DVD Review: Little Fockers

Rated PG13 for innuendo, brief violence, some language

Starring Ben Stiller, Teri Polo, Robert DeNiro, Barbara Streisand, Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Alba, Owen Wilson, Blythe Danner

5 years have passed, story-wise, since we last had an encounter with Greg Focker. Not only is Greg a loving husband to his wife Pam, but he is also a doting dad to their almost 5 year old twins Samantha and Henry and he is the head nurse at the Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

After learning that Dr. Bob - the husband of Pam's sister Debbie - has been having an ongoing affair for quite some time, Greg's father-in-law Jack says that in the event of his passing, it is now Greg's duty to carry the family through hard times, referring to him as "The God-Focker."

In an effort to impress Jack, Greg attempts to send his kids to the elite Early Human School, however it is quite expensive and in order to help cover the expense, Greg gives in to a pretty, peppy young pharmaceutical rep named Andi and agrees to help promote a new erectile dysfunction drug for older men with a heart condition. However, he is a bit embarrassed by the product and the more he keeps hush about it, along with him spending quite a bit of time with Andi, the ex-CIA agent in Jack get suspicious and begins thinking that Greg is cheating on Pam.

Everything boils down the week of the twin's 5th birthday party, which Greg's eccentric and free-spirited parents are also in town for.

Little Fockers is filled with much of the same humor as the previous installment of this series, Meet the Fockers. Honestly though, while there where some laughs and it did have it's moments (not to mention the kids are pretty cute too!), this film wasn't really necessary. See it if you liked the rest of the franchise, otherwise feel free to skip it - you're not missing much.

DVD Review: Old Dogs

Rated PG

Starring Robin Williams, John Travolta, Seth Green, Rita Wilson, Kelly Preston

Dan and Charlie have been best friends forever and are co-owners of a successful sports marketing firm, living the high life. In the midst to closing the biggest deal of their lives, Dan's ex-wife Vicki (whom he married on a whim 7 years prior while on vacation, their nuptials not even lasting 24 hours) shows up, desperately needing someone to watch her 2 kids while she spends 2 weeks in jail for activist shenanigans. Dan quickly realizes, the children are his - the result of their brief nuptials 7 years ago.

Reluctant at first, Dan evenutally agrees, wanting to get to know the kids a bit (not to mention he never got over Vicki either). However as Dan struggles with figuring out fatherhood, him and Charlie continue to attempt to close their business deal.

In the end, they learn what's important in life (and it's not living the high life) and grow as people as well.

Much like Travolta's previous Disney family flick Wild Hogs, Old Dogs is geared towards the same audience catering more towards adults although kids will enjoy the youngsters meddling in their father's (and "Uncle Charlie's") life. It's definitely a feel good movie.

DVD Review: The Other Guys

Rated PG13 for action violence, slapstick violence, brief language, some sexuality

Starring Will Ferrell, Mark Whalberg, Eva Mendes, Michael Keaton, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Samuel L. Jackson

In every police force there are guys like detective Chris Dansen and PK Highsmith - the cool guys who chase after the bad guys much like the crime-fighting duos you see in all the action movies. And then there are the other guys like Allen Gamble and Terry Hoitz, the pencil pusher who sit at the desks and do all the research.

After a freak accident where Dansen and Highsmith are killed, all the guys in the office are looking to become the next action crime-fighting duo. That is, all the guys except for Gamble who is quite content working a safe deskjob, much to the dismay of his partner Hoitz. Hoitz longs for being in on the action but ever since accidentally shooting Derek Jeter (he thought he was a trespasser) he hasn't been given much of a chance to redeem himself.

Gamble begins an investigation into a scaffolding permit violation though which as it would be turns out to lead to something much much bigger than him and Hoitz could ever imagine. And clearly they're on the right trail as someone with power and henchmen don't want them snooping around.

Will the other guys prevail and get their moment of glory out from behind the desk?

While it's supposed to be a comedy, the laughs were few and far between. Sure it had it's moments, but it went a little over the top when Will Ferrell's Gamble shares his backstory.

Definitely a forgettable film and not worth the time to watch.

DVD Review: Dinner for Schmucks

Rated PG13 for crude humor, language, sexuality

Starring Paul Rudd, Steve Carell

Tim is a financial consultant who hopes to be promoted among the executives after a spot opens up at his firm. After impressing his bosses and potentially landing a huge client, they are quick to consider him for the job however they say he must attend a "special" dinner. He soon learns that at this dinner, the execs bring the craziest, wackiest idiot they can find and whoever brings the best one wins!

At first Tim is turned off to the idea of making a fool out of some poor schmuck and his live-in girlfriend reminds him how wrong it is and tells him not to do it. But after running into Barry - the perfect schmuck to bring to the dinner - Tim can't resist the chance at a promotion and so he invites Barry to the dinner. Inadvertently he invites Barry into his life as well, popping up at all the wrong moments and making Barry's situation with his girlfriend and his potential new clients only worse! Basically, Barry is a walking disaster.

Will Tim ultimately decide to attend the dinner, with Barry in tow? Or will he do the noble thing and tell Barry the truth, saving him from humiliation?

Honestly, with funny men Paul Rudd and Steve Carell starring together, this movie wasn't as funny as it could have been. It had potential alright, and some laughs, but it just seemed a bit mean-spirited and in the end it didn't deliver.

Feel free to skip this dinner!

DVD Review: Easy A

Rated PG13 for sexuality, brief language, teenage drinking

Starring Emma Stone, Amanda Bynes, Thomas Hayden Church

What started as an innocent fib to get a best friend to shut up became the rumor heard 'round the school.

Not wanting to join her best friend Rhi and her kooky family on a weekend camping trip, Olive lies and says she has a date with college guy. On Monday, Rhi begs her for details, insisting that Olive must have slept with this college beau when in fact Olive spent all weekend at home, rocking out to the song "Pocket Full of Sunshine." Tired of Rhi pestering her, Olive gives in and tells her she slept with the guy, unbeknownst that one of the school's gossips is in the bathroom with them and overhears everything. Quickly the word spreads that Olive is sleeping around.

Having never been on the social map at school, Olive admits to initially liking all the attention she was getting from both the girls (who called her a slut) and the guys (who suddenly had an interest in her).

She learns that one of her best guy pals is gay, but hates being made fun of for it by the other kids at school. After Olive gives him the advice to just make up something up and spread around, like what happened with her, he suggests they go to a party together and fake have sex, that way Olive's reputation lives on and people will think he's straight. She decides to go along with it, however after that encounter, all the "loser" guys at school catch on to the trick and start offering Olive giftcards to various places in exchange for her to agree that she did something sexual with them.

Eventually it spirals out of control, and she decides she no longer likes having the slutty reputation, as it seems no guys in school actually have respect for her or want to date her - they just want to say they did things with her. Needless to say, Olive learns a very important lesson about how big one little lie can get and the importance of a reputation!

With the witty dialogue and just the right amount of sexuality, this film is almost like a 2010 version of Mean Girls as both have the same type of humor and clever dialogue, with the story being told by the main character and how they met their downfall and how they redeemed themselves.

If you liked Mean Girls, or even just funny teenage come-of-age flicks (with John Hughes references to boot!) be sure to check out Easy A! It's probably better than what you're expecting!

DVD Review: The Proposal

Rated PG13 for some language, some sexuality, obscure nudity

Starring Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Betty White, Craig T. Nelson, Mary Steenburgen

Margaret Tate is a very successful editor in chief of a book publishing company in New York, however when she learns from her board that her legal visa has expired (she's from Canada) and she will be deported she quickly and foolishly tells them that her and her assistant Andrew are engaged and will be married soon. Andrew, while fully aware that his boss is a demanding witch of a woman, plays along as she promises him she'll run his articles if he plays along long enough. With a long weekend coming up, Andrew has already made plans to go home and visit his family in Alaska, and in order to fool their co-workers, Margaret must tag along.

What she didn't plan on was meeting a family who genuine cares and accepts each other regardless. We learn she never really had much of a family life growing up, which is why she's so cold of a person. She quickly begins to fall in love with Andrew's family and begins to realize it's not fair to drag him into a marriage of convience.

But what will Andrew's family think once the truth comes out? Will Margaret eventually be deported? Or will Andrew still play along with her scheme?

If you like romantic comedies, be sure not to miss this one as the performances by the cast were all quite fun!

Due Date

Rated R for language, sexual innuendo and adult humor

Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Zach Galifianakis, Jamie Foxx, and Megan Monaghan with Juliette Lewis and Danny McBride

Peter is about to head home from a business trip in Atlanta to be with his wife in Los Angeles who is scheduled to give birth to their firstborn on Friday via C-section. However things quickly go downhill the moment he gets to the airport and has a chance encounter with a man named Ethan. Through a series of mishaps, Peter and Ethan both get grounded and put on the "no fly" list. Desperate to get home in time for his child's birth but without his luggage or wallet (as they got left on the plane when Peter was pulled off), Peter unwillingly accepts to travel cross country with Ethan.

The odd couple (Peter is very uptight and business-like while Ethan is a naive, means well but accident prone aspiring actor coping with the react loss of his father) have a whole disaster of unfortunate events occur to them on their 3 day trek cross country - from cars getting totaled, to being shot, and a run in with border control near Mexico to name a few.

Due Date is a road trip movie mixed with a bit of a bromance as near the end Peter and Ethan begin to bond. It's also a bit of an updated "Planes, Trains and Automobiles", with Zach Galifianakis in the classic John Candy role and Robert Downey, Jr. in the Steve Martin role.

While it was funny and amusing, and brought to us by the director of Galifianakis' other hit film The Hangover, it wasn't nearly as funny as expected - The Hangover brought us many more laughs.

If you're fan of adult humor and like either actor, be sure to set a due date to see this one!

DVD Review: Date Night

Rated PG13 for some sexual humor and innuendo, mild violence

Starring: Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg, Common, Ray Liotta, William Fichtner, with appearances by James Franco, Mila Kunis, Kristen Wiig, and Mark Ruffalo

Phil and Claire Foster are your typical working parents - every morning their 2 young kids wake them up at the crack of dawn, they get them off to school before running off to their own jobs. In the afternoons, Claire chauffers their kids around to and from various practices and activities before making dinner and eventually crashing in bed. They do however make time for a weekly date night, but even that has become routine and bland as every week they go to the same steakhouse and order the same thing.

Learning that a couple they're close with is separating, Phil and Claire decide maybe they should change things up a bit for a feeling of something, fresh, new and exciting. The following date night, Claire decides to get all dressed up, prompting Phil to do the same when he gets home. He also insists on taking her to dinner in Manhattan (they live in Jersey) at some expensive new seafood joint Claire had mentioned previously.

Arriving at the restaurant however on a busy night with no reservations, they learn that it is full and will be forever before they can get a table. Waiting in the bar, figuring out what to do, after hearing the hostess call "Tripplehorn, party of 2" several times with no response, Phil acts quickly and claims they are the Tripplehorns. Soon after they are seated though, a couple of tough guys confront Phil and Claire, requesting to speak with them outside. Thinking these men work for the restaurant and that they're in trouble for claiming a reservation that wasn't theirs, they comply, however they quickly learn the Tripplehorns didn't show for a reason - turns out, these men work for some well-known mobster and the Tripplehorns stole a flashdrive from him with incriminating evidence on it and have been black mailing him for weeks.

Trying to explain what happened and that they're really the Fosters, not the Tripplehorns, the thugs believe Tripplehorn is just their alias and insist they take them to where the flashdrive is hidden. Scared for their lives, Phil and Claire use their wits together to try and outsmart the baddies, stay a few steps ahead of them, and find help in the big city as they also try to locate the real Tripplehorns and make them give back the flashdrive so they can go home safely.

Directed and produced by Shawn Levy (who also did the Night at the Museum films), unlike most romantic comedies that tend to be more of a chick flick, Date Night is a fun romantic comedy that both men and women can enjoy together. It's got a lot of laugh out loud comedic moments (due largely in part to the comedian genius pairing of stars Steve Carell and Tina Fey), some amusing action sequences, and a little bit of romance as we see Phil and Claire discuss and work out the issues they have in their marriage during this hectic night and try and rekindle the flame.

Be sure to make a date with your spouse or significant other to watch Date Night!

DVD Review: The Bounty Hunter

Rated PG13 for some violence, some sexuality, brief language

Starring Jennifer Aniston, Gerard Butler, Peter Greene, Jeff Garlin, Christine Baranski, Jason Sudeikis, Dorian Missick, Cathy Moriarty

Nicole is a journalist with a haunch - she has a strange feeling that a case that was ruled as suicide is really a homocide and requests her snitch friend find out some information on a possible lead. She also has some trouble of her own with the law, as she innocently assaulted a police officer landing her with a court date. Right as she's approaching the courthouse, she gets a call from snitch friend, saying that if she wants the information he has she needs to meet him in 30 minutes before he sells it someone else. In a jam, Nicole decides it's more important to get the information and misses her court hearing.

Milo is a former police officer turned bounty hunter with a bit of a gambling debt of his own that he's trying to pay off. Hours after Nicole skips court, a warrant is out for her with a bounty of $5,000 to whoever brings her in. Milo more than jumps at the opportunity as Nicole is his ex-wife!

He quickly tracks her down later that afternoon and attempts to bring her in in a hilarious but forceful way.

However they both have people on their tails - Milo's bookie has sent men out to collect on his debt and Nicole's snitch and lead have gotten her a little too close to uncovering the truth and the men responsible want her gone. They also begin to rekindle the flame of their former romance.

Will they be able to stay ahead of the people who are after them?
And will Milo ultimately still turn in Nicole despite their reconnection?

This one has an interesting premise with the potential to be really funny as it's a bit of a tale of revenge - a bounty hunter having the chance to bring in his ex-wife whom he despises - however with the subplots it starts to drag on. While the subplot about the people coming after Nicole for getting to close to uncovering the truth makes sense and fits, the other just seems unnecessary. Okay, so Milo has a huge gambling debt and that's why he does bounty hunting, I get that, but the whole subplot about his bookie trying to collect just gets too out of hand - the bookie's crones mistake Nicole's creepy lovestruck co-worker who's trying to follow her for Milo and instead torture him. That whole part just seemed a bit pointless. Also, we get it, they start to rekindle their romance and rethink their divorce. The bit when they need to hideout and revisit the bed and breakfast they spent their honeymoon at just started to drag on.

This movie felt at least 20 minutes too long and honestly, I got bored after the first hour.

Good premise, bad attempt.

Skip this one unless you're really really bored.

Scott Pilgrim vs the World

Rated PG13 for comic book/video game violence, some sexuality, brief language

Starring Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Ellen Wong, Aubrey Plaza, Anna Kendrick with appearances by Jason Schwartzman, Chris Evans and Brandon Routh

Scott Pilgrim is a 22 year old bassist in the hopeful indie rock band Sex Bob-Omb and shares a studio apartment and bed in Toronto with his gay roommate Wallace Wells. Scott has also started dating a 17 year old high school girl named Knives Chau, much to the disapproval of his roommate, sister, bandmates and well, everyone he knows - they all refer to Knives as Scott's "fake high school girlfriend" and tell him to get a real girlfriend, one that's his own age.

One night while sleeping, Scott sees an attractive girl with pink dyed hair comes skating through his dreams and he can't get her out of his head. The next day, he sees her in person, delivering a package to the library and later runs into her at a party where he learns her name is Ramona Flowers and that she is new town from New York after a rough breakup with her ex, he makes a complete fool of himself. Desperate for a second chance, the next morning Scott orders a package from Amazon.ca in hopes that Ramona will be the one to deliver it to him. Fortunately, she does and she agrees to meet up with him later in exchange for him signing for his package already.

The two go out for the evening and end up spending the night snuggling together at Ramona's place. The morning after Scott invites Ramona to his band's upcoming Battle of the Bands gig, completely forgetting that he also invited Knives and that he's technically still dating her! Both girls show, creating an awkwardness for everyone, however his friends and sister both approve of the much more age appropriate Ramona. Right as Sex Bob-Omb takes the stage, Knives faints due to excitement, and suddenly a man named Matthew Patel comes crashing into the venue, challenging Scott to a duel.

Scott is confused at first until Patel askes "Didn't you get my e-mail... about the League of Evil Exes controlling the fate of Ramona's love life?"

"I skimmed it..." Scott slowly responds, but in video-game like fashion, Scott and Patel begin fighting and throwing punches (much to the dismay and astonishment of everyone in the club), with Patel summoning "demon hipster chicks" before Scott delivers the final blow and Patel turns into a handful of coins.

Him and Ramona quickly flee the scene and hop on a bus where Ramona explains that if her and Scott are to date, he must defeat each of her 7 evil exes (which includes a famous hot shot skater turned actor, a telekinetic vegan musician, a goth girl half ninja, a pair of Japanese techno pop star twins and the infamous powerful music producer Gideon Graves). Scott doesn't seem to have a problem with that, however, all his friends remind him, he needs to break-up with Knives if he is going to continue to see Ramona.

This movie is based on a series of 6 graphic novels written by Bryan Lee O'Malley and it really is a great adaption of a comic book brought to life on the big screen. It combines young adult romance with comedy and video game action, as when Scott defeats each one of the exes he gains coins, skill points, level ups, free lives, and even swords. The soundtrack is pretty fun too with music that helps drive the movie.

While the plot overview may seem more for teenagers, it really is more than just that - it's a geeky/gamer affair with some awesome visuals. I cannot stress how well this movie is when it comes to bringing a comic book to life - thanks to technology of today, it really does feel like the images, characters and fight scenes from the books have come to life on the big screen. If video games were real life, this is what the result would probably look like. While I won't say it's the best movie I've ever seen, it definitely was fun and some of the scenes really do deserve to be seen on the big screen to get the full effect of awesomeness!

This film doesn't deserve to be doing as poorly as it is at the box office (it barely made the top 5 its first week, and last week it barely placed in the top 10). In an age of remakes, spoofs, and unoriginal movies, this is one that is very unique both in it's style and portrayal.

If you like comedies, go see it.
If you like action movies, go see it.
If you like comic books and/or video games, go see it.
If you like movies that are just plain fun and clever, go see it.

Just do yourself a favor and go see it!

DVD Review: Valentine's Day

Rated PG13 for brief language, brief sexuality

Starring Julia Roberts, Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, Kathy Bates, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Topher Grace, Taylor Swift, Anne Hathaway, Carter Jenkins, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah, Taylor Lautner, George Lopez, Shirley MacLaine, Emma Roberts

Like 2009's "He's Just Not That Into You," "Valentine's Day" also features an all-star cast with different storylines weaving in and out of each other.

It's Valentine's Day and love is in the air! Reed Bennett (Kutcher) is having a great morning as his beautiful girlfriend (Alba) said "yes" to his wedding proposal (something that most of his friends and co-workers are shocked to hear, as they expected her to say "no") and owning a floral shop that delivers, today is the busiest day for business.

We are also introduced to Reed's platonic best friend Julia (Garner), who is convinced she's met the man of her dreams (Dempsey)... only when he comes into Reed's shop to order flowers to be delivered to both his wife and Julia, Reed is faced with the dilemma of whether or not to her that her divorced doctor who flew to San Fransisco for the night for work is really still in town and well, not divorced! It doesn't help matters that Julia is planning on flying over to San Fransisco later that day to surprise him so the 2 of them can grab dinner together and celebrate the holiday.

Also stopping in the flower shop that day is a young boy named Edison (Robinson), who lives with his grandparents (MacLaine and Elizondo) and is in Julia's class she teaches, and he wants to buy flowers for a special someone and requests they be delivered during recess. However, after getting in a fender bender with sports star Sean Jackson (Dane), florist deliver and Reed's right-hand man Alphonso (Lopez) loses a bunch of their deliveries - Edison's included.

We are also introduced to several high schoolers - track star Willy (Lautner) and his new dance team girlfriend Felicia (Swift), and their friends Grace (Emma Roberts) and Alex (Jenkins). Willy and Felicia are both over the top gushy in love and Felicia gets excited over everything Willy does for her, while Grace (who nannies Edison after school) and Alex are planning on having sex for the first time at Grace's home during their lunch period.

Rounding out the cast is Sean Jackson's publicist and Julia's friend Kara (Biel) who organizes a yearly "I Hate Valentine's Day" party, although she has a growing attraction to local sports reporter Kelvin (Foxx). Paula (Queen Latifah) is Sean Jackson's agent who has temp Liz (Hathaway) working as a receptionist. Liz moonlights as an "adult phone entertainer" often juggling calls all throughout the day and has yet to share this bit of information with her boyfriend of 2 weeks (Topher Grace). We also meet Kate (Julia Roberts) and Holden (Cooper), who are sitting next to each other on a long flight to LA. Holden states he is recently single and is not really in the mood of the holiday, while we learn Kate is a US Army Captain, on a 1-day leave hoping to get home in time to spend just a few hours with someone she loves very much before she has to head back to duty.

Some of the stories that intertwine in "Valentine's Day" will make you laugh, while some of the others will bring you to tears. Older people, middle-aged people, young adults and teens, as well as those that are married, single, in a new relationship or a long-term committed one - this film has something for everyone.

If you don't mind following multiple plots or just like the star studded cast, get together with some of your girlfriends or cuddle up with your significant other and pop in this cute romantic chick flick comedy.

DVD Review: The Men Who Stare at Goats

Rated R for language, some violence, brief nudity

Starring George Clooney, Ewan McGregor, Jeff Bridges, Kevin Spacey

Bob Wilton is a journalist who goes over seas to follow the war in Iraq after his wife leaves him for his editor, however without having a way in to cross the border, he is stuck in Kuwait, waiting for a story. While sitting around drinking at the hotel, he stumbles upon a former Special Forces operator named Lyn Cassady - he heard about Lyn earlier, when he interviewed another man who claimed to have psychic powers. Lyn confesses that he was part of a top secret military group that formed in the '70s called New Earth, in which they trained men to become Jedi Warriors, using invisibility, remote viewing, cloud bursting, walking through walls and intuition. Wanting to hear more Lyn's story and report on it, Bob follows Lyn into Iraq and into an adventure through the desert as Lyn is on a mission that he doesn't know what the objective is.

While the movie had its moments that were pretty humorous, and presented an interesting story about a supposed psychic military unit, the movie was lacking something, despite the clever Star Wars references (which you'll like not get if you're not familiar with Star Wars).

It wasn't a terrible movie, but it wasn't great either - it was just okay. If you have time, check it out, otherwise, don't worry - you aren't missing much.

Get Him to the Greek

Rated R for language, drug and alcohol use, sexuality, brief nudity, crude sexual humor, slapstick violence

Starring Russell Brand, Jonah Hill, Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, Elizabeth Moss, and Rose Bryne

Russell Brand reprises his role from 2008's "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" as larger than life rocker Aldous Snow - the lead singer of Infant Sorrow. Although we learn that just prior to that film, Aldous and his pop singer wife Jackie Q had split from their 7 year marriage and the past 3 years Aldous has spiraled out of control, turning into a hardcore drug addict.

Jonah Hill, who played a waiter and an over-eager fan of Aldous' in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," is a completely different character this time, playing recent college grad Aaron Green, who lives with his overworked hospital intern fiance Daphne and works at a record company and helps brainstorm ideas on how to get the company back on track. A lifetime fan of Aldous Snow and his band Infant Sorrow, Aaron points out that next month will be the 10th Anniversary of when Aldous and Infant Sorrow performed at the historic Greek Theatre in LA.

After thinking it through, his boss Sergio decides it might just work, as they can have companies sponsor and televise the event for millions and make money off the DVD and album. He tells Aaron he has 72 hours to pick up Aldous in London, get to New York for an appearance on the Today show and then bring him out to LA for the gig.

Of course things can't go that smoothly though!

When he arrives to pick up him up in London, Aldous claims they changed the date and are a month early. After a hard night of partying, Aaron finally gets him on the plane. Then he has to make sure Aldous is sober for the Today show. Then, Aldous insists they take a detour so he can he visit his father in the States.

Time is running out and Aldous is starting to rethink his life and his relationship with his former wife. Will Aaron be able to get him to the Greek on time? His job and Aldous's career is riding on it!

If you loved the Aldous Snow character in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" you won't want to miss this spin-off! Aldous is just as quirky and hilarious and clueless as he was the first time, and it features even more hilarious songs by Infant Sorrow. It also cleverly ties the 2 films together with references made to the first.

This one mixes the sweetness of "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" with the craziness of "The Hangover" for a great R-rated comedy. If you enjoyed either of those, you'll definitely like this one!

Hot Tub Time Machine

Rated R for language, drug use, slapstick violence, sexuality

Starring John Cusack, Rob Corrdry, Craig Robinson, Clark Duke, Chevy Chase, Crispin Glover, Lizzy Caplan, Lyndsy Fonseca

In present day LA Adam's girlfriend just left him while his geeky nephew Jacob lives in his basement preferring to spend his life in the virtual world than actually go out and do something; Nick works a dead end job taking care of dogs; Lou is a party guy but comes across as the lovable jerk of the group.

When Lou ends up in the hospital after passing out in his garage due to carbon monoxide poisoning, Adam and Nick get stuck monitoring Lou, as the doctors have placed him on suicide watch, and decide to take him and Jacob to their old favorite party hot spot - Kodiak Valley Ski Resort - for a little guy time.

However, the resort is now more like a ghosttown than the hot happening place they all remember it to be. Bored, they load up on alcohol and hop into their suite's hot tub. When they wake up the next morning though, things aren't how they should be - the resort is hopping and happening again, but everyone's wearing 80s retro clothes, 80s tunes are the only songs playing, and Michael Jackson is black!

With minimal guidance from a mysterious handy-man, the guys decide they must play it safe and relive the particular weekend just as they did back in '86. Of course they run into problems though and eventually learn lessons along the way.

While many say this movie pushes the limits of the R-rated comedy even further than Apatow and Smith have, I personally thought it was much of the same, but loved it, being a sucker for 80s nostalgia.

I figured this movie would be hit or miss - either really funny or really stupid. It blends the line perfectly though, as some of the situations the characters get in are a bit ridiculous, they're tackled in such a funny way that you can't help but laugh.

Also, John Cusack was one of the producers on this film, so you know it's bound to be good, as he has yet to produce a bad film.

Another thing to note when watching - watch for references to previous Cusack films, as in the 80s, he wears clothes similar those of his character Lloyd Dobbler from the classic 80s film "Say Anything" and in one scene when they're in the hot tub, one of the characters yells out "I want my 2 dollars!" which is reference to another 80s Cusack film "Better Off Dead."

If you like R-rated comedies and the 80s, be sure to catch this one!

DVD Review: Jennifer's Body

Rated R for sexuality, partial nudity, violence and gore

Starring Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, Adam Brody, Johnny Simmons

Anita (aka Needy) is your average high school girl. She wears glasses and works on the newspaper staff. She also dates a cute band geek named Chip. Jennifer on the other hand, is the typical hot cheerleader who has no concern for anyone but herself and is quite the tease. What do Jennifer and Needy have in common? Not much these days, but they've been friends since the sandbox days and despite being on different ends of the social circle they still remain best friends. That is, until Needy starts to think Jennifer is evil. "And not just high school evil." Needy clarifies.

Their demise all started one night when Jennifer insisted that Needy join her to see a hot Myspace promoted band perform at a local "niteclub." However the venue catches fire and Jennifer, mesmerized by the band, barely manages to escape with Needy. They run into the band's singer, who insists they join him in his band's van for safety. Needy protests, however the singer takes Jennifer by the arm and leads her way. Later that night, Jennifer shows up at Needy's home, covered in blood, growling and vomitting something "evil" all over Needy's kitchen floor before disappearing into the night. The next day at school however, Jennifer seems completely normal. But then, as the town is mourning the lives lost at the niteclub, the school's star athlete is found dead and dismembered in the nearby woods.

A few weeks later, Needy also has another strange encounter with Jennifer, as she's driving home and almost hits Jennifer, covered again in blood and not looking "human". Frightened, she high tails it home, but is startled by Jennifer in her room. The two share a brief sexual encounter before Jennifer tells Needy what she recalls of the night of the fire. Soon after she got in the van with the band, she noticed various books on witches and the occult laying around the floor ("They were like agents of Satan, but with awesome haircuts!") and the members begin asking if she is a virgin. Scared, she tells them yes ("I don't even know how to have sex!") and that they should let her go and find some girls that do know how to have sex. Soon they arrive at their destination and tie her up, preparing to sacrifice her to Satan for fame via a ritual they found online. She remembers them stabbing her repeatedly, but after that, all she knew was she was hungry, explaining that when she's not full, she feels weak. Scared, Needy tells her to leave.

At school, Needy does some research and learns about demonic transference and that if a virginal sacrifice ritual is performed on a non-virgin, then the demon gets stuck in the victim's body and has a hunger for the flesh. The only way to kill the demon is with a knife. Scared for Chip, she tells him it's not safe for them to go to the upcoming Spring formal - "It'll be a like an all-you-can-eat boy buffet!" she tells him.

Will Needy be able to put a stop to her man-eating best friend before it's too late?

To be completely honest, this movie is more Amanda Seyfried's than Megan Fox's as, despite being hot eye-candy, Fox can't carry a movie on her own. This is one of those types of movies that was intended to be a humorous B-movie (I hope) as you really can't take it too seriously. It would most likely be one of those movies that MST3K would be making fun of or our grandkids will be looking up clips of it on Youtube and laughing at how bad it is, as that's how dumb it was.

Now don't get me wrong, Diablo Cody (who also wrote Juno) has a way with words, as the dialogue in this film is pretty clever, witty and funny (after getting impaled by a giant metal rod, leaving a hole in her stomach, Jennifer asks Needy if she has a tampon she can use!) and Jennifer tends to tell it like it is in crash terms. But that doesn't make up for the ridiculiousness of the plot and the fact that Megan Fox can't act her way out of a paper bag. This film is solely Megan Fox eye-candy with witty dialogue and a stupid plot.

Do yourself a favor and unless you have someone to sit and watch a B-movie and make fun of it with, skip it. You're not really missing much.

DVD Review: 17 Again

Rated PG13 for brief language, some innuendo, teenage sexuality

Starring Zac Efron, Matthew Perry, Leslie Mann, Michelle Trachtenberg, Thomas Lennon

What if you could have a do-over? Would you?

And so is the question this movie poses.

In a similar tale to those of the movie Big and 13 Going on 30 where the main characters wish they were older, in this one, the main character wishes he could go back and redo the end of his senior year.

In 1989, Mike is the star basketball player and a talent scout is at the big game just to watch him. Do well and he has a college basketball scholarship. But then his girlfriend Scarlet makes an appearance during halftime. He can tell she's upset, so he goes to talk to her and learns she is pregnant with his child. At first he goes back out on the court, but then, after seeing her leave, he chases after her and proposes, telling her that they're in this together.

Fast forward 2 decades later, and Mike, having had another kid with Scarlet, has constantly regretted giving up his opportunity for her and they are on the brink of divorce, as she feels like he never could get past the past and build a future together.

After a strange encounter with the high school's janitor, Mike wakes up the next morning and he's 17 again. Realizing that maybe this is his 2nd chance to get that scholarship and make something of his life, he enrolls in the high school again, with the help of his lifelong friend geeky Ned (who is now a multi-millionaire, despite getting picked on in high school), whom he poses as his long lost son. ("Uncle Ned never mentioned having a kid..." Mike's teenage son points out to his 17 year old father. "Yeah, my mom didn't want anyone to know she had a kid with Ned - can you blame her?" he responses. He son accepts that, agreeing with him at the logic.)

After his first day though, Mike realizes that it's not his 2nd chance at a scholarship, but his 2nd chance with his kids, as his purpose for being 17 again must be to help them. His teenage son Alex is the school punching bag, despite having his father's natural talent for basketball and his teenage daughter is dating Alex's main tormentor, and despite having gotten accepted to Georgetown, she is planning on going to school nearby and moving in with her jerk boyfriend soon after graduation. By hanging out with Alex and getting on the basketball team with him, he is able to give him his moment to shine as the basketball and catch the eye of a cute, sweet cheerleader he's been crushing on but is too afraid to talk to.  He is also able to teach Maggie that not all guys are horny jerks and that her and her friends should have more respect for themselves. And he also gets to reconnect with his wife (who can't get over the fact how much Uncle Ned's kid looks like her husband at that age), really learning about her interests and helping out when he can (she enjoys landscape art, something he thought was dumb before).

This was a cute twist on the classic "what if..." story, despite the awkward scenes with his daughter coming onto his teenage self (think Back to the Future) and his longing for his wife despite appearing as a minor. It also has some funny "geeky" moments in a subplot that involves geeky Ned (who's home is decked out in various sci-fi, movie and gaming memorabilia) trying to date the school's principal (the eventually realize they have a common love for Halo and Lord of the Rings and can both speak Elvish).

It also really stresses the values of marriage and family, and being involved in your family and their lives. Mike was too busy wallowing about his missed opportunity for nearly 20 years that he missed all the other opportunities he could have had with his family. He had minimal involvement in his kids' lives and always made his wife feel bad for asking her to marry him.

While not necessarily for younger kids, this is definitely one to watch together with a spouse and the older kids.

When in Rome

Rated PG13 for brief language, slapstick violence

Starring Kristen Bell, Josh Duhamel, Will Arnett, Jon Heder, Dax Shepard, Danny DeVito, Anjelica Huston

Beth (Bell) is a successful art curator at the Guggenheim museum and a bit of a workaholic. "When I meet someone I love as much as my job, that's when I'll get married" she says at one point, although she does become a bit frustrated at her sister's impulsive wedding in Rome when, heeding her father's advice on love, she takes a chance on Nick, the Best Man (Duhamel), only to feel devastated when she sees him kissing another woman. Drunk and feeling down on her luck, Beth climbs into the "fountain of love" and takes several of the coins that were thrown in, not aware of the local legend that if you take a coin from the fountain, you will become the object of the coin owner's affection.

Holding true to legend, once Beth is back in New York, she begins being stalked by several suitors - one is a creepy aspiring artist who paints her likeness all over the city (Arnett), another being a wacky Criss Angel type magician (Heder), one who is prestigious sausage king (De Vito), and another who is a self absorbed male model (Bell's real life fiance Shepard). Adding to her troubles, is that Nick appears to be smitten with her as well. After a few dates and noticing that some chips in his poker set match a poker chip she took from the fountain, Beth is unsure if Nick's affects are for real or if it's all because she took his coin.

For being a PG13 RomCom/chick flick, this one was actually pretty clean compared to most and has been praised for such. Myself, not being one for chick flicks that are over the top mushy, I actually enjoyed it - the humor was pretty good and the acting was enjoyable. I especially liked the brief cameo of Efren Ramirez as Heder's character's sidekick.

This is a perfect film for when you're in the mood for a cute film to enjoy with the girls!

DVD Review: Run Fatboy Run

Rated PG13 for brief language, slapstick violence, some crude humor

Starring Simon Pegg, Thandie Newton, Hank Azaria

The film starts out with an overly nervous Dennis fleeing from his pregnant bride Libby moments before their wedding. Five years later, Dennis and Libby share custody of their son and Dennis, who works as a guard at a lingerie boutique and lives in a small studio apartment hasn't aspired to become much of anything, never having finished a thing he started, yet deep down he still loves Libby and wishes they could be a family together. One day, while picking up his son Jake, Dennis meets Libby's new beau, a go-getter American named Whit, whom we learn intends to marry Libby and whisk her and Jake off to Chicago. Hoping to win Libby back and prove that he can finish something, Dennis, upon hearing that Whit is running in the London Nike River Marathon, decides to sign up for the race as well, which is less than a month away and he is extremely out of shape. With the help of his friend Gordon and his landlord, he does his best to get in shape and sets out to prove not only to himself, Libby and their son, but to everyone that he can finish something.

Like most movies Simon Pegg is in, this one is filled with British humor, however the overall feel of the film is inspiring. You're rooting for Dennis to get in shape, change his lifestyle and beat Whit (whom learn is quite the jerk). You want him and Libby to get back together and his interaction with his son is quite admirable, as it's clear that while he might not be the best father figure to a young child, he still deeply cares for his son and enjoys the times they spend together.

This film was also the directorial debut of Friend's co-star David Schwimmer - while it might not be Oscar worthy, it was still fun and moving. If you like heartfelt comedies and the humor of Simon Pegg, be sure to run and catch this one!

DVD Review: Extract

Rated R for language, some sexuality, adult humor

Starring Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, Ben Affleck, Kristin Wiig, JK Simmons, Clifton Collins Jr.

Joel Reynolds is the owner and founder of Reynolds Extract, which is a flavor-extract company. He spends days at his factory, overseeing the incompetence of his employees and his main desire is to get home before his wife slips into her dreaded sweatpants, which is a signal for "no sex tonight."

At the beginning of the film, we are introduced to attractive con-artist Cindy, who drifts from town to town. While passing through, she reads about an incident at Reynolds Extract where a male employee was involved in an accident and could win a lot of money if he sues. Trying to gain more information about said employee, Cindy takes a job at the factory to seduce the employee, talking him into suing and getting a cut of the money.

She also catches the interest of Joel, who fantasizes about having an affair with her since he's getting no "loving" at home. He pushes the idea away however, not wanting to cheat on his wife, until his bartender friend suggests hiring a male gigolo to seduce her first, citing that if she cheats on him first, he can cheat on her, guilt-free. He agrees to it, under the influence of Special K, however quickly decides against it the next morning. But is he too late? And will Cindy get caught before the company goes under?

From director Mike Judge, who gave us the cult hit Office Space where he humorously showed us life inside a cubicle, in this one he gives us a glimpse into the life of a factory. While it is no Office Space, Extract definitely had its funny moments (I'm sure everyone can relate to the annoying next door neighbor who doesn't know how to take a clue or shut up) and the cast is likable. I'd say it's worth checking out if you like funny comedies.

DVD Review: Funny People

Rated R for strong language, adult humor, some sexuality

Starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Leslie Mann, Jonah Hill

George Simmons is a very successful comedian who also has had a very successful film career. However he is extremely full of himself and has lived a very materialistic life. When he is diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and begins taking an experimental drug that may or may not cure him and George begins to rethink his life and get back to his roots in stand-up. It is here that meets aspiring comedic Ira, whom George decides to take under his wing by hiring Ira as his assistant, having him write his jokes and keep him company as George refuses to tell anyone else about his condition. Eventually, George takes Ira's advice and opens up with his family and former close friends about the fact that he's dying, reconnecting with them; one such person he tells is his former girlfriend Laura, whom he truly loved. Believing that George will be dead soon, she admits that her husband cheats on her and that she regrets leaving George for having done the same.

However, the experimental drug George has been taking does work. Given a second chance to live, will George revert to his own materialistic, self-absorbed ways or will he turn over a new leaf this time around? And now that he's not dying, does he actually have a chance to win Laura back, despite her already having two young daughters with her husband?

Funny People is an enjoyable film for about the first 2/3rds of it. The first part of the film, it's inspiring to see George realize the error of his ways and make things right. The cameos are hilarious and even the stand-up by up and comers as well as the very well known comics are pretty good (if you enjoy Comedy Central type stand-up routines that is). After George gets cured and begins trying to win back Laura is where things really take a turn for the 'non-funny.'

As much as I enjoy Judd Apatow's work (I thought Freaks and Geeks was brilliant and is still one of the best TV shows to ever air), it really is getting tiring seeing him plop his wife (Leslie Mann) and daughters into his films now - in this case, they're the focus of the entire last part of the film. While I understand where he was trying to go with the last part of the film, it just wasn't funny - it was actually painful to watch and we could all see where it was going from the beginning of the plot arc.

Save yourself the time it takes to watch this one and flip on Comedy Central or watch some stand-up DVDs instead, as that's really the highlight of the film that makes it funny.