Film: The Campaign

GENRE: Comedy
RATING: R for sexual content and language
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 25 minutes
STARRING: Will Ferrell (Anchorman, Talladega Nights)
Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover, Due Date)
DIRECTOR: Jay Roach (Austin Powers, Meet the Parents)
WRITERS: Chris Henchy (The Other Guys)
Shawn Harwell (Eastbound & Down)
PLOT: Two corrupt CEOs get a naïve loser to oust a long-term sleazy congressman in order to gain influence over a district.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 What a fun script! Very timely with the presidential campaign in full force. It’s fun to laugh at American politics.
2 Ferrell and Galifianakis play their roles well. Ferrell is his cocky Ricky Bobby self as a dim congressman. Galifianakis’ Marty channels some of his Due Date persona. They are pros at the ludicrous.
3 Dylan McDermott is actually pretty funny as Marty’s campaign manager. He’s cold, calculating and in charge. Some fine work.
4 A good length for a comedy. It doesn’t overstay its welcome.
5 Punching a baby? Funny!

RECOMMENDATION: Funny but can wait for rental
UPCOMING REVIEWS: Fall TV Preview, Fall Movie Preview

Film: The Expendables 2

GENRE: Action
RATING: R for strong bloody violence
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 43 minutes
STARRING: Sylvester Stallone (Rambo, Rocky Balboa)
Jason Statham (Transporters), Jean-Claude VanDamme (JCVD)
DIRECTOR: Simon West (Con Air, The Mechanic)
WRITERS: Richard Wenk (The Mechanic, 16 Blocks)
Sylvester Stallone (Expendables, Rocky, Cliffhanger)
PLOT: The Expendables are back in business for an easy paycheck but one of their own loses their life, prompting swift and brutal revenge.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 The first Expendables seemed to have some fun introducing their ragtag group of characters. This one seems to have even more fun. Better one-liners and humorous moments throughout. Terry Crews and Dolph Lundgren get more laughs this time around.
2 The story is a little stronger than the first film. Only a little bit though.
3 It’s fun watching Van Damme kick again. I haven’t seen a movie with him in a long, long time. Brought back some memories.
4 The blood splatters a lot in this film. Disturbing at times.
5 Chuck Norris is the man. He even gets to tell a Chuck Norris joke!

RECOMMENDATION: Things go boom work well in theatres
UPCOMING REVIEWS: The Campaign

Film: The Bourne Legacy

GENRE: Action
RATING: PG-13 for violence
RUNTIME: 2 hours and 15 minutes
STARRING: Jeremy Renner (Avengers, Mission Impossible 4)
Rachel Weisz (The Mummy), Edward Norton (The Italian Job)
DIRECTOR: Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton, Duplicity)
WRITERS: Tony Gilroy (State of Play, Bourne Ultimatum)
Dan Gilroy (Real Steel, Two for the Money)
PLOT: A different top-secret operative tries to track down some much needed meds before the government can shut him down.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 Jeremy Renner does a great job playing the new guy, Aaron Cross. He’s always good as the intense loner mixed with sharp action hero. A great legacy indeed.
2 Some very clever incorporation of The Bourne Ultimatum. You don’t have to see that film first to understand what’s going on but seeing it before Legacy will help you appreciate those references even more.
3 Like all Bourne films, there’s a great chase scene. This time on a motorcycle. I'm surprised he didn't run over any bystanders.
4 I liked the intelligence of Renner’s Cross. His travelling under the radar was masterful.
5 Since the Bourne films refuse to kill any of their big players, I’m predicting Renner will do the next one on his own and then do a third one along with Matt Damon returning as Jason Bourne. Double the killing machines, double the fun!

RECOMMENDATION: Great theatre flick
UPCOMING REVIEWS: The Expendables 2

Film: Ruby Sparks

GENRE: Romantic-Comedy
RATING: R for sexual language & drugs
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 44 minutes
STARRING: Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine, There Will Be Blood)
Zoe Kazan (It’s Complicated), Chris Messina (Damages)
DIRECTOR: Jon Dayton & Valerie Faris (Little Miss Sunshine)
WRITER: Zoe Kazan (newcomer)
PLOT: A novelist creates a female character that comes to life and is unaware that he willed her into existence.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 Paul Dano is a great actor. I love watching his shock and awkwardness in this film. His chemistry with Zoe Kazan works well but that could also be because they have been dating for a long time before this film was made.
2 Unfortunately, the plot of this film has a bunch of similarities to Stranger Than Fiction. Just imagine Emma Thompson’s character interacting more with Will Ferrell who is clueless that he is just a character in her book. Fiction does this better than Sparks is able to.
3 There is this great sequence where Dano’s writer makes Ruby a little too desperate for him which leads to some co-dependent hilarity.
4 Chris Messina does a great job as Dano’s borther, Harry. I can’t put my finger on why but I guess he just seemed so believable.
5 While the film is pretty light for the majority of the running time, it gets pretty dark and disturbing near the end. Not sure if I agreed with such a tonal shift.

RECOMMENDATION: An okay video rental
UPCOMING REVIEWS: Bourne Legacy