22 Jump Street - Overload of Crude Humor

2 out of 5 Stars

I try to keep an open mind about new movies.  I tend to give most movies a chance, even when I am not particularly fond of members of the cast.  With some actors and actresses, it is a little harder for me to do that.  Originally I really wasn’t interested in seeing 22 Jump Street.  I only recently saw the first movie, and, well, it wasn’t a favorite.  I don’t really like Jonah Hill, though I have managed to like some of his movies.  I ended up going to see 22 Jump Street.  I should have followed my initial instincts and avoided it.

After somehow managing to be successful with their assignment out of 21 Jump Street that sent them back to high school looking for drug dealers, partners Jenko and Schmidt have trouble with other assignments.  They get a lead on Ghost, a drug dealer, but mess up in a big way and are sent to 22 Jump Street - across the street in a different abandoned church from 21 Jump Street.  Captain Dickson assigns Jenko and Schmidt to go undercover at the local college to find who is suppling a new drug called WHYPHY that has been linked to the death of a student.

It doesn’t take long for Jenko to start up a friendship with Zook and Rooster, fraternity brother football players.  Schmidt doesn’t fit in with them at all and he starts feeling left out.  He does manage to start a relationship with art student Maya even while being looked down on by Maya’s roommate Mercedes.  Jenko and Schmidt start to drift apart and the investigation, as well as their friendship, suffers.

During the first several minutes of the credits, there are a series of clips from fake sequels that have Jenko and Schmidt going undercover in other schools, like medical school, culinary school, and a seminary - in which Seth Rogen replaces Jonah Hill as Schmidt because of “contract negations”.   The clips are amusing.  At the end of the credits there is a short scene that ties back into something that happened earlier during the movie.  I’m guessing it was supposed to be funny, but I didn’t think it was.  It was just an attempt at a joke being taken too far yet again.

While I did laugh here and there at things happening in 22 Jump Street, I didn’t find the movie that funny overall.  Far too often, the “jokes” fell flat for me.  From very early in the movie there are a lot of jokes about movie sequels being exactly the same as the first movies, how a bigger budget doesn’t guarantee success, and how all sequels stink.  The movie is very self aware, including through the clips during the credits.  That stuff is fine at first, but it gets old fast.  The same thing happens any other time something actually funny happens.  The writers didn’t know when to quit.  Mercedes spends just about every minute she is on screen making cracks about old people and how ancient Schmidt is.  That was just stupid.

There are a lot of gay jokes tied to the relationship between Jenko and Schmidt.  There are some tied to Jenko’s growing friendship with Zook as well later in the movie.  The first few of those jokes was fine, but again, the writers didn’t know when to quit.  It got to a point where it was uncomfortable that they were resorting to that sort of joke again.  The humor would have worked better overall if there wasn’t so much overkill with certain types of jokes going on.   It is almost like someone decided that if it was funny once, then doing the same sort of joke 900 more times will be absolutely hilarious.  It isn’t.  I don’t mind dumb comedies or silly movies at times.  This one just didn’t work for me.  There some pop culture type references, including references to Batman, Robin, and Spider-man.  Sexual references, some of which are rather vulgar, are used throughout the movie.  They are something else that I think were intended to be funny that weren’t.

I don’t know if everything in the movie was actually scripted or if improvisation went on during filming.  Jonah Hill is part of a group of male actors who do a lot of improvisation during their movies.  They seem to think anything they think up on the spot is hilarious no matter how stupid it is.  Saying whatever pops into your head and then laughing doesn’t make something funny.  Some people are really, really good at improvisation, but not everyone is.  Hill - and the group of actors that includes Seth Rogen - isn’t that good at it.  I have seen extras on some DVDs that have actors going on and on and on, trying to come up with something funny by just spewing nonsense.  A lot of the stuff that Mercedes says about how old Schmidt is has that sort of feel to it. 

The few action scenes do seem a bit exaggerated and over the top.  There is sort of a chase at the beginning, and a longer chase later that has Jenko and Schmidt going after two different suspects.  The action does take a back seat to the attempts at humor.  Some violence is in a few scenes without the movie being violent overall.  The word that rhymes with luck, along with variations of it, are used by just about every character, something else that is over done.  Drugs play a part in what is going on, including when Jenko and Schmidt unknowingly ingest some and have a weird trip.  The movie does deserve the R rating, and it isn’t one that children of any age should see.

I didn’t think any of the characters were that interesting.  Jenko is good looking and becomes popular at college, but he is dumber than a box of rocks.  That makes it harder to believe him as a college student than the fact that he is older than his classmates.  Schmidt is overly needy and clingy where Jenko is concerned, but he is still somehow able to hook up with Maya, a girl well out of his league.  Jonah Hill didn’t annoy me as much as he has in other movies, but he still isn’t funny.  Channing Tatum really isn’t funny either. 

Maya is just a pretty art student who has a family member that could add complications.  Mercedes is a waste most of the time.  She and Schmidt get into a fight at one point that is just ridiculous.  Captain Dickson is only around in a few scenes.  He mostly is yelling about something.  The Ghost is a drug dealer the guys are after at the beginning who may or may not turn up again later.  Rooster and Zook are the football playing frat brothers.  Neither of them seem that bright either.  Zook is around a little more since he becomes more of a friend to Jenko.  I didn’t realize that Wyatt Russell was playing Zook when watching the movie.  Different students are around briefly without them adding anything to the movie.

22 Jump Street has a few moments here and there that work or that are funny, but overall, it just isn’t funny.  I know the movie has gotten a lot of good reviews, but I don’t understand that.  I don’t get what is so good or entertaining about it.  This is definitely not a movie for everyone.

This review is part of elvisdo’s 7th Annual Funny Pages Write off because of the references to Batman, Robin, and Spider-man.   

Tammy

3 out of 5 Stars

Melissa McCarthy has become very popular in the last few years.  I think she is very funny and have enjoyed movies she was in, so I have wanted to see Tammy, her new movie.

The day is already going bad - car issues and being fired - when Tammy arrives home and discovers that her husband is romancing another woman.  Tammy packs up a few things and heads two houses down to her parents’ home.  When her mom won’t turn over a car, Tammy decides she can take her grandmother’s car.  Pearl is willing, but only if she goes with Tammy.  The two head off on what ends up being a wild road trip, complete with drinking and a robbery.

A few short things are shown during the first few minutes of the credits, including one blooper.  There are no additional scenes at the end of the credits.  There isn’t a 3D option for this one.

Things start happening within the first few minutes of Tammy, setting up that this is just the most recent bad day that Tammy has had.  It quickly becomes clear that her life isn’t the greatest.  Some of that is her own fault and other things aren’t.  There are times when I felt really bad for her.  Pearl has her own issues that come to light during the trip.  That does sort of add a few complications to what is going on, but the plot is fairly straightforward, though it isn’t completely predictable since there are a few small surprises here and there.  Some people could be disappointed by the fairly simple plot. 

Not everyone is going to like or appreciate the humor in Tammy.  Some of it is rather crude or rude, involving obscene gestures or language.  The word that rhymes with luck, along with some variations are used repeatedly throughout the movie by just about every character.  All the foul language may offend some people.  I don’t mind if that sort of thing is done a few times, but it does get old after a certain point.  Bad language by itself isn’t funny.  I do think that Tammy is funny overall, though it could have been funnier.  There are funny things that weren’t in the trailers, but there is also something that has been in trailers that wasn’t in the movie for some reason.  A few references are used at times as well, mostly to things that a younger person will not get.  The only one I can remember now is when Tammy mentions the old tv show Falcon Crest. 

Tammy is not a family friendly movie, though when I saw it, someone decided to bring a herd of children, who ended up sitting just one seat away from me.  The movie is rated R for a reason, and young children really should not be seeing it.  The movie is probably all right for teenagers.  Parents should check the movie out first.  In addition to all the swearing, there are some sexual remarks and a few borderline sexual situations as well.  At one point, Pearl is picked up by Earl while Tammy and Earl’s son Bobby watch.  Pearl and Earle end up in the backseat of the car before locking Tammy out of the hotel room.  Pearl demonstrates more bad behavior by offering Tammy beer when Tammy is driving and spending a lot time drunk.  The two women share a few things, some of which are a bit disturbing. 

Pearl and Tammy serve as the main characters and each of them have some issues.  Pearl spends a lot of time drunk, and at least once, she is shown starting to drink really early in the day.  Pearl is a bit wild at times, especially where Earl is concerned.  Susan Sarandon is all right in the part, though she doesn’t seem old enough to have a granddaughter Tammy’s age - or daughter the age of Deb for that matter.  It is a little odd to see Sarandon in this type of part, but I think she handles the comedy well.  I do think she was funnier in the few episodes of Mike & Molly she was in last year.  Deb and Don are Tammy’s parents.  Deb is not happy about the road trip at all and she doesn’t come across as that supportive at times.  Alison Janney is fine in the part even though she isn’t old enough to have a daughter the age of McCarthy.  Don only shows up very briefly late in the movie, so Dan Aykroyd don’t get much to do.

Lenore is Pearl’s cousin who ends up helping Pearl and Tammy at one point.  Kathy Bates is fine in the part even though she doesn’t have much to do.  Sandra Oh has even less to do as Susanne, Lenore’s partner.  Earl is a drunken mess and a mostly flat character.  Gary Cole really just has to stumble around and make out with Sarandon.  Bobby is Earl’s sort of responsible son - Bobby did take Earl out drinking after all.  Bobby doesn’t get much attention either, but he seems nice enough.  Missi is the woman that Tammy’s husband Greg is seeing.  They are only in a few short scenes, so Toni Collette is wasted in the part.  Ben Falcone is good as Keith, Tammy’s jerk boss. 
Tammy, as the main character that the movie is named after, ends up with the most to do.  She has a fairly crappy life.  She tends to complain about things without doing much to try to change things.  She isn’t the brightest crayon in the box and she clearly has issues.  She usually makes bad decisions, though at one point, she does that with good intentions.  She still manages to be mostly likable even though she has some moments when it is difficult to like her.  Melissa McCarthy is fine in the part.  She, along with her husband Ben Falcone, wrote the movie and he directed it.  I do think it could have been better.  Tammy really isn’t that different from the parts she has played in Identity Thief and The Heat, so I can see why some people say they are getting tired of her doing the same thing over and over. 

Tammy has problems and could have been a lot better, but it isn't as bad as some have said.  It does manage to be funny and entertaining, but it isn’t as good as The Heat.  Fans of McCarthy will probably want to check out of the movie.

The Office: Season Six

It took me a while to start watching The Office when it began to air.  I saw an episode every so often and I knew who the main characters were.  I didn’t start really watching the show until it was in syndication.  After that, I decided that I enjoyed the show enough to pick up the DVD sets.  I picked up The Office: Season Six when I found it on sale.

Since this is the sixth season of The Office, the characters are very well developed and situations have been established.  The show is a bit different since it is set up like a documentary film crew is filming the employees of a fictional paper company.  I don’t remember ever hearing why a film crew was filming them.  It is stretching believability a bit that they would still be filming after so long, but it does give the show an interesting set up.  The show is funny, though it is a sort of twisted humor that some people won’t appreciate.

The main development in the sixth season of The Office, at least for me, is that Pam and Jim get married.  I like that they are happily married and I loved the wedding episode.  It had just the right blend of sweet moments and goofy stuff.  I know that some people have complained that the show isn’t as good since Jim and Pam got together, but I don’t agree with that at all.  I don’t think that a couple has to be kept apart to keep a show entertaining.  I’ve stopped watching shows in the past because of that nonsense, so I’m glad it isn’t happening here.

The Office: Season Six is available on DVD and Blu-ray.  I picked up the DVD.  I really don’t like the case.  Two discs are stored on a panel, with one slightly on top of the other one.  To make matters worse, the edge of the disc that goes on the bottom has to go under the thing that holds the top disc.  This has become my least favorite DVD case because of that.  I hope this crappy design isn’t used on future sets of the show. 

The Office: Season Six has a decent amount of extras.  The show does deleted scenes wonderfully well.  They aren’t just random bits that don’t seem to fit with what is in the finished episodes.  Instead, they add to them and help to embellish them.  The deleted scenes are pretty entertaining.  The bloopers are funny and last a decent amount of time.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Office: Season Six and think the DVD or Blu-ray set is worth picking up for fans of the show.  I think the series is still entertaining and worth watching.

I did get a review of The Office: Season Six posted on Epinions.

The Office: Season Six

Blades of Glory

I first saw Blades of Glory in the theater when it originally came out.  I picked up the DVD when it was released and I’ve watched the movie a few more times since then and still enjoy it.  I recently watched the movie again for the first time in a while. 

Ice skating is about the only sport that I do like, so the fact that ice skating plays a huge part in the plot of Blades of Glory is a big reason why I wanted to see the movie to begin with.  I also like Will Ferrell and tend to watch his new movies at least once.

The plot for Blades of Glory is pretty simple and rather silly.  I do think it is an interesting idea for two men to skate as a pair.  Things would have to be done differently with two men skating together instead of a man and a woman.  Different things related to ice skating are shown during the movie.  Some of it seems realistic and other things are exaggerated.  Some of the exaggeration does add humor.  Much of the humor is silly in some way.  A few things done to add humor are more gross and may turn some people off.  I could have done without seeing a few things.  The humor isn’t going to appeal to everyone, but I do think the movie is funny and entertaining.

The characters in Blades of Glory are interesting.  The development could have been stronger for most of them, but they are still interesting characters.  Chaz is very unique and a bit wild.  That does make him entertaining, but some people may not care for him.  Jimmy is a calmer character and more likable in some ways.  He has his own issues.  I do like how Chaz and Jimmy interact for the most part.  The other characters are also interesting, though exaggerated.

The DVD for Blades of Glory has deleted scenes, a gag reel, and a behind the scenes featurette that are entertaining.  The movie is available on Blu-ray, though I don't know what kind of extras are on it.

I do enjoy Blades of Glory, though I know it isn’t a movie for everyone.  Fans of the cast should definitely check it out.

I did get a longer review posted on Epinions after I first saw the movie in the theater.

Blades of Glory

Airplane!

I like spoof movies when they are done well.  Unfortunately, many of them aren’t that great.  Airplane! is probably the best spoof movie I’ve seen.

Ted Striker is a former pilot who is still trying to get over his experience in the war.  His girlfriend Elaine can’t handle his problems any more and tells him she is leaving him.  She is a flight attendant, and Ted over comes his fear of flying to get a seat on her flight.  She tries to ignore him, but once passengers and members of the crew get sick, Ted has to try to land the plane.

Airplane! is definitely spoofing disaster movies.  I did read that it was basically a remake of the movie Zero Hour!.  I’ve never seen that one, so I have no idea what has been changed for this movie.  The plot of Airplane! is fairly simple, though it makes for an entertaining movie.  The things that happen may be a bit silly or over the top, but they manage to work overall for the movie.  There is a decent reason for why Ted has to take over flying the plane.  There is a hint of believability to what is going on.

There really isn’t any mystery to the plot of Airplane! and most of what happens is predictable.  The plot could have been a little stronger, but it still makes for an entertaining movie.  Most of what happens is silly.  Those silly things add humor to the movie.  Some of the humor is a bit dated now, but the movie is still really funny.  The humor works much better than what is done in most of the newer spoof movies.

The characters aren’t developed a lot, though they still manage to be entertaining.  The cast does well with their parts.  This is one of the few movies that I’ve seen Robert Stack in. 

Airplane! is a bit silly, so it won’t appeal to some people.  The movie is really funny and I do think it is worth watching.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Airplane!

You Again

I’ve come to like Kristen Bell in the last few years, especially after I started watching Veronica Mars.  I was interested in her new movie, You Again, after seeing previews and seeing who else is in the movie.

Marni was the target of a bully in high school that made her life miserable.  After high school, Marni made some changes and how has a successful career.  She is horrified when she learns that her older brother is marrying Joanna, the girl who bullied her in high school.  It gets worse when Joanna acts like she doesn’t know Marni.  Convinced that Joanna is wrong for her brother, Marni decides to try to stop the wedding.  Marni’s mother Gail and Joanna’s aunt Ramona went to high school together, but they haven’t seen each other in years.  It seems they have lingering issues as well.

I managed to enjoy You Again overall, though it isn’t going to appeal to everyone.  Some people will be turned off by the fact that the movie deals with bullying.  Some flashbacks are used to show what happened when Marni was in high school and some of those scenes aren’t that pleasant.  Joanna was downright cruel, which unfortunately, I think is fairly accurate with how some teenagers act.  The movie chooses to deal with the serious subject of bullying in a more humorous and lighthearted way.  That may bother some people, especially with the real life bullying incidents that have happened recently.

You Again ends up having the female characters act like unreasonable idiots with how they deal with things.  It makes sense that Marni isn’t happy about her brother marrying Joanna or the fact that Joanna acts like she doesn’t remember her.  The way that Marni chooses to deal with that makes her look like a manipulative witch.  Joanna handles things badly, deciding to make little digs to try to put Marni down instead of dealing with things like an adult.  Gail and Ramona don’t deal with their issues any better, ending up in a fight that puts them both in a swimming pool.  Instead of trying to deal with problems, the woman act like jealous idiots.  The men, even though they are in much less of the movie, are made to look like the only calm, rational people around.  At one point, Marni’s father actually sends her and her mother to their rooms.  The movie does not portray women in a good way, and that is bound to upset some people.

Even though the women act like idiots, they still manage to be entertaining.  Their antics do add some humor to You Again.  Much of the humor is more silly in nature, but I do think it manages to work overall.  There are a few really funny moments in the movie, though other things that are intended to be funny don’t really work.  The plot isn’t the most original since other movies have featured characters that have been miserable in high school.  Having Marni’s tormentor marry her brother is a bit different, but the movie is still very predictable overall.

There really isn’t much development for any of the characters in You Again.  The characters are interesting enough, though it is a bit hard to like many of them.  I did think the cast did a good job with what they had to work with.

Overall, You Again has issues, but it can be entertaining overall if it isn’t taken seriously.  Fans of the cast may find something to like about the movie.

I did get a longer review posted on Epinions.

You Again

You Again

The Big Bang Theory - The Complete Third Season

The Big Bang Theory has been one of my favorite shows since it began airing.  I was quickly hooked on it and I’ve picked up the DVD sets as they have been released.  I pre-ordered The Big Bang Theory - The Complete Third Season and I watched all the episodes in just a few days even though I’d already seen them a few times. 

The Big Bang Theory is my favorite show on now and I think it is the funniest show on as well.  I enjoy other comedies, but none are as consistently funny and entertaining as The Big Bang Theory.  Yes some of what happens is rather bizarre, but I think it works for the show and helps make things more entertaining.  Every episode makes me laugh numerous times.

The Big Bang Theory is about a group of friends, four of which are intelligent scientists and nerds.  The fifth friend is Penny, the pretty waitress living across the hall from Leonard and Sheldon.  The guys have set times to play certain video games and go to the comic book store.  They can have long conversations about movies and movie characters.  Science stuff comes up at times as well.  It sounds believable, but I have no clue how accurate it is. 

The characters are the strongest part of The Big Bang Theory.  They are all different and have their own little quirks.  That helps to make things really entertaining.  The cast is wonderful in the parts.

The Big Bang Theory - The Complete Third Season has a funny gag reel and two other extras featuring cast members that are interesting.  The DVD set is a must own for fans of the show.

I did get a longer review posted on Epinions.

The Big Bang Theory - The Complete Third Season