“We’re the three best friends that anybody could have.” Those profound, befriending lyrics by Zach Galifianakis held true in the Golden Globe-winning film The Hangover but it’s time we revise the lyrics to fit this potty-mouth, jock-strap wearing hero of comedy: “I’m the best damn comedian that any studio could have.” Read the full story

2007 had an overwhelming amount of incredible films. One of the highlights was the “indie musical” Once. Directed by John Carney, the film went on to win the Oscar for best original song as well as gross over $9 million just in the US, an impressive feat for just a $150,000 budget. Since 2007, Carney hasn’t been in the spotlight, but he has been busy. He shot a low-budget comedy Zonad, based on a short film he made in 2003 (which actually starred Cillian Murphy). Zonad is getting a release in Ireland in March, but will likely never see US theaters. Carney has a new project though. Read the full story

Jay Roach’s upcoming comedy, starring Zach Galifianakis and Paul Rudd, called Dinner For Schmucks doesn’t hit theaters until July, but the duo are already teaming up again for another film. THR reports that Rudd and Galifianakis have signed for another Paramount comedy called Will. The film will be directed by Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton, the duo’s first film since Little Miss Sunshine. The script, written by Demetri Martin, “follows an ordinary guy (Rudd) who lives in a world where people’s lives and destinies are being written by scribes in Heaven. The man wakes up one day to find that his heavenly writer (Galifianakis) has decided to no longer draft his life, and he must go about his day unscripted, ending up on a journey to fulfill his hidden potential.” The film will be produced by Gary Sanchez, Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s production company.

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According to CHUD, sources close to the upcoming sequel to The Hangover are saying that the next installment will take place in Thailand… Yes, Thailand. Director Todd Phillips says that the film is still in the scripting stage and this is only one of the many ideas they are planning. Apparently sources also told CHUD that Phillips originally wanted Thailand to be the setting for the scrapped sequel to Phillips other comedy classic, Old School. So maybe this is something Phillips has been planning for a long time. Read the full story

Funny or Die has the red band trailer premiere for Youth In Revolt starring Michael Cera…and Michael Cera. Miguel Arteta’s comedy also stars Justin Long, Zach Galifianakis, Steve Buscemi, Ray Liotta, Jean Smart, and Fred Willard. Check out the trailer below.
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Paramount | USA | 109 min

Up in the Air is Jason Reitman’s best film yet. The story revolves around ideas of compromises, responsibility and loss. Unlike the excellent Juno and Thank You for Smoking, this is more dramatically driven and less comedic, resulting in a much more mature effort from Reitman. Read the full story

The Hangover surprised audiences and studios alike this summer, raking in over $450 million worldwide on a $35 million budget. We already reported two months before the film came out Warner Brothers ordered a sequel. Since then, writer and director Todd Phillips has been working hard on the script for the new film. Recently he spoke with EW in which he confirmed Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, and Zach Galifianakis will all be coming back and that they are moving out out of Vegas. Check out his quote below:
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Dimension Films | USA | 90 min.

These days it almost seems like a hip, wise-ass, teenage angst flick would be remiss to not have Michael Cera in the lead. Cera’s shtick has been played over and over and its reckless use has started to take its toll on the audiences and critics alike. Following the disappointment of Year One it seemed like ‘The Era of Cera’ had been finally put to rest — or so we all thought. Cera’s hilarious rendition of Nick Twisp in Youth In Revolt has enough Cera trademark awkwardness shtick to be recognizable as the kid we all know and love but also has enough twist and originality to remind you that he is still a viable actor and he has not turned in his skinny jeans just yet.

Youth In Revolt is a book-adaptation film and its main problem is rooted in exactly that — it is a book-adaptation film. C.D. Payne’s 499-page novel is a tough feat to compress into a coherent 90 minute film, but the material they were able to transfer is hilarious and definitely close to the best, if not the best, performance of Cera’s career. It’s weird, it’s smart, it’s shocking and it’s just enough for Cera to reclaim the throne of teenage sex comedy king.

Nick Twisp is a smart-ass kid with trashy parents (Jean Smart and Steve Buscemi) that has little direction or joy in life. Living in Oakland with his mother and her current boyfriend Jerry (Zach Galifianakis),  Nick deals with his promiscuous mother who has a complete disregard for what it takes to be a proper parent. Nick is brought along on a kind of long term “vacation” to a weird and seedy trailer park in Ukiah and is forced to deal with his mother’s shitty parenting and not-so-subtle exposition of her awkward sex life in the close quarters of a caravan. There is an ultra-conservative christian family living in the trailer park as well, and like every family that seeks to socially repress and morally program their children, the kids are exactly the opposite, privately, than their parents wish them to be. Sheeni Saunders (Portia Doubleday), the publicly obedient and privately rebellious daughter of the neighborhood religious fanatic family, is exactly the kind of smart and seductive girl that could complete Nick’s incomplete life, make him fall hopelessly in love and trigger his uncontrollable obsession.

Nick ultimately shoe-horns himself into a ‘relationship’ with Sheeni even though she technically already has a boyfriend. Over the summer their relationship develops and Nick’s obsesssion and desires reach boiling point. Unfortunately, Nick eventually has to return to Oakland and being 14 years old it leaves few options for the relationship to continue. Sheeni convinces Nick, with little effort, that he must do two things to save their love: 1) Get his father a job in Ukiah, and 2) Do something bad enough to get kicked out of his mother’s house so he can leave Oakland to live with his recently relocated father in Ukiah. While Nick is definitely a back talking wise-ass kid, he rarely actually steps out of line to do something about his angst. Confronted with an unquestionable desire to get back to Sheeni and his complete inability to do more than just talk, Nick does what any sane person would do — create a smooth talking no-bullshit alter ego named Francois Dillinger. Francois smokes cigarettes, scoffs at risks, swoons women and never blinks in the face of danger — actually never blinks any other time either apparently with his piercing gaze of badassery. Francois takes Nick by the hand whether Nick wants to cooperate or not and does all the things Nick wishes he could do but never could. Laws will be broken, neighborhoods caught on fire and Nick’s cautious and timid sensibilities will be cast aside as Francois teaches Nick that when you want something, you better damn well get it.

Youth In Revolt succeeds in one-upping it self with one ridiculous plan after another to win Sheeni’s affection. Nick failing at avoiding the crazy plans and their ultimate consequences created by Francois, both of whom are played by Michael Cera, escalate hilariously throughout the film and deliver solid and memorable laughs on screen. The laughs are just one aspect of the film though, as Cera successfully delivers the aimless emotional impact of the situation without over doing it. The audience laughs at the situation Nick finds himself in, but we know under the surface he’s just a poor kid striving for a real connection. Seeing the way his family acts towards him and life in general sets the stage for the sweet desperate innocence that Nick has to break out of uncontrollably into rebellion — or a slightly more mentally unstable method of creating a rebellious alter-ego. Nick found his connection in Sheeni and will do what it takes to retain it. When Nick tells Sheeni, “I’ve been alone my whole life,” it’s obvious that all hilarity and jokes aside, Nick has had a rough life and he’s not going to sit on the sidelines anymore.

Much like the source material, the film is sharp and clever. Utilizing a well-timed voice-over throughout the film, the pace of the narrative is smooth and engaging. If you have lost hope in the golden child of hip comedy, fear not, for Michael Cera proves in fact he is a legitimate actor and not a one-trick pony on his way out of a possibly too bright career. Portia Doubleday does a great job of bringing the written character of Sheeni Saunders to life as well with exactly the right amount of quirky intelligence required to fit the bill. If you are a fan of the book, you may find that too much of the story has been cut out to your liking but what they were able to adapt makes for a great, only sometimes feeling rushed or short, screenplay regardless. In any case, if you’re a fan of the book or just a fan of well made teen comedy, the film is definitely a hit and you should seek it out at your local cinemas.

Youth In Revolt will hit cinemas nationwide January 8, 2010.

8 out of 10

The Hangover is without a doubt one of the funniest movies of the year. It’s a gut busting comedy that is consistently hilarious. It is not just a gross out road trip comedy, rather a fun, sharp comedy stacked with memorable moments and characters to love. This may not be a great comedy, it certainly has problems, but its miles better than most comedies released now a days (except for Apatow produced films).

The story revolves around three friends named Stu, Alan, and Fil. Two days before there best friend Doug’s gets married the four of them decide to head out to Las Vegas for a bachelor party. Stu, Alan, and Fil wake up the next morning with no memory of the events of Doug’s bachelor party and Doug is missing. With no idea of Doug’s whereabouts, the three of them set out to retrace there steps to find him in time for his big wedding.

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