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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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Dangerous Beauty starring Rufus Sewell & Catherine McCormack

Posted on February 18, 2011 Written by ripitup

Dangerous Beauty starring Rufus Sewell & Catherine McCormack. Feat. Jacqueline Bisset, Naomi Watts & Oliver Platt. Image via cinemanow.com

Marco (Rufus Sewell), a handsome and fun-loving guy from an established Venice family. And life is going just fine for him – especially after he falls in love with his sister (Moira Kelly)’s friend Veronica (Catherine McCormack).

Veronica and Marco are crazy about one another. But their happiness lasts only until Marco’s father reminds him that he has to marry according to his station; that is marrying to a girl with parents with the right background. Marco accepts this, devastating Veronica.

Veronica is intelligent, beautiful, modern and elegant. She is also a poet and a romantic. But since her pen wouldn’t feed her or her family, her mother (Jacqueline Bisset) comes up with the most shocking career option: being a courtesan. Although she is outraged by the idea, sleeping with men for money sounds better than living in a convent. So after some training, Veronica turns into the perfect seductress

Of course Marco is shocked and he is disappointed, especially when he is one of the very few men in Venice who is rejected by her – the other one being his own cousin Maffio (Oliver Platt).

Now, Marco is stuck in an unhappy marriage, still madly in love with Veronica. Veronica still isn’t over him and as events unfold, they will find it impossible to stay apart. But Maffio has sworn for revenge and when war strikes, Veronica might just lose all the power she has and witness the whole country turn against her, except for Marco…

The movie is a lovely, romantic period drama with wonderful performances from both Rufus Sewell and Catherine McCormack. Oliver Platt is always fun to watch, even when he plays the jerk.

Naomi Watts has a supporting role as Marco’s wife. The scenery, costumes and the art direction are simply beautiful. It is romantic and thought-provoking. Catherine’s character Veronica is really inspiring. She really had the guts to question the hypocrisy of her time.

It is especially recommended for the fans of period dramas and Rufus Sewell. You might remember Catherine McCormack from her short but very important role in 1995’s Braveheart.

Also on Naomi Watts

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Easy A starring Emma Stone, Penn Badgley, Amanda Bynes, Thomas Haden Church & Dan Byrd

Posted on February 7, 2011 Written by ripitup

Easy A starring Emma Stone, Penn Badgley, Amanda Bynes, Dan Byrd & Thomas Haden Church. Featuring Lisa Kudrow, Cam Gigandet, Stanley Tucci, Patricia Clarkson & Malcolm McDowell. Image via sinemag.com

Easy A is easily one of the best movies set in a high school. It is original, totally fesses up the clichés it uses and rubs its nose in it – while making us laugh and smile the whole time. A bit like Gossip (minus the darkness and drama) combined with 10 Things I Hate About You, but it is its own movie. Here we go:

Olive (Emma Stone) is a pretty, smart and accomplished high school student but no one really seems to know who she is, apart from her best friend Rhiannon (Alyson Michalka), school’s hot mascot (Penn Badgdley) and her favorite teacher Mr. Griffith (Thomas Haden Church).

This all changes by one annoying coincidence when she lies to Rhi about losing her virginity. The school’s religion-obsessed Marianne (Amanda Bynes) hears it and the next thing, the whole school has spread, changed and “enriched” the story. Not that Olive’s complaining, at least now everyone knows her name. But when she confesses the truth to school mate Brandon (Dan Byrd), he decides that he can do the same thing- spread a rumor and have a better high school life.

Brandon is gay and he asks Olive to say they slept together. When they fake it for the whole school, the rumor becomes that Olive’s slut. Rhi gets pissed Olive’s getting all the attention and Marianne is becoming more obsessed about making Olive find Jesus. Then a whole bunch of school boys ask for lies from Olive and Olive finds herself understanding what Hester went through in The Scarlet Letter…

The movie has a hilarious story, backed-up with great one-liners and an awesome cast. We have Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci for Olive’s sweet and unconventional parents, Thomas Haden-Church for the English teacher, Friends’ Phoebe Lisa Kudrow as the worst guidance counselor ever and Cam Gidanget as the oldest high school student. Of course the lead Emma Stone fits the role just fine. Amanda Bynes is annoying and funny as hell. And Penn Badgdley does look the part as the understated, good-looking guy who happens to be nice too…

Favorite Line:

Emma: I’m looking for the bible.

Bookstore Clerk: Oh, it is in the Bestsellers, right next to Twilight.

Fun notes:

Cam Gidanget, who plays Marianne’s boyfriend was actually in the first Twilight movie. He played the main villain.

Also on Patricia Clarkson:

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Love and Other Drugs starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway

Posted on January 29, 2011 Written by ripitup

Love and Other Drugs starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway

1996. Jamie (Jake Gyllenhaal) is an attractive, charming and smart guy who uses all his brain cells to make more sales and have sex with as many women as possible. But when he screws his boss’s wife, he finds himself looking for a new job and with the help of his brother Josh (Josh Gad), he starts working as a drug rep. for Pfizer. With the help of his politically incorrect mentor Bruce (Oliver Platt) and his own skills, he is getting the hang of the job, while sleeping with even more women.

But then Jamie meets Maggie (Anne Hathaway) at a doctor (Hank Azaria)’s office and suddenly Jamie is only having sex with Maggie. And why not? She’s hot, independent and she is offering more booty calls than he can handle. But there are 2 problems: Maggie has Parkinson’s disease and the more time they spend together, the more Jamie gets to like her. But Maggie is resisting any commitment or emotional attachment. Even if Jamie can persuade her to be his girlfriend, can they make it work with her symptoms and fears?

The movie has a lot to tell. It has a love story, the launch of Viagra, Jamie’s career, his coming to terms with deeper sides of his personality, very talkative supporting characters who try to steal the scene, Maggie trying to fit in a relationship in her life….

Love and Other Drugs is a film with some original moments and many clichés. Well, telling a mixed genre of comedy/romance/drama is not easy.

But the way director/co-writer Edward Zwick (Legends of the Fall, Glory, The Last Samurai) started telling this story, I thought we were going to a get a Cameron Crowe (Elizabeth Town, Jerry Maguire) or Jason Reitman (Up in the Air) style film – sincere, refreshing & highly entertaining.

A little short of 2 hours, Love and Other Drugs could be edited more. It could also have a better dialogue. And a couple less superficial characters?

Edward Zwick’s film starts in the tradition of Cameron and Jason and then suddenly becomes…well, something different and less impressive. It has a nice soundtrack, though.

Some could argue that the movie tried to be show life as it is – politically incorrect, rude, awkward, competitive, sarcastic….But then I could argue it gives you just as many clichés as your average romantic comedy- just with much more nudity. Come on- the misunderstood, potentially great guy who was previously a womanizer only finding his true self through love. The girl resisting true romance because of her fears? Even the big chasing gesture…

This movie is not bad. It is just not as good as I expected. Its problem? It’s not funny enough and it is not romantic enough. It is just alright. 6.6 on IMDB.

Fun notes:

– Gabriel Macht plays competitive firm’s drug-rep.

– Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal hooked up on screen before in Brokeback Mountain, although Jake’s true love in the film was Heath Ledger.

– Hank Azaria had a recurring guest role on Friends as Phoebe’s scientist boyfriend.

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