Category Archives: Comedy

Crazy Rich Asians

Crazy Rich Asians                              4 stars

Last year’s Crazy Rich Asians was one of the big hits of the summer, a return of the rom-com that seems to have been missing from Hollywood for years.  Only this time it’s one featuring an all Asian cast, something extremely rare in mainstream Hollywood.  Rachel Chu, a young New Yorker is persuaded by her boyfriend, Nick to accompany him to his best friend’s wedding in Singapore.  But the thing she didn’t realize is that Nick’s family is rich, but not just that. They are insanely rich or crazy rich.  Also, Nick happens to be one of the most sought after bachelors in the country.  She meets his family and friends including Nick’s former girlfriend and learns about the trappings and baggage that goes along with belonging to a fabulously wealthy family.  She faces some sobering challenges and ultimately faces them making some tough choices.  The film is definitely a comedy with very funny moments featuring some funny cast members.  Included among these is Awkwafina who plays Rachel’s best friend, a role that seriously raised her profile in the industry.  Crazy Rich Asians doesn’t have a political statement to make but is special because of its all Asian cast which shows they are to be taken seriously.  It’s a light enjoyable movie that appeals to a wide audience and is something of a throwback to classic Hollywood comedies.  Among the notable cast is Michelle Yeoh (Captain Georgiou of Star Trek: Discovery) as Nick’s controlling mother in an especially outstanding role.

Good Boys

Good Boys                          4 stars

It has been a good year for comedies so far and that trend continues with Good Boys, a profanity filled R rated comedy about three 12 year boys on a mission to learn how to kiss girls before going to their first kissing party.  The three boys, who are long time friends are not the cool kids and have to endure abuse at their middle school.  They engage is many funny hijinks episodes including trying to spy on teenage girls with a camera equipped drone, conducting a drug deal and selling one of their father’s sex toys before they finally end up at the much anticipated sex party.  It’s a formula very similar to Booksmart, a hit comedy from earlier this summer that involved two high school girls scheming to enjoy their first real alcohol filled party before they graduate.  It works well with the 12 year olds thanks to some over the top acting by Jacob Trembley (as Max), Brady Noon (as Thor) and Keith Williams (as Lucas).  You will remember Trembley from Room and Wonder.  Williams of course was Jasper on TV’s The Last Man on Earth.  The comedy plays off the children’s innocence and curiosity about girls, achieving a balance between vulgar and sweet.  An added bonus was seeing Will Forte as the father of Max.  Molly Gordon from Booksmart also is present as one of the arch nemesis teenage girls the boys have to deal with.  See Good Boys when you can, but don’t take your kids to it!

The Peanut Butter Falcon

The Peanut Butter Falcon             4 ½ stars

The Peanut Butter Falcon is a different kind of adventure story.  Here we follow a Mark Twain like journey of Zak, a young man with Down syndrome as he escapes from the nursing home he lives in, under the eye of employee Eleanor (Dakota Johnson).  It is Zak’s dream to meet his idol, the Salt Water Redneck, a professional wrestler who runs a professional wrestling school so that he can become a wrestler himself.  Circumstances leads to Zak pairing up with Tyler (Shia LaBeouf) a small time outlaw on the run from some local bullies.  The two do what they need to in order to survive and avoid the bullies.  Along the way Zak gets some training in from Tyler as well as some whiskey drinking and finding God.  Eventually, Eleanor catches up with the pair and the three continue the journey due to more unusual circumstances.  The story might strike you as farfetched, but all the characters seem real thanks to the fine acting from LaBeouf, Johnson and newcomer Zack Gottsagen as Zak.  The film may not be getting much attention from audiences, but I recommend you see it if you get the chance.

The Farewell

The Farewell                                      4 ½ stars

The Farewell follows a Chinese family who discover that their beloved grandmother is dying and must keep the secret from her while bringing the family together to see her one last time.  At the beginning we are told the story is based on an actual lie, then see a scene where Billi (Awkwafina) who lives in New York gets a call from her grandmother in China.  Both individuals tell lies about what they are doing at that moment thus setting the premise for the story.  This is a mostly serious family film that demonstrates the difference in culture between the east and west.  But it also shows the universal importance of family relationships whatever culture you are from.  Part of the story involves a fabricated wedding involving one of the grandchildren as the excuse to bring the family together, but there is little detail about this event was planned.  Instead the story focuses on the relationships within the family including the difficulty that Billi had as a child adjusting to living in America with only her parents, having left the rest of the family behind in China.  The hurt of separation follows these characters throughout their lives.  I thought it to be one of the best family dramas in years.  The movie played at Sundance and was very well received.  The film is said to be semi-autobiographical by the writer-director Lulu Wang.  I don’t know how much of it is true but it certainly a beautiful story and one of the best films of the year.

Brittany Runs a Marathon

Brittany Runs a Marathon            4 stars

Brittany Runs a Marathon is the new starring vehicle for comic actress Jillian Bell who I have seen previously in several movies always in supporting roles.  Here she is Brittany, a young woman in New York City who is facing issues of low self esteem mainly due to her weight and physical appearance.  She gets to know a neighbor in the building, Catherine (Michaela Watkins) who is a runner so she decides to join her running group, then meeting Seth (Micah Stock) who is also clearly out of shape also, so they have that in common.  Of course there are several comedic scenes of these two struggling to complete short distances that comes so easily to the other runners.  Then at the same time Brittany has to deal with her roommate Gretchen, who is of course petite and beautiful and Jern, the young Indian man who she shares house sitting duties with.  Then there is also Brittany’s sister and her husband, Demetrius, who are there to offer encouragement through her difficulties.  The trio, Brittany, Catherine and Seth decide to train to enter the New York City Marathon so this serves as the back drop to all of the relationship issues going on in Brittany’s life.  The movie succeeds due to the acting and comic timing by Bell who finally has her starring role in a movie.  I have not read any interviews with her but she clearly goes through an amazing transformation during the movie losing over thirty pounds from beginning to end.  Among all the comedic situations, the movie delivers a clear message about allowing others to be a part of one’s life and not shutting people out.  This is actually the second movie this year that paired Bell and Watkins.  The two also appear together in Sword of Trust which was out just a few weeks ago.  Jillian Bell also made appearances in Bridesmaids, Rough Night and Office Christmas Party.  Brittany Runs a Marathon was a hit at Sundance earlier this year where I first heard about it.

Mary Poppins Returns

Mary Poppins Returns   3 1/2 stars

I finally got to see last year’s Mary Poppins Returns, the long overdue sequel to the original Mary Poppins from the sixties starring Julie Andrews.  This time around it is Emily Blunt taking on the title role, a daunting task that she lives up to very well, capturing the personality and always in control attitude of the magical nanny.  This time she is back to take care of the new Banks family with young Michael (Ben Whishaw) who is widowed and Jane (Emily Mortimer) all grown up and in a crisis as Michael’s own employer is about to foreclose on the family house.  Mary takes the three children on some thrilling adventures through animated lands much like in the original movie and finds time to rescue the family from their troubles.  It is also fun to see Lin-Manuel Miranda as the always smiling and cheerful lamplighter, Jack and Dick Van Dyke in a brief special role as the owner of the bank.  There also memorable appearances by Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Angela Lansbury.  It is very tough to be compared to such a masterpiece as Mary Poppins, a movie I loved watching repeatedly as a child.  The musical numbers may not be quite up to the level of the creations that made the original movie so memorable.  The tunes don’t stick with me the way they did, but then I’m not a nine year old anymore.  Maybe today’s kids will find Mary Poppins Returns to be as enchanting as the original seemed to me way back then.

Little

Little                      3 stars

For a film on the light side you can see Little, a comedy produced by and starring teen actor Marsai Martin from Black-ish.  Jordan Sanders (Regina Hall) runs her own company and is a tyrant in doing so.  Her employees including assistant April (Issa Rae) are run ragged trying to satisfy Jordan’s wishes.  That is until a little girl uses her magic powers to turn Jordan into her thirteen year old self (Marsai Martin) putting her back in middle school.  As fantastic as this turn of events seems it doesn’t take long for the characters to accept it as the new reality.  Despite being so young again Jordan still seems to see the world through her adult eyes and strives to manipulate people into doing her bidding.  The film certainly has its funny moments and some great music, but the story is unconvincing.

The Moment

The Moment     4 stars

For the first Sundance movie to be seen by me after the festival, I found The Moment now showing in theaters and starring Charlie XCX. This mockumentary about the British pop singer has her playing a fictionalized version of herself during the summer of 2024. It seems to be modeled after the Rob Reiner Spinal Tap movies that mocked the behind-the-scenes events around rock music. The Moment does this for pop music and for a much younger audience. It starts with the release of the star’s hit album and her desire to extend the “brat” summer indefinitely as she prepares to go on tour. The “mockumentary” camera follows her and her crew, her friends, her manager and the record label executives as they plan for the opening concert and the rehearsals. Key figures in the process are Charlie XCX’s artistic director Celeste (Hailey Gates) and a documentary director, Johannes (Alexander Skarsgard), filming the fictional meetings and the preparations for the tour. Much like This is Spinal Tap, the film captures some of the ludicrous aspects of the entertainment industry and shows how the egos of the various parties interfere with the project, including rather passive aggressive behavior on the part of the big shots. Included is a ridiculous plan to market “brat” credit cards to a subculture of LGTBQ+ fans that includes free tickets to her concert. Charlie XCX reserves some of the ridicule for herself as she tries to control the project while at the same time sabotaging it. Skarsgard is excellent as the two-faced film director who is shown as both cooperating in the creative process but is also power hungry as he questions the choices made by others. The behavior of the creative talent is the most amusing aspect as they try to stay on the good side of Charlie XCX, while trying to get their own way at the same time. And like in This is Spinal Tap, when things fall apart, they do whatever it takes to put the blame on someone else. While The Moment was not nearly as funny as the Spinal Tap movies, I frequently found myself laughing out loud.

Parasite

Parasite                5 stars

The movie to see in theaters now is Parasite, the creation of Korean director Bong Joon Ho, who previously brought us The Host, Snowpiercer and Okja.  This movie does have a message about the haves and the have nots, but does so with biting wit and a story that holds our interest throughout its 130 minute run time.  We are introduced to a poor family in South Korea who are scraping by with menial jobs but are far too smart to starve.  The son learns of a wealthy family who needs a tutor for their daughter to learn English so he easily gets the job through lies and false credentials.  Before long the family of four all secure jobs with this family using lies and various deceitful schemes landing them work for which they are not qualified in this luxury home.  It doesn’t hurt that the rich couple seem to be extremely gullible willing to believe almost anything.  Just as this family of con geniuses are enjoying their newfound wealth, an unfortunate discovery is made that takes the movie through an unexpected and dark turn.  I will leave you to find out what happens at that point, but be assured you will not be bored or distracted from what lies in store for these characters.  There is plenty of suspense and action for the faithful moviegoer.  I found Parasite to be one of the best films I’ve seen this year.  I just hope that more people skip the usual Hollywood fantasy/action movies and seek it out.

Mum, I’m Alien Pregnant

Mum, I’m Alien Pregnant.        3 suns

For my final film of the festival, I saw something really bizarre: Mum, I’m Alien Pregnant in the Midnight section. In this British comedy a young woman gets pregnant via engaging in a sex act with the neighbor boy who is half alien as a result of his mother being abducted by aliens before he was born.  The comedy all centers around the very exaggerated trauma that a woman goes through while pregnant.  There is plenty of screaming and vomiting and slimy fluids involved while the young woman keeps blaming the half alien for her trouble.  There is even a vacuum cleaner involved in a bizarre abortion attempt. We get a peek at what an alien penis looks like and after many antics the baby alien finally arrives.  The movie was a riot in the theater, and the actors even brought baby alien with them and allowed fans to have their picture taken with him.