Ghost Town

So what is this one about?
Welp, my delightfully under-used friend Netlfix tells us,

British funnyman Ricky Gervais ("The Office," "Extras") stars in his first feature film lead as Bertram Pincus, a hapless gent who's pronounced dead, only to be brought back to life with an unexpected gift: a newfound ability to see ghosts. When Bertram crosses paths with the recently departed Frank Herlihy (Greg Kinnear), he gets pulled into Frank's desperate bid to break up his widowed wife's (Téa Leoni) pending marriage to another man.

ok.

And how much did I pay to watch?
Nothing.

One thing you might not know about me is I have recently (well, maybe not too recently, since the Olympics) started going 10 miles a day on Saturday and Sundays on the treadmill in my basement. For the most part this works well because I have recorded shows from the previous week that I can watch. At most, three episodes of Law and Order (and it's friends) and one episode of Gossip Girl. This seems to fit the time well.

Unfortunately, the weekend I watched this I had nothing left to watch, so I used my HBO on demand and settled on this one. And since I don't pay for cable it really was nothing.

And what did I think?
Well, I am a big Ricky Gervais fan. I like his insane laugh. And his British accent. And his fat little face. He doesn't seem to have a lot of range to me, because I've never seen a role where he wasn't just playing Ricky Gervais. Luckily, though, I like him. So, it works well.

As Bertram he was really playing himself. Grumpy old Ricky. There is something about him, though, that is so sincere, so his character arc was nice. He had a very nice chemistry with each other character in the movie, and you really wanted things to work out well for him.

Interestingly enough, since it is a stupid idiotic romantic comedy, things had to fail then could be built back up. Romantic comedies are so flipping dumb. In life, when you like a boy (or a boy likes a girl) and you do something stupid to fuck it up, you often don't get a second chance. Romantic comedies give stupid people too much ammunition for them to think that everything will work out for them too. Romantic comedies are the devil. (except Love Actually, and does Clueless count?) I sound way more bitter than I am.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
It was funny enough, but mostly, anything with Ricky Gervais will likely be enjoyable for me.

I give it a 6.

It's Complicated

So what is this one about?
Wellllllllll, Netlfix tells us,

Ten years after their divorce, Jane (Meryl Streep) and Jake (Alec Baldwin) enjoy an amicable friendship. When the two unite for their son's college graduation, their romance is rekindled. But Jake is married, and Jane's architect, Adam (Steve Martin), has a thing for her. Now cheating on the younger woman for whom he left Jane, Jake wants his ex-wife back. But Jane's busy getting to know Adam. Nancy Meyers (Something's Gotta Give) wrote and directed this Golden Globe-nominated comedy.

Ok. So far, so good.

And how much did I pay to watch?
Actually, I paid nothing. Why? Well, Erik and I went to go see it at the Georgetown AMC, and this old guy in line asked what movie we were going to see. We said "It's Complicated" and he said, "if you wait a minute, I am waiting for my friend, and if he doesn't show you could just buy my ticket from me." We were like, "nah, that's ok". So right as Erik went up to buy his ticket this guy flagged me down and was like "tell him to stop!" His friend hadn't showed up, and since the movie was starting in like 2 minutes he just gave me his ticket. AWESOME!

Now, Erik, like a sucker, still had to pay for his. It's ok Erik!

And what did I think?
Well, I went in seeing a movie like this one knowing it wasn't going to be amazing. For some reason, though, when I saw the commercials I thought it looked really funny.

And it was pretty funny. We laughed quite a bit during this one. Some of the laughs were actually very uncomfortable--there was a lot of naked Alec Baldwin. An uncomfortable amount. That guy is seriously fatter and seriously hairier than one would expect. (Unless you have seen It's Complicated, I suppose.) We were also some of the youngest--if not the youngest--people in the theatre. It was like old folks' city in there!! And watching old Alec Baldwin be naked and having sex and to have him say creepy gross things to Meryl Streep was even creepier when the old folks around us started to laugh. unCOMFORtable!!

As far as something like characterization goes, Baldwin and Krazinski were completely ridiculous. They weren't even real people, they were absolutely absurd caricatures. They were not real people. The only man in the entire movie who wasn't a total freak was Steve Martin. The family in the movie was creepily close and Erik kept leaning over to me saying "I know you are totally that way with your brother"...as a joke. They were like REALLY close and comfortable with each other in a way that was weird for me to watch.

The plot was pretty predictable, which is about what you would expect in a movie like this. Additionally, it made me hungry because Meryl Streep's character was a chef. Making fresh chocolate croissants. Yummmmmm.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
Honestly, it was about what I thought it would be. It was funny. I was entertained.

It gets a 5.

Troop Beverly Hills

So what is this one about?
The 'flix tells us

Shelly Long is a spoiled Beverly Hills housewife who decides -- in an effort to disprove her husband's characterization that she's a selfish trophy wife -- to become the leader of her daughter's wilderness group. Almost blowing it at first (she takes them on outings at the mall rather than in the woods), she later must prove her worth as a legitimate troop leader by instilling lessons of teamwork and selflessness in her young charges.

Huzzah!!

And how much did I pay to watch?
To watch this fine 1980s film I paid nothing. To own this fine 1980s film I think I paid either $4.99 or $7.99 at good ol Target. And let me tell you, that was under $10 well spent!!

And what did I think?
WHAT DID I THINK!? I thought it was amazing! It also totally transported me back in time to elementary school to Adele Paz's house. Man oh man.

So what did I really think? It is a totally fun, actual laugh out loud, silly movie from the 80s.

And do you know who plays Shelley Long and Craig T. Nelson's daughter? Well, let me tell you. Jenny Lewis. Yes, that Jenny Lewis! Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley! Jenny Lewis of Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins! And she is just so ridiculously cute! It was hilarious to watch this movie after I knew who Jenny Lewis was, because when you look at her as a child actor there is no way you could have imagined her as the darling of indie rock (she better watch out for Zooey Deschanel) with the amazing soulful songs of Acid Tongue. But I digress.

There is nothing especially innovative, creative, or complex plot wise. You can sort of see the plot coming from a mile away, but it is still ridiculously fun. And there is catchy music! The song in the opening credits (done by the Beach Boys) I still remember from 20 years ago and was able to sing along, and the cookie song was the same way. Love it love it love it!

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
This is one of those movies that I like even though it isn't so great. I give it a 10 for the fun/enjoyment factor!

If you haven't seen it, just watch it. You'll like it. Well, if you're a girl you'll like it.

Orphan

So what is this one about?
Netflix tells us,

Picking up the pieces after their baby's tragic death, the Colemans -- Kate (Vera Farmiga) and John (Peter Sarsgaard) -- adopt 9-year-old Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman) from an orphanage, but it doesn't take long for Kate to see through Esther's angelic façade. When John brushes aside Kate's paranoid suspicions, Esther wreaks havoc on the world around her in this chilling tale from director Jaume Collet-Serra.

Now, if you've seen the preview, you know that crazy, angelic little Esther is like the demon spawn and tries to kill like everyone in the house. AWESOME! I'm buying it... aren't you?

And how much did I pay to watch?
Well, this is another one I saw at good ol' Cinema DeLux, so something like 10 bucks. But you wanna know the better part?? Oh, I will tell you.

I invited Steven to see this with me. Now, Steven knows that I like rather, um, esoteric(?) movies. So, in the vein of the Children Underground (which is one of the most amazing documentaries I've ever seen, btw) Steven assumed that a movie called Orphan was prolly just another documentary about orphans. Well, as you can see, it wasn't.

But Steven didn't know this, because he'd just gotten back from Europe and hadn't heard of it. And when we were sitting in the theatre, after we'd already paid and all that, and I said I was excited about the sweet horror movie we were about to see. And Steven was like "Um, this is a horror movie?!?!" and I was like "yeah" and he started to look really nervous. Turns out that he doesn't watch horror movies at all and clearly had no idea that this was a horror movie. So I felt both really bad that he didn't know and guilty that I had taken him and wildly amused to see him cower in fear about a crazy movie that I knew the spoiler/twist for. I knew the plot was hilarious, but he was still scurred.

Sorry Steven!!

And what did I think?
"There's something wrong with Esther"

You ain't wrong about that.

Ok, so Christine and I saw a preview for this one back in who knows when. I thought it looked pretty cool, and Mel said every scary movie takes place in Connecticut. I mean, I guess it wasn't "pretty cool" but it looked cool enough. I like shitty horror movies enough to see them all the time.

Then I stumbled upon the Videogum Search for the Worst Movie of All Time blog-dealy when I was "working" at work. And then I looked at the rest of the videogum website and I found this entry...which said

P.S. There is a possible real SPOILER ALERT here of what the wrong thing about Esther is that you need to keep secret, and DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW WHETHER OR NOT THIS POSSIBLY REAL SPOILER ALERT IS HILARIOUS. OK, if you're still reading: it is hilarious.

And if I wasn't so damned curious I wouldn't have looked. But the spoiler made me want to see the movie even more than when I had just seen the preview! So, because of my excitement about the SPOILER, I don't feel bad telling you the spoiler. Which is...

27. Jaycee Banks - July 6, 2009 8:43 PM

I know what's wrong with Esther.
SPOILER ALERT! DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANNA KNOW!
She is really a 33-year-old woman who was born with proportional dwarfism which causes her to have the appearance of a child. She also happens to be a former prostitute, who had wealthy paedophiles for clients. The reason why she has her neck covered is because she was once in asylum and she struggled so much in her straitjacket that it left with her deep scars on her neck.

Are you for effing REAL!???!?! Oh, let me tell you, they weren't kidding!

This "twist" might make this horror movie one of the most surprisingly best ones I have ever seen!

The rest of the movie, other than the twist, was fairly predictable. And poor, poor, Peter Sarsgaard. You are a good actor!! How did this end up happening to you?!

So what is the rating? (out of 10)

Ok, so as I've babbled on and on about how amazingly innovative and fresh the twist was, this movie gets serious points for having something new as a horror movie twist.

Add to that, the hotness of Peter Sarsgaard and the serious hilarity of sitting next to Steven who looked like he was going to jump out of his skin the entire time and you have a super fun movie going experience!

This gets a 7 for its fun, hilariousness.

PS. No seriously, aren't you impressed with that spoiler?! Seriously. Be serious.

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

So what is this one about?
I'm gonna tell you the truth. The netflix description of this one is pretty awful. I watched NaNIP and I loved it, but reading the description makes me wish I hadn't. It is just that awful! See,

Norah (Kat Dennings) wants to prove to her friend Tris (Alexis Dziena) that she's capable of having a boyfriend. So at a concert, she grabs the first guy she sees, Nick (Michael Cera), and asks him to pretend they're dating -- but it turns out that Nick is Tris's ex. Despite the fact that they started off as a fauxmance, Nick and Norah's relationship turns real as they traipse through Manhattan, sharing their love of music and all things weird.

vomit! (and, um, "fauxmance"?!?!? yikes!)

And how much did I pay to watch?
Some amount. I've been doing much much better with watching more movies. Actually, upon consulting my rental history I see that I have watched approximately 4 movies in a month. Woah. emmmmmbarassing!

And what did I think?
I think that Michael Cera is the sweetest, most earnest, most adorable guy in Hollywood. Good lord, if I were like maybe 4-8 years younger I would have the sickest crush on him! I mean, at my advanced age I do not have a crush on him, but if he wanted to date me I would have to agree. He is just too. damn. cute!!

I thought this movie was the classic teen girl flick. I mean, what was there not to like? God, does the fact that I liked this so much mean I am more like Norah than Triss?? Does this mean I am the nerdy girl with big boobs (factually inaccurate) who talks about music too much?!! AHHHHH. Nah, I wasn't that girl in high school and I am not that girl now. (I did recognize the voices of a lot of the artists who were on the soundtrack...Band of Horses, whaaaat?!)

I loved that the movie really used New York as another character in the film.(Oh, and did I mention I was on a bus to NYC as I was watching this? That might make my love for it a little unfair) Anyway, it was just like Law and Order or Sex and the City or Flight of the Conchords or any of those New York movies/shows. In fact, wikipedia tells us "this movie was one of the first to be shot in New York City after the State and City of New York enacted a 35 percent tax credit under the "Made in NY" incentive program." See? They wanted NYC to be a main character!

I just thought it was great. I loved that Norah's drunk friend was like a hybrid of Lori and I, and I was genuinely curious to find out what happened as the movie progressed. It had great pacing, and Nick and Norah were SO cute together. Nice, young, honest kids in love (or learning to love).

And lets face it, the fact that Nick drove a Yugo was hilarious, and the cab scene (from the commercials) was hilarious. As were Nick's gay friends.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
Seriously, what was there not to like?

It was awesome, awesome, awesome. This is a dvd that I will be looking for a cheap Target copy of. If anyone sees that Target is doing a $10 copy, let me know and I will snatch it up!

I think it is probably a 10, but just for saftey's sake and because I've only seen it once I will give it a 9. Just go see Nick and Norah... it is so sweet!!!!!

The Hangover

So what is this one about?
Netflix tells us,

When three friends (Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis and Bradley Cooper) finally come to after a raucous night of bachelor-party revelry, they find a baby in the closet and a tiger in the bathroom. But they can't seem to locate their best friend, Doug (Justin Bartha) -- who's supposed to be tying the knot. Launching a frantic search for Doug, the trio perseveres through a nasty hangover to try to make it to the church on time.

guh oh! Sounds like trouble/fun!

And how much did I pay to watch?
Well, I saw this at the big bad Cinema DeLux, with Christine and Steven and Mel (yes, Mel. Can you believe that? She aint been to the movies in years!) the day I returned from Belgrade in order to stay awake in order to stave off jetlag. Was this a smart decision? Answer: yes.

Oh yeah, how much did I pay? Um, maybe like $10 or $12. I forget.

And what did I think?
So, I picked the Hangover because I needed to watch a movie in order to stay awake. If I had stayed at home I would have fallen asleep--I had been awake for easily two days (Let me give you a piece of unsolicited advice: If you need to do a transatlantic flight at 7:05 am, it is just easier to stay up all night. So, I woke up on Friday and stayed awake all the way to Saturday. Then I arrived back in the USA and stayed up until like 12:30. MORAL--staying awake and getting back on "home time" immediately completely negates any effect of jet lag. I win!). Now, I'd heard the movie was amusing enough, so I thought I'd give it a go.

It was pretty much what I expected. I had hoped that it would be shockingly funny (a la Super Troopers), but sadly it was not. It WAS entertaining enough and I did get some good chuckles. Truthfully, the actors were very funny. Andy, uh, I mean Ed Helms was great and man, his lady was effing mental! Galifianikas was really good, awkward and funny. Even Cooper was pretty good, he plays crazy well. Also, the fat kid with the taser. And the chinese guy who reminded Mel of Steven's dad (I didn't think he seemed NEARLY as amazing as Steven's dad)
See...?

This has clearly gone far off the rails.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
The Hangover is good enough. I'd give it a 6.5 Go see it. Why not?

Bruno

So what is this one about?
Unless you have been living under a rock, you will know that

Flamboyantly gay Austrian television reporter Bruno (Sacha Baron Cohen) stirs up trouble with unsuspecting guests and large crowds through brutally frank interviews and painfully hilarious public displays of homosexuality. An incredible chameleon who completely disappears behind his flaming alter ego, the bold Baron Cohen serves up nonstop laughs in this comedy by successfully rubbing people the wrong way.

And can I just take this moment to point out the fact that the tagline for this movie on the poster is "Borat was so 2006" I will refer to that gem a bit later.

And how much did I pay to watch?
Interestingly enough, I didn't end up paying anything for this one. I am not quite sure why that happened, but I can tell you how it might have. Mike, his girlfriend Lucy, and I were at a party eating yak burgers--yes, like hamburgers, but make out of yak--and we decided we should go see Bruno. Lucy, or Mike, ordered the tickets online, and then when I offered to pay for mine no one would accept my money. I think it evened out because I bought snacks for the three of us. So, essentially, I paid $0 to watch this.

And it was about worth that much.

And what did I think?
Now, maybe this is just the Eurasia-ist in me, but I find it way more ok to make fun of people from Central Asia (I mean, really, it is funny... right?) than I do to stereotype and make fun of gay people. Of course I absolutely realize that Sasha Baron Cohen was probably pointing out that there are idiots in the US who do think that all gay men (specifically) are exactly like Bruno, but I think it wasn't really clear that he was satirizing anything.

Another issue I had with Bruno over Borat was that it seemed SO fake and staged. Who doesn't know who SBC is now, and that Bruno is another one of his characters? The wikipedia article helps to confirm this a little. The entry goes into how SBC was able to pull off some of the "stunts" that were in the movie. For example,

On November 7, while appearing as an extra in a scene for the NBC TV series Medium, Baron Cohen interrupted a scene in character and was removed from the set. Production on the episode was shut down temporarily,^[16] though actor Miguel Sandoval, who was told that a cousin of NBC executive Ben Silverman would appear as an extra in the jury, has stated that he recognized Cohen and played along, commenting, "It's one thing for Borat to go into an antique store in Georgia or Alabama. For Brüno to go on a TV show, he's among insiders. Most people knew who he was."^[17]

Exactly. Leave it up to NBC to not be total idiots. I mean, I guess I realize that the whole thing is fake, but it was just SO obvious that SBC had somehow tricked everyone into participating. And the tricks weren't really the harmless/funny ones that were in Borat. Borat is a good character because he is unintentionally ignorant (a sort of Kazakh Michael Scott) whereas Bruno is a total asshole on purpose who has very few redeeming qualities (more like an Austrian David Brent). [Do you see what I did there? Aren't you impressed?]

The movie existed for shock value only. Everyone in the audience gasped at the same parts...or let me rephrase, some people were laughing hysterically at the parts that I was gasping at. I will give SBC credit for one part that I thought was hilarous. That was the part with Ron Paul. For your convenience--I say that, because I don't think there is really much of a reason to see this one for yourself--here is what happened.

The production team also deceived former presidential candidate Ron Paul into being interviewed by Brüno by posing as an Austrian TV reporter looking to question the congressman about economic issues. According to sources at Slate magazine, the interview starts out normally, but after a staged technical error, Brüno suggests he and Dr. Paul wait in the other room while the crew fixes a light. It is there that Brüno turns on music and begins dancing, which Ron Paul ignores at first. However, as soon as Brüno drops his trousers, the congressman storms out of the room. A spokeswoman for Paul commented on the incident. She said Baron Cohen's people were very deceptive in their tactics. At the time, she thought they were "legitimate" but later confessed to some concern. "I'm familiar with his work, so you can imagine how I feel about it," she said. Jesse Benton, senior vice-president of Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty organization and former campaign spokesman for Paul, said Paul was not familiar with Baron Cohen's program, Da Ali G Show. "If it's not on hard-core financial news, he doesn't follow it," Benton said. But, he added, "It sounds like it's going to be pretty funny."^[18]

Man, what a d-bag!

I also recommend that you check out the wikipedia article (hotlinked to the title of this entry) to see how he pulled off some of the other things in this movie, like the talk show, the army, and the gay cage match. It was quite illuminating.

Finally, to show what sort of animosity can come about from talking about Bruno (though, if you've seen it, you should totally comment and we'll get a little forum action going) please refer to an entry on the Bob and Abe Show blog. (boys, did you like that plug?) You will see yours truly, and a friend of a friend--Augustin--getting into a brawl, even though I was being highly sarcastic the whole time. Here you go.

So that just proves it, doesn't it. Even if you don't like the things that Sasha Baron Cohen does, everyone still talks about them. I guess that means he is a pretty good 'entertainer'.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
Personally, I guess I just found the movie fairly offensive, though i don't really care. I mean, if people found it funny, that is ok. But I didn't really like it.

4.

In & Out

So what is this one about?
Netflix tells us,

When dim-bulb actor Cameron Drake (Matt Dillon) wins an Oscar for playing a gay Marine, he outs his high school drama teacher, Howard Brackett (Kevin Kilne), in his acceptance speech. It all comes as a surprise to Howard -- not to mention his long-suffering fiancée, Emily (a hilarious Joan Cusack). With his wedding just days away, Howard's under the gun to get everything (ahem) straightened out.

Oh, har, har.

And how much did I pay to watch?
Well, I got this one on the 'flix, and like I've said a million times if I've said it once, I have really been neglecting my beloved. I am glad Netflix isn't a person, because he would have broken up wtih me by now.

But, I did watch three discs in rapid succession on my trip to NY, so I will finally get some new discs.

And what did I think?
Well, I basically rented this because Lori told me to. I vaguely remember this from when it was released (in 1997!!) but was urged, by her, to rent it bc we were talking about a person I work with who probably doesn't know that they are gay...or so we think. ANYWAY.

I was entertained enough, but I think my entertainment reached a new level when I read this about the movie on wikipedia this morning (...as an aside, do you have any idea how hard it was to find a movie poster for this guy? Most google searches yeilded In and Out burger stuff. harrumph)

The film was inspired by Tom Hanks's tearful speech when he accepted his 1994 Oscar (for his role in Philadelphia), in which he mentioned his high-school drama coach Rawley Farnsworth, and his former classmate John Gilkerson, "two of the finest gay Americans, two wonderful men that I had the good fortune to be associated with" - unaware that Farnsworth was still closeted.

HAHAHAHAHAH. Really?! Amazing. After that I thought the movie was much funnier, because really, Tom Hanks?! Man in Hollywood who can do no wrong?! Mr. John Adams, Band of Brothers, everything I make is gold?! Fabulous.

The movie was cute enough, and it was sort of hilarious to have a blast from the past in the form of a movie from 1997. Plus, I find Joan Cusack to be one of the most hideous actresses working today, so I didn't really feel bad for her when she found out her soon-to-be husband was a big ol' mo. And lets be serious, there is really nothing funnier than some gay male stereotypes. People thought he was gay because he was a nice dresser, and was well read, and rode a bicycle! I mean, seriously, how funny is that??

Answer: very.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
As far as gay hollywood things go, it wasn't inappropriate, or lecherous, or making fun of gay people. It was good enough. Entertaining and all that. I'll give it a 7.

The House Bunny

So what is this one about?
Netflix explains the simple plot as,

When Playboy bunny Shelley Darlington (Anna Faris) gets evicted from the mansion, she is a woman without a country -- that is, until she meets the sisters of Zeta Alpha Zeta, a sorority on the brink of losing its campus chapter. The Zetas need Shelley's makeover expertise so they can attract a new pledge class -- otherwise, their house goes to rivals Phi Iota Mu. But the Zetas have something Shelly needs, too: the confidence to be herself.

oh yes. Very deep and complex.

And how much did I pay to watch?
Well, I watched it at Cinema De Lux, at night. So I think it was $11.

And what did I think?
Going into a movie like this one, well, you pretty much know it isn't going to be amazing. You don't expect much. Oddly enough, I saw some previews for this movie in May that made it look really awesome, and then I saw some previews in July and August that made it look like every brain-dead, basic, stupid comedy. I gave this the benefit of the doubt and went and saw it...all while dragging a friend along (oh he is so nice for putting up with the shit movies I drag him to), and I am going to be honest, it wasn't all that bad.

Sometimes I love to watch a normal movie. Between grad school concerns of democratizing or totalitarianizing countries, between the nightly news that is never good, and between figuring out what I am going to do with my life, it is nice to watch a movie or read a book or watch a tv show that isn't so heavy. Isn't so complex. Doesn't require much brain power. It is just a fun addition when it isn't the worst thing ever.

God, there was one part in this movie that was so funny I was actually laughing so hard I was crying. I mean, tears streaming down my face. Good god it was funny. I attribute that to Anna Farris. She really is quite funny. Oh yeah, and she has a killer body too. Who knew?

I also really liked the girl from Superbad who was the main Zeta girl. She was pretty funny too. Did you know Bruce Willis and Demi Moore's daughter was in this movie? Well, she was. Also, some girl from American Idol (I read it somewhere, because I do not watch that show). Oh yeah, also Beverly DeAngelo was in it.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
It was pretty funny. Moderately predictable but not that bad. An entertaining movie that made me stop thinking as much as I usually do. So, kudos for that.

I'd rate it a 5 because it was pretty average, but I'm gonna give it a 6, because I haven't cried from laughing in forever.

Superbad

So what is this one about?
My beloved tells us,

40-Year-Old Virgin veterans Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen team up again as producer and co-star/co-writer (respectively) of this high school comedy starring Jonah Hill and Michael Cera as best buddies facing separation anxiety as they prepare to go off to college. Attempting to score alcohol for a party (believing that the babes will follow), the boys' evening quickly dissolves into chaos. Bill Hader ("Saturday Night Live") co-stars.

holler!

And how much did I pay to watch?
Nothing, because I own that shit. However, when I saw it the first time I was in Hungary. Man, that was awesome!! Watching it with an audience (half of which were native english speakers, half of which were reading the Hungarian subtitles...)

And what did I think?
Man, this movie is so awesome! It really is hilarious and smart, which is so unusual for a mainstream comedy that I like. Another one that I find similar to Superbad is Super Troopers (maybe the "super" part is what makes them...well, super)

Anyway, there are so many parts of this movie that actually make me laugh out loud. Not lol, mind you. But actually, vocally, laughing out loud. This is incredibly unusual for me. The scene where the three boys are talking about the fake id...jesus. That is funny. ass. shit. I feel like this movie deserves massive credit for making me really laugh.

I think the boys are adorable. The actors manage to exactly capture the fear of a senior in high school about to leave everything they know in order to go to college. And god, the fact that they are such good friends is so precious. It reminds me so much of me and my best friend in highschool...god, we were attached at the hip! I think the two actors capture so well the emotional heaviness of that period in a young person's life while still completely being accurate about how awkward high schoolers are. God, I mean, all the teen actors did an amazing job at capturing how awkward teenagers are while still making them wildly endearing characters!

Watching the movie for the first time in Hungarian was also hilarious and demonstrated the subtlety of the film. For some reason it seemed like there were some kids who were native english speakers because they were sons and daughters of people who worked for the English embassy. Those three and me and my roommate. Then there were some Hungarians. And the native english speakers laughed at all the funny parts and the Hungarian speakers laughed at the bawdy sex jokes (incidentally, sex, or secks po-ungarische, was used throughout the translation despite the meaning of the phrase...so "making love" was "sex", "fucking" was "sex", "donkey punch" was "sex", etc...). It was quite an interesting exercise in how differently abled speakers understand the same thing. ...Wow, that was way off topic. But interesting nonetheless, I think.

So what is the rating? (out of 10)
Hah, what is the rating? Obviously a 10! I loved this one, it is so funny and heartfelt at the same time. I mean, how could you not love it?