Henry Saw: Cave of Forgotten Dreams

Werner Herzog is an international treasure


Thank goodness for Mr. Herzog. Without him we never would have learned about the man who thought living among bears was a good and noble idea. We also would never know if there is such a thing as gay or insane penguins. And now, the world owes him a debt for giving us as good a look at one of the most beautiful works of art on the planet as we could ever hope to get. Herzog's new documentary is a film that everyone should see, in theaters if in any way possible, and will stick with your for weeks after you have seen it. While it is not as entertaining as his other recent documentaries (the previously referenced Grizzly Man and Encounters at the End of the World) Cave of Forgotten Dreams is an utterly engrossing experience.



"Following his previous documentary ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD, iconic director Werner Herzog once again takes us deep behind the frontier of an extraordinary place. Having gained unprecedented access through the tightest of restrictions and overcome considerable technical challenges, he has captured on film, with specially designed 3D cameras, the interior of the Chauvet Cave in southern France. This is where the world’s oldest cave paintings – hundreds in number - were discovered in 1994. In the mesmerizing CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS, he reveals to us a breathtaking subterranean world and leads us to the 32,000-year-old artworks. In that deeply moving moment of encounter, we come face to face with pristine and astonishingly realistic drawings of horses, cattle and lions, which for the briefest second come alive in the torchlight. In true Herzogian fashion, his hypnotically engaging narration weaves in wider metaphysical contemplations as we learn more about the Paleolithic art and its creators. Through his understated and gently humorous voiceover, we are invited to reflect on our primal desire to communicate and represent the world around us, evolution and our place within it, and ultimately what it means to be human." (Via Picture House Entertainment).

As someone who is thoroughly sick of 3D, I must admit that it adds a great deal to the magic of watching Cave of Forgotten Dreams. Using patient and steady pans Herzog is able to truly make us feel as though we are in the cave with him. The 3D shows how the people who painted these magnificent works used the features of the cave, the rock formations and contours, to add depth and a sense of movement to their drawings. And what amazing drawings they are. It is almost impossible to believe they were painted 30,000 years ago as some of the figures look more skillfully composed than paintings from the middle ages.



If the movie has a flaw it is only that the people Herzog interviews are not quite as interesting as his usual subjects. They are informative, and some of them have quirky stories to tell, but Herzog struggles to find any individual who can hold our attention when compared to the hypnotizing effect of viewing the cave. The movie also lacks Herzog's patented wacky and insane digressions, at least until the very end of the film, which is always one of the main reasons to seek out a Herzog documentary.

That aforementioned insane digression is a completely baffling and nonsensical coda in which Herzog brings us to a wild life conservatory not far from the Chauvet Cave. There, he shows us the albino crocodiles that live there and wonders what would happen if they ever escaped. I must admit that I have considered just what he was trying to say, and have yet to figure it out, but that is why he one of the great entertainers of our age.



See Cave of Forgotten Dreams and prepare to have your mind blown. It is not the most complete or intriguing Herzog film I've seen but it is certainly the most stunning. Just the opportunity to see the Chauvet Cave in 3D would be worth the price of admission...the fact that we get Werner Herzog guiding us through is just an added bonus.

Grade: A-

Best Scene: Yeah, I loved the albino crocodiles, but I have to say the moment where one of the scientists demands that everyone be quiet and we just see and hear the cave as they do.

Henry Saw: Kung Fu Panda 2

A likable and charming film but fails to quite live up to the first.


The original Kung Fu Panda was a delightful surprise when it first came out in 2008. Following the first Shrek, Dreamworks had subsequently released a series of movies that played to the lowest common denominator and lacked any of the heart found in their rival Pixar's films. Movies like Shark's Tale and Madagascar relied on juvenile clowning, obvious song choices, and obnoxious caricatures to try to elicit laughs from children and their parents. I assumed Kung Fu Panda would follow that same irritating formula. From the casting of the always annoying Jack Black in the lead, to all the potential for lame Bruce Lee and The Matrix references inherent in the subject matter, I expected the movie would be more of the same. Instead, Kung Fu Panda was a bright and endearing comedy that also featured genuinely fantastic fight scenes. Even Jack Black was properly employed and brought the right enthusiasm and determination to the lead role of Po. All in all, Kung Fu Panda is one of the better children's films of the past decade and I welcomed revisiting its universe.

"In Kung Fu Panda 2, Po is now living his dream as The Dragon Warrior, protecting the Valley of Peace alongside his friends and fellow kung fu masters, The Furious Five. But Po’s new life of awesomeness is threatened by the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. Po must look to his past and uncover the secrets of his mysterious origins; only then will he be able to unlock the strength he needs to succeed." (Via Dreamworks Animation)



There is a lot that works in this sequel. Like the first film, Kung Fu Panda works as both an adventure movie, featuring many tropes borrowed from classic films in the kung fu genre, and as a children's comedy that manages to avoid cheap topical references to get a laugh. I also admired that Kung Fu Panda 2 contained some darker elements, successfully raising the stakes for our heroes, but maintained the proper balance between gravitas and comedy required for the audience's enjoyment. In fact, I would say that this movie is even funnier than the first film, despite the more serious themes, and a lot of that humor is achieved because the filmmakers clearly know and love these characters.

Unfortunately, the action scenes in Kung Fu Panda 2 do not match up with the original. There is no standout sequence, whereas the first film had several, and most of the fight scenes are predictable and unfocused. I also thought the Furious Five were severely under used and could almost have been completely removed from the film without affecting the plot. Finally, I thought the tone of Kung Fu Panda 2 did not quite line up with the first. There was a joy inherent to the first movie that is missing here. It is hard to pinpoint why that might be, perhaps it is simply a byproduct of the plot, but it means this sequel does not leave the smile on your face that the original did.



I still certainly enjoyed Kung Fu Panda 2 and would not call it a let down by any means. Like Iron Man 2 and Ghost Busters II this sequel does not match or surpass the original, but is still worth watching. I was happy to spend another 80 minutes with these characters on a new adventure, and would welcome a third film in the franchise.

Grade: B

Best Scene: The flashback to how Po became separated from his family...

Catching up on 2011 - Henry Saw: The Hangover Part 2 and Limitless

Two films featuring Bradley Cooper...one of which I almost enjoyed...




The Hangover Part 2:

I barely have anything to say about The Hangover Part 2. Given the miniscule amount of effort that went into making this embarrassment I don't see why I should strain to describe all the ways it stinks. So I will get right to the point: everything you've heard about the movie - that it is nearly identical to the first film but not nearly as funny - is absolutely true. In some ways that does not seem like it would be the worst thing. I really enjoyed The Hangover and spending more time with these characters, even if it felt more like you were rewatching the original than anything else, doesn't sound like it could be that bad. Somehow, because the movie is such a lazy piece of work and a lot of the jokes fall flat, it plays far worse than it should.

"Stu is getting married. Along with Doug, Phil, and his soon-to-be brother-in-law Teddy, he regretfully invites Alan to Thailand for the wedding. After a quiet night on the beach with a beer and toasting marshmallows by the camp fire, Stu, Alan and Phil wake up in a seedy apartment in Bangkok. Doug is back at the resort, but Teddy is missing, there's a monkey with a severed finger, Alan's head is shaved, Stu has a tattoo on his face, and they can't remember any of it. The wolf-pack retrace their steps through strip clubs, tattoo parlors and cocaine-dealing monkeys on the streets of Bangkok as they try and find Teddy before the wedding." (Via IMDB)



What's surprising about The Hangover Part 2 is that not only is it structurally identical to the first film, but it is exceedingly boring. The first Hangover worked so well because it had an element of mystery to it. We wanted to know who that baby belonged to, how they ended up with a police car, or where Doug really was. In this film, because it plays out so similarly to the original, we can pretty much guess each twist or just don't care. The movie has no sense of pace, no inspired scenes, and relies far more on gratuitously shocking the audience than was necessary. Ed Helms and Bradley Cooper are given nothing to do except bemoan the fact that "it happened again" and act shocked whenever they learn a new detail from their crazy night. Zach Galifianakis does his thing, and is occasionally funny, but seems to be trying a little too hard to save this mess.

The Hangover Part 2 is not worth watching at all. I wish I could say it was at least funny enough to catch on TV sometime but it is not. It's an unpleasant and tiring viewing experience that will make it harder to enjoy rewatching the first film. If the rumors are true that a third film is in the works, given how much money Part 2 has made I am sure they are, I will have to hear a lot of good buzz before I trust this team and this franchise again.

Grade: D+

Best Scene: There is a cameo at the very end of the film, one that I probably should have seen coming, that genuinely made me laugh.




Limitless:

I will admit that I was primed not to like Limitless. The premise sounded quite stupid, I've learned not to trust any film with Robert De Niro made in the last ten years, and I sometimes have a hard time not wanting to punch Bradley Cooper whenever I see him on screen. Limitless is not the failure I expected it to be, and it kept me entertained for it's entire run-time, but it's not a film I feel compelled to recommend or ever watch again.



"An action-thriller about a writer who takes an experimental drug that allows him to use 100 percent of his mind. As one man evolves into the perfect version of himself, forces more corrupt than he can imagine mark him for assassination. Out-of-work writer Eddie Morra's (Cooper) rejection by girlfriend Lindy (Abbie Cornish) confirms his belief that he has zero future. That all vanishes the day an old friend introduces Eddie to NZT, a designer pharmaceutical that makes him laser focused and more confident than any man alive. Now on an NZT-fueled odyssey, everything Eddie's read, heard or seen is instantly organized and available to him. As the former nobody rises to the top of the financial world, he draws the attention of business mogul Carl Van Loon (De Niro), who sees this enhanced version of Eddie as the tool to make billions. But brutal side effects jeopardize his meteoric ascent. With a dwindling stash and hit men who will eliminate him to get the NZT, Eddie must stay wired long enough to elude capture and fulfill his destiny. If he can't, he will become just another victim who thought he'd found invincibility in a bottle." (Via Relativity Media)

As it turns out Bradley Cooper is very well cast. Eddie is not supposed to be the most likable person alive, but the movie does make us get in his corner, or at least interested in how things turn out for him. Director Neil Burger knows that he needs to keep Limitless perpetually moving forward and not allow the audience to realize how silly the script is. Some of the cinematic tricks he employs don't work, such as his way of showing time moving by rapidly by just having a perpetual zooming camera track through a city, but he does find the right tone. The movie never takes itself seriously and has fun with its B-Movie concept. Limitless does not totally work as an action film, or as a thriller, but if you go in with low expectations you may find yourself surprisingly entertained.

Grade: C+

Best Scene: Abbie Cornish using a small child as a weapon against an attacker...

Catching Up on 2011 - Henry Saw: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

At least the last two films in this series were trying...


First, let's just do a quick overview of what I thought of the previous "Pirates" films-



1. The Curse of the Black Pearl: A truly exciting and rousing adventure film that holds up to this day. While not quite as good as the Indiana Jones movies, it says something that I would even invoke that classic trilogy, and it still surprises me how well this movie worked. This is the film that made Keira Knightly a star, proved Geoffrey Rush could chew up scenery with the best of them, and used Depp's eccentric style more effectively than any other Hollywood film ever had. Action scenes such as Bloom and Depp's sword fight in the blacksmith's shop, or the confrontation between the British soldiers and the army of skeleton pirates, still stand out as exceptional sequences 8 years later.

2. Dead Man's Chest: A dud of a film that made the mistake of trying to make this series more like Star Wars than Indiana Jones. Instead of being content to make each sequel a stand alone film, featuring new macguffins and villains, Disney, Jerry Bruckheimer, and Gore Verbinski tried to make the Pirates series an epic continuing story. This second entry in the trilogy lacks any of the humor found in the first film and lets each action set-piece drag on for far too long. Also, because of the convoluted plot, the filmmakers were unable to cover up for Orlando Bloom's blandness as they managed in the first film. While certain moments and shots worked, such as Jack Sparrow confronting the Kraken towards the end, Dead Man's Chest never feels like anything but a padded middle film and a total misfire.

3. At World's End: A giant mess that barely made any sense. Jack Sparrow officially became an annoying and tiresome character in this one and the movie never makes us care about what happens to any of these characters. It is clear that the filmmakers were never quite sure what they wanted the story to be and failed to make a cohesive narrative that flowed logically. I can't fault director Gore Verbinski for his ambition, At World's End is a big and sprawling picture that is really trying to elicit awe and to entertain, it just fails to do so in almost every way possible.



Which brings us finally to "On Stranger Tides", the fourth film in this series, and the first directed by "Chicago"'s Rob Marshall. It is the worst of any of the movies which is really an accomplishment when you consider how unpleasant "At World's End" was.

"Captain Jack Sparrow (Depp) crosses paths with a woman from his past (Cruz), and he's not sure if it's love -- or if she's a ruthless con artist who's using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. When she forces him aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge, the ship of the formidable pirate Blackbeard (McShane), Jack finds himself on an unexpected adventure in which he doesn't know who to fear more: Blackbeard or the woman from his past." (IMDB)

I'm honestly not sure I've ever seen a movie where it felt more like all the filmmakers involved, from the director, to the cast, to the special effects artists were just going through the motions. There are multiple scenes "On Stranger Tides" that play like they were a dress rehearsal run through and everyone agreed it was good enough. The first major action scene in particular, which has Jack Sparrow escaping from a meeting with the King of England, lacks any energy and you can almost see each actor trying to remember their cues.



The biggest narrative change in "On Stranger Tides" from the original trilogy is that the focus is squarely on Jack Sparrow this time out. Previously, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightly were the main characters of the movies and Jack Sparrow was the wildcard. Unfortunately, Jack Sparrow was never meant to be the protagonist of a film. It takes away a big part of the character's charm, as it demands he play a far more passive and predictable role in the story, and Depp seems to know it. Depp's turn as Jack Sparrow lacks any of the spark or wit that earned him an Oscar nomination in 2003.

Also returning to the franchise is Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa who is just here to pick up a pay check. Barbossa was one of the more lively and defined characters of the original films but here he is just around because...well I'm not sure. His motivation is thin at best and has a minimal impact on the plot. New additions to the cast include Ian McShane as Blackbeard, a great actor who is given nothing to do, and Penelope Cruz who looks good but continues her streak of giving lackluster performances in any film where she has to speak English.

Even when the producers and screenwriters make a good decision, i.e. making this a stand alone adventure with few narrative ties to the original films, they manage to make it feel like a negative. There is so much exposition in this film that it never allows itself to get going and gain a sense of momentum. There is one scene between Depp and Cruz that is just filling in plot details, and foreshadowing how the rest of the movie will go, that seems to go on for 20 minutes. This kind of scene is common, and it makes every action sequence we get feel perfunctory and like Rob Marshall is just checking off a box. In short, nothing in the movie, whether it is the myth building or the swashbuckling, works in any way.



I will admit that there is one good sequence in the movie in which a group of pirates are attacked by beautiful mermaids. It's a surprising, spooky, and original idea in a movie that has nothing else to offer. The only reason "On Stranger Tides" exists was so that Disney could turn a profit from this property again. No one involved in the making of Pirates 4 brought anything innovative, interesting, or compelling to the table. Obviously this isn't the first movie to feel like a shallow cash grab, but rarely have these kind of blockbusters been so startlingly uninspired and inept, especially when we know that a good movie could be crafted from this world and these actors. "On Stranger Tides" is an utter failure and I can only hope this is the last film in this perpetually disappointing franchise. I doubt it though...

Grade: D

Best Scene: The Mermaid attack. By far.

Catching up on 2011 - Henry Saw: Fast Five

So this was a good movie. Who would have guessed?


Perhaps good is the wrong term...but "Fast Five" is definitely successful. I am not what you could call a fan of the Fast and Furious franchise. I remember seeing the first film with Ben way back in 2001 and thinking it was fairly stupid but passable. While Johnny Tran's speech about the FBI breaking into his home became an oft misquoted line among my friends, I would not say that "The Fast and The Furious" really stuck with me. I never even bothered to see the sequel, the fantastically titled "2 Fast 2 Furious", and only caught the third film when it hit cable television. To my surprise I kind of liked "Tokyo Drift", it followed an entirely different set of characters and seemed to know how ridiculous the whole thing was, but cannot say I have ever been tempted to rewatch the film.

Paul Walker and Vin Diesel re-teamed, or should I say crawled back, to make "Fast and Furious" (the fourth film in the franchise). It is just a sad exercise, both stars gave interviews at the time expressing regret that this is what their careers had amounted to, and the film is garbage. The car scenes used far too much CGI, the cast all sleepwalk through the film, and the plot barely made any sense. Nonetheless, "Fast and Furious" made a ton of money, and a fifth film seemed inevitable.



"Former cop Brian O'Conner (Paul Walker) partners with ex-con Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) on the opposite side of the law. Since Brian and Mia Toretto (Jordana Brewster) broke Dom out of custody, they've blown across many borders to elude authorities. Now backed into a corner in Rio de Janeiro, they must pull one last job in order to gain their freedom. As they assemble their elite team of top racers, the unlikely allies know their only shot of getting out for good means confronting the corrupt businessman who wants them dead. But he's not the only one on their tail. Hard-nosed federal agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) never misses his target. When he is assigned to track down Dom and Brian, he and his strike team launch an all-out assault to capture them. But as his men tear through Brazil, Hobbs learns he can't separate the good guys from the bad. Now, he must rely on his instincts to corner his prey... before someone else runs them down first." (Via IMDB)

"Fast Five" is precisely the film it should be. Perhaps "Fast and Furious" was a necessary evil, a sort of cleansing of Vin Diesel and Paul Walker's dignity, so that they could have fun making yet another entry in the franchise. "Fast Five" knows exactly what we are all here for and proudly gives us almost everything we would want from the movie. The principle gift bestowed upon the audience by the filmmakers is introducing Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to the proceedings. The Rock owns Fast Five. Swaggering into every shot, glistening with sweat at all times, and delivering his machismo dialogue with appropriate gusto.



The rest of the cast seems invigorated by the new members of the cast and the exotic setting. Vin Diesel has fun trying to out-sweat The Rock, Paul Walker and Jordana Brewster do their best Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw impressions, and all the women in the cast are inappropriately gorgeous (as it should be).

One of the most surprising things about "Fast Five" is that it is not really a movie about street racing. This is a heist film in which our gang of thieves really only know how to steal cars, race cars, and cause massive amounts of collateral damage in which, miraculously, no innocent bystanders are harmed. Director Justin Lin, who directed both "Tokyo Drift" and "Fast and Furious" recommitted to making sure that he used as many practical effects as possible. The cars that zoom through this movie are actual cars, not CGI recreations, and that choice pays off. The climax of the movie, involving two cars dragging a bank vault behind them through the streets of Rio, is splendidly done. It reminded me of one of my favorite silly car chases from "Bad Boys 2", the one where Will Smith and Martin Laurence destroy the entire island of Cuba, and that is to Lin's credit.



"Bad Boys 2" is actually a good film to think of when considering "Fast Five". Both are wildly over-the-top sequels that raise the stakes to a unnecessarily large degree, both rely on the audience just accepting the idea that these characters are going to survive anything thrown their way, and most importantly of all, both films are just out to entertain. Even when "Fast Five" gets "serious", and Paul Walker asks Vin Diesel what he remembers about his father, it is a knowingly funny moment.

"Fast Five" is an enjoyable romp. It's a little too long, takes some narrative shortcuts, and could not be more predictable...but I don't care. Given the actors involved, and the legacy of the previous film, there is a ceiling as to how much I could really like a movie like "Fast Five". Well, "Fast Five" is as good a film as a fifth Fast and the Furious movie could be, and it's surprisingly worth your time.

Grade: B+

Best Scene: The Rock expressing his opinion on what to do with a folder filled with information on his targets

Henry Saw: Hobo With a Shotgun

At one point someone in this movie says, "When life gives you razor blades... you make a baseball bat, covered in razor blades." If you can appreciate the brilliance of that line then Hobo With a Shotgun is the film for you.


Hobo With a Shotgun is the kind of movie you will really enjoy or completely hate. It's a crass, cheap, shallow, ridiculous film that, forgive the trite phrase, is not for the faint of heart. Patterned after old 70s and 80s exploitation films, Hobo With a Shotgun (HWAS) revels in its depraved and filthy nature. HWAS originated as part of a contest tied to Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's joint production Grind House and is actually the second spin-off film to emerge out of that project. Machete, which was directed by Robert Rodriquez, also originated as a fake trailer that actually played with the two films that made up Grind House (Planet Terror and Death Proof). Funnily enough, Hobo With a Shotgun is by far the most entertaining movie of any of these films, and is the most successful at capturing the vibe they were all striving for.

"A vigilante homeless man pulls into a new city and finds himself trapped in urban chaos, a city where crime rules and where the city's crime boss reigns. Seeing an urban landscape filled with armed robbers, corrupt cops, abused prostitutes and even a pedophile Santa, the Hobo goes about bringing justice to the city the best way he knows how - with a 20-gauge shotgun. Mayhem ensues when he tries to make things better for the future generation. Street justice will indeed prevail" (Via IMDB)



There is not much that needs to be said about Hobo With a Shotgun. It is exactly the film the title makes it out to be. The violence is perfectly over-the-top and director Jason Eisener deserves credit for pushing the envelope in just the right ways. Rutger Hauer carries the film and I love that he plays it fairly seriously throughout. Whether he's reciting a monologue about bears, or giving a speech to a bunch of newborns about how horrible life can be, he never spoils the tone of the film. As the villains, Brian Downey, Gregory Smith, and Nick Bateman chew up the whole film set to a delicious degree. I also enjoyed the sheer strangeness of the two characters that make up The Plague, a duo of armored assassins, who play a large part in the film's third act.



At its best Hobo With a Shotgun reminded me of Army of Darkness, and if you know me then you know that's big praise, and I strongly recommend Hobo to anyone who liked Raimi's fantasy film. HWAS is far from perfect, there are moments that drag and there are not quite as many witty moments as it feels there should be, but I really had fun with the whole silly thing. I cannot suggest this film to most folks, it's filthy and immature tone would put a lot of people off, but I personally cannot wait to revisit it with my similarly minded friends some night soon.

Grade: A tongue-in-cheek B

Best Scene: When we see The Plague's hideout...

Henry Saw: Bridesmaids

I'm really glad this movie has found such a big audience, and I do think it deserves it, but it did not totally work for me.


As I've always said, comedies are a hard thing to review in this format. In the end, it all comes down to whether I thought the movie was funny or not, and everything else is just kind of filler. Bridesmaids has lots of funny moments, and some standout comedic performances, but did not hold together as a film for me.

"Annie (Kristen Wiig), is a maid of honor whose life unravels as she leads her best friend, Lillian (Maya Rudolph), and a group of colorful bridesmaids (Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Ellie Kemper) on a wild ride down the road to matrimony. Annie's life is a mess. But when she finds out her lifetime best friend is engaged, she simply must serve as Lillian's maid of honor. Though lovelorn and broke, Annie bluffs her way through the expensive and bizarre rituals. With one chance to get it perfect, she'll show Lillian and her bridesmaids just how far you'll go for someone you love." (Via IMDB)

Kristin Wiig is a performer who is unquestionably talented but whose comedy I simply don't enjoy on SNL. Her shtick usually consists of creating the most awkward situation possible and prolonging a joke as long as humanly possible. This is a popular kind of humor these days, popularized by Ben Stiller and mastered by Ricky Gervais, but can be incredibly grating more often than not. If Bridesmaids has a main flaw it is that Wiig, and her character Annie, are just not that likable. She is earnest, and in a way relatable, but ends up doing a lot of things that just turn you against her character. Wiig co-wrote the script and the movie falls into the same narrative traps of most comedies. Inevitably there is a scene where Annie makes such a mess of things that Lillian rescinds her invitation to the wedding. Not just that, but Annie also does her best to ruin her relationship with the only nice guy she meets throughout the film. These kinds of plot turns are so tired that I could only groan when they occurred.



The other characters and subplots in the film are far more appealing. As the bride, and Annie's best friend, Maya Rudolph proves to be much more charming than she ever was on SNL. She is the most grounded of any of the cast and gives the film a strong and under utilized back bone. Rose Byrne nails her role as the ultra-perfect Helen, who causes Annie to become mad with jealousy, and I really liked how the script did not make Helen a flat-out villain. Though slightly too pristine, and more than a little condescending, they made Helen a plausible and real person.

Melissa McCarthy, who plays the overweight but confident and aggressive Megan, completely steals the show. It is almost as though she is from an entirely different movie, one where everyone is having more fun, and is the main reason to check out Bridesmaids. Her crass and off-kilter jokes are unique in the film and she is given all the best lines. If The Hangover made Zach Galifianakis a household name then I hope that Bridesmaids can do the same for Melissa McCarthy.



The last thing I'll say is that like almost every other movie that Judd Apatow has had a hand in (he produced Bridesmaids), the movie is just far too long. At nearly 2 hours the movie really drags in some parts, especially because we know how it is all going to turn out, and I wonder if any comedy needs to be over 100 minutes...

As many have said it is a really good thing that Bridesmaids is a hit as it shows that comedies with women, that aren't just about man troubles, can be successful. The movie might not have worked as well for me as it does for most people but that is simply a matter of opinion. Who am I to tell people the movie is not funny? Some of the drawn out jokes just wore on me. I definitely recommend Bridesmaids, I hope you enjoy it more than I did, and I'm still very pleased to have seen it.

Grade: B-

Best Scene: I did laugh at the disgusting scene in the dress store but I loved Melissa McCarthy's last gag about the surprise she left in her brother's suitcase.