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ALMOST HEROES - REVIEW

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Maybe the least well known Chris Farley movie out there, Almost Heroes was the late, great comedian's final film. Christopher Guest's comedy co-starred Matthew Perry as an aristocrat competing with Lewis & Clark to be the first to cross the USA and reach the Pacific. Released in 1998, almost 6 months following Farley's death, Almost Heroes was not a box-office success and critics didn't much care for it either. Indeed, this is a flawed comedy with a historical setting and plot that's tough to get people excited about. The pairing of the ever-ebullient Farley and the more restrained Perry was a good idea, however, and they are easily the most fun part of the entire movie. There is a feeling when you watch this film that a lot was cut out of it as the editing can be, at times, awkward so it's not too shocking to note that a lot was actually cut out of the film to give the leads more screen time. Originally, this was meant to be more of an ensemble comedy

MASCOTS - REVIEW

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10 years after his last feature film For Your Consideration , Christopher Guest is finally back with a new zany mockumentary, this time for Netflix. Packed with some of his regular cast members, Mascots follows the build-up to a contest where the "best" mascots battle it out. This is a such an obviously funny concept that the jokes write themselves so it's not exactly a big risk for the filmmaker as Mascots is essentially Best In Show crossed with Waiting For Guffman . Guest even reprises his role from the latter as camp musical director Corky St. Clair in an amusing cameo. With the likes of Jane Lynch, Parker Posey, Bob Balaban, Ed Begley Jr, Fred Willard and others, this is familiar territory for sure so don't expect too many big surprises. That said, it's hard to make a bad film when this many funny people are in it so Mascots is just as enjoyable as you'd expect with plenty of goofy lines and gags to keep you entertained throughout. Seeing all t

HEARTBEEPS - REVIEW

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There's something kinda perfect about the fact that Andy Kaufman's only proper movie remains Heartbeeps , an off-beat romantic comedy about two robots who fall in love and leave their factory to go on a life-changing adventure. Much like with most of Kaufman's comedy, critics and audiences back in the day just didn't get this movie and it was quickly dismissed as a bomb and a failure. Watching the film now, it's obvious why Heartbeeps didn't exactly wow the public: initially aimed at a young audience, the humour is at times much too weird or adult-themed and both Kaufman and Bernadette Peters look positively freakish. There's a cute baby robot thrown in there but, otherwise, this is one that only fans of the lead's unique sense of humour could possibly enjoy. Anyone else should find themselves scratching their heads, wondering why this movie even exists. Not that Heartbeeps isn't funny, quite the opposite, it's just that the jokes are so biz