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The Devil and Daniel Webster starring Alec Baldwin, Anthony Hopkins and Jennifer Love Hewitt

Posted on June 21, 2010 Written by ripitup

The Devil and Daniel Webster- a.k.a Shortcut to Happiness starring Alec Baldwin, Jennifer Love Hewitt and Anthony Hopkins. Directed by Alec Baldwin. Image from: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/

Let there be spoilers!!

Jabez Stone (Alec Baldwin) is a struggling writer. He has unpublished and unwanted manuscripts, a writer friend called Julius (Dan Aykroyd) who just got a big paycheck and a great contract, a loaded brother, a sales job he just got fired from and a tiny flat. Sure, he has two other writer friends- who support him and encourage him. But one day Jabez gets robbed and loses the only thing he cared about possessing- his new manuscript. Broke, unlucky and miserable, he has a brief nervous breakdown where he throws his typewriter out of the window. When this gets unfortunately gets an old woman killed and cops are at the door, Bez gets an unexpected visitor: The Devil herself (Jennifer Love Hewitt). She offers him quite a deal. She will make the “law” problem disappear and give him what he has wanted the most in his entire life: Success and respect. Now, on another day, Bez would probably decline. But he now has a chance to save the person he accidentally killed and be a success- for once. He agrees. He will have 10 years of magnificent success in return for his soul…

And sure enough, the troubles go away. The literary agent – Constance Hurry (Kim Catrall) loves his manuscript. Soon, his books are being sold fast, he’s making great money, everyone knows his name and women are throwing themselves at him, including Constance. But of course who said the devil would play fair? She takes the success away from his friend Julius. Moreover, no critic loves his book. No one seems to care about what he wants to say. As long as it is written by him, it is gold. Success, fame and busy schedules also take away his two good friends. Not to mention, years go by pretty quickly…

Now this movie is not bad. The first half is pretty entertaining and I suspect it will hit home more with writers. Which writer hasn’t been through that desperation period? But after the deal, and the first couple of hints of success, the pace of the movie really slows down (not that it was exactly fast before that) and potential for a good (black) comedy and the chance to be a fun little satire die down. Sure, the drama is expected and welcome on a level but it shouldn’t have arrived at the expense of entertainment. There is also the relationship between Daniel Webster (Anthony Hopkins)- a respected and successful agent and the devil. I am not sure if that makes or breaks the movie.

The movie does have a good cast and some fun moments. But it is not enough. The story is based on an old play. There is also a 1942-dated movie of the same name where the deal takes place between a farmer and the devil. Since I haven’t seen that movie but what would the occupation of Webster be?

This is not a movie that deserves your focus. There is no harm in playing it in the background, but if you are not going to multi-task, you might not enjoy the film much.

The IMDB rating is 5.7. I think it is more of a 4 to 5/10. Let me know what you think about the ending.

It’s Complicated starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin and John Krasinski

Posted on June 8, 2010 Written by ripitup

It' s Complicated starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin and John Karasinski — It's Complicated starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin and John Krasinski. Written and directed by Nancy Meyers. Nominated for Best Actress and Best Screenplay Golden Globes. Image from: http://api.ning.com/

Jane Adler (Meryl Streep) is a successful restaurant owner. She lives in a beautiful house, has three grown children (played by Zoe Kazan, Caitlin Fitzgerald, Hunter Parrish) great girl friends and a future son-in-love, Harley (John Karasinski) who is already a part of the family. It has taken 10 years but her life is in total balance and comfort. However when she goes to New York for her son Luke’s (Hunter Parrish)’s college graduation, she ends up running into her ex-husband/ the children’s father Jake (Alec Baldwin).

Their twenty-something-year-old marriage has ended when Jake cheated on her with the younger Agness (Lake Bell) and then married her. His relationship with Agness is complicated to say the least: she has a young son from another man and now she is trying to conceive with the 58-year-old Jake. The New York encounter leads to a fun night, followed by sex. Jane is totally freaked out. Her simple life has turned upside down. However, Jake is having the time of his life. Second-time around with Jane is easy-going and a lot of fun. Plus, Jane gets to take revenge: she is now the other woman, just as Agness once has been. However her conscience isn’t that clear. And as if things aren’t weird enough, she realizes she is also attracted to her architect- Adam (Steve Martin) who is building her dream house. Adam is nice, fun and good-looking. Not the mention, he is also divorced and has no problem dating women his age.

So who do you pick? Do you even want to pick? What happens when the kids find out?

This movie is top-notch entertainment. It is a wonderful romantic comedy. It has many emotional moments and more often than not, they are presented in a realistic but funny way. It is not always laugh-out-loud. You will find yourself smiling more often than laughing but it is not to say some scenes won’t bring (laughter) tears to your eyes. Meryl Streep is very likeable and she is at her most beautiful in her 60s. Steve Martin never really had a problem entertaining the movie-goers and while his character is charming and enjoyable, the real comedy was mostly on Alec Baldwin’s character. His Jake is downright hilarious. From his shameless admissions to his faults and flaws, from his acting like a total baby and jealousy crisis, he makes you laugh. It is funny to remember that Alex used to be considered a heartthrob in the 90s. He was fit, looked good and he was married to Kim Basinger. Remember those days? But I think while his looks deteriorated, his acting just got better. My second favorite is Harley- John Karasinski’s loveable son-in-law. He is really nice and he loves the Adler family. But his life gets really complicated as well when he becomes the first to know about the affair. I hadn’t been impressed by him when I watched him in the disaster of a romcom Licence to Wed (also starring Mandy Moore and Robin Williams). However, as he becomes co-pilot to Streep, Baldwin and Martin, he does shine through in his own way.

This movie was made in 2009, another romcom hit by writer/director Nancy Meyers. This is my fourth Nancy Meyers movie and I am one of her biggest fans. Do you recall The Holiday starring Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black and Rufus Swell? Or What Women Want starring Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt? Or Something’s Got to Give starring Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Keanu Reeves? All these movies have a pattern: They have an original, different and good screenplays, a spot-on direction and an impressive cast. They all balance romance with comedy well and leave you wanting more.I am positively biased when it comes to writer/directors as opposed to writers and directors alone.

6.7 on imdb. 7 from me. And if we compare it to romantic comedies alone, it is easily an 8 or 9.

Favorite scenes:

– Alec Baldwin gets caught naked to Steve Martin’s webcam.It’s in the trailer

– Jake, Jane and Harley- smoking pot together in the bathroom

*Fun note: Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin must have loved working together as they presented the 2010’s Academy Awards together. Although, their combined performances in the movie are much funnier.

Other Posts feat. Alec Baldwin

17 Changes in the Entertainment World: Featuring Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Megan Fox and More

My Sister’s Keeper starring Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin, Jason Patric and Alec Baldwin

The Good Shepherd starring Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Angelina Jolie and Alec Baldwin

Here are some other romcoms you might enjoy:

It’s a boy/girl thing

He’s just not that into you

My Sister’s Keeper and Why Books’ Readers Should Be Kept Separate

Posted on August 23, 2009 Written by ripitup

I went to see My Sister’s Keeper yesterday and I loved the movie. I hadn’t cried during a movie since Braveheart and that came out in 1995, so you can conclude that I don’t cry very often. I did not read the book. My friend was reading it but she told me the movie was coming soon and that Cameron Diaz was going to be in it so I waited for the movie instead.

I usually avoid dramas. Especially dramas that include cancer-stricken people. Cancer is a horrible, horrible disease. It can happen to anyone. As life is problematic and painful as it is, I prefer to use movies as a way of avoiding reality, thank you very much. Sure, great stories are told in dramas: Friendships, families, love stories, tragedies…But again movies that talk about and show cancer….You get my point. But this movie has a plot that hooked me- the moment I heard about who Anna was and what she was trying to do, I knew I had to know the whole story.

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Anna Fitzgerald (Abigail Breslin) is a very smart 11-year-old. She has an older brother and sister, both teens. However she is different from them. Her older sister Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) has had cancer since she was very little. She would need transplants and blood and eventually a kidney from a perfect match. So her parents Sara (Cameron Diaz) and Brian (Jason Patrick) make a tube-baby: genetically engineered to be Kate’s match. So since Anna has been “used” to help her sister since she was born, she decides to draw the line at losing her kidney. She goes to see a lawyer (Alec Baldwin) so that she can make her own medical decisions. Although she loves her sister very much, it doesn’t feel good to have had serious operations from day one. Her mother is furious- and as a former lawyer-she will fight at court, against her daughter and her lawyer to be able to save her other daughter…

The story is told in several point of views: Anna’s, Sara’s, Brian’s, Jesse’s (the brother), Kate’s and the lawyer’s. It is hard to judge everyone when everyone seems to be right in their own right. Sara has let go of her career and everything else so she can take better care of Kate. Anna feels overwhelmed that if her sister hadn’t had cancer, she wouldn’t have been born and feels like her life means less. Jesse also seems to be drifting away…

Yeah, I cried. You have to see the movie to know what I mean. For a drama, it has an original plot and some good twists. The actors are really good. I am used to seeing Cameron more in comedies but she definitely can do an emotinally challenging role. Abigail and Sofia excel as the healthy and sick sisters.I like Alec Baldwin in small roles. Although he does seem to be playing the same person in different movies, I kow his lines are going to be interesting.

So as the credits are rolling and my friend and I are wiping off the tears, a guy comments on what a horrible movie it is. Now I had heard the same guy complain earlier but as the movie struck me completely and hear him comment again, loudly and rudely-all I can think is “What a jerk!What an insensitive jerk!” I also wondered if we had seen the same movie. Of course he has the perfect excuse not to like it. He has read the book. He thinks that a lot has been left out. OK-now, that brings us back to the arguement we all have when a book adaptation comes out to theaters. Most readers will hate it, some will think it is OK and some will actually like it. And the people who haven’t read the book and liked the movie will argue that both art forms should be judged in their own merits. I have been there. I loved Cold Mountain the movie. After I tried to read the book and I was disappointed. I read John Grisham’s Runaway Jury. I absolutely hated the movie. I didn’t like John Cusack as the lead (normally I like him but he just wasn’t the Nick in my head.), I hated the script and the changes and went on about how I should be the one making Grisham adaptations…

So what I am suggesting is- maybe a little unrealistically but only half-jokingly- the people who have read the book should be in a different theater and others in a different one. This will prevent both sides from giving spoilers, fighting over what’s good or bad and so on. Oh, of course the forums will be waiting for the discussions. But at least experience itself- the duration of the movie will be shared by people who have similar expectations. So you won’t have to dry your tears next to someone who is shouting “What a disaster!”….