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Reviews
For a Good Time, Call... (2012)
Better than I was expecting, likeable characters with an unusual plot
I came across this knowing nothing about the plot, because I enjoy seeing Ari Graynor and Justin Long in anything they're in, and the cameos from Kevin Smith and Ken Marino and Seth Rogen sounded fun, and with Seth's wife Lauren Miller as the co-lead it seemed enjoyable.
It starts off a bit slow with 3 characters who dislike each other, but when the 2 main characters find a common interest they warm to each other and it becomes more watchable.
It was funnier than I was expecting, not laugh out loud funny and there are times where the story takes over from the comedy, but I was giggling several times, and the characters are so likeable and adorable that you can't help but support them and want to see them succeed.
The twist towards the end is a bit strange and unexpected, but isn't too jarring to distract from the main plot. Although the plot resolves this almost immediately as soon as it's brought up, and soon after this the movie just ends.
It's a fun concept, the characters aren't very well developed, but it's enjoyable enough to keep you engaged during the short run time.
Breach (2020)
I left with more questions than when I started
I found this after it was reviewed in Red Letter Media's Youtube video on Bruce Willis' declining career, so I know why Bruce chose to do so many B-movies, because he knew his only money earning career was about to end and said yes to everything. This thing is so lazily written and acted it wishes it was a B-movie.
I have so many questions about this movie that were never explained.
What is the extinction event that forced people to leave Earth?
How did they locate a New Earth, and how did they find the technology to get there, yet don't have the technology to end whatever was going to make the Earth population extinct?
How did the planet get to a population of 19 billion and still be sustainable during the last 2 centuries without wasting all of Earth's resources with billions dying from it?
Why does a spaceship whose only purpose is to transit passengers in cryo-stasis need janitors?
Why is the concentrated cleaning liquid made of acid so strong it can eat through metal, yet no one tells the janitor it could eat through his skin while doing his job?
Why are the crew still drinking beer in glass bottles over 300 years after they were invented? How many empty bottles are they expecting to get through for the whole crew in 6 months, and where are they going to store them all?
Why does everyone on the crew look so old and close to death when they are meant to be the last and best of the human population?
Why does discount Viggo Mortensen have a huge scar on his face, and how bad does society become if they can't heal a scar 222 years from when this movie was made?
Why is it illegal to make moonshine on the ship, yet the commanders of the ship are aware of this and do nothing about it?
Why did 3 men who had cornered a guy with guns allow the guy to kill someone before they even start shooting at him?
Why at 52:26 in does Bruce Willis go from talking, to a wide shot of him standing there with his mouth closed?
Why does Bruce's character use a flame thrower when they clearly know there's a fire suppression system that's going to shoot gas at them from the ceiling because one person knows it's operational, yet weren't prepared for it and then have to be told to cover their eyes?
Why does the fire system only work once in one area of the ship, and not at any other time when Bruce is using his flame thrower?
Why does the plan of the air duct system look like a screensaver from Windows 98?
The only reason to watch this is if you wanted to see one of Bruce's final roles before he retires with his illness, or if you wanted to make a drinking game out of this, say every time a person attacks someone, every time someone dies, every time Bruce forgets what emotion is. Otherwise, don't waste your time.
It was so boring that I considered turning it off after 10 minutes, but I'm a completist so I kept it on in the background to see what other wacky things would happen.
If you must, watch it on Youtube for free, it's definitely not worth paying for.
10 Years (2011)
Disappointing script with unlikeable characters, complete lack of comedy
As a huge fan of Aubrey Plaza and Justin Long in anything they do, and passing fan of so many other actors here, many of which became MCU stars, it's disappointing that such a talented and huge ensemble cast was given such a poor script. Almost none of the characters are remarkable, none of their stories are interesting, there's certainly nothing comedic about anything here, and it seems like most of the characters were coming to terms with what their lives had become after high school and how much regret they had.
There was the overly drunk guy, the guy who couldn't form relationships after he left school, the couple who moved onto new partners but wished they'd stayed together, the guy who wanted to get back at the girl he had a crush on but found out her life didn't turn out the way she had planned, so much of it was formulaic and cringe.
Maybe that was the intention here, to show that life is so much different than what it was for high school, but it was presented in such a lazy way. If you're just watching this for the famous actors, be prepared to skip through as so many moments are predictable and unsatisfying.
Literally, Right Before Aaron (2017)
Formulaic, predictable, excruciating
I usually enjoy Justin Long in everything he's in, and Cobie Smulders is always likeable, the only reasons I saw this, but this was close to unwatchable. I found this on Youtube for free which should've been a red flag. The script is cliched and doesn't make the audience endear to any of the characters. I wasn't sure if this was trying to be a comedy because I found myself groaning a lot, and it even failed to make Kristen Schaal funny. So many scenes were painful to watch, the tennis scene, the dinner scene where Allison's friend says how perfect Allison is for Aaron which makes Adam feel miserable, meeting the hotel receptionist was terrible and completely unrealistic. John Cho's talent was wasted, and Charlyne Yi barely got any screen time. Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Sideways handled pining for former partners better than this. I don't know what the intention was here, but the fact this the director who also wrote and produced hasn't had another full length movie says a lot. This was not a fun watch in any way, except maybe the scenes behind the closing credits.
One Night Stand (1984)
A decent enough watch, with scenes of 1980s Sydney
I only came across this after hearing of the passing of Saskia Post. It's a nice snapshot of how Sydney used to look in the 1980s, with footage of the Opera House & Sydney Harbour & nearby streets as well as Martin Place train station, and a full performance by Midnight Oil of their famous song Short Memory is nice to see. It may be a bit factually inaccurate with the nuclear fallout, and the acting is a bit basic, but it's an interesting enough story of how a small group of people would react in an unexpected situation, starting off in optimistic denial until the reality of the situation sets in. Watch out around the 5-minute mark for a cameo from former Crowded House drummer Paul Hester as a naval officer.
Captain Marvel (2019)
Impressive, surprisingly well defined characters, yet doesn't forget its role as a lead-up to Endgame
I came out of one of the first showings in the world here in Australia, and while I don't know if I would fit it into my top 5 fave Marvel movies, it's up there for quality.
Brie Larson was quite likeable and enjoyable to watch with good screen presence, and her emotions in the role were well defined. The de-aging CGI on Samuel L. Jackson was so slick I barely noticed it after a while, and being set before all other Marvel movies obviously meant the filmmakers can have fun adding lots of fun easter eggs leading into key moments in previously released Marvel titles.
Admittedly it tried to cram a lot into a 2-hour film and did its best, but I think it was done well. I would've liked to see some characters' backstories fleshed out a bit, but for a film that is building up to the most anticipated film in history, I can understand why they wanted to skip to the end so quickly, yet they didn't shove it full of too many fight scenes.
The final payoff with Captain Marvel finally transforms is pretty special, as was the mid-credits scene which ties things in nicely. The twist in the middle wasn't that surprising but was great to watch. I did keep thinking that at any moment it was going to turn again, but I was pleasantly satisfied with the outcome.
Growing up in the 90s, I absolutely loved the 90s music soundtrack, almost exclusively female driven bands and solo singers (apart from that one REM song). I was singing along in my seat!
I also shed a tear at the opening logos, such a nice tribute to Stan Lee.
While the movie has only been released for about 18 hours across the world, it's funny that 89+ reviews have surfaced with many negatives, especially from countries where it hasn't been released. It seems like after Rotten Tomatoes shut down the trolls, they've also congregated here instead. IMDB has been tainted and is becoming a bit of an uncontrolled badly managed joke.
Impractical Jokers (2012)
A rare case of the UK taking a US idea and failing
Usually when an American TV network likes a UK TV show and wants to make some money out of it, they buy it out and make a sub standard version. Red Dwarf are Men Behaving Badly are two examples of this off the top of my head (The Office being the exception). This is one of those times when it's the other way around. The US version of Impractical Jokers is fresh, original, improvisational, and hilarious. This is lacking in all those areas.
In the US, the Tenderloins are a comedy quartet who have a genuine rapport and electric magnetism in their relationships, most likely as they grew up together and have been part of a comedy group for a long time now. They're able to work off each other and know their subjects well, and it shows. The UK team of Impractical Jokers doesn't have the same electricity.
Some parts of the UK version seem to consist of the 3 jokers behind the scenes feeding lines to the person out in front, which they then repeat. It completely takes away that spontaneous element when you know exactly what the person is about to say. The thing that works about the US version is they start off with an idea and have to think on their feet, they have the confidence to let each person take that idea and run with it, and more often than not each of the 4 of them move in completely different directions. Sometimes it doesn't come off or isn't as funny as it could've been, sometimes it's laugh-out-loud hilarious. The UK version could take some tips from this.
I don't know why, but many of the setups just aren't funny. It seems like they're trying too hard to be funny and aren't letting it flow naturally. Some of the lines are downright childish. One task, for example, including convincing people to become interested in titles of shows which were based on things like faeces, urine, vomit, and rear end noises. At times the jokers end up just looking awkward and embarrassed. It needs a lot of work.
The Illustrated Family Doctor (2005)
Original idea but expected more
I intended to see this movie at the cinemas but it was gone within 2 weeks and when it finally came on Foxtel I wondered why I was bothering to go see it in the first place. The storyline was original and there were some interesting ideas used here, but the acting wasn't as good as I hoped and so many characters seem to either be angry or depressed in this movie that you find it hard to connect with anyone, not even the main character to an extent. I thought the speed of finding a donor was a bit far fetched too. What I thought was strange is that this movie was billed as a comedy but I probably only laughed once, at the stupidity of the moment where Gary attempts to defend himself with a wok. I think this movie tries to depend on comedic sympathy and ridicule over anything else. I expected something great from this movie but it just didn't deliver. Throughout most of the movie I felt uncomfortable and I didn't start to like it until about 20 minutes before the end. I really want Australian cinema to be prosperous but there sadly isn't enough drawing power here to help that along, apart from the fact that I practically saw no promotion before its box office release and monstrosities like Date Movie got loads more at the time. If I had a choice between Date Movie and this one though, I would choose the latter.
Echo Point (1995)
It had a few fans, but lacked the suspense and the ratings of other soaps
Yes, I was a big fan of the show at the time and thought a lot of the girls were cute at the time, including Jessica Napier who is the same age as me. There have never been reruns shown of Echo Point to my knowledge so I don't know if I would still like it today, but it was similar in ways to Home And Away and Neighbours without being ridiculously melodramatic like those two shows can be. Maybe the lack of big shocks and surprises led to its downfall. It was just too pleasant and too close to normal life, and people tend to watch dramas to escape their boring normal lives or watch something they wouldn't normally see, which this show didn't really have. Not even the introduction of former big soap stars like Melissa Tkautz (E Street), Victoria Nicholls (Prisoner, The Restless Years, Sale of the Century) and Rowena Wallace (Number 96, Sons and Daughters, Prisoner) could save this show.
Still, there must've been some talent there when you look at where the stars of this show are today. Jessica Napier has gone on to be in popular Aussie TV shows such as McLeod's Daughters and Wildside. Martin Henderson went on to be in US movies Torque and The Ring, and got seduced by Britney Spears in her Toxic video. Rose Byrne has been in several successful movies such as Two Hands with Heath Ledger and Bryan Brown, Star Wars Episode II as Natalie Portman's double, and Troy with Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom and Eric Bana (and she's also one of the cutest female actors going around today who I still have a crush on). Tom Long went on to be in successful Aussie TV show Seachange and starred in popular movie The Dish with Sam Neill.
I guess Echo Point was a platform for several actors' careers and was mainly just a way to get some exposure before becoming successful. I still loved it though, but it just didn't get the ratings Channel 10 wanted.
Secret Valley (1980)
I grew up with this, and I loved it!
Some of my first great memories of TV were from shows just like this! It was all in good fun and very basic and dodgy, but that's what made it so watchable.
I grew up with this show and other childrens shows like You Can't Do That On Television, Double Dare, Agro's Cartoon Connection and The Girl From Tomorrow, and I'll never forget it! I might be reaching my mid 20's now (ooh where's my walking stick) but accidentally stumbling across this page through other links brought back a few good memories.
I do remember that one of the girls in the show seemed to have developed really fast up front, but I was too young to notice in that way. I just thought she was unusually big.
You have to wonder where these people are now. Simone Buchanan went on to have a successful career for a while and Max Cullen has had a lot of roles in his life, but you don't hear much about the rest. They probably went on with their lives and we probably pass them on the street more than we realize and we don't even notice them.
If anyone does know what any of these people are doing now (including Simone Buchanan), please make a post about it. I'm interested to know. It would be nice if the ABC threw a few shows on here and there just for nostalgia.
The Time Machine (2002)
I had high expectations, it has its moments, but was a bit disappointing
I had high expectations for this movie seeing that I am a lover of anything related to time travel, and I'm also a bit of a sci fi fan. Even though there were a lot of things I liked in this movie, I found a few things here that disappointed me.
Spoilers here.
There was a good lead-up to the time traveller's life in the 1900's and his reason for travelling (even though by viewing other comments it seems that this was not taken from the novel and was adapted for the movie), and I liked the visuals of the construction of a moon colony in the early 21st century and the progression of human civilisation in 2030, even though the computer database seemed a bit ignorant and closed-minded.
However, I noticed a lot of holes in the plot. In the travelling time from 2037 to 802701, the time machine moved through time and its surroundings moved through erosion and temperature extremes and other changes in environment, which in my opinion was visually and perceptively fantastic. However, I don't see how the effects over time would allow for parts of New York to be preserved for so long when the surrounding earth was completely wiped away, nor do I see how a computer could last for so long without running out of power or being damaged beyond repair. Also, I don't see how humans could have survived or evolved if humans were apparently wiped off the earth (or at least from New York) due to the destruction of the moon. The movie doesn't point out how humans survived or where they came from and the lead character doesn't seem concerned with this, nor does the movie show any humans from 2037 to 802701. Also, I don't think it's plausible that the English language would have been handed down to descendents for over 800,000 years.
I think the movie was far too short as I feel that a lot more could have been explained and questioned and elaborated on in this movie. In a way it sort of inspires me to create my own remake. Even though I like the ideas that were used in this movie, there's a lot of things I would do differently and would add. I wanted to see a lot more of the happenings from the 1900's and beyond to see the perceptions from the moviemakers.
If you regard all the holes in the plot and a few weird bits and pieces, this is a fun and interesting movie. If it confuses you or annoys you a bit then don't worry because it's not that long and it's over almost as quickly as it starts. 9/10 for subject matter and perception, 7/10 for plot holes and stuff that just didn't make sense. Overall, 8/10, and I'm being a little generous because I like time travel movies.
Clerks (1994)
Hilarious must-see raw comedy
It may have only cost under $30,000 to make, it may be in black and white, but Clerks is a movie that will change you forever. It's changed my life and it's my favourite movie. It's hilarious, it's shocking, it's disgusting, it has a rockin' soundtrack, it has young adults talking about sex and pornography and relationships amongst other things, it introduces you to a legendary duo in Jay & Silent Bob... it has it all! A movie that was given a high rating on its language alone has to be seen to be believed. Kevin Smith is a genius as writer and director and this movie started it all for him, and with good reason. If you've seen Mallrats or Chasing Amy or Dogma or even Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back to a lesser extent, and loved it, you NEED to see this movie. Everyone I have shown this movie to thought it was hilarious. Don't let the black and white visuals sway you. This movie is definately worth watching for the content. If I ever get to the USA, I'm visiting the Quickstop convenience store at Leonardo, New Jersey for sure! Maybe I'll see Jay & Silent Bob... I sure hope so. I can't say enough about this movie. Just see it! :)