drama | pinartarhan.com

Life As We Know It starring Katherine Heigl, Josh Duhamel & Josh Lucas

Posted on January 28, 2011 Written by ripitup

Life As We Know It starring Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel.

Eric Messer (Josh Duhamel) is a gorgeous, fun-loving guy who works as a technical director at a broadcast network. And he just loves women way too much to commit to any one of them.

Holly Berenson (Katherine Heigl) owns and runs her own pastry shop where she cooks everything herself. She is much more emotional and romantic compared to Messer. And the only thing these two have in common are mutual best friends Alison and Peter (Christina Hendricks and Hayes MacArthur), who are in a serious relationship and they think it was a good idea for Eric and Holly to meet and hook up.

Unfortunately, Eric and Holly detest each other and can’t even complete one date. Both would be glad to never see the other one again but Alison and Peter get married and start a family- the big house and a kid named Sophie included. Of course being their best friends, Eric and Holly spend a lot more time together than they would like- being Sophie’s godparents and all.

But when both Alison and Peter die in a car crash, not liking each other becomes the least of their problems. Messer and Holly find out that they were picked as Sophie’s guardians. While neither is sure they can handle it, it looks like they’re Sophie’s best option. So this is where the story really begins- when they move in to their friends’ house and try to adjust their lives – work and private- around Sophie. Of course they need to convince themselves and the social worker (Sarah Burns) that they can handle it.. Throw in Messer being a chick magnet and the handsome doctor Sam (Josh Lucas) interested in Holly and their lives as they know it had never been so complicated…

I wasn’t looking forward to see Life As We Know It at first. I thought it was going to be annoying mushy and predictable. And while it was predictable, it was never annoying. It was a bittersweet, emotional film that focused more on how the unlikely “parents” tried, and then learned to be parents than the relationship between the two leads. Sure, there will be romance at some point. But come on- you know that you don’t cast Josh Duhamel and Katherine Heigl as the two leads and not make their characters hook up.

But the best part of the film is that it tells a familiar tale in such a fun and sincere way that it makes it really easy to identify with Holly and Messer as they try their best to take care of Sophie, find a way to get along and cope with their friends’ deaths.

And if you have a problem with Heigl’s comedic abilities, worry not. While there are funny moments, this is not exactly a comedic role.

Lovely film. It won’t change your life. It won’t impress you much. But it really might put a smile on your face.

Directed by Greg Berlanti. Written by Ian Deitchman & Kristin Rusk Robinson. Currently rated at 6 on IMDB.

Fun notes:

– Sophie is played by real life triplet sisters Alexis, Brynn & Brooke Clagett.
– Sarah Burns once again co-stars in a neurotic role. You might remember her as Rashida Jones’ best friend who totally freaked Jason Segel out in the comedy I Love You, Man.

Favorite Scene:

Right before and during the baby’s first steps. Messer and Holly’s reactions are hilarious and so is the baby.

Other Posts feat. Josh Duhamel

When in Rome starring Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel

Celebrities That Look Alike feat. Josh Duhamel, Timothy Olyphant, Ethan Hawke, Antonio Banderas &more

22 Tall Actors from Hollywood feat. Josh Duhamel, Paul Walker, Keanu Reeves, Gerard Butler& More

Other Posts feat. Katherine Heigl

Killers starring Ashton Kutcher, Katherine Heigl and Tom Selleck

The Ugly Truth starring Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler

The Accidental Husband and Denny Duquette: Jeffrey Dean Morgan

3 TV Series About Aliens: Roswell, 3rd Rock From The Sun and V (2009)

Tall Actresses: Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Garner, Katherine Heigl, Sigourney Weaver and Uma Thurman

Covert Affairs starring Piper Perabo, Christopher Gorham & Kari Matchett

Posted on January 22, 2011 Written by ripitup

Covert Affairs starring Piper Perabo, Christopher Gorham & Kari Matchett. Image via screenrant.com

Annie Walker (Piper Perabo) is a talented and beautiful CIA trainee who outperforms others at pretty much anything. And she speaks 6 languages so Langley can’t wait to get her on the field.

The reason she wanted to be CIA was because she no longer wanted to suffer from deception. A while back, the love of her life – Ben (Eion Bailey) walked out on her, with a note that said “truth is complicated”.

Annie does her best to adjust to CIA protocol as well as her cold yet confident boss Joan (Kari Matchett), who is married to the Arthur Campbell (Peter Callagher), who happens to be their boss. While Joan and Arthur try to solve their marital problems, they also strategize on how to make the best use of Annie, without truly revealing the truth. Annie’s ex Ben was right. The truth is complicated and he just might be a big part of everything.

Blind and brilliant tech guy Auggie (Christopher Gorham) becomes Annie’s best friend and ally, as well as the series’ main sense of humor.

Of course Annie is expected to hide her real job from her sister Danielle (Anne Dudek). Danielle is happily married with two kids and Annie is staying at their guest house. Living close to them makes keeping secrets harder and stressful.

Each episode covers a new case as well as some foreshadowing on “the complicated truth”. We get action, deception, role play, a little drama and more action, with some comedic relief attached.

Covert Affairs is a fun action/drama with a decent cast. It looks like Kari Matchett decided her supporting role in Leverage as Nathan Ford (Timothy Hutton)’s ex-wife didn’t cover enough espionage or screen time so here she is in one of the leading roles.

Peter Callagher (The O.C., Sex Lies and Videotape, While You Were Sleeping) is getting older and more charismatic, certainly looking his powerful position. And isn’t it fun to see Anne Dudek in such a domestic role after she was the bitch of a doctor on House and beat the crap out of Josh Radnor’s Ted Mosby on an episode of How I Met Your Mother?

Sure, my favorite CIA agent ever will be Jennifer Garner’s Sydney Bristow of Alias. Covert Affairs started at a fun but medium pace. So far, it lacks the excitement level of the first Alias seasons, but it is very entertaining and promising. Since I no longer have Alias, I might as well have another spy show with a female lead.

Certainly recommended for Alias fans, lovers of the spy genre and definitely anyone who loves to see the female lead a girl kick ass.

7.7 on IMDB.

Fun notes:

Piper Perabo was nominated for Golden Globe this year for her role as Annie. She lost out to Katey Sagal, who won for her role in the series Sons of Anarchy. I don’t know about you, but for me Katey Sagal will always remind me of her hilarious role of 11 years as Peggy Bundy on Married with Children.

Canadian actress Emmanuelle Vaugier plays the beautiful and charismatic reporter who might give CIA a hard time. She also plays The Morrigan, head of the local dark Fae government in Lost Girl.

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men starring Julianne Nicholson, Timothy Hutton & John Krasinski

Posted on January 21, 2011 Written by ripitup

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men starring Julianne Nicholson, Timothy Hutton & John Krasinski

Yep, the title doesn’t sound appealing at all. And the movie is even less appealing. I gave it my best shot but after 40 minutes, I made good use of the fast forward button.
I tried to watch it because Timothy Hutton co-stars and more often than not, he stars in good movies. This is not one of them.

The plot?

Professor Adams (Timothy Hutton)’s assistant Sara (Julianne Nicholson) has been cheated on and dumped by her boyfriend Ryan. So she interviews a wide range of men on the subject of women, as means to cope with her break-up with men and well, eventually trying to make sense of them.

Unfortunately for the audience, none of the men say anything remotely interestingand Sara doesn’t come off as smart or pretty. She just seems obsessed.
Brief Interviews with Hideous Men is a 2009 movie was based on the story collections by David Foster Wallace. It was adapted and directed by John Krasinski, who also plays Ryan.

I have no idea what fascinated John into shooting this movie. Yes, the movie is supposedly a comedy/drama but it feels like one long and annoying documentary.
The movie also features Will Arnett and Dominic Cooper.
At 5.6 on IMDB, I’d have to say it is hideously overrated.

Also on Timothy Hutton:

Beautiful Girls starring Timothy Hutton, Matt Dillon, Uma Thurman, Natalie Portman and Mira Sorvino

The Absolute Timothy Hutton Trivia: 18 Facts About Leverage Star Timothy Hutton

City of Industry starring Harvey Keitel, Stephen Dorff and Timothy Hutton

The Killing Room starring Timothy Hutton

Ordinary People starring Timothy Hutton, Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch

Serious Moonlight starring Timothy Hutton and Meg Ryan

Taps starring Timothy Hutton, Tom Cruise and Sean Penn

Leverage TV Series starring Timothy Hutton

The Ghost Writer starring Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan. Feat. Timothy Hutton

The Good Shepherd starring Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie. Feat. Timothy Hutton

Veronica Mars starring Kristen Bell, Teddy Dunn, Jason Dohring & Enrico Colantoni

Posted on January 18, 2011 Written by ripitup

Veronica Mars starring Kristen Bell, Teddy Dunn, Jason Dohring & Enrico Colantoni. Image via dizim.org

Californian high school student Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) is an outcast. She is pretty and smart, yet the popular circle despises her since her best friend Lily (Amanda Seyfried) got murdered at her own house and Veronica’s sheriff father Keith (Enrico Colantoni) blamed Lily’s dad for it. But Lily’s dad being a rich and powerful man, Keith got fired and ridiculed. Lily’s friends asked her to choose, and she stuck with her dad. So her boyfriend Duncan (Teddy Dunn) dumped her, and so did his circle of friends. Moreover she was raped at a party. Oh, and Veronica’s mom couldn’t handle the pressure, loss of income/reputation and left the family “for a while”.

But being an outcast made Veronica the strong, sassy and the independent girl she is today. Her father was replaced by the jerk of a sheriff. Keith Mars now runs a private investigation business and Veronica helps him .

The episodes include that week’s case for Keith, sometimes a separate case for Veronica while father and daughter try to solve the mystery of Lily’s death and Veronica’s mom’s whereabouts, usually keeping their efforts from each other.

Of course being the high school student, Veronica needs to deal with Logan (Jason Dohring) – Duncan’s best friend and constant trouble-maker, the local motorcycle gang and possible romantic involvements.

Veronica Mars is a really fun crime/mystery/drama that is not quite like your other high school series. Veronica has really original and entertaining ways of dealing with trouble and cracking her cases. She is more than able to take care of herself. But of course things with Duncan are really complicated. It seems like Duncan isn’t over Veronica and doesn’t quite know how to handle it. Who can Veronica really trust apart from her new friend Wallace (Percy Daggs III)?

Rated at 8.7 on IMDB (voted by nearly 14,000 people) Veronica Mars is a must-see for mystery lovers. The cast and writers do a good job, although I strictly prefer season 1 and 2 over season 3.

Fun notes:

You might remember Enrico Colantoni as the fashion photographer from the comedy series Just Shoot Me.

One of the guest actors is Sydney Tamaiia Poitier. As the name suggests, she is the daughter of Oscar-Winning actor Sydney Poitier.

If the name and face of Jason Dohring seemed familiar, it is because you might have watched him as a fun-loving, 400 year-old, rich vampire in Moonlight. He played Josef, Mick St. John’s best friend.