Ed's Review Dot Com

Miramax, Perfect World Pictures, StudioCanal,

Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Patrick Dempsey, Jim Broadbent, Gemma Jones, Celia Imrie, Sally Phillips, James Callis

This third in the Bridget Jones series finds Bridget (Rene Zellweger) pregnant at 43 due to the “age” of the condoms she’s been carrying for years and years, but the problem is that she has two fellows that could be the father, and she’s unable to figure out which of the two might be it. So in a very Bridget like way, she decides to let them both think they’re the father. What could go wrong here? Everything, and it does.

The first Bridget Jones movie was quite interesting and a fresh and unexpected film. The second was a rather big letdown. This film didn’t blow me away either. Colin Firth and Patrick Dempsey were good as the eligible baby daddies, but all in all it was pretty much the same thing as before. It isn’t fresh anymore. Bridget is kind of whiney and a bit annoying after all, and the story is rather predictable. So my recommendation here is that if you’re a Zellweger fan, or if you really enjoyed the other movies in the series, you might want to go see this one. But I suspect you have already seen it then. Otherwise, there’s not a lot of reasons to go out and borrow this one. I wasn’t majorly impressed with the story, and found it a bit tedious.

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Andrea Leone Films, Busted Shark Productions, Fear of God Films,

Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried, Kylie Rogers, Aaron Paul, Diane Kruger, Quvenzhané Wallis, Bruce Greenwood, Jane Fonda, Octavia Spencer, Janet McTeer

Fathers and Daughters is a very touching heart felt film about a single father Jake Davis (Russell Crowe) who is also a well known author who is struggling with the accidental death of his wife while trying to raise his little girl and the light of his life, Katie (adult played by Amanda Seyfried, Young Katie played by Kylie Rogers). Told in intertwining stories of Young Katie supporting her Father who went through a stay in the mental hospital after the death of his wife, leaving her with an Aunt and Uncle who don’t feel inclined to let her go back to her dad, and the grown up Katie, now working as a child welfare worker, but suffering badly from the effects of everyone she loves leaving her alone. It is a very touching tale and an excellent relationship drama.

The three main characters in this story, Jake, and his daughters, Young Katie, the child, and adult Katie the screwed up woman trying to learn how to live her life with the strong desire to help others, but no idea how to help herself makes a very touching and tragic story. But it’s also very heartwarming. All three of these actors are superb, and all need to be congratulated very much for their wonderful performances. No surprise from Russell Crowe, although he pulls out a stellar performance of a man at his wits end doing everything in his power to keep fighting against all odds. But this is the best I have seen Amanda Seyfried, although she has done some very good performances in the past, she is absolutely excellent in this very troubled and difficult role. Great job! But Kylie was absolutely stunning in her role as Young Katie. This little girl pulled off one of the best child acting performances I have ever seen. The rest of the cast is outstanding as well. Though this is a tragic story, it is crafted extremely well, and kudos to the screenwriters and director as well for a stunning film. This is one movie I was really glad to see, and it touched my heart deeply. This is an adult story, some of the choices Katie makes are very bad, and though shown very tastefully, are not meant for little ones. The R rating is much more about what you feel than what you see. But adults and older teens ought to watch this film. It is like a work of art and a real masterpiece. I highly recommend this movie for mature audiences.

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New Artists Alliance, Three Cups, Caliber Media Company,

Robin Thicke, Jaime Pressly, Joey Lauren Adams, Frances Conroy

Abby (Jaime Pressly) is a master chef who has just earned the job of her dreams, when she accidentally cuts her hand in the kitchen and loses the opportunity. Now able to work, she finds she has a lot of free time which she doesn’t like very much. With all the spare time, she comes to realize that her marriage that she thought was very solid is really rather boring. An accidental run in with her ex, Shaun (Robin Thicke) whom she left without even saying goodbye brings home the memories of the excitement life with Shaun used to have, and Shaun sure wants her back. But she’s not really willing to give up the life she has, or is she? She has to evaluate where her values will lead her and the consequences of her choices, in this relationship drama.

I would not put this film in the comedy category, though much of it is fairly light and there are some funny moments. But a small film like this takes the time to develop the characters and pays attention to the plot. It is well written. In a special feature on the DVD there is an interview with the writer-director Jimbo Lee, who admits that this is a lot about what he has experienced in life. With a sweetheart who left him suddenly without any warning that he has never seen again, he was pondering what would happen if she suddenly reappeared in his life and what it would be like. He used that for the core of this story. It’s frank, and it’s honest, and it’s truly painful to watch a lot of the time. Like the type of movie this is, it’s not big or flashy. The background is simple and all the effort is put in the characters. If found it interesting on many levels, but I was not blown away. I found it hard to feel for Jaime Pressly and her attitude throughout just made me feel like she deserved what she got. She plays the role well enough, but I just didn’t build the interest in her character enough to really care what happened. And unfortunately Robin Thicke didn’t pull off the lovesick and hurt ex-lover who was spurned and he just didn’t understand. Instead he comes off as smug and conniving which isn’t the way I think it should have been done. I think these two casting mistakes sunk the film and kept it from being as good as it had potential to be. For this reason, I would have to give this film a half-hearted recommendation. It was an opportunity missed, I’m afraid.

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Apartment Two, Demarest Films, Flynn Picture Company,

Miles Teller, Analeigh Tipton, Jessica Szohr, Kid Cudi

Megan (Analeigh Tipton) is a lost soul. She moved to New York and majored in Pre-Med with no intention of ever finishing. She was in love and planned to quit school and get married, but when her boyfriend suddenly bailed on her, she found her self depressed and living with her roommate, without a job or a plan, and no intention of continuing school. Her roommate signs her up for an internet dating site and encourages her to pick someone for a one-night stand. So she finds Alec (Miles Teller) and heads off to meet him at his apartment. In the morning, she wants to get out of there, but a world class blizzard that shuts down the city, and they find themselves trapped inside for another day forcing them to try to get to know one another, if they don’t kill each other first.

This is an interesting concept for a movie, and it does work. Annaleigh is very good in her role, and she really does a great job. Miles is pretty good as well. These two play off each other really well. It’s a romantic comedy, for sure, but at the same time, it kind of has a good purpose. The story unwinds slowly, with a number of surprise twists and turns along the way. The city location is really nice, and this movie sort of executes as if it were a stage play. Most of the story takes place in Alec’s apartment, so there is not a lot of action, but that puts more emphasis on the dialog. The development of the level of knowledge Alec and Megan learn about each other is what makes this such an interesting character study. I enjoyed watching this, and I can recommend it if you like interesting character development and an intelligent script.

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Sweet Tomato Films,

Haley Joel Osment, Lorenza Izzo, Chris Williams, Glen Powell, Matt Walsh, Retta, Abby Elliott, Castille Landon, Lamorne Morris

Ed Cole is a teacher. He’s struggling to find a position though, as there are no jobs available. The only position he could get is to monitor the students who are put into detention, and as it’s an inner city type school, the kids there are a bit troubled. When a girl asks to go to the rest room, and then returns in a panic thinking she’s dying from a condition she was not prepared for, Ed thinks perhaps the kids really need to have someone teach them the things that they are ashamed to ask their parents about. So Ed begins a Sex Ed class where any question is open for discussion. But when Reverend Hamilton, father of one of the students who was in the class finds out about it, he complains to the school board about the unauthorized class being taught without parental consent. So Ed has to defend his work, but perhaps he’s the worst one to teach the class since he has no personal experience at all on the subject.

This is a comedy that is right out of the liberal vs. conservative arguments today about what schools should and not be teaching. But it’s also like an episode of “Where are they now” as many of us haven’t seen Haley Joel Osment since he saw dead people in Sixth Sense. He’s here, and he’s grown up into a very strapping gentleman and is a good actor. The film is mostly funny, but there’s a mix of romance as his roommate is a raunchy devil who seems insistent that Ed lower his standards for “the perfect girl” just to build his confidence, but of course about this time he meets the girl of his dreams who is already taken. The movie is a bit raunchy, and is Non-Rated, and it’s also rarely heard of, but it is currently streaming on Netflix and may be around in some other venues. It’s got a real message, and has some “redeeming qualities”, but is also filled with humor and jokes, and is certainly not boring. Certainly this is not going to be a popular film, but it’s not all that bad. It’s well constructed and not too bad.

NOTICE: THIS IS THE RED BAND TRAILER AND IS RATED R.

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