Support Japan

I know this is only suppose to be about media based things. But this country has had a spot in my heart since I was 11. Not just for the animation they produce that opened an entirely new door of creation, but also due to the culture that surrounds their citizens. I wish I could visit there myself and help out but alas, I am grounded in America. All I can go is send things to help them out and hope they recover quickly.

I have made this video and am hoping to participate in a charity event next week to help out.

Follow THIS video and there are countless links that YOU could help out. One donation can help. Your hands are not only meant to push you up when you fall, but they are also meant to reach out and help others when they take a tumble.


Thank you.

Hall Pass Gets Lost

For a movie marketed as a raunchy comedy, to be so painfully unfunny is a feat all itself, not what the creators intended. "Hall Pass" achieves this from the moment the title of the movie leaves the mouths of the characters, and the whole thing tumbles downhill from there. Predictable, soulless and boring are three things directors do not want in an adult comedy, but it was slathered all over this Farrelly Brothers film.

"Hall Pass," starring Owen Wilson ("Wedding Crashers", "Bottle Rocket"), centers around a married man named Rick, whose wife gives him a hall pass for a week. This hall pass grants him the chance to be as sleazy as he wants to be in hopes to get his roaming eyes back on his wife, played by Jenna Fischer ("The Office"). Rick, along with his buddy Fred (Jason Sudeikis of "SNL"),  and a few of their other pals go out on the town in hopes of scoring a few points before heading back to their women.

Terrible concept aside, the film suffers from poor set-ups and unfunny payoffs. It seems as though the Farrelly Brothers have run out of jokes, leaving all their gold in movies such as "Dumb & Dumber", "Me, Myself & Irene" and "There's Something About Mary." Judging by their previous body of work, one would expect the movie to push the limits of sensibility and taste with hilarious results. This time, however, expectations are not met with hilarity, but rather disappointment and crushed hopes of what could have been. The crude humor cannot make it past the slight smirk, and the recurring jokes force cringes instead of laughs.
The wives are more interesting than the husbands in this story since Wilson's character showed no real intentions of getting with anyone. When the wives are hit with temptation, their story is far more interesting but simply does not get enough screen time. Sudeikis proved he is nowhere near ready to co-star in a comedy, as he is only able to deliver one half-funny joke involving a chloroform napkin.

Wilson also makes audiences wonder if he is able to act outside of a Wes Anderson ("The Royal Tenebaums", "Rushmore", "Fantastic Mr. Fox") film at all. It would appear that he cannot, as his character feels extremely one-dimensional and seemed as though any other actor could have easily filled his shoes.  The characters Brent, played by Derek Waters, and Coakley (Richard Jenkins), the tanned out man who can be spotted telling the guys how to spot a not-so-hot chick, are the only characters that bring a slight smile and laugh to the theatre. This is due to their outlandish tendencies, which almost reminded viewers of the Farrelly's old ways.

All in all, the Farrellys need to sit down and take a long look at the drawing board to try and figure out why their films have become so lackluster. Gone are the days of explosive diarrhea, public indecency and questionable hair gel. Now the days are filled with barely funny characters, nudity for the sake of nudity and substance jokes which have been done over a thousand times in the past three years. The film falls short on every conceivable level by which one can measure a comedy.

 "Hall Pass" receives a 2 out of 10.

[Read on PUC site: Here]

‘The Rite’ Sinfully Awful

           “The Rite” is a stale, run of the mill “thriller” that will not do anything  to revolutionize the demonic-possession sub-genre. In fact, it takes a big leap back from last year’s “The Last Exorcism.” Even an admirably silly performance from Anthony Hopkins was not enough to save this film from the depths of the cinematic dark abyss.

                The story of “The Rite” deals with a young priest, Michael Kovak (Colin O'Donoghue) whose faith has faltered and is shipped to an exorcism school in Italy where he meets Father Lucas Trevant (Anthony Hopkins) while there.  It is never made entirely clear what caused Kovak to have his lapse in faith, or why he decided to join the priesthood in the first place, but the audience is pulled along with the skeptic Kovak as he watches Father Lucas performance his “exorcisms.” After multiple brushes with demonic forces, one that even takes the life of a young woman, Kovak still refuses to believe that what he is witnessing are acts performed by the devil. A chilling remark from Trevant stating “just because you do not believe in the devil, does not protect you from him,” sets off what could have been an intense battle of faith, but ultimately fizzles into a whirlwind of clichéd tedium.  

                The scenes are long and slow, which is shameful during sequences that should be intense encounters with demonic possession that should shock and frighten both the audience, and Kovak. However, in the end we, and Kovak, are left feeling like we have seen it all before. Cheap jump scares left the audience bored and dialogue heavy scenes without any weight put them to sleep.  Although, the poor writing in this film did not stop Hopkins from making audiences laugh and fear him. His performance alone makes the movie almost palatable. Father Lucas responds to frightening demonic possession with the same boredom that we do, which is humorous for a character in the film to do, but deadly for the audience. A particularly funny scene sees Hopkins uncharacteristically using the words “awesome” and “dude,” before impersonating a young Welshman. If that sounds strange to read, it would be even stranger to watch.

                All jokes aside, Hopkins gave a decent performance showing that he still has that spark of evil that caused people to cringe at the thought of fava beans and chianti. However, in the end the movie falters, as it could have been twenty minutes shorter, and the final showdown left Kovak with only one option and the audience just waiting for him to take it.

                 “The Rite” had a peculiar opening title stating that its story was “suggested by a book by Matt Baglio.” I suggest that you avoid this one. For its abysmal lack of originality, “The Rite” receives a  3 out of 10.