I don’t know what it is, but something about Steve Martin’s latest movie smacks of desperation. From the trailers, it looks like Martin was in it for the payday. Damn shame, ’cause I’m a big fan.
I can’t understand why any rational person would pay good money to see Bringing Down the House in the theater. This looks like a movie we’ve seen a thousand times before. And I’m not kidding when it looks like the bastard spawn of Housesitter and Bulworth.
Just like in Housesitter, Martin is saddled with an unruly woman who commandeers his home and stodgy, white bread world. Bulworth has this element, too, but with a political spin — i.e. White man becomes enlightened of black struggles by hanging out in clubs with them, smokin’ blunts and downing a 40 ounce.
I about passed out when I watched the previews for this film with Martin decked out in hip hop regalia talkin’ smack to the brothers in the hood. I’m sorry, but there is something gross and UNFUNNY about a 50 year old white man using Ebonics (which is another load, by the way) for comedic purposes.
It’s like when they put Gwenneth Paltrow in that fat suit for Shallow Hal. The jokes weren’t originating from the character, they WERE the character. It’s all supposed to be an inside joke where everyone says “Okay, we all know Gwenneth is thin an attractive, but let’s make her fat and ugly! That’s it! That’s the joke!”
Pass.
I think most people will agree that Martin is at his best when he is being subtle and intelligent. Why stoop to this? It’s Sgt. Bilko all over again. Steve, Steve, Steve…
Anyway, today is my last strip before going on vacation to New York. I’m excited to go and I miss Cami a lot. It will be good to see her again. Three days is a long time.
While I’m away, keep coming back to the site for an ultra dose of guest strip mayhem! I already have 4 in the bin, and I’m expecting at least two more. That’s 6 strips people. You’re getting a better deal here than if you had me doing the work!
And don’t forget to check us out on the 17th when I get back, because we’re going to premier the Theater Hopper Documentary. It’s going to be a blast!
Before I take off, I want to give a general shout out to everyone who is helping to keep the site running while I’m away. The individual artists providing their guest strips will get their due on the day their strip is posted, so don’t worry about that.
But I really want to thank Jared for uploading all of this new content. I’m preparing all of the guest strip pages in advance while Jared does the dirty work of getting them posted. With his help, he’s allowed me to take a something that would otherwise result in plummeting readership and turn it into a genuine opportunity. Thanks.
To the rest of you, take care! I’ll be back in this spot on the 17th!
There was a lot of dialogue in today’s comic. So if you need to get up and get a drink of water, or something, before reading the blog post, go right ahead. I’ll wait.
…
Back? Good.
I’ll concede that I am probably not part of the target audience for Stomp The Yard. But I don’t think it makes it immune from the similarities in the other two movies I mentioned in today’s strip. The comparison may not be as airtight as the last “movie mash-up” I uncovered, but watch the trailer from Stomp The Yard and try to tell me it doesn’t hit the same emotional cues as Drumline and You Got Served.
Both Stomp The Yard and Drumline feature know-it-all kids from big cities “slumming” it at a southern university with an African American majority in the student body. Both have something to prove. Both learn a lesson in humility and the importance of teamwork. You can pretty much guess how it ends.
Stomp The Yard and You Got Served both have… well, dancing. And that’s pretty much where it ends. Because, as I recall, You Got Served didn’t have much of a plot to begin with except to give Omari Grandberry a launching pad to an acting career that never really went anywhere. So there you have it.
This weekend I am desperate to see either Children of Men or Pan’s Labyrinth but Cami doesn’t seem to want to have anything to do with either of them. It’s not so much an issue for Pan’s Labyrinth. It’s not showing around here yet. But I’ve heard increasingly good things about Children of Men and I was encouraged by it’s third place showing at the box office last weekend. It would be nice to see a film with a little pedigree. We’ll see what happens. I think we’re supposed to get a foot of snow out here this weekend.
Have any of you seen Children of Men or Pan’s Labyrinth? What was your take? Is there anything this weekend you’re interested in seeing? If so, what?
Talk to you soon!
I was looking at the poster for The Tooth Fairy trying to think of a joke that wasn’t completely obvious – when it occurred to me that we have two new movies in theaters this weekend with winged protagonists.
Okay, okay. Paul Bettany’s Michael from Legion is a fallen angel who cuts off his own wings, but you know what I mean. It’s kind of a weird coincidence, don’t you think?
And seriously, what is up with making Paul Bettany a bad-ass and sticking The Rock in a piffle of a kids movie? I understand this softening of action heroes is a great way to reach a new audience, but The Rock hasn’t kicked ass on screen since when? Doom? That was five years ago. Does that even count?
Remember when The Rundown came out and there was that passing-of-the-torch moment between The Rock and Arnold Schwarzenegger? Does anyone feel like The Rock has been given the opportunity to live up to that promise? Because I certainly don’t.
Look, I get it. The Rock has charisma. You can plug him into virtually any scenario and he makes it work. That’s why he’s in been in movies like Be Cool and Planet 51. I get it.
But can we mix in a few more action roles? Because The Tooth Fairy looks suspiciously like The Game Plan from a few years ago – a hard-nose, selfish sports guy learns about life and love through an unusual set of circumstances. They’re practically typecasting him at this point. Just my .02 cents.
Incidentally, as it relates to the comic, this isn’t the first time I’ve suggested a mash-up between films. Check out this jem from 2002 when I suggested they combine Star Trek: Nemesis with Maid In Manhattan. HILARIOUS!
That’s about all for me today. Are any of you planning on seeing The Tooth Fairy? Who thinks The Rock makes a better action star than a family film star? Is anyone aching to see The Rundown 2? Leave your comments below!
I’m not exactly what kind of point I’m trying to make with my observation about Battle: Los Angeles. After doing a quick visual inventory, I think a lot of people came to the same conclusions about it being an Independence Day / Black Hawk Down / District 9 mash-up. For most people, that doesn’t matter.
In truth, I talked to a lot of people who saw Battle: Los Angeles over the weekend and freely acknowledge where it liberally borrows from other sources but they admit being entertained by it all the same.
I don’t know. Maybe it is good. Usually Aaron Eckhart in a movie is a sign of pedigree. Michelle Rodriguez, on the other hand? Well, that kind of neutralizes things a little.
To me, Battle: Los Angeles looks like a more expensive version of that turkey of a movie Skyline, that came out last November. Bigger names, more explosions and a little more polish in the FX department.
One thing is for sure… people REALLY want to see Los Angeles destroyed by an alien invasion. I guess in a post 9/11 world, disaster movies set in New York City are still verboten.
Did you see Battle: Los Angeles over the weekend? If so, be thinking about the comments you’d like to share below in a little bit. But first, some business…
On Saturday, I posted an idea to the Theater Hopper Facebook page about potentially hosting some kind of “show” using Netflix streaming. If you don’t have the service, essentially Netflix allows you and a group of your friends to watch the same movie at the same time.
Logistically, I didn’t know how it works. I don’t know for certain if Netflix will allow people who use different formats of their service – be it X-Box 360, the PS3, Nintendo’s Wii or web-enabled Blu-ray players – to all meet in the same digital space. I also don’t know how many people can view the same movie at the same time.
But the idea proved to be a popular one. Many people expressed immediate interest. So I think it’s worth exploring.
I was told by one user that Netflix DOES discriminate by platform and limits the viewing party by 6 to 8 people. So that means if you have a PS3, you’ll unfortunately be left out of the loop because that’s a piece of technology that I don’t have.
However, I *do* have an X-Box 360 and a Wii. So, if I end up doing some kind of viewing party, it’ll be through one of those two interfaces.
Since the viewing party will be limited, I’m not sure how I will pick and choose which people can participate. I imagine there will be some kind of sign-up form announcing the date and time and it will be first come, first served. If someone drops out or doesn’t show up, I would probably take to Twitter or Facebook to let people know there’s an opening.
I guess what’s really holding me back from pulling the trigger on this is figuring out what the show will actually be. I mean, it’s pretty much impossible NOT do to a direct rip-off of Mystery Science Theater 3000. How do I do a show like this without drawing a direct comparison and (ultimately) failing?
Because let me tell you right now – there will be NO preparation beforehand. Any comments I would make during the film would be completely off the cuff and probably more annoying than funny.
And that’s the other thing… How do you pick a movie that’s entertaining to watch, but not so engrossing that people get annoyed with you butting in every few minutes?
Like I said, I’m not entirely sure what the logistics look like. But I think the idea has merit and people seem interested, so I thought I would bat it around for a little bit and see what everyone else’s thoughts were.
Leave your comments about the Netflix part idea (or Battle: Los Angeles) below. I’d love to hear what you have to say!