21

We all dream of at least a little bit, right? Getting on a filthy, unexplainable winning streak at gambling -- any gambling -- where the money just keeps rolling in. Okay, I've thought about it a little. I've only been to a casino once and was up a few bucks for about eight minutes before I busted out. Now, for individuals smarter than me, apparently there are ways to....increase your odds of winning? Based on a true story, we get 2008's 21.

For as long as he can remember, M.I.T. student Ben Caldwell (Jim Sturgess) has wanted nothing more than going to Harvard Medical School to study to become a doctor. There's a problem of course. He has absolutely no money, especially for the six-figure tuition, and his single mom can only offer so much help. Ben is a brilliant student, and he's caught the eye of one of his professors, Micky Rosa (Kevin Spacey), who has an offer that will change everything. Rosa has organized and runs a small five-person team of similarly skilled students. Their talent? They count cards and rake in the money. Ben is instantly skeptical, but with no other alternative he joins Rosa's team and immediately shows a skill for counting cards that produces winnings, lots of winnings. He's good, very good, but there is always the threat of being caught, and one experienced casino security guard, Cole Williams (Laurence Fishburne), is suspicious of Ben's impressive winning streak.

From director Robert Luketic, this 2008 thriller is based on a true story that produced the book Bringing Down the House. The book is a mix of fiction and non-fiction, but here's the gist; a handful of very smart people did some stupid stuff to get money by something that isn't technically illegal in counting cards. The movie itself is pretty decent. Wouldn't it be great to take a casino down a couple notches? Oh, and you get to net some generous amounts of money in the process? Yes, please. It's a very stylish movie with several montages used to show Ben learning the trade, putting them into play, and the necessary partying in Vegas montage with boozing, dancing, going to strip clubs, all that good stuff. Mix in a solid soundtrack with quite a variety of artists and songs, and we're off to a good start.

As a 30-year old playing an M.I.T. student in his early 20s, Sturgess represents himself well as Ben Caldwell, a pretty smart kid who makes some pretty dumb decisions. There's something sympathetic about the character even if it's telegraphed early on that at some point he will mess up, and he will mess up in a big way. Oh, spoiler alert? Eh, my bad. Joining Sturgess on Rosa's team are Jill (Kate Bosworth), the necessary unattainable girl who Ben can never have (or can he?), Choi (Aaron Yoo), the necessary kooky Asian student with the crazy hair, Kianna (Liza Lapira), the necessary quiet and worrying student, and Fisher (Jacob Pitts), the necessary spurned kid who resents how good Ben is at what he used to be the best at. Sturgess is the best of the bunch, but for the most part the group comes across more as a big caricature than actual characters.

The star power comes from two supporting parts that are nonetheless key to the story. Kevin Spacey does what he does best, playing a really nice guy who isn't really a nice guy. His Micky Rosa is friendly, charming and an all-around a-hole when things go poorly. You know just by his casting that at some point Ben and his fellow card-counters will eventually screw up because Spacey has to blow up and turn on them in dramatic fashion. See it coming miles away? Yes, but it's still fun to watch. The same for Fishburne as Cole Williams, veteran security official for the casinos. With partner Jack McGee, Cole is getting squeezed out by a facial recognition software that is replacing actual human security. It's a pretty one-note performance, but Fishburne handles it well. He's a good counter to Ben and the team, if not a bad guy because well.....because it's obvious Spacey will be the bad guy. Parts the duo could probably do in their sleep, but fun to watch.

While I liked the movie, I can admit I have no idea what any of the card counting meant or how it was done. I was instantly confused the second any of it is even remotely explained and/or discussed. With a movie that runs a little over two hours at 123 minutes, it's safe to say I liked the first hour significantly more than the second. When things go poorly, it gets a little too After School Special for me. Oh, no, Ben's friends (Sam Golzari and funny Josh Gad) are upset that he's not the same Ben they know? Oh, no, Jill might not like him as much as he likes her? There's a good twist in the last 15 minutes that I didn't see coming which does save some enjoyment from some of the monotony toward the end. Still, I liked it just enough to give it a mild recommendation.

21 (2008): ** 1/2 /****

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines

The roadshow epic is unfortunately a thing of the past, a symbol of a Hollywood era that ruled through the 1950s and early 1960s. Even the lousy ones have something worthwhile. For me, I love the huge scale, the intro music, the intermission, the casts of thousands. By the mid 1960s though, things, they were 'a changing, and the epics were becoming a thing of the past. One of the last films hitting theaters before the era completely died out was a good one, 1965's Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines.

It's 1910, and British army officer Richard Mays (James Fox) is among a small group of pilots worldwide who are helping advance aviation just seven years since the Wright Brothers flew at Kitty Hawk in 1903. He's sorta-engaged to Patricia Rawnsley (Sarah Miles), the daughter of Lord Rawnsley (Robert Morley), a newspaper owner disgusted at the thought of other countries' pilots advancing quicker in aviation than England. Using all his pull, Lord Rawnsley organizes an international air race from England to Paris that will show once and for all who is the best pilot around. Pilots from around the world travel to England with their flying machines with the hopes of winning the race and its lucrative prize. Among them, Orvil Newton (Stuart Whitman), an American cowboy, with his eyes set on the race, the prize, and maybe Patricia too. Uh-oh, America vs. Britain!

Working with Jack Davies to write the script and direct the film as well, Ken Annakin was a huge fan of aviation, and it shows with this 1965 epic. Setting the story in 1910 is a great touch as aviation and flying were still in its infancy. There weren't airlines or commercial jets. Individuals -- not businesses -- were trying to figure out what worked and didn't work in flying. Flying machines (yes, planes) flew much closer to the ground, couldn't stay in the air that long, and had a variety of mechanical and structural issues. Sounds fun, huh? And a little dangerous? Yeah, just a little. Check out the Wikipedia link HERE for an idea of the variety of planes featured here. There's some doozies in the group, definitely making you appreciate the modern jet airliner.

In the vein of The Great Race and It's a Mad, Mad World, 'Flying' is big and flashy but never gets too big or unwieldy. An opening montage with Red Skelton starring as individuals through history learning how hard flying can be (Neanderthal, Ancient Greek, Middle Ages, Victorian), leading right into the cartoon credits played under the Flying Machines theme song (listen HERE). I liked Ron Goodwin's score a lot too, similar to his score four years later in The Battle of Britain. Much of the story was filmed at the Brookley Motor Racing Track, helping give a real sense of 1910s aviation with its lush green fields serving as landing strips, immense wooden hangars housing the new wave of planes, and an outfitted windmill serving as a lookout point for Fire Chief Perkins (Benny Hill). The aerial sequences are impressive, even on the pre-takeoff as we see hundreds and thousands of extras lining the airfields.

The one thing lacking here from most other roadshow epics is huge star power. There are some really solid actors/actresses here, but there's no gigantic star(s). Whitman and Fox get the leads as the American and British pilots, fighting to win the race but also to win the lady. Thankfully, this storyline isn't too painful to watch, bouncing among a handful of different pilots. Some of the other international pilots include Count Emilio (Alberto Sordi), the Italian family man with a penchant for crashing, Pierre Dubois (Jean-Pierre Cassel), the loving life Frenchman, Sir Percy (Terry-Thomas), the sabotaging Englishman with his maligned assistant, Courtney (Eric Sykes), Yamamoto (Yujiro Ishihara), the experienced Japanese pilot and the race favorite, Capt. Rumplestoss (Karl Michael Vogler), the inexperienced but proud German army officer, and MacDougal (Gordon Jackson), the fun-loving Scotsman. Not much star power, but we get a lot of memorable characters with some truly funny recurring bits.

While the scale on a large scale is always impressive, it's the recurring bits that help bring the movie up a notch. It's fun seeing Orvil and Richard go toe-to-toe, the American always looking good in heroic fashion. There's also Dubois swearing he's seeing the same girl over and over again, Irina Dernick playing all of the women. In a pre-World War I time, there's also national rivalries, the English believing they're better than anyone, the Germans doing the same, and the Italians and Frenchmen having fun at their expense. Dubois and his French crew constantly mess with the Germans, especially their commander, Colonel Manfred (scene-stealing Gert Frobe) and Rumplestoss. There's also James Robertson Justice making a quick appearance as the narrator, deadpanning his way through the Skelton bit, Flora Robson as Mother Superior, a nun with an incentive to help the race, Sam Wanamaker as Orvil's partner and friend, and an uncredited Ronnie Stevens as the race's public address announcer.   

'Flying Machines' isn't as long as many epics, wrapping up in just 138 minutes as opposed to so many other three-hour monstrosities. Much of the first 90 minutes is spent on the ground getting to know our pilots, including a whole lot of hijinks and shenanigans as our international lineup tries to outdo each other. The last 50 minutes focus on the race with some impressive aerial sequences, our antiquated looking planes flying across England, the English Channel, and finally Paris. I loved this movie, and more so as it went along. No star power? No problem. It's a gem, and one of the last true roadshow epics. Enjoy it.

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965): ****/****

Doc

In a long line of truly interesting, fascinating individuals the wild west produced in the 19th Century, some stand out from the rest. For me, John 'Doc' Holliday has always been one of my favorites, a dentist turned gunfighter who gained fame for his friendship with famed lawman Wyatt Earp. Countless movies have been made about Earp and the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, but Holliday is typically a supporting player to Earp. That's not the case in 1971's Doc, a western devoted to Holliday himself.

Riding west to Tombstone, Arizona, Doc Holliday (Stacy Keach) stops at a wayward, isolated stop along the trail. In a game of cards with a cowboy, Ike Clanton (Michael Witney), Holliday "wins" a woman, Kate Elder (Faye Dunaway), a prostitute similarly making her way west. Holliday agrees to have Kate travel with him as far as Tombstone, but upon arriving in the violent booming mining town, the gunfighter finds something he wasn't expecting. His friend Wyatt Earp (Harris Yulin) is the territorial Marshal, but not the town sheriff in Tombstone. Just the same, Wyatt sees the potential for riches with a town in his fingertips waiting to be controlled. He needs Doc's help though, Wyatt controlling the town from his position as a law officer, Doc from the saloons controlling the business end. Earp's grab for power though is a tricky one with the Clantons standing in the way, leaving Doc to decide how he wants to proceed.

If you needed an example of what a revisionist western really is, this 1971 western from director Frank Perry is right at the top of the list. It isn't interested in painting a romantic, heroic vision of the west. It's going for real, violent, cynical and dirty. Within minutes of meeting, Doc and Katie are in bed together. Riding through the mountains, they have a conversation about farting and later oral sex. In other words, this isn't John Ford's My Darling Clementine. Wyatt Earp is played as an unhinged psychopath, and the Clantons are unknowing -- if a little slow -- dupes in Earp's master plan. I like anything that tries to take a fresh, new look at assumed 'knowns' in history, but there's a line too. The best revisionist westerns find that middle ground in between the romantic vision and the ultra-cynical picture.

So while I didn't love the version of the story that Perry and scriptwriter Pete Hamill presents, it did appeal to me. The story of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Tombstone and the gunfight at the O.K. Corral has had countless film adaptations, and it's fair to say this is unlike any of the other versions. From what's been revealed and discovered in the last 100-plus years, this vision of Earp has some truth to it. He wasn't the clean-cut marshal some history books have made him out to be. Was he this psychotically unhinged though? I'm thinking probably not. As well, we see Dunaway's Katie Elder (known now as Big Nose Kate) as a whore traveling through the west. The topper though is definitely the finale, the iconic showdown between Wyatt and his two brothers and Doc vs. the Clanton/McLaury clan at the O.K. Corral. It is by the far the most gunplay you'll see in the entire movie, but it's over in a flash. Without giving any spoilers away, this gunfight is unlike any other depiction of the iconic event we've seen in any film version.

Through all the revisionist history though, what stands out from this 1971 western is the focus on Doc Holliday. Still a relative unknown, Keach does a fine job playing the tuberculosis-ridden dentist turned gunfighter John 'Doc' Holliday. He has a reputation as a gambler and a killer, that reputation preceding him wherever he goes. Doc is struggling through a disease that is tearing him apart, sending him into horrific fits of coughing. Traveling west in hopes of holding off the disease as much as possible, Holliday is looking for something else out of life, not just what he's known with gambling, drinking and women. In Kate Elder, he may have found that outlet to a better life. We also get a window into Doc with his relationship with the Kid (Denver John Collins), a young cowboy working with the Clantons who seeks out Doc's help learning how to be a gunfighter. In a story dead set on tearing history down and apart, it's cool to see Keach do such a fine job creating a human character.

Unfortunately, not much of the rest of the cast is especially memorable. Dunaway is trying, but I think she's simply miscast. She's too good-looking for the part, a rather unglamorous part. I liked Yulin as Earp mostly because it's such a departure from the known Wyatt Earp, but it's a one-note performance. Earp is nuts. That's all. John Scanlon is good as Bartlett, the friendly bartender, Dan Greenburg plays Clum, the newspaper editor hovering over the situation like a social conscience (subtle, huh?). I did like Whitney as Ike Clanton, another fresh look at a supposedly known individual, a surprisingly sympathetic character caught up in the Earp's whirlwind. Also, Earp's brothers are completely marginalized to dupes, latchkeys, and idiots. Lack of star power isn't a huge issue, but the performances here other than Keach and Whitney are disappointing.

I liked a lot about this movie. The almost silent opening at the isolated tavern is tense and unnerving with Perry using some interesting camera angles in a slow, anxiety-ridden sequence. There's no soundtrack at all, just a few instances of mariachi music being played live in a cantina or saloon. 'Doc' was filmed on location in Almeria where countless spaghetti westerns were filmed, giving the story an oddly effective other-worldly feel. I loved how the film looks, how scenes are composed with lighting and shadows. On the other hand, the history is garbage. Revisionist is one thing, but like lesser efforts, it simply tries too hard to tear down the history. A mixed bag with some really good positives and some really bad negatives.

Doc (1971): ** 1/2 /****

If You Meet Sartana, Pray For Your Death

The Man with No Name Dollars trilogy, Trinity, Django, Sabata, all characters that have their own series in the spaghetti western genre. I've seen at least parts of all those character series, and recently jumped into another, the Sartana series, starting with 1968's If You Meet Sartana, Pray for Your Death. 

A stagecoach has been robbed, and all its passengers lay dead. As the robbers loot the bodies, a mysterious gunman, Sartana (Gianni Garko), steps in front of them and guns them down. Not long after, a second stagecoach is attacked, this time carrying a huge gold shipment for a town up the trail. The only issue? The strongbox doesn't contain any gold at all....it's just heavily loaded with rocks. Who's up to something? Sartana seems to know, pitting all sides against each other. Another gunman, Lasky (William Berger), has been well-involved with all the robbery, murder and betrayal and is suspicious of what Sartana is up to. Sartana has too many enemies though as he investigates the disappearance of the gold. His only option is simple; pit all sides against each other and swoop in at the opportune time.

This spaghetti western is everything that's both good and bad about the genre. When it's entertaining, it's very entertaining (movie specific: this one's bad but entertaining). When it's bad.....it's very bad. For director Gianfranco Parolini, 'Pray' plays more like a test run for his infinitely better 1969 spaghetti classic, Sabata. The basic premise is almost entirely the same story. Garko's Sartana is a younger Sabata (played to perfection by Lee Van Cleef). The tone is light with some acrobatic gunmen and generally goofy atmosphere. The music from composer Piero Piccioni is pretty forgettable, a disappointment considering how good some of his other scores (The Deserter) were. There are some cool locations although the movie hamstrings itself by using the same locations repeatedly. I swear Sartana rides through the same hilly sand dune at least four different times.

Belonging in the short list of coolest spaghetti western title characters, Sartana is a pretty cool anti-hero gunfighter. He's a gentleman and dresses the part, favoring a suit, vest, cravat and overcoat that resembles a cape. He uses a long-range Winchester rifle and a multi-barreled derringer pistol. Sartana is a gambler as well as an accomplished gun, an ability that plays well in an early card game. Mostly I like the character because it hints -- in not so subtle fashion -- that Sartana is some sort of angelic killer, an angel of death. He seemingly can't be shot (check out the opening scene HERE) or hurt by enemies while appearing at will out of thin air. I like Garko a lot in the role, one he would play three more times, bringing a lighter touch to the anti-hero gunslinger. He's smooth with a gun and a bit of a smartass with whoever he meets. It's different, and I liked it a lot.

Spaghetti western diehards will eat this one up in the casting department with some really odd and really cool casting. Berger is over the top and goofy as Lansky, a brutally efficient hired gun with murder and blackmail on his mind. He's also completely undone whenever Sartana plays the tune from the watch of a man Lansky has killed. Klaus Kinski shows up in a bizarre cameo as Morgan, a knife-throwing killer with little bells for spurs. He's around for about 3 minutes, but it's Kinski so it's cool. Fernando Sancho does what he does best, playing a slimy, greasy, cackling Mexican bandit/general -- here General Tampico Mendoza -- who gets caught up in the killing. Sydney Chaplin and Gianni Rizzo play the two conniving businessmen in town who are up to something, Heidi Fischer playing Rizzo's equally conniving wife. Spaghetti western regular Salvatore Borghese makes a too quick appearance as Moreno, one of Sancho's main henchman.

There is a part of almost all spaghetti westerns that are inherently stupid, but you just go along (well, if you're a fan at least). Unfortunately, 'Pray' has so many of these moments it's hard to take even remotely serious. I liked the movie, but I can appreciate it and all its badness. If you did a drinking game after every time someone maniacally laughs, you'd be drunk in minutes thanks to maniacal laughing coffin maker Dusty (Franco Pesce). Sancho cackles and laughs, eating the same greasy piece of chicken in countless scenes. Berger's Lansky literally crumbles at just the sound of a musical watch. The script is pretty bad in itself -- Sartana's bedroom kinkiness a highlight -- and doesn't offer much of a story. The "story" requires people to connive and worry, Sartana shows up, plans are thrown out and started over. An impressive body count here with some fun action scenes too. It's bad. No doubt about it, but I was entertained throughout.     

If You Meet Sartana, Pray for Your Death (1968): ** 1/2 /****

Two for the Seesaw

In January 1958, Two for the Seesaw starring Henry Fonda and Anne Bancroft debuted on Broadway and was quite the success. It ran for 750 performances and even was nominated for the 1958 Tony Award for Best Play. Successful stage plays often make the jump to film, and four years later the highly successful Broadway play made that jump with 1962's Two for the Seesaw.

Several months removed from the separation from his wife of 12-plus years, Omaha lawyer Jerry Ryan (Robert Mitchum) has packed up his belongings and with just limited cash has moved to New York City. He's been in NYC, wasting away, saving what little money he has and living day-to-day, often wondering if it's worth going on. One night at a party, he meets Gittel Moscawitz (Shirley MacLaine), a 29-year old young woman living in Greenwich Village. He can't quite put his finger on it, but Jerry is drawn to the quirky New Yorker with an honesty and forthrightness he's never seen before. They bond quickly, finding a common ground through their own past relationships and inner demons, and soon enough they're in an exclusive relationship. Jerry tries to start up his law career again, and Gittel works to open a dance studio, but their past demons threaten to tear the relationship apart before it can even get started.

There's quite a list of worthy stage plays that have made the jump from play to film, ranging from 12 Angry Men to Annie, West Side Story to The Sound of Music, Oliver! to Chicago, and many more. I've never written a thing about stage plays, Broadway, anything, so I can only imagine how difficult the transition is from stage to film, but director Robert Wise pulls it off nicely here. Maybe the biggest key is the choice to film in black and white. This will sound obvious -- maybe even odd/dumb -- but you lose the color, but there's an added depth to the visual. It doesn't hurt either than now in 2013, there's a distinct nostalgic, retro feel as you watch the film. For the most part, 'Seesaw' is limited to just two small sets; Jerry's rinky-dink, poorly furnished apartment, and Gittel's cramped little Greenwich Village studio.

It works in a simple way. The camera is always right there on the floor in these cramped little apartments with Jerry and Gittel. One technique I found particularly effective was the couple talking on the phone from each other's apartment. Wise shoots the apartments as if they were right next to each other, a dark, shadowed wall separating them. They're miles away, but in the visual sense, it's just a few feet. Much like a stage play, his scenes are dialogue heavy and are in no rush to get anywhere. They develop at a natural pace, just two people talking to each other. Some go on too long (more on that later), but it stays true to its stage roots, and that's a bonus. Another obvious plus is Wise shooting on-location in NYC. I knew about two seconds into the movie I was going to like it. The opening shot has Mitchum's Jerry standing on the Manhattan Bridge, and it's a beauty. Over the opening credits, Jerry walks through various parts of NYC, and because it's the best description I can come up with....it looks so ridiculously cool. Big, wide open shots of 1962 NYC is a sight to behold. Watch it HERE at Youtube.

Once again sticking to the stage roots, the cast is primarily just Mitchum and MacLaine. Yes, other supporting parts are around for a scene or two, but the two stars are literally in every single scene, whether it be together or on the phone. There's only a few where they're even separate from each other. Kinda a daunting premise for an actor, huh? Both actors are up to the challenge. Some critics complain that Mitchum is too old for the part, and too old for MacLaine (17 years younger at the time), but I don't get it. I think they're perfect for each other, and they show a chemistry that carries the movie. For all his tough guy antics, Mitchum had great chemistry with many of his on-screen co-stars from Jane Russell to Deborah Kerr and many more. A whole lot of other, deeper and far more specific things could be stated, but it comes down to this. I liked the two performances a lot, and that can fix a lot of issues in a film.

Now that said, there are issues. At 119 minutes, 'Seesaw' is long and lags in the final 30 minutes. That's never good when things are coming together and wrapping up toward the finale. Not just on an emotional level, but the last half hour is painfully slow to watch. The ending gets points for not going for an easy, happy ending, but getting there is a trial. Getting up to that point, it works. We watch a developing relationship with all its flaws and imperfections in both individuals, both wanting things to work out while working through their own issues. I really struggled through the ending, but I very much liked the build-up. A mixed bag, but Mitchum and MacLaine are two Hollywood legends for a reason. Definitely give it a try. Oh, and this isn't the romantic comedy the above poster would have you think it is. Just an FYI.

Two for the Seesaw (1962): ***/****

Hall Pass

So if TV shows and films have taught us anything -- and I'd like to think they have -- it's that marriage is a hell-like situation from which there is no escape. A couple gets married, and then after years and years, things hit the fan. Everyone wants out. It's one of the oldest, most reliable jokes in comedy so what if there was a quasi-solution to the dull marriage issue? Uh-oh, here we go with 2011's Hall Pass.

With three kids, a solid real estate job and a successful marriage, Rick (Owen Wilson) has quite the life with his wife of 10-plus years, Maggie (Jenna Fischer). The marriage has become a little stagnant though, and on some advice from a friend, Maggie offers something a little out of the box. She offers Rick a 'hall pass,' a week where he doesn't have to be married and can do whatever he wants away from his wife and kids where even cheating is allowed. Rick is suspicious immediately, but he goes along with it. The next day, his best friend Fred (Jason Sudeikis) gets the same offer from his wife, Grace (Christina Applegate). So while Maggie and Grace head up to Maggie's parents in Cape Cod, Rick and Fred prepare to hit the streets as single men. What awaits these two? Can they sow their wild oats?

I can't say I actively avoided this 2011 comedy, but at the same time, I can't say I really wanted to see it either. An HBO subscription winding down has a way of making some movies more watchable, huh? In the end, I didn't love it, but I liked it a lot. From director-team the Farrelly Brothers -- Bobby and Peter -- the humor here is about what you'd expect if you've seen movies like Dumb and Dumber, There's Something About Mary, Stuck on You, Me, Myself and Irene, and Shallow Hall. Oh, you haven't seen those movies? The laughs are pretty raunchy, sometimes downright nasty, and often pretty juvenile. If you're a little squeamish about any number of graphic sex jokes -- including some full-on male genitalia -- with non-stop cursing, this probably isn't the movie for you. Steer clear, give it a wide berth, whatever you want to call it.

Beyond the low brow humor in all their movies, the Farrelly brothers have a knack for creating some surprisingly likable characters. Since the epic success of 2005's Wedding Crashers, Wilson has fallen on some tough times and hasn't had any truly memorable parts. I liked him here though as Rick, kind of an everyman in his mid-to-late 30s with a good job, beautiful wife and kids. That marriage has also become a little stagnant, and there's the story. Seeing Rick go through his week, we actually get a sense of.....gasp....character development! No, it's nothing ground-breaking, but it's an R-rated comedy. Take what you can get. From when he first appeared on Saturday Night Live, I've liked Sudeikis a lot. He has a way of playing not truly despicable characters, but close. A fast-talking motor-mouth with some questionable morals, he's a good pair with Wilson's Rick.

Not all of the laughs here are low-brow sex and bathroom humor (although a majority of it is). What I liked was how the passing days in the week are represented. It's not anything super-stylish, but it is very funny. Each day is introduced via a completely black screen with 'Day 1...2' shown, and the very familiar, very distinct Law and Order dun-dun! played. Day 1 has some huge laughs, Rick and Fred starting slowly -- to put it lightly -- with a big night out at where else? Applebee's of course! It's the freshly-single bachelors' adventures that provided the most laughs. We meet their friends, scene-stealing Stephen Merchant, Larry Joe Campbell, J.B. Smoove, all of them married but without a Hall Pass, they just want to witness Rick and Fred's adventures, living vicariously through them. We see "adventures" to Applebee's, golf courses with special and heavily-weeded-up brownies, lots of eating, nightclubs, gyms, and one special outing to a very tooly club with aging ladies man, Coakley, played by a hilarious, scene-stealing Richard Jenkins.  

I was surprised by some of the routes 'Pass' takes in the second half. It's not just about Rick and Fred out on the prowl. Instead, we see that Maggie and Grace might also be taking advantage of the Hall Pass too. A little darker than anticipated? Yep, you bet. I also noticed that Fischer looks freakishly tan, like alarmingly so. Just saying. Nicky Whelan is good -- and very nice to look at -- as Leigh, a barista who Rick plans to use his one-time Hall Pass on, and she certainly seems interested right back at him. Mostly though, I enjoyed watching the gents' weekly pass go to waste in all sorts of interesting fashions. Does it go anywhere near as planned? Nope, but as the week nears it's end, both "bachelors" have a chance to cheat. Very funny though, and I liked it throughout. Call it low expectations going in, but I liked it far more than I thought I would.

Hall Pass (2011): ***/****

Hit and Run

Over the 1970s and 1980s, a sub-genre of flicks came along that audiences ate up. They weren't road movies in the typical sense, but instead on steroids a bit. Think of movies like Smokey and the Bandit, Cannonball Run, The Getaway, Midnight Run and many others along with TV shows like The Dukes of Hazzard.. What if you combined all those movies? Then you'd get the oddly appealing, very entertaining 2012 flick Hit and Run.

Living in a quiet California town, Charles Bronson (Dax Shepard) has been dating his girlfriend, Annie (Kristen Bell), for almost a year. They've got a great thing going, impressive considering Annie knows Charlie is in the Witness Protection Program after testifying against several bank robbers he witnessed robbing a bank. There's a problem though. Annie has been offered her dream job in Los Angeles, and she doesn't want to leave Charlie behind. Knowing how much it means to her, he decides to go with to L.A., but ah, there are more layers to discover. Annie's ex, Gil (Michael Rosenbaum), suspects Charlie is up to something and starts to dig into his mysterious past. As they head for L.A., someone from Charlie's past (Bradley Cooper) is on their trail. What hasn't he been telling Annie?

I'll give credit where it's due. Dax Shepard has come a long way from being Ashton Kutcher's henchman on MTV's Punk'd in 2003. He's transitioned that supporting part on a prank show into a legitimate actor on film and television. That's not all. On top of his acting, Shepard also directed (with David Palmer), produced, and wrote the script for this flick with a retro, throwback feel to it. He shows a knack for doing all those things well, a solid directorial debut.

The biggest appeal is that retro/throwback feel to so many similar flicks from the 1970s and 1980s. Yes, there is a story -- however shallow and/or simplistic -- is a means to an end. It's nothing more than to get the story going toward a never-ending, fast paced series of car chases with lots of badass cards and funny, cool one-liners. I find that very appealing. 'Hit' isn't trying to rewrite the formula or carve out a niche for itself as a new end-all, be-all flick. It's goal is simple. It wants to entertain the hell out of you, and for me, it succeeds in a big way. Some of the humor can be pretty low-brow while other times it's surprisingly smart, but who am I kidding? You don't go into a movie like this expecting to see anything groundbreaking. Just sit back and enjoy the very cool, very fast cars gunning across the country after you.

Maybe a little surprising for me was that the story is actually pretty good here. A real-life couple outside of acting, Shepard and Bell have a very natural, easy-going chemistry with each other. Maybe they're just being themselves, but they're a believable enough couple. Their couple/relationship story works because of the general craziness of Shepard's Charlie's past. (Sidenote: He chose Charles Bronson as his Witness Protection name because his real name, 'Yul Perrkins,' wasn't tough enough). I suppose this is a semi-SPOILER, but Charlie/Yul didn't just testify in a bank robbing case....he turned on his former bank robbing accomplices (including Cooper). Charlie and Annie are forced to figure out how important they are to each other, and oh yeah, some bank robbing thugs with guns are after them. It's kinda goofy, kinda sweet, and always funny.

Pretty much across the board, the casting here is....shall I say oddly appealing? Cooper shows off his versatility as the Hurley-wearing, dreadlock-toting bank robber Alex Dmitri in a surprisingly funny part. Joy Bryant and Ryan Hansen play Neve and Alan, two other members of Alex's crew. Completely out of left field, the usually shrill, annoying Tom Arnold is a scene-stealer in a good way as Randy, a U.S. Marshal with Witness Protection assigned to watch over Charlie. His general clumsiness and nerves provides some good laughs as well as his ability with a pistol. There's also a funny sub-plot with Gil's gay brother (Jess Rowland),  a cop and his partner (Carly Hatter). Also look for Beau Bridges in a funny part as Charlie's Dad with Kristin Chenoweth, David Koechner, and Sean Hayes all making quick appearances. Even Jason Bateman makes a one-scene cameo.

No real point in analyzing this one too much. It's funny, entertaining and has a lot that certainly looks like they're having a hell of a lot of fun. I went in with low expectations for this one, but I liked it a lot. Surprisingly good flick with a lot of laughs.

Hit and Run (2012): ***/****

Major League II

I love 1989's Major League. It's one of my all-time favorite sports movies, a great story of a bunch of screwball underdogs working together to overcome an owner trying to move the franchise. A baseball movie that's very funny with a ton of great characters and one-liners. Naturally, a sequel came along some five years later, 1994's Major League II, and it's nowhere near as good. On the other hand....it's still a baseball movie, a funny one, most of the characters are back, and though it is bad, I still love it.

Having won the division the year before, the screwball Cleveland Indians are back and ready to take another run at the World Series. The Indians came up short in the playoffs the previous season -- swept at the hands of the Chicago White Sox -- but retired third baseman turned owner Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernsen) has brought back the core of the team, including fireballing pitcher Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn (Charlie Sheen), veteran catcher Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger), fleet-footed outfield Willie Mays Hayes (Omar Epps) and slugging outfielder Pedro Cerrano (Dennis Haysbert). Dorn even signed a slugging, free agent catcher, Jack Parkman (David Keith), to bolster the lineup. Everyone and everything seems posed for a great season and hopefully a big postseason run, but have the Indians become complacent? Manager Lou Brown (James Gammon) certainly has his work cut out for him with this bunch.

Did you like 1989's Major League? No? What the hell is wrong with you? I'm guessing you hate America and/or baseball. Maybe both. If you answered 'yes,' then you're going to enjoy this movie too. Director David S. Ward returns from the original to direct this sequel which will appease and entertain a lot of fans because....well....it's the same movie. Yeah, yeah, some things are tweaked, but it's basically the exact movie. This season the Indians start off as front-runners, hit an epically rough streak, and then have to turn things around to get back into the playoffs. It should feel familiar -- even a little phoned-in at times -- and while it isn't on the same level as its predecessor, it is funny, entertaining and a solid if unspectacular sports movie.

A big reason it's worth putting up with some of the stupid laughs is because the characters are back. Amidst all the laughs and baseball goofiness of the original, the characters were likable (sometimes in spite of themselves). The success of the previous season has gone to the Indians' heads though, starting with Wild Thing who's now trying to clean up his image with the help of girlfriend-agent Flannery (Alison Doody). Oh, and he's lost some heat off his fastball. Veteran catcher Jake Taylor finds himself on the bench as a coach when the Indians decide to bring up a young talented catcher to backup Parkman. Replacing Wesley Snipes, Epps is solid as Willie Mays Hayes, base-stealing outfielder who's turned himself into a power hitter....and B-movie action star. Haysbert's Cerrano has forsaken his voodoo ways, turning to Buddhism and losing his ability to hit in the process. As cantankerous manager Lou Brown, Gammon is hilarious -- not surprising -- as he progressively loses his mind with his underachieving players. Playing owner-third baseman Dorn, Bernsen makes the most of a smaller supporting part.

What would a Major League sequel be without the triumphant return of Milwaukee Brewers radio man Bob Uecker as Harry Doyle, the Indians radio play-by-play guy who lives and dies with how the team does. His brutally honest banter is beyond perfect, usually questioning what the hell is going on out on the field. He has some great scenes with virtually silent partner, Monty (Skip Griparis). There aren't as many ridiculously funny, memorable lines as the original, but that's a relative complaint. How could you not love 'And the Indians have a base runner.....I think I'll wet my pants" or "He'll need a rocket up his ass to catch that one." It's his perfectly subtle, underplayed deliveries that work, and seeing him drink on-air more and more as the Indians go under is beyond perfect.

How about some additions to the team though? David Keith is the ideal egotistical star player as Parkman, the star free agent catcher. He's interested in himself and his stats, and he isn't going to be long for the Indians. Eric Bruskotter is a scene-stealer as Rube Baker, the young minor league catcher trying to make it with the big league team. He has a problem though....he can't throw back to the pitcher. Baker also just loves the game, and it rubs off on his teammates. Takaaki Ishibashi plays Kamikaze Tanaka, a Japanese outfielder trying to get his teammates, especially peaceful Cerrano, to embrace "their marbles." Think about it, you'll get it. Also with his fair share of memorable scenes is Randy Quaid as Johnny, a superfan who goes up and down with each game the Indians played. Rene Russo makes a quick, blink and you'll miss it appearance as Lynn, Jake's wife, while Margaret Whitton plays Rachel Phelps, the Indians former owner who reappears at the worst possible time.

Does it all work? No, especially Wild Thing trying to reinvent himself as a clean-cut salesman. His scenes with Flannery and former fling, Nikki (Michelle Burke), drag down the story to a snail's pace, especially because Nikki works with underprivileged kids. Yeah, a message! And with a 105-minute movie and so many characters, things feel rushed at times. Characters get brushed aside too often for long stretches, and there's never really a doubt where the story's heading. That said, it's a bad good movie. You know it's bad, but it's enjoyable from beginning to end.

Major League II (1994): ***/****

Olympus Has Fallen

There was a time when action movies were simple. Ah, yes, we're going in the Wayback Nostalgia Machine again so brace yourself. There were movies where the good guys were good guys, and the bad guys were bad guys, despicable without an ounce of anything even remotely redeeming. I like to call this time in Hollywood history.....the 1980s. That's simplifying the premise too much, but my point is valid. We had the Russians/Soviets/Commies to root against. In the vein of those straightforward, black and white action movies come 2013's Olympus Has Fallen.

A longtime Secret Service agent and the head of the Presidential detail, Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) is removed from his post when President Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart)'s wife is killed accidentally in a winter car wreck. Banning leaves the Secret Service and takes a job in Washington D.C. as a U.S. Treasury agent. Some 18 months pass, and Mike still yearns to get back to what he was so good at and loved. He may get his chance. Sneaking into the White House as part of a South Korean diplomacy party, a North Korean paramilitary terrorist, Kang (Rick Yune), leads a well coordinated attack that decimates Washington and takes over the White House, capturing the President and much of his cabinet. As the bodies mount in the lightning-quick strike, Mike is among those fighting back, even managing to get into the White House in all the bloody, bullet-riddled chaos. As the terrorists make their demands and the nation and the world wait to see what happens, Mike works from the inside, using all his know-how and skills to take down the North Koreans.

Does this movie sound even remotely familiar? It should. From director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Tears of the Sun), 'Olympus' is a not so subtle tweaking of Die Hard meets Air Force One. Whole scenes from those movies are tweaked, twisted and prodded here and there to make it slightly different. More than just those two movies, it plays like every action movie you've ever seen and will see ever again down the road. So what to say about this one rather than wrap it up here? Ready for a twist? I LOVED this movie. It's so epically stupid I can't even describe, but I loved it. I betcha didn't see that one coming, now did you? Don't be confused. This isn't a good movie with all its mindless action, cardboard characters and goofy one-liners. What is it then? This is a popcorn movie. Sit back with a big tub of popcorn, turn off your brain and just enjoy a movie for a change.

So how to explain why I liked this movie? Action movies aren't just action movies anymore. So often they have to throw a ridiculous twist at you or telegraph a horrifically unsubtle, heavy-handed message at you. 'Olympus' gets back to the basics in a big way. Americans = Good. North Koreans = Bad. The timing is also interesting considering North Korea's recent threats of firing nuclear weapons at the U.S. but that's for someone significantly more cultured and intelligent than me to analyze. I'm more of an explosions and gunfight kind of guy. If familiar, the premise is very cool, an unsettling attack on Washington D.C. setting the tone for the rest of the movie. It's incredibly uncomfortable to watch civilians get shot down in the street, the Washington Monument crumbling, the White House under heavy attack with Secret Service and military forces shot down in droves doing their duty. In a very straightforward movie, there's something primal in these scenes. If it sounds simplistic on my part, so be it. America gets attacked, and Americans fight back. Cue a pissed-off Scotsman in Gerard Butler, and we've got ourselves an action flick.

I like Gerard Butler. I don't always like his selection in movies, but I like him just the same. This is him doing what he should be doing. He handles himself well in drama and comedy, but I think he's best as an action star. Here as the ex-Army Ranger turned Secret Service agent turned Treasury agent, it's ideal casting. His past haunts him, and he wants to make things right. When the White House, the President, and America (cue dramatic music), Butler's Banning steps to the plate. As an action star, he's extremely capable. He's believable in his fight scenes, believable as he sneers and snides his way through countless cheesy one-liners. The dynamic between Banning and Yune's Kang is eerily reminiscent of Bruce Willis and Alan Rickman in Die Hard so as long as you're going to rip a movie off, at least rip off a good one. Moral of the story is this, Gerard Butler is cool and a more than worthy leading man as an action hero.

The casting on the whole is solid. It's also fair to say not much of the talent assembled here is given much to do, but whatever, minor complaint. Eckhart is a solid President, an everyman who wants the best for his country and his son (not shrill but talented Finley Jacobsen). His Cabinet and the government higher-ups include Morgan Freeman as the Speaker of the House, Melissa Leo as the Secretary of Defense, Robert Forster as Army Chief of Staff, Sean O'Bryan as Deputy National Security Advisor and Angela Bassett as the head of the Secret Service. Oh, yeah, also look for Dylan McDermott, Ashley Judd, Radha Mitchell and Cole Hauser in key supporting roles. Lots of people, lots of talent. Underused and/or misused maybe, but it's fun seeing so many big names together.

Enough with all this acting mumbo-jumbo. This is a movie about action and gunfights and stabbings and explosions! Borrowing heavily from Die Hard, Banning works from inside-out at the White House, trying to take down the North Koreans one by one. Oh, and those North Koreans are highly trained commandos so we're in store for some good, old-fashioned hand-to-hand combat. If it's a little cliched, so be it. The bad guys for the most part can't hit anything (Mike), but Mike can hit everything (North Koreans). The North Korean attack on D.C. is something else to watch, a meticulously coordinated attack that's brutal in its efficiency. Without giving away too much, the action is brutal, hard-hitting and even features some solid surprises along the way.

Is this one predictable? Oh, yes. You've probably got a good sense of where this one is heading as of right now....without having seen a second. Wait!!! Morgan Freeman becomes the President?!?! The North Koreans are brilliant in executing a plan but can't capture one freaking man?!? We get lots of shots of American flags blowing in the wind -- to composer Trevor Morris' patriotic score -- and a general feeling of patriotism and national pride. It's a good movie. Don't overthink it or its rather obvious influences. Enjoy it for what it is, a shoot 'em up action flick with a cast that looks to be having a lot of fun.

Olympus Has Fallen (2013): ***/****