Win Win

This film is going to be a frustrating one to write about, primarily because I have to adjectives that I dont like, words like nice and good, even wholesome. The premise is clever and the cast led by Paul Giamatti is very good, theres no high drama here and the comedic value is very thin, although I think its just because its sold as a comedy that it falls short in that area.

Giamatti is a small town attorney with a slowly dying business, he makes a slightly dodgy decision which seems like a harmless situation without any recourse, until the clients wayward grandson turns up, the boy is very well played by Alex Shaffer, his character is a nice kid with a lousy mother and a talent for wrestling, you do like this kid very quickly , which shows the craft of Shaffer. Giamatti is also the high school wrestling coach and the relationship between the boy and his coach and the family grows and flourishes until his irksome mother shows up to muddy the waters.

What ensues is well thought out and as dramatic as the film gets, the choice between keeping his little secret and helping the boy comes into play and the fallout is handled well without becoming shmaltzy.

In the end I left feeling entertained without feeling very satisfied, but I cant say anything truly negative about the film because it was good and nice and other mediocre words that dont inspire any real emotions. I would recommend it to others on the strength of the cast and I dont think anyone would hate it, its just not going to set the world on fire.

Upcoming stuff

I’m quite looking forward to the next few months in the cinema, a wealth of decent looking if slightly kooky films are on the horizon, the first hit our screens is The Hangover 2, which in previews looks good, not that I am always seduced by these trailers, and as its got the same cast should be a winner, I like Bradley Cooper, Zach Galiafiniakis and Ed Helms in other stuff but the Hangover has been all three of thems pinanacle thus far and a return to their very best form will see this one riding high in my comedy hall of fame, I hope.

X men first class is looking good also, the tale of the first alumni of Xaviers disciples has a tough job, as it has to tell an exciting story whilst knowing that the audience know who survives the adventures as they later appear in X men adventures in comics and on screen. The cast looks great and with the addition of some high quality CGI I imagine this will live up to expectation.

The Green Lantern is one I am looking forward to but without any certainty that it will be all I wish it to be, I’m not au fait with the story, Ive seen some cartoons I’m sure and seen a few comics but there is apparantly a rich and vibrant world already in the zeit geist about the legend of the green lantern and Fanboys everywhere are looking to tear shreds off of this if it doesnt live up to their, rather high usualy, expectation, the trailers look fun rather than exciting but I will go in with an open mind and hope for the best.

The Beaver is controversial in some circle for a couple of reasons, firstly its the return of everyones favourite fascist Mel Gibson, Jodie foster the films director took a real chance in casting him amid all the rancour over his drunken rants and spousal abuse claims, but it has led to some reasonable press coverage which the film might not have had, cynical I know but I cant help thinking this isnt serendipitous. Secondly the film deals with Depression and its effects on the family of the sufferer as well as the man himself. I have read varying reports on its quality , some people say the subject matter isnt very interesting to those outside the sphere of mental health whilst others have said it is an eye opener for exactly those people who dont have experience of this crippling disorder. I will see it rather uncomfortably if my previous experience of films about anything to do with mental health issues is anything to go by.

The Bridesmaids looks like a good laugh, a female version of the stag do/batchelor party genre. The cast isnt very star driven although I recognise all of them from other stuff. Its got the usual mixture of snobs, slobs and drunken mayhem that is the life blood of these films. I like the trailers and althoug I already know what is likely to happen I will see it anyway because if well done, this formula works, it wont likely be as good as the Hangover but thats not a fair yard stick to hold it up against.

The Bad Teacher is a cameron diaz comedy that looks good in the trailers but I am far from confident that we havent already seen the best bits of the film. Its about the titular Bad teacher, diaz and her lust for a new teacher played by her ex paramore Justin Timberlake, meeting one his exes gives her the idea that he is a breast man and she sets out to get the money to improve her rack, finding out the teacher who performs best wins a cash sum she sets out to improve her class and hopefully win enough to get her breat augmentation. There is tonnes of room for comedy in this scenario and the cast is of the best quality so we can but hope they all perform at the top of their collective games and bring the house down.