Tag Archives: Comedy

The Family Plan – Movie Review

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TL;DR – An interesting idea and solid family dynamics, that unfortunately gets dragged out past its strong point.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There are mid-credit scenes.

Disclosure – I paid for the Apple TV+ service that viewed this film.

The back of the minivan with family stickers.

The Family Plan Review –

There are some actors that play themselves in every film they are in, which can be a good or a bad thing, depending on the movie. If there is a perfect example of this, it is Mark Wahlberg, who I can keep or take depending on the outing. Today’s film looks like it will be something right my alley, but I have been burnt before.    

So to set the scene, Dan Morgan (Mark Wahlberg) is a mild-mannered family man who is friends with the whole neighbourhood, does a good job selling cars, has a slightly dysfunctional family life, and does not like his photo taken. Which makes it most surprising when he is at the shops, an assassin attacks because it looks like someone has been burnt, and a whole world of pain is about to come to suburban Buffalo.

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Wonka – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A delightful romp through Wonka’s past, full of musical energy and more than a few full-belly laughs.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

An overhead shot of dancers making a W out of umbrellas.

Wonka Review –

I am going to be perfectly honest with you from the start, when I heard that there was going to be a prequel based on the back story of Willy Wonka, I could not help but roll my eyes. The constant francisation of the cinema landscape has led to many of these projects that just feel like they are going through the motions rather than having anything interesting to say. However, now that I have seen it, I am glad to say that I was wrong.

So to set the scene, we open as Willy Wonka (Timothée Chalamet) arrives in a mysteriously unnamed European City. He has spent the past few years sailing around the globe, finding the best combinations for chocolates, and he is now ready to share them with the work at the famous Galleries Gourmet. But Wonka has a kind view of the world and is not prepared to be crushed by the Chocolate Cartel run by Slugworth (Paterson Joseph), Prodnose (Matt Lucas), and Fickelgruber (Mathew Baynton). Nor does he read the small print before taking a room in Scrubbit’s (Olivia Colman) Laundry as recommended by Bleacher (Tom Davis), a less-than-savoury individual. However, just when things are at their lowest is when you can really shine, and his new friend Noodle (Calah Lane) helps him find that.

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Bottoms – Movie Review

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TL;DR – It races right up to the line of being a parody without crossing it, a bunch of laughs even if not everything lands.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There are mid-credit scenes.

Disclosure – I paid to see this film.

PJ and Josie at rock bottom.

Bottoms Review –

After mainly being obliterated, the R-rated teenage comedy has returned in recent years, which means a whole new generation gets to have their EuroTrip moment. But can a more mature comedy focused on teenagers work in this new world? Well, that is the question we are looking at today.

So to set the scene, friends PJ (Rachel Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edebiri) are at the bottom of the social picking ladder at Rockbridge Falls High School. Even more so when they run over the star quarterback Jeff (Nicholas Galitzine) a month out from the big game against rivals Huntington High. But when you are on the bottom, there is nowhere else to go but up, and it is in that moment that the girls arrange a fight club. On the surface, it is all about empowering the women of the School, but in reality, it is all about getting laid.  

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Polite Society – Movie Review

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TL;DR – A blast of fun from start to finish, even before the wirework starts flipping people through the air.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this film.

The sisters.

Polite Society Review –

During the year, there were those films that I meant to see, but circumstances always got in the way of screening or sessions. For me this year, one of the ones that slipped away was the fascinating Polite Society. Well, it has now dropped on streaming, so I can see if it holds up as well as I hope.

So to set the scene, Ria (Priya Kansara) has had one dream all her life: to become a stuntwoman. She films herself on YouTube, trying to break into her future, and she usually drags her sister, Lena Khan (Ritu Arya), to film. But she can’t master the flying reverse spin kick no matter how much she practices. However, Ria has a crisis of faith when her sister decides to get married to Salim Shah (Akshay Khanna) rather than go back to art school. He is a smarmy wanker, or so Ria feels, but as her life starts to unravel, her future starts looking equally fraught.  

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Quiz Lady – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While deeply predictable, there is still a fun charm to the absurd proceedings.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this film.

bowties

Quiz Lady Review –

As we get to the end of the year, I get a drive to start catching up on the films I have missed during the year, but also a need for something less serious. It is the time for comedies of all kinds, and on that front, we start with two siblings who could not be further apart.  

So to set the scene, Anne Yum (Awkwafina) had a very dysfunctional childhood, but the one good thing in her life was Can’t Stop the Quiz hosted by Terry McTeer (Will Ferrell). Her one only relationship is a hostile daily barb with her neighbour Francine (Holland Taylor). But when her sister Jenny Yum (Sandra Oh) comes back into her life and films her rattling off quiz answers. The video goes viral, which is mortifying for Anne, even more so when a gangster (Jon “Dumbfoundead” Park) kidnaps her dog, Mr. Linguini (Crosby Cookie), to pay for the gambling debt of Anne and Jenney’s mother. She has to get $80,000 quickly, which means doing what she dreads: being in front of people.

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TV Review – Rick and Morty: How Poopy Got His Poop Back  

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TL;DR – While not a revolutionary episode, it wisely knew that bringing the gang back was the right thing to do as we step back into this universe.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix subscription that viewed this episode.

Ghost Robot.

Rick and Morty Review –

We have a new season of Rick and Morty, a show I have both loved and become frustrated with in almost equal measures. They take wild swings of greatness that leave you awestruck and then follow it up with the most asinine story imaginable. However, we are entering its post-Justin Roiland era, so it is time to see if that changes the game or not.

So to set the scene, it is the first cold open of Season Seven, and suddenly, there is Mr. Poopybutthole (Jon Allen). Reversing his usual appearance at the end of the season, it is a deep despair as things have not gone well with his life. It has gotten so bad that Beth (Sarah Chalke) has put her foot down, and Rick (Ian Cardoni) must do something about Poopybutthole. Well, it is time to round up the team for an intervention. I just hope no one forgot a birthday. And is that Hugh Jackman (Hugh Jackman)? We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Great Seduction (La Gran Seducción) – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While you will know the story from the opening moments, it was still a fun ride.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
Santa María

The Great Seduction Review –

I know it is seen as almost a bad form to re-make films in different countries in the modern discourse. However, I am always fascinated to watch adaptations to see how a familiar story gets reinterpreted in a new context. Today, we get an excellent example of this as we visit an island off the coast of Mexico.  

So to set the scene, Santa María is a small town of 120 living on an island, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in heart. But when a neighbouring village opens a fishing factory, the town loses all their jobs, and soon, people fall away. Germán (Memo Villegas) wants to stay in his home, but that is becoming increasingly difficult each month. But if they can get a doctor to live on the island, maybe a new packing plant might follow. It feels like a lost cause until Dr Mateo Suárez (Pierre Louis) gets passed over at the local hospital and drinks just enough to cause a scandal. Well, the town has one month to make him want to stay and seduce him to stay.    

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Strays – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While some moments made me laugh, and the film grossed me out in the places they expected it to, I found the ending left a bad taste in my mouth.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Warning – This film depicts scenes of abuse.

Reggie jumping through grass.

Strays Review –

Comedies are always the most challenging films to review because while all movies are subjective, humour is the most personal form of art you can get. Point and case, our film today, where half the audience sat in disgust, and the others were laughing with all their hearts. With that in mind, let us dive into Strays.

So to set the scene, Reggie (Will Ferrell) is a little mutt that lives with Doug (Will Forte). Reggie loves Doug, and Doug hates Reggie. When Doug is given an eviction notice, he starts playing a game with Reggie where he plays Fetch and Fuck. He drives Reggie far away from his house, throws a ball, and then utters the expletive when Reggie eventually finds his way home. After this happens repeatedly, Doug finds a different tactic and drives Reggie to a city a long way away. Reggie is lost and finds some friends in Bug (Jamie Foxx), Maggie (Isla Fisher), and Hunter (Randall Park), who help him realise that he has been abandoned. He is a stray. But now it is Reggie’s time to get some revenge.

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Ready or Not (2019) – Exploring the Past

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TL;DR – An electric tense film with more than one moment that made me audibly gasp

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

The family lines up to start hunting.

Ready or Not Review –

Every year there are films you want to see that just slip you by, and today’s film is one of those. I had always meant to see Ready or Not in cinemas, but the session times never lined up. It also missed my end-of-year wrap-up because it didn’t have a solid streaming option yet. This week, I was reminded again of how interesting this film is, and now is better than never.    
 
So to set the scene, Grace (Samara Weaving) is back in her husband-to-be Alex’s (Mark O’Brien) old house, well more mansion. It is a tradition in the le Domas household that all weddings happen on the manor grounds, and while Alex has been estranged from his family for a while, tradition is tradition. Alex’s mother, Becky (Andie MacDowell), hopes this could start a reconciliation between Alex and his family. Grace hopes this could be the family she never had growing up. The le Domas family has a lot of traditions and a weird aunt Helene (Nicky Guadagni), but mostly traditions. One is that on the day someone marries into the family, they must draw a card at midnight and play a game. The le Domas made their money in board games, so this is not completely weird. But what is odd is that when Grace pulls the ‘Hide and Seak’ card, weapons start being removed from the walls.

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Asteroid City – Movie Review

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TL;DR – The framing device does not work, but that is not a significant issue, as it is still an entertaining romp even without it.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Mechanics.

Asteroid City Review –

Wes Anderson is one of those filmmakers with entirely his own style and can delight or confuse. Before I see one of his films, I am always wondering which way the pendulum will swing for me, and I think this is one of his works that will hit people differently. As I have heard people gushing over it and others bringing a more meh response. But it is finally time for the film in Australia, and it is time for us to check it out.

So to set the scene, we are introduced to a Host (Bryan Cranston) that introduces us to an anthology TV series that is showing the story behind the stage play Asteroid City by noted playwright Conrad Earp (Edward Norton), which is then presented to us as the movie proper. In a small out of the way town of Asteroid City in the middle of the American desert, there is a crater, an inn, a research centre, and an unfinished overpass. Augie Steenbeck (Jason Schwartzman), a noted war photojournalist, has arrived officially because his son Woodrow (Jake Ryan)  is a Junior Stargazer. Still, unofficially because their mother is dead, and he is about to dump his kids on their grandfather Stanley (Tom Hanks). But things change when he meets Midge Campbell (Scarlett Johansson), and oh, the world changes.  

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