Nov 14: The Campaign

"In order to gain influence over their North Carolina district, two CEOs seize an opportunity to oust long-term congressman Cam Brady by putting up a rival candidate. Their man: naive Marty Huggins, director of the local Tourism Center."

Directed by: Jay Roach, Rated: R, 85 minutes

This year has been ridiculous when it comes to politics. From the most expensive campaign in history to Southern states threatening to secede, it's been a crazy few months. Riding on this wave of unnecessary, The Campaign, a political spoof comedy, attempts to poke even more fun at the situation. Pitting Will Ferrell against Zach Galifianakis sounds like a great idea, but unfortunately the film never really takes off and suffers from the "saw-it-in-the-trailer-so-it's-not-as-funny-anymore" effect.

Believe it or not, baby punching actually gets old. 

Cam Brady (Ferrell) is a four-term congressman from Hammond, NC. He's a womanizing jerk off who lies, cheats, and does whatever he can to maintain his office. In his own words, he's a great politician but a horrible congressman. Enter Mary Huggins (Galifianakis), a simple man obsessed with his little town who also happens to be the son of Raymond Huggins, a successful campaign manager. When the Motch Brothers (Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow) decide to back Huggins for congressman, in hopes of manipulating him, Brady goes into defensive mode to keep his office while facing off against the very incapable Huggins. What ensues are campaigns of the two men that are full of the worst things concerning politics (scandals, lying, baby punching, etc) and their continued attempts to outdo the other to win the election.

 Two pugs don't make a right. 

As I mentioned, The Campaign loses a lot of its jokes to the advertisements and trailers littered everywhere before its release. Every scene that would be funny is nothing new and the majority of the film feels like it's something you've seen before. You can tell while these scenes were used in the advertising, because they really are the most interesting parts of the movie. Everything else is just boring and drags on, and by the end of the film, both men have very little going for them and prove to be pretty awful human beings. Even the somewhat likable Huggins becomes too annoying to really cheer for and the end result leads to more frustration than anything else. Any attempt to be a true spoof of the political environment gets thrown out of the door because of the shear over-the-top ridiculousness of The Campaign. What starts out as a smart idea simply catapults itself into stupidity and loses any excitement or creativity about twenty minutes into the movie. I can't quite call this a big shame as I wasn't expecting much for the film but a part of me was enthusiastic about the possibility of something as fun as say, Anchorman or Step Brothers.

If only there was more room for activities...

I like to think of myself as a patient man but Will Ferrell and Zach Galifanakis continue to test me over and over. Both funny men have amazing talent and can make me laugh like no one else, but their continued recycling of the same characters, voices, and even jokes is getting tiresome. The Campaign is no exception and while it's not as stupid as all of Adam Sandler's messy turds, it really lacks any focus or heart and loses itself along the way. It's not that it tries too hard as much as it seems that the film was kind of a dud right off the bat. It's simply too uninspired and really not that funny to call an instant classic and it's hardly quotable like all of Ferrell's other films. The Campaign is something that can easily be missed and forgotten and I would not recommend checking it out. However, if you do have a strong curiosity to take a peek, it's not as bad as a lot of other stuff that's out there now.

The Good:

very few moments that warrant a chuckle and a rather interesting buildup to the story

The Bad:

that same buildup almost immediately falters and you're left bored, not entertained, and very frustrated

The Ugly:

wondering if Ferrell and Galifanakis will ever find their feet again and produce quality comedies that are both fresh and funny

Overall: 5.0/10

Discussion Question:

Are you surprised there are not more political movies out there? Or is that genre too uninteresting and familiar to be funny anymore?

Trailer:

June 20: Tim & Eric's Billion Dollar Movie

"Two guys get a billion dollars to make a movie, only to watch their dream run off course. In order to make the money back, they then attempt to revitalize a failing shopping mall."

Tim & Eric's Billion Dollar Movie is an absolute joke. The joke isn't the "comedy" itself but the fact that something this disgusting actually made it to the big screen. Based off the Adult Swim TV show, Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!, Billion Dollar Movie follows the two stars Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim as they try to earn a billion dollars that they owe some big time movie producers. The duo find themselves in debt after they blow one billion dollars on a three minute movie starring a Johnny Depp look-alike. They then turn to a wolf-infested abandoned mall as their source of paying back their debt. Yes, these two weirdos decide that the best way to earn a billion dollars is to take ownership over a dilapidated mall that is more of a slum than it is a shopping center. 

Naturally, they bathe and shave each other beforehand. 

Now, I have seen their TV show a couple of times and found what I did see to be oddly entertaining. However, I could only watch the f**ked up-ness for five or ten minutes without feeling very dirty and growing increasingly stupid. Thus, I really have no idea why I thought I could handle 93 minutes of them in a single sitting. After viewing Billion Dollar Movie, I can say that I am much less intelligent than I was this morning  and that I have witnessed things one man should be able to go an entire lifetime without seeing. I honestly feel ashamed for actually sitting through the full film and really wish I just turned it off after the first 5 minutes (that's decent, as Tim & Eric are nowhere present and the film is introduced by Jeff Goldblum as Chef Goldblum). 

The Man of the Golden Bloom makes everything better.

I plead to any of you reading to skip Tim & Eric's Billion Dollar Movie. It's utter trash that has no reason to exist, let alone being viewed. It's f**ked up as hell and leaves you not only with a bad taste in your mouth and mind, but the feeling as though your very thoughts and imagination were brutally raped by an orgy of ugly people. I am pissed off that these two shlubs were actually given the ability to make their own movie and pray to God this is the one and only time they are given the chance. Billion Dollar Movie needs to be launched into space, aimed at the sun, never to be witnessed by another human being again. However, the downfall to that aspect would be that if any aliens were to come across it on it's journey to oblivion, one can only assume they would turn their ships towards earth and wipe the planet of our existence simply for the stupidity of these two men. 

The movie does not even deserve a rating as it would mean it can be judged on the same scale as everything else I have watched. 

Trailer (Good God!):

F**k you, Shrim. 

June 19: Wedding Crashers

"John Beckwith and Jeremy Grey, a pair of committed womanizers who sneak into weddings to take advantage of the romantic tinge in the air, find themselves at odds with one another when John meets and falls for Claire Cleary."

It's hard to believe that Wedding Crashers is 8 years old. It's even harder to believe that since then, Vince Vaughn has only made terrible movies (not to mention two back-to-back Christmas bombs). Either way, it's nice looking back to 2005 and watching one of the best comedies of the last ten years. Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are perfect together and Wedding Crashers certainly could have been the start of an incredible comedic duo making tons of movies together. I continue to wait for their reunion and while I can't see a Wedding Crashers 2 happening, I hope they cross paths again sooner than later. And immediately after typing that I looked up the two and came across this. They are reigniting their potent man-chemistry for another movie, called Interns. 

Wilson and Vaughn work together every 8 years, yet this f**ktard makes a piece of shit once a year? The world is so unfair. 

Wedding Crashers follows Jeremy (Vaughn) and John (Wilson), two best friends who work every angle imaginable to get laid at weddings they aren't even invited to. They come up with characters, fake-family connections, back-stories, and elaborate lies to not only get in with the ladies, but become the life of the party. They are both incredibly engaging, easy-going and extremely confident and although their intentions are not the most "pure", having a party with either of them would be one hell of a good time. When the two crash a high-end, very public wedding of the Cleary family, Jeremy and John both find themselves caught up by two very unique and attractive women. Jeremy goes after Gloria (Isla Fisher), who turns out to be an insanely clingy, nymphomaniac and John falls for Claire (the perfect Rachel McAdams), a woman "promised" to another man (Bradley Cooper). After a very odd turn of events and character's decisions, Jeremy and John are invited to the Cleary estate for a weekend of family fun and activities. As Jeremy struggles to get out of his overly-attached "girlfriend's" grip, John falls deeper in love and the two have to change the rules of wedding crashing to get through the weekend.

Mandatory McAdams is mandatory. 

Wedding Crashers is an amazing comedy that can be quoted over and over again. Sure it has its faults, as most of the minor characters make stupid decisions to keep the plot going, but it's still so much fun. Vaughn and Wilson make the film their own and without them, Wedding Crashers would be nothing more than a throwaway comedy. It also has Christopher Walken, who is just kind of their for his star power, but still manages to be pretty darn creepy-awesome. Also, keep in mind that Wedding Crashers set a standard for R-rated comedies and continues to be one of the best out there. It's still good and always will be. I certainly recommend it.

The Good:

a great premise that's executed wonderfully with a script that you can only imagine is as good as it is because of Vaughn's and Wilson's improvisations

The Better:

Rachel McAdams as the beautiful woman anyone can fall in love with and the awkwardly sexy Isla Fisher who is the woman anyone would want to take to bed (in a freaky, kinky kind of way)

The Best:

Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson at their bests, and even better when they're together

Overall: 8.2/10

Trailer:

April 28: Everything Must Go

"When an alcoholic relapses, causing him to lose his wife and his job, he holds a yard sale on his front lawn in an attempt to start over. A new neighbor might be the key to his return to form."

Will Ferrell can act. He's much more than a man-child obsessed with being naked in everything he makes. Everything Must Go is a fine example of his acting ability and is a refreshing look at the man himself. The movie tells the story of Nick (Ferrell) who loses his job and comes home to find his wife has left all of his belongings on their front lawn, only to realize she's left him as well. As he struggles to figure out what to do, he makes friends with two neighbors. Kenny (Christopher Jordan Wallace), a teenage boy with a good head on his shoulders and Samantha (Rebecca Hall), a pregnant woman who moves in across the street. Through his relationships with these two and the rest of his community, Nick is able to reevaluate his life and move on. 

Rebecca Hall is sexy. That is all. 

Everything Must Go is a good movie. However, it never exceeds into the realm of greatness. It's an intangible feeling you can't quite explain as the movie never amazes you but just leaves you with a smile. The acting is by far the best part of the film. Ferrell becomes Nick, never overplaying the part or trying hard for a laugh. He's human and relatable and you sympathize with him and the struggles he goes through. Ferrell and Wallace have incredible chemistry and newcomer Wallace is actually able to keep up with Ferrell on every level. Rebecca Hall is beautiful as Samantha, and her fragility and tenderness are on full display. She has her own problems to deal with and, together with Nick, they help each other work it out. 

I lied, that wasn't all. Here's another.

I would recommend Everything Must Go. It's a refreshing look at Ferrell, who lately has become a little stale with sub-par comedies (Land of the Lost, The Other Guys). He shows he has more talent than just making us laugh and/or cringe and that he could actually have a solid dramatic career ahead of him. Everything Must Go is a heart-warming story that doesn't leave you in tears or with a sore side from laughing, but happy. It's sweet, it's relatable, and you can't help but like it to some extent.

The Good:

Will Ferrell showing he's much more than Ron Ricky Bobby Burgandy

The Bad:

needed more interaction between the main characters

The Ugly:

a sad part of the film showing the low-points of being an alcoholic and how miserable one can become when denied their addiction

Overall: 7.3/10

Trailer:

Official Website Here