rutherfo Reviews

Funny People (2009)

Don't let the title fool you!

[3/10 · 15 August 2009]

The only thing this movie has in common with other Apatow movies is the cast. When I first heard about this movie, I was excited. "Sweet! Apatow movies are always great, and look at the cast! This is gonna be a great movie, no doubt!" Well, don't let the title (nor the exceptional cast) fool you! This movie was painfully unfunny. I throw in "painfully" because I sat there for two and a half hours in an uncomfortable seat. The stand up routines were pathetic (I also heard that were improvised by the cast, which saddens me), and the audiences in the movie laughed while the audience in my theater sat there, wondering "Why is that funny?" Despite being hilarious in their own ways, Rogen, Sandler, and Hill were cursed with scripted dialogue that was incredibly dry, predictable, and just downright disappointing. This movie would have been SOOOO much better if it were cut down about an hour, and the perfect way to do this would've been to take away the Leslie Mann/Eric Bana subplot that seems to come out of nowhere and take over the story. I'm sad to say this entire scenario should've been cut from the movie, because the only remotely funny lines came from Eric Bana. He was amazing and I definitely didn't expect to leave the theater impressed by him the most. I thought either Rogen or Sandler was going to steal the performance, but unfortunately they couldn't even hold up their own. I do not blame the actors, I blame whoever wrote the script. The only strength this movie had was that the message comes across nicely. But then again, it should have, since they had two and a half hours to do it!!! Honestly, this movie isn't even worth seeing.

Miss March (2009)

I'm gonna go against the majority on this one...

[7/10 · 15 August 2009]

Okay, I agree with a lot of the criticisms this movie received. The plot was underdeveloped, the crazy firemen thing (as well as Candace's forgiving of Tucker after a truly lame speech) was a hard concept to swallow, and Cyndi's role in the plot was too large for her to play such little screen time. Nevertheless, I fully enjoyed this movie. Comedy is probably the one genre I can watch and can say to myself "Screw the plot." Obviously, every movie needs a plot, but in the case of comedy as long as there's one there at all, I can focus more on the interaction between humorous characters and the many jokes this movie provided. One criticism I can't wrap my mind around is the acting of Trevor Moore and Zac Cregger. They've been criticized for their performances while I thought they were hilarious. Their opposing personalities made for great conflict and they have chemistry considering the actors have known each other for years. People call this a "bad" movie, but I feel that if a genre succeeds in its purpose (in the case of comedy = laughs), it is good. I feel that people over analyzed this movie and subjected it to more criticism than need be. Anyone who has watched Moore and Cregger's "Whitest Kids U Know" sketches know that the two end many of their skits by breaking the fourth wall, saying something like "we didn't know how to end this skit." Miss March is much more about the laughs and gags than the plot. Sit back, and simply enjoy the movie for what it is. I promise many laughs!