Home Video

I Don’t Know; It’s a Mystery

/ / Home Video, Theme Week
  • Title: Shakespeare in Love
  • IMDB: link

shakespeare-in-love-dvdJohn Madden gives us a new film version of Shakespeare by looking at the struggling playwright who has yet to become the great William Shakespeare.  The movie is centered around the love story between Will and Viola which will be his muse for writing “Romeo and Ethel the Pirate’s Daughter” er… I mean “Romeo and Juliet.”

Will Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) is a struggling playwright banished by his wife and child to London and tired of the constant attention and devotion garnered by renowned playwright Christopher Marlowe (Rupert Everett) which provides one of the films best running jokes.  With a little help from Marlowe and a the sight of his new muse the lady Viola De Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow who won the Oscar for Best Actress) Will begins to write what will become his great love story “Romeo and Juliet.”

…

I Don’t Know; It’s a MysteryRead More »

I Don’t Know; It’s a Mystery Read More »

While You Were Sleeping

/ / Home Video, Theme Week
  • Title: While You Were Sleeping
  • IMDB: link

while-you-were-sleeping-posterLucy Eleanor Moderatz (Sandra Bullock) lives alone with her cat, carries an empty passport around in her coat pocket, and works long hours as in a subway booth taking tokens from strangers.  One bright spot in her dreary existence is when Peter Callaghan (Peter Gallagher) walks by every morning even though they’ve never met. 

On Christmas morning he’s mugged and falls onto the tracks.  Lucy jumps on the tracks and saves his life and through a miscommunication at the hospital is believed to be Peter’s fiancé.  When Peter’s large family arrives to find him in a coma they thank Lucy for saving his life and immediately embrace her into the family.  The whole thing happens so fast Lucy doesn’t get a chance to tell them the truth and, after a few days with the family, doesn’t want to.

Aside from funny misunderstandings and odd coincidences the film is basically about relationships.  Lucy’s only confidant is her boss (Jerry Bernard) who Lucy tells the story to and is both amused and annoyed at her situation. 

…

While You Were SleepingRead More »

While You Were Sleeping Read More »

Get Over It

/ / Home Video
  • Title: Get Over It
  • IMDB: link

Ah…teenage love and loss.  When Ben is dumped by his girlfriend he’ll do whatever it takes to win her back including signing up for the high school play – “Midsummer Nights Dream – The Musical” directed by Martin Short!  A funny teen comedy; think that’s an oxymoron?  Well think again…

Ever been dumped and are unwilling to let the other person go?  Get Over It tells the story of a guy who loses his girl and will do anything to get her back even making a complete jackass of himself by singing outside her window and joining the school play not even noticing that maybe the one helping him, his friend’s little sister, just might be a better match for him.

Berke Landers (Ben Foster) has just been dumped by his longtime girlfriend Allison (Melissa Sagemiller), which is followed by one of the best opening credit sequences in recent movie history.

…

Get Over ItRead More »

Get Over It Read More »

Forgetting Sarah Marshall on DVD

/ / Home Video, Theme Week
  • Title: Forgetting Sarah Marshall
  • IMDB: link

“Maybe the problem is that you broke my heart into a million pieces and so my cock doesn’t want to be around you anymore.”

After a hard break-up with his girlfriend Sarah (Kristen Bell), Peter (Jason Segel) mopes around so much his step-brother (Bill Hader) puts him on a plane to Hawaii in hopes he’ll be able to move on.

His attempts are thwarted when he arrives at a swanky resort only to find Sarah and her new beau, ridiculous musician Aldous Snow (Russel Brand), also as guests.  The sole bright spot in Peter’s personal hell is a beautiful hotel cleck (Mila Kunis) who, along with other members of the staff, attempt to get Peter back on his feet.  For more on the story of the film you can check out Ian’s original review.

The script, although it contains many fun moments, is deeply flawed.  Of all the characters only Peter, Sarah, and Rachel (Kunis) seem real.  The rest of the cast is a group of characters created solely as one-joke characters, and almost impossible to take seriously.

…

Forgetting Sarah Marshall on DVDRead More »

Forgetting Sarah Marshall on DVD Read More »

Stone

/ / Home Video
  • Title: Stone
  • IMDB: link

Odds are you missed Stone in theaters. And, sadly, odds are you’re going to want to pass it up on DVD and Blu-ray as well.

The film focuses on retiring parole officer Jack Mabry (Robert De Niro) and one of his last assignments – an incarcerated arsonist named Stone (Edward Norton). What follows is a twisted tale of Jack being seduced by Stone’s wife (Milla Jovovich) in order to help facilitate his release.

Stone is a bit of a mess. It has its moments, including a strong opening which sets up the personality of De Niro’s character, and several interesting pieces, but the script by Angus MacLachlan never puts the whole story together in an engaging or believable way.

The most troubling aspect is that the movie can never quite decide how smart the title character is supposed to be. At times (even in scenes alone with his wife) he seems just dimwitted and desperate enough to offer up his wife to Mabry in this last ditch effort at early release.

…

StoneRead More »

Stone Read More »