Freaky Friday

Posted to Family on August 19th, 2006 by Chad Everett

This rehash of the “switch body” theme is anything but boring.

Anna (Lindsay Lohan) is a bit of a slacker who just wants her mom to leave her alone – especially since her mom is getting married, and this boyfriend isn’t Anna’s dad.

Other than that one flaw, he’s not a bad guy. Anna’s mom Tess (Jamie Lee Curtis) probably just needs to loosen up a little – but that doesn’t mean she’s ready to do so, unless she’s forced into it.

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Envy

Posted to Comedy on June 1st, 2006 by Chad Everett

Jack Black is always fun to watch. This time around he plays Nick Vanderpark, who just can’t seem to keep his focus at work.

Meanwhile, best buddy Tim Dingman (played by Ben Stiller) has great focus, as evidenced by the new office chair. It also happens that he lives right across the street. Tim also has a certain amount of contempt for Nick, so when Nick finally gains his focus with an idea for a new product, he dismisses it without a second thought.

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Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story

Posted to Comedy on April 1st, 2006 by Chad Everett

Average Joe’s gym, owned by regular guy Peter La Fleur Vince Vaughn, suddenly needs $50,000 to pay off their mortgage. It looks like the only way there is through a dodgeball tournament, so they put together a rag-tag team and sign up. The rest of the movie is, well, pretty predictable, though it takes a roundabout way to get there.

The most notable speed bump on the way is through White Goodman (Ben Stiller), owner of the competing gym that wants to buy Average Joe’s (and coincidentally, the reigning dodgeball champs).

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Mystic River

Posted to Drama on March 19th, 2006 by Chad Everett

The acting in this drama was superb, especially from Kevin Bacon and Sean Penn. I find that as I watch more and more of Tim Robbins, I find that he has his characters nailed (he won an Oscar for his performance here) but they just don’t vary a whole lot. They always have the same off-kilter look, and they each make you wonder what is going on underneath the surface, but there just isn’t a lot of real depth. While I’m not the world’s largest fan of Sean Penn, I was impressed by his role here (he won too, deservedly so).

The thug-like character played by Penn is matched by Bacon’s police persona, and wouldn’t you know it? They knew each other as kids. As it turns out, Tim Robbins rounds at the trio as one of the friends who was abducted and abused one fine day while they were in the middle of some mischief making.

Penn’s character, Jimmy Markum, finds that his daughter is missing, and then that she is dead. Meanwhile, Bacon’s detective, Sean Devine claims the job of trying to figure out who did it – or at least find a reasonable suspect – before Markum uses his contacts to bring someone to justice.

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About Celluloid Heroes

Welcome to Celluloid Heroes! Here you will find movie reviews of all shapes and sizes. No stone is left unturned, and that is meant quite literally. In fact, you are probably quite unlikely to find the best of the best, as that's something that you can find elsewhere. Here you're more likely to find the dregs of the movie world than anything else.

As to the name? It's actually from a song by The Kinks, and while it may or may not have anything to do directly with the movies, it does mention quite a few movie stars, and things that make you think about movies, and well, it just seemed appropriate. Hopefully you'll agree, and if not, I suspect it won't get in the way too much.

Thanks for visiting, enjoy your stay, and come back often.