Tis The Season... "The Night Before"

The Night Before (2015)

Rated R

Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anthony Mackie, Michael Shannon, Tracy Morgan, Jillian Bell, Lizzy Caplan, Miley Cyrus,

Directed by Jonathan Levine

The Story:

Ethan (Gordon-Levitt) lost his parents in a tragic accident at Christmas. 2 friends, Isaac (Rogen) and Chris (Mackie) supported him and spent those Christmas Eves with him trying to make him happy and move past the pain. As the boys grew older, their nightly excursions got wilder as they attempted to find the greatest Christmas party, ever! Always close, but never finding it, the guys are getting ready to call it quits because they're older now and need to move on. So it's one last night on the town, and things are about to get really crazy.

To explain this movie in any greater detail takes away some of the charm, or weirdness, that it has going for it.

There will be sex, drugs and rock and roll.

There's magic drugs.

Angels.

Tracy Morgan as Santa Claus.

Seth Rogen and James Franco sexting one another.

Miley Cyrus even shows up to attempt to save the day!

Yes, this film pretty much has it all, and then some.

They literally throw everything at the wall to see what sticks.

And there are enough genuinely funny moments to make this one worth a viewing.

Especially Rogen's drug-induced visit to a Catholic Midnight Mass where he realizes that the guy in the big Jewish sweater is to blame for the crucifixion. His freak out is worth the rental.

:)

Also, there's just enough heart under all the crudeness as Ethan realizes it's time to grow up, and that sometimes the best families aren't the families you're born into, but the family that you choose to build because you want them in your life and they want to be there with you.

Final Grade: C+

Yule Like It A Little Bit..."A Very Murray Christmas"

A Very Murray Christmas (2015)

TV-MA

Starring Bill Murray, Paul Shaffer, Amy Poehler, George Clooney, Julie White, Miley Cyrus, Chris Rock

Directed by Sofia Coppola

The Story:

Bill Murray is set to host a live Christmas special in New York on Christmas Eve as a giant blizzard descends on the city. Paul Shaffer is there to provide the musical support, but Murray is ready to cancel since none of the guests can make it. His producers (Poehler and White) insist that the show must go on. However when the power goes out, Murray is off the hook and spends the evening with an eclectic set of hotel guests and staff.

Remember the old Christmas variety specials from seemingly decades gone by?

This is an homage/send-up of those very same shows, done for the pleasure of Bill Murray.

He helped write it and sets the tone for an odd evening, to be sure.

While Cyrus will get the most attention likely for her actually reserved and nice performance, it's Maya Rudolph who kills with vocals in the special.

It's then a tie for who makes their musical number funnier:

George Clooney or Chris Rock ?

Clooney's bit makes the song work, Chris Rock is in the funniest part of the entire special.

Worth a viewing, especially for fans of Murray.

Doubtful I'll need to rewatch this special every year around this time.

Your mileage will likely vary.

Final Grade: C+

Miley Monday!! Get Ready To Go "So Undercover" !!

So Undercover (2012)
Rated PG-13 for language

Starring Miley Cyrus, Jeremy Piven, Mike O'Malley, Joshua Bowman, Lauren McKnight

Directed by Tom Vaughan

The Story:

Molly(Cyrus) is a private eye working with her dad (O'Malley).  She is approached by FBI Agent Armon (Piven) and asked to go undercover to provide protection to Alex(McKnight), a college sorority girl who may be in danger because of her dad turning evidence against the mob.  As Molly tries to fit in, she begins to unravel the mystery of who might be out to get Alex, and it could be the handsome student (Bowman) who she might just be falling for.

You've seen this before, it was called Miss Congeniality, and yes, it was better than this one.

We're Going To Come In Like A Wrecking Ball...

That said, this wasn't an abysmal viewing experience that you might think it was.

This was probably Miley's last movie where she attempted to bridge her Hannah Montana fame with her new adult superstardom and lost her mind.

Nice time capsule of what used to be.

You Say "Twerking" Is The Wave Of The Future?

All involved do a fine job, and besides a bit of language, this is a made for tv/direct to DVD movie all the way.

Again, that's not always a bad thing.

You will see all the twists and turns that they attempt to throw at you coming from a mile away, but at a brisk 90 minute run time, really, I've got no complaints.

Nothing great, but nothing terrible.  I've endured much worse. ;)


Final Grade: C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I could watch it again if I was channel surfing, but otherwise no real need to run out and own this one.

Sorry Ladies, "The Perfect Man" Is Already Taken.

The Perfect Man (2005)
Rated PG for Language

Starring Hilary Duff, Heather Locklear, Aria Wallace, Chris Noth,

Directed by Mark Rosman

The Story:

Whenever Jean (Locklear) gets dumped by a man, she picks up her family of 2 daughters: Holly (Duff) and Zoe (Wallace) and starts over in a new city.  This time, they wind up in New York where she takes a job in a bakery.  Holly has a blog and tells the world about their adventures, but she's tired of picking up and moving all the time.  Jean gets hit on by the wrong guys again, and Holly wants her mom to find the perfect man.  When her new friend Amy (Vanessa Lengies) introduces Holly to her uncle Ben (Noth) she begins to pick his brain and create the perfect "secret admirer" for her mom.  Ah, but when you mess with the heart, things could take a turn for the worse...

I'm not sure exactly when we saw this one for the first time, but I remember we all loved it.

It's a cute little romantic comedy, filled with lots of humor...

And the greatest Styx cover band of all time! ;)

Mr. Roboto!

Heather Locklear still looks great, and plays close to her age in the film.  That's a rare occurrence in films these days.

Noth is suitably charming, winning over Holly's adoration, but can she translate that into a relationship with her mother?

And kudos to Duff for not being one of the teen actresses who has fallen off the deep end in her career. 

Wow...Lindsay has lost her mind...and clothes...again.

Yes, Lohan, Cyrus and Bynes, I'm looking in your direction.

Naturally, depression struck our house when the copy we had wound up with numerous scratches and would skip or freeze.

Thankfully, a replacement copy has been obtained.

Wonder how long it will hold up?

:)

Final Grade: B+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor:  The whole family watches it, and I would safely say it gets a minimum of one play a year.  And that's just when I'm home and paying attention. ;)