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Posts Tagged ‘Mark Wahlberg’
Friday, August 20th, 2010
There was only one way a movie starring Tina Fey and Steve Carell could not be great, and that’s if the filmmakers told Fey and Carell to not be Fey and Carell. Unfortunately, it seems that’s exactly what happened. The film had moments, but overall I wanted more traditional comedy from the two superstars and less of them trying to be action heroes.
Carell and Fey are Phil and Claire Foster, a married couple stuck in a rut that decides to branch out and go have dinner in the city. But when they take another couple’s reservation, they get mistaken for that couple, who happens to be involved in blackmailing a top government official that may or may not have ties to the mob. So our heroes go on the run and must find a way to clear their name, enlisting the help of a shirtless Mark Wahlberg. There are several issues with the film that prevent it from ever taking off, but one of the main problems is that they tried to hard to create a twisting, complicated plot. The point is not to try and tell a government conspiracy story or anything like that, the point is to get the two comedians into humorous situations. It’s not complicated and in 88 minutes, they didn’t have time to develop the story they tried to tell. If they had stuck with the two comedians running from the mob boss, it would have given more time to Fey and Carell to provide some laughs and less time trying to figure out a subplot we didn’t care about anyway.
We also have some other subplots going on that would have done well if they had been explored further. The Fosters kept comparing themselves to their friends (played by Mark Ruffalo and Kristen Wiig) who were going through a divorce because their marriage became stale. Obviously, the Fosters are concerned they’ll suffer the same fate. This worked as an underlying issue they deal with while on the run, but it could have also been a source of laughs that instead got pushed to the side. A stale marriage is something that every married person can relate to and it felt like there were more things to explore with that idea.
I actually liked the addition of Mark Wahlberg’s Holbrooke character as it gave them a legitimacy that they otherwise wouldn’t have had. Since he actually knew what he was doing, it allowed the audience to accept some of the situations and some of the plot connectors. I also loved the running shirtless gag and enjoyed how everyone that came in contact with him had to mention it. But the single laugh-out-loud moment came when Carell impersonated Wahlberg to a hilarious degree. It made me want another like-scene in which Carell could play off the seriousness of Wahlberg.
Tina Fey’s strength comes with her comedy structure and the “unraveling” of comedy. As an actress, she’s not a naturally funny person and so I found myself not liking her as much in this as I have in her previous works. She, like Carell, is best when playing off someone else and we didn’t get enough of those moments. The whole film felt like it was being held back and the proof of this can be found on the outtakes, which turned out to be funnier than many of the scenes in the film.
BLU-RAY REVIEW
Video: This transfer had some problems, most noticeably during dark scenes in the city. Although overall it is a decent transfer, there is some considerable grain/noise that can be distracting at times.
Audio: The audio was fine.
Deleted Scenes (5:47): These added nothing to the film but they were funny to watch, but that’s just because it’s Fey and Carell and they are funny no matter what.
Alt City (1:48): These were just alternate takes of some scenes, they were funny but we saw most of them during the credits.
Extended Scenes (10:25): It was good that these scenes were trimmed down because they added nothing to the plot, but they were worth the watch.
Directing 301 (21:48): This featurette follows director Shawn Levy and his crew as they work behind the scenes. They put a lot of work into this feature and it’s well worth the watch, you really don’t get too many features that aren’t full of film clips.
Disaster Dates (4:43): Just like it sounds, the cast and crew reminiscing about their bad dates. Not as many good stories as you would expect but worth the watch.
Directing Off Camera (3:46): This is really interesting to watch but hard to explain, basically Levy rolls the cameras and give direction during the scenes. He gives an introduction to this little featurette in which he explains everything.
Steve and Tina Camera Tests (3:10): Another introduction from Mr. Levy and then the screen test. Nothing too special here.
Gag Reel (5:49): Not a bad gag reel and quite fun to watch although there was some of that giggling at some unseen joke.
PSA’s (2:02): These were cute and a great way to promote a movie.
Theatrical Trailer
Tags: Mark Wahlberg, Shawn Levy, Steve Carell, Tina Fey
Posted in Blu-Ray Reviews, Reviews |
Sunday, August 8th, 2010
Posted by: Brad Sturdivant
INCEPTION continues to do incredible at the box office, but it was only a matter of time before it lost the #1 spot. It’s not surprising that THE OTHER GUYS had a successful opening, but it’s a little surprising how well it has been received by critics and audiences alike. The other new movie this weekend was STEP UP 3D, which did well enough for a third place opening. That may seem disappointing, but given the fact this movie was a punchline for most of the world, you can’t help but be impressed by the fact it managed a top five finish.
Next week is just a ridiculously packed weekend. EXPENDABLES, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD and EAT, PRAY, LOVE all opening on the same weekend just doesn’t make sense to me. I see opening a Julia Roberts film opposite Sylvester Stallone or Michael Cera, but I don’t understand why EXPENDABLES is opening the same weekend as PILGRIM. Although they’re different movies for sure, they appeal to the same general audience and I think both films could have been helped by being released at least a week apart from each other.
1. The Other Guys $35.6 million
2. Inception $18.7 million
3. Step Up 3D $15.4 million
4. Salt $11 million
5. Dinner For Schmucks $10.5 million
6. Despicable Me 3D $8.9 million
7. Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore $7 million
8. Charlie St. Cloud $4.9 million
9. Toy Story 3 $3 million
10. Grown Ups $2.4 million
Source: Deadline, Box Office Mojo
Tags: box office, Julia Roberts, Mark Wahlberg, Michael Cera, movie news, sylvester stallone, will ferrell
Posted in News |
Tuesday, June 15th, 2010
Posted by: Kristy Sturdivant
Warner Home Video has announced the film THREE KINGS, starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube, will be released on Blu-ray October 12, 2010. The 1999 film follows four soldiers in Iraq towards the end of the Gulf War who go on a hunt to find a stash of gold that is supposedly hidden by their base. Along the way they must make the decision to continue on their search for their treasure or help the Iraqi civilians who are being prosecuted by their own countries army. The film hit such a nerve at the time that it has been banned in Iraq.
The Blu-ray has a list of special features that include:
- Featurette: Under the Bunker: On the Set of Three Kings
- An Intimate Look inside the Acting Process with Ice Cube
- Audio commentaries:
- Writer/director David O. Russell
- Producers Charles Roven and Edward L. McDonnell
- Tour of the Iraqi village set with production designer Catherine Hardwicke
- Interview with director of photography Newton Thomas Sigel
- David O. Russell’s Three Kings video journal
- Additional scenes
Tags: Blu-ray, george clooney, Ice Cube, Mark Wahlberg, movie news
Posted in Blu-Ray News, News |
Thursday, June 10th, 2010
Posted by: Kristy Sturdivant
20th Century Fox has announced the film DATE NIGHT, starring Tina Fey, Steve Carell, Mark Wahlberg, James Franco and Mila Kunis, will hit shelves in Blu-ray form on August 10, 2010. The film follows Carell and Fey as they embark on a night of adventure after taking another couples reservation at a swanky Manhattan restaurant. With a star studded cast like this, led by comedic gems like Carell and Fey, there’s no doubt you’ll want to add this to your personal media library.
DATE NIGHT will have a two-disc Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack that will include an extended edition of the film. The disc will also have special features that include:
- Audio Commentary with Shawn Levy
- Directing 301 with Shawn Levy
- Directing Off Camera
- Date Night PSAs (three versions)
- Extended Car Chase
- Extended Scenes
- Deleted Scenes
- Disaster Dates with the Cast
- Steve and Tina Camera Tests
- Gag reel
- Digital Copy
- Live Lookup
Tags: Blu-ray, James Franco, Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, movie news, Steve Carell, Tina Fey
Posted in Blu-Ray News, News |
Friday, May 7th, 2010
Posted by: Nathan Swank
I’m a big fan of the original PLANET OF THE APES with Charlton Heston but was a little disappointed with the Tim Burton’s re-imagined version staring Mark Wahlberg. Now Twentieth Century Fox has announced that a prequel tentatively titled RISE OF THE APES will be released June 24, 2011. I’m definitely intrigued by the idea.
The film will be the origin story about how the apes came to be in control of earth, which isn’t revealed until the haunting last image of the original. “Set in present day San Francisco, the film is a reality-based cautionary tale, a science fiction/science fact blend, where man’s own experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy.” As you might remember, the past PLANET OF THE APE films had some incredible makeup and costumes to make human actors appear as apes. This time around, however, the Oscar-winning visual effects house Weta Digital will be using the groundbreaking technologies developed for AVATAR for photo-realistic apes. Rupert Wyatt will direct from a screenplay by Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa.
Source: Twentieth Century Fox
Tags: Amanda Silver, Charlton Heston, Mark Wahlberg, movie news, Rick Jaffa, Rupert Wyatt, tim burton
Posted in News |
Monday, April 12th, 2010
I’ve been thinking about the recent comedies that have really made a dent in pop culture. Movies like ANCHORMAN, SUPERBAD and THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN have the common thread of incredibly funny outtakes. Do not overlook these gems on DVD, they are hilarious. And they are hilarious because the people involved understand comedy and their directors often give them free reign to improvise and basically make up the money lines as they go. With the new movie DATE NIGHT, director Shawn Levy looks as though he did the same, riding the wave of two great comic actors, Steve Carell and Tina Fey (themselves riding the waves of their successful NBC TV shows), to a genuinely funny comedy about a married couple fighting off marital complacency. The element that makes this comedy different than the ones listed, however, is the lack of raunchy humor which keeps the rating at PG-13 and makes it more accessible to a larger audience. And the outtakes that are shown during the closing credits indicate that maybe even the movie could have been funnier had that consideration for family audiences been kicked to the curb. ‘Cause I guarantee you Tina Fey had some dirty, dirty ideas. I love you, Tina.
Steve Carell and the lovely Goddess Tina play Phil and Claire Foster, who do what few families do and that’s stick to a regimented date night routine to allow themselves alone time away from the kids. They seem to fall into a pattern, however, and in order to break the pattern, they decide to trek to New York City, go to a trendy restaurant, and take another couple’s reservation to get a seat at said restaurant. As you have seen from the previews, the mistaken identity of the reservation leads to hired killers chasing them in a series of car chases, foot races and just generally a great deal of running around New York looking for that all too convenient final way out. As luck would have it, the way out of their jam comes in the form of a shirtless Mark Wahlberg (playing up his old Marky Mark persona), who provides them with the information and help to traverse a plotline that involves ruthless mobster Ray Liotta and perverted political official William Fichtner and hunting henchmen Common and Jimmi Armstrong, all the while running and screaming through the city with winning quips delivered throughout, and only the occasional heartfelt monologue on what is truly wrong with their marriage.
Steve and Tina deliver on their comic lines throughout, but that’s really no surprise. What is surprising is the reserve with which they carry on throughout the film. There is structure and guidance, not simply a free for all, and that keeps everyone tied to the story and not simply riffing like a jazz session. When Mark Wahlberg comes into the mix, he goes Matthew McConaughey-shirtless to get some good laughs, to include some good Hebrew dialogue (how many movies can say that) and the other supporting characters are given some funny and essential parts as well, most surprisingly James Franco, who with Mila Kunis play the reservation theft victims and are given time to shine on their own. Saturday Night Live alum Kristen Wiig also shows up to give NBC more comedy branding, but the two carrying the movie are of course Tina Fey and Steve, and the fans of their respective shows will not be disappointed. But again, don’t forget to stay behind after the credits to catch all the outtakes for the real laughs you don’t want to miss.
Tags: Mark Wahlberg, movie reviews, Shawn Levy, Steve Carell, Tina Fey
Posted in Reviews |
Friday, April 9th, 2010
Posted by: Brad Sturdivant
When I heard that Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Samuel L. Jackson, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Eva Mendes were going to be headlining the comedy THE OTHER GUYS, I thought it would be the Will Ferrell show, since he’s the only comedian in the bunch. But after watching the trailer, I think he may have been the least funny actor in it. The funniest part of the trailer was Samuel L. Jackson and his yelling at Will Ferrell’s character. But the whole film seems pretty funny, even with the inclusion of a few cheesy scenes.
Adam McKay (TALLADEGA NIGHTS) directs the film about two hapless cops (Ferrell and Wahlberg) that live in the shadows of two super-cops (Jackson and Johnson), but wind up on an adventure of their own. The film hits theaters on August 6th.
Watch the trailer here.
Tags: dwayne johnson, Eva Mendes, Mark Wahlberg, movie news, samuel l. jackson, will ferrell
Posted in News |
Wednesday, January 20th, 2010
Like many people, I love THE LORD OF THE RINGS TRILOGY. Peter Jackson has proven he has the capability to do anything. I will give anything he directs a shot. THE LOVELY BONES is a great, heart wrenching story that I think under the right care could be a favorite of mine. However, as emotional as it was I felt it missed pulling me over the top. I think Jackson did an OK job putting this film together but even at two and half hours I felt I was shorted on the characters. I wanted to know more.
The story is about a 14-year-old girl named Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) who is murdered by a neighbor (Stanley Tucci). She is watching over her family and killer in an in-between heavenly world, while trying to understand what happened and help her family heal.
The front half of THE LOVELY BONES was very impressive to me. I immediately jumped on board with this family. Unlike other films we get an insight into all the characters and how the murder is affecting them. We get the perspective of the mother and father and how they deal with the loss of their child. We get a little bit of the grandmother (Susan Sarandon) and how she comes to help out the family along with the younger brother and sister. We get the actual murdered girl and how she feels about the situation afterward, which is an incredibly intriguing and rarely seen point of view. But the most interesting side of this story comes from the murderer, George Harvey, played brilliantly by Stanley Tucci. He is nearly unrecognizable in this role. The methodic actions of a serial killer have rarely been seen in such a way as this is portrayed. I hope this doesn’t make me a sick man but I was thoroughly fascinated and stressed out whenever Tucci was on screen, nearly getting away or not get away with his quietly horrific actions.
So now for some of the criticisms. Ironically it’s the same as all my compliments. I was enthralled for the love and dedication the father has searching for his child’s killer. Mark Wahlberg as the father is heart wrenching, and I had more than a few scenes where I was emotionally involved really feeling that I could relate to his character and I don’t even have a daughter. Unfortunately, none of the other family members received the same amount of care and attention. Rachel Weisz as the mother really got the short end of the stick not receiving near enough screen time. And although fine in the role, Susan Sarandon as the grandmother could have been cut completely. So as much as I loved all the characters and how they dealt with the situation, not enough time was spent with each of them to keep the emotional involvement complete.
Although visually stunning, I found myself less interested in the in-between heaven world. I loved how everything that we would see in the real world would be incorporated in this heavenly world but ultimately I wish less time would have been spent there and instead dedicated to the family. There is also some miscasting in some of the 14 year olds, who looked far too old for their parts, specifically Susie’s love interest. This is also the story line that felt a little flat to me.
I really did get involved in this film and the idea of it was enough to get me emotionally invested. But it was at the end where I felt the film could have capitalized on the emotional impact of the story yet seemed to drizzle off. The perspective of the characters was interesting, but in this case the lack of focus kept this film from being great. Please forgive me Peter Jackson.
Tags: Mark Wahlberg, movie reviews, Peter Jackson, Saoirse Ronan, Stanley Tucci
Posted in Reviews |
Thursday, January 14th, 2010
Posted by: Kristy Sturdivant
Mark Wahlberg is looking at working with Paramount to bring us sequel to the 2005 film FOUR BROTHERS. Wahlberg would most likely return for the sequel but there is no word on whether or not his co-stars (Andre Benjamin, Tyrese Gibson and Garrett Hedlund) will join him, although we can assume Hedlund will not return since he met his demise in the first film. Writers Dave Elliot and Paul Lovett will return as well but no word on whether or not director John Singleton is back on board.
I’m surprised at this news of a sequel since I don’t remember FOUR BROTHERS being that big of a film even though it made over $70 million. I thought the plot in first film wrapped up pretty nicely so I’m curious as to how they will go forward with another story.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Tags: andre benjamin, dave elliot, garrett hedlund, Mark Wahlberg, movie news, paul lovett, tyrese gibson
Posted in News |
Friday, December 4th, 2009
Posted by: Brad Sturdivant
In what I hope is a joke, Mark Wahlberg hinted that the hit HBO show ‘Entourage’ has two more seasons left and then possibly a movie. When asked about the possibility, an HBO rep seemed to jive with Wahlberg’s sentiment that a feature film is a possibility for the show.
I don’t mind this too much, but it would be a travesty if ‘Entourage’ gets a movie before ‘The Sopranos’.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Tags: Entourage, Mark Wahlberg, movie news
Posted in News |
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
Posted by: Brad Sturdivant
The first trailer for the upcoming comedy DATE NIGHT is out. The film features Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, James Franco, Mark Ruffalo, Kristen Wiig, Ray Liotta and just about every actor that’s ever appeared on film, ever. Okay, maybe not, but there are a lot of stars with either featured roles or small cameos. The film revolves around a boring couple (Carrell and Fey) that get entangled in a mess when they pose as another couple in order to get seated at a restaurant. Watch the trailer here.
Tags: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, movie news, Ray Liotta, Steve Carell, Tina Fey
Posted in News |
Monday, October 19th, 2009
by: Sturdy and Kristy
He Said/She Said is a bi-weekly column where a male and female reviewer from the site team up to debate the merits of a particular film.
He Said:
The original Max Payne video game on the Playstation 2 was the very reason I bought the system and became a “video game” guy. So the story of Mr. Payne will always hold a special place with me because without him, I may have never gotten into video games. When it was announced they were going to make a movie about him, I shrugged at the idea because I wasn’t sure there was enough story there to merit a movie. Yeah, the game was great, but not because of the story.
And my disinterest in the film was proven accurate because the film was a mess. I actually don’t mind Mark Wahlberg, but the guy has zero range of emotion. He can play the tough guy or he can play the dumb, confused guy, but that’s about it. With Payne, they asked him to do too much. For example, at one point, they asked him to be really, really sad…gasp! That’s just not fair for poor Mr. Walhberg.
But this is an action film, so who cares about story? Well, the action sequences were boring and very amateurish with the way they were filmed. Not only that, but they were few and far between. This is a movie about a guy seeking revenge by killing bad guys; there’s supposed to be a ton of action and even more gratuitous violence. Sadly, there wasn’t enough of either. So when it was all said and done, this is yet another video game movie that couldn’t make it, even with the lovely Mila Kunis.
She Said:
I enjoyed the film Max Payne even though I am not a fan of the video game. The game has a good story and seems to be a fun play but not really my style, the film however kept my attention, and I would even like to see a sequel.
I usually find video game-to-movie films exciting and I thought Max Payne was a good example of such genre. I liked the dark quality of the film and it gave a nice tone to the story. The storyline is nothing special but I found myself enjoying the ride and anticipating the next action sequence with Mr. Wahlberg.
Many people give Mark Wahlberg a hard time for always playing the tough guy and not having a range of emotion but I enjoy his performances. I like his tough guy image and I think he has talent—at least enough to get an Academy Award nomination. His movies are ones I look forward to because I know I’ll have a good time (and I usually get to see him with his shirt off), and isn’t that the point?
I will be the first to admit that the plot of this film is very formulaic and the action sequences were decent but nothing spectacular. In a world where Hollywood is always looking for a story to pull at the heartstrings or scare the crap out of you with torture scenes and supernatural thrillers, I’ll admit that I just want some old fashioned, not too graphic violence—and Max Payne delivered.
Tags: john moore, ludacris, Mark Wahlberg, max payne, Mila Kunis
Posted in He Said/She Said |
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
Posted by: Kristy
Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson have signed on to star with Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg in the OTHER GUYS. They’ll play the legit, competent cops while Will and Mark will play the screw-ups.
I still have no idea what to think of Mark Wahlberg trying to do comedy. The guy seems to have one facial expression and it’s not funny. But Jackson and The Rock should fit in nicely with their respective roles.
Source: Variety
Tags: Mark Wahlberg, movie news, other guys, samuel l. jackson, the rock, will ferrell
Posted in News |
Friday, September 18th, 2009
THE HAPPENING is M. Night Shyamalan’s eighth film, and this time he has chosen Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschanel to try and get him back on track. This film is much like his other films in which there is some phenomenon or hidden agenda that is revealed at the end. In this case, many people are acting bizarre and killing each other as well as themselves for no known reason and as the craze spreads Wahlberg and Deschanel must find a way to hide or escape from an unidentified happening.
I’ve enjoyed all of Shyamalan’s previous films, even the ones that were not box office successes. I like how he has brought back the suspense and fear without the gore or slasher-like qualities in the normal horror genre. I hope Mr. Shyamalan will continue to make his movies his way and disregard the criticisms of his recent movies.
My favorite thing about his films is that there is no real hero that will end up saving the day. Usually there is just some event, occurrence or situation in which regular people find themselves and we get to watch them react. In this case we see Wahlberg, as a science teacher along with his wife and friend’s daughter, try to find their way out of a strange incident that is closing in on them. Like his other films, I tend to find myself wondering how I would react and comparing that to what the characters are doing onscreen.
Although an entertaining ride, there were some problems with the film. The first would be the acting, it was a bit sub-par. Alone I think Wahlberg and Deschanel are fine actors but I didn’t see any real chemistry between them in this film. I know throughout the film their relationship is strained, but I felt there should still be a little spark somewhere. There were no real emotions coming from either of these two, it was kind of stiff and without any emotional range almost to the point where I couldn’t empathize with their characters.
My other issue was the graphic violence. I like violence and gore in action films but I had a tough time with some of these scenes. I’ll have to attribute it to the fact that Mr. Shyamalan never gives you a release from the suspense in most of his films. I don’t really recall a moment of humor to break up the tension so watching some of the scenes made me squirm because I was anxious during the entire film. Like I said, this was a minor problem and lovers of the horror movies will most likely not bat an eye.
I believe M. Night Shyamalan has been given a tough time and received a lot of criticism for his last few films. He’s really a great storyteller and if you can get past his formulaic plot lines and just enjoy the narration on screen you’ll find that his films really are entertaining and thought-provoking.
Tags: John Leguizamo, M. Night Shyamalan, Mark Wahlberg, movie reviews, Zooey Deschanel
Posted in Reviews |
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