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Jan 18, 2011

Seriously Overdue Movie Reviews - 2010 Catch-up, Part I: The Other Guys, Micmacs, Inception, Cyrus

Film reviews? What are those? Here are capsule reviews of some of the movies I've seen yet not yet reviewed from 2010. If memory serves correctly, these will be in order of viewing.

The Other Guys
It's hard for comedians to have long-lasting film careers because, with each film added to their resume, it becomes harder and harder for them to surprise us. We've seen Will Ferrell play overgrown children, we've seen him play it straight, and we've seen just about everything in between.

So the success or failure of The Other Guys would have to come from elsewhere, and it does on both counts. Success in the 85th comeback of one Michael Keaton, going goofy as the police chief that needs results (and, in an inspired bit, peppers his language with references to a certain R & B bands from the 90s); failure (for the most part) in another attempt to turn Mark Wahlberg into a comic actor; he's spotty at best, with the high points coming from his incredulity at whom Ferrell is married to.

The story - something about a corrupt financial businessman - is largely irrelevant, and it's penchant for attempting social commentary falls flat. Your liking or lack thereof of Guys largely depends on how funny you find Ferrell to be in general, and whether or not you can stomach yet another mismatched buddy cop comedy.

Fletch's Film Rating:
Expectation:
"You seem a decent fellow. I hate to kill you."
Reality:
"You seem a decent fellow. I hate to kill you."
LAMBScore:
Large Association of Movie Blogs

Micmacs
I could talk for awhile about the way that Jean-Pierre Jeunet can make even a Parisian landfill look beautiful or how he somehow seamlessly meshes a story about a man who becomes homeless with a satire on global arms dealings, but it'd much easier to just say this: if you dug Amelie, you're likely to feel 80% of that towards Micmacs, and probably vice versa. See or don't see this accordingly.

Fletch's Film Rating:
Expectation:
"Darn tootin."
Reality:
"Darn tootin."
LAMBScore:
Large Association of Movie Blogs

Inception
The less said here the better, I'd imagine, given the press it received. I've already crowned it my favorite film of 2010 - you've likely granted it a spot in your top 10 (or 5) as well. For those of us that bemoan the Michael Bays of the world and their brainless (and admittedly, sometimes fun) action flicks were salivating from the moment the teaser for Inception hit. The tag line told us from the gitgo that we were in line for something a bit more cerebral: "Your mind is the scene of the crime." But what was the last mind-bender that had suck kickass set pieces? Or award-winning international casts? None - and that's why Inception will live in a class inhabited by few others, the most recent of which is the first Matrix. Bring on the sequel...
Fletch's Film Rating:
Expectation:
"You're the best around!"
Reality:
"You're the best around!"
LAMBScore:
Large Association of Movie Blogs

Cyrus
I'm still confused by the definition of the "mumblecore" genre - how it's any different from the low-budget indie comedies/dramedies of the 1990s and 2000s is beyond me. Low budget, improvisation, no-name actors (hence the low budget) - it's all there. Of course, Cyrus has name actors, so it's inclusion in the genre is even more bewildering. I suppose it just means that one or more of the Duplass brothers are involved in the film's making.

What I'm not confused about is said brothers' film making abilities. That they could take what is essentially a stock comic setup - mother dotes on her only son, son rebels when mother starts dating again - and turn it into a funny, charming, realistic movie is evidence of that. That they could wring out the best performance of Jonah Hill's career to date (admittedly, not an overwhelming task there, but still...) is icing on the cake.

Fletch's Film Rating:
Expectation:
"Darn tootin."
Reality:
"Darn tootin."
LAMBScore:
Large Association of Movie Blogs


10 people have chosen wisely: on "Seriously Overdue Movie Reviews - 2010 Catch-up, Part I: The Other Guys, Micmacs, Inception, Cyrus"

Aiden R. said...

Always a glorious thing when movies live up to your expectations.

blogcabins said...

Thanks, Andy. The Other Guys has been pretty divisive - there doesn't seem to

be a clear-cut line of thinking on it. I've seen some people that think it's

Ferrell's best since Anchorman, and others that think it was awful. I'm just

about smack bad in the middle.



Cyrus, on the other hand, has had a pretty good reception all-around. See that

first.

blogcabins said...

Thanks!



I'll admit that a sequel might not be the best idea, and yes, The Matrix sequels

turned out awful. But weren't you just dying to see those sequels back then as

well? (Okay, maybe not you - you were like 8 at the time.) But shit, we

thought they were gonna be great, and they had a chance to be. As would an

Inception one..

Sebastian said...

Absolutely not! No INCEPTION sequel! The story is done! They don't need anything else. You said it was in the same league as the first MATRIX. What happened when THE MATRIX turned out sequels? I don't think I could stand it if another cerebral franchise went belly up! I CAN'T FATHOM IT!!!
...

Great reviews though. Can't wait to see what else you got for your wrap up!

AndyS said...

Great reviews as always, Fletch. Gives me hope I just might like THE OTHER GUYS and CYRUS, two flicks I've had on my list to see for a while.

Simonandjoshow said...

Just, on a side note, all these films were covered on THE SIMON AND JO FILM SHOW availavle bon itunes.

kerrching.

Fletch said...

You don't say?

I'm backlogged...have 4 TSAJFSs on my iPod right now, I think. The holiday
season (oh, and that whole having a kid thing) did some serious damage to my
podcast listening schedule. But don't worry, I'm still your #4 fan after Sarah
and Bourne and Jo's mum.

Sebastian said...

No, I was psyched as hell! I has seen and fallen in love with the first MATRIX by that time. I'm young, but I'm at least cultured. God, Fletch! What do you take me for?

Fletch said...

Haha...clearly, you were an advanced child. You hath set me in my place, good
sir!

Fletch said...

Huh - didn't even notice that each and every one of 'em matched. That's gotta be a first.