CHICAGO – Like many of you, I have been perusing the digital platforms, looking for the appropriate binge shows that will provide a temporary bit of sanity. Amazon Prime, for example, offers the entire series of “30 Rock” (2006-13), the seminal NBC-TV series created by and featuring Tina Fey.
Rob Riggle
‘Night School’ Can’t Get to a Passing Grade
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 28, 2018 - 8:09am Rating: 2.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Night School” is the latest undistinguished product to come off the Kevin Hart assembly line. If you’re a fan of Hart’s motormouthed and hyperactive small time schtick, you’ll find that this will just barely passed the test. But if you’re not, this movie won’t change anyone’s mind.
‘12 Strong’ Wins the Battle as it Loses the War
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 19, 2018 - 9:08am Rating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – In the 16 years of the U.S. and Afghanistan war, which began a month after Sept. 11, 2001, the U.S. has spent trillions of dollars and lost 2,400 soldiers. The story of that war’s first battle, “12 Strong,” would probably be more revelatory if we weren’t still there.
‘Dumb and Dumber To’ Too Dumb to Be Funny
Submitted by PatrickMcD on November 14, 2014 - 6:32amRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Dumb And Dumber To” is an exercise in diminishing returns. Jim Carrey and The Farrelly Brothers expend twice the effort for less than a third of the laughs. It benefits greatly from the enormous well of goodwill created by the original’s inspired idiocy. But one can only suspend disbelief for so long and this sequel has problems that the warm glow of nostalgia can’t solve.
‘Let’s Be Cops’ Unoriginally Repeats Old Formulas
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 13, 2014 - 12:47pm Rating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – The premise is sound, but the new film “Let’s Be Cops” refuses to do something original with the premise of a couple of regular Joes pretending to be Johnny Law. The same stale jokes and inevitable need for heroic action climax overwhelms the mild amusement of it all.
Vince Vaughn, Owen Wilson Lack Brass in ‘The Internship’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on June 7, 2013 - 9:05amRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Dang, dang, dang. C’mon, Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, how about a little anarchy? “The Internship” is a perfectly nice little comedy about old dudes trying to break into the new world of Google employment. But this new world is just another empire, and nobody wants to topple it.
Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum Have Fun on ‘21 Jump Street’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on March 16, 2012 - 6:58am Rating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – There are various opinions about TV-to-movie remakes, mostly negative. That is why “21 Jump Street,” based on a 1980s TV show, manages some grudging respect. Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ice Cube, Rob Riggle, Nick Offerman and Ellie Kemper create some goofy laughs in this farce.
‘Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax’ Boasts Strong Voice Cast But Weak Storytelling
Submitted by BrianTT on March 2, 2012 - 1:50pmRating: 2.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax” certainly isn’t an awful film by any stretch of the imagination. It features some solid voice work, a few lessons worth learning by the iGeneration, and some nifty visuals. It’s also pretty damn boring. Even the little ones at the family screening I attended seemed to lose interest in how this timeless story has been stretched to the demands of a modern family film. It just never quite connects in the way fans of this legendary character hope it would.
Whale of a Tale For Drew Barrymore in ‘Big Miracle’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 3, 2012 - 9:09amRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Whale of a tale (chuckle), no other headline writer has thought of that. “Big Miracle” is a family movie with Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski, Kristen Bell, Ted Danson and the voice of Ronald Reagan, that will not have adults seeking the emergency exits. It’s about whales.
Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts Seek to Repurpose ‘Larry Crowne’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on July 1, 2011 - 6:13amRating: 3.0/5.0 |
CHICAGO – Movie stars need certain types of films to keep their star power safe and audiences expect certain things from them, with limitations, to create summer movie comfort. Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts fill the bill in “Larry Crowne.”
Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg Partner in Cop Farce ‘The Other Guys’
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 6, 2010 - 6:29amRating: 3.5/5.0 |
CHICAGO – While a cop film take-off is filed under the fish-in-a-barrel category, writer/director Adam McKay manages to spin some absurd gold threads into the thin blue cloth. In other words, Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg are damn funny in this all-in cop farce, with enough familiar co-star support to prop up the whole enchilada.
