Um...Breaking Bad was awesome this week. I still haven't copped Watch The Throne. My BGE bill for last month was like $48 dollars. Mad Men is on Netflix and everyone should watch it.
Well, I think I've killed enough time, let's get into it, shall we?
The Help
What They Say: It's the age old story of an enlightened white person helping minority characters find their voices. In this case it's a white woman in the Jim Crow South giving voice to the indignities of Black domestics. Hence, the title.
Reasons To Pay: I hear the book is good. The acting seems to be top notch. It'd be nice to see Black women get some screen time in a movie that's not presented by Tyler Perry. The look on white people faces after they leave the theater.
Reasons To Stay: Um, the setting of the story. The story itself. The chance that the notion of a movie about white privilege might not actually address white privilege.
At The End of the Day: It's sort of difficult to find the "heartwarming" in a story about Southern belles and Black domestics. Also, the fact that there's an uproar about a fictional character who's half-Black and half-Hispanic sort of undermines the "look how far we've come" aspect of the movie.
Battleship
What They Say: It's an action adventure movie based on "Hasbro's classic naval combat game." It stars Taylor Kitsch, Brooklyn Decker, Alexander Skarsgard and Rihanna.
Reasons To Pay: Wait, you mean this isn't an elaborate April Fool's Day prank?
Reasons To Stay: Um, let me count the ways. "Based on Hasbro's classic naval combat game." Starring Brooklyn Decker & Rihanna. The aliens and their transforming battleship. That Taylor Kitsch's character is the stereotypical rebel. That it's based on "Battleship."
At The End of the Day: I'm not going to see a movie where the two female leads are eye candy who's talent, and I'm not just talking acting talent, it negligible. I've never been more convinced that I need to become a screenwriter. I've got this awesome idea for a movie based on the classic card game, 52 Pick Up...
30 Minutes or Less
What They Say: It's about a small town pizza delivery guy who gets wrapped up on the plans of two would be criminal masterminds and ends up with a bomb strapped to his chest and 9 hours to rob a bank.
Reasons To Pay: Aziz Ansari is the less annoying of the two seemingly omnipresent Asian comedians who have roles on NBC Thursday comedies. Jesse Eisenberg was really good in The Squid and The Whale. Apparently Danny McBride and Nick Swardson are funny. Oh and Michael Pena and Dilshad Vadsaria, who, ironically are underutilized in the actual trailer.
Reasons To Stay: It's from the guy who directed Zombieland, I barely tolerated Zombieland. It seems like it's trying to hard. I can actually remember the real news story that parts of this plot seem to be based on and it was frightening. That Michael Pena and Dilshad Vadsaria are underutilized in the trailer.
At The End of the Day: This is either going to be the comedy that everyone's talking about or that no one goes to see. There's no middle ground. Maybe I'll check this out, if there's some sort of group outing or something.
The End
Next Week: I've honestly got no idea.
I'm with you on The Help. I haven't read the book (although, my wife hasn't been able to put it down) but, Hollywood's long, storied history of melodramatic, overly simplistic race-relation movies doesn't fill me with optimism.
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