On DVD- Perks of Being a Wallflower

Movie:   Perks of Being a Wallflower
Major Actors: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Dylan McDermott, Kate Walsh, Ezra Miller, Paul Rudd
Rating: PG-13
Best Audience:  Teenagers and young adults

Review:

There are so many things I love about this movie.  First of all, it is an adaptation of one of my favorite books. (by the same title).  Second of all, the director of the film is the author of the book, Stephen Chbosky!  It is such a rare occurrence that an author would even have the skill set to direct a film, but in this case, it worked quite well.  The fact that the book's author directed it made it one of the closest film adaptations to the book I've ever seen.  Nothing was left out or added.  It was perfect.

Another great thing about this movie is the casting.  Paul Rudd made an excellent English professor.  The teenagers in the film were not cliché representations of what adults believe teenagers are...they were real.  They reminded me of real people I went to high school with, as opposed to the fake, overly trendy 29 year olds you see in TV and movies that pretend to be teenagers. 

Really, you won't need to read the book to enjoy the film.  It is inspiring, funny, dark, and real.  A lot of people compare it to a modern version of "The Breakfast Club."  I think it actually goes much deeper than "The Breakfast Club."  However, it does similarly focus on the angst associated with "coming of age." 

On DVD - Admission

Movie:  Admission
Major Actors: Tina Fey, Paul Rudd, Nat Wolff
Rating: PG-13
Best Audience: Teenagers to Adults

Review:

I would have actually classified Admission as more of a drama than a comedy.  It has very little comedy in it.  The story is very predictable.  I guessed the "big twist" long before it was revealed.  Tina Fey's character is a college admissions worker for Princeton University.  Paul Rudd's character, who runs a private school, introduces her to student that is not typically Princeton material.  After connecting with a student, she bends the rules to try to get him into Princeton. 

The one thing I do like about this film is that it portrays an accurate depiction of the politics of academia.  I like what the movie reveals about the administrative side of universities.

All in all, this movie was just alright.  It wasn't great.  It wasn't even that funny.  I'm glad I waited to see it on video because I would have felt cheated to have spent $8 at the theatre to see it.  Once again, my major issue with this movie is its predictability.  Tina Fey can do much better.  So can Paul Rudd.

This is Forty

Movie:  This is Forty
Major Actors: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Jason Segel, Megan Fox, John Lithgow, Melissa McCarthy, Chris O'Dowd
Rating: R
Best Audience: Adults only

Review:

I am starting to get sick of all the fighting in Judd Apatow films (Apatow is the director).  This movie is supposed to be based on Apatow's life.  The wife and two kids in the film are Apatow's actual wife and two kids.  In an interview, Apatow said he loves fighting.  That is very apparent.  It makes me wildly uncomfortable.  I know it is real.  He sought to portray a real marriage and marriage has fighting.  However, you don't go to the movies to see a "comedy" because you want to see something "real."  You go to be entertained.  If you wanted something that feels real, you'd go to see Flight or Zero Dark Thirty.  The more I see the movie Knocked Up (to which this movie is supposed to be the sequel), the more I don't like it.  This movie is a lot like Knocked Up in that there are many funny moments, but they are dispersed between very uncomfortable moments of a lot of fighting.  I'm sure a lot of people admire that aspect of the two movies, but personally, I just don't care for it. 

Unusually enough, the funniest part of this movie occured during the credits!  Melissa McCarthy, who is in every other movie lately, was hilarious as an angry mother at odds with Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann).  She had a scene where she was yelling at them in the principal's office, and during the credits, it showed the outakes.  McCarthy did not break character at all as she yelled at them while they could not stop laughing.