Posts

Showing posts with the label todd

THE HANGOVER: PART II - REVIEW

Image
Comedy sequels are a hard one. If any comedy shows any sign of popularity you can bet that an inferior sequel is just around the corner ready to rack up the cash once more. Usually three things can happen: 1/ They get it right in that they expand on the story/characters, bring something new to the table and still create something fun and original ( Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey , American Pie 2 , Austin Powers 2 , Wayne's World 2 ...) 2/ They get it almost right, in other words the filmmakers didn't quite get what people liked about the first film so they did pretty much the same thing but with slight differences or a different setting. Usually that doesn't quite work but makes the sequel feel fresh enough that fans of the original film can still enjoy it ( Ace Ventura 2 , Ghostbusters 2 ...) 3/ They get it wrong...( Splash Too ) Hangover II falls under the second category: more of the same but oddly considerably darker and...in Thailand. This time Stu (Ed Hel

DUE DATE - REVIEW

Image
Had I been informed years ago, pre- The Hangover , that a (sort of) remake of John Hughes' classic Trains, Planes and Automobiles was in the pipeline, I would have no doubt called for Todd Phillips' head on a stick whilst sharpening my trusty pitchfork. However, after Robert Downey Jr's glorious comeback and Zach Galifianakis' impressive bearded breakthrough the prospect of seeing these two travel across America together feels like a real treat to say the least. And that's just what Due Date is: a treat. Sure it's derivative and reminiscent of countless other road movies ( Tommy Boy , Dumb & Dumber ) but it can stand proudly next to the best of them as a hugely entertaining, very funny little gem that's frankly hard to resist. Steve Martin may have been uptight back in the day but here, Downey Jr is one angry, cynical guy and is never shy of punching kids in the stomach or spitting in dogs' faces. As for Zach, our John Candy, his retarded buffoon