2032 - 22 Jump Street

This could very well be one of the most self-referential and meta films of all time with how aware it is of the conventions of this type of film, but also with it being a sequel.  It borderlines between being very funny and sharp to being a bit too-much at times, when really we want to get a little more invested into the story and characters.  If I have a complaint about this film it’s that it spends more time trying to be clever than it does just being a fun flick - which is not to say it’s not a fun flick.  Lots of laugh out loud moments.  Jonah and Channing are charismatic as hell and a really awesome team together.  The film ends with a suggestion of this franchise going on forever and I think I could be lured back to a third adventure for sure.  I didn’t realize that it was the same filmmakers that did Lego Movie (which I rewatched AGAIN with my son this afternoon).  It’s got a similar energy and tone, which is interesting.  

Bottom line - if you liked the first one, this one will not disappoint at all.  

2020 - This Is The End

I don't know why I ended up throwing this in while I was trying to get some writing done.  Did I?  Of course not.  This is an entertaining tour-de-force and about as meta as it gets.  If you're unaware of this film it's a film about celebrities (playing themselves) during the apocalypse.  It's raunchy, funny, and surprisingly heartfelt.  Rogen and Goldberg handle a pretty effects heavy film pretty well for their first time out and the comedy feels tight when it could have just been one big inside joke.  If you like dark comedies and any of the people in this cast - this is pretty much a must see.

1984 - Django Unchained

Despite it’s terrible subject matter this film is still just a shitload of fun.  I’m not a big fan of violence, but when it’s done in the cartoon style that Tarantino does it, I dig it enough.  This is my first re-watch of it and I have to say that I still might stand by my previous statement that this might be my favourite Tarantino film, or at least the one I find most complete and captivating.  At least the most since Pulp Fiction.  I find he has fewer indulgences here that he can’t rely on pop culture and it works for the best.  It’s a beautiful looking, acted, and written film.  Performances out the whazoo and a lot of stuff that’s just a shit load of fun.

1968 - The Wolf of Wall Street

Every now and then we get to see Scorsese play with one of his favourite themes: abundance.  It’s amazing to think that this is the work of a man in his 70’s, and in his fifth outing with Leonard DiCaprio he pulls out all the stops.  Let’s be clear - DiCaprio is good here - but Jonah Hill comes to this film as a man possessed.  He’s playing a fully fleshed character that lesser actors would turn into a caraciture.  

This film is a case study in amazing scene construction.  Each scene and sequence dazzle and are a shitload of fun.  That said, the parts are stronger than the whole.  The running time bogs it down, and you wonder if the theme of excess hasn’t made Scorsese be a bit excessive with his scenes.  So it’s worth seeing absolutely - but at just under 3 hours it’s a bit of a beast.

1963 - 21 Jump Street

I've never seen a single episode of the original 21 Jump Street, but I appreciate the cleverness in the meta set-up.  It's not a remake so much as what's happening with the Jump Street program a few decades later.  Very smart move.
Jonah Hill is one of those actors who can do very little wrong in my book.  He's just entertaining as hell for me to watch - and Channing Tatum is super delightful here - the two are a pretty fantastic pair.  Throw Brie Larson in and I'm a happy camper.  The comedy in this film is sharp and on point - it's a bit winky, and a bit of a satire, but it's never a bad thing - and the action is a lot of fun as well.  Sorry I was late to the boat on this one, and looking forward to the sequel!  It's on Netflix!

1962 - The Lego Movie

In theory the idea of a Lego Movie is terrible.  Seriously.  And when I was asked what it was about, I told someone that the plot was, actually, about how to play with lego.  Which sounds ridiculous.  But it's true - and it's awesome.  It took me a little while to get into it if I'm honest, but part of that was getting my little guy and his popcorn sorted out - so I absolutely need to see it again just to watch it clean and without distractions.  I don't want to say too much about it - the reviews kind of speak for itself, but I will say that the film has one of the smartest third acts in a kid's movie I've ever seen - and what might be my favourite final line of a film - the funniest anyway.
If you've ever played with Lego you should love it.  Unless you're dead inside...

1859 - The 40 Year Old Virgin

Today's my day at home to get some office work done so I'm also re-watching some much loved classics.  I rewatched this last year with the commentary but it's been a LONG time since I've watched the actual film - and it's a good reference for something I'm developing.  This is a cast that would be hard to assemble today if you look at the tremendous talent that's in all of the supporting roles.  What I love about this is that it's, technically, a dirty movie but it's done with such a sweetness.  Steve Carrel is just goddamn delightful here.  You buy into him and his situation without a second thought.  It's so interesting to look at how far Apatow has come since this, especially visually.  No offence to him or his team, but it's not a great looking film - it's not overly cinematic - which makes sense since I believe all his directing experience up to this point was in sitcom, and this absolutely looks like it. 
If you haven't seen this it's kind of a classic by this point.  If you're a fan of comedy you owe it to yourself to check it out.

1855 - This Is The End

I chose this over Superman, 'cause to me - this is the real superhero flick.  One of the most meta-comedies every - this film tells the story of a group of actor friends who play themselves locked in a house with the apolocolyse forcing them to stick together and discover the true meaning of friendship is.

It's hard to pinpoint a favourite "character" here as I love pretty much all of them.  And I also don't want to give anything away and spoil all the fun that goes on inside of the flick.  It's not trying to be anything than what it is - a fun satire on hollywood and also big action flicks and it work way better than I expected it too.  I'm not going to give away any of the big fun moments, because that's truly for you to discover.  If you're a fan of anyone in this group it's worth checking out.  First time directors did a pretty good job of balancing he tone and also all of the effects that go through this.  

So while it's by no means my new favourite film, it's a bucket full of laughs and entertaining from beginning to end.  Still in theatres.  Go! 

1791 - Django Unchained

Nothing says Christmas Day like slavery!  Although to be honest, ironically I never felt watching this like it was a 'slave' film so much as that was the looming backdrop for a unique revenge story.  I go back and forth on Tarantino, but this just might be my favorite of his films.  It's easily the most entertaining, and I think has the strongest through line of anything that he's done.  The cast is fantastic - I don't put a lot of stock into it but expect nominations all around here.  Tarantino's skills as a filmmaker are on fire here - it's sweet, it's suspenseful, it's hilarious, it's a true roller coaster and a hell of good time at the movies.  At nearly three hours it never feels it whatsoever and just chugs along, the story swerving here and there but always with it's eye on the prize.
If you've even been a Tarantino fan this is the one to see.  Please put out a kick-ass bluray and I'll be there in a heart beat. 
I could write a lot more about it, but it's really worth discovering all it's little gems on your own!  As it is, I highly recommend it. 

1785 - Get Him to the Greek

I'm actually not sure if I've seen this film since it was in theatres, but I remember (like Sarah Marshall) being surprised just how hilarious I found it to be, and what a fun film.  It's a great addition to the buddy comedy and while not quite a rival for Planes, Trains, & Automobiles it's definitely a close relative.  The soundtrack to this film (almost entirely - if not absolutely entirely original songs by the main character) is something quite spectacular and elevates the film from being merely good to pretty nifty-great (that's now a term - use it!).  Brand and Hill are a great pairing and their energy feeds off each other in really delightful ways and shifts nicely when they're with Bryne and Moss as their respective love interests.
If you've never seen this and are a fan of any of the cast or just the buddy comedy in general this is a must see - and the songs are an awesome bonus - I listen to the soundtrack fairly regularly.

1771 - The Sitter

I assumed from the trailer for this that it was essentially a knock off of Adventures in Babysitting, which was one of my favourite flicks as a kid - and it more-or-less is but not in the worst possible way.  It's a solid premise, but it's made it's own here.  It's cruder, has drug use, etc… and it comes off as just a big fun flick and I'm okay with that.  Jonah Hill could do this part in his sleep - and that's not to say he's phoning it in - he brings it to the role, but it's the kind of thing that's by no means a stretch for him.  Sam Rockwell was a lovely surprise and also very wonderful here as our villain (although the best friend running gag felt a tad over-done for my liking). 
If you grew up with 80's flicks like I did this will probably make you feel right at home.  I decided to give it a shot on Netflix 'cause I wanted to just chill, catch up on e-mails and watch something not too demanding - and it fit the bill perfectly.  This film knows exactly what it is - light entertainment - and there's nothing wrong with that.

1758 - Knocked Up (commentary

This film is a huge leap forward for Apatow as a filmmaker.  Not only is it visually miles ahead from his first film, but the storytelling feels tighter (even in this extended version) and the emotions more toned.  You get a real sense that he's in command of his craft here.  The commentary was was entertaining enough with Apatow, Rogen, and Bill Hader along.  They start off promising that it's going to be like a film school in a box, but it's not really.  Still enjoyable enough for fans though!  Made me want to re-watch it with the commentary off!
One more night of unpacking in the shop... one more Apatow film :)

1757 - The 40 Year Old Virgin (commentary)

I've been getting my studio space set up for editing my new film Sex After Kids, so I threw this on in the background with the commentary which includes a ridiculously large amount of people.  It's interesting listening to commentaries with actors because you very quickly get a sense of who are interesting and fun people, and who are very desperately trying to be as interesting and fun as the people whom it comes naturally to.  It's goddamn awkward to listen to sometimes.  As I'm going to be working around the studio for the next few days in the evening there's a good chance I'll check out the commentaries on the other Apatow films as well.
Part of the issue with watching an Apatow film on DVD is that you never get the theatrical cut, you get his bloated version - which isn't a bad thing - but it's tricky to make a comedy really work after it's pushing two hours.  It's interesting to hear them on the commentary talking about how most of the crew had no idea how they were going to possibly string this thing into a film in the end.  A large part of what Judd does is he slaps down two cameras and just has the actors throw a bunch of stuff out and see what happens.  I can see how this could work quite well, but it's also a reason that the visual style of the film is pretty damn ugly.  It looks like a badly shot three-camera-sitcom in some scenes - which I'm not sure if I noticed before. 
The commentary doesn't offer a whole lot of insight into their productions, but it is entertaining if you like this group of people.  If you don't, then steer clear. 

1636 - Moneyball

So first off, I'm not a sports guy.  I don't hate sports, but outside of the odd football and baseball game when I was younger, I don't think I've ever really sat through an entire game.  It's just not my thing.  I enjoy playing sports.  I like watching them live.  Something about the sport on television however does absolutely nothing for me.  So there's that.
That being said, this was a really enjoying and, hell, riveting film.  Pitt is enjoyable, and I'm by no means the first to say this, but he really feels like a Robert Redford here.  He's wonderfully charming here, as is Jonah Hill.  In a lesser film he would just be the lovable sidekick, but he really brings his own here.  I hate to say it but I really don't know what Phillip Seymour Hoffman is going here.  Feels like a bit of a waste of a good actor - I assume it's cause he and Miller really liked working together on Capote.  Nothing wrong with that.  It's not really an actor's film though, mostly just in that there's no real show piece scenes.  It's just a really compelling story, which is enough in and of itself.  It's no surprise to see Sorkin's name on this, he's a man who really enjoys the behind the scenes of anything, and here it's the background of baseball and trying to figure out a winning formula. 
This is the kind of film that's really worth checking out, but once finished you don't really feel like you'll need to revisit.  It's more about the outcome, this one.  It's actually a great matinee film, I think.  Not to downplay it at all.  One lovely little surprise was the musical number featuring Kerris Dorsey - I even bought it off of iTunes. 
I'm late to this film so I'm sure that everyone who was going to see it has, but I think it's going to be something we see pop it's head back up around award times.  If you're even remotely interested in baseball, or like to see the inner workings of things you might want to check this out.

1607 - Cyrus

I got around to this film a lot later than I wanted to, but better that than never, right?  I bought this DVD at a blockbuster closing sale, but I think it's on netflix as well.  Cyrus is the story of a lovable lug, John C. Reilly, who finally meets the right woman, but she's living with a needy grow-up-son, and (as expected) the two clash.
What I like in particular about how the Duplass clan approaches story telling is that it's plot by character growth.  This could have very very easily been a big broad comedy with these two men one-upping one another in outrageous ways, but I think the harder choice was to really ground this in reality and make us really feel for these characters and all of their struggles.  There is a particularly lovely device that's used where a speech/reflection from a previous or soon to come scene plays at voice-over during a scene that cleverly punctuates it.  Hill could just be a big goof, but he's human and flawed and comes to terms with that.  Most men would wonder - why put up with that shit?  But the set-u for Reilly character is perfect, and honestly, who wouldn't want to be with this smart, sexy, and fun Marissa Tomei?!  She and Reilly have a lovely chemistry together and it makes the story work because of it (not that there are story problems, far from it). 
This is by no means laugh-out-loud, but there's some great chuckles, but more importantly it's about dealing with change when you're not ready to and don't know how.  It's a lovely, lovely film and I recommend it for anyone who likes good character romance and drama. 
Cyrus  Cyrus [Blu-ray]