A Good Old Fashioned Orgy

Another really funny R-rated summer comedy. As the title says, that is the overall goal of a group of lifelong friends.

Jason Sudekis is Eric, whose father (Don Johnson) has this awesome house in the Hamptons that he and his friends invade all summer long. This group of friends throws the biggest and craziest parties for all major holidays. When Dad informs Eric that the house is being sold, Labor Day becomes well an orgy. The question that runs the middle of the film is whose in?

The cast that makes up the friends are very funny and look familiar. Many of them have done TV shows and some films. Besides Sudekis, who is really coming into his own as a film star, the only other main names you would know are Leslie Bibb (40 YO Virgin, Talledega Nights) and Lake Bell (What Happens In Vegas, It's Complicated). Tyler Labine is Eric's best friend and is very Jack Blackish. I had to remind myself at times it wasn't Jack Black.

This is a crude, laugh out loud, full frontal nudity, sexually charged, not for kids or prudes movie. It totally rates 4.5 bags of popcorn!

Contagion

What to say about a huge cast (Matt Damon, Gwyenth Paltrow, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Kate Winslet) starring in the 2011 version of Outbreak. Let me think about this for a minute. It's ok.

With all the fears and panic about biological weapons, bird flu and other fun things, Director Steven Soderbergh put together a solid movie about a new strain of a deadly virus. The cast is strong including Paltrow who is not in it for longer than 8 minutes total. Great thing about this movie is that you get how quickly things can turn bad and turn into a pandemic the likes of which would be horrific. And you really try hard not to touch anything,

It's a solid movie with a great director. Because I feel that it is another remake, I might not have gone to see it in a theater where I had to shell out cash. But it rates a full 3 bags of popcorn.

Conan the Barbarian in 3D by Rhiannon

Conan the Barbarian.

I went to see this movie in 3D. I was reminded of how much I dislike 3D. Aside from that, let’s talk about the movie itself.

The synopsis was this, as far as I could tell: Conan's mom had him as she was dying on a battlefield. He grows up a bit to be a young boy, played by Leo Howard (Leo Little's Big Show, G.I. Joe). He goes out, kills some enemies. His father, played by Ron Perlman (Sons of Anarchy, Hellboy), teaches him how to really fight. His father then gets killed by Khalar Zym, played by Stephen Lang (The Men Who Stare at Goats, Avatar). After a quick narration, Conan, played by Jason Momoa (Stargate: Atlantis, Game of Thrones), is all grown up. According to the narration he left his village, and wandered around being a mercenary and a thief. He's still hunting for the group that killed his father. He finds them. Trouble ensues and he meets up with Tamara, played by Rachel Nichols (Charlie Wilson's War, Star Trek), whom he uses to get to Khalar.

As for my opinion: It was a bloodbath, and what rhymes with blood? The word dud comes to mind. The choreography was slow and clunky, and not very well done. The acting and dialogue were abysmal, which is surprising, considering the cast. Ron Perlman stood out at the best actor. Even Rose McGowan could not save this. The actors were 2D, despite it being 3D. The plot... well… what plot? The backdrops were beautifully done; however, most of them didn't make sense for the scenes. And, for some of the panoramic scenes, the 3D made it so that you could tell it was a model. The soundtrack was gorgeous, all two songs of it. Yes, listed in the credits were two songs.

All in all, I give this movie 2 bags of popcorn out of 5. One of the other bags I threw at the screen, and the other 2, I threw away in disgust.

Fright Night in 3D - Reviewed by Rhiannon

Since I couldn't be in 2 screenings at once, I asked my friend Rhiannon to see Fright Night and give her thoughts.

Okay, I must say, I am a fan of the original. When I found out they were showing this one in 3D, I was dreading it. I thought Roddy McDowell was the best Peter Vincent there was, but I’m a fan of David Tennant, and his humor, so I thought I’d give it a chance. When the movie opened with a 3D flying above the clouds ala The Lost Boys, I was bored. But then, the opening credits started, and I was hooked on this movie’s 3D effects. Done perfectly, just far enough apart that you forget it’s a 3D movie and then it surprises you with something coming at your face.

The movie stars Anton Yelchin (Star Trek) as Charlie Brewster who has left his old life of D&D and his best friend Ed, played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Role Models, Superbad) behind. When Ed figures out a dark secret about Charlie's neighbor Jerry (Colin Firth), this is where the fun begins. Jerry sets his sights on Charlie. In his sights also are Charlie’s mom, played by Toni Collette(United States of Tara), and Charlie’s girlfriend played by Imogen Poots (V for Vendetta, 28 Weeks Later). Charlie turns to magician/expert in the darker things Peter Vincent, played by David Tennant (Dr. Who, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) for help.

This movie was true to the original with enough of a twist to be an entirely different movie. It is both horror and comedy. The cast was chosen well (hats off to Jo Edna Boldin and Allison Jones!), and the sets were almost perfect. There is a cameo by one of the original cast that is not to be missed. All in all, it could have been a disastrous remake of a good movie, but it was pulled off well! I give it 4.5 out of 5 bags of popcorn. (I threw the rest into the air during one of the scenes).

30 Minutes Or Less

Jesse Eisenberg and Aziz Ansari seemed to enjoy making "30 Minutes or Less". This movie follows the trend of R-rated comedies this summer.

The plot revolves around the 2 best friends of Nick and Chet on one side (the bomb side) and Dwayne and Travis (the dumb criminals played by Danny McBride and Nick Swardson). What you really need to know about this movie is that it's very funny. The things that Nick and Chet have to go through to prevent from blowing up is hysterical.

I hope that you all go out and see this movie...a solid 4 out of 5!

Final Destination 5 in 3D

OK, I went to see this movie for this blog and those that read it. I had no interest in it but if I want to do this and possibly make it bigger, I have to see almost everything. With that said...

SAVE YOUR MONEY! Are people supposed to laugh out loud at a movie like this? What can I tell you about this movie without giving it away? First death happens like 7 minutes in. I do give credit to the writers for the way it wrapped up. For those that like the series, you will appreciate it.

I will never get that 90 minutes back. I give this 1.5 out of 5.

Cowboys & Aliens

Sorry for the delay on this one. I somehow missed the preview but here's my review anyhow.

After watching this movie, my one thought was REALLY??? It reminded me of a few other movies where you get to a turning point and go huh? The last Indiana Jones and Knowing come to mind. But anyway...

Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford star as 2 outlaws that band together to fight the aliens. This only comes after people are snatched off the ground by the aliens and the little town is busted all to hell. Olivia Wilde is good in her role and her reveal was a nice twist.

Go see it if you haven't already... I give it a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars.

PS - besides stars, any ideas of a good rating systems?

A slight lull

After going to 2-3 movies a week, it seems to have slowed down. I should have been going to 30 Minutes or Less tonight but things got a bit messed up. I hope to see Rise of the Planet of the Apes this week, Fright Night in 2 weeks and Final Destination 5 next week.

Stay tuned for new reviews and feel free to comment! FYI...I have tried to move this to Facebook but the "Page" for something like this doesn't really work.