Ed's Review Dot Com

AG Studios, Denver and Delilah Productions, Good Universe,

Charlize Theron, Seth Rogen, June Diane Raphael, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Ravi Patel, Bob Odenkirk, Andy Serkis, Randall Park

Fred Flarsky (Seth Rogen) is a journalist with strong moral values. He believes in the causes he writes about and refuses to compromise his principles and as a result is kind of on the sidelines. When he attends an event with a friend, he spots Charlotte Field (Charlize Theron) an old classmate and crush, his former babysitter, who is now one of the most powerful women in the United States. She is planning a run for the Presidency, and hires Fred to write speeches for her, and they are really attracted to each other, but her quest for power means putting aside some of the values, and Fred’s desire to be true to his principles soon cause trouble, not to mention that her political rivals would love to expose this unequal paring with a commoner to bring shame and to cause her to lose he chance in the election. What follows is a raucous romp through this very funny film.

This is a good pairing. Each of them are well suited to the role, and it is a really funny film at times. I enjoyed Seth Rogen’s attempts to fit in to the political drama without giving up his principles. Charlize is also very good in her role as the wannabe politician who at heart is still the small town girl who wants to do the right thing. She is very well suited for the role as well. The two of them do have some really funny moments and some of the gags are really good. This wasn’t an outstanding film, just a quiet little one that was enjoyable to relax and watch just for the fun of it. With all the big blockbuster films coming out, superhero after superhero, ad nauseum, it was nice to see this little movie for a change. I did enjoy it, but it might be a nice one to catch on DVD as the cost of movie tickets these days is pretty hard on the budget. But it was a pleasant distraction, and I enjoyed watching it, and do recommend it for a nice change of pace.

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Ghost House Pictures, Good Universe, Screen Gems

Jane Levy, Dylan Minnette, Daniel Zovatto, Stephen Lang, Emma Bercovici, Franciska Torocsik, Christian Zagia, Katia Bokor, Sergej Onopko

The Blind Man (Stephen Lang) lives all alone in a house on a street in metro Detroit and he is the only person on the block that is left. This is a perfect setup for Rocky (Jane Levy) and her boyfriend Money (Daniel Zovatto) and her “friend zoned” would be suitor Alex (Dylan Minnette). Rocky takes care of her little sister as her dysfunctional mother won’t, and her dream is to take her sister and get out of Detroit and move to California. They pull off petty jobs, but The Blind Man got a huge settlement when his little girl was killed by a drunk driver, and since he never goes anywhere, the money must be in the house. With a score this big, the trio can take off an move to the west coast. But The Blind Man is an ex soldier who, though he’s blind, is not a push over, and the trio run in to a LOT of really big problems on what was supposed to be an easy job. As they discover more secrets, it appears there isn’t any way out at this point, and The Blind Man has a keen sense of hearing and smell, and is clever as a fox.

This film has been tearing up the box office, and it was a must see when I saw the trailers for it. I wasn’t sure Jane Levy was ready for a part this big, since I have only seen her as Tessa on Suburgatory, but she was awesome. By far the biggest role, but she carried it very professionally. Excellent job. When it comes down to it, this is a movie for Jane and Stephen Lang, and the others are just there to fill in the spaces. The two of these fight an epic battle down to the bitter end. This is an extremely horror inducing movie and is scary as hell. The Blind Man is not really alone as he has one nasty Cujo worthy dog beside him which helps a lot. The jumps and scares are one after another, and I shouted out loud more than once which is rare for me. But the suspense level is awesome. The director and cinematographers did an excellent of putting us in the scene, and the shots and setups were unbelievable. Whether down in the dark basement in the dark, or stuck in a closet, or crawling through a creep air duct, we are there with them. This is the first real horror film of the season, and timed perfectly, given the big numbers at the box office. Sure not a huge budget, but a well thought out horror film inside a heist film. The characters are well developed, and the script is crisp and smart. All in all, very scary, very suspenseful, and very well done. Good work guys. This is a good one!

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Gary Sanchez Productions, Good Universe, Paramount Pictures,

Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Linda Cardellini, Thomas Haden Church, Hannibal Buress

Brad Whittaker (Will Ferrell) is a happily married man, working at a smooth jazz station, and step-dad to his wife’s (Linda Cardellini) kids. But Brad has one concern. Due to a freak dentist accident he cannot have children of his own. When the children’s biological father, Dusty (Mark Wahlberg) shows up though, Brad feels threatened. As Dusty tried to weasel his way back into the family, the competition keeps escalating until everyone life is threatened by these two. This Will Ferrell/Mark Wahlberg family comedy is just what you’d expect from these two.

I must say this is one of the best Ferrell movies I’ve seen in a long time. I found this one really pretty funny. The whole concept is rather clever, and it shows Will at his finest. All 5 of the main characters (Brad, Dusty, Sara, and Thomas Haden Church as Brad’s boss Leo, along with Hannibal Buress as Griff, the handyman who also moves right into the family are classic together. These are a group of wonderful characters that all shine. The two kids are pretty good as well, and all in all it’s a perfect cast for this type of rip-roaring comedy. The jokes and slapstick moments keep on coming from start to end, and the time flew by. This was a very well done little film, and I enjoyed it very much. My wife and her sister had tickets for the LA Lakers – Golden State Warriors game at Staples Center, and, being the designated driver, I got to kill some time watching this film at the Regal Theater at L.A. Live, right underneath the Staples Center. I am really glad I chose this film, as it was a very enjoyable evening. That is a really nice theater, and that added a lot to the experience. Loved it.

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Good Universe, Point Grey Pictures,

Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne, Dave Franco, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Lisa Kudrow, Craig Roberts, Ike Barinholtz, Jake Johnson, Hannibal Buress, Carla Gallo, Halston Sage

Mac (Seth Rogen) and Kelly Radner (Rose Byrne) are a newlywed couple with a daughter. They live in a simple suburban home. The house next door is up for sale, and they take a lot of interest to see who the new neighbors will be, but when the guys from the fraternity move in and turn it into a frat house led by fraternity president Teddy Sanders (Zac Efron), things go from bad to worse to worst. They party all night, with loud music that keep everyone awake. At first Mac and Kelly try to be friendly with the boys and try to party with them to make friends and get their cooperation, but when that fails, they start escalating a war with the frat that spirals WAY out of control.

This is a hilarious comedy reminiscent of the old great comedies of long ago. It’s modern and fresh, and unique twist, but the gags run from slapstick to up to date technology gags that are right out of the pages of today’s college kids. To make it even more enjoyable, I have a bit of a story to tell.

We went up for Mother’s Day to UC Santa Barbara. My daughter had to work for a while, so my wife and I went to the theater closest to the school to watch a movie. The timing was wrong for everything else, but Neighbors was coming on at 8:15, so we chose it. We figured a Seth Rogen film would be a few laughs. The theater ended up packed, every seat full, all 20ish college kids. We were the only old people in the theater. Since I work in the IT field, I am up to date on new technology and so I got the jokes. But the frat jokes in particular, especially with the way things are today with the latest web sites and communication devices was especially funny to the young people because they obviously got all the jokes. I imagined watching this back at home in a theater full of adults with many of the jokes just going over their heads. Not this crowd. It was really interesting to see which gags cracked them up and compare to what it would be like seeing this without the theater filled with students. Anyway, needless to say, unlike the teens we often see at home, with the theater packed, the crowd was very respectful, quiet with no one texting or making phone calls and laughing at the right places. Though we were crowded, it was a really enjoyable experience.

Now back to the film. This is the kind of role that fits Seth Rogen perfectly. He plays the kid who’s grown up now and realizing that he needs to take some responsibility, but dropping back into his youth to party with the frat and play childish pranks trying to outdo each other. New parents have the problem of their close friends from the past living a wild and free single lifestyle when they have a child and a job and too much to do. The frat house next door, though a curse, also is a chance to step back into their younger days. The comedy is really good, the jokes are non-stop, and it’s a randy adult comedy that doesn’t let up. I really enjoyed this film and recommend it for comedy fans everywhere.

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Good Universe, Vertigo Entertainment, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks,

Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen, Sharlto Copley, Samuel L. Jackson, Richard Portnow, Lance Reddick, Rami Malek, Michael Imperioli, James Ransone, Max Casella

Joe Doucett (Josh Brolin) was locked up for 20 years with no explanation. The suddenly he was released with only the thought of finding out who was responsible for locking him up and exact revenge on whoever it was. But the more he finds out, the more he realizes that he was just a pawn in a very elaborate game.

This Hollywood remake of an original Korean movie is a really suspenseful thriller. There are a few twists and turns, and the ending may or may not be obvious depending on how you think. I must admit, I didn’t see that coming. Josh Brolin is pretty decent in this role, and he does pull it off. There’s a lot of mystery and suspense and you have no choice to go along with him for the ride. I didn’t see the original, and of course, the haters feel the Hollywood version pales compared to the original. Since I didn’t see it, I can’t comment on that, but as a stand alone film, it’s not that bad. It is a twisted story, and rather difficult to watch, but it’s supposedly lots tamer than the original. It’s not for everybody, but it is a different kind of mystery and suspense story where a lot of bad things do happen.

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