I'm a pretty picky guy and I've got particular taste. I'm also a jerk who thinks he's better than everyone else. As such, I don't take recommendations all that often.
Honestly, most people suck. It's the reason why Jersey Shore kills Breaking Bad in terms of ratings. It's the reason people rave about Sons of Anarchy while Terriers gets cancelled.
But the other day I decided to watch five movies based on recommendations from others. I mean I had the day off and they were on Netflix. What's the worst that could happen?
Oh, admit it; you're curious what happened.
The Other Guys
Recommended by: Jay1
My Take: It was an inoffensive flick with some funny bits. The way the various characters interacted with each other was entertaining enough. Michael Keaton had some good lines, but for me the high points were the bar sequence and the stats in the credit sequence.
Would I Recommend It? Only to someone who already enjoys Will Ferrell
Southland Tales
Recommended by: Joe Reid
My Take: Um, this is a heady flick. Normally I appreciate a movie that tosses you right into the mix of things, but Southland Tales is a film that seems to be designed to be watched more than once. There are musical numbers, crazy double crosses and some powerful messages. And most of it went over my head.
Would I Recommend It? Only to one of those artsy poseurs who loved Donnie Darko, but they've probably already seen it.
Unthinkable
Recommended by: Jay1
My Take: Honestly, this flick was so bad that I'm probably going to write it up as it's own post. This is one of those movies that masquerades as a think piece, but is really just a dreadfully trite piece of garbage.
Would I Recommend It? Hell's yes! It's so horrible that I don't want to have suffered alone. I want everyone to experience it. I'm totally going to pay it forward.
Wet Hot American Summer
Recommended by: Co-worker Jamie
My Take: I'm super pissed that it took me this long to sit down and watch this movie. It's way hilarious and it's a like a who's who of modern comedy, only ten years ago. I'm a fan of loving parody and that's exactly what this is. Crazy funny.
Would I Recommend It? Yeah. Absolutely.
Zombieland
Recommended by: Former Roommate Z
My Take: Eh. It was a pretty boring and straightforward story. Seriously, the story is as tame as you get. But the musical selections were awesome. Doves, The Black Keys and The Raconteurs all popped up. And the celebrity cameo was perfect. But apart from that, this flick barely falls into mildly entertaining.
Would I Recommend It? Probably not.
And that's the story of how I wasted an entire day because I listened to other people. I'll never get that time back. It's gone and I have to wonder if I'm the better for it.
I keep waiting to enjoy a Will Ferrell flick as much as I enjoyed Anchorman, but to no avail. The Other Guys had a good premise, but felt miscast (Wahlberg, Mendes) and overly long in most scenes.
ReplyDeleteI've watched the first 10-20 minutes of Zombieland at least a dozen times. I really want to like it, but it's kind of there. Maybe the 13th time's the charm.
I think the dirty secret behind Anchorman is that it's such a collaborative effort. From Apatow producing to McKay directing to Rudd, Carrell and Applegate supporting, it's really not a "Will Ferrell" flick so much as it's a "Judd Apatow" flick that happens to star Will Ferrell.
ReplyDeleteI really can't recommend Zombieland other than to say that the extended cameo is a genuine treat.