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.
Category Archives: Year of Release
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.
Jurassic World (2015)
It’s been 12 years since we last saw the Tyrannosaurus Rex tearing up the supposedly revamped dinosaur park in Jurassic Park III. While much better than the 50% rating it earned on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie signaled the end of the franchise. Gone were Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum. There was talk over the last decade to reinvigorate the series, but nothing ever materialized. Then came the decision to call this Jurassic World rather than Jurassic Park IV and add all-new players to the game.
Had this movie been released in 2005 (to continue the pattern of every three years), this movie would have stunk. Even with its 2015 release date, it still could have stunk. But it didn’t stink. It wasn’t the original (93% on Rotten Tomatoes and $350 million domestically + another $50 million on re-release in 2013, not to mention the millions it earned overseas and through rentals). However, it was still very, very good. If this were the first movie with “Jurassic” in the title, it would have earned a higher rating than its respectable 71% on Rotten Tomatoes. With over $200 million drawn on opening weekend, it’s likely to smash any of its predecessors at the box office (by contrast, Jurassic Park earned just $50 million in its first weekend). Regardless, if the movie received a rating of over 65% fresh, it would probably do very well at the ticket office. I didn’t think it would do this well. But it deserves its positive reviews and its revenue. It was a very entertaining movie, and I recommend seeing it on the big screen.
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.
The Gambler (2014)
Rupert Wyatt’s (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Star Trek 3) The Gambler is a movie that should have done better both with critics and at the box office. Accruing just $33 million domestically and a 46% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, this movie deserved a better fate. Sure, it has its flaws, but 98% of all movies do. One factor against The Gambler was that it wasn’t striking the right audience. The first preview of this movie was a quick 30-second throwaway commercial during a ball game. I do not recall seeing a more extended trailer for this movie in the theater. When I saw the television commercial, it made it seem like a shoot-’em-up action flick. That’s not what it was at all.