Clearance Sale: A Raft of Movies (Plus a Book) From the Past Few Months Gets Reviewed Here

I've seen a hodgepodge of movies lately. I'm not sure that any of them warrant their own blog posts at the moment so this compilation to help me remember what I've seen lately will have to do.

And as a side note, a book I recently skimmed was Arcadia by Lauren Groff. I was excited by this one because of all the praise it received, and I'm a sucker for anything about cults (see my articles on The Polyphonic Spree, the movie Martha Marcy May Marlene,  the Children of God-inspired band Girls, Charles Manson, and more. But this was flowery prose that had me bored 20 pages in, at which point I decided to read the starts and ends of chapters and a summary online. It's about a kid named Bit who is born into a cult at a place called Arcadia, which holds its members together in the beginning by some sort of vegan concept. Along the way, Bit grows to like the place less and less and it ends with technology and burnouts taking the place over. Criticize me for not deeply absorbing this whole book, but life is too short.
1.5 out of 5 stars.

Now transitioning to the movies but keeping in line with the blandness of Arcadia, Blended was the worst of the batch. The Wedding Singer was a true comedy classic and possibly Adam Sandler's best movie. He and Drew Barrymore killed it with chemistry. And they teamed up on 50 First Dates to nearly equal effect. But this mess of bad African stereotypes is so bad that I couldn't take my eyes off it. Like a nightmare Brady Bunch, it takes forever for the two stars to fall in love. Most jokes fall flat, but all the kids and the occasional moment that lands save this from being one of the worst movies of all time. It's so dumb, and it seems like a product of the Radical Right in that it's potty-talk free and kind of racist, but you know what, I ended up guiltily liking it.
2.5 out of 5 stars

J. Edgar
It's hard to go wrong with a fictional biopic in which the lead character is played by Leonardo DiCaprio. The focus on this one is mostly about his closet homosexuality that mostly expresses itself in asexuality.
3 out of 5 stars

Bill Murray's HBO Christmas Special
This hour-long special highlights Murray's most endearing traits, basically expanding his SNL lounge singer, laid-back, and kinda drunk-seeming guy. Highlights include a duet with Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley, George Clooney popping out here and there from behind Christmas trees, Phoenix's catchy Beach Boys cover, and of course Paul Schaeffer's piano playing throughout.
3 out of 5 stars

John Dent
I'm not a big action-adventure guy, but I like Keanu Reeves a lot and this is a pretty perfect role for him, as a tortured assassin.
3 out of 5 stars

Deliverance
Burt Reynolds' brightest moment. And one of the best films ever (in fact, #15 on my list).
5 out of 5 stars

Happy Valley
This story about Jerry Sandusky and the corrupt Penn State football program is almost too sadly pathetic to truly recommend, but this story is told really well.
3.5 out of 5 stars

The Big Lebowsky
Some movies you just have to see again and again to like more each time (#13 on my all-time best list).
5 out of 5 stars

Glen Campbell - I'll Be Me
In the moments when it's not looking a little to uncomfortably like a reality TV family story or a little bit too much of an advertisement for fixing Alzheimer's, CNN's Glen Campbell documentary is good, down-home entertainment. And Campbell himself is such a great guy. His music, further, just makes any time spent at all with the country legend a joy.
4 out of 5 stars

Johnny Depp's Creepy Wonka Earns Chocolate Factory 2.5 Stars

There is really no point in remaking 1971's Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory because there will never be a better Wonka than Gene Wilder. He blended weird with a generally bright and very funny side.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory from 2005 employs Johnny Depp in Wilder's role, and Depp takes it in a weird, creepy, and fairly dark direction. The more technologically advanced versions of the factory are interesting, and Freddie Highmore as Charlie (he later goes on to star as Norman Bates in one of my favorite current shows, Bates Motel) is cute.

But the Oompa-Loompas are no improvement upon the originals and the hiring of Depp and director Tim Burton is just all wrong. I bet casting Jack Black as Wonka would have been truly inspired. Before Burton was hired, some potential choices apparently included Nicolas Cage, Jim Carrey, Michael Keaton, Brad Pitt, Will Smith, and Adam Sandler.

Even Wilder agreed that something was off. He refused to see the film and said Depp is a great actor (I agree) but that he didn't like the direction Depp was taking Wonka in some early clips he saw of the film.

This is still a good film for kids, but please don't deny them a chance to see the original version as well.

**1/2 out of ***** stars

I Now Pronounce You Dumb and Dumber

I knew what I was getting myself into, but still, I did it anyway.

After struggling through The Hangover Part III last night, I also cobbled my way through 2007's I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry.

At one time, a new Adam Sandler movie was an event. Something I attended with Scoots, Dewey, ET, and other buddies to die laughing for a little while. Well, since it took me six years to get around to this one, it's pretty clear to you that I had low expectations.

And they were 100 percent met. I hoped there would at least be a tiny bit of profoundness in Sandler's take on what it means to be gay in the early 21st Century.

Sandler plays womanizer Chuck and knucklehead Kevin James plays tough-guy Larry. The firefighters have to marry to protect Larry's pension. Jessica Biel often gets in the way when Sandler turns to jelly in her presence.

Of course the film shot to #1 at the box office on the weekend it was released. And to give Sandler a small degree of credit, the movie makes a plea for equality in the star's own childishly crude way. I will say Chuck and Larry is kind of entertaining. The big problem is that it just isn't very funny.

*1/2 out of ***** stars

A Whole List of Stupid Movies: Some for the Better, Some Not

I saw a handful of movies recently (rare with a three-year-old son) that I (horrors) forgot to review here. Let's start at the top and make our way to the bottom.

1.) Crazy, Stupid, Love is a movie that had skipped under my radar until Rachel's sister, Mandy, suggested we see it. I suspect she was interested because of one beefcake so-named Ryan Gosling. Well, sure, he's got great abs, but he's also funny and perfect for the role of a stud who takes a sad-sack divorcee (Steve Carell) under his wing. He dresses him up, teaches him how to talk to women, and unleashes him onto the singles scene. It's a scary and wonderful transformation to behold. There's just one problem, Steve is still in love with his wife (Julianne Moore), but there are all kinds of crazy, stupid complications to resolve that problem. This is no mere chick flick. It's one of the best and deepest films you'll find this year. **** out of ***** stars

2.) Adam Sandler movies get the full spectrum of reviews from movie critics. While it's true that his first few films are classics, it's not like he's exactly suffered a Chevy Chase-type fall (by the way, why is Chase still part of the cast of the otherwise-funny Community on NBC?). Grown Ups, Funny People, You Don't Mess with the Zohan, 50 First Dates, and Punch-Drunk Love would be considered a pretty good run over the past decade for any actor. While Just Go With It, with Jennifer Aniston as the friend he never knew was hot until he sees her in a swimsuit, has plenty of eye-rollingly-bad moments, one would have to be a loveless zombie not to be warmed and won over by the conclusion within a patented Sandler story structure. All of that is true here. Just go with it. *** out of ***** stars

3.) How can the formula perfected so amazingly in School of Rock (my 16th funniest movie of all time) go so wrong? Somehow I suckered myself into watching Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny one recent late night. This premise had so much stupid promise, but the music just isn't that good, it's too long, and even Dave Grohl (who plays Satan in the film and drums on the full soundtrack) can't provide any spark. This was a major misstep for the brilliant Jack Black, who I love in the afore-mentioned School of Rock, High Fidelity (#41 on my list), Shallow Hal, Anchorman (#34), Margot at the Wedding, Walk Hard, and Tropic Thunder. And how about that classic episode of Yo Gabba Gabba, not to mention Laser Fart? ** out of ***** stars