These Boys Can Party..."Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates"

Mike & Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016)

Rated R

Starring Zac Efron, Adam Devine, Anna Kendrick, Aubrey Plaza, Stephen Root, Stephanie Faracy, Sugar Lyn Beard, Sam Richardson, Alice Wetterlund,

Directed by Jake Szymanski

The Story:

Mike (Devine) and Dave (Efron) have driven their parents (Root & Faracy) to the edge. Tired of their antics at family functions by showing up single, and drunk, they have an ultimatum for their sister Jeanie's (Beard) wedding in Hawaii. Show up with dates, or don't show up at all. So naturally, the boys do what anyone else would do in this day and age: post an ad on Craigslist.

What could possibly go wrong?

Naturally, this R-rated comedy is rude, crude, silly, stupid, obnoxious...

and funny.

Some of the gags misfire, but more work than don't.

And if you take the crudeness out of the jokes, and they still are funny, then you know it's a pretty good comedy.

This one definitely got more right than Efron's previous, yet similar film this year, Dirty Grandpa.

Much of that credit has to go to Efron and Devine who make a great comedy team. The sleaze is dialed way back in this one, and much of the humor is Mike and Dave's relationship with each other, the rest of their family, and of course, their final selections of Craigslist candidates (Kendrick and Plaza).

The girls have their own skeletons that they are trying to keep hidden from the boys in hopes of an all-expense paid trip to Hawaii, so it's fun as they are tripped up over their lies as well.

It's a great cast, and a whole lot more fun than I was expecting.

Naturally, with all movies, and comedies especially, there were things that could have been better, but overall, it was much better than I had hoped for.

I'm not sure if, or how, they would pull off a sequel, but with this cast of characters, I'd come back for another round.

Final Grade: B-

The Odd Couple... "Dirty Grandpa"

Dirty Grandpa (2016)

Rated R

Starring Zac Efron, Robert DeNiro, Zoey Deutch, Aubrey Plaza, Jason Mantzoukas, Julianne Hough,

Directed by Dan Mazer

The Story:

Dick (DeNiro) is in mourning after his wife has passed. He guilts his favorite grandson, Jason (Efron) into taking him on a road trip to Florida to spread the ashes. Ah, but what Jason will soon come to realize, is that Grandpa is itching to use his newfound freedom to get busy with the ladies in Florida. Lenore (Plaza) is willing, and her best friend Shadia (Deutch) just happens to be an ex-classmate of Jason's. The biggest problem, Jason has life-plans that don't include helping his grandpa get laid.

So, going with that explanation and the title of the film, you know what to expect going into this one.

If you dare to enter!

What you'll find is people moaning and lamenting the decline of DeNiro as a serious actor.

Bah.

What you'll find is DeNiro doing his job as an actor in a part that was probably made for him. The man has got to work, and unless they're lining up GoodFellas, Raging Bulls or the like demanding that DeNiro be in their films, well, sorry, clearly he enjoys working and his legacy on film is secure enough that he can pretty much do whatever he wants to do at this point in his career.

Sure, we can always hope the film will be worthy of more artistic merit, but don't begrudge DeNiro a living.

Whatever work he does now, whether in comedies or direct to DVD fare, doesn't diminish what he's done before.

So too with Efron, as he continues to stay as far away from his Disney Channel roots as possible. As the uptight grandson, he doesn't get to be the party-boy like his character in Neighbors, but like DeNiro, he's willing to put his all into the project, even if it means being the butt of most of the jokes.

That said, as the title implies it's filthy, with language and situations flying a mile a minute for the "shock and awe" factor but there's enough actual comedy to make this one worth a viewing.

If for no other reason than Jason Mantzoukas who is quickly becoming one of my favorite supporting actors. Whenever he shows up in a film, the scenes he appears in are of such manic energy, they begin to support the entire film and make everything just a little bit better.

If you're going to go for raunchy humor, while you can do better, you can almost definitely do a lot worse than this one.

Final Grade: C+

Aside From The Cast, I Found Little Appeal From "Parks And Recreation"

Parks & Recreation  (2009)

TV-PG

Starring Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Pratt, Aziz Ansari, Rashida Jones

Created by Greg Daniels and Michael Shur

The Story:

Take a behind the scenes look at the local politics and backstabbing that take place at the Parks and Recreation office in a small Indiana town.

No, I did not watch this show when it aired.

It's now streaming on Netflix, so I decided to take a gander and see what I thought.

Much like Firefly, meh, it didn't really seem that great.

It's a wonderful cast, and from the actors that I saw (Poehler, Plaza, Pratt, Jones) I've loved them in many other things that I've watched them in.

With this show, I've watched 2 episodes...

And I just can't see myself wanting or having to see the remaining 123 episodes.

It was amusing in spots, but nothing gut-bustingly funny nor compelling enough that I have to see it.

I know, it just doesn't seem fair.

How can I judge a series after only 2 episodes?

And yet, we do it all the time.

The networks parade a wide variety of shows each and every season...some stick, some don't.

If you can't grab me by the first episode, what are the odds I will come back next week?

Looking back at what I watched last year, and even going back farther, perhaps I lean towards the hour long shows (42 minute runtime on Netflix!) as it gives the show a chance to flesh itself out in the pilot and grow on me twice as fast.

So with the daunting task of facing 45+ more hours of Parks and Recreation, or going about my business of watching just about anything else...

Yep, I'm aiming for other offerings for my time.

Final Grade-  C

Love Conquers All... "Life After Beth"

Life After Beth (2014)

Rated R

Starring Aubrey Plaza, Dane DeHaan, John C. Reilly, Molly Shannon, Anna Kendrick, Paul Reiser

Written and Directed by Jeff Baena

The Story:

Beth Slocum (Plaza) is alone hiking in the woods. The next thing we see is a wake with her family (Reilly & Shannon) grieving alongside her boyfriend, Zach (DeHaan). However, a few days later, Beth returns and her parents are overjoyed at the miracle of her return. When Zach finds out, he thinks that telling Beth the truth is in her best interest, but her parents and Beth's erratic memory make that a less than viable solution.

Zach's got his work cut out for him if he wants to keep his relationship with Beth from dying... again!

However, wishing your girlfriend was not dead becomes problematic when she returns as a walking, talking... zombie.

If that wasn't problematic enough, she may not be the only one.

This one is a slow-starter, and continues a slow burn towards the conclusion.

Baena does offer an interesting twist to the zombie mythos in his presentation of the undead.

Not nearly as family-friendly as Warm Bodies, but it could have been, easily.

A few lines of dialogue and this could have been a fun-entry to watch annually this time of year.


Final Grade: C

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Maybe in a few years I'll catch it on cable, but not quite good enough to add to the collection.

Someone's Been Very, Very Naughty..."The To Do List"

What's a girl to do?

Oh my!

The Story:

Brandy Klark (Aubrey Plaza) is the uptight valedictorian of her class (of '93).  However, as she prepares for a summer of work and college in the fall, she feels pressured by her friends and older sister to...
Well, stop being a virgin.

Soooo....

Brandy makes a list of things she thinks she needs to accomplish before the fall, and then sets out to accomplish her naughty "to do" list, with anyone she can "to do it" with!

Well, that was unexpected!

I'm still not sure how to approach this rated R (with good reason) coming of age comedy.

It's like a female version of American Pie, but less virgins trying to end their suffering.

Instead, it's all Brandy trying to learn all the ways of being a woman, even many ways that her sluttier friends and sister haven't tried yet.

With her job at the local pool working for Willy (Bill Hader), Brandy is the subject of hazing as the noob, but she's got her eye on the last item on her list: Rusty Waters (Scott Porter).  She'll use her friend Cameron (Johnny Simmons) and anyone else to gain the experience she thinks she's lacking.

However, along the way she's going to realize that sex without feelings isn't as great as everyone made it out to be.

Used briefly, but effectively, Clark Gregg as Brandy's dad.  He's hilarious in what he doesn't want to see happen to his daughters.  He literally squirms with discomfort in nearly every scene.

Final Grade: B-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Probably not, at least for a few years.  It's funny enough though.

The Movie of the Week: "Safety Not Guaranteed"

When this sucker hits 88 miles per hour...


The Story:

An ad taken out in a Seattle magazine looking for a fellow time-traveler sparks a story interest for a reporter and his two interns.  The writer is actually hoping to hook up with an old flame, and he lets the interns do the heavy lifting.  The female intern gains the time traveler's trust, and the two begin to bond.  She even begins to question how real this whole idea is when she realizes he's being followed by the feds!

Sometimes a movie comes along that you have no expectations for, and it blows you away.

Congratulations, this is that movie.

Funny dialogue, great performances by a bunch of "who are these people?"  Aubrey Plaza is the star as the intern, Darius.  I've never seen her before, but she was amazing and hilariously funny as she deadpanned her way through the movie and I look forward to seeing her in the future.

When the movie ends, I have to admit I was a bit shocked with the ending, or the way it ended, but in the end, not really disappointed.  The movie didn't promise me anything more than what it delivered, and when I think back on this movie, I smile with fond memories of having a good time.

With movies these days, that is often more than enough.

Available to stream instantly on Netflix as of this moment.

Final Grade: A-

Would I Own This One: I could see adding this one to the library.  I would definitely watch it again on streaming in the future when I want to see something I've already watched.