Juston Street (My All American) as Jay, Ryan Guzman (The Boy Next Door) as Roper, Tyler Hoechlin (Road To Perdition) as McReynolds, Wyatt Russell (22 Jump Street) as Willoughby, Glen Powell (The Dark Knight Rises) as Finnegan, Temple Baker (Love Is Relative) as Plummer, J. Quinton Johnson as Dale, Will Brittain (A Teacher) as Beuter, Austin Amelio (The Walking Dead) as Nesbit, and Zoey Deutch (Dirty Grandpa) as Beverly.
For a while as I was watching the film, I had a hard time figuring out what the plot of the film was. Was this a film that was just about partying? Dazed And Confused had a plot to it that was easy to get while this one just seems like a movie about endless partying and gamesmanship. Then after a while, it became clear as soon as I read IMDB’s explanation. One thing is for certain with this film is that just like the first film, it has a killer soundtrack that features the likes of Foreigner, Devo, Van Halen, Cheap Trick, Pat Benatar, and so many more. The soundtrack was always a huge part of the film and they do a terrific job picking the songs once again as it mixes some disco with rock and a little country too. Another thing Linklater has a knack for when it comes these films is discovering young talent to go with the already established guys. There are a lot of guys who make their feature film debuts in this film and they do a great job. One of the true highlights for me was Juston Street who plays an absolute awesome comedic relief as a pitcher who takes himself way too seriously. Every time he appeared on screen, I was laughing my butt off and couldn’t get enough of him. I like how the film ended however cause it was kind of a nice way to end the adventure that was the film. One thing I will say is what they hell were they thinking in the 80’s when it came to their outfits and those short shorts guys wore? Anyways, I am going to give the film an A- only because it doesn’t top Dazed And Confused, but it was very enjoyable to watch.
365moviesin365dayschallenge 