Andy Labis, Author at Entertainment Ave!

Movie Mania, Another Easter Over, Buh Bye La Toya, and Hello Paula, maybe.

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Another Easter has come and gone but not without an abundance of food, and Stu Gotz and I detail some of our food partaking during this episode of our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast. (Would you believe that pierogis and sushi might be involved?). Along with gastrointestinal delights, my weekend included a lot of TV viewing, mostly catching up on my staple of “Survivor,” “Celebrity Apprentice,” and playoff games of the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks. Stu, meanwhile, was seeing a lot of movies and does his best to let you know if you should see “Hanna,” “The Lincoln Lawyer,” and “Water for Elephants,” the last of which leads to a discussion of movies “based” on books. And in news that makes me happy, I’m almost totaling looking forward to “The X Factor” now that the story over the weekend is that Paula Abdul is close to being announced as a judge! Okay, subsequent stories say “not so fast,” but hey, a man who loves babbling TV can dream, can’t he?

There is no rest for the wicked, and it seems no rest for Stu and I over a weekend, but that’s okay because in the words of Bon Jovi, sort of, we’ll sleep when we’re dead.

Thanks for listening!

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

The Avengers

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s It’s too long. Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

The Avengers Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Ralph Fiennes, Uma Thurman, Sean Connery
MPAA Rated:	PG-13
Released By:	Warner Bros.
Kiddie Movie:	They’d probably laugh at the giant teddy bears, but I’d leave them at home anyway.
Date Movie:	Only if you hate her.
Gratuitous Sex:	None, damn.
Gratuitous Violence:	A stabbing, some killer mechanical bees, but nothing horrible.
Action:	Ehh.
Laughs:	Stupid ones.
Memorable Scene:	Every outfit Uma had on.
Memorable Quote:	None.
Directed By:	Jermiah Chichik

I’ve watched a few episodes of the original “Avengers” TV show, but that seems like so long ago that I don’t really remember it much. With that, I have no comparison of the movie out in theaters to the TV show, so I can’t spend half of my review doing so. In that case I’ll just get right to it and say that unless you lust over Uma Thurman, want to see guys in giant teddy bear suits, or want to sit in your seat for an hour and a half wondering why there are no cars on the road, don’t go see “the Avengers.”

Alright, the movie isn’t that bad, it’s just that there is nothing to really have me try to tell you that you should spend your hard-earned dollar on seeing it. Want the story – here we go: Sean Connery plays a disgruntled scientist who has found a way to control the weather. Ralph Fiennes plays John Steed, the secret agent, and Uma Thurman plays Emma Peel, the sexy doctor who can also kick some ass. Oh, yea, you also get a cloning topic thrown in there. So, yea, you guessed it, the disgruntled scientist threatens to ruin the world unless he gets a lot of cash, and somehow it’s up to Steed and Peel to save the world. I remember another story-line about a weather dominator, it was for the soap opera “General Hospital,” and, quite frankly, I liked the GH story-line better because at least with that you knew what to expect, “the Avengers” just left me wondering.

See, I sat there wondering why there seemed to be no cars on the road except Steed’s, the bad guys, the Ministry’s secret bus, and, well, that’s about it, and when the bridge got blown out by a tornado or wave (I can’t remember) my thought was “Well, it’s not like they needed it anyway.” Then I found it more amusing than anything with the scientists all decked out in these giant teddy bear outfits so neither would know who the other was. Then I wondered what year it was supposed to be because they had pretty cool computer technology yet drove cars that seemed older than me. I also wondered why only a few people carried guns. I guess I just sat there wondering a lot, and really happy that I just went to a matinee.

The quick things I read on the internet before going to see this movie talked about how the movie was choppy, how there was no chemistry between Uma and Ralph, but that the shooting of the film looked good. Yea, so be it, say what you want, but I was disappointed in two things really. One, if you’re having a movie made in the 90’s (not set in the 90’s, but made in the 90’s) about a weather dominator, and the destruction it can cause, how about some better effects shots of Mom Nature reeking havoc, rather than just a lame snow-storm. Two, as much as I couldn’t believe it, Sean Connery couldn’t pull off the disgruntled scientist/bad guy role. I guess I can’t blame Connery’s acting, I think it was just the character in general was so lame.

Was it supposed to be an attempt at British style humor trying to appeal to the American crowd? Was it supposed to be kinda goofy, sort of like I vaguely remember the old series? Was it supposed to be entertaining? To all of these questions, well, I just don’t know.

So, what does “the Avengers” get? It’s 1 ½ stars out of 5. For a movie with so much potential it just really let me down.

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

The Astronaut Farmer

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

The Astronaut Farmer Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen
MPAA Rated:	PG
Released By:	Warner Bros.
Directed By:	Michael Polish

I always dreamt of being an astronaut too, but I guess my problem is that I’m not a farmer, or a Farmer for that matter.

Anyway, Billy Bob Thornton is Charles Farmer. He was in line to be an astronaut but family stuff got in his way. He still wanted to end up in space so he set out on his life quest to build a rocket and become an astronaut. It seems the government isn’t too keen on someone being an astronaut on their own, so they try to put an end to Charles’ dream, but Charles is a stubborn man, with the love of a good woman, Audie (Virginia Madsen), and great kids.

This looks like a feel-good movie for the entire family, especially for the kids that don’t think they are too cool anymore, and for anyone who has a dream to fulfill.

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

Arlington Road

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:57 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Arlington Road Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Tim Robbins, Jeff Bridges
MPAA Rated:	R
Released By:	Columbia Pictures
Directed By:	Mark Pellington

What would you do if you found out your goody-two-shoes neighbor is really an architect for some terrorist bombings? That seems to be the premise of “Arlington Road.,” where Jeff Bridges finds out that his neighbor, Tim Robbins, has been blowing up buildings. Nobody seems to believe him, and he doesn’t really have the proof to get the feds involved, but Jeff seems to know, Tim finds out, Tim kidnaps Jeff’s kid, and the action sequence is on.

This looks like a decent thriller type film, but I’m kind of worried about the ending falling apart. I see Jeff saving his kid, saving a big-ol’ building from blowing up, and Tim Robbins ending up dead or being caught. I hope I didn’t ruin it for myself.

I’ll wait and see on this one.

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

Anger Management

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:46 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Anger Management Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Adam Sandler, Jack Nicholson, Marisa Tomei
MPAA Rated:	PG-13
Released By:	Columbia Pictures
Directed By:	Peter Segal

As Adam Sandler seems to continue his trek to be considered a respected actor and not just a joke that’s been played too many times, now comes “Anger Management,” teaming him with Jack Nicholson and including Marisa Tomei, both respected in their profession. Can Adam prove himself to be in their league, or is he his normal over-the-top self? Only the movie will tell, but for now I can tell you this…

“Anger Management” has Sandler sentenced to take some, well, anger management therapy, after an altercation on an airplane. Assigned to him is Nicholson, who moves in with Sandler, and begins his twisted therapy. At first Sandler seems to do his best to keep his cool, but then Nicholson pushes him over the edge and hilarity is supposed to ensue.

The movie does look to have potential, especially Nicholson’s character, and Sandler has the potential to team up well with him, but for me it will be difficult to take Sandler’s character seriously, especially when to me he will always be Happy, Billy, and Pip. Hopefully he can make me forget them.

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

American Pie

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:50 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

American Pie Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Jason Biggs, Shannon Elizabeth, Chris Klein, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Natasha Lyonne
MPAA Rated:	R
Released By:	Universal Pictures
Kiddie Movie:	No way.
Date Movie:	She should laugh.
Gratuitous Sex:	Nudity, too.
Gratuitous Violence:	Nah.
Action:	Nah.
Laughs:	Tons.
Memorable Scene:	The internet broadcast, among many others.
Memorable Quote:	I won’t say where they occur, but some of the lines I loved the most are: “Again?”, “Aged 18 years… Just the way I like it.”, “What’s my name, bitch!”
Directed By:	Paul Weitz

There were a few movies I was totally looking forward to seeing this summer, but with that build up of anticipation always comes the chance of the movie being a flop in my eyes. “American Pie” was one of those movies I wanted to see ever since I nearly fell out of my chair laughing after seeing the trailer, but I was worried that the trailer contained all of the funny scenes which would leave a lot of boredom for the rest of the movie. I will simply say that I was not disappointed, and “American Pie” goes on my list of funny movies that I will never take my mom to see.

In a nutshell, “American Pie” tells the story of four friends in high school who vow to get laid by the end of the school year. Each kid has his work cut out for him because neither of them are the suave and deboner types to get all of the chicks. Nope, Jim (Jason Biggs) is the normal dude, not really knowing how to talk to girls, especially the way-hot foreign exchange dudette Nadia (Shannon Elizabeth), and resorts mostly to masturbation to cool his jets. Then you’ve got Oz (Chris Klein), the jock dude who isn’t jock enough to get the chicks, and then scares away the rest of the girls by hanging with the foul-thinking teammates. Kevin’s (Thomas Ian Nickolas) got a girlfriend but can’t get past the oral homage area mostly because of his inability to say the right thing when his girlfriend says “I love you.” And then there’s Finch (Eddie Kay Thomas) who is just too smooth for the young girls and better fitted for the older ladies (yea right!). At least that’s what he seems to think. Each of them has their challenge, and Prom night’s coming so time is running out, and “American Pie” takes us through each dudes right of passage into adulthood. And a funny right of passage it is.

I won’t tell you much more than that because detailing any of the boys plans for scoring will probably ruin the anticipation of most of the jokes, so I will just say that, well, I laughed my ass off.

Yes, “American Pie” is a rude and crude as you think it might be from the commercials, and the teenagers will want to see it by sneaking into the movies, but really this movie is kind of a funny way for adults to look back and remember their first experiences with sex. I won’t say it’s a funny way for adults to look back at their first use of alcohol because I don’t think any of us drank as nonchalantly as these teens do, but hey, you can’t have everything in a movie.

If jokes about sex disgust you, if seeing teenagers drinking bothers you, and if you think tasteless movies are the downfall of society, for God’s sake don’t do see “American Pie.” You will become more disgusted, more bothered, and expect the second coming as you’re walking out of the theater. But if you can laugh about masturbation jokes, aren’t offended by things that happen at band camp, and think that internet porn isn’t such a bad thing, well, I think you’ll like “American Pie.”

Keep the youngins at home and relive your first time. Go see “American Pie.”

To wrap it up, this dude gives “American Pie” 4 ½ stars out of 5. It wasn’t the most cinematic of films, the acting wasn’t the greatest, but I laughed my ass off and that’s just what I wanted to do.

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

American Beauty

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:58 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

American Beauty Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Annette Bening, Kevin Spacey, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley
MPAA Rated:	R
Released By:	Dreamworks
Kiddie Movie:	Definitely not.
Date Movie:	She might hold your hand, or get suspicious of the way you look at a teenager.
Gratuitous Sex:	Some boob shots, some butt shots, but no gratuitous sex.
Gratuitous Violence:	One scene for sure.
Action:	Nope.
Laughs:	Chuckles.
Memorable Scene:	Lester, Carolyn, and Jane at the dinner table, and the, well, almost last scene.
Memorable Quote:	“Cunt.” – Not heard nearly enough in movies today. And in a different scene, Buddy says “You like getting nailed by the king!” to which Carolyn replies “Oh yea! Fuck me your majesty!”
Directed By:	Sam Mendes

Lots of critics have proclaimed “American Beauty” a remarkable film, worthy of all of the statue awards, the best film of the 90’s, and all of the rest of the things that go along with that. I will just say that “American Beauty” is a pretty damn good film which, for a change, didn’t go for the happy Hollywood ending. That really doesn’t spoil the movie, but it was the final thing that made me really like this movie, and actually made me reflect a little on my life.
Picture if you will a totally dysfunctional family. Mom is in real estate and losing it, dad is in advertising and losing it, and the daughter has already lost it, hanging around with the high school babe and just trying to accept being abnormal. That’s bad enough, now introduce a new family next door. Dad used to be in the military and is always suspicious of his son. Mom is, well, basically comatose. And the son gets his kicks by seeing beauty in the strangest things, usually videotaping them, and also sells pot. Alright, you probably guessed this, but the son likes the daughter, the daughter ends up liking the son, and “American Beauty” turns into one of those movies that has a lot of slow spots but still has you leaving the theater just saying something like “Whoa.”
Well, in “American Beauty”, real estate mom is Carolyn (Annette Bening, who I have always liked, and I guess that sounds weird, but I have), advertising dad is Lester (Kevin Spacey, in another great roll), and their daughter is Jane (Thora Birch – she plays the displaced teenager perfectly). Then you’ve got the main player from family #2, Ricky Fitts (Wes Bentley – playing the psychotic but still with maybe the most grip on reality teenager). Well, Lester gets most of his pleasure by beating off. Yea, that’s right, masturbating, and it’s usually with Angela (Mena Suvari), Jane’s high school friend, in mind. He hates his job, he’s in his midlife crises, and Ricky shows him the way to tap into being young again. Now, Carolyn, on the other hand, would get her pleasure by selling a house, but sadly seems to have lost it. So she sees her way to happiness in the likes of Buddy Kane (Peter Gallagher), the local real estate mogul who she lets teach her a thing or two about positive thinking and royalty. In the meantime Jane and Ricky fall in love with each other but Ricky’s military dad is still suspicious.
I can’t really give you much more without giving away a lot of the subtleties that make “American Beauty” a great film. It’s a dark movie. Families are falling apart and it unfolds right before your eyes. It kind of might make you wonder about your own family. It also has some funny moments, maybe because you might see them in your own life. But mostly, at least for me, “American Beauty” just had all of the right players in all of the right parts, and that got me past the slow moments, probably high on an artistic standpoint, but I was just stuck waiting a little longer to see if dad would score with Angela.
If things like sex, a dad lusting over a teenager, a family falling apart, or just life not being happy aren’t your idea of a good movie you might want to stay away from “American Beauty,” and that’s a little too bad. It’s sometimes blunt, sometimes not really to the point, but it takes you on a trip and the acting is great. That, and maybe this doesn’t really fit with the review of the film, but a clip achieved what Paul tried to do in a “Mad About You” episode – film the wind. It’s an artistic message for this movie, but just stood out for me as well, filming the wind.
Well, let’s leave this review at that. I’m giving “American Beauty” 4 ½ stars out of 5. It’s a great film, although it does drag a little, but I guess that’s sometimes the price you pay for mixing the artsy side a little with the serious side..
That’s if for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!

Stupid or Lazy? Dogs or Bunnies? Boston Rob or Gary Busey?

By: The Dude on the Right

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Stu Gotz’s weekend involved bunny rabbits and mine involved a dog, so during this “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast we discuss animals. We also discuss being domestic, as the Dude household needs some windows treatments for privacy purposes, while Stu wants my opinion of a person he interacted with over the weekend, and if they were stupid or just lazy.

On the movie front, Stu lets everyone know if “Hop” is destined to be a classic, or at least if it’s any good, and I’m telling you that the movie “Babies” contains a lot of boobies, but not necessarily those you might originally be thinking about. Stu is looking for a Doctor Who coffee mug, I’m looking for a quieter dog, Stu didn’t watch something that had to do about “Burn Notice,” and I’m still wrapped into “Celebrity Apprentice” and “Survivor: Redemption Island.” All of that and more!

Thanks for listening!

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

Tron: Legacy

MPAA Rated – PG
It’s 2:05 Long
A Blu-ray Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Tron: Legacy Movie Stats & Links
Starring:	Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde
MPAA Rated:	PG
Released By:	Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date:	April 5, 2011
Kiddie Movie:	It’s a tad violent, so not too young.
Date Movie:	Especially if she’s a little geeky.
Gratuitous Sex:	Skimpy outfits, mostly.
Gratuitous Violence:	It’s Disney and PG, so nothing horrible.
Action:	Lots of chasing and running.
Laughs:	Some snickers.
Memorable Scene:	The Game Grid is cool.
Memorable Quote:	Nothing stands out.
Directed By:	Joseph Kosinski
Cool things about the Blu-ray?	The “making of” stuff is nicely detailed so you don’t get the feeling it was just thrown together, but for shear interactive Tron-ness grab your iPad or laptop and use the Second Screen feature.

I barely remember the original “Tron.” Sure, I played the game on my Intellivision, but in my movie world, if my life depended on remembering any of the story, well, it’s a good thing that “Tron: Legacy” has a 5-Disc, 2-Movie combo pack that includes not just “Tron: Legacy” on Blu-ray, but the original “Tron” on Blu-ray as well, a Digital copy of “Tron: Legacy” for portability, a basic DVD of the new one and, if that weren’t enough, if you’ve popped for that new Blu-ray 3D TV and have been looking for an entertaining movie to watch on it, well, this set has one of those as well! Yup, there is no excuse for you to not be assimilated into all things “Tron,” but so that this review isn’t too long, let’s pick up where the first movie left off…

In “Tron: Legacy” we find that it’s been a number of years since Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) disappeared from his son, Sam’s (Garrett Hedlund), life. Sam has always been a rebellious son, even though technically in charge of ENCOM, his father’s company. As it goes, after ruining a software release for ENCOM and posting bail, his father’s old confidante tracks down Sam and lets him know that he received a page, from Dad. So Sam is on a quest to the old arcade, finds a trap door, gets sucked into the computer game Dad was sucked into, and when he realizes things aren’t well on the Grid (that’s the computer world), he also realizes he can save his Dad.

So, with the help of Quorra, a resident of The Grid, Sam is able to survive a bit, and eventually Sam, Kevin, and Quorra realize that Clu, who is now the “Ruler” of The Grid, is trying to build an army to enter our real world, take it over, and make it better.

Sure, it sounds a little confusing on paper, but even for me, who couldn’t remember a lick of most of the original, “Tron: Legacy” did a nice job of moving along and bringing you into the story. There are some scenes that, if you aren’t watching it in 3D, will say “Come on, already!”, but in terms of entertainment in your living room, I liked “Tron: Legacy” and think you won’t even have to be a geek to like it.

Visually the movie is pretty stunning and part of me would love to run out and buy a 3D TV but damn, I still hate those glasses, even though I’m guessing it looks even better in 3D! Acting-wise things are what they are, but you get some fun action and just some popcorn fun. It’s 3 ½ stars out of 5 for “Tron: Legacy.”

Now in terms of the Blu-ray package and the various extras, gosh, where to start? Well, in terms of normal stuff you get some pretty good looks at how things are made and that, even though technology has made the movie look a hell of lot better than the original, the challenges are still many to bring a movie about a fictional “game” universe to the big screen. Some stuff is throw-away, I suppose, unless you are a Daft Punk fan and really want to watch the video of “Derezzed,” but in terms of shear movie interaction, Disney has included their “Second Screen” extra, which allows you to use your iPad or laptop to follow along with movie, synching the extra coolness, views, and tidbits for you on your device while you watch the movie. It’s pretty cool, and a lot more fun than things just popping up on the TV screen.

So, in the end, I’ve got to say that in terms of movie-packaging, Disney did a great job with “Tron: Legacy,” especially if you opt for the 5-disc package.

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

Your Highness is High, Storms are Low, TV is On, and Bikes are Ridden.

By: The Dude on the Right

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Storms didn’t materialize where I live, Stu rode a bike, and during this episode of the “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast there is a lot of talk about TV. Yup, I’m still a fan of “Celebrity Apprentice” even though most of the celebrities are idiots, I’m still a fan of “American Idol” even though the judges are idiots, and I’m still a fan of “Survivor: Redemption Island” even though most of the contestants are idiots, and I tell Stu why. Stu, meanwhile, had a quiet weekend alone with the Gotz children as Mama Gotz was away, and with the nice weather Stu went bike riding with his kids. Mama Gotz apparently had a brain fart, “forgetting” all of the goings on that went on during a trip to New Orleans, because Stu had no stories to tell from her, but the both of us had a story to tell as we were of the minority of folks who went to see “Your Highness” over the weekend.

Stu says that “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I” comes out on Blu-ray this week, I say that “Scream 4” and “Rio” hit the theaters this week, I say I had a nice time at a confirmation party, and Stu says, “’nuff said.” And such is another podcast episode!

Thanks for listening!

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