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How Do You Know? starring Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson & Jack Nicholson

Posted on April 13, 2011 Written by ripitup

The Basics

Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson, Jack Nicholson

Writing/directing Credits: James L. Brooks

Made in: 2010.

The Plot

Lisa (Reese Witherspoon) is a professional baseball player whose life is centered on the sport. Even her boyfriends have all been athletes and her latest, baseball player Matty (Owen Wilson) is no exception. Matty is a charming and immature womanizer, who provides the distraction Lisa needs while she waits to be informed about her future career.

George (Paul Rudd) is a very nice guy, and unfortunately this comes back to bite him in the butt with his company. He is being sued by the government, even though he has no idea what kind of mistake he or his employees have done. To add insult to the injury, his father, Charles (Jack Nicholson) decides to be the ultimate businessman and save the company first. This means the company board won’t be paying George’s legal expenses, and he won’t be informed about anything company-related. His only ally is his pregnant assistant Annie (Kathryn Hahn).

When Lisa and George meet, Lisa is no longer a part of the team and Matty has already decided that he is in love with her. George becomes infatuated with Lisa, but he has no idea how to charm her when they are both going through the worst career-related chapter in their lives…

So how entertaining is the movie?

How Do You Know is a romantic/comedy/drama with a great cast and a mediocre trailer. It is thoroughly enjoyable, and while it is not hilarious, it is very sweet and entertaining – with 5 really quirky characters (including George’s secretary).

Now, the movie is not pure comedy. It is not pure romance. And rather than dramatic, it has some necessary emotional moments. It’s also not just about Lisa finding the right guy. It is a bittersweet self-discovery for her, as well as George, who is also trying to survive the most depressing phase of his life. George is broke, in trouble with the law and discovering that his father can’t be relied upon and Lisa needs to figure out what she will do with the rest of her life. They are both clueless and neurotic, and their interaction is off to a clumsy start. And while the viewer can, and probably will, wonder about what really attracts George during their first date, Paul Rudd makes us buy the connection.

Owen Wilson’s character is a riot. He provides some of the best entertaining moments as his character is totally clueless about what a serious relationship actually means. He is practically a well-meaning yet totally shallow man child.

Who can enjoy it more?

– Fans of the cast.

– People who don’t mind that Owen Wilson and Paul Rudd keep playing the same type of characters over and over again.

– Genuine romantics who don’t mind characters will have to go through some personal stuff, and they won’t always be funny while dealing with them

– If you can handle characters that talk a lot and are clueless about a hell lot more.

Favorite Scenes:

– Lisa spends the night for the first time and Matty (Owen Wilson) has a whole drawer full of new toothbrushes and a whole wardrobe for the morning after (all either XS or S!).

– When both the doorman and Matty actually give space Lisa to think.

– George’s birthday gift and speech

– When Annie impulsively stands up to punch George’s dad…

Fun Notes:

Monk’s starring actor Tony Shalhoub makes a short appearance as Lisa’s therapist.

Verdict:

I’d give the movie a 6.5/10 as a whole, and 7.5 for the entertainment level.

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Did You Hear About the Morgans? starring Hugh Grant & Sarah Jessica Parker

Posted on April 10, 2011 Written by ripitup

Did You Hear About the Morgans? starring Hugh Grant & Sarah Jessica Parker. Feat. Sam Elliott and Mary Steenburgen.

Successful and busy New Yorkers, Meryl (Sarah Jessica Parker) and Paul Morgan (Hugh Grant) used to be a happily married couple until Paul cheated. Now, they are separated and despite Paul’s constant efforts, Meryl doesn’t seem like she will forgive him anytime soon. However one night, they witness a murder and end up in the witness protection program, in a very small town in Wyoming. They will have to learn how to live without the city, without the technology, and worst, with each other. Can they survive the hitman tracking him, and not drive each other and their protectors Carl (Sam Elliot) and Emma Wheeler (Mary Steenburgen) crazy in the process?

Written and directed by Marc Lawrence, Did You Hear About The Morgans? Is an utterly predictable yet sufficiently enjoyable film. Yes, it is a typical Hugh Grant movie playing a typical Hugh Grant character. And yes, Sarah Jessica Parker once again plays a successful New Yorker who is in love with New York. But it really doesn’t matter. Because it is harmless good time, suitable for when you want an easy-going film with actors you are familiar with. It is not hilarious in the comedy department, though. It is just enough to make you grin a couple of times.

While nothing to write home about, it is not bad enough to deserve its current 4.4 user ranking on IMDB. It might deserve that, or maybe less, in the originality department, but definitely not as a movie in whole.

Favorite Lines:

Paul (Hugh Grant): I love you. Do you still love me at all?

Meryl (Sarah Jessica Parker): I don’t know if I can sort of love you or love you a little.

Paul: Well, I’m fine with it. Honestly, I can get by with a little less love for a while. Maybe years.

Paul and his assistant are discussing what else Paul can get for Meryl.

Paul’s Assistant: You can buy a black hole.

Paul: I am not sure a black hole sends out the right message at this point in our relationship.

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No Strings Attached starring Ashton Kutcher, Natalie Portman & Kevin Kline

Posted on April 3, 2011 Written by ripitup

No Strings Attached starring Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutche & Kevin Kline. Directed by Ivan Reitman.

No Strings Attached: Plot in a Nutshell

Emma (Natalie Portman) and Adam (Ashton Kutcher) go way back to summer camp. Never really friends or lovers, they keep crossing paths, until one day they decide to finally have sex. It is fun, and they realize they can just be friends with benefits. Although this is more Emma’s idea than Adam’s, he decides to go with it and live every guy’s fantasy: a no-strings-attached, sexual relationship with a beautiful woman. But Emma is smart, funny and just different, and it doesn’t take long for Adam to want more. And while Emma is also developing feelings for him, she just can’t risk getting hurt. She keeps sabotaging the chances of a relationship. Will Adam settle for the friends with thing, or will he keep challenging Emma?

Details and the Verdict

On the surface, the movie doesn’t seem to offer something new or very interesting. The trailer is sort of funny, but to be honest, I never expected the movie to be this funny. It is often quite hilarious, with some laugh-out-loud moments. Also the trailer hides one of the movie’s biggest gems – Kevin Kline as Adam’s father. Kline plays a morally corrupt (watch the movie to see what he does:)), but loving, weed-smoking famous actor whose fame, and TV show lines, keep haunting Adam. Adam also has to deal with the “wisdom” of his two best friends, Wallace (Ludacris), Eli (Jake M. Johnson).

This movie is full of great one-liners, funny characters, good comedic timing as well as some decent physical comedy on Ashton’s part. Our Oscar-winning Natalie doesn’t disappoint in a comedy. And while Ashton does run the risk of being typecast as the funny but hunky romantic lead, I have no complaints here. The guy knows how to entertain his audience.

Yes, just like almost every romantic comedy, this one has a happy ending. But with romcoms, it is almost always about the journey of the couple, and this one offers a very entertaining one at that. It does inevitably get romantic (and emotional) on occasion, but this doesn’t take away from all the moments it made you grin and laugh.

See it. Currently, 6.3 on IMDB. I think it deserves a 7.

Written by Elizabeth Meriwether & Michael Samonek. Directed by Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters series, Six Days Seven Nights).

Fun note:

Boston Legal’s Lake Bell co-stars as Adam’s neurotic and talkative friend/co-worker.

Favorite lines:

Adam & Emma are having sex anytime, anywhere. At Adam’s house, Eli. comes knocking on the door to complain:

Eli: I can’t concentrate on the porn with all the real sex going on around here!

Wallace tells Adam to man-up & (and try to have sex with Lake Bell’s character), right after Wallace has cried at the shooting of the episode Adam has written.

Eli: You just cried at the show!

Wallace:I liked it!

Favorite Scenes:

– Pretty much any interaction Ashton has with Kevin Kline.

– When Ashton wakes up naked at Emma’s house (from the trailer).

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Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton & Patrick Wilson

Posted on March 29, 2011 Written by ripitup

Morning Glory starring Harrison Ford, Rachel McAdams, Diane Keaton & Patrick Wilson — Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton & Patrick Wilson. Featuring John Pankow, Jeff Goldblum & Ty Burrell. Image via shockya.com

Becky Fuller (Rachel McAdams) is a young and accomplished TV show producer. She is all about her work, so she doesn’t really care that much when her obsessive work habits scare off her dates. She is crushed, however, when she gets replaced by another producer. So she frantically sends out resumes and desperately hangs on to the one interview she manages to score: producing the morning show at IBS. Her enthusiasm persuades her desperate boss Jerry Barnes (Jerry Goldblum) is hired.

But soon she realizes that she has more problems than a low paycheck and current low ratings of the show: The female host Colleen Peck (Diane Keaton) is pretty sure Becky will soon be replaced, and the male host (Ty Burrell – Phil of Modern Family) is a complete jackass. She fires him, but now she has to find a new male host. Unfortunately, the network has no budget for a good, new host. Desperate, Becky decides to go after her idol, legendary news personality Mike Pomeroy (Harrison Ford), who has a contract at the network but not much reporting to do.

It will be excruciating to try to persuade him to co-host. And it will be even more frustrating to be able to handle Colleen when he is being all conceited and difficult. After all, according to his former colleague Adam (Patrick Wilson), Mike is the third worst person in the world!

It takes all of Becky’s energy to try save the show without losing her mind. And she also has to deal with the fact that Adam is interested in her, and her relationship with him might be worth the hassle. Can Becky handle it all?

Morning Glory is a lovely comedy with some emotional moments. The plot is pretty good, and the cast is even better. I love a movie where I can gather a lot of my favorite actors in one place. It was also really fun to see John Pankow, Episodes’ jackass network producer Merc, play a really nice guy in this movie. He is friendly, helpful and loyal. And he is a family man. Quite a nice contrast.

And as opposed to most Harrison Ford fans, I enjoy him more in comedies, and this is no exception. He is as the perfect grumpy old bastard.

Morning Glory is a must see, especially for people who really love their careers. It is a lovely tale on saving your job, making friends with the most unlikely people and having a good relationship on the side. Strongly recommended.

Written by Aline Brosh McKenna (Three to Tango, Laws of Attraction). Directed by Roger Michell (Changing Lanes, Persuasion).

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