Neanderthal Love... "Cavemen"

Cavemen (2013)

Rated R

Starring Skylar Astin, Camilla Belle, Chad Michael Murray

Written and Directed by Herschel Faber

The Story:

Dean (Astin) and his buddies all like to party in their loft. Facing eviction, they are going to go out in style. Dean's romantic life is not coming together like all of his pals, and his best friend Tess (Belle) is that perfect girl right under his nose.

I bet you can't guess where this is heading, can you?

So, for those of you who read yesterday's review, this is falls into the same category.

Thankfully there are a few differences:

1) The running time: under 90 minutes.
2) The humor is a bit more romantic comedy friendly even though the movie is trying for an R rated comedy.

Not to say that it's perfect, far from it.

There's some scenes that don't really work. Not funny enough. Kind of dragging the storyline at other times.

Most of it is saved by the chemistry between Astin and Belle. He helped make the chemistry in Pitch Perfect, and he brings the charming everyman appeal to this one as well.


Final Grade: C

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Nothing in here worth coming back for seconds.  It was barely tolerable enough for one full viewing.

The Older You Get, The More Juvenile You Become... "21 and Over"

Party Time!

The Story:

Miller (Miles Teller) and Casey (Skylar Astin) come to celebrate the 21st birthday of their pal Jeff Chang (Justin Chon).  The only  problem, Jeff Chang has a very important medical interview in the morning that Jeff Chang's dad (Francois Chau) is in town to ensure Jeff Chang does not miss this important meeting.  The pals promise Jeff Chang that they'll take good care of him... what could possibly go wrong?

Famous. Last. Words.

First, Jeff Chang is the only character with a first and last name in the film.  In fact, he is referred to as Jeff Chang throughout the entire movie, never just Jeff, so I feel the need to continue the reference in the review.

This movie is brought to you by the guys that wrote The Hangover, and they are striking out on their own as directors.

For a first effort, it's not that bad.  You've seen these gags before, sometimes executed better, sometimes worse.  We've got The Hangover, Weekend with Bernie, Animal House...heck you name it, there's probably nothing new. 

Unless you count what they do with that stuffed animal... : /

The movie takes place during the longest night of the year apparently, as these guys pack more into a 12 hour span than anyone else in the world ever could.

It's not nearly as raunchy as it could be, which again, sometimes it's a nice dial back when you don't go to total extremes in a film like this.

The cast is extremely likeable and they have a lot of fun with the movie.

It's silly. It's stupid.  But I'll admit, I laughed...several times. : )  If you like this type of movie, you'll probably enjoy watching this one at least once.

Final Grade: C+...B- area.

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Low in my house. : )