 To begin with, let me just say that if you have little or no interest in 'Jackass' or Bam's infamous 'CKY' videos, or anything associated with that - this movie is NOT for you! It's incredibly off the wall and sort of fits within the realm of Bam Margera's brain at the time (2003). There's a LOT in this that's just random and weird, and it doesn't skip on toilet humour at all. A select few will really appreciate this one these days, but I just so happen to be one of them.
Back in the day, I was into a lot of weird, whacky stuff, and a friend introduced me to not only 'Jackass' (which I was kind of lukewarm on), but the CKY videos - specifically, 'CKY2K'. At the time, this was all a branch from, of all things, 'Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3', which has CKY's '96 Quite Bitter Beings' as a part of its soundtrack. Liking the song, naturally, I was curious. Other than a few nasty things along the way, the DVD featured more music from CKY (the early, good stuff), introduced me to 'HIM' (one of my all-time favourite bands), a bunch of skate tricks and really random comedy (which I just eat up). Needless to say, I had to check this movie out. The plot, in question, involves Ry (Ryan Dunn), who has recently just been broken up with by his girlfriend, Glauren (Jennifer Rivell). Already devastated by the breakup, he further finds out that some heavy metal dude named "Hellboy" (Rake Yohn) has been involved with her. While Ry's friends Valo (Bam Margera) and Falcone (Brandon DiCamillo) want their friend to move on, Ry would rather pay them to do things like vandalizing Glauren's house, and doing a bunch of unnecessary deeper digging. A lot of this is hilarious, but fair warning, very low-brow stuff. Most of the humour comes from DiCamillo's physically comedic performance and their shared dialogue. While that's the gist of the overall story, there's also some side-story stuff going on, including Falcone trying to patent a "reverse microwave", Falcone's ridiculous cousin, Raab (Chris Raab) coming to town (who has, by far, the funniest 2 seconds of the entire movie), Ry living with his hedonistic... I dunno, roommate?, Don Vito (as basically himself) and Bam... well, being the Bam Margera we 'Jackass' fans love. It feels somewhat unfortunate now that 'Jackass' and everything associated with it feels "so early 2000s", but what's crazy is that the heart of this movie, at least for me, isn't even in the "jackassery" of it all. I said in previous reviews about how these movies have different "volumes" to them in terms of being somewhat cruel to whoever is suffering the loss. Well, this is our volume 11. Now, just to put myself out there a little bit, I think it's safe to say that I have had some really sad heartbreak in my day - as in spending all day in bed, sobbing about it, and having my mind think the worst of everything. That's Ry's character, in a nutshell, and this movie acts as a great reflection for such a situation. For me, it acts as a sort of reminder to, essentially, not be stupid about things, and I still give this a watch when I'm feeling like crap in that way. However, as I said from the get-go, this is definitely not for everyone. I might sooner recommend 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' for something that gives a similar vibe and is far less random and kooky. I might also give HIM a listen to before attempting this, as almost the entirety of the soundtrack is HIM. Being a huge fan, myself, it's a pretty easy one for me to get through. So, I guess, in the end, this is really only a "Screening Suggestions" for anyone who's ever been a fan of 'Jackass', 'CKY', HIM, and even with all that, willing to take a trip back in time to the early 2000s, and able to appreciate incredibly random comedy that often has toilet humour attached to it... so it may be a select few. Still though, it holds a place in my heart, and it's worth the watch whenever I'm hurtin'.
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 While I'm in the process of reviewing "movies for the bachelor", I feel it is only fair to forewarn potential viewers that this one is very, very much for the dudes out there. It seems obvious to me that writer/director Joseph Gordon-Levitt is speaking to his boys here. And while the film is a testosterone-layered dessert from start to finish, it is the final message that saves the film from being much more than what it looks like on the surface. One might call it an "eye-opener" of sorts.
We are introduced to Italian-American womanizer Jon Martello (Gordon-Levitt). His passions in life include taking care of his apartment, his car, his body, and of course, his women, which also often lead him to his church for confessional. He takes pride in how good he is at pulling in women for one-night stands, but to him, nothing quite beats the experience of self-manipulation to pornography. We also meet his sideline friends, Bobby and Danny (Rob Brown and Jeremy Luke, respectively), themselves womanizers, but Danny is the one constantly striking out. One night at a club, Jon's take-home streak comes to a halt when he meets the "ten out of ten", damn near perfect Barbara Sugarman (Scarlett Johansson). At first, it's all about the standard "dude" play of getting into her pants, but she plays a little hard-to-get, and his feelings end up developing as he starts to see her as something more than a plaything to bring home. In the meantime, as things continue between the couple, the question of exactly what kind of woman she is comes into play. Without spoiling anything, really, we see almost from the get-go that Barb is the type of woman who wants her man to be exactly what she wants. This is a solid bachelor flick for any guy who had to face something like that in a relationship and speaking for myself, it serves as a solid reminder to not let something like that happen again. But the film's message doesn't just stop at "be yourself" and "don't let anyone change you". On the sidelines is Esther (Julianne Moore), who Jon ironically meets at a class that Barbara wanted him to take. She's probably the most likable character in the movie, although at first, it paints her as a sort of annoying inconvenience to Jon. And while the film does largely give us the push to be ourselves and not change for people (although compromise doesn't hurt), it's also out to show the sex-loving dudes out there that despite how satisfying all of that is, there is something more out there that you may have yet to experience. I'm trying not to spoil anything, but it's so hard not to, as the plot adds a new important element to the story for each of its three acts. Also joining the cast are Jon's family, Jon Sr. (Tony Danza), his mother, Angela (Glenne Headly) and his ever-silent, phone-obsessed sister, Monica (Brie Larson), who 100% plays this film's version of a "Silent Bob" character. Just check it out and you'll see what I mean. It's also fun to see names like Channing Tatum, Anne Hathaway, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Meagan Goode as fake Hollywood actors. There's also an arrangement of real porn stars in their real porn clips, so fair warning, this isn't a movie that really holds back at all on how open it is with sexuality. It's almost like Gordon-Levitt saying very openly how perverted he might be, all the while having the right message to say in the end. The uniqueness this one offers in one's healing process is in that it not only lets us know there's plenty of fish in the sea, but the fish you're looking to reel in isn't necessarily what you think you want. Personally speaking, I think that's an important takeaway - especially when I know my taste in women has changed significantly after every breakup I've had. It's also good in letting us "lesser beings" (as far as clubbing goes) than even the kings of the nightclubs have their woman problems. I'm not, nor have I ever been an expert on how all this "pick-upetry" works (not exactly a pick-up artist or womanizer here), but I still get the sense that this could serve as a good eye-opener to those in that position looking for a little something more. For the rest of us, I might say it helps us out by saying all these 10/10 women aren't necessarily gonna be worth it if they're only out for themselves. There's "better" out there for most, if not all of us, and anyone who disagrees has either already found their "better" or given up hope altogether. But give this a watch and you might see just how unimportant the idea of "getting laid" really is.  Just to start it off, I mentioned in my last review that while all of these movies are very similar at heart, each one is sort of unique in what it offers in the healing process for the viewer. I'm going to try to get those details out of the way from the get-go on the rest of these. Last time, it was about the people who you meet along the way, offering advice and not necessarily having them all be potential love interests. Sometimes a new friend can go a long way.
'500 Days' is a little bit tougher, but it almost stands as a sort of reflection of things the viewer might be going through if trying to heal from a bad breakup. This movie is fantastic at showing not so much the "pathetic" side, but just the hurt side of things. It's one of the most relatable breakup movies I've ever seen, as it not only gives us pain but joy as well. The whole film has to do with his mindset ranging from what it's like to be in love to what it's like to have your heart broken. I suppose it could be said that this has to do more with how one heals oneself over time. To keep things relatively simple, the film offers a nonlinear narrative, going back and forth in a 500-day timeline that looks at the relationship between Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Summer (Zooey Deschanel). From the get-go, we know that Tom and Summer have broken up. The story serves as a sort of portrayal of Tom's own memories over the course of that time. I have to say, I quite admire how it's done, as it offers up everything someone goes through in a relationship. One I find most important is the idea of going from fawning to bitter about the same person. It goes to show that we often don't really know what we're getting into, but it also goes to show that sometimes we can be pretty childish about things. Another thing the film does is show the different angles of advice one can get for their situation. Tom does a bit of a back and forth between his friends McKenzie (Geoffrey Arend) and Paul (Matthew Gray Gubler) and his half-sister, Rachel (Chloë Grace Moretz), who happens to be an expert on women at a very young age (this predates her role as Hit-Girl in 'Kick-Ass' by a year). It's not so much the advice itself that I enjoy here, but the idea of who can offer it - even a kid's perspective can offer something very solid. This might be a tough one for someone to get through if they literally just broke up with their significant other. However, I appreciate how incredibly "real" it all is. Even though there are some fantasy sequences here and there, the right feelings really get across to the viewer. To top everything off, the film has its ending. I won't spoil it, entirely, but it offers up some bittersweet humour to the story, and indeed, leaves us with the idea that "life goes on". It can be a little depressing for a healing process, but it's a good thing to see if you want to move on but can't quite get there. It's a very solid title, especially for anyone reflecting bitterly on a past relationship.  I wanted to take a look at titles "for the bachelor" this month; each one with some specific reason as to why I personally see it as such. To make a life-long story short, I'm more or less a life-long bachelor. Over the years of being perpetually single, there have been a few stand-out titles I like to refer to if I ever feel like I need that extra boost. I might have to say that 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' is one that stands out as, likely, my all-time personal fave under this somewhat obscure category.
One of the reasons this stands out so far for me is that I just so happened to see it with one of my exes - not as though she's an ex recently, but an ex at the time. I remember finding the movie to be pretty ironic because it was essentially showing me everything I needed to see at the time. Admittedly, I wasn't entirely over her at the time, so in many ways, this was a lesson in love for yours truly. It does it all so perfectly, simultaneously showing us how... let's just say "sad" we can be after a breakup while taking us by the hand and saying "here's how we get over ALL these terrible things". The oh-so relatable lead (at least for me) is Peter Bretter (Jason Segel); a TV composer for a 'CSI' parody called 'Crime Scene: Scene of the Crime'. Also featured on the show are its leads; Billy Baldwin (as himself) and Sarah Marshall (Kristen Bell), who happens to be dating Peter until one day when she abruptly breaks it off with him, ultimately breaking his heart. He seeks friendship and advice from his stepbrother and good friend, Brian (Bill Hader), but ends up pretty much going against it all, including taking a trip to Hawaii (because Sarah always wanted to check out Hawaii). Of course, by happenstance, once there, Peter runs into Sarah and her new flame, the impossible-to-compete-against Aldous Snow (Russell Brand). Despite the awkwardness of staying at the same resort, Peter is given a nice leg up on the situation when the lovely hotel concierge, Rachel Janson (Mila Kunis) allows him to have the master suite, as long as he takes responsibility for any cleanup, himself. Over time, Peter and Rachel's friendship begins to blossom, and Peter makes friends with some colourful characters; a tough-loving bartender named Dwayne (Da'Vone McDonald), a newlywed couple with bed troubles, Derald and Wyoma (Jack McBrayer and Maria Thayer, respectively), a friendly local named Kemo (Taylor Wily) and, perhaps the best character in the movie (aside from maybe Aldous), a dimwitted, but optimistic surfer named "Kunu" (Paul Rudd). JUST so I'm not leaving one of my fave comedic actors out, however, Jonah Hill also bears mentioning here. He plays a waiter and super fan of Aldous, and is responsible here for one of my new favourite sayings; "I'll just go f*&% myself" (said as casually as "I'm just gonna go hit the bathroom"). Further names like Jason Bateman, Gedde Watanabe, Kristen Wiig and Carla Gallo cameo here as well, so it's full of some pretty solid names (at least as far as this type of movie is concerned). But of course, these names only lend themselves as a part of my love for this movie. One thing these movies on this list have in common is the sense of leaving what's hurting you behind, and moving on with something different, and generally something more. The thing is, they each have a certain "volume" to them, if you will (in other words, some are harsher than others). But they all also have a certain detail or two that really help one's mourning thought process while watching it. Here, it's the idea of meeting new people along the way, as part of the healing process involves putting yourself out there. A part of meeting new people is making new friends, and it doesn't end at "trying to meet someone special". That little tidbit is something I really pushed aside until I saw this; it was like a wake-up call. I've always had friends to talk to about this stuff, but talking about it only goes so far. The various people Peter meets here help him through his hard time, and it doesn't always have to do with the heartbreak part of it. Even Rachel challenges him to leap off a cliff in a gesture to face fears and experience ultimate freedom (and while I appreciate it, that's a big no from me). The married couple shows that even happy new couples have problems, and Kunu has the perspective of "when life gives you lemons, just say f*&% the lemons and bail". When you think about it, it makes perfect sense; turn your back on your problems. Anyway, I've gushed enough. This is almost the perfect level of taking a look at your recently single situation in a comedic fashion. Along the way, you get to see that you're not necessarily the "saddest" one out there. But it also does a really good job of poking at you with characters like Aldous Snow. Generally, he represents the guy who your partner leaves you for, and he's got way too much over you, it's again, impossible to compete. It's a good reminder that we bachelors aren't alone in situations like this. I've pretty much embraced bachelorhood these days, but that doesn't mean I'll never feel heartbreak again. It's good to know, however, that when I do, I'll always have 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' to help me through it. |
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