You Wouldn't Like Them When They're Angry... "The Angry Birds Movie"

The Angry Birds Movie (2016)

Rated PG

Starring Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Peter Dinklage, Sean Penn, Bill Hader,

Directed by Clay Katis & Fergal Reilly

The Story:

On an island of very happy flightless birds, Red (Sudeikis) just doesn't fit in. He doesn't much care for the other birds, and though they put on a happy face, they really could do without him as well. When his anger gets the best of him, he winds up in therapy where he meets Chuck (Gad) a bird who has a problem with authority, and expresses it at high speed; and Bomb (McBride) who has a tendency to blow up when stressed or surprised. However, when Leonard (Hader), a green pig arrives at the island with seemingly benign intentions, something seems off to Red, and he and his therapy pals are going to uncover the truth, no matter the cost.

Well, they probably began production on this while the Angry Birds iron was still hot, but this seems to be one of those "too little, too late" moments where, hasn't the Angry Birds phase come and gone by now?

But, let's tackle this movie and see what it got right, and what it got wrong.

First, the voice cast, only partially listed above, is top-notch and has some great comedians and actors assembled from top to bottom, even some parts that are only briefly in the movie.

That said, Jason Sudeikis almost sounds bored throughout the movie. Perhaps it's being unable to see Sudeikis delivering the lines himself, as he usually puts a lot of visual energy into his performance, but it seemed to almost be disconnected from where I was sitting.

Not his finest work of the year, but plenty of solid fare from other films this year that I've seen, so no worries.

Of course, you also have the curiosity factor of Sean Penn doing voice work in an animated movie.

Sure...

The animation itself, again, very pretty, no complaints. It's lush, and they adapted the characters and scenery from the movies to near perfection.

Overall, however, the jokes seemed to fall flat throughout the film. I smiled a few times, but I don't recall a whole lot of laughter from myself or any of the kids that watched with me.

That's not good for an animated kids movie.

Plus, this movie contains one of the grossest gags ever in the history of cinema, and I have to say I'm a little amazed that they got away with a PG vs. a PG-13 rating because of it.

In fact, it was moments like that, and few others peppered throughout the film that almost made it seem like they wrote it as an R rated movie, then went back and toned it down as they realized they should be trying to appeal to kids.

Didn't hate it, but came away disappointed.

Final Grade: C-

Sibling Revelry... "Sisters"

Sisters (2015)

Rated R

Starring Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, James Brolin, Dianne Wiest, John Cena, Maya Rudolph, Ike Barinholtz, John Leguizamo

Directed by Jason Moore

The Story:

Maura and Kate (Poehler & Fey) are asked by their parents (Brolin & Wiest) to come home and clean out their bedrooms so they can sell the house. They return home, and decide to throw one last bash, just like the good old days. However, this time, Maura asks Kate if she can be the "house mom" for the night and let Maura have a good time for once at a party. Sure...what could possibly go wrong?

Here's a fun little reversal of fortune as Fey gets to play the crazy one and Poehler gets to play the by-the-book sister. You expect just the opposite for each of them. However, Maura wants one night to be the wild one, and let Kate be in charge, so it's fun to see how hard it is to be the other type of sister during the escalating party.

It's also a credit to both ladies that they can each pull off the funny one or the straight man with ease.

Of course, there's more to the story than just the party, but the party drives most of the plot and helps to resolve most of the conflict that was set up before and during the shenanigans.

It also helps that the house party has a crazy cast of insane characters in their own right.

And as usual, John Cena makes the most of his screen time. He might never be The Rock, but he'll have a future once he hangs it up for good in the wrestling world.

Don't get me wrong, I laughed, but I feel like a movie like this, I should have laughed more.

It was good, but I thought it could be better.

Of course, almost all movies could always stand to be a bit better, right?

So at the end of the day, I'm glad I watched it, but I don't have that urge to see it again soon, which is often the mark of a great movie.

Final Grdae:  C+

There Are Worse Times To Be Had... "Grown Ups 2"

Grown Ups 2 (2013)

PG-13 for language

Starring Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, Salma Hayek, Maya Rudolph, Maria Bello

Directed by Dennis Dugan

The Story:

Lenny (Sandler) decided that he enjoyed visiting home so much a few years back, that's the place to move the wife (Hayek) and kids.  They can grow up around friends and family and maybe have a bit of normalcy.  However, with a small town full of friends and former rivals, how normal can things really be?

Okay, let's be fair.

The first Grown Ups was a pretty cute movie overall.  Nothing ground-breaking or earth-shattering, but it was funny enough and I had a good time watching it, and so did most of the family.

Picked it up when Blockbuster was going out of business, and I have no regrets.

I'm a fan of Adam Sandler, and for the most part, I enjoy more of his movies than I dislike.

Now, with Grown Ups 2, that family-friendly aspect, which was questionable at best before, gets pushed slightly beyond acceptable this time around.

Blame the inclusion of Nick Swardson.

Or Dan Patrick's skimpy shorts.

: /

Swardson has his moments...in other movies... but lately whatever I've seen him in, he's becoming more cringeworthy with every performance.

However this film does not deserve the label of "worst movie ever" or "worst" anything label.

It's simply another typical effort from Sandler that aims for the lowest common denominator for the jokes.

And yes, for every groan-inducing cringe, there are some justifiably funny moments throughout the film.

Why, there's even a bit of a heart-felt message in the final act as old rivalries are ended and some relationships are rekindled.

So again, while not great, it's also not an abomination of film.

Final Grade: C

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I don't see this one joining the original in the library.