Cinema Freaks LIVE: The Gift (2015)

It's time again for Cinema Freaks Live, this time talking about the 2015 thriller The Gift. I'm joined by Colin (The Observer), Michelle and Chris as we all talk about what was good and bad about the movie. I'll also go into it a little bit in this post, as well - just in case any of you are stuck in the soul-sucking 9 to 5 routine in a cubicle somewhere. Also note that there are SPOILERS a lot in this one. Here's the podcast:

Director: Joel Edgerton

Starring: Joel Edgerton, Jason Bateman, Rebecca Hall

IMDb

The movie is basically about a couple, Simon and Robyn, who move into a new house. They almost immediately run into Gordo, an old buddy of Simon's from college, who starts acting a little weird and overly friendly. He comes over a lot when Robyn is home alone, which starts to get on Simon's nerves. Tensions rise as Simon tries to tell Gordo to back off - but in the process, some secrets about Simon's past are revealed.

The movie is pretty good. It's got a nice visual style to it and the settings don't look like every other thriller out there. The story and atmosphere tend to remind me of early 2000s thrillers, and the acting is pretty solid. I like how you don't really know who to feel sorry for at first, and the murky ambiguity early on makes it an interesting watch. It also doesn't really pander to anyone by throwing in any stupid twists, gore or tits or anything like that - it's just a solid story, written and directed by acting veteran Joel Edgerton - who also plays Gordo, mind you.

The problem is, I don't think Edgerton really knew where he was going with the story. He takes the easy way out too often as the story hurtles toward a conclusion. Characters figure things out too easy, and what was once an ambiguous, shady story becomes a story where both Simon and Gordo are obviously bad, bad guys. You find out Simon was a bully who ruined Gordo's life as a kid - fine. That could be interesting. But then you see he also isn't any different NOW. Now, he's cheating his way into a promotion at his job and lying to everyone - it's just kind of goofy, the way it's done. It doesn't really engage you to the character when there's so little complexity.

Gordo, on the other hand, is a psychopath. He clearly had this planned, or else it made no sense. He met Simon randomly on the street and then had this whole plan to fuck with his head. He breaks into Simon's house later, drugs Robyn and makes a video tape where he may or may not have gotten her pregnant. When they have a kid at the end of the movie, Simon is tormented with guilt that the kid may not be his - it might be Gordo's.

It's all just too over the top. There should have been a more subtle plot - maybe about Robyn seeing Simon's real self and then choosing to side with a more sympathetic Gordo. Or show Simon as a conflicted man who used to be a bully but now is pretty OK, but he's being chased by this vengeful psycho he once bullied. But it doesn't work when they're both just flat out bad guys. It becomes a story talking about how bullies never change and how if you're bullied, you might grow up to be a fucking psychopath. Not exactly a great story.

It wasn't bad, though. As far as directorial debuts go, it was solid. If you like thrillers, you'll find something to like here.

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Review: The Change-Up (2011) TH

When the frowned on catches some smiles

On a drunken night two polar opposite buds--after saying they want each others' lives--switch bodies but not minds when accidentally swearing an oath in front of a statue while crossing urine streams into its fountain. Mitch (Ryan Reynolds) lives the complete bachelor life with no responsibilities beyond making a paycheck as a part time actor, and Dave (Jason Bateman) has his hands full as a lawyer with three kids and a wife. The fountain is moved and in the meantime they have to live one anothers' lives till it can be found. Easy said, easy done. Yeah, right.

The premise sounds awfully familiar, though this is a movie that skips out on the cleverness and goes more towards the profane by playing on taboos and shock value for a share of the way. Some of the jokes feel like they are too in your face to the point of stepping over their punch and the replay value is somewhat diminished in that they can only be looked at head-on and from a point-blank angle. Though one thing you can count on is it literally doesn't let up with what it shows or says, with kids included, which makes the experience extremely over-the-top in a titillating, one-off kind of way. Babies are more misused than females born in China, and then adults don't hold back in what they say with yougins in presence, cursing and urination included. That unabashed outlook is gonna cause a share of gasping and head-shakes, not to mention I-can't-believe-they-did-that laughter all at the same time. It's a movie that you gotta forget all social stigmas and just let loose to the ludicrousness, otherwise this is gonna be a tough watch and not recommended. The main culprit is the Mitch role, and then the raunchiness is continued when that persona has to be maintained when Bateman switches to Reynolds. He tries to keep up with the bachelor's extracurricular activities, including meeting his sex-crazed partners and showing up to the set of his "acting" job, which turns out to be something a little more risque than the reserved dad and businessman agreed to.

The whole ride isn't a roller coaster of do-whatever-it-wants as it eventually turns into a safer formula that takes a lighter stroll for the latter portion where there is room for character learning and growth and things are more content. The original Dave character wants to make partner in the law firm he's worked so hard to get to, but at the same time doesn't have time for his wife. Jamie (Leslie Mann) has some funny and also serious scenes from uncertainty setting in with her "new" husband but that's not to say there weren't issues beforehand. The original Mitch character is always running away from finishing anything that he starts and uses the opportunity to hopefully rectify himself if that's even possible. Olivia Wilde shows with interest on both fronts as Sabrina: a pretty face that works in the law firm. Dave wanted her before the switch, and Mitch being Dave, being his sneaky perverted self, says they should go out and she turns out to be much different than the conservative lady she appears in the office.

"The Change-Up" plays on the absurd while others around them play it straight and act confused. Reynolds and Bateman definitely have their moments but don't always transition their reverse rolls back and forth smoothly as it feels like they can't always shake their stage names. This plays out the fantasy of how it would be if you did things differently in your earlier years and shows that it might not be too late to do so from a changed perspective. Yeah, the message was delivered a little fluffy and easily but, then again, this is simple entertainment that uses taboos to get its audience loosened up from the day-to-day of rules and what we're supposed to do. The movie rides a fine line between potentially getting someone on the complete defensive, or on the other side letting loose and going with the insane flow. It can be nice to see them--not yourself, mind you--break the rules for basic escapism even if that diversion wasn't without its over-daring snags that make it more closer to a minor comedy than an instant classic.

Director: David Dobkin (Shanghai Knights, Wedding Crashers, Fred Claus)
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Jason Bateman, Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde, Alan Arkin
Website: IMDB

REVIEW: Horrible Bosses (2011)

Director: Seth Gordon

Starring: Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis

Website: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1499658/

This goofy comedy, sort of like The Hangover with some slight shades of Office Space (and not just because Jennifer Aniston is in this movie too), was pretty enjoyable for what it was. I didn’t hear of this until recently, and it had such a weird name that I figured it’d be some sort of really out-there dark comedy, or something. But nope, it’s just a regular modern comedy, albeit done better than some others have been.

Mostly the reason for this is that there’s no nonsense or crap in it. The movie doesn’t try to squeeze in an emotional subplot or get serious. It’s just zany fun, and although it’s not done masterfully either, you’d be hard pressed to really call this a bad movie by any stretch. The plot is that three guys get fed up with their completely ridiculous and, well, horrible bosses, and hatch a half-drunken plot to kill them that turns into reality pretty quick. All three guys are pretty much morons and there are easy ways they could fix their problems. Like when someone is blackmailing you by threatening to tell your girlfriend you slept with them, wouldn’t you just go to your girlfriend first and calmly and rationally explain the situation, thus nullifying the blackmail? These blackmail scenarios are so easily beaten and happen so often in movies, but nobody ever does anything about them. And it bugs me! There are a few other moments like this that do admittedly take you out of the movie, but then, it could have been worse.

And then again, stupid characters are pretty much a norm for this type of comedy, so I can’t complain too much about that. Aside from a few sticking points, this was an enjoyable film. Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston and Colin Farrell all clearly had a ton of fun playing the evil bosses, with the fun-ness directly proportional to how outlandish and ludicrous their terrible acts were, and leads Jason Bateman, Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis were pretty funny, too. Jamie Foxx had a good part as ‘Motherfucker’ Jones, the go-to man that the guys consult about their murder scheme. The ending could have been stronger, but mostly this was a really fun and goofy ride that I liked quite a bit.

The jokes were really predictable (well, except for a few choice instances) and there wasn’t anything too special about this movie, but I had fun watching it. It is a fair bit raunchier and more risqué than some other recent comedies, and that’s part of it, but mostly it’s just the strength and energy of the cast and the spunky, loose jokes that are chucked at you like fireballs that do it in the end. Get this one while it’s hot. You won’t regret it.