I’ve been patient and forgiving with filmmaker Seth Gordon (who began his career with 2007’s acclaimed arcade doc The King of Kong) because I can see he’s slowly amounting to be a dependable director. Despite the abysmal and mean comedy Identity Thief, he’s usually able to drum up a lot of laughs with small casts (Four Christmases, Horrible Bosses, TV’s The Goldbergs). I suppose he’s been itching to branch out, but Baywatch was the wrong way…
There’s a difference between being self-aware and being self-involved – the former usually has more sense than the latter. For instance, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates is aware of its buffoonery, but neglects to be involved in its own idiocy. There’s still a brain behind the immaturity displayed by Mike (Adam Devine) and Dave (Zac Efron).
The laughs in Seth Rogen’s first live-action sequel Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising are every bit a part of the movie’s rollicking Revenge of the Nerds pastiche. The film is driven by the dubious actions and deceptive prank wars between two scrambling teams, which amount to amusing, frenzied chaos.
When Dirty Grandpa was released in January, it was panned by critics and moviegoing audiences stayed fairly quiet. However, after Wylie Writes’ Shannon Page reported that the film was a funny party with irresistible chemistry between veteran actor Robert De Niro and heartthrob Zac Efron, I was inclined to check it out.
Dirty Grandpa wasn’t a film that I expected to enjoy as much as I did. The casting of the two leads had me doubtful.
By: Addison Wylie Many will recognize Max Joseph from his co-hosting gig on MTV’s Catfish, a modern mystery program featuring Max and Nev Schulman helping online romantics track down their ambiguous lovers. Faithful viewers of Catfish, however, were given episodes early on in season 4 that were absent of Joseph. This was because the filmmaker was still busy working on his feature film debut, We Are Your Friends. We Are Your Friends followed a group of pals trying…
By: Addison Wylie In five years, when you catch We Are Your Friends on cable, you’ll regret not seeing it in theatres. For me, I felt like I was watching an exciting, addictive shockwave. A realized movie that knew the power of music and its behavioural persuasion, as well as the importance of a key controller. The movie may not have fast cars or roaring dinosaurs, but We Are Your Friends calls for a big screen experience….
By: Addison Wylie Neighbors has more than a handful of really good laughs. It’s also consistently likeable and plays with its R-rating in a way that doesn’t feel too childish. Mac and Kelly (played by Seth Rogan and Rose Byrne) are concerned about losing touch with their more spontaneous sides after they move into a new neighbourhood. They don’t hate their adult life though. They get a kick out of their baby daughter – the…
By: Addison Wylie If That Awkward Moment wanted to be a standard decently funny rom-com, I wouldn’t have minded. I would’ve been disappointed and miffed a smidgen because I know the leading talent in front of the camera deserves (and can deliver) better results, but this could’ve been that inching exception. If typical scary movies can keep horror hounds busy until the January doldrums end, why can’t the romantic comedy genre have its “free pass”…
By: Addison Wylie Is Parkland respectful towards its source material and depiction of the assassination of John F. Kennedy? Yes. Is it accurate to its time period? Sure is. Are the performances worthwhile? You betcha. However, even though Peter Landesman’s film has plenty of good things going for it, I felt detached from the movie most of time. I couldn’t fully invest my feelings into it, which is troublesome seeing as the film is an…