Tag: Leslie Mann

Haha! Funny People! A movie about people who are funny!

That is the assumption at least. I will let you know I’ve heard tons of bad things about this movie. Most of my friends hated it. But damn it, I loved 50/50 (which could just be the better version of this movie, not sure). I also thought It’s Kind Of A Funny Story was supposed to be similar to those two (it isn’t) but I loved it as well. So damn it, I am going to watch Funny People and see what the hell happens.

Although this is a scene from the movie, it is definitely way out of context.

Alright lets get the basics.

Seth Rogen wants to be a stand up comic, but isn’t good at it. He has some good material, but bad delivery. Also maybe too many fart jokes. He lives with Jonah Hill, who is more successful and improv like, and Jason Schwartzman, who is staring in some kids sitcom about a cool teacher. Making those ‘big’ bucks.

Adam Sandler plays a big celebrity star. He has done a lot of shitty movies, and used to just be a stand up comic guy too. Turns out he is probably going to die, to a rare disease, kind of shattering his world view. I mean, fuck. He didn’t see that coming. He doesn’t even have really any friends. Needless to say he is kind of depressed, and bombs at a comedy club, where Seth Rogen is quick to make fun of him for his act for cheap laughs.

Sandler freaking out hires Seth to write some jokes for him, and also pseudo take him under his wing for a little bit. Opportunity of a life time for him, at the end of Sandlers. He also is one of the first to know, and helps him out during it when he gets sick. Sandler slept around a lot, so he regrets having that one “slip away”, in Leslie Mann, who is now married to an Australian journalist, Eric Bana, with two kids. Rogen’s problems are just his inability to talk to women, and having a three month plan to try and score with Aubrey Plaza, a neighbor of his.

This movie does NOT end with Sandler’s death. Because the movie is more so about the trial he is on working, and having a new shot a life, after he had thought it was over. Can he fix the wrongs in his life, and get out of his celebrity funk?

Har har har! Funny people!

I think one of the biggest complaints about this movie is the length. Almost 2.5 hours long, it is very unexpected for a movie of its type. The unrated version is about 10 minutes longer (and I can’t tell which I watched. I wanted the Unrated one, but the Blu-Ray menu was confusing!). Apparently it only adds more stand up parts, which I found amusing.

Maybe another complaint is in terms of direction. I really thought it was going to end with Sandler dying. I read the back of the box afterward, and it pretty much begins with “a man getting his second shot at life”. Oh yeah, definitely made that clear with words, just not the previews. So only half of it was him dying, the second half being alive and figuring out what to do now.

Definitely an interesting way to take it, and something I didn’t see happening. I thought the movie felt very real, and I enjoyed it though. It could have definitely been better overall, and not as unforgettable as other Apatow movies. I am sure I will watch it again, just farther in the future, as it is a pretty long time commitment, but I thought it did a good job overall.

As I noted (bitched about?) in the review for Mr. Popper’s Penguins, lately Jim Carrey’s movies have not been up to the same level of quality I have come to expect of him. Almost like after Eternal Sunshine, he stopped trying.

Well, I Love You, Phillip Morris is the exception to that rule.

Somehow, with the title and cover and everything, I didn’t know this was a “gay movie”.

This movie is based on the true life story of Steven Jay Russell, and book based off of his life, played by Jim Carrey. Steven was just a normal man, living in Virginia Beach as a police officer. He had a wife! Leslie Mann, and played in the local church band. But when he gets into a car accident and nearly dies, he realizes he has been living a lie. He is a gay man, and needs to live like one!

So he does that. Moves. Gets a gay man, does gay things. Even does some con artist stuff to get lots of money! But that puts him in jail. Where he meets Phillip Morris, played by Ewan McGregor! Steven Jay Russell is famous, not for the being gay thing, but for escaping from prison. Multiple times. And this movie goes over it!

Yes, what an interesting man. Finding true love in prison, escaping it on more than one occasion, and being a con man in order to become rich all the time.

You can’t make this shit up, folks.

Or this.

This movie is great guys. Not only hilarious, but the acting done by all the parties involved is great. Sure, it is sometimes kind of campy, but it is worth it. Hard to believe breaking out of prison was actually that easy. Oh the things people do for a bootycall.

The Change-Up is the R-rated attempt to make an enjoyable “change bodies” movie. Most of the time these sort of movies are family oriented and always have the same message. Always.

Your life is better than you think it is, switching is a bad idea, and don’t do drugs.

Presumably the last message is implied. The Change-Up offers the same morals, minus the drug part. It might condone them, actually.

“Drug use?! By golly gee wizz, that is bad stuff!” – How I think Ryan Reynolds actually talks.

So, the beginning of this movie is pretty bad. We have to get through the parts where they are all, rawrr my life sucks. Even a dumb poop joke scene. Gross and unnecessary. Adult oriented shouldn’t have to mean lamer jokes, but eh, they happen. The “Change Up” part is equally ridiculous, but pretty much anything they could have came up would have failed too, so that doesn’t matter.

Reynolds is friends with Bateman. Reynolds likes to party, lives alone, sex all the time, actor/model. Bateman has a family! Daughter and twin babies, married to Leslie Mann, and works in a law firm. Pretty smart, trying to make partner. Olivia Wilde is his assistant, who he kinda wants to bang.

For some reason.

After the change, there is some pretty funny stuff that happens. You can probably guess a lot of it. Each person screws up the others life, tries to coach them on how to be successful. Unfortunately Reynolds also has some dad issues, and Bateman has marriage problems, so with their powers combined, they are able to help fix both. By the end, they yes, learn to love their life, and make appropriate changes in their lives for future successes.

At least in the Unrated version, there is a lot of boobs. Some are creepy boobs though. Leslie Mann is naked in this movie a lot though, which was very surprising.

I really couldn’t tell if I wanted to give this a 2 or a 3 rating. It had parts enough to annoy me for the 2, yet some very funny parts for a 3. So I think in cases like this, I tend to just go the higher rating route. It still could have done a lot of things better though.