REELGUY'S DVD REVIEWS:
"Bounty Hunter" an embarassing mess for all involved, "Brooklyn's Finest" actors' showcase on the gritty streets, and "Hot Tub Time Machine" better than you'd expect
What a waste of talent and effort on an uninspired, boring mess of a film. "The Bounty Hunter" is a romantic comedy which is neither funny nor particularly romantic. It also tries to include a crime-mystery plot being investigated by a female reporter, similar to the Julia Roberts ‘90s film mess "I Love Trouble." It didn’t work there, and this movie proves the formula still doesn’t work. The sub-plot is not important to the overall movie except acting as a McGuffin to propel the two main characters forward, keeping them on the run and at each others’ throats.
Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler are wasted in the paper-thin plot about a bounty hunter, Milo, who is given the unexpected and joyous duty of bringing his ex-wife, Nicole, to jail because of her missed court date. The movie is surprisingly mean-spirited with the couple’s interactions. I don’t know what their relationship was like when they were together, but it couldn’t justify the treatment that Milo gives Nicole during the film. He stuffs her into the trunk of his car, steals her credit card, and even erases her TiVo—the rare funny moment of the film. The newspaper investigation that Nicole is involved in is unnecessarily hard-to-follow and really only there as a space holder because the screenwriters couldn’t come up with something better.
Andy Tennant, the director of the hilarious rom-com "Hitch," must have been uninspired by this screenplay because "The Bounty Hunter" is far from his best work. Of course, the marketers don’t want you to know that Tennant was also responsible for the equally unbelievable and painful to watch "Fool’s Gold." Whether Tennant is able to break out of his recent slump depends on if he can say no to such garbage in the future. As for Butler, his best work has been in action movies like "300" or as a sympathetic cameo in "P.S. I Love You." These bastard characters he’s playing in romantic comedies just do not work for his image, nor do they work within the context of the film. As for Aniston, she really needs to stretch as an actress beyond the same character she’s been playing since TV’s "Friends." While we like Aniston generally, we’d also like to see her try something else.
Rated PG-13 for sexual content including suggestive comments, language and some violence.
You’ve got to love a morality tale without any clear or easy answers. That gives actors the opportunity to "act the hell" out of their roles and give these characters real-life dimension. That’s exactly what happens in Antoine Fuqua’s "Brooklyn’s Finest," it is an actor’s showcase on the mean streets of New York. And what a collection of actors in a smaller budgeted film: Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke, and a respectable return to the big leagues for Wesley Snipes. Fuqua has dredged the underbelly of police departments before with his modern classic "Training Day" and equally finds his groove in this film. The movie is a slow-burn and not for those with short attention spans, but the pay-off in the end is worth the wait.
Three police officers in Brooklyn live three different stories within the confines of the movie. The mastery of the plot and the Fuqua’s direction is that while the officers’ paths occasionally cross, these are actually three different short stories woven into one. Gere is Eddie, a cop reaching retirement within the week and not looking to be heroic or "get himself killed" right before earning his pension. This role is a completely different kind for Gere, since Eddie is a shell of a man who lacks the self-assured confidence Gere seems to bring to every other role. Cheadle plays Tango, an undercover cop that is getting too close to the drug-dealers and killers that he interacts with everyday. When Caz (Snipes), an inmate from the slammer who once saved Tango’s life, is released and back on the streets, Tango becomes torn between his oath to his job and a debt to a friend. Hawke as Sal is a role-reversal from the part he played as the good, rookie cop in "Training Day." Here, Hawke gets to be the corrupt cop on the take who steals money from the dealers he arrests. Sal also has children and a sick wife, and he needs the money to move them away from the city--more money than he makes as a cop.
All four actors bring their A-game in this film, expanding their characters into real people with real personalities and problems. Every imperfection is balanced off against a positive personality trait, making these characters truly human. The intertwining of the stories at the end, along with each character’s eventual fate, is inspired filmmaking by a master director. Fuqua proves that "Training Day" was not a fluke with another incredible police drama that pulls you in and tears your heart out. An essential rental.
Rated R for bloody violence throughout, strong sexuality, nudity, drug content and pervasive language.
Who knew this odd premise could sustain a reasonably enjoyable comedy? Obviously, it was whoever took the chance and greenlit this unorthodox project. With a decent box office its opening weekend and generous overall reviews, "Hot Tub Time Machine" is sitting pretty as the top adult comedy in America. The characters are enjoyable enough, the laughs are frequent enough, and the filmmaker is self-aware enough of this ode to the '80s to make this comedy fun viewing. While it is not a sterling example of adult comedy, it is ultimately good enough to entertain audiences and be successful in the quiet movie months of the early spring.
Three former friends come together after a narrowly averted tragedy in 2010. Adam (John Cusack) is going through a bitter break-up, Nick (Craig Robinson; "Pineapple Express") is forced to work a dead-end job, and Lou (Rob Corddry; "Semi-Pro") is a drunken mess. They all miss the good ole days of the 1980s when they were close friends, had their lives in front of them, and before they made a series of bad choices that got them where they are now. Trying to re-live the old times and reconnect, the three guys and Adam's 20-year-old, live in the basement, nephew Jacob travel to a former winter resort in Kodiak Valley. The place holds fond memories for the group, from when they partied together at Winterfest '86. After a jump in the old hot tub and the spilling of a power drink on the controls, the group goes back in time to the festival. Warned by the repair man (Chevy Chase) not to change things before the hot tub can be fixed, the group must relive some of their biggest mistakes to get back home.
The comedy is unexpectedly raunchy, even for an R-rated picture, but once the viewer gets used to it the language works within the confines of a bunch of guys sowing their wild oats. Occasionally scenes do press beyond good taste but mostly the humor is contagious. The real star of the picture is Corddry as the foul-mouthed, aggressive friend who is looking for a new lease on life. Corddry's timing and enthusiasm makes each scene a firecracker waiting to go off. He actually upstages Cusack, who is supposedly the star in the picture. Cusack is less passive in this picture with the help of the energy brought by his co-star. Robinson brings his own brand of Judd Apatow influenced humor to the party, being the self-aware straight man as necessary.
The time appropriate soundtrack along with the ski bunnies and studs torn from an eighties B-movie help set the stage for a fun poke at the earnest cheesiness of the decade. My primary criticisms of the movie are the wasted opportunities for humor and character development in the nephew and the repair man. The nephew has a few quips about e-mails and texting but never really becomes a part of the story. It's as though the director didn't know what to do with the character once he was included in the plot. The lost groom from "The Hangover" was better established than Jacob. Similarly, having a comic legend like Chase in the picture should have led to some funny sequences with him instead of a glorified cameo.
The story loses some of its driving pace and comedic style at the end of the second act when the characters are feeling sorry for themselves. Luckily, the tempo in "Hot Tub Time Machine" picks up in the drive to the finale. The ending is an appropriate topper to an unusual story. The movie is a nice piece of throwback farce that is worth viewing for fans of the decade and raunchy comedy. It will at least tide audiences over until "The Hangover 2."
Rated R for strong crude and sexual content, nudity, drug use and pervasive language.
