Andy Labis, Author at Entertainment Ave!

Did You Hear About the Morgans

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:43 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Did You Hear About the Morgans Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Sarah Jessica Parker, Hugh Grant
MPAA Rated:	PG-13
Released By:	Columbia Pictures
Release Date:	2009
Directed By:	Marc Lawrence

Let’s see, Sarah Jessica Parker and Hugh Grant play a married couple who are having marriage problems and things aren’t going well. They are also true city folks, living in The Big Apple, New York City. Just when things can’t get better for them, and maybe they are really heading for the skids, well, they witness a murder, enter witness protection, and get shipped off to Wyoming where hilarity is supposed to ensue because they are a city couple who doesn’t get along transplanted to a small town.

Here’s the thing, I’m not that big a Sarah Jessica Parker fan, although I do admit I like her in “Sex and the City,” and Hugh Grant I can take or leave, but the story is a retread of a hundred other stories, so unless the writing on this is utterly great, the only reason you will be seeing this movie is because A) “Avatar” is sold out or B) you owe your significant other a romantic movie and “Avatar” is sold out. I’m not holding out too much hope for this film, but it will probably be a nice DVD rental down the road.

That’s it for this preview! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

The Devil’s Own

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:41 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

The Devil’s Own Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Harrison Ford, Brad Pitt
MPAA Rated:	R
Released By:	Columbia Pictures
Release Date:	1997
Kiddie Movie:	Not really. There’s no sex, but lots of gunfire and the story might get them bored.
Date Movie:	Sure. Guys can talk about the kills and the girls can talk about how cute Brad Pitt is.
Gratuitous Sex:	Nope.
Gratuitous Violence:	Lots of quality kills, especially at the beginning.
Action:	Some suspense moments, but no real car chases.
Laughs:	A couple placed nicely.
Memorable Scene:	Everyone but Brad and his buddy getting blown away in the big gunfight at the beginning of the movie.
Memorable Quote:	When Brad comes in to Harrison’s house, Harrison Ford says “It’s good to have someone here that pees standing up.”
Directed By:	Alan J Pakula

I’m was kinda worried going in to see “The Devil’s Own.” Yep, this was the movie where it seemed every entertainment show on TV and the entertainment magazines were having stories about the troubles on the set. Brad Pitt said this, Harrison Ford was having problems on the set, the story keeps changing, Sony’s suing Brad, Harrison’s pissed; you name it, it seems someone said it, and people had this movie doomed before the trailers even hit the theater. Then I saw the trailer and thought to myself that it sure doesn’t look that bad – maybe they all pulled it together and two of Hollywood’s premier actors made nice and made a great movie. Well, I don’t know if they made nice or not, but I do know they made a good movie – not great, but good none the less.

In its simplest term “The Devil’s Own” is about an Irish Republican Army dude, played by Brad Pitt, coming to America to score some cool weapons, in this case some stinger missiles. Harrison Ford meanwhile is playing an Irish cop on the streets of New York who has only shot his gun four times in his 23ish years on the force. He’s got his own problems with his partner, and the last thing he really needs is a criminal staying in his house, but he gets duped by an IRA supporting judge to let Pitt stay in his house, and in the end it turns into a clash between a cop and a criminal. Not always liking deep and meaningful story lines, I personally think they should have left the story at that – let’s have some quality kills, good guys versus bad guys, and maybe blow up some stuff. But no, they gave this film a meaning and maybe for some people that’s what they liked about it, but for me, it made the film a little slow at times.

So, where do all of these meanings and lessons to be learned come in? Well, it seems Frankie, the IRA dude played by Pitt, got to see his dad gunned down when he was a little boy. This turns him into one of the most wanted IRA members in the old country. You’ve got little Frankie growing up without a dad, becoming a great killer supporting his cause, and low and behold, you place Frankie, who has probably shot as many people as Rambo, in a house where dad’s got three daughters and his wife. Yep, you get the feeling dad, played by Harrison, always wanted a son, and now he’s got one, too bad for him it’s Frankie. Well, not to ruin a lot of things because the story does have some surprises, but some of the overblown messages permeating this movie for me were ones like – we can’t understand the fighting in Ireland because we’re not a part of it; if you’ve got a gun you should shoot people with it; even the best of cops are crooked; and people in Ireland don’t eat corned beef and cabbage.

Now I know that this movie wasn’t supposed to be just another action movie, it was supposed to teach us something, but I think the social messages were overblown for my tastes. Sure, put them in the movie, but don’t ram shove them down my throat with a plunger.

Now, getting past all of that stuff, “The Devil’s Own” is still a pretty decent movie played by two of the best actors out there. Harrison Ford plays the “torn between the good guy and bad guy” role perfectly. He comes off as the perfect family man, a great cop who has dedicated his life to protecting and serving rather than blowing away the bad guys, and just being an all around good guy. Brad Pitt, in total contrast, is the consummate bad guy, able to shoot anyone at the slightest sign of danger, able to ram his now good friend Harrison’s head into a window, and hell bent on getting those stinger missiles. Viscous and brutal meets Mr. Nice Guy – it’s a great plan but just sometimes drags a little.

You’ve got some action, some surprises, but some spots slow the movie to a crawl. If you like a movie that preaches more than it teaches, “The Devil’s Own” will be for you. If you’re looking for an action movie like the adds seem to show you might be a little disappointed.

It’s 2 1/2 stars out of 5 from me and that’s it for this one. I’m The Dude on the Right, L8R!!

Fraternity Reminiscing, Facebook Timelining, Movie Opening, Bulls Falling, and Spring TVing.

By: The Dude on the Right

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Did you know that there is a clip of a version of the Theta Xi “Rounders Song” on the Internet? Stu Gotz didn’t either, but during this “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast I prove to him that it’s true.

Our Fraternity anniversary gave us a chance to reminisce a tad of the college days, mostly about Work Week and how it took over 20 years but I was finally a part of a strip-and-wax crew, but sadly this one didn’t include a lot of beer. Stu didn’t mention doing any manual labor over the weekend, but did get a chance to take the Gotz clan to see “The Pirates! Band of Misfits” and lets you know if you should take your clan to see it, also, whereas I’m finishing up my Spring TV viewing, somehow still liking “Celebrity Apprentice” but might be totally over “American Idol” now.

We talk a bit about Derek Rose and the Chicago Bulls, I seem more excited about “The Avengers” opening this weekend than Stu does, and Stu isn’t Timelined yet, and I might be the only person that likes the Timeline on Facebook.

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

A Movie About a Horse, Mini TV Seasons, Movie Talk, and Eating Kangaroo and Bear.

By: The Dude on the Right

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I didn’t need to see a man about a horse, but during this episode of the “Weekend Wrap-Up” podcast, I let Stu Gotz know if “War Horse” is any good. Stu, meanwhile, gives his take on “The Sitter” and is happy he didn’t pay the big bucks to see “Tower Heist” but was happy to throw a dollar or two away on it.

The Chicago Cubs aren’t very good, Stu is upset that all of the shows he likes on cable TV have mini-seasons, Penn Jillette is off “Celebrity Apprentice”, Stu ate kangaroo and bear, and it doesn’t matter what else opens the weekend of May 5th because “The Avengers” is all that matters. All of that and more during this podcast!

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Stu & The Dude’s Weekend Wrap-Up! A Movie About a Horse, Mini TV Seasons, Movie Talk, and Eating Kangaroo and Bear.

War Horse

Below is an excerpt from The Dude on the Right’s full review of “War Horse.” It was almost a wash-out, especially for his wife, but things turned out alright, even a little weepy…

…I was a little worried when my wife and I started watching “War Horse” because, after about the first five minutes, as they were setting up the relationship between Joey (the horse) and Albert (Jeremy Irvine), my wife turns to me and says sarcastically, “Oh, this is riveting.” I could tell she was bored, and there was over two hours of the movie left to go. Thankfully things got much better….

War Horse

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 2:26 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

War Horse Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Jeremy Irvine, Peter Mullan, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, A Lot of Horses
MPAA Rated:	PG-13
Released By:	Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date:	April 3, 2012
Kiddie Movie:	Not too young even if they like horses, most of the story revolves around WWI after all.
Date Movie:	My wife liked it and snuggled. It’s a winner.
Gratuitous Sex:	Nope.
Gratuitous Violence:	You do get some war scenes that showed the brutalness of trench warfare.
Action:	The horse runs a lot.
Laughs:	A few chuckles.
Memorable Scene:	The scene where Joey ends up entangled in barbed wire started brutal and ended beautifullly, and all I could kept thinking about during it was the song Belleau Wood” from Garth Brooks.
Memorable Quote:	Nothing stood out.
Directed By:	Steven Spielberg
Cool things about the Blu-ray:	Lots of extras on how the film was made makes the combo pack a film-lover’s dream, especially since it skips the usually useless stuff like deleted scenes and a gag reel.

I was a little worried when my wife and I started watching “War Horse” because, after about the first five minutes, as they were setting up the relationship between Joey (the horse) and Albert (Jeremy Irvine), my wife turns to me and says sarcastically, “Oh, this is riveting.” I could tell she was bored, and there was over two hours of the movie left to go. Thankfully things got much better.

“War Horse” takes us back to the early 1900’s, as World War I was about to break, horses were used to plow the fields, and you read books made out of paper by candlelight. Young Albert sees a horse being born, and although not the greatest build of a work horse, there is a bond formed between Joey and Albert, much like most people would form to their pet dog, but the war is now here, and in those days horses were used for everything, from transporting troops and the wounded, to pulling the giant cannons, and the best horses were rounded up for use in the war. Joey was now gone, on his way to war, and Albert was sad.

So, we get the story of Joey, a horse that doesn’t look like the strongest but has the heart of a thousand horses and touches lots of life’s in many way. We see Joey in battle, developing bond with a giant of a horse that most everyone thinks is stronger, helping a young girl discover life, yet all the while never forgetting Albert.

Okay, fine, “War Horse” is much more that that, as intertwined with the story of Joey is the family bond Albert has back home on the farm, a look at a young little girl and her grandfather, a glimpse of the brutality of trench warfare, and how an animal can make friends out of enemies, if only for a few minutes. Yup, the “This is riveting” had turned into a wonderful story.

Wonderfully shot and what turns out to be a fantastic story, “War Horse” is the kind of movie that is probably better seen on the big screen to envelop you, but will do fine on your big screen, and will allow you to get weepy in the privacy of your own home (Yup, the ending is a tear-jerker in many ways). So, get through the first five minutes of unrivetting-ness, and enjoy this 4 ½ our of 5 star movie in all of its horse splendor.

Now, Blu-ray wise, if you get the 4-disc combo pack, you get extras to keep you busy for hours, and if you have any interest in how an Academy Award winning Director constructs a movie, this is the combo pack for you. Among other features, you get “War Horse: The Journey Home” which gives you a round-table format of discussions about the film, the characters, and how things went from seeing a play and thinking it would make a great film to ending up on the big screen. Then there is “A Filmmaking Journey” which gives you a detailed look at Steven Spielberg’s creative process, while “Editing and Scoring” dictates how the film is put together. There isn’t the standard “Deleted Scenes” nor “Gag Reel,” which is probably better since generally those just add easy extras to a release, but if you ever just wanted to be that guy in the background of a shot, you get “An Extra’s Point of View,” a nice look at being, well, an extra on a film. Lastly, take the film with you because you also get the copy for your portable device. This combo pack is why you buy a combo pack.

A great story, a great film, and a worthwhile batch of extras when you buy the whole set, I am a little sad I didn’t see the movie on the gloriousness of the big screen, but snuggling on the couch and the both of you getting a little weepy with a great movie does have a niceness about it.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!!! L8R!!!

Celebrating Emancipation Day, Would You Buy a Zoo?, Golf-Triggered Memories, and America’s Got Talent is Almost Back.

By: The Dude on the Right

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As millions of people were doing yesterday, I was celebrating Emancipation Day. Okay, I wasn’t really celebrating, I just couldn’t quite get to the podcast, but for those of you wondering why April 17th is Tax Day this year, instead of at least on the 16th, all is revealed in this podcast episode. Also revealed in the podcast – if “We Bought a Zoo” is any good. It’s a movie now out on Blu-ray about a dude (Matt Damon) who buys a zoo. Okay, it’s a little more complicated than that, and it also has Scarlett Johansson as a zookeeper/potential love interest, but it does have real animals for your kids to watch instead of a movie with cartoon animals that can talk.

Watching golf makes me remember my college days, I had vegetarian food for Easter, Apache Helicopters are invading Chicago, and don’t look now but it’s less than a month to the return of “America’s Got Talent” with new judge, Howard Stern. You may love him or you may hate him, but you’ll probably at least watch out of curiosity. All of that and some movie news in this week’s podcast!

Thanks for listening!

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Dude, Where’s My Car?

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:30 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Dude, Where’s My Car? Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Ashton Kutcher, Seann William Scott, Kristy Swanson, Jennifer Garner, Marla Sokoloff, Fabio, Stuttering John
MPAA Rated:	PG-13
Released By:	20th Century Fox
Release Date:	2000
Kiddie Movie:	Not too young, lots of pot, sex, and drinking talk.
Date Movie:	If she’s got a twisted sense of humor.
Gratuitous Sex:	Lots of talk and girls in tight shirts.
Gratuitous Violence:	Maybe just the “Super-Hot Giant Alien” blowing up.
Action:	Nah.
Laughs:	I laughed a lot. Maybe I’ve just gone crazy.
Memorable Scene:	Nothing totally stands out.
Memorable Quote:	The little boy looking up the Super-Hot Giant Alien’s skirt to his dad: “I want to go on that ride, daddy!” which the dad replies “Me too!” and this exchange: “A barn?” “Is it red?” “No.” “Then it’s not a barn.”
Directed By:	Danny Leiner

I think I’ve now finally secured it – I’m going to hell. Why? Because at 10:30 on Sunday morning, when I should have been at church, I was at one of the worst movies I have seen and I found myself enjoying it – “Dude, Where’s My Car?”

The story starts out simple, Jesse (Ashton Kutcher) and Chester (Seann William Scott) wake up not really knowing what happened the night before. They attribute this to being totally wasted and it’s easy to see how that could happen. So the movie begins with our duo trying to put back the pieces to what must have been a fabulous night, especially as they begin to find out some of the things that have happened, starting with Greg (Stuttering John Melendez), peeing in their plant. They meet up with Christie Boner (Kristy Swanson) who let one of our duo feel her up, they stumble into the nudie bar where they find they were the kings of the bar, and then things really get weird finding out that they were in charge of a suitcase full of money, gave a couple aliens a ride back to their spaceship, and played some pretty good miniature golf. And if you think that’s weird, it’s their day after, when they found out what happened the night before, that things really start taking twists and turns by adding the bubble-wrap people, the continuum transfunctioner, and the Super-Hot Giant Alien.

This is the kind of movie that most reviewers won’t give two cents worth of their time to watch, and you know what, I don’t blame them, but for some reason all of the lame, stupid, obvious, and childish jokes made me laugh. From the exchange of Jesse and Chester describing their tattoos, to the Chinese drive-in, to the Rubik’s Cube, to the bubble suits the space cult people were wearing, I laughed. Maybe sometimes I need mindless fun, and “Dude, Where’s My Car?” provided me and the four other people that blew off church in favor of a movie that simple pleasure.

I won’t take any more of your time with this review for this movie except to say if you go into this movie expecting what you think the trailers show, well, you’ll probably enjoy it a little. If you go to this movie thinking this will be one of the most thought-provoking comedies of all time, well, you’ll probably leave by the time the dog smokes his own one-hitter. I’m giving “Dude, Where’s My Car?” 3 stars out of 5. It’s stupid fun – expect that.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

The Sitter

Below is an excerpt from The Dude on the Right’s full review of “The Sitter.” It was raunchy enough, but he really wanted it to be funnier…

…it was mostly fun, it was a romp of kids through the main streets of the city, it was way, way, way over the top at times, but for the love of God, put the kids and teens to bed before you even think of watching this in front of them….

The Sitter

MPAA Rated – Unrated
It’s 1:22 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

The Sitter Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Jonah Hill, Ari Graynor, Landry Bender, Kevin Hernandez, Max Records, Sam Rockewell
MPAA Rated:	Unrated Version
Released By:	Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Release Date:	March 20, 2012
Kiddie Movie:	Definitely not. Send them to bed.
Date Movie:	If she’s got a sick sense of humor. If she’s a Miss Goody-Two-Shoes she will think you are a pervert.
Gratuitous Sex:	The movie opens with Noah giving oral homage to Marisa and explaining his technique, so I would say “Yes.”
Gratuitous Violence:	Some gun play.
Action:	Nah.
Laughs:	It does have some funny moments, though mostly over the top.
Memorable Scene:	Nothing stood out.
Memorable Quote:	Nah.
Directed By:	David Gordon Green
Cool things about the Blu-ray:	Nothing reallly other than it looks good. The extras are pretty generic, and you get to see an alternate ending that would have sucked.

I have to say that my favorite babysitter movie of all time is “Adventures in Babysitting.” It was fun, it was a romp of kids through the mean streets of the city, it was slightly over the top at times, and it was fairly safe for kids even though it was rated PG-13. After seeing “The Sitter” I have to say it didn’t eclipse “Adventures…” as my favorite babysitter movie, but it was mostly fun, it was a romp of kids through the main streets of the city, it was way, way, way over the top at times, but for the love of God, put the kids and teens to bed before you even think of watching this in front of them. Then go ahead and have a laugh or two.

For “The Sitter” we get Jonah Hill as Noah, a slug living at home, looking for love, and good at oral sex. We pretty much find all of this out in the first 5ish minutes of the film. It seems like all he really wants in life is to have his divorced mom find a good man, get laid, and maybe be an astronomer. As his life would have it, to facilitate his mom going on a date, Noah takes the gig of watching the neighbor’s kids comprised of the little girl, Blithe (Landry Bender), who likes to dress in beauty pageant clothes and just wants to go out clubbing, Slater (Max Records), who is having issues of keeping friends, and Rodrigo (Kevin Henrnadez), the adopted son of said family and a little terror. Of course the kids hate Noah, and of course Noah gets a call from his girlfriend want-a-be telling Noah he’ll get laid if he brings her some cocaine, so Noah is off in the family minivan, with kids in tow, in search of Karl (Sam Rockwell), the drug kingpin, and then to meet up with Marisa (Ari Graynor). And hilarity is supposed to ensue.

I say “supposed to” because although funny is some aspects, most of it just seems rehashed or telegraphed from a mile away. And yes, here is the proverbial spoiler alert… Do the kids try and run away? Rodrigo does. Is there some kid mayhem? Yup. Does Noah have to come up with money to pay back Karl so he doesn’t kill someone? You betcha. Will Noah and the kids end up in a bar none of them really belong in? What do you think?

Some of it is kind of funny, in a truly adult kind of way, but a lot of it just plods along until the eventual end of Noah with the right girl, and the kids loving their new babysitter.

Jonah Hill is well, Jonah Hill, I’m not really sure what is going on with the Marisa character, and go figure, kids just want to be understood. Kinda funny, definitely not for anyone close to a kid’s age, and for me it’s 2 stars out of 5. Oh hell, make it 2 ½ for a “totally unnecessary to the plot” boob shot.

As far as the Blu-ray it’s got some standard fare that pretty much ends up just being filler, although I did watch the “Totally Irresponsible” unrated version and honestly can’t tell you what the difference was. The rest of the extras are “Ehh.” The deleted scenes are pretty much better deleted, and the extended scenes would have made the movie drag a ton more. Some of the outtakes are kind of funny, but the “Gag Reel” really didn’t do much. If you want there is a “Making of…” featurette which is fine and all, but really, you’re just getting the Blu-ray for raunchy fun.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!