‘Date Night’ Has Funny Moments, Makes It Worth Going Out By Art Byrd

“Date Night’ Has Funny Moments, Makes It Worth Going Out

By Art Byrd

“Date Night” is a mistaken identity comedy. The film stars two of TV’s funniest stars: Steve Carell of “The Office” and Tina Fey of “30 Rock”. They make a good comedy team as they play off each other.

The story centers around the two as Phil and Claire Foster, a married couple from New Jersey who have grown into the same routine of date-night dinner at the same steak house.  Some of their friends are on the verge of divorce, and they wonder if that can happen to them. 

One date night, Phil decides to take Claire to an exclusive restaurant in New York City. When they arrive at the restaurant, they are told that the place is booked and to wait in the bar to see if there is a cancellation. The hostess (played Olivia Munn, host of the cable show “Attack of the Show”) calls out a couple’s name, “The Triplehorns,” No one answers, so Phil shouts out that he and Claire are “The Triplehorns” to get the table.

Phil and Claire are enjoying their meal when they are approached to two guys, Collins and Armstrong, played by rapper turned actor Common and Jimmi Simmons. Phil and Claire think they are from the restaurant so they go out in an alley to talk. (If you’re asking yourself what restaurant managers take customers to the alley to talk – so was I.) Obviously, Phil and Claire are clueless. The guys think they are the couple that Phil took the reservations from, “The Triplehorns.”

Collins and Armstrong are looking for a flash drive with important information on it. After being threatened with guns, Phil invents a fake place to find the flash drive. Somehow, he and Claire escape in a slow boat. The bad guys start shooting at them, but miss. (Why can’t bad guys ever hit their target, especially one like an especially slow-moving boat??)

For Phil and Claire, the incident begins a crazy night that includes a visit to the police department, a strange car chase and meeting weird people. Of course, as it often it seems with mistaken identity stories, and the important information links back to a mob figure -- this one played by Ray Liotta.

A funny moment is when the Fosters track down the real Triplehorns – also not that couple’s real names. Mila Kunis (“That 70’s Show”) and a heavily-tattooed James Franco (“Spiderman” & “Spiderman 3”) are very funny as the couple, who live in a terribly messy apartment and not at all the type who would make reservations at an expensive, exclusive restaurant.

“Date Night” is funny but not laugh-out-loud funny. It is a film mixed with tenderness and funny situations, and wraps up in a neat way. It has a lot of holes in the story from a realism standpoint. But Carell and Fey make a good comedy team, and it would be good to see them again on their next date. 

At the end of the film, stick around for the outtakes, which offer a little more hillarity than the movie.  

edited by Michele Ristich Gatts                

Logorama, a 2010 Oscar winning short

2010 Oscar-Winning Animated Short Online

No wonder “Logorama” won an Oscar. The animated short, which offers a Hollywood action-blockbuster twist, takes the viewer on an interesting ride regarding marketing and branding.

According to Wikipedia, the 17-minute movie was written and directed by a group of French filmmakers and uses more than 2,500 contemporary and historical logos and mascots. IMDB notes the film also won the Prix Kodak at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.

Logorama from Marc Altshuler - Human Music on Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/10149605 

‘Clash of the Titans’ Not Worth 28-Year Wait for Remake By Art Byrd

I had seen “Clash of the Titans” in the theater way back when. It was okay, maybe because I didn’t understand the story.  I predicted that down the line someone would do a remake with the ever-evolving special effects technology.

That day has arrived. But if you’re wondering whether the new “Clash of the Titans” was worth the wait, I’d have to say no, not really. It has all the right elements: a good leading man in Sam Worthington (“Avatar,” “Terminator Salvation”), who plays Perseus; a gorgeous goddess named Lo, played by Gemma Arterton (“Casino Royale”), and a drop-dead beautiful princess Andromeda, played by the stunning Alexa Davalos.

There is also the top-god Zeus, played powerfully by Liam Neeson. In a story of good and evil, there has to be a villain. Bad Hades is played by Ralph Fiennes, who also plays the most evil character in the “Harry Potter” films.

The storyline is that Hades convinces Zeus to unleash havoc on mortals. Among the mortals is a demigod – or half-mortal, half-god -- named Perseus, who is Zeus’s son. Once the havoc begins, Perseus and some soldiers embark on a journey before the ultimate evil -- the Kraken - - is unleashed.  They fight giant scorpions and take on Medusa, who turns men into stone by looking into their eyes.

A remake is always a red flag for me. But since I thought the first Titans was so-so, I thought maybe they would improve the film decades later. The director, Louis Leterrier, has a track record of making movies that someone else made before. He was responsible for “Transporter 2,” and the remake of a remake, “The Incredible Hulk.” Those big films didn’t help his cause with “Titans.”


“Clash of the Titans” is a Saturday afternoon popcorn movie. The special effects were okay. Nothing exciting.

 I am not sure what would have helped “Clash of the Titans” succeed with me. I have one idea…the movie should have been extraordinary, especially since we knew the outcome of the film before it started.

edited by Michele Ristich Gatts

‘Hot Tub Time Machine’ Takes You Back to the 80s with Crude Humor By Art Byrd

“Hot Tub Time Machine,” A hot tub as a time machine... Hmmm. I’ll admit that’s a red flag.
But I have to confess, the film was not as bad as it would seem.

If you like to be reminded of the 80s and fondly recall when MTV actually showed music videos and the fashion was big hairdos and bright clothes, you can get through the movie. Plus, the cast is really good, which saves the film from going down the drain.

It’s only fitting that John Cusack, who starred in some of the 80s most memorable films, such as “The Sure Thing,” “Better Off Dead,” “Sixteen Candles” and “Say Anything,” is in a film about returning to that decade.

Here is the scenario: three friends in their 40s find their lives haven’t turned out as they’d anticipated. In the 80s, they were in full control of their lives. Adam’s (Cusack’s) live-in girlfriend moves out and takes everything that isn’t nailed down. Meanwhile, his 20-year-old nephew, Jacob, played by Clarke Duke, lives in Adam’s basement.

Then there is Nick, played by Craig Robinson of TV’s “The Office,” whose singing career fizzled and now he is a dog groomer. Every film like this has a crazy guy, and in this one it’s Rob Corddry (“What Happens in Vegas”), who plays Lou, a self-destructive alcoholic. He is really good.

After Lou tries to kill himself, Adam and Nick decide to take Lou to the ski resort where they had the best times of their lives. Jacob tags along. But when they arrive at the resort, it is aged, broken down and looks terrible.

The four get the same room the buddies had in 1986. Only this time, the room’s hot tub has a dead animal in it. As everyone is getting wasted on alcohol, the hot tub comes to life. They decide to give it a go but accidentally spill an energy drink on the hot tub’s control mechanism. Of course, wink wink, they are transported back to 1986.

In the mirror, they see their younger selves. The film picks up as they encounter old girlfriends, rough situations and some fights. Adam is stabbed near the eye by an ex-girlfriend, but his luck improves when he runs into wide-eyed, cute journalist April, played by Lizzie Caplan (“Cloverfield”). They hit it off.


“Hot Tub Time Machine” has a lot of f-bombs, butt shots and gross humor, which really is befitting of its title.

 The use of 80s music, like that of Spandau Ballet and Cutting Crew, is done very well.

So, the film is worth the time of watching it. And who knows, you may want to be careful what you spill on your hot tub controls, or you could find yourself going “Back To The Future.”

edited by Michele Ristich Gatts