pinartarhan.com

Fun and comprehensive entertainment blog feat. movies, TV series, actors, movie-makers, music & books: 1980 - Present

  • Home
  • Hire Me
  • Books
  • Privacy Policy

This Is The End: Would Work Much Better as an SNL Stint

Posted on December 13, 2013 Written by ripitup

Share

 
This Is The End cast
This Is The End survivors. Image via ign.com.

 I wasn’t sure about This Is The End. I wanted to see it, because the idea is really cool, and some of my favorite humor has been about celebrities making fun of themselves in TV shows or on live stints. For instance:

Gerard Butler and Saturday Night Live

Writing Humor That Cracks You Up 1: Poking Fun at Oneself Unashamedly (includes Kevin Bacon, Dermot Mulroney and more.)

I didn’t want to see This Is The End because I wasn’t sure I’d be laughing that much at Seth Rogen. I have nothing against the guy, but I’ve liked him a lot more in drama. Same goes for Jonah Hill. Or if he’s doing comedy, I want Channing Tatum and a Johnny Depp cameo, aka 21 Jump Street.

And apparently, I like Jay Baruchel a lot more when he comes with Nicolas Cage, Alfred Molina and Teresa Palmer, aka The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. It might be mindless entertainment, but it is very entertaining, and sometimes that’s enough.

Now, I have a soft spot for James Franco because of Freaks and Geeks, as well as Tristan & Isolde. But his character wasn’t any more entertaining than Rogen’s. And maybe a little less annoying than Hill’s.

Also, there’s the chance the humor could/would overuse jokes about weed, guys being around other guys and then sum. Too bad I was more right about my reservations than my enthusiasm.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying I hated the movie. I just hated some parts of it (especially if it included Michael Cera. How was that supposed to be funny other than his death scene? That was enjoyable.)

I laughed a bit, but I was more disappointed. I had to fast-forward quite a bit.

On the plus side, writing a review is easy because I don’t have to remember character names. Everyone plays themselves.

Let’s go over the good and the bad.

The Good (Also The Funny & Fun):

–       Two guys (Rogen and Baruchel) having weedy bromance moments and the background music is Backstreet Boys. That’s hilariously weird. And 90s.

–       Seth Rogen being greeted by reporters at the airport and is told he always plays himself.

–       Seth being on a cleanse which includes smoking, weed and hamburgers.

–       Also him thinking gluten is the mother of evil, and not knowing what it actually is.

–       Seth Rogen and Jay Baruchel finding themselves in the middle of Armageddon, and screaming like crazy, trying to survive until they head back to Franco’s.

–       James Franco and party folk not having a clue the word outside is falling apart and not believing Baruchel, and Rogen selling out Baruchel to maintain believability.

–       Emma Watson surviving and thinking they are in a zombie apocalypse.

–       Remaining guys shooting a sequel to the Pineapple Express at home and watching it for fun.

–       The ending with the Backstreet Boys cameo. Considering where and when Baruchel makes a wish, it’s too ridiculous not to be hilarious.

*

The Bad:

– Danny McBride: his fictional Danny takes obnoxious to a new level, and I think a character wouldn’t be that obnoxious/selfish/stupid in real world. Or people would have killed him. Seriously.

– The repetitive, unfunny jokes.

-Getting high in the middle of world ending. Yeah, sure, do that. Get extra hungry and thirsty and risk sickness. That’s cool.

– The dialogue in general.

-The Channing Tatum cameo. You want to use Tatum for comedy? Great. Have him scream his head off in a shrill voice when he is faced with real danger. Don’t make him McBride’s bitch. Literally.

*

I have nothing against well-done, R-rated comedies. And I don’t mind political incorrectness. Or actors playing similar characters, if those characters are likeable and plots of the movies vary enough. Some of my favorite comedies of all time are Old  School, Wedding Crashers and The Hangover (the first one). But not all absurd comedies click with you (like The Hangover sequel).

I think the movie would have worked a lot better if it ran for 5-10 minutes instead of 107 minutes.

Hey, all reviews and criticisms are obviously objective. However sometimes the “average” views and ratings baffle you. Like when this gets a 7.0 on IMDB. I’d have been OK with a 4 or 5. If I had seen it at the theater though, I’d have rated much lower (than 5).

*

So have you seen it? What did you think?

 

Share

Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: backstreet boys, backstreet boys this is the end, channing tatum, danny mcbride, emma watson, James Franco, james franco this is the end, Jay Baruchel, Jonah Hill, michael cera, Seth Rogen, seth rogen this is the end, this is the end, this is the end cast, this is the end movie, this is the end movie review

Funny People starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann

Posted on November 15, 2009 Written by ripitup

Share

Funny People with Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann and Eric Bana
Funny People with Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann and Eric Bana

I was really looking forward to this movie. I had seen the trailer and I thought : “Cool! We are going to watch a half-funny, half- dramatic film!” Well the movie was a little dramatic and a little funny but that’s all. And that can’t really get you through 153 minutes (146, if it is not unrated). I am not saying it was all bad, but there were so many unnecessary scenes and so many useless lines- it just doesn’t work.

So George Simmons (Adam Sandler) is a successful, highly popular and very rich comedic actor. He has come a long way from stand-up comics. He doesn’t have a problem picking women and all looks fine for him-until he goes to the doctor’s and finds out he is terminally ill. He examines his life. He realizes he has screwed up when he ruined things with the love of his life, Laura (Leslie Mann). Laura left George when he cheated on her and went on to marry an Australian called Clarke (Eric Bana) who apparently cheats on her too. But she has two kids with him…

George doesn’t have any real friends either. When he goes back to the stage for live comedy (probably for nostalgic reasons), he meets a clumsy,not-so-funny Ira and for some reason decides to have him work for him. Ira is ecstatic- he is writing jokes and assisting his favorite funny man.

Ira has two close friends: Leo (Jonah Hill) a comic a little funnier (supposedly) than him and Mark (Jason Schwartzman) who plays in a sitcom that Ira can’t really stand to watch.

So the movie concentrates on relationships and trusts the dialogs: Between George and Ira, Ira and his buddies, Ira and Laura and later on my favorite : when Clarke comes from a business trip to find George and Ira at home with his wife and kids.

There are things I like about the movie, I can’t say I despised it. Let me write down the likes first:

Likes:

+ Eric Bana: Don’t tell me it is because he looks good because he doesn’t , not here. But he is a good actor and his role & over-the-top Australian accent is funny. He is a real Aussie but that’s not how he actually speaks…And there were some good jokes that came from Ira about why they shouldn’t mess with him.

+ Seth Rogen: I normally don’t like him. I despised his character in Knocked-Up, he just wasn’t funny. But in this movie, he is the only character that is well…humane and at least slightly likable. With all his failures and good intentions, he was fun to watch. He has also some funny takes on who makes it successful in life. And Ira’s stand-up scenes at least one or two funny moments.

Dislikes:

– Leslie Mann’s Laura: She was fine and likable at first but later she just got…OK, so she can forgive a cheater ex (Adam Sandler) because he is dying. Fair enough. But then he gets better and she suddenly acts like he is the one that got away and her husband is an asshole..and..yeah the problem is Clarke isn’t actually that big an asshole, he is certainly not worse than George. So you sympathize with…no one, really! Ira is OK but then he really acts like a crybaby most of the time and you just want him to tell George to stick it.

-The Brat Pack: I don’t have anything against Brat Packs or crude comedy- as long as the combination works. I like the group of Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson and well, I adore Old School. But if you are going to throw in lots of swearing and abrasive language, please make sure it is funny!

-The stand-up acts: The movie involves so many scenes with them. It just slows the movie down. Really slows it down, because they are just not funny 99% of the time.

– Duration : You really shouldn’t have a story pretending to be profound for 153 minutes, when you could have a much more effective and much funnier story told in 90 minutes! I thought it was ironic. In one scene Laura tells George to cut the swearing and he jokes that then he wouldn’t have a third act. I wish Leslie Mann had told the same thing to real life husband Judd Apatow. Yes, brat pack and family members….Ouch!

In wish I had known the movie was Judd Apatow’s and his brat pack’s.His movie making is just my style. I can’t say I didn’t enjoy 40-year-old virgin, the movie had a lot of funny moments. But I was really bored during Knocked Up. It wasn’t funny, I didn’t like any of the characters and if a comedy doesn’t make you laugh, you feel bad. I have nothing against Sandler- I actually really like some of his movies, like The Wedding Singer, Big Daddy, The Longest Yard and Anger Management. But the elements in the movies just don’t work. Indiviudally, Bana,Sandler and Rogen are good. The idea of the story is fine. Cameos are fun. But..that’s pretty much it. And it certainly didn’t help that I watched this movie on the same day I watched Hangover. The Hangover is my next post- it is directed by the Old School director Todd Philips. And it is a perfect example of how you can be crass and funny without being boring and irrelevant.

Other Movies feat. Jonah Hill

The Invention of Lying

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Share

Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Adam Sandler, Brat Pack, comedy, drama, Eric Bana, Funny People, Jason Schwartzman, Jonah Hill, Judd Apatow, Leslie Mann, movies, Seth Rogen

In the mood for a fun romcom novel?

Copyright © 2025 · Focus Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Reject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT