Big Screen Blurb: Hunger Games

Hmm...it's kinda like The Bachelor, only a little less alcohol, a lot less sex and just as much violence. Okay...admittedly, I have yet to watch my first second of the The Bachelor, but the much anticipated, The Hunger Games will leave you with an impactful and gut wrenching movie experience and foaming at the mouth for the next installment. 

The Hunger Games. When? I'm not sure, but in the future. Where? I'm not sure, but it really doesn't matter. What does matter is this: as a remembrance for an uprising rebellion in years gone by (74 to be exact), a pair of kids from each of the 12 Districts must compete for their lives for all to see. We're talking Reality TV gone very wrong. Oh yeah, did I mention that only one of the 24 will survive?

Meet Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence). She's a 16 year old from District 12, who is quite antsy about the Reaping ceremony. That's when a government official pulls out two names from all kids 12 to 18 years of age to represent their District in this blood bath. No, Katniss' name was not chosen. Unfortunately, her 12-year old sister's name was picked. This prompted Katniss to quickly volunteer to go in her stead. Her running mate from D-12 is Peeta (Josh Hutcherson). The two then make their way from dingy and impoverished District 12 to the glitz and glamour of the Capitol. There, they train with their fellow 22 competitors. After a short training stint, they are dropped in a wooded area to battle it out in a bloody mess of disturbing proportions...after all, were talking about 12 to 18 year olds here. Yadayadayada Katniss and Peeta endure an onslaught of attack after attack in hopes of emerging as the Hunger Games champ, and uhh...for good measure, keeping their lives.

It's good. Quite good, actually, so I'll score it 4.0 Stars. Two words: Thoroughly entertaining. It's a great story and easy to understand the reason for all of the hype surrounding the books. It's a unique plot, which is a rarity in Hollywood these days, and it's easy to follow--even if you're as clueless as I was when your butt hits the theater seat. Plus, you've got solid acting all around. From staples such as Stanley Tucci, Elizabeth Banks and Woody Harrelson, to relative newcomers Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth and more. Further, you enter a futuristic world that has been very well crafted by Director/Screenwriter Gary Ross. Everything from the cityscape to the fashion (who knew that Dennis Rodman's wild fashionista ride through the 90's would have such a profound influence?), make this an incredibly believable and enticing world.

Sure, I had my issues with The Hunger Games. Well, three to be exact. First, it's very slow moving. Second, a lot of sequences are shot either exceptionally too slow or exceptionally too fast. I'm talking about flash sequences which should take 3-4 seconds, occurring in 1/2 a second or less. Apparently, Ross and his editing crew have severe HDD, because these are shots that you don't really even have a chance to wrap your mind around. Further, the fight sequences are shot with such chaotic, frantic abandon, the audience has no real chance of knowing what's going on. Sure, those things are all by design. I'm sure he wanted to bring the audience into the action and make us feel as threatened as our heroes. WAIT...this just in...I'm sitting in a movie theater watching a flick...my enjoyment comes from doing that...NOT dodging swords and knives. Words of advice for the next two sequels: Let us see what's happening. Finally, it's long. Actually, it's 2 hours and 22 minutes long. With this genre, you expect to get up after two and half hours and wonder where the time went. This isn't typically a complaint of mine considering the genre, but this movie just moves so slowly from the outset, it eventually mattered.

All in all--see this flick and see it BIG. The story itself is worth a BIG view. The characters are interesting and well-played. The world created by Ross is fascinating. All of which, overcomes a few of the editing faux pas (at least in my humble opinion) and shot sequence slurs. Enjoy and may the odds be forever in your favor!

True...OUT!

Big Screen Blurb: 21 Jump Street

So I take a break from March Madness Friday night to soak in 21 Jump Street...why not, right? My bracket was in great shape. After all, I was 19-4 after a 7-0 Friday afternoon session. Then, all hell broke loose. I dropped five out of the next nine as my bracket limped into the Sweet Sixteen. What happened? I'm not sure. It could be an unanticipated rise of the mid-majors or it might be the fault of 21 Jump Street, which I actually liked until I realized it was to blame for my March Madness bracket woes.

Meet Schmidt and Jenko (Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum). They're buds. This wasn't always the case. In high school, Jenko was in the cool crowd and Schmidt...well, not so much. So, when the two went to the police academy for a high action, fast-paced life in criminal justice, they discovered that they really needed each other. Schmidt helped Jenko with the academic side, and Jenko helped Schmidt with the physical demands. It worked...kinda. Sure, the're cops, but the two end up on a bicycle beat, guarding the park. Even so, the pair manages to bust up a drug exchange. Unfortunately, Jenko's inability to read the perp his rights, meant a failed arrest and a re-assignment. That new assignment was down on Jump Street...37...check that...21 Jump Street. It's an undercover op, which puts our heroes back in high school in an effort to uncover a drug ring. Unfortunately, the two experience a role reversal in high school, upon the realization that what was in, is out. Conversely, what was out is now in. Suddenly, Schmidt is among the populars and Jenko...hmm, not so much. Yadayadayada Schmidt and Jenko work to overcome those ever prominent social separators on their way to trying to make a name for themselves on the force.

It's good. 3.5 Stars is my score. You've got some laugh out loud moments that link together a pretty good story that makes a good point. Jonah is well, Jonah. He's funny, playing the hapless dork to perfection, as well as the rising popular kid. Channing was solid, too. No surprise that he had little problem playing the cool kid, but when "not caring" became unfashionable and his character emerged on the nerdy side of the coin, he was still solid.

All in all, it's a fun 109 minutes. Sure, you've got your Hollywood moments (car chases, etc.) but they're handled with humor. In the end, it's a story that comes together nicely through good character development. We see both characters grow in meaningful ways to let us know that high school isn't the end all--regardless of which side of the popularity fence you might have found yourself...past or present.

No real complaints with this one. There might have been a comedic miss or two. With comedy, sometimes less is more. For instance, there were a couple of instances where funny "life" situation scenes were overplayed. Yes, the situation was funny and they wanted to bleed it for every possible laugh. There's nothing wrong with a quick-hitting laugh instead of a drawn out moment that ends up making the audience scratch the ole cranium a bit too much.

At any rate, 21 Jump Street is worth a watch...probably a BIG screen watch, at that. And, yes, that's high praise indeed for a flick that utterly destroyed by bracket.

True...OUT!

Big Screen Blurb: Project X

Take three horny, but popularity deprived high school seniors, add one birthday party...throw in 1,500 guests--1,487 of which they don't really even know...add a bouncy house...a cute dog...a madly enraged drug dealer...and some upset neighbors. What do you get? True's 18th birthday party? Good guess, but the most we did wrong was gather a bunch of peeps outside of my bedroom window to watch a friend put the moves on a freshman. That's a good answer, but we just ended up with 30 people yelling "Turn her over!" A better answer would be: Project X. Let's face facts, my house was left pretty much in-tact. Poor Thomas' home...well, let's just say there were two deflated bouncy houses by dawn. 

Meet Thomas (Thomas Mann). He's 17 and the proud new owner of a mini-van (birthday present from the folks). Along with joining the ranks of excited Soccer Moms everywhere, Thomas is also having a birthday party. His parents are off celebrating their anniversary so Thomas' pal Costa (Oliver Cooper) is throwing a bash. Costa has high hopes and zero accountability. His goal involves two kinds of thrusting: 1) He wants a party that gets him laid; and, 2) Costa wants to thrust he and his best two pals from the ranks of the unknown to a high level of top-of-mind awareness in his school's social circles. 

Mission accomplished. Costa has quite the future in marketing. After all, taking a limited social circle, he created a party that created buzz on everything from the local news to Jimmy Kimmel Live! His advertising vehicles of choice included everything from mass e-mail blasts to posts on Craigslist. Soon, however, it's a party that's a little out of control. It seems that if you take a bunch of drunk and high people with no accountability over the welfare of their surroundings, they don't really care about those surroundings. Hmm...who knew!?! Yadayadayada Thomas learns way too many lessons in a 24-hour time frame and we learn what we probably already knew: to a 17 year old, accountability takes a distant backseat to the moment, which includes everything from a party that will boost his sagging popularity, to the party he wants to have in his pants. 

It's not bad. I'll go with 3.0 Stars. Sure, the haters are just going to say, "Come on...it's just a Hangover wanna-be for the kiddies." True. You've got the Ed Helms character (Thomas--who is perfectly happy with a subtle life). You've got the Bradley Cooper character (Costa--who is under the impression that he's far greater than what his reality bears). You've got the Zach Galifianakis character (J.B.--who is just a little off); and, you've got everything from the gangster types to animals in an out-of-control, 'how did this happen' craze. So, yeah, you've got eerily similar plot elements, but there are also some unique things going on here a well. Let's see...uh...hmm. Okay, maybe not that many, but the bottom line is: it's a funny story that will simultaneously make you laugh and cringe. 

For me, there was enough of a connection with Thomas to feel both a certain amount of happiness for him, while still wanting to slap him upside the head for living this 24-hour stretch with absolutely no thoughts toward accountability or a bigger picture whatsoever (that's the adult in me speaking). But, hey...that's life when you're 17, right? You can utterly destroy your home, family's lives and potentially ruin your future, but if you've got a bunch of people, who you've longed to have accept you, chanting your name...well, then you've had a pretty good day. Uhh...yeah...one more slap upside the head.

This one involves a cast of unknowns for the most part. Besides, Rob Evans (Thomas' dad), the only actor that is really 'known' in this flick hails from a supporting role in Footloose (Miles Teller). This may be by design. Yeah, Project X is one of those hand-held camera flicks, trying to base everything in a realistic, in-the-moment setting. Actually, the majority of the cast's characters use the actor's real names. Not sure why, but it is what it is. 

All in all, if you want a little Hollywood escape that allows you to re-live some of your party past or present, while letting you wander what the party could've looked like if you, yourself (like the movie's characters) had no eye on the future or being accountable--then, you might just enjoy Project X. You might even wanna go BIG on this one. If, however, you've grown up to the point of cringing when your kid spills Big Red on the white carpet, then, this one will be an 88-minute nausea-fest for you. Heck, if that's the case, you probably spent the weekend watching The Lorax anyway! 

True...OUT!

Big Screen Blurb: Wanderlust

Ever think about making an escape? Ya know...just packing up and driving until you stumble upon your own little oasis that allows you to escape from this thing called life. You might find a haven that allows you to forget about your job, those annoying family members, that mortgage, in general the daily pressures and frustrations of an overly fast-paced existence. Or, you could just go see Wanderlust. At least, you won't have to pack much for the trip.

Meet George and Linda (Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston). They're very much part of fast-paced life in the mecca of fast-pace, New York City. Actually, they just spent a ton-o-dough on a new place--which has all the square footage of a shoebox and the price tag of a Trump Tower. It's all good, 'cause they're excited about life in the big city. That is, until the city that never sleeps rolls over on them. You see, George's company just got invaded by the Feds so he's jobless; and Linda's big video enterprise never latches on with HBO (there's something about violent deaths of cute creatures and testicular cancer among cute little penguins that just doesn't jive with the brass). So, for poor Linda, it's 'not TV...it's HBO' becomes it's nada, baby. On top of career flushes, the pair are forced to sell their "apartment", which sells for a fraction of what it was worth a week ago. This prompts the couple to head south to Atlanta, where George's obnoxiously pompous brother has a gift job for him.

On the way to Hotlanta, however, the couple stumble across their own version of heaven. A beautiful room and an incredibly free-spirited group of hippies led by Seth (Justin Theroux) provide that breath of fresh air that George and Linda so desperately need. It's apparently the life of Riley for one and all, with everything from music and exotic food to quirky personalities and recreational drugs. So, when things don't exactly work out for George as his brother's punching bag, our heroes head back to the commune--check that, 'involved community'. It's there that they decide to sit up shop. Trouble is found in that all-to-true saying, "Familiarity breeds contempt." That beautiful room is now a glorified closet, without so much as a door. That music...exotic food and those quirky personalities have quickly become freakishly annoying. Meanwhile, Seth sets his eyes on Linda with the goal of selling out the commune. Yadayadayada George and Seth battle it out in the midst of a crew reminiscent of Petticoat Junction, Green Acres and Desperate Housewives all rolled into one.

It's okay. I'll go with 3.0 Stars. There's are some clear-cut laugh out loud moments here that make this 98 minute journey to Hippie Town fairly enjoyable. It's that cast of characters that really set off this snowball rolling downhill. You've got Seth, the leader. He's a shaman wannabe who sees no need for the high gadgets of today--ya know, like CD's and VCR's. Plus, there's the naked guy, who makes his own wine between writing novels...the quirky peace-lovers, who think that clapping is far too violent...the new mommy who decides to keep the placenta and umbilical cord attached to her baby until it falls off naturally...and many others. Even Alan Alda, the commune's founder, favors a nicely entertaining role in this one.

All in all, to borrow a phrase from the city that sent George and Linda packing, it is what it is--a fun movie that makes a point: In life, your happiness is usually just as close to you as are your annoyances; it's all a matter of what you choose to focus on.

With that in mind, yeah...what the heck...see this one. It's fun enough to go BIG on or at least worth adding to your queue and renting when it comes out on Blu-Ray in June.

True...OUT!