There is a good chance that Trainwreck will go down as the funniest movie of 2015. There doesn’t appear to be a ton of comedies this year, and the one that I was most excited for (Vacation) looks like it’s going to be a dud. Usually, the great comedies of the year are released before September 1st. I have no evidence that backs up this claim, but the good movies reserved for the later portions of the year are the Oscar contenders. It doesn’t mean that there aren’t comedies released in October, November, and December, but there are more average comedies than not. What I am implying here is that the funniest movies of the year have already been released and that Trainwreck seems to be the most amusing of that group. I often mention in my film blog that 2010 was the best movie year of my lifetime. However, there wasn’t that one hilarious comedy you remember from that year. For me, the funniest movie that year was Get Him to the Greek, but that movie had nothing on Trainwreck. Had it been released in 2010, Trainwreck would have made the year that much better.
Category Archives: Comedy
Welcome to Me (2014)
Kristin Wiig (Bridesmaids, The Skeleton Twins) got off to a bit of a late start in her movie career. Still, the hilarious Saturday Night Live alum is making up for lost time and immersing herself in as many unique roles as possible. The funniest female cast member in SNL history isn’t letting herself become typecast, like so many of her predecessors (male and female), by starring in full-length versions of the skits she performed on television. In recent years, many alumni (especially women like Amy Poehler and Tina Fey) have established themselves as legit, in-it-for-the-long-run actors, writers, directors, and producers. Many of the three names mentioned in this paragraph will rank the talents as 1) Fey, 2) Poehler, and 3) Wiig. I may be in the minority, but I say Wiig is my favorite of the three, followed closely by Fey. For me, while super-talented, Poehler is a distant third.
Begin Again (2013)
Begin Again had all of the makings of a great movie. It had an all-star cast with Mark Ruffalo, Keira Knightley, Hailee Steinfeld, and Catherine Keener (in addition to Maroon 5’s Adam Levine). It had a fantastic soundtrack (with most of the songs sung by Knightley). But most importantly, it was tying itself to John Carney, the screenwriter/director’s 2007 gem Once, perhaps the most incredible “musical and performing arts” movie you’ve ever heard of. I started off really liking this movie. After 30 minutes, I felt confident it would be as good as, if not better than, Once. The problem was that, as believable as Once felt, this movie felt unbelievable by its third act. It was a movie that stretched so far past the idea of a feel-good story that you really couldn’t take it seriously at all. If I had to break down the three acts, I would give Act One an A, Act Two a C, and Act Three a D (based on the implausibility of not just the last act itself, but because it doesn’t effectively bring resolution to any of the issues the characters are dealing with in the first two acts of the film). This movie reminded me of August Rush, but I’ll need to watch it again to see if that’s a fair assessment. I do remember wanting to like August Rush much more than I did.
Shopgirl (2005)
Long before Claire Danes began earning multiple Emmy Awards as the bipolar Carrie Mathison on Showtime’s knock-out series Homeland, she starred in lesser-known independent movies like Brokedown Palace, Igby Goes Down, and 2005’s completely underappreciated Shopgirl. I watched this movie for the first time back in 2008 or 2009 and was blown away by how awesome and authentic it felt. This was long before Homeland. I have since watched every episode of Homeland (including seasons 1 and 2 twice each), so it was cool to re-watch Shopgirl, knowing everything that I know about the character she plays on the television show that earned her fame. Ironically, this was the first movie that Steve Martin (Parenthood, Three Amigos!) wrote. It turns out he’s written dozens of films (including Three Amigos!, Roxanne, LA Story, The Jerk, and Bowfinger), but this was his first non-comedy. The difference was that with Shopgirl, he wrote the novel in addition to the screenplay. And let me say that he did a great job. I had a couple of problems (which I will include below), but for the most part, he killed it. I would not read this review unless you’ve seen this movie. It’s going to be chock-full of spoilers. I would love to hear your thoughts on it if you have had a chance to see it. If you haven’t, you can just stop reading now and check out the movie.
Something’s Gotta Give (2003)
Romantic comedies are very rarely my thing. I often try to avoid them like the plague. There are, of course, some exceptions to the rule. If it’s a Rated-R raunchy romantic comedy like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, There’s Something About Mary, etc. I’m in. But those movies have become their brand. Before 1997, you didn’t see movies like this made. I’m talking about the PG or PG-13 romantic comedies. I like Notting Hill, Garden State, and, of course, Groundhog Day. And movies like My Best Friend’s Wedding, Hitch, and High Fidelity are serviceable. With Something’s Gotta Give, the film sought me out rather than vice versa. Somehow, when I clicked the like button on Netflix, a list of other movies appeared, and I clicked the film’s image and added it to my list.
I don’t remember doing this. So when it arrived, and I ripped open the envelope with excitement, a “What the f*** is this?” and a look of befuddlement were an understatement. So there it sat next to my television for a couple of weeks. In the back of my mind, I knew I would give it a chance. It did earn high marks on Rotten Tomatoes, and it did have a star-studded cast. It would have a short rope, but it would get a chance. I’m glad I did. It was far from a great movie, but despite some severe flaws, it was entertaining enough to recommend. With that said, this movie is a one-and-done for me. I’ll never watch it again. One reason I do this blog is to remember the movies I watch. It is much easier to read a five-minute summary.