My original thought process going in to “Georgia Rule” was to describe it as nothing more than a two hour sitcom worthy of a local family channel. Filled with every cliché in the book from an eccentric small town, an uppity wealthy socialite, and the local town folks who fill her with a sense of worth, this monstrosity is worthy of every bit of criticism that can be thrown at it. But midway it takes such a confusing stern dramatic direction that it’s just incredibly jarring to sit through. How we go from a big fish in small pond comedy to a Lifetime drama of the week is absolutely ridiculous, but lo and behold, director Gary Marshall tries to pass off the sudden change in this tone, and it’s far from anything resembling seamless or subtle.
Tag Archives: Comedy
Tripping the Rift: The Movie (2008)
My first experience with “Tripping the Rift” was on the television show “Exposure” on the Science Fiction channel where the series that displayed a variety of independent filmmakers and their short films aired a special “Star Wars” tribute episode. “Tripping the Rift” was one of my favorites of the episode and it powered on to be a cult spin-off that I never sadly watched while it was on the air. “Tripping the Rift: The Movie” is a serviceable pop culture love letter, with not a single hint of originality, but a great energy that makes it worthy of the watch, even for people who have no idea what the plot is. Because, I sure as hell don’t. I know it’s a Canadian cartoon of the Canuck persuasion, and has a really hot computer animated chick in it.
It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown! (1974) (DVD)
Okay, so I don’t celebrate Easter, and I don’t particularly subscribe to the principles of Schulz’s comic and its strong religious themes, but it doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with “Easter Beagle,” yet another classic Charlie Brown episode involving the gang and, what else, Easter! While Linus creates another sentient figure out of a holiday called the Easter Beagle, anxiously awaiting its gifts and bounty, Marcy and Peppermint Patty try to grasp the concept of coloring eggs while wasting food in the most disturbing of manners. Believe it or not, Marcie can’t figure out that you have to boil eggs before coloring them.
Hawk Jones (1986)
And now for a trip down memory lane: Back when I was a young lad, my dad used to look for kids movies we could watch whenever we were up to no good and around our block there was a store that had an incredible collection of movies for sale. The selection was absolutely fantastic, with movies that were very hard to find and rare, and became even more so once the Blockbuster’s and Netflix’s of the world choked them out. Either way, he bought us this movie called “Hawk Jones” on VHS for a mere five bucks and boasted about its surefire entertainment value. Well, he wasn’t incorrect.
I Fucking Hate You (2008)
Forsman and writers Kerr and Woods manage to not only add an implication of relationship discord, but also allude to many potential themes in the nine minute relationship dramedy that spotlights a recently split couple who are learning to cope without each other. Though they never really explain, it’s clear from the get go that these two have been through so much with one another and the cause of their inevitable split was both bitter and wrenching. Woods is rather superb as the inept Ron who just can’t seem to explain how much he still loves his ex Carol, who has moved on with her life and is in the middle of a much more fulfilling relationship.
Wrestlemaniac (El Mascarado Massacre) (2006)
In a nutshell “Wrestlemaniac” hurts so good. It’s a stupid, moronic, and outright cheesy slasher flick and yet… I liked it. Believe it or not, “Wrestlemaniac” has every opportunity to fall on its face. It’s a little over an hour in length, it has this obnoxious yellow tint, and has some terrible acting, but the first ten minutes really do sell us on the intentions of it being nothing more than a tongue in cheek horror farce. I mean, when the primary monster is a psychotic luchador, you have to make the compromise and loosen your strings a bit, folks.
Day of the Dead (2008)
As a buddy once said: The Only thing worse than a bad horror movie is a boring horror movie, and “Day of the Dead (2008)” unfortunately didn’t bore me. In fact I had fun in a guilty pleasure mindset watching these idiotic zombies adhering to whatever principle that would grant story progression. As well, these zombies are much more energetic and entertaining than the ones in the “Resident Evil” movie incarnations for the fact that they actually act like zombies and provide some sense of menace and terror even when they’re bursting into flames and withering out like cigarette ash.