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+

This Mother's Day Give Mom a "Safe Haven"

Nicholas Sparks is at it again!

The Story:

A young woman named Katie (Julianne Hough) arrives in a small town in North Carolina, and she's running from something terrible in her past.  Upon arrival, she tries to keep to herself as much as possible, but it's hard to ignore the sweet charm of the local store owner, Alex (Josh Duhamel) and his sweet kids.  At the urging of Jo (Cobie Smulders), Katie begins to open up her heart and life to Alex.  However, her past secrets are hot on her trail, and it could ruin the very life that Katie is working hard to rebuild.

I did not see that coming.

Okay, I would guess it is safe to say I've seen enough Nicholas Sparks' movies to be an pseudo-expert on the man's work.

: )

Previously, The Notebook was my favorite film that he wrote.  The bad part, it's got such a tear-jerking ending, I cannot watch that movie ever again.

Niagara Falls, baby.

No lies..no shame.  It's a beautiful story about love that lasts a lifetime... but man it hurts to watch.

His last two films that I watched, Dear John and The Lucky One... meh.

Call me unimpressed, overall.

So rolling into Safe Haven, the only silver lining I had was Josh Duhamel as the star.  I'm a fan.  Love the guys work.  Heck, he was one of the few bright spots in the entire Transformers franchise.

He did not disappoint here either.  He's absolutely movie-charming, and everything you need the leading man to be.  He's friendly, compassionate, great with kids, and heartbroken since losing his wife to cancer.  Is Alex ready to move on?

Well, duh.

Katie is naturally reluctant... and her sordid past is revealed, slowly, steadily throughout the movie by way of flashbacks.  It's an effective technique to keep you guessing on why she's running, and why the law is hot on her trail.

The climactic finale feels a bit forced, but the build to it was suspenseful and intriguing enough that you can let it pass.

And then the movie quiets down, and offers up one more piece of the puzzle that you may or may not have considered up to that point.

Well played Nicholas Sparks, you got me to cry.  Again.

Final Grade: B

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I could consider both.  Entertained throughout, and the ending, while heart-string tugging is not as nearly as emotionally devastating as the Notebook.  I can appreciate that.