Film Review : Chef (2014)

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IMDB Score – 7.9
Rotten Tomato Score – 87%

Directed By – Jon Favreau
Starring – Jon Favreau, John Leguizamo, Bobby Cannavale, Sofia Vergara, Dustin Hoffman, Scarlett Johansson, Roberrt Downey Jr, Oliver Platt, Amy Sedaris, Russell Peters, and Emjay Anthony

A chef who loses his restaurant job starts up a food truck in an effort to reclaim his creative promise, while piecing back together his estranged family.

It has been a fucking long time since I was last in a theater; a month I believe. That’s not good when you’re supposed to be a film blogger but what am I going to say? I’ve been busy with my real person job and I honestly just haven’t been pulled out to the theater in the last month by anything. Like always, I’m waiting to see the bigger films like Godzilla/X-Men until the crowds die down because I get anxiety from assholes talking during the movie I paid for. This doesn’t necessary mean I wait for everything as I’m going out tomorrow to see “The Double” and I’m also writing this review right now on Jon Favreau’s latest film, “Chef”.

First let me say that I was in the theater with mostly old people who proceeded to talk during the whole movie. The thing is, it was okay! I actually didn’t mind because of how the film was and I’ll get into that in a minute. I’ll also say that old men don’t give a shit who they sit next to. I was sitting three seats from the left in a row and to my right were four open seats. Older couple walks in, sits down, to my left. They didn’t give a shit if they could of had empty seats next to me. They wanted to sit near the isle and I was going to have to sit next to the old man. I didn’t mind one bit. Who the hell cares? First off, I was there first and I’ll be damned if I’m going to move my seat just because somebody else sat next to me for no reason but why would I have to? The guy wasn’t wheezing like the penguin from “Toy Story”. He didn’t smell like death and I felt no fear that he was going to hold me hostage before Mr. Death came by and took him away. I don’t understand the heebie jeebies with sitting next to people in a theater unless they’re Paul Reubens. They’re just people.

I digress.

Chef! I had the choice to either see Chef or the Spiderman sequel and you know what? FUCK SPIDERMAN! I’ll take an original film over that cash cow any day. I believe I was first introduced to Mr. Favreau while watching the film “Swingers”, which while not being directed by him, both starred and was written by the man. Jon has gotten a little bigger in the wallet and waistline since then but he’s a talented writer/directer and this seemed like a return to form for him. It was. I ended up really enjoying the film.

The film centers around Carl, played by Favreau himself, who gets fired from his job running a restaurant for telling a food critic to shove it. He then grabs his partner and ten year old son and embarks on a journey to create the ultimate food truck.

I should not have gone into this hungry. This is what most of the people in the theater were talking about, the food. The food was gorgeous and goddamn mouth watering. It was like watching an episode of “Chopped” instead all the food looked somewhat normal and tasty. There’s a Cuban place near me that does authentic Cuban food while blasting Cubano music from 100 speakers. I’ll be visiting them soon because I have a hankering for a Cuban sandwich now. I wanted to tell everybody to shut up but I would have been kicked out by an angry mob of starving lunatics. It was acceptable and I went along with it. The music in the film is also fantastic. They used a very horn heavy selection of songs mixed in with a little up tempo blues. One of my favorite blues musicians, Gary Clark Jr, actually makes a cameo. Speaking of cameos with a guy who has a Jr. at the end of his name, if you’re going to see this film because of RDJ, don’t. He’s in it for five minutes. He isn’t funny. I suppose he’s just doing his old buddy Jon a favor cause the film was fine without him. Same goes for Scarlett Johansson. She was in the film to add weight to the main characters downfall and once she did she was gone. The stars who line the top of the billing were merely expensive decorations. The real meat and guts lie with Favreau and his on screen son played by Emjay Anthony, who was delightful. It’s their story and somehow it came to a heartwarming end when I thought it was going to be cheesier than the guys fantastic looking grilled cheese.

The film did have some pacing problems though. There was a scene with Russell Peters, who played a cop, that was just very strange and distracting from the film. It should have been left on the floor like most of the final third of the film. The two hour run length really should have been cut down to about an hour and a half but it’s a small complaint on an overall good film that does nothing besides make you hungry and make you feel good. It’s a refreshing film in the midst of all the superheros and monsters that are going to be filling our screens in the next couple of months. It’s also a great return of a promising and humble filmmaker.

I’m going to go make a sandwich now.

4/5

Suggested Viewing : Big Night, The Station Agent, Anthony Bourdain shows, Ratatouille

Film Review : Enough Said (2013)

IMDB Score – 7.2
Rotten Tomato Score – 96%

Golden Globe Nomination for Best Actress – Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Screen Actors Guild Nomination for Best Actor – James Gandolfini

Directed By – Nicole Holofcener
Starring – Julia Louis-Dreyfus, James Gandolfini, Catherine Keener, Toni Collette, Ben Falcone, Tracey Fairaway, Eve Hewson, and Toby Huss

A divorced woman who decides to pursue the man she’s interested in learns he’s her new friend’s ex-husband.

I didn’t think this movie was going to be for me. Why? Well, I’m 24, not married, never been married, and don’t have children. I thought it was going to be a film that I appreciated but didn’t really understand. In a way, I didn’t understand, but the performances from the two leads and a superb first half left a lasting impression. It’s also good to note that the late James Gandolfini left us with one more amazing performance capping off an entire career of them.

Enough Said is about two middle aged recently divorced parents who meet at a party and take a chance with one another and go out on a date. This is where the magic of the film resided with me. If this was a film starring any other combination of people I don’t think I would have liked it as much but the chemistry between Louis-DreyFus and Gandolfini had me belly laughing from how, well, freakin’ adorable it was. These were two people who had been through the dating scene, found somebody they thought they loved, lived through a divorce, and are now trying again. It was fun watching them feel each other out, stumble through awkward conversations, and basically act like kids again. James Gandolfini, who is famous for being a brash and brutal human being, was funny, endearing, and kind. It was a version of him that people don’t really get to see. It really shined a light on his acting chops and it’s sad we won’t be able to see more of that with his passing. Julia Louis-Dreyfus complimented her partner perfectly and as the film revolves mostly around her journey, she proved to be an exceptional emotional force as she leap through comedy into melancholy gracefully. Honestly, I think she got robbed this year at the Oscars. I would have loved to have seen her up there instead of maybe Amy Adams. Adams was great but Dreyfus kind of came out of the blue to deliver such a real performance in this film.

The only real gripe with the film is one that I can’t help but have. I hate scenarios like the one that Dreyfus found herself in during the middle and end of the film. Now this isn’t particularly a spoiler due to the fact that it’s in the synopsis but her character is a masseuse who finds herself working for and eventually becoming friends with her boyfriends ex wife. Catherine Keener, who plays the ex wife has no problem talking shit about her ex husband, whom Dreyfus is emotionally involved with, and instead of ending that relationship then and there, Dreyfus keeps quiet and lets the situation play out. I have always cringed at these situations and rarely enjoy them when they happen. It’s like those old fashioned sitcoms where the male character sets up two dates ON THE SAME NIGHT? OH MAN HOW IS HE GOING TO SWING THIS ONE? I have always found it annoying that people would put themselves in these idiotic situations and I find myself squirming and waiting for it to end. Now, I understand the importance that this situations holds in the context of the film, but it just took me out of it for a good forty five minutes. The beginning of the film was just so sweet and perfect and it was overshadowed a little bit by too much awkwardness. The film thankfully ended on a better note.

That being said, I enjoyed the film a lot. I loved the acting from both leads and the dialogue/writing was smart, witty, and most of all funny. It’s a shame we lost such a great actor in James Gandolfini but I’m glad that he at least was able to give us one final gem as he teamed up with Julia Louis-Dreyfus to give us and on screen couple that should be up near the top of the best couples in recent film history.

4/5

Suggested Viewing – Crazy Stupid Love, Lost in Translation, Away We Go

Classic Review : What’s Up Doc? (1972)

IMDB Score – 7.8
Rotten Tomato Score – 91%

Directed By – Peter Bogdanovich
Starring – Barbara Streisand, Ryan O’Neil, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars, Austin Pendleton, Michael Murphy, Phillip Roth, Stefan Gierasch, and Liam Dunn

The accidental mix up of four identical plaid overnight bags leads to a series of increasingly wild and wacky situations.

Finally, I am able to return to watching some films that weren’t released in 2013. This year I’m going to try to see as many films as I can in the theater that way I’m not playing this much catch up after New Years. It’s been a busy week for me so I haven’t been able to sit down and catch of with a lot of films. Today however, is a snow day. My home state of New Jersey is under yet another blanket of snow, so I decided to sit down and watch something (hopefully) funny in order to ease into the day.

If you have been reading my writing then you know I’m not a huge comedy fan. I just find more misses than hits so I usually stop trying until I’ve read enough about a film to give it a go. Classics however are always appealing to me. “His Girl Friday” and “Bringing Up Baby” are some of my favorite comedies ever so it’s not a surprise that I ended up enjoying this film, which is a self proclaimed homage to the great screwball comedies of the thirties. “What’s Up Doc?” follows four travel bags that hold entirely different items as they swap owners and cause mayhem. We’ve seen this before, but screwball comedy is more about the sight gags and dialogue than unique story.

Would you believe this is the first film starring Babs that I’ve seen? I hated “Meet the Parents” so I didn’t end up seeing any of the sequels and a road trip film with Seth Rogan just turned me off. I’ll get around to seeing her famous musicals and her Oscar winning debut in “Funny Girl” somewhere down the line. This was my first and honestly I found her adorable. Her character was that perfect blend of quirky and smart that hit the chord with me. She carried the film, which is saying something considering she was partnered up with one of the worst big name actors I’ve ever seen. I just can’t understand why people think Ryan O’Neil is a good actor. The only film he is decent in is “Barry Lyndon” but lucky for him, Kubrick requires a lot of standing and looking instead of reading lines. I mean, everybody has seen this clip right…?

So bad. Maybe it’s not his fault. Maybe the director was a five year old throwing oreos and telling him how to dictate the lines. I just think he’s terrible. He did however manage to prevent this film from going down the toilet and I commend him for that. Other great comedic performances in the film come from Madeline Kahn, who plays the real fiancee of O’Neal. This was her film debut and she nailed the uptight, romance-less control freak, and exact opposite of Babs. Kenneth Mars plays a character very similar to his nazi supporting theater go-er in “The Producers”. His accent and overall douche-iness didn’t get old. Finally the brief appearance of Liam Dunn as the judge was probably the hardest I laughed during the whole film. He was a riot.

The film also boasts one of the most entertaining car chases in film and I’m not surprised. It took up a quarter of the whole film budget. The whole thing was filmed like a less epic version of the chase in “The Blues Brothers” but with Chinese dragons, plates of glass, and the wonderfully steep streets of San Francisco.

It was a very enjoyable film, as most screwball comedies were back when Hollywood had a sense of humor. It’s also one of the rare hilarious films that can be enjoyed by the whole family.

3.5/5

Film Review : American Hustle (2013)

IMDB Score – 7.7
Rotten Tomato Score – 93%

10 Academy Award nominations including Best Picture, Director, Editing, Screenplay, and all acting categories

Directed By – David O. Russell
Starring – Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Jeremy Renner, Louis C.K., Jack Husto, Michael Pena, Shea Whigham, Elizabeth Rohm, and Robert De Niro

A con man, Irving Rosenfeld, along with his seductive British partner, Sydney Prosser, is forced to work for a wild FBI agent, Richie DiMaso. DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia.

After weeks of procrastinating, I finally got out to see “American Hustle”. When I first saw the trailer I decided that it was going to be a film that I would have to wait for the right mood to see as I’m very conflicted on whether I like David O. Russell or not. Honestly, I think the ten Oscar nominations finally got me to get off my ass and see it. I still haven’t seen “The Fighter” and I waited until “Silver Linings Playbook” was released on blu ray to see it. I ended up liking SLP a lot but I still have a horrible taste in my mouth from my viewing of “I Heart Huckabees” which I considered pretentious crap. David O. Russell has always been a director who likes to throw the plot out of the window when he feels and while sometimes he makes the right decision, like last year, sometimes he makes a mistake, which I feel he did in small amounts during “American Hustle”. That being said, I actually enjoyed the film a lot, but that was due to the absolutely incredible cast and not so much the work of Mr. O. Russell. That sounds weird. Mr. Russell? Middle initials are weird.

This is listed as a comedy. I didn’t laugh much. There were a lot of instances where I said to myself, “this is where a laugh is supposed to be”, but it just didn’t happen. Christian Bale’s come over was where the comedy for me came from. I loved looking at it. It was a thing of beauty. I don’t know who the hairdresser was on set, but they must of had a great time putting that gorgeous thing together. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not as if I was sitting there sulking. I just didn’t laugh the way you’re supposed to in a supposed comedy, which is what this is supposed to be at heart. I could be wrong. Maybe this was supposed to be a semi serious crime drama, but if that is true then the marketing department owes me an apology because every promo spot I’ve seen screamed comedy in my face.

I read that most of the acting in the film was improvised to the point where the script had to be changed in order to make the improvisations work on film. It showed. The first two thirds of the film were all over the place. Characters came in and out and brought back later when you’ve forgotten who they were. Issues were brought up and then never solved or talked about again and motives of the main characters were unclear. It was just sloppy in parts and while it didn’t restrict me from enjoying the film, it certainly could have helped this film be one of the better this year. The thing that truly kept me in this film, was the acting.

The acting was fantastic. All four main stars, with all due respect to Jeremy Renner, deserved their Oscar nominations. I would even venture to say that Bradley Cooper deserved his in the Lead Acting category because he was just as important to the film as Christian Bale. To say he supported it is just wrong. When the nominations came out, I was surprised, along with man others, to see Cooper on the list. Everybody can eat it. Last year Cooper showed me that he can be a fantastic actor and he only solidified that with his performance in this. He was explosive. His “supporting” role partner Jennifer Lawrence stole every scene she was in. She played the logically challenged but secretly intelligent wife of Christian Bale perfectly. All the funny lines in the film were delivered by her. She’s the reason I’m going to start calling my microwave a science oven. Amy Adams was versatile as ever. She honestly can’t do anything wrong. Her British accent wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be and she’s one of the few actors and actresses than can sell an audience merely by her eyes. She’s amazing at her craft. Finally, Christian Bale knocked it out of the park with his subtle portrayal as the Brooklyn con man who is too overweight and can’t see that he has a horrible haircut. He was quiet throughout most of the film but carried anybody who was in a scene with him by letting them overpower his character with theirs. He was like a great set up man in basketball, setting up the glory for everybody else but also being completely pivotal in the success around him.

The film really came together towards the end as there finally seemed to be a point to the script and it’s here that I finally accepted this film as a Best Picture nominee. It actually has a chance to win, although it shouldn’t, but it certainly belongs in the race. The acting was easily the best of the year if you factor in everybody involved. I didn’t even have time to mention Louis C.K. and Robert De Niro who were in the film only briefly but were great to see. It may not be a re watchable film for me, but it was a fun watch and I’m glad I finally went out to see it.

3.5/5

Film Review : In a World…(2013)

IMDB Score – 7.0
Rotten Tomato Score – 92%

Directed By – Lake Bell
Starring – Lake Bell, Demetri Martin, Rob Corddry, Fred Melamed, Ken Marino, Michaela Watkins, Alexandra Holden, Tig Notaro, Nick Offerman, and Stephanie Allynne

An underachieving voice coach finds herself competing in the movie trailer voice-over profession against her arrogant father and his protégé.

I’m a huge voice over nerd. I’ve been watching and enjoying cartoons since I was a kid and at 24 years old, I am probably watch just as much. For the last couple years I’ve been into knowing who does each voice and being the owner of a serviceable voice of my own, have thought about entering the business one day. This is probably the one thing about me that not a lot of people know. I practice impressions in my car and am always goofing around with different voices around friends. I am a nerd. I’m totally aware of this. However, it certainly is a good way to have fun and make a living. For this reason I sought out Lake Bell’s film about the daughter of a voice over legend who is trying to break into the industry as a woman. While I enjoyed some parts of the film, overall it kind of fell a little flat in some areas.

Having an interest in the subject of the film, I really did connect with Carol, played as quirky as possible by the films director, Lake Bell. I think that may be the best word to describe the film. Quirky. Most of the time I’m okay with something being overly quirky but when I’m starting to get very bored multiple times during a relatively short film, something just isn’t quite right. It might just be an old fashioned case of not having any likable characters as pretty much everybody was either horrible, stupid, or incredibly awkward. The only person who had me laughing the entire time was the character played by Rob Corddry whose humor stuck out in a film that had very little of it. There were plenty of situations where I thought I should laugh but just really couldn’t find myself genuinely finding the material funny. Comedy films have never really been a huge favorite of mine but I expected more from a cast like this one.

I didn’t hate the film though. Like I said there were definitely some moments that shined through the disappointment and I’d actually like to see what Lake Bell does next. The film was a semi-hit at Sundance so I assume she’ll be back behind the camera again but I’m going to chalk this one as a miss.

2.5/5