Movie 43

Outstanding cast of A-listers assemble to breathe life into SNL rejected short scripts… and fail. Stolen jokes, weak performances, and senseless frame story further ensure disaster.  Like ‘Funny or Die’ but mostly the latter as each segment manages a moment of humor, then milks it to painful and poisonous death. 

The Conspirator

Redford’s post-Lincoln pic drowns its talent in the overly theatrical lighting, stagy direction, and tedious dialogue of a historical reenactment, and thus assassinates chances at cinematic success.  McAvoy’s underwhelming lead strives valiantly to accomplish nothing resulting in the most frustrating courtroom scenes ever filmed.  Plenty of potential seems suspiciously unrealized.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Jay cuts hair to signify Smith going Rogen in Apatow attempt. Plenty of clever gags come easy from ample risqué situations, but lack the overall lovable Clerks quirks. The nudity aside, an otherwise fairly conventional recent rom-com. Brandon and Long steal show and take more from each other than names.

Drag Me to Hell

Raimi returns to his Evil roots with this B-movie of epic proportions. Hybridizes laugh-out-loud funny with piss-yourself terror and completely avoids pulling punches. Occasionally goes too far with obviously digital Acme anvil and silly eye-spray. Long impresses while Lohman is simply tolerable. Saved by pleasantly simple plot and surprises galore.