Would you say.... the movie gets an easy "A" from you?

It gets an easy 3/4 which is pretty good for a movie that has the lesser Michalka in it.

Aly > AJ, but not as a blonde

Brokeback Mountain (2005) - 7/10

I appreciated that it wasn't a fairy tale. It had a lot of warts. The film isn't afraid to show the relationship as selfish. Whether it be the quality of the work that suffers while they frolic gayly in the fields or it causes pain to their loved ones or themselves. It's the wanting that takes precedence over everything else.

Ultimately I think this is a film about love and how it can ruin you if you let it. None of these characters have free will. They're all slaves to love. The wife of Heath Leger's character goes on loving him. It forces her to leave him and years later confront him at Thanksgiving. Leger's 2nd girlfriend similarly sees him in a diner after he's presumably ghosted her and she's still reeling. None has agency in the wake of their love.

Conversely, Ann Hathaway's character is loveless. She's easily able to let Gyllenhaal's character go to Wyoming multiple times a year. It is of no consequence to her. Their relationship is a formality.

Having the premise be about 2 men in a hyper-masculine world allows us to explore that uniquely but I think this is very universal in a broader sense because it being about 2 men isn't exactly the point.

The film doesn't stop to moralize. It's a close-up of this relationship and it stays zoomed in on the micro and leaves the macro implications to you.

For two guys roughly the same age, definitely the same generation… we sure do have differences in our Michalka preferences.
I guess I watched more Chyna matches than you at a more formative age.
I’m still a boy at 36.

Going to watch LA Confidential tonight.

The Last Kingdom - Seven Kings Must Die 7/10

I would have preferred another full length season or two, but this film was a decent way to conclude what has always been a strong series; personally, I preferred The Last Kingdom to the more popular Vikings series.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) - 6/10

Now here's a romcom to get bebind. Script is really punchy. Very quotable. A bunch of great bits. Funny gags. Primary issue is Segel. I love Jason Segel. He's great. But he isnt right as a leading man. Obviously its his material. Its not like he doesnt nail his scenes. But standing across from Bell, Kunis or even Brand he feels out of place. At the end of the day the film hinges on the idea that these girls would like to and do in fact fuck him. If you take his role and make it the B plot to another film suddenly the film would work better. Hes just not a leading man.

So either a recast or reworked as the B plot in some other movie...i think youd have an 8 out of 10. Or maybe just have him not cast across from 10s. Jason Segel tries to bang an 7 or a lonely 8. I dunno.

Really great line that will stick with me:

"Im sorry I'm not what we thought I'd be." I felt that.

I read somewhere that the breakup scene was inspired by a real one. Must've been "hella awkward" to relieve that trauma and be "vulnerable" on film like that.

Yeah i was listening to him on conan obrien needs a friend while i was working out a few weeks back and he was telling the story of the impetus of him writting the script. With any artistic endeavor truth is always what im looking for so it put this on my radar.

The film does have a lot authenticity. Its dramatized to melodramatic proportions of course. Its not a literal film its embellished to the point of absurdity. Its still true though

In an interview about his book Norm Macdonald said instead of writing facts he decided to write truth. Its a pretty insightful comment. Facts can be debated. Facts can be wrong. Or misremebered. But the truth of the moment. How it made you feel. How you perceived a moment. Thats real no matter how much you manipulate the details for comedic effect.

I think this is a very true film. And it comes across that way. You can easily empathize with Segel because, even at peak silliness, he doesnt come across as inauthentic for a single second. The film makes this wacky 3s company scenario in Hawaii but there's an emotional core that resonates really well.

I still dont buy Segal with these women specifically and on screen chemistry absolutely matters. But on the page this is a great script and on the screen there's a ton to like.

But having a break up in the nude would not be desirable. Its peak vulnerability.

The line though "You want to pick the outfit im in while you break up with me too?" Is golden

Norm's book was such a fun read.

I agree with your assessment of the movie. Segel comes across as genuine and likeable despite the plot being somewhat ho-hum and forgettable. I have the movie in my collection but I haven't felt the need to revisit it in a long time.

I rewatched "Jeff, Who Lives At Home" and while the plot was very uninspired and predictable, I really enjoyed the chemistry he had with Ed Helms.

And then his bromance with Paul Rudd in "I Love You, Man" was top notch. This interview where they're clearly baked was golden.

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Forgot all about the movie "I Love You, Man".... I remember enjoying it and watching it a few times...

Insipid analysis as usual Dave.

I’ll be the first to say feel free not to share in future.

lol don't care kiddo

i saw it in theater with a friend. I had fun. I doubt it holds up for some reason. Comdies struggle on 2nd viewing and age doesnt do them favors either. Still i liked it. And its exactly the kind of role i think Segel is suited for.

I think at the time I was going through a "phase" of watching all the Apatow/Apatow-esque comedies of that time period... after refusing vehemently watching any....

Ugh! I miss that time period. I stopped watching after "This is 40".

Only because you sucked balls at 30

Apatow had a netflix series i really enjoyed. "Love." Ending infuriated me but it was a good ride for 3 seasons

I've heard nice things about it but it seems a bit dark. I've only seen the first episode. There's just so much content out there.

I dunno if dark is how'd i describe it. It certainly gets heavy but the catharsis at the romantic moments is worth the journey. It'll definitely beat you up though.

Cocaine Bear: 7/10 Brother hyped it up and it disappointed based on his hype but I'm used to that.

Power Rangers: 6/10Very Power Ranger, felt like an extended episode of the show back in the day. Acting was as expected. No Lord Zedd though.

Scream 6: 7/10 Great slasher but too many twist.

Just watched it again... enjoyed it.... forgot this was the movie where "slap-a da bass" comes from....

Antman - Quantummania - 6.5/10

In some ways, this is the best Ant-Man movie and in a lot of other ways, the worst Ant-Man movie. Kind of miss the small scope of the first two Ant-Man movies and it seems fitting that Ant-Man had bigger stakes then his first two considering he is an Avenger that saved the world. Paul Rudd is always great, and as stupid as he looked I enjoyed Modok in this because I was a big fan of the Hulu series, and not a fan of the generic evil scientist MODOK from the comics.

As of right now probably probably my fourth favorite MCU movie that's came out since Endgame, but that's not saying much.

I like Easy A, but it's a movie that I loved the first time but fall less in love with with each passing.

I love you, Man is the opposite of Easy A, that I fall in love with it each time I rewatch it.

Have my best friend in my phone as Frank Medukas.

YOU MIND YOUR OWN FUCKHOLE!

Also it’s Hank Mardukas

"I Love You, Man" has such great rewatchability. My childhood best friend and I still quote the movie randomly. Good stuff.

Inherent Vice (2014) - 5/10

Now to be clear I'm giving this neutral rating more than an assessment. I spent the first act trying to figure out what I was watching. PTA films in a lot of ways aren't really meant to be digested in a single viewing so talking about them after that single sitting always feels like a faux pas.

After about 45 min I started to get a feel for what I was watching. That's about how long it took me to realize it was a comedy. I was meant to be laughing.

The film is like if you took Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and made Hunter S Thompson a detective. Like if, an admittedly less cool, The Dude was in a surrealist noir film.

Once I had that much I was able to suss out that most of what I'm seeing is indeed happening..well to an extent. It's surrealism for sure so how it visually plays out is more of an echo of the protagonist's drug-addled fever dream but it's occurring enough. There is one character, the 3rd person narrator, who I do think is mostly fictitious. She might actually be in one scene but that one scene I'm uncertain if it took place...anyways.

You probably see my dilemma here. I don't actually know much about what I saw. The characters storm into the picture and leave as suddenly. Information is given to you and you don't exactly know if it matters and there are moments when they're acting like you know things you're certain they haven't told you.

Now I think this is by design. Like a wild night out on the town being dragged along by a group of friends. Moments blurring past you. The real you and the stoned you tagging in and out of the driver's seat of your soul and not sharing the details between yourselves.

On the 1st screening this leaves this viewer not knowing what to say or think. What I do know is I enjoyed the characters and the actors and I wanted to see how the story unraveled itself and wanted to exist alongside these people for as long as they were on the screen.

In a year or so I'll watch this again and I'll read this post and I'll see if I get it then but for now...I had a good time.

LA Confidential was an interesting watch. I haven't watched many Guy Pierce performances.

The only ones I can remember are Iron Man 3 and Memento.

Man has a fine jaw line

And a mediocre filmography

similar take here

I remember it being a difficult watch. I might have to see it again when I have the bandwidth.

I do think thats the joke in some way as im running it back in my head. A stoner detective film. Typically the details are everything. Here the details mean nothing hell the case barely means anything. So it devolves into a string of occurrences.

I went in knowing nothing. No premise. Nothing. And yeah i had a hard time tracking where we were let alone why we went there. I think a rewatch, with this context in mind, would let the humor shine through more.

I dunno. Thats a question future me will try to answer.

This is stuck in my head now :o

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