This was a really funny update of David Mamet's sex comedy, "Sexual Perversity in Chicago". It also made me realize why I didn't enjoy Kevin Hart in "Ride Along". He was put on a PG-13 leash, and was in every scene of the movie. In this he is as wild as his stand-up, and only in roughly half of the movie. The script has some pacing issues, and some B-stories are a little rough. This is a very worthy film.
Grade: B
#77: Winter's Tale (2014)
Akiva Goldsman, the guy who wrote "Batman & Robin", wrote and directed what I can only call the corniest film of the year. The goofy, muddled mythology in this movie make most of the story hard to digest. Not to mention, there are two sections of the film, past and present, and the character development in both are so rushed, and so forced, that by the time you get to the "emotional" ending, you can't understand why you should care. Some good performances though.
Grade: D
#78: Only Lovers Left Alive (2014)
#79: Camp Takota (2014)
A shaky first act, and a predictable third, bookend what is a charming second act with a lot of good laughs. Chris and Nick Riedell give this movie plenty of heart and a fun cast. All in all this a well meaning film that gets lost in trying to create enough drama to make it more interesting than it already is. And it is already plenty interesting.
Grade: B-
#80: The Lego Movie (2014)
While this won't break my record for the most times I have seen one movie in theatres ("The Dark Knight" stands at 7), I may have a problem.
Grade: A
#81: Knights of Badassdom (2013)
There are moments in this comedy-fantasy that show how great it truly could have been. It is a lot of fun, and it never stops being at least interesting, but it never hits that next level. Peter Dinklage manages to keep it from floundering by having so much fun as his LARP obsessed character, that his joy is contagious.
Grade: B-
#82: 3 Days to Kill (2014)
If left in the hands of a more competent director, this could have been a really special film. The plot was intriguing, the script was amusing from time to time, and Hailee Steinfeld was very entertaining. Kevin Costner's character never really found his groove, fluttering back and forth from stoic badass to goofy badass at the drop of a hat. The action pieces weren't very well done either.
Grade: C+
#83: Pompeii (2014)
#84: Adult World (2013)
If you want a mild dramedy that sets some of its action in a mom and pop porn shop to make itself seem edgy, then you have found your movie. Emma Roberts plays a young, uptight poet who is having trouble getting published, and is cut off by her parents, forced to get a job at said porn shop, and begins tutelage under a burn out played by John Cusack. Despite some good performances, this film's script is a little cloying, and most of the story is forced so it can seem edgy (a thought that bears repeating).
Grade: C
#85: Brightest Star (2013)
Maggie Kiley has made such an emotionless, and awkward romantic dramedy, with "Brightest Star". Her script (co-written with Matthew Mullen) is poor, and filled with unlikable characters, including the film's lead, named "The Boy", played by Chris Lowell. The acting is all forgettable, and so just about everything else. Meh.
Grade: D
#86: McCanick (2013)
I liked this movie. Don't ask me why, but I did. Josh C. Waller's direction more than made up for some of Daniel Noah's scripting issues, like the awkward twist that didn't feel quite earned. David Morse plays an aging detective trying to track down a collar who was just released from prison after 7 years. Morse has always put in great performances, but he out does himself Eugene McCanick, with all of his grit and tenacity. Cory Monteith, in his final role, shows so much promise in this film. The kind of promise that I have seen from him, and wish I could see again.
Grade: B
#87: Someone Marry Barry (2014)
Sometimes a writer can focus so hard on making a character so annoying, that shoot too far past it, and drag the entire film down. In Rob Pearlstein's feature debut, he manages to do this with two characters. Barry places all of its comedic eggs in one basket, Tyler Labine playing an overtly annoying friend who ruins the lives of everyone around him, and it does not pay off. By the time we meet his soul mate (Lucy Punch), we have a hard time believing that anybody would still be friends with him, and that they care enough to try to get him married off.
#88: Stitch (2014)
With a bigger budget, a better cast, and a few script punch-ups, this could have been a really good film. As it stands, Ajai's feature debut is bold, and could have used have a lot of work, but it suffers from its singular vision. Ajai explores some interesting concepts that don't really manifest until later in the movie, but are lost in the film's poor execution.
Grade: D+
#89: Jamsey Boy (2014)
A little melodramatic, and a really sentimental look at real life criminal, James Burns. The script is weak, the acting is ok, and Ving Rhames is certainly not in it enough. When the credits started rolling, I almost completely forgot everything that happened in it. And Spencer Lefranco, the kid playing James, looked a little too much like Macklemore. I couldn't pay attention to much else.
Grade: C-
#90: The Bag Man (2014)
David Grovic's directorial debut is not a complete disaster, but it is wildly flawed. The dialogue is clunky, the story is a little dumb, and the acting is definitely far from top notch. This doesn't completely distract from the fact that is fun (at times), and John Cusack does seem to be enjoying himself (at times). All in all, it could have been much worse.
Grade: C
#91: One Chance (2013)
I am a real sucker for sappy biopics about losers who make something of their longshot status. It also helps when the lead is as lovable as James Corden. His adorable face, and believably innocent disposition, make his performance as real-life Paul Potts (winner of the first Britain's Got Talent) a complete joy to watch. The writing is a bit cliche, and becomes a little too sappy at times, but it is a great story, so you forgive most of its short-comings.
Grade: B
#92: Non-Stop (2014)
This is exactly the film I thought it was going to be. I don't know what else to say about it. The acting was passable, the script was interesting enough, and Jaume Collet-Serra's directing tried a little too hard in moments. It is a mild film with a moral that gets lost in the action. It is easy to enjoy, if you just let it be enjoyable.
Grade: C+
#94: Veronica Mars (2014)
#95: Holy Ghost People (2014)
Bad acting, silly dialogue, and a plot that falls apart within minutes of the film kicking off, make this film simply unbearable to watch. It tries so hard to be a scathing look at religious cults, but quickly dissolves into a bland, eventless thriller. The saddest part is that it took four people to write a film this bad. This should have saved for a bad movie night...
Grade: D-
#96: Sightseers (2012)
After falling in love with "A Field in England", I decided I need to watch more Ben Wheatley, and I happened upon this unrecognized gem. He focuses on a couple going through the British countryside in a camper, murdering people for petty annoyances, and it is disturbing, and darkly hysterical. I mostly love everything about it.
Grade: A
#97: Date and Switch (2014)
I believe every teen sex comedy that has been released since 1999 has been a sad attempt to recreate the magic that was "American Pie". This was one of the most unfortunate attempts I have seen to date. Same sex pact, but after it is made, one of the friends comes out of the closet. The awkward result is not funny, and at times, it is even offensive in the ways it was not trying to be offensive.
#98: Better Living Through Chemistry (2014)
Not even the great Sam Rockwell could save this movie from being a whiny mid-life crisis flick with nothing to offer.
#99: Tiny Furniture (2010)
#100: The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1914)
Imaginative, fun, and thoroughly entertaining. The first film from L. Frank Baum's Oz Film Manufacturing Company is heavy on amusing slapstick comedy and marvelous special effects (by 1914 standards), which makes it a serious joy to watch. This version I found was missing many frames, but it was still a lot of fun if you enjoy silent films.
Grade: B
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