The one with the mini movie review – Observe and Report

For me, Kevin James and Mall Cop have ruined anything to do with Malls and shopping centres. I may not even look at the amazing Blue Brothers chase sequence again, I'm that scarred! I'm a huge Seth Rogen fan, but I was still very dubious about Observe and Report.

The story revolves around Rogen’s, character Ronnie, who is the head of Mall security. Things are going well for Ronnie until one day a “pervert” show’s up and starts flashing any female with his little captain winkle! And of course the make up counter girl that Ronnie is obsessed with, gets flashed. Detective Harris (Ray Liotta) starts investigating the case, but he isn't up to scratch in the eyes of Ronnie, who really deep down thinks he’s the cop. So in between trying to join up for the Police Academy and getting wasted the story still revolves around trying to apprehend the flasher, all the time while trying to outdo Det. Harris. And of course there’s the blatantly obvious love interest!

Observe and Report is just under 90 minutes long, but the first half of the movie feels twice as long as that and does it ever drag. Thankfully, things pickup in the second half with a selection of great lines and the the final few minutes are actually highly entertaining with more than enough to keep you choking on your popcorn!

Seth Rogen is just convincing enough as the head of mall security, but to me, he looks out of place in a movie like this! The supporting cast, in particular Ray Liotta are quite entertaining and his battle’s with Ronnie are very good, and at times Observe and Report is very dark when it comes to the head of mall security and how demented he actually is. But there’s not enough here to make this movie downright hilarious. That said; special mention goes to the kid getting the skateboard cracked off his head, that made me laugh so hard!. It is very funny in parts, and as mentioned the last part is nuts (literally).

Maybe I'm just not feeling the love because of Mall Cop and I really wanted to love this movie, but two mall movies released so close together is a bad move. This might have been better off released after the Summer blockbuster season or at the very least Kevin James and his Mall cop shite should have been canned! Maybe the DVD and Blu-ray will have a directors cut, or at least by the time its released Mall Cop will have eroded from my mind. Dont get me wrong, this is a very different beast to Paul Blart: Mall Cop, but the whole thing being set in a mall was too much for me.

If the first half had the pace and humour of the second half, then we would be onto a major winner. Either way, Observe and Report is not a bad movie, it is very funny in parts but is lacking a little something to make it a movie that is truly great!  

7/10

Trailer NSFW

Special thanks to the Gate cinemas!

The one with Beavers -

Seth McFarlene does it again and again and again and so on...
NSFW

The one with Beyonce on the Today show

Here's the vid that I played last night and it's been thundering around the internet for the last few days! Apparently it's a fake now or maybe not. Does anybody care? If Beyonce comes to my door looking to borrow a cup of sugar (ala some lame ass Coffee ad) I'm not going to tell her go somewhere else because she can't sing!
Anyway, make up your own mind! And yes, Im very late today! Havent been this late in ages....must be pregnant!

The one with bits from the Midweek Movie Bit

Observe and Report – Opens in Cork April 24th (Lots of 7’s out of 10 in the states) (previews from today)

State of Play – Opens in Cork April 24th  (Lots of 8 out of 10s in the States) (previews from today)

More than a game – Should keep the sports AND film / doc fans happy

Russell Crowe as Robin Hood – Hmmmmmmm another Robin Hood movie??? Either way its Crowe with the Gladiator haircut!!!

Star Trek – Let it be said, I’m not a ST fan in any capacity, but this has got me excited!

Pixar’s new short, Partly Cloudy! According to AICN, its all about where storks get babies from :)

The one with slo mo sneezing!

Run away...now!

The one with the health kick

For one reason or another, last week my health kick went on strike. But after furious negotiations, the unions have resolved their differences and its back on this week. I only lost 7 days, that's all no more no less.

Of course, its always tough to get back on the pi-ball after a week off from it, and last night was no different. Decided, due to starvation, to have one last blow out and went off for food. Couldn't find a parking spot, so took this as an omen, until I reached a junction. Looped back around and got a spot on McCurtain St. I gave into the temptation, but my mind convinced me to have that one last blow out, typical addict style symptoms.

I'd never do if I was Luke Skywalker! That part in Empire Strikes Back where he's told that Darth's his old man. If that were me, I would have been like "Really? Your my dad? Cool! Where do I sign up, do I get a red lightsaber too?". None of this jumping off shite. I would have joined up straight away.

The one with the Facebook PSA

The one with time flying

Did anyone ever wonder where the hell does the weekend go? Im not suggesting that it goes off to Santa Ponsa clad in GAA outfits and rampages around the place for 7 nights. I'm actually wondering why the thing goes so quick? Your average weekend starts Friday night and ends Sunday night, which you could say is 2.5 days or thereabouts, depending whether or not your stuck in bed for most of it. I was off last Friday night and now its Monday morning! I didn't do anything mad, daft or exciting, so I can remember the whole lot of it, well I think I can.

The whole thing has disappeared at hyper speed. If you take lets say 2.5 days out of Monday to Friday they go on forever. From now until Wednesday evening, it will feel like 3 months. But if those 2.5 days are weekend days, then they’re over quicker than cheap sex. Its like you go to bed Friday night and wake up and its Monday morning!

I'm nearly convinced that the space time continuum speeds up over the weekend. Sure our watches stay the same, but there’s probably only 18 hours in a weekend day, as opposed to the usual 24.   

Either that, or we’re all been kidnapped by Dr. Emmet Brown, fecked into a Delorean and brought forward in time! And yes, I know what your saying, thats impossible. How can Doc Brown bring us all into the future. Well, maybe he went so far into the future…..feck it. That's not plausible. Its to do with the time space continuum.

The one with the bits from the Movie Bit 19 04 09

Pics via Empire of Bruno





Ghosts of Girlfriends Past


X-mens Origins: Wolverine


Is anybody there?

The one with the mini movie review – I Love you, Man

I Love You, Man is promising from the trailers. Looks funny and of course Paul Rudd is a huge talent! So is the full thing any good???well……the idea behind it, is good. Sort of. Think of I Love you, man with a story line that one might suspect would work better as a chick flick. Either way, Peter Klaven (Paul Rudd) is getting married and has “plenty” of friends, but no real close ones. So he goes on a serious of man dates to try and find his best man.

The man dates don't last very long and he finds Sidney (Jason Segel) at an open house that he’s selling for Lou “you wouldn't like me when I'm pissed off” Ferrigno. They go off and do some dude things and then there’s a little bit of confusion because the wife to be eventually feels hard done by. So Sidney gets dumped, after getting 8 grand from Peter, which he puts to great use that benefits his now, ex best friend. And that's more or less it, well bar the fact that the obvious happens.

Watching the trailer, I was led to believe that this movie was going to be funny. The 2 minute promo is very tightly edited and when scenes are shuffled around compared to the movie, that's  always a worrying thing. Case and point is the scene at the table in the trailer. This is actually funnier in the trailer sequence as opposed to the cut in the movie.

Don't get me wrong, it is funny in parts and the director of Iron Man 1&2, Jon Favreau plays a great part as a pissed off husband. When it comes to the main cast, Jason Segel steals the show, from Paul Rudd who I think is immensely talented, but doesn't shine as bright as he can in this. That said, Rudd’s character is convincing enough as a guy who is trying so very hard to be the cool, hip guy.

Overall, just like one of the director’s previous movies, Along came Polly, I love you, man chugs along. With one or 2 small exceptions there isn’t too many laugh out loud moments, more like a selection of slightly muffled choking sounds that sound like laughing. The F word sounds out of place in this movie, and it sounds that it was part of a rewrite to try and man up the picture a little.

I Love you, man is a disappointing movie, that could have been so much more. An original enough idea that seems to be stuck in the space between a straight forward comedy suitable for all and a comedy that you wouldn't tell your parents you went to see. More of a “I kinda like you, man” than anything else!

6/10