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Showing posts with label Danny McBride. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Danny McBride. Show all posts

Sunday, May 2, 2021

MOVIE REVIEW: THE MITCHELLS VS THE MACHINES

 






















Young Katie Mitchell embarks on a road trip with her proud parents, younger brother and beloved dog to start her first year at film school. But their plans to bond as a family soon get interrupted when the world's electronic devices come to life to stage an uprising. With help from two friendly robots, the Mitchells must now come together to save one another -- and the planet -- from the new technological revolution.

Director: Michael Rianda

Cast: Danny McBride, Abbi Jacobson, Maya Rudolph, Rianda, Eric Andre, Olivia Colman, Fred Armisen, Beck Bennett, John Legend, Chrissy Teigen, Blake Griffin, Conan O'Brien

Release Date: April 30, 2021

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy

Rated PG for action and some language

Runtime: 1 h 53 min

Review:

The Mitchells vs. The Machines is a light breezy animated family film that has heart to spare.  Michael Rianda’s film has a bright and appealing visual style that’s distinctive enough to separate it from other animated films.  The story is a nice hybrid of a standard family film and a fun sci-fi story.  Neither is particularly groundbreaking but it hits the sweet spot where it finds a meaningful story to tell with engaging characters.  The primary family play off standard tropes but the script is smart enough to give them enough depth to make them engaging and interesting.  The entire thing wouldn’t work if the voice cast didn’t deliver strong performances, thankfully they do in spades.  Danny McBride delivers one of the more restrained performances of his career and it works well for this role.  McBride’s performance is sincere and heartfelt throughout which is a great change of pace for him.  McBride and Abbi Jacobson have believable chemistry as the father daughter duo who are at the heart of the story, as such they are the driving force of the film.  The supporting cast is rounded out with Maya Rudolph, Michael Rianda, Eric Andre and Olivia Colman with each getting their time to shine.  Colman in particular seems to be having a ball as diabolical AI who can’t deal with rejection.  The Mitchells vs. The Machines also delivers a hefty amount of laugh out loud moments that are sure to keep young and old entertained for the better part of its runtime.  There are portions of the film that feel like they could have been trimmed because there really no reason for the film to be nearly 2 hours long, regardless it’s strong family film that works on multiple levels.

B+

Sunday, May 21, 2017

MOVIE REVIEW: ALIEN: COVENANT







































Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, members (Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup) of the colony ship Covenant discover what they think to be an uncharted paradise. While there, they meet David (Michael Fassbender), the synthetic survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition. The mysterious world soon turns dark and dangerous when a hostile alien life-form forces the crew into a deadly fight for survival.

Director: Ridley Scott

Cast: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir

Release Date: May 19, 2017

Rated R for sci-fi violence, bloody images, language and some sexuality/nudity

Runtime: 2 hr. 2 min.

Genres: Action, Adventure, Drama

Review:

Alien: Covenant is best described as Ridley Scott plays all the hits.  On Prometheus, Scott tried for some headier sci-fi, even if the human decision weren’t, but fans complained about its lack of outright Alien connections.  Publicly, Scott’s been on record as saying he’s heard these complaints and delivered Alien: Covenant.  Fans of the series will find plenty of call back to the original film all the while Scott continues threads from Prometheus.   The film itself looks beautiful, even if the scares never really come since the beats are so familiar.  Katherine Waterston is primed to be the heroine in this entry but she’s never magnetic enough to completely captivate your attention.  Michael Fassbender more than makes up for the slack while playing duel roles.  Fassbender is clearly having a ball throughout and its audience benefit as he’s the most interesting thing on screen during the entire film.  The supporting cast is made up of familiar faces but their clearly just cattle being lead to the slaughter with only Danny McBride leaving an actual impression.  Alien: Covenant is a solid entry into the prequel series that sure to leave plenty of fans happy while others will complain about certain story decision. 

B

Cindy Prascik's Review of Alien: Covenant

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for the latest installment in the Alien franchise, Alien: Covenant.
 
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
 
Alien life forms are sometimes very dangerous. Who'da guessed??
 
Dear reader(s), in the interest of full and fair disclosure, I'll confide that I don't like the Alien movies...ANY of them. I keep giving them chances because people who like the things that I do seem to love and even revere at least some of them but...welp...let's just say this latest installment finally may have cured me of my need to figure out what I'm missing.
 
If I heeded that old adage, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all," this review would be a blank page; however, since I paid the cost of admission expressly for the privilege of writing about the movie, I shall briefly disregard that sage advice to tell you Alien: Covenant sucks so hard. I might say it was worse than Prometheus, except I didn't fall asleep in this one. Maybe I just wasn't tired yesterday, but I'm gonna be generous and concede that point. Katherine Waterston is terrible, all teary eyes and quavering voice; in fact, for a team of scientists and explorers, the minute something goes a little sideways these people lose their s**t faster than the slutty girl in those teen horror flicks. Many of the choices they make are about as stupid, too. Cardinal rules: When in doubt, don't split up and don't have sex. Pretty simple, right? This crew is so dumb it's hard to invest in any of them...more fun to try guessing in what order they'll (deservedly) be picked off. The writing is so predictable I was finishing lines in my head like a movie I'd seen a hundred times. Covenant features some lovely locations and decent effects, but the "horror" is limited to gore and cheap jump scares that you'll see coming a mile out. There's a minor, but weird and unnecessary, reference to a character thinking he's considered untrustworthy for being "a person of faith." That probably got under my skin more than it should have, but it stuck out as one of the most offensively pointless spots on an almost-entirely pointless movie landscape.
 
Alien: Covenant clocks in at 122 minutes and is rated R for "sci-fi violence, bloody images, language, and some sexuality/nudity."
 
With a top-notch cast, mammoth effects, and spectacular sets, it's clear the makers of Alien: Covenant weren't shy about throwing money at the screen; however, in the immortal words of Butthead: "You can't polish a turd, Beavis." Or, as the lady behind me stage-whispered about the halfway point: "This movie stinks." Of a possible nine Weasleys, Alien: Covenant gets one.
 
Fangirl points: Billy Crudup! Country Roads! Dariusz Wolski!
 
Until next time...

Sunday, May 31, 2015

Cindy Prascik's Reviews of Aloha & San Andreas




Dearest Blog, yesterday it was off to the pictures more because it's what I do on a Saturday than because there was anything I was all that interested in watching. The weekend's offerings: Aloha and San Andreas.

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing not previously divulged by the trailers.

First on my middling agenda: Aloha.

A former military hotshot gets a second chance at life and love in Hawaii.

Aloha isn't normally the type of movie I'd watch unless and until it crossed my path for free on cable; however, a super cast made it a better option than the dreadful-looking Tomorrowland to complete my San Andreas double-bill.

Aloha's biggest flaw is that it never really decides what it is. Tangents are many, fully explored ones are few, and things always seem to be happening and people behaving in ways that don't quite make sense. The movie clocks in under two hours; it might have done well to better flesh out a few things. NOT encouraging yet another bloated less-than-epic Hollywood epic, but Aloha feels a bit like a puzzle missing a piece.

The movie makes little use of Hawaii's great natural beauty, though it doesn't willfully try to make the island seem unappealing, either, like the Descendants did. Also in its favor over the Descendants: people in Aloha actually wear real, grownup shoes sometimes. Hooray for socks!!

The aforementioned super cast almost--almost!--manages to compensate for Aloha's other shortcomings. Alec Baldwin and Danny McBride make the most of their limited screen time, and Bill Murray, John Krasinski, and Rachel McAdams are perfect fits in supporting roles.

Bradley Cooper is nothing short of fantastic in the sort of leading man role that's perfect for a guy with his looks, even if he's been both good and lucky enough to break out of that mold for the most part.

Young Jaeden Lieberher is the movie's scene-stealer, precocious, but not annoying. Finally, whatever higher power you believe in, if you don't think Emma Stone represents His/Her/Its finest work, well, then, I just don't know what's wrong with you. She is earnest and beautiful and 150% terrific, and lights up every scene she's in to such a degree that it hurts when she's missing. So, yeah, Aloha is kind of hokey, but in the end I was rooting for almost everyone and I actually liked it.

Aloha runs 105 minutes and is rated PG13 for "some language, including suggestive comments."

Despite its being the second romance forced on me by a pitiful spring film slate, I didn't hate it.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Aloha gets five.

Next up, San Andreas.

Dwayne Johnson is better than you are, and you should make every effort to be in his company when beset by disaster.

Listen, San Andreas is the kind of thing that's normally right up my alley, but a done-to-death idea and effects that looked kinda wonky in the trailer left me ambivalent. I'm pleased to say that, though it may be the most stupidly implausible movie I've ever seen (and remember, I like movies about radioactive spiders and talking dragons), San Andreas is also quite fun.

Truth: San Andreas is dumber than a bag of hair. Lowest-common denominator laughs. Contrived scenarios. Insipid dialogue. Painful "inspirational" shots backed by a comically-swelling score. Had I rolled my eyes just one more time, I'd be looking out the back of my head to write this review.

I'd heard some complaints about the accuracy of the movie's earthquake science, and while I don't doubt those are entirely true, I don't think most folks would have noticed or cared; the bigger problem is that everything else is so ridiculous you can't even buy into the mundane.

The supporting cast ranges from "I love that guy!" (Will Yun Lee) to pretty likeable (Hugo Johnstone-Burt and Art Parkinson) to super annoying (Alexandra Daddario) to "What the hell are you even doing here?" (Paul Giamatti).

I'm sorely disappointed to discover that the beautiful Carla Gugino is an ugly crier. Of course none of that really matters, because the movie belongs to Dwayne Johnson. Despite the fact he doesn't do much smiling or taking off his shirt (the two things he does best, for my money), he remains one of the more engaging leading men working in Hollywood today, and at his side probably isn't the worst place you could be when the world goes to hell. San Andreas is pretty entertaining, and that's mostly thanks to Johnson.

Thankfully, the effects are also better than the trailer would have led you to believe. There's one awful bit of green-screen, but the rest is huge and quite effective. Felt a lot like being on a rollercoaster, and I saw it in 2D; I can only imagine the 3D is utterly vomit inducing, in the best possible way. The movie also does a great job at maintaining tension, a fingernail chewer from start to finish.

San Andreas clocks in at 114 minutes and is rated PG13 for "intense disaster action and mayhem throughout, and brief strong language" (a single f-bomb that you can see coming a mile out).

It's a disaster alright, but it's a fun one.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, San Andreas gets four.
 
Until next time...



Pretty sure this is a metaphor for something..

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Cindy Prascik’s review of Man of Steel / This Is the End




Dearest Blog, today I followed the herd to the cinema for Man of Steel. Though I'd happily have seen Star Trek again, I did the responsible thing and paired MOS with This Is the End, so, dear reader(s), I could share my "wisdom" on the week's big new releases. You're welcome. ;-)

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.

A reboot of the Superman franchise, Man of Steel is the obligatory origins tale.

The usual disclaimers, personal biases that will, no doubt, color this review: I love superhero movies. I do not love Superman, but I adore this team of filmmakers, and most of this cast. I very much wanted to love this movie. I did not.

Starting with the obvious: Henry Cavill.

I'm an Anglophile, so this is not the first time Mr. Cavill and I have crossed paths. While he is an extraordinarily good-looking young man, he is, unfortunately, only an average actor, with no special charisma. Never is that more obvious than when he shares a screen with one of Hollywood's most magnetic leading men, Russell Crowe, who is terrific as always, even with limited screen time. This film really needed a Robert Downey, Jr.-esque leading man to overcome its flaws, and Cavill is not that guy. (I'm a fan, but it is what it is.) The cast is fleshed out with big names and very familiar faces: Amy Adams, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Michael Shannon, Christopher Meloni, Laurence Fishburne, and, as mentioned, Russell Crowe. Other than Crowe, they are as unremarkable as the material. The usually superb Shannon is a particular disappointment, flat and uninspired as the film's main villain.

While the acting in Man of Steel is nothing to write home about, the cast can't really be blamed for the film's chief handicap: it's just plain boring. I somehow managed not to check the time more than once, which, in and of itself, constitutes a super-human feat.

Man of Steel does have some positives, including big, solid special effects, and a grand score by Hans Zimmer. My fellow Crowe fans will be pleased to note that Russell is looking fit these days, and there's no denying Henry Cavill is easy on the eyes, and has the perfect look for this iconic role.

Man of Steel attempts to drag Superman into the darker territory where Batman and Watchmen now comfortably reside, but Superman is ill
suited for that world. Take away the camp, and you're left with something that's no less silly, just less entertaining. This is an okay movie, but, sadly, far from the perfect superhero movie many of us were counting on.

Man of Steel clocks in at an excessive 143 minutes, and is rated PG13 for "intense sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, and for some language." This will make a bundle at the box office this weekend, and, despite my disappointment, I'm very happy about that for all involved, and I look forward to a sequel that I'm already confident will be brilliant. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Man of Steel gets six.

Next on my agenda was the raunch-comedy, This Is the End, starring James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Craig Robinson, Jonah Hill and a slew of their Hollywood compatriots as what I'm told are very exaggerated versions of themselves...facing the Apocalypse.

This Is the End is one of those films I don't quite know what to do with. When it was funny, it was really, really funny, but, unfortunately, there was a good bit I just didn't find funny. Being that the film is essentially one long "in" joke, I'm willing to concede that maybe I just didn't get some of it, but there were also times when it was simply too much: too gross, too much foul language, too, too much. (Bear in mind I think Tropic Thunder is the funniest movie of all time, so I'm not particularly squeamish about any of that.)

The entire cast shows off brilliant comedy chops, especially Jay Baruchel (a personal favorite) and James Franco. Not sure how much credit is due there if they were basically playing themselves, but, to a man, they are hilarious. It goes without saying that I loved Harry Potter's Emma Watson in a small role that allowed her to play against type. The movie is a tad too long, and the plot (such as it is) bogs down in places, but generally speaking it's good fun from start to finish. While I won't spoil the ending for anyone who hasn't see it, I have to at least say there's a squee-worthy moment that: a.) caused me to embarrass myself in front of a packed theatre, and b.) immediately allowed me to forgive this film for any shortcomings.

This Is the End runs 107 minutes and is rated R for "crude and sexual content throughout, brief graphic nudity, pervasive language, drug use, and some violence."

It's a raucous comedy that's a great time, if you've got the stomach for it. I enjoyed it, but I also spent most of the two hours thinking how much funnier The World's End is certain to be. Of a possible nine Weasleys, This Is the End gets six.

The moral of today's cinema trip: If you're thinking of seeing either of these films, but haven't yet seen Star Trek Into Darkness or Now You See Me, do yourself a favor and see one of those instead.

Until next time...





Wait...what was I saying?

Friday, June 14, 2013

MOVIE REVIEW: THIS IS THE END




Seth Rogen and Jay Baruchel star as themselves along with Danny McBride, Jonah Hill, and Craig Robinson in this end-of-days comedy that finds the actors hiding out with James Franco in his apartment as the apocalypse decimates L.A. outside. Featuring cameos by Jason Segel and Emma Watson, the Sony Pictures film features the directing debuts of Rogen and frequent collaborator Evan Goldberg. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Director: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg

Cast: James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson

Release Date: Jun 12, 2013

Rated R for Crude and Sexual Content, Brief Graphic Nudity, Drug Use, Pervasive Language and Some Violence

Runtime: 1 hr. 47 min.

Genres: Comedy

Review:

This Is The End is one of the raunchiest, most inspired comedies I’ve seen since The Hangover or Anchorman. The premise is simple the rapture happens and all hell, literally, breaks loose. At its heart it’s a simple conceit to get these faux versions of the actors shut into a house together under dire situations. In its simplicity the script allows plenty of riffs, verbal jabs and all out attacks on preconceived notions about each actor, it’s done with such aplomb that some of it has to be improvised. Some play themselves closer to what we’d expect while others go off the rails like Michael Cera playing a coked out proxy himself to hilarious effect. It all works so well mainly because these actors appear to be friends in the real world. As a result, their interactions ring true throughout. Verbal interchanges can reach a dizzying height of hilarity, so much so that this movie will probably require multiple viewing to catch all the jokes being flung across each actor’s mast. The cast all around is strong with Jay Baruchel doing yeoman’s work as the film’s center but special praise has to be given to Danny McBride. McBride is incredibly impressive here doling out some of the funniest lines of the film. There are a few minor issues keeping this from being perfect. The last 15 minutes or so really start to teeter out as things get more and more absurd. Part of the issue is that the script has trouble finding an ending and they didn’t want to go for the most logical conclusion. Additionally, the cast gets broken up in the last act robbing the film of some of its bite. As a result, it feels like the film could have been trimmed by 15 minutes. Minor issues aside, This Is The End is simply a comic gem.

A-

Check out the original 2007 comedy short that inspired this movie;

Jay and Seth vs. The Apocalypse




Thursday, June 6, 2013

[Guest Review] David Castillo’s Review of THIS IS THE END


Seth Rogen and Jay Baruchel star as themselves along with Danny McBride, Jonah Hill, and Craig Robinson in this end-of-days comedy that finds the actors hiding out with James Franco in his apartment as the apocalypse decimates L.A. outside. Featuring cameos by Jason Segel and Emma Watson, the Sony Pictures film features the directing debuts of Rogen and frequent collaborator Evan Goldberg. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Release Date: Jun 12, 2013

Rated R for crude and Sexual Content, Brief Graphic Nudity, Drug Use, Pervasive Language and Some Violence

Runtime: 1 hr. 47 min.

Genres: Comedy

Director: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg

Cast: James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson

Review:

Haven't we seen this already a year ago, ironically also with Jonah Hill, written by the same duo (Rogan/Goldberg) who gave us "The Watch"? That’s what I thought when the first trailer hit the internet the day before the supposed Mayan apocalypse last December. While "The Watch" was somewhat a disappointment, this is by no means comparable.

The first 20 minutes of the movie IS the 2 red band trailers, which works perfectly since its gets those scenes out of the way and we can get to the central plot of the movie. The audience’s main point of view is Jay Baruchel and Seth Rogan with the rest of the assembled stars supporting. While we will probably never know how these stars are genuinely, they play their parts superbly well; giving us the feeling we know them personally.

The tough part of doing a review for this movie like this is not giving away too much while critiquing it, so I’ll break down the performances. Sometimes having a huge all star cast can make it difficult to balance, here I have no complaints. Jay Baruchel, to me, is the anti-Michael Cera, yeah, he plays the same roles but is always likeable. His leading role in “She’s Out of My League” was overlooked by most audiences and hasn’t really been in any major movies since. Some have even forgotten his brilliant performance in the equally star studded “Tropic Thunder”. Seth Rogan, is being Seth, but his input in the script allows him to take some genius jabs at himself (“where was that in The Green Hornet”). Franco is better known for his dramatic roles in Spiderman, Milk, and 127 Hours but he’s shown he can be funny in comedies like Pineapple Express and Your Highness. Here he does a great job as the party’s host, believably playing his as incredibly hard headed. Danny McBride does what he does so well, being a jackass. McBride pulls it off hilariously well, so much so that you’ll want to kick his ass. McBride and Franco share one of the best scenes in the movie. It’s so good that some of it had to be improvised, it was that good. Jonah Hill and Craig Robinson do take a backseat in supporting roles but they still do solid work.

This is The End currently has Rotten Tomato rating of 93%, that’s before the mass media reviews are be published before next week’s release. When it’s all said and done, I’d predict it’ll end up in the high 70s/low 80s%.

Did it live up to my expectations? To be honest, they were sky high after the red band trailers and while it didn’t reach those heights it’s still a VERY good movie.

A minor complaint I had with the film was some slow pacing primarily, some sections in the middle but that’s it.

Of course, this movie isn’t going to be for everybody but if you liked some of Judd Apatow’s hits like Knocked Up, Superbad or Pineapple Express, then you’ll have a blast with this.

2013 hasn’t been a great year for comedies with Movie 43, The Haunted House, Scary Movie 5, 21 & Over, and The Hangover 3, This is the End is easily the best comedy of 2013 and worth the watch if you’re a fan of the cast’s previous work.

It’s worth mentioning that this has THE most epic cameo in the past 5 years, period! Hopefully nobody spoils it for you!

4 out of 5 stars

Easter Egg (Extra Tidbit)

Since this was released by Colombia Pictures, they were limited on what previous work can be mentioned from each star. There’s no references to the highly successful Universal Studio films Knocked Up, Superbad, Jason Segal’s work on How I Met Your Mother or Craig Robinson’s work on The Office.

If you want to see more of Jay Baruchel’s recent work, check out his independently written film “Goon” starring Sean William Scott., it’s on Netflix Instant Stream.


Saturday, January 21, 2012

MOVIE REVIEW: UNDERWORLD AWAKENING

IN THEATERS

UNDERWORLD AWAKENING 3D



The Underworld franchise continues with this fourth film, bringing the action horror hybrid franchise into 3D for the first time. Kate Beckinsale returns to the series after taking the third outing off. Filmmaking duo Mans Marlind and Bjorn Stein (2010's Shelter) direct from a script by John Hlavin and J. Michael Straczynski. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi

Director: Bjorn Stein, Mans Marlind

Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Stephen Rea, Michael Ealy, India Eisley, Sandrine Holt

Release Date: Jan 20, 2012

Rated R for strong violence and gore, and for some language

Genres: Action/Adventure, Horror

Review:

Somewhere along the long it might strike you how strange the entire Underworld franchise is. Kate Beckinsale somehow became an action star after seemingly being set on a career in forgettable rom-coms. The first Underworld was the brain child of a soon to be director (Len Wiseman), former stuntman (Kevin Grevioux) and Danny McBride. It’s became a certified hit for a variety of reasons including the fact that Beckinsale looks quite fetching in latex and blue contacts. I’ve been a fan since the first film and I’ll never claim it’s anything more than derivative flotsam, albeit enjoyable. This far into the series you know what these films are about, a loose mythology with more slow-mo action than you can shake a stick at. Whether you enjoy any of it will depend on whether you enjoy the previous ones, as mindless fun its quick loud and bloody. Character development in this new one never bothers with things like motivations or explanations, supporting characters simply help Selene because the script says so. In all honesty all that story malarkey tends to slows down the proceedings but luckily the directors keep the film moving at a steady pace throwing up some fun action sequences, the 3D rotates from unnoticeable to impressive to frenzied, which keeps the eyes and ears fairly entertained. Before you know it you’ve reached the end, personally I was surprised at it’s good sense of fun. Like decent candy, it’s not good for you all the time but occasionally a taste can really hit the spot.

C+

Saturday, December 3, 2011

MOVIE REVIEW: 30 MINUTES OR LESS

ON VIDEO

30 MINUTES OR LESS



Small-town pizza delivery driver Nick (Jesse Eisenberg) stumbles into an elaborate crime scheme when he's abducted by a pair of ambitious criminals (Danny McBride and Nick Swardson) who coerce him into robbing a bank on a strict timeline. Desperate, Nick implores his former best friend Chet (Aziz Ansari) to help him out of the predicament. But with each attempt to thwart the would-be criminal geniuses, Nick and Chet find their dire situation spinning faster out of control. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Danny McBride, Aziz Ansari, Nick Swardson, Dilshad Vadsaria, Michael Pena

Release Date: Aug 12, 2011

Rated R for crude and sexual content, pervasive language, nudit and some violence

Genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy

Review:

30 Minutes or Less is breezy easily digestible comedy that speeds by provides a handful of laughs and doesn’t over stay its welcome. To say the plot is simplistic is an understatement, it’s about as barebones as you can get. Director Ruben Fleischer uses that to his advantage and crafts a lean film that focuses on his assembled talent and lets them shine. Jessie Eisenberg and Aziz Ansari make up an over caffeinated and manic pair. Both work well together and share a similar comedic energy. Danny McBride and Nick Swardson work just as well as a pair. Both pairs of actors fit so perfectly that it’s easy to overlook some of the more obvious flaws of the plot. Michael Pena is always fun in small roles and he’s his usual scene stealing self here as well. 30 Minutes or Less is the kind of movie that has a singular mind, it aims to bring some crude laughs your way then head out as quickly as it came and all in under 90 minutes.

B

Thursday, April 21, 2011

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