Man Up (2015); The Boss (2016); My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016); Wreck-It Ralph (2012); Stir Crazy (1980)

It hasn't been too long since my last blog entry, but that's how it's supposed to be, right? Me not waiting so long so the movie blog isn't such a monumental task... So here goes.

• Man Up (2015) watched on Netflix/Roku, with Andy popping in and out. I really enjoyed this one, and Andy liked it as well. I/we generally like Simon Pegg movies and this was a more realistic rom-com than the standard. You got to see how two imperfect characters came to find each other in a less cutesy way than is the standard, so it made it more relatable. Not to say, there weren't the standard plot points, but it didn't make me roll my eyes. I'd watch this one again.
  
• The Boss (2016) Saw in a theater, sola. I missed the first minute or two (came in at the tail end of her speech to the crowd) and I hate missing even a moment of a film. So I feel like I could have missed something about the character development. But I think the premise of that scene could have been in the trailer. Anyway, I really do like Melissa McCarthy and always enjoy seeing her husband Ben Falcone appear in her movies (similar to Nia Vardalos and husband Ian Gomez). I've even written a movie for her... that being said, I was expecting to have the same reaction as I had to Tammy - expecting it to be stupid but actually finding it to be a nice surprise. This time, however, I wasn't as impressed. Maybe it was just a bit too campy/based on misunderstandings/outside of reality. I think I was just expecting too much from it.  There were some funny bits, of course. I would watch it again, if only to see the very beginning and see if I enjoyed it more once I was familiar with the tone of comedy it aimed to be.
  
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016) Watched in a theater sola. I drove an hour to see this movie before it left the theaters, since it wasn't playing anywhere close to me. I'm so glad I did. I was a HUGE fan of the original. My entire family and friends at the time also loved it. It was so relatable. I've loved Nia's work ever since, and have read her book Instant Mom, too. That said, I was very pleased with this sequel. The characters and tone was pretty similar and had a lot of harkening back to the original. I don't know if a person who hadn't seen the original would get this film. It was more like an inside joke. So I suppose not. I really enjoyed this film and it made me cry at the end. It was lovely and sentimental. I'd of course watch it again and am looking forward to the DVD. Opa!
  
• Wreck-It Ralph (2012) Rented from the library, watched sola, with Andy in and out of the room - this happens when he works out... I really liked the movie and Andy liked what he saw too (which I figured he might since it had old school video games in it). I know this movie had been out for a while, but I never got around to it. I really enjoyed it. I thought it was a very clever concept and there was a lot of fun opportunity for characters from the variety of games. I do plan on picking up my own copy and getting Andy to watch it again with me. :)
  
• Stir Crazy (1980) Watched on DVD with Andy. I enjoyed the film. It was zany and fun. A nice throwback to a different era of comedy. I can't really define what makes it different. Maybe less gross-out? All in all, it was fun to watch and very fun to look at IMDB afterwards. The guy who plays the other rodeo dude is Jonathan Banks who I recognized from Community, but you may have seen him in a few other things, like Better Call Saul or Airplane - he looked really different! One of the more surprising finds was that Georg Stanford Brown, who played the gay prisoner, has directed a lot of stuff! Also enjoyed seeing Barry Corbin in it, who I know from Northern Exposure, and who Andy pointed out is currently on The Ranch (he was unrecognizable to me! Andy has a great eye for actors!) Erland van Lidth who played the big scary guy was actually an MIT grad/teacher and trained for opera singing, as did his sister. Like I said, enjoyable film.

Roxanne (1987); Mom and Dad Save the World (1992); According to Spencer (2001); Zootopia (2016); How to Be Single (2016)

• Roxanne (1987) Watched on DVD; sola. I enjoyed it. I also enjoyed reading up about the play on Wikipedia and all the renditions that have been performed on stage and screen, as well as skimming the info on the real person. I really like Steve Martin so it was fun to watch him play. Of course, the female lead was a little young, as is Hollywood standard. In reality, Daryl Hannah is 15 years younger than Steve Martin, which isn't completely ridiculous, but still. There are a number of other fun names involved: Shelley Duvall, Fred Willard, Michael J. Pollard, and Damon Wayans. There was plenty of comedy, both in word and in action (slapstick), and the female lead was smart with an interesting career. I recommend this, and would definitely watch it again.
  
  
• Mom and Dad Save the World (1992) Watched on DVD, with S.O. Andy. Andy and I found this on one shopping trip or another and he had fond memories watching it as a kid, so I persuaded him to purchase it. It was a little different than I was expecting, but I enjoyed it. It's a stupid comedy, but they tell you upfront literally that the planet is full of idiots. There are many enjoyable actors in the film: Teri Garr, Jeffrey Jones, Jon Lovitz, (although a number of people might object to me calling him 'enjoyable'...too bad for them!), Eric Idle of Monty Python, Dwier Brown (who apparently played the dad in Field of Dreams, Kathy Ireland, and, hidden under bulldog heads: Tony Cox and Ed Gale. There was a scene with an animated rat which cracks me up. This movie asks that you don't take yourself too seriously and appreciate the absurd. I would totally watch this again.
  
• According to Spencer (2001) Watched on DVD, sola. I found this on sale at an antique/thrift store... and have sold it elsewhere. I wasn't impressed by it much. It wasn't awful, just your standard rom-com, with a couple twists - the roommates were filming a porno. There were some fun actors - David Krumholtz is great in my book. I definitely recognized the Grandma's voice (Florence Stanley) as the Grandma in Dinosaurs. But that part of the film I didn't get. SEMI-SPOILER: The main character's grandma died, and since he was close to her, when he struggles, he sees her and she gives him advice. It seemed pretty random and unrelated to the rest of the story, a gag that didn't quite do it for me. END SEMI-SPOILER. Not one of my favorites.
   
• Zootopia (2016) Watched in theater. When I first saw the trailer, I thought it was going to be hokey. And after watching the film (and really enjoying it), and seeing a trailer again, I feel it didn't do it justice. No worries, as I heard from word of mouth that the film was really good and had a great message about differences. And I really did enjoy it. It does have several great messages, the most important about not letting fear of others and stereotypes cloud one's judgement, and also to follow your dreams despite the naysayers. I thought there were so many clever characters and moments in the film, I will need to watch again to catch them all. I really do look forward to purchasing this one and including it in my collection of favorite (kid-friendly) movies.
  
• How to Be Single (2016) Watched in theater. First I'll provide the quick review I posted on my Facebook page upon request:  
• It was okay. Rebel Wilson was great. I liked all the actors in general which was half the draw. My problems were as follows in SPOILER ALERTS...
  1) Movie could have been called "How to be a single white woman". Or how to only date white guys except for one dude. Being single is a bit more complex especially if family pressures you, as in some cultures. That would have been an interesting dynamic, but must not have been in the book.... or was it. Hmmmm. May look into that.
  2) A woman dead set against babies decided to have them and no one questions her. Like she actually just gets inseminated and its cool. And its because she was left alone with a baby for a few minutes.... she was a doctor that delivered 3000 babies but was somehow overtaken by one. I suppose it happens, but those characters enforce the stereotype that we women who don't want kids will somehow change our mind like flipping a switch.... nope. At least not me and my other cf ladies.
  3) while making fun of movie clichés, it still used them.
  That's all I got before bedtime. Maybe more later!
• END SPOILER ALERTS
• Okay, thoughts now as of writing this blog... I just checked out info on the book and it looks like it DOES encompass worldwide experience of singledom, which this movie is totally lacking. From amazon: "Fed up with the dysfunction and disappointments of singledom, Julie quits her job and sets off to find out how women around the world are dealing with this dreaded phenomenon. From Paris to Brazil to Sydney, Bali, Beijing, Mumbai, and Reyjavik, Julie falls in love, gets her heart broken, sees the world, and learns more than she ever dreamed possible. All the while her friends at home are grappling with their own issues—bad blind dates, loveless engagements, custody battles, single motherhood, and the death of a loved one." I don't know about you, but THAT sounds much better than the movie. I understand it can be hard to condense, but given that the book HAD that info, I would have loved to see any of it incorporated. I wasn't impressed by the film. But they say watch bad ones too and figure out what you would do to change it.... sounds like a project for me. :)
• Fun note: Rebel Wilson got a LOT of laughs in the small Midwestern farm-town in which I watched it... like at least 10 actual seconds of solid laughter that carried over into another scene. She really is a great comedic talent, and that came through in what I suppose was ad-libs. 

So there you have it! What did you think? Did I talk you in or out of any of these movies?