Club Dread.

Review #2425: Club Dread.

Cast: 

Broken Lizard [Kevin Heffernan (Lars Bronkhorst), Erik Stolhanske (Sam), Steve Lemme (Juan Castillo), Jay Chandrasekhar (Putman Livingston), Paul Soter (Dave "DJ Dave/DJ Drugs" Conable)], Brittany Daniel (Jenny), Bill Paxton (Pete "Coconut Pete" Wabash), M. C. Gainey (Hank), Lindsay Price (Yu), Julio Bekhor (Carlos), Dan Montgomery Jr (Rollo), Elena Lyons (Stacy), Tanja Reichert (Kellie), Richard Perello (Cliff), Ryan Falkner (Marcel), Greg Cipes (Trevor), Michael Weaver (Roy), Nat Faxon (Manny), Samm Levine (Dirk), and Jordan Ladd (Penelope) Directed by Jay Chandrasekhar (#1121 - Super Troopers, #1122 - Beerfest)

Review: 

"Yeah, I think the key was to try to keep the tone consistent...Often with comedies you kind of drift off into things that couldn't happen, so we tried to sort of keep a cap on things and make sure they all fit in the same movie."

A comedy horror movie might as well have had a lightning rod attached to it for folks to not exactly gravitate to it. This was the third film from the comedy troupe Broken Lizard, which you might remember had done two previous films: Puddle Cruiser (1996) and, well, Super Troopers (2001), which like this film was distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures. Sure, maybe there was something already familiar with "referential" horror like Scream or with "parody" in Scary Movie [2000] (or Student Bodies [1981], a movie I totally didn't pull out of my-*). But since I didn't care to actually see Scary Movie, Club Dread doesn't exactly have the problem of being pale in comparison to some other comedy horror movie. But I guess some people might wonder if it actually is a horror movie with comedic elements - oh who cares? The important part is having fun with a movie that tries to ride with the hit-or-miss elements that come with its ensemble. Either you go with the schtick in its various characters that come and go (as one does when slashed) or you just don't because, oh no, a movie with thin characters is a hell of a thing to swallow: horror, comedy, or whatever. Made on a budget of just under $10 million, the movie was not a major success at the time of release in February of 2004. There apparently was an unrated cut of the movie released on DVD that made the movie run nearly two hours long (118 minutes) that basically is just there to extend scenes without being a "director's cut". Chandrasekhar was brought in to direct the film adaptation of The Dukes of Hazzard in 2005 for his next film, while Broken Lizard returned together for Beerfest (2006).

Sure, the jokes can be hit or miss, and sure, it does have a bit of a problem in actually getting to where it wants to go for a 103-minute runtime that isn't quite a whodunit. Compared to what the troupe did before and after this film, Dread is firmly in the middle between Troopers and Beerfest, but I would call this one a winner over the latter mainly because it proved a charming enough ride in goofy slasher meandering. This time, the lead presence is mostly in the hands of Heffernan, who makes for an affable presence to try and carry a movie that tries to hold up on a few one-note jokes (hey, everybody gets one accent try) and mostly gets away with it. Stolhanske plays it straight enough that being the one behind the whodunit isn't too far of a stretch to goof it up. Hit-or-miss stuff needs at least one fun presence, and Paxton basically makes it a ride worth being on for as long as he plays the schtick of basically doing a riff off Jimmy Buffett (apparently, at Paxton's request, they showed the movie to Buffett, who got a kick out of it). There is an infectious charm that comes out in playing a washout that you might wish made it to the end. If you dig the routine that it sets out in goofy slasher hokum (a sequence involving costumes comes to mind alongside the climax in splitting ridiculousness), you can roll with the movie just fine, but I totally get that it won't exactly inspire the pants to be scared or laughing at every nook and cranny.  As a whole, it won't be for everyone, but I dug the end result of having a goofy R-rated time with just enough chuckles with at least some enthusiasm for the slasher genre that might make for a worthy recommendation if you're up for a casual time.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

*butt. Well, if it make you feel better, October will give me plenty of chances to look for horror movies out of the blue.

The Mighty Ducks.

Review #868: The Mighty Ducks.

Cast:
Emilio Estevez (Gordon Bombay), Joss Ackland (Hans), Lane Smith (Coach Jack Reilly), Heidi Kling (Casey Conway), Josef Sommer (Mr. Gerald Ducksworth), Joshua Jackson (Charlie Conway, #96), Elden Henson (Fulton Reed, #44), Shaun Weiss (Greg Goldberg, #33), M. C. Gainey (Lewis), Matt Doherty (Lester Averman, #4), and Brandon Adams (Jesse Hall, #9) Directed by Stephen Herek (#021 - Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and #502 - Man of the House)

Review:
What is it about this movie that inspires joy? It's not as cynically honest as The Bad News Bears (though it does have a similar premise), but there is a sort of charm to this film in its silliness. The characters are about as interesting as the movie allows them, with Estevez being good at being a grouch, with some sort of believably as a coach. There is at least a semblance of atmosphere, with some nice shots of Minnesota. It has its interesting moments (mostly involving hockey, with the flying V standing out), and though it ends like the way you would expect there is at least some sort of closure to the plot. Sure, the movie waddles between ridiculousness (especially when it starts quacking) and legitimacy, but it is serviceable. The villain (of sorts, played by Smith) is also serviceable in his ridiculous competitiveness. The movie is funny when it is being itself and not going for something inherently ridiculous. The child actors are fairly decent as well, with the varying kinds of of personalities that are in some way charming. I wouldn't say the movie breaks any real ground, but it is at least a good way to spend 100 minutes. Obviously there are other sports films to watch and obviously there are other kids films to watch, but I suppose that if you really need a fix of both Disney flicks and hockey this is the one for you.

Overall, I give it 7 out of 10 stars.

Movie Night: Are We There Yet?

Review #661: Are We There Yet?

Cast
Ice Cube (Nick Persons), Nia Long (Suzanne Kingston), Aleisha Allen (Lindsey Kingston), Philip Daniel Bolden (Kevin Kingston), Jay Mohr (Marty), M. C. Gainey (Al), and Tracy Morgan (Satchel Page Bobblehead) Directed by Brian Levant (#491 - Jingle All The Way and #577 - Beethoven)

Review
It's been almost ten years since this film was made, and in that span a sequel and a television series was made following this movie's...success. I guess this was made in an age where anyone thought they could do a family film no matter what they were before (Such as Vin Diesel with The Pacifier or Dwayne Johnson with The Game Plan), but whatever. This is classified as a "Christmas film" by Wikipedia, but I would compare this to giving your distant relative a fruitcake the day after Christmas. It seems this movie was made with good intentions, but it ultimately fizzles into boredom. The characters seem like they'll make a connection to you, but really you're just going through the motions and wondering how much longer it'll last. At least Ice Cube is decent, though he can't save a movie with stale jokes. The kids may seem nice, but really they just get on your nerves, and while later scenes try to make them look more sympathetic, it doesn't work. It's fitting that the movie has a bobble head in it that talks, because at this point, anything goes. It's a forgettable movie that bores you to the point where you truly wish it was Thanksgiving, because then you could go to your relative's house and forget all about it. And then remember it again after too much turkey.

Overall, I give it 4 out of 10 stars.