"Sing" Was A Bit Pitchy, Dawg.

Sing (2016)

Rated PG

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Scarlett Johansson, John C. Reilly, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly,

Directed by Christophe Lourdelet and Garth Jennings

The Story:

Buster (McConaughey) plans a singing competition to keep his struggling theater alive. But when a typo changes his $1000 prize into much, much more, hundreds of critters are there to audition the next day. The show truly must go on, but what will happen to the singers that are chosen when they discover the prize isn't nearly all it's cracked up to be?

From Illumination Entertainment, the folks that brought us Despicable Me, and have been coasting on that success ever since...

;)

Comes Sing. Anthropomorphic animals that decide to have a talent contest to save an old theater from going out of business.

It sounds cute and harmless, and it pretty much is just that.

It's also very bland.

To the credit of the movie, it actually gets better by the 2nd act, once all of the characters are established and their storylines start to build towards the finale.

The vocal cast was fine, both in dialogue and singing.

It's weird that McConaughey was the lead character, as his usual Texas twang is nowhere to be found in Buster at all.

Or if it was, I sure didn't hear it.

It's fine enough for kids, but it's definitely not on my list of favorite animated films of the year.

Maybe someday they'll make the cut, but with more sequels to Despicable Me, Minions and a Sing 2 on the horizon, I somehow doubt it's coming any time soon.

Final Grade: C

Lukewarm Pursuit Would Be The Better Title..."Hot Pursuit"

Hot Pursuit (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Reese Witherspoon, Sophia Vergara

Directed by Anne Fletcher

The Story:

Officer Cooper (Witherspoon) is a by-the-book cop trying to live up the legend of her father. However she's a little too by-the-book sometimes, and it often comes back to bite her on the backside. When she is selected to escort a couple into witness protection, everything falls apart when the house is attacked by masked assailants who kill just about everyone except Cooper and Daniella (Vergara). Now the two must attempt to make it to safety, but that's going to be difficult when the bad guys and crooked cops are closing in fast. They've got nobody to trust, not even each other.

It's hard to say that this is a comeback vehicle for Witherspoon, because she's never really left the movies.

It is the first time she's done a comedy in a long time though, and it's good to see her back.

However, something just never quite clicks in this movie, whether it's her character or the lack of chemistry between the leads, or the fact that Vergara is simply a really bad actress.

I'm sure her fans of Modern Family will take umbrage with that statement, but since I don't watch that show, this is the first time I've seen her in anything that I can recall, and I am unimpressed.

Oh wait, I've actually seen a few other things that she's been in, where she was a background actress and not carrying half the movie.

Yes. That would explain why she's not that memorable to me, because she is better as a supporting character than a star.

Or maybe if they both would have been given stronger material, my opinion on this movie would be different.

A few laughs, but nothing spectacular to add to the buddy comedy genre.

Final Grade: C

Smarter Than You Give It Credit For... "Legally Blonde"

Legally Blonde (2001)

Rated PG-13

Starring Reese Witherspoon, Luke Wilson, Selma Blair, Matthew Davis, Victor Garber, Jennifer Coolidge, Ali Larter

Directed by Robert Luketic

The Story:

Elle (Witherspoon) has been dumped by her boyfriend (Davis) as the two plan on their college future.  He needs to get into Harvard and become a lawyer, and he just can't be with her anymore.  Elle doesn't take rejection lightly, so she pulls out all the stops and applies to Harvard...

And is accepted!

In over her head, Elle is ready to quit, but when the chance to intern under Professor Callahan (Garber) to defend fitness guru Brooke Windham (Larter) from murder charges, she discovers that she's kind of a natural at the whole lawyer thing.

:)

Legally Blonde is one of those movies that is a perfect storm of a great cast, some inspired writing, and just plain fun that you're not certain what you were expecting going into it, but will walk out glad that you saw it.

At least, that's how I see it.

Take your choice of genre:

Fish out of water.
Romantic Comedy.
New Kid in Town.
Legal Comedy.
Boy meets girl meets boy.

Shake lightly, and out comes Legally Blonde.

It's easy to think that Elle is just going to be beaten down by the system at the beginning of the movie.  She's out-matched, and everyone (faculty/other students) are against her.

But Witherspoon simply wins you over with her performance. 

If you had to circle a movie to explain why Witherspoon is a great actress, or why people like her, I would pick this one.

Luke Wilson is also given the chance to shine as the potential suitor for Elle's charms.  Not sure why he never did more romantic comedies, they all seem to fall to his brother, but Luke is always a great choice and does a nice job here at both challenging and supporting Elle to do her best.

Good stuff.

Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I hadn't seen this one in a few years and had forgotten how fun(ny) it really is.  I'll try and get it back into rotation every few years now.

Kill Someone and Your Name is "Mud"

Ah, the life of a hobo...

The Story:

Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) are two 14 year olds living near the Mississippi River in Arkansas.  They discover a boat suspended in the trees on an island and are going to make it their boat.  Until it turns out it's already been claimed by a drifter named Mud (Matthew McConaughey) who enlists the duo in helping him fix the boat so he can escape some bounty hunters with the love of his life (Reese Witherspoon).

Hmm.

I'm not sure what to think about this one.

It's not bad, per se.

It's also not great.

I've heard critics rave that it was the best Matthew McConaughey performance in years, until his next one comes out.  The problem with that theory, is that I've almost always enjoyed his movies, so he's always had a good performance.  Sometimes he's the best part of some movies.

I'm not sure if that's the case here, he certainly does a good job, but so does the entire cast.

The problem, it is a slow paced movie that builds towards the end.

And when movies clock in over 2 hours... most people don't want to invest that much time in them.

This one, I did watch through the whole film, and while tempted to speed it up, I let it run.  I did tinker with a  few things while watching, but this is a movie you don't have to have your eyes on the screen at all times to know what's going on.

Written and directed by Jeff Nichols, I don't know if this, or Take Shelter would be considered his "big breakthrough" film.  Certainly I heard more about that one, but having watched the last half of that movie...

I absolutely hated it.  Terrible ending.

So naturally, I wasn't in any hurry to jump into this one.

Thankfully, this was much better.

I'll give Nichols credit, he can assemble a great cast from top to bottom.

The main problem, he's got a lot of great actors, all with 5 minutes of screen time.

Reese Witherspoon?  Ladies, if you were hoping for a romantic entanglement between the two, you're going to be disappointed.  The part could have, and likely should have, been played by any female actress.  Give an unknown or lesser-known a shot.

Michael Shannon, Nichols' go to guy... if he had more than 5 minutes on-screen, that's being generous.

Thankfully, Sam Shepard fares better as the mysterious stranger who loves Mud like a son, and has to make some tough love decisions.

Really, the movie is a tour-de-force for the 2 kids who do a great job being at the center of the movie.  This is their "Stand by Me" moment, and if they want to stick around in Hollywood, their feet are firmly in the door at this point.

So there you go.

It's a drama, and unless you're a Drama named "Shawshank Redemption" you'll likely only get so much praise around these parts. ;)

I will give kudos for the 3rd Act creating a genuine "Jump Moment" normally reserved for horror movies. 

Wasn't expecting it, well done.

Final Grade: C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Nope, not a high demand for dramas, especially really long ones.

For the Hand of Reese Witherspoon..."This Means War" !

All's fair...

The Story:

Two CIA operatives, FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are pretty much the best at what they do.  While they are teamed up on a case, Tuck is trying to get back out on the dating scene since his divorce.  He dates a lovely girl, Lauren (Reese Witherspoon).  Ah, but FDR wanted to be a pal and provide backup to his partner just in case.  When he runs into Lauren later that same night, they hit it off, never realizing he's just made the move on his best friend's new girl.  So when two top operatives become rivals in love, neither one is going to be safe on any date!

This is one of my favorites from last year.

Not "great enough" to be a Top 10 movie of the year, but good enough to be an enjoyable "hey, let's watch this one again" movie.

I love those kinds of movies.  My library is full of them.

: )

The best part, it's a romantic comedy, buried underneath an action comedy.

So win-win for the guys on date night! :)

Reese Witherspoon of course plays the romantic comedy lead in her sleep.  She's the 2010s version of the 80s/90s Meg Ryan.

This is not to be seen as an insult either, I'm quite pleased with the comparison and have enjoyed many romantic comedies starring Ms. Witherspoon.

Chris Pine and Tom Hardy have an excellent rapport as best friends and bitter rivals, often within split seconds of each other.

All the while that they are trying to figure out who gets the girl, an angry villain who has vowed revenge from their last case is trying to kill the boys.

Saving the world, stopping the bad guy, and getting the girl.

CIA 101.

Naturally, you'll see which guy Lauren will pick a mile away.  They telegraph it in the story, but at least it provides the happiest ending all around.

Directed by the always underrated McG, the man makes slick, fun action films.

Final Grade: Solid B

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I liked it so much, I bought it. :)

Don't Judge A Girl By Her Nose..."Penelope"

Fairy tales can come true...

The Story:

Penelope (Christina Ricci) is born with a curse.  Born with the face of a pig, she is cursed to look that way until she is loved by one of her own.  Her parents (Richard Grant and Catherine O'Hara) assume it's the love of a rich suitor.  Of course, all men run screaming from the room once they lay eyes on Penelope's snout.  But that all changes when a young suitor (James McAvoy) comes calling.  Is he in it for love, or the money?

Nothing like scouring the Netflix archives for movies that I've never seen/heard of.  From 2006 comes this little romantic comedy gem from writer Leslie Caveny and director Mark Palansky.  It's their first times in feature roles for either, and they do a great job.

This modern day fairy tale is pretty cute.  Ricci is far from hideous, yet that is a driving part of the film.  Rich suitors come and go, all signing non-disclosure agreements until one guy gets away without signing.

Then the hunt for "pig-girl" begins.

Enter McAvoy who is used as a plot device to capture a picture of the hideous princess for publication.

He charms her, and is taken aback at her appearance, yet does not flee.

Eventually, it all falls apart and Penelope takes off to brave the world alone.

She meets and befriends a local (Reese Witherspoon) and begins to live and enjoy her life.

And then... the curse is magically lifted, but not in any way that was expected.

Will love win out after all?

Cute stuff, and I'm glad I found it in the archives.

Final Grade: Solid B

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I'd have no problem watching this one again in the future.