Author: Andy Labis

Children of Men

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:54 Long
A Preview by:
– The Dude on the Right

Children of Men
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 2006
Directed By: Alfonso Cuaron

Right now I don’t know who to believe. I suppose I’ve got to believe the official web site, because it says “Children of Men” opens December 25th, but IMDB shows it opening on September 29th. It does seem like a weird movie to open on Christmas day, unless of course you tie-in the “birth that will save the world” thing, but here’s the basic story…

It’s a few years from now, and for whatever reason that no one can seem to figure out, no one can get pregnant, and that means we are facing our own extinction. Science is baffled, the public is going crazy, and the cities are not safe places to live. Then some underground folks find a pregnant girl, and they must get her to the safety where the public won’t tear her apart, and scientists can safely study her and make sure she actually delivers that child.

Looks like a wacky futuristic movie, but nothing to fantastic at this point. I guess this is on my “wait and see” list right now.

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

Packers or Steelers, Bears or Horses, Secretariats or Inceptions, Oprah or Secrets?

By: The Dude on the Right

Download and ListenDownload the Podcast!

With the Chicago Bears losing the NFC Championship Game yesterday, I find myself torn as to if I should cheer on the Pittsburgh Steelers or Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl, and during this episode of our “Weekend Wrap-Up!” podcast, I work out my issues with Stu Gotz. Both of us, with our wealth of football knowledge, give our analysis of the Bears loss and if Jay Cutler is to blame, but the other question now is who’s having the Super Bowl party, and which one am I going to?

It was also a weekend for movies with me watching “Secretariat,” which comes out on DVD and Blu-ray tomorrow, and generally liking the movie. I give Stu my quick breakdown, with my full review coming shortly, and on the other side of the coin, Stu saw “Alpha and Omega” and gives his reasons for not liking the movie. Stu also saw “Inception,” and he liked it, so we’ve got that going for us.

I hung out during the football game with The Dude on the Left and other friends, Stu dropped the kids off at a birthday party at a bowling alley on a second floor and that had us both reminiscing about the old Peterson Bowl in Chicago, I cleaned my balls, Stu has seen two movies nominated for a Razzie, and Oprah has a secret, well, at least she had a secret about a half-sister when we recorded the podcast but as of this typing the secret is out.

Thanks for listening!

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

Chicken Little

MPAA Rated – G
It’s 1:17 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Chicken Little
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: The voices of: Zach Braff, Joan Cusack, Don Knotts, Garry Marshall, Steve Zahn
MPAA Rated: G
Released By: Disney Pictures
Release Date: 2005
Kiddie Movie: They’re the only ones this movie is geared for.
Date Movie: Only if she’s your kid’s mom or stepmom.
Gratuitous Sex: Um, no.
Gratuitous Violence: Various animals do get obliterated by the aliens, but don’t worry, all will be well in the end.
Action: Some chasing and stuff.
Laughs: Only the fact that the filmmaker folks can’t decide if Runt is supposed to be gay or not.
Memorable Scene: The animation is pretty good.
Memorable Quote: Nothing.
Directed By: Mark Dindal

So Disney is now trying to enter the 3D animation universe since it appears its relationship with Pixar will be coming to an end. And what do they give us to anticipate if they can dominate? They give us “Chicken Little.” Animation-wise, Disney is on par with the Pixar folks, but story-wise, well, let’s start with the story.

Most of us know the story of Chicken Little. He’s a chicken who scares the crap out of people by saying the sky is falling, only it isn’t. But that’s not enough for a major motion picture, is it? So the Disney folks expand the story to this. Chicken Little starts the movie, ringing a bell at the school and causing a ruckus, announcing the end of the world, because, well, the sky is falling. As everyone calms down, Chicken explains he was under the oak tree when this blue thing shaped like a stop sign hit him on the head. No one believes him, least of all his dad, and Chicken is now the laughing-stock of the town. Fast forward a year later, and Chicken still can’t get his dad’s respect, thinking he needs to do something big to impress his dad and get the town to forget the whole sky is falling thing, much to his friend’s dismay, Abby Mallard, known better as the Ugly Duckling. She thinks Chicken should just have a sit-down with dad so they can get some closure.

With things still not going well, Chicken joins the baseball team. Dad was a hero on the baseball team, so, of course, Chicken thinks he can be a hero, too, and get Dad to like him. Sure enough, Chicken becomes a baseball hero, dad loves him again, and all is well until, go figure, Chicken gets hit on the head, again, by a blue thing that looks like a stop sign. Enter the alien invasion. It seems Chicken has stumbled upon a piece of a spaceship, his friends help him, track down the mothership, they think an invasion is coming, Chicken rings the bell again, the townsfolk run with Chicken to the ball field to see the ship, but, of course, the ship is gone, and Chicken still looks like a dork.

Ah, but the story can’t end there. So, alas, the aliens come back to retrieve something left behind, and of course Chicken’s dad realizes his son isn’t a liar, they make up, and they save the day. Blah, blah, blah…

Look, I know I gave you a lot of the story, but it really doesn’t matter because the Disney folks just don’t have the story magic in this one to make a great 3-D animated flick, and I think they are missing one other thing the Pixar folks do brilliantly – Pixar’s animated characters are easily identified, actually look like what we expect them to look like, and are generally likable. For “Chicken Little” we get a chick that doesn’t look like a chicken, hell, even dad the adult chicken doesn’t look like a chicken. Runt, whom I’m assuming is supposed to be a pig, doesn’t really look like one, and the cutest character in the movie simply called Fish, and it’s a goldfish that has a helmet on (it holds the water to the fish can breathe).

In the end, the little boy sitting next to me in the theater, I’m guessing about three or four, totally expressed my sentiment about the movie as he kept telling his mom, “I don’t like this movie,” and asking “Can we go home soon?” Little Skippy, I felt the same way. Maybe your kid will like this movie, but little Skippy didn’t, and neither did I. For me, it’s 1 ½ star out of 5. The animation looked fine, but the thing the Pixar folks, and for that matter the Dreamworks folks are also doing better, is developing stories both enjoyable for the kids, and the adults can like, too.

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

Cheats

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:26 Long
A Preview by:
– The Dude on the Right

Cheats
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Trevor Fehrman, Elden Henson, Matthew Lawrence, Martin Starr, Mary Tyler Moore
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: New Line Cinema
Release Date: 2002
Directed By: Andrew Gurland

In my younger days I heard stories about students in high school and in college who cheated. These were the days before the internet, before pagers, before cell phones, and before technology. These were stories of one dude who would pencil in equations on his calculator for a class where he knew the teacher wouldn’t walk during the test, so, basically, the dude had all of the equations he was supposed to memorize written on his calculator. The dude even had a plan to easily swipe away the pencil marks with his finger between the keys smudging the evidence if need be. Then there was the story of the “Flying V”. I was told it was a simple plan, only really able to be done in an auditorium setting, and only done without assigned seating, where the smartest dude of the group would sit in the middle, towards the front, while all his buddies would sit at an angle to him, going towards the back, simply giving the group an easy line of copying answers off of their smartest friend and passing those answers to the friend behind them. Then there was the class where the friends knew the professor didn’t care if you shared your eraser with your neighbor, so, well, answers easily went from friend to friend. And lastly there was the graduate class where the Dean would leave during the exam and the group of Asian friends would start talking to each other in their native language so they could get the right answers while the American dudes in the class couldn’t benefit from their cheating ability. My only advice is to always go to the last day of class because the tricky professor will base 90% of the final exam questions on what he said the last day of class where he knew 60% of the class didn’t show up.

That was the old days.

“Cheats” deals with the new days.

Now you can get answers via pager, now kids try to hack into teacher’s computers to get the tests, now kids become more devious in the masterminding to get the grade, and this seems to be the movie “Cheats.”

Basically, for this movie, things have turned a little more high-tech (although the drop-ceiling still isn’t a great hiding place) in the student’s recon missions to get the answers, or at least the test questions, and thus get the grade. It isn’t so much about learning things to pass the test; it’s about finding the easiest way not to learn, about finding the answers, even if an all-nighter could have probably helped more than the spy tactics used to get the answers. But, in any case, this looks to be a movie where many a student will go to see looking for a way to get that edge while many a teacher will see to spot the warning signs.

In a way this movie will should relate to just about any person who tried to sneak a peek at their neighbor’s paper, and hit a higher note for those with well-planned missions to pass a test. This could be a good one.

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

Chasing Liberty

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:41 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Chasing Liberty
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Mandy Moore, Matthew Goode, Jeremy Piven, Annabella Sciorra, Mark Harmon
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: Warner Bros.
Release Date: 2004
Kiddie Movie: It’s mostly middle to late teen content.
Date Movie: It’s a dudette flick, but he might like watching Mandy.
Gratuitous Sex: Mandy gets naked, but we don’t see it.
Gratuitous Violence: Nah.
Action: There’s some chase scenes.
Laughs: Quite a few, actually.
Memorable Scene: When our heroes are in Venice it’s pretty fun.
Memorable Quote: Nothing stands out.
Directed By: Andy Cadiff

Maybe I’m just older and not hip with the times, and granted she’s of age, but when, if ever, would a daughter complain to her father than no one’s ever going to be able to get to third base with her? As a movie geared for the teen crowd, that scene in “Chasing Liberty” I just found a little odd. The rest of the movie, although farfetched, did have its cute moments and is what it is. Let’s go…

Mandy Moore plays Anna Foster. Like many late teen girls, she’s searching for her individuality. There’s only one problem: She’s the President of the United States’ daughter. Out on a date for her is not a simple task as a huge contingent of Secret Service personnel follows her wherever she goes. This comes to a head in the films opening scene, resulting in her confronting her father (played very well by Mark Harmon) about her lack of sex life. She’s pissed, her dad understands, and they agree that when they visit Prague, only two Secret Service people will be assigned to her when she goes to an opera with the daughter of the French Ambassador’s daughter, Gabrielle (Beatrice Rosen). When the opera turns out to be a rock concert, the Pres sends out the army of agents to protect his little girl. She’s at the club, spots the various agents, and Gabrielle hatches a plan so she can get away. Running out of the club, she spots a dude on a motor scooter, asks him to help her get away, and she’s off and running. The dude, it turns out is Ben Calder (Matthew Goode), and he’s got a secret.

Well, she doesn’t tell him who she really is, he doesn’t tell her who he really is, and now their off traipsing the European countryside and Anna wants to make her way to Berlin’s Love Festival, or as her dad calls it, an orgy. Oh yea, dad is totally against her going to the festival, and, oh yea, Anna and Ben fall in love, all the while staying one step ahead of the two agents assigned to watch them, Weiss (Jeremy Piven) and Morales (Annabella Sciorra).

So, “Chasing Liberty” is generic teen dudette fair, with a nice love story and a hunky guy. It does touch on some more adult issues, like who knew Anna was a virgin, and the issue of trying to find yourself living under the way to watchful eyes of your parents. Mandy Moore does a good job of taking you through the emotions of any older teen being a little rebellious, falling in love, and having her heart broken, and Matthew Goode does well in his predicament keeping his secret from Anna yet still, obviously, falling in love.

For the teen girls, they’ll probably enjoy the movie, though then demand a few concessions from their parents. Hey, if it’s good enough for the President’s daughter, going to the Love Festival should be good enough for them, too. Just remind your daughter that Anna is eighteen years old. It’s 3 stars out of 5 for “Chasing Liberty.”

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

Chasing Amy

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:51 Long
A Review by:
– Stu Gotz

Chasing Amy
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, Jason Lee, Dwight Ewell, Jason Mewes
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Miramax Films
Release Date: 1997
Kiddie Movie: Way over the heads of anyone not at least in high school and even then it could be a stretch.
Date Movie: Not if there are romantic or sexual complications in your relationship. Trust me on this one!
Gratuitous Sex: Just some heavy smooching between girls.
Gratuitous Violence: Nope.
Action: Not really.
Laughs: I almost pissed myself.
Memorable Scene: I really liked it when Banky was asking a ton of questions about the whole lesbian love thing between Alyssa and her lover. The guy has no shame and a huge set of balls to be posing the questions how he does. Very funny!
Memorable Quote: Too many to list.
Directed By: Kevin Smith

The movie’s premise was simply put to me “it’s a romantic comedy where a geeky cartoonist falls in love with a lesbian.” “Hmmm. . .” I thought, “A romantic comedy with lesbians. Has potential.” Then when I found out who wrote it, well, “Chasing Amy” rose to the top of my “must see” list.

“Chasing Amy” was written a directed by Kevin Smith of “Clerks” fame and “Mallrats” flame (as in disaster). I loved the dime budgeted “Clerks” and actually was one of the few people who didn’t demand an apology from Kevin for “Mallrats.” I think Kevin learned a lot from his poorly received second movie and it shows in this, the third installment of his “Jersey” trilogy. What I think he learned is that he is best at writing witty and sharp dialog between characters and that he doesn’t need big sets, stunts, or good acting to get his point across. Basically, in “Chasing Amy,” Kevin concentrated on what his characters would say and how they would react. When his characters do speak and react it doesn’t come off as being contrived or “Hollywood Cookbook” dialog mishmash. What I’m trying to say is that the movie feels real.

So we know the movie is about a dork falling in love with a dyke and we can all assume there will be turmoil there from, right? Right. But the movie is so much more. I don’t want to over analyze this thing, however, the movie really does do a great job of bringing out romantic and friendship emotional issues in a way that’s not dull and often funny.

Here’s how it breaks down. Holden (Ben Affleck) and Banky (Jason Lee) are life long friends that have found success together as the comic artist team for “Bluntman and Chronic” (which is a loose spoof and interpretation of their old friends Jay and Silent Bob from Jersey). All is going well for the artistic duo until Holden falls for a cartoon artist he meets at a trade show. Alyssa Jones (Joey Adams) is a talented blonde knock-out with a thing for girls. Banky realizes this is a love that cannot be, and tries to save his buddy from heartache, but Holden won’t accept that. He pursues Alyssa nonetheless under the false pretense of friendship. As you might expect things come to a head, Holden bares his soul, Alyssa freaks out, and the two fall in love. HUH?!? I thought she was gay. I guess she, and the movie so quaintly puts it, “just needed some dick.” All is going well until Banky tries to bridge the gap created by Alyssa by digging up some dirt on her, and boy does he find some ugly shit! This shit he finds is so ugly that Holden foolishly thinks he can’t live with it. Remember in “Clerks” how Dante couldn’t deal with the fact that his girlfriend had sucked 36 cocks before his? Well Holden takes that feeling to the 10th power, and there ends the romance and the artistic duo’s friendship too in somewhat of an unexpected confrontational ending (I won’t give it away). So sad.

So what is the lesson we are supposed to learn? Well, aside from the fact that females are evil I think Kevin wants to say that the past is just that and in a relationship look to the future. Ohhh, how sweet. “Chasing Amy” is not a hugely romantic comedy and has some mixed acting, but nonetheless it is a movie I would recommend seeing for its dialog and creative character scenarios. In my mind “Clerks” is still an edgier movie, but “Chasing Amy” is a close second. I liked “Chasing Amy” and I give it 4 out of 5 stars and I’m Stu Gotz. ’nuff said.

Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:45 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Bernie Mac, Demi Moore
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: Columbia Pictures
Release Date: 2003
Kiddie Movie: Lots of fighting.
Date Movie: Only if you hate your mate.
Gratuitous Sex: Lots of skimpy outfits.
Gratuitous Violence: Lots of shooting and fighting.
Action: Lots of chasing and jumping.
Laughs: A line or two.
Memorable Scene: The Angels do a great impression of M.C. Hammer.
Memorable Quote: Bosley: “It’s rainin’ white women!”
Directed By: McG

One of the good things about writing for this web site is that there really aren’t any guideline as to how long a review should be. Thank goodness, because for “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle” there isn’t much to write about, pretty much because there really isn’t a story.

You get the three angels back, Natalie (Cameron Diaz), Dylan (Drew Barrymore), and Alex (Lucy Liu), and this time you get Bernie Mac playing Jimmy Bosley, the brother of John from the first movie. The story basically goes that there are these two rings that contain all of the information as to the whereabouts of those in the witness protection program. Oh, how much would they be worth to mob leaders who’ve been ratted out! It’s up to the Angels to get them back, especially since it turns out Dylan is on that list, and that her real name is Helen Zass (insert any available ass joke here). To do so our trio will do whatever possible in as little clothing as possible while wiggling their butts as much as possible. And, oh yea, Demi Moore plays Madison Lee. She used to be an Angel but now is on the wrong side of the law, and also seems to be the only person who can shoot a gun straight. Intertwined with this we are also introduced to Alex’s dad, Mr. Munday (John Cleese) who thought his daughter was a nurse, but now, thanks to Jason Gibbons (the triumphant return of Matt LeBlanc), he is under the impression that his daughter is a prostitute. And, oh yea, Thin Man (Crispin Glover) is back and creepy as ever.

That’s enough of the story because pretty much for an hour and three quarters you can ignore the plot and just wait for the next scene where either a) the Angels dance to an 80’s song, b) the Angels must have entered “The Matrix” because they seem to be able to dodge bullets, c) the Angels kick the asses of a bunch of dudes with guns, yet they have none, or d) you get a lot of bad jokes and one-liners. Demi Moore looks great, but a little scary at times, and Bernie Mac is pretty much wasted in this movie, which is too bad because he can usually add a breath of fresh air to a dull movie. The trio dances around in cute little outfits and perform death-defying stunts regularly, including but not limited to landing on and starting a helicopter in mid-air, jumping motorcross bikes better than the pros, using a luge thingy to tap the cell phone of a bad guy while he’s driving, and being tossed from a speeding car, through some windows and down some stairs, and still able to jump around at will.

If you thought the first movie was stupid, this kicks it up a notch on the stupid scale. It tries to generate a message of empowered women, the importance of friendship, and that guns are bad, but for me it was just an hour and forty five minutes of “Yea, I know it’s a movie, let it go.”

You know exactly what to expect for this movie if you saw the first one, just don’t expect to have a plot that at least made a little sense. This movie doesn’t pretend to say “I’m a film masterpiece,” so I guess the good thing is that there is no deceiving the public into seeing the film. You’ll see it if you want to, and for being a brainless movie it leads the pack with 4 out of 5 stars. But as a movie it shows you don’t need a story to make a movie, just some hot actresses and a big enough budget to do all kinds of special effects, and for that it’s 1 star out of 5. I’ll average them together for 2 ½ stars out of 5.

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

Charlie’s Angels

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:38 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right sort of.

Charlie’s Angels
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, Lucy Liu, Bill Murray
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: Columbia Pictures
Release Date: 2000
Kiddie Movie: A waste of time.
Date Movie: A waste of time.
Gratuitous Sex: A waste of time.
Gratuitous Violence: A waste of time.
Action: A waste of time.
Laughs: A waste of time.
Memorable Scene: A waste of time.
Memorable Quote: A waste of time.
Directed By: McG

I won’t waste much of your time and I’m taking The Dude on the Left’s advice and not wasting much of my time, because, well, he found “Charlie’s Angels” a complete waste of time.

Here’s what he told me. The Angles don’t have guns, they can dodge bullets, the story is stupid, and poor Bill Murray, how the mighty have fallen. He said “Charlie’s Angels” was kinda like “The Matrix” but without the cool storyline and that, well, it was a cheesy as you’d expect but not really in a funny way. The thing he found most entertaining was a comment during the movie when a guy on the plane complained about the in-flight movie, a remake of “T.J. Hooker”, and how he wished they would stop making movies of bad ‘80s TV shows.

The Dude on the Left said he’d give the movie 1 star out of 5. I may still waste my time and go see it some day, and you might waste your time too, but don’t say you weren’t warned. And that’s enough wasting of your time and my time writing this review.

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

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

MPAA Rated – PG
It’s 1:55 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Johnny Depp, Freddie Highmore, Anna Sophia Robb, Christopher Lee, Missi Pyle
MPAA Rated: PG
Released By: Warner Bros.
Release Date: 2005
Kiddie Movie: It’s pretty good for everyone.
Date Movie: They might like it, too.
Gratuitous Sex: Really, what do you think?
Gratuitous Violence: No.
Action: Some fun action scenes.
Laughs: There are good chuckles for adults and kids.
Memorable Scene: Technology has made the factory even that more enjoyable.
Memorable Quote: Nothing really stands out.
Directed By: Tim Burton

I was worried that with “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” I would be totally disappointed in the movie because of my love for “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” My worry was unfounded, although I do have one major gripe, which I’ll get to later. Let’s get to it…

The story is pretty much the same as “Willy Wonka,” with a little more of a backstory. This time we learn why Willy Wonka got into the chocolate business, his family issues as a little boy, and why the Oompa Loompa’s are working in the factory instead of people. Once again Willy offers up a tour of his factory to some lucky children who find the magic tickets, and our kids are the same. You of course get poor kid Charlie, the fat slob Augustus, the TV addicted genius Mike, the gum-chewing Violet, and the spoiled brat Veruca. Along with them come their parents, who are just as wacky as their kids.

So, you get the kids touring the factory, and yes, Augustus falls in the chocolate river, Violet turns into a blueberry, and Mike gets put inside a TV. Different, though I actually liked it better, was Veruca’s fate, mostly because the animals were so cute. Different, also, was the way they worked the ending, but I’m sticking that the “Willy Wonka” ending was a little better and more poignant.

The main difference between the “Willy Wonka” version and the “Charlie” version is mostly the technological advances that give the “Charlie” version a slight advantage. The factory is fantastic, the Bucket’s homestead is oddly angular, and the elevator is pretty cool. I will also add that the folks playing the other kids and their parents were fantastic. However, this movie would have easily been 4 ½ stars except for one thing – the Oompa Loompa songs were horrible. When I asked Stu about this movie, he said the same thing, that the Oompa Loompa songs were unintelligible. And that is way too bad.

What they did, rather than the campy “Oompa Loompa Doom-pa-de-do” songs, was rework them into extravagant musical numbers with the instruments overpowering the lyrics, so much so that you really couldn’t understand the lesson the Oompa Loompa’s were trying to convey about the actions of kids, how eating too much is bad, chewing too much candy is gross, being spoiled is the parent’s fault, and watching too much TV rots your brain.

The way they did the Oompa Loompa’s was interesting, and overall I enjoyed the movie, the characters, and even though Johnny Depp was pretty creepy, he even won me over. I just don’t understand how you can make this movie and screw up the Oompa Loompa songs, and that’s enough for me to drop my rating to 3 ½ stars out of 5. I understand they couldn’t just copy the way the songs were done in the “Willy Wonka” version, but they should have been able to come up with something better than they did.

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

Charlie Bartlett

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:37 Long
A Preview by:
– The Dude on the Right

Charlie Bartlett
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Anton Yelchin, Robert Downey Jr., Hope Davis
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: MGM
Release Date: 2008
Directed By: Jon Poll

Here’s a tricky movie to promote, kinda like “Superbad,” where even though some of the core group of folks who might want to see this movie are high-schoolers, it’s rated R. In any case we get Charlie (Anton Yelchin). He comes from a wealthy family and doesn’t fit in at his new school, the new school he is at because he gets tossed from all of the private schools. Going to therapy himself, one day he helps a fellow student and suddenly Charlie is the “psychiatrist” for his fellow classmates. Suddenly Charlie is cool, falls in love, and the Principal sees that things are amuck and that Charlie must be dealt with.

A dark comedy with what looks like clever writing, Charlie Bartlett looks like a fantastic character and this might be fun for adults who were the snooty kids in high school but have since grown up, kinda like us nerds could relate to the boys of “Superbad.”

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