Ed's Review Dot Com

New Line Cinema, Village Roadshow Pictures, 21 Laps Entertainment,

Ice Cube, Charlie Day, Tracy Morgan, Jillian Bell, Christina Hendricks, Dennis Haysbert, Dean Norris, JoAnna Garcia Swisher, Kym Whitley, Young Jeezy

Andy Campbell (Charlie Day) is a school teacher on the brink of losing his job due to cutbacks. He’s having a really bad day with a pregnant wife and daughter, plus it’s the last day of school and “senior prank day”. But when he accidentally gets on the wrong side of Strickland (Ice Cube) who is the toughest teacher in the school by costing him his job, Strickland challenges Andy to a “Fist Fight” in the school parking lot at 3PM. Strickland could probably kill him, so he sets about to somehow get out of the fight with the help of some other teachers, but things get really convoluted as things seem to go wrong all day long as he ends up making things worse all around in this comedy also with Tracy Morgan, Jillian Bell, Christina Hendricks and more.

This is a comedy movie that has it’s faults. About half way through it my wife made me take it off the TV and move it to my computer when I could watch it with earphones because the loud yelling through-out the movie was driving her nuts. It was really funny in some places, but Charlie Day basically screamed every line, and it did get really annoying after a while. Ice Cube was brilliant as he usually is, but the script wasn’t really that great, and you can only do what you can with what you’re given. There are too many overacted scenes that strike me as hollow, and it’s a bit too silly. They have tried this type of film a number of times, but it’s on par with stuff like Mall Cop or Here Comes the Boom which I also rated pretty good. If you like those Kevin James type movies, then this one might tickle your fancy too. I thought it was funny, but be forewarned that it’s a little slap stick, and a lot malarkey. If you like Three Stooges-like humor, with people chasing other around with an axe, then this is a funny movie, but if over acting, over comfortable volume, and shallow plots drive you nuts, then stay away from this one. I liked it, but I find it hard to recommend this for the masses, know what I mean?

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

SBS Films,

Michelle Rodriguez, Sigourney Weaver, Tony Shalhoub, Anthony LaPaglia, Caitlin Gerard

Frank Kitchen (Michelle Rodriguez) is a cold blooded killer for hire. But when he kills the brother of rogue doctor Rachel Jane (Sigourney Weaver) he’s in for the ride of his life. Dr. Jane is a famous transgender surgeon who has been known to bend the law and finds herself with her license suspended and working underground. But when Frank is kidnapped, he wakes up as a full female as punishment by Dr. Jane, and he/she doesn’t like it a bit. She starts out on a vendetta to find and exact revenge on those who cause this to happen, and it’s ain’t pretty.

Michelle Rodriguez was really good in this movie. She did a great job. Along with the rest of the cast including Sigourney Weaver as the mad doctor, literally in a straight jacket through most of the movie, we’re treated to a rollercoaster ride back and forth between the flashbacks to what happened and how Frank dealt with it, and the present where Dr. Jane is fighting for her freedom. It is a cerebral movie which is more thought and reflection that actual action, although the violent parts are intense as well. This is a psycho drama, though, most of all and really looks at the strange situation of a hard-core male bad guy suddenly waking up as a woman and having to deal with that situation. It is a punishment of the strongest degree without hurting the person as much as physiologically injuring him instead. Dr. Jane also has a lot of reflection to do to determine why she did it, and to face the retribution Frank is going to send her way that is also really intense. It is a weird film, well acted, and quite interesting. It will make you think. I am still thinking about the movie days after watching it. It’s not a major film, it’s a little film, but not too bad and worth watching if you’re cool with the R rating it carries. If you like psychological thrillers, you will probably enjoy this one.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog