The Change Up, 2011

The Change Up, 2011
Director: David Dobkin
Cast: Jason Bateman, Ryan Reynolds, Olivia Wilde


Stage: Home theatre, Friday night.


The Change Up in short: Growing up together, Mitch (Ryan Reynolds) and Dave (Jason Bateman) were inseparable best friends, but as the years have passed they've slowly drifted apart. While Dave is an overworked lawyer, husband and father of three, Mitch has remained a single, quasi-employed man-child who has never met a responsibility he liked. To Mitch, Dave has it all: beautiful wife Jamie (Leslie Mann), kids who adore him and a high-paying job at a prestigious law firm. To Dave, living Mitch's stress-free life without obligation or consequence would be a dream come true. Following a drunken night out together, Mitch and Dave's worlds are turned upside down when they wake up in each other's bodies and proceed to freak out. Despite the freedom from their normal routines and habits, the guys soon discover that each other's lives are nowhere near as rosy as they once seemed. Further complicating matters are Dave's sexy legal associate.

Preps: This is now hot stuff in local theatre. So let's check it up. According to the trailer, it won't be a shocker if I hate it.


Reality: My hunches are sometimes so true. First of all, the topic is insanely abused by many pieces, seen so far.
Secondly, most of those pieces exceeded this one. This is a bad example of a remake of a lot of remakes.
Hm.. two people, desperately wanting to get out of their lives, wanting everything to change and then after one week realize that life is precious? Ok, I see the value in this, however the delivery is horrible. You need to piss in the fountain to get laid? Really?
Anyhow, Reynolds and Bateman pair up in Hanson and Gretel, one picking up breadcrumbs from hot women, the other one taking responsibility. OK, lesson learned. Married life means that your woman farts too. Well, goes hand in hand with pre-assumptions and land of milk and chocolate, if you aren't aware of this fact before you marry the girl.
And all of the sudden Reynolds becomes serious and wants a serious relationship. Really? I buy that Bateman as a married guy wants to repeat his vowels, but does a mindset that has various women under his roof almost each night, change after one week? Well, could be, but how long will it last before the predator inside him approaches again?

Bad delivery (director), bad cast. Implying that work isn't everything and that we run around chasing minutes and seconds instead of living the life. Agree, however it's something great thinkers told us hundred years ago. Doesn't mean it doesn't apply to today, however, a chewed-up story with a cheesy ending. A no no.


My personal rate: 1,0 (yuk. another one bites the dust. Do something better with your time!!!)


The Change Up on IMDB

Just friends, 2005

Just friends, 2005
Director: Roger Kumble
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Amy Smart, Anna Faris


Stage: Home theatre

Just friends in short: Chris Brander has always been friends with Jamie Palamino, but now decides it is time to take his relationship to the next step. The problem is, is that Jamie still wants to be 'Just Friends'. When he runs away and moves to L.A., he becomes a attractive music manager, who everyone wants. When his jet crashes, when flying to Paris with his newest singing sensation, Samantha James, he ends up back home. To his surprise, he encounters Jamie again, and sets out to be more than 'Just Friends' this time.


Preps: a strong recommendation makes me wonder what is behind the scenes of the piece


Reality: A good surprise. Normally, this type of the movie, turns out to be a lame comedy or a truly stupid piece. There are, however, some of the movies that derive from Hollywood and have surpassed my eye of criticism as fairly good or even very good. Dude where's my car, American pie, Roadtrip, etc. These are some of the better ones. And this piece turns out to be one of them, too. Amazingly enough, it drives you through high school dilemmas and wondering, what is the perfect love, how to gain it, what are the drama effects mocking can have on someone and how to tell your love that she/he is your love, if you are supposingly "just friends".

Now, turning to present time, the guy, that was mocked in high school, is a hot shot, good looking successful person, working with high recognizable people and movie/music stars. Going back to his family house, even though it's supposed to be for a day, gives him the opportunity to come clean with the trauma that has obviously caused him to turn out a jerk. Pushing love romance in one edge and indulging in the relationships (various, money-driven; passion-driven) on the other, it doesn't make him a better person. Just better perceived in his own idea what he's supposed to be. The story revolves around one simple question everyone has once in a while and some for their whole lives - who am I now, am I happy with myself and what is my perception of what should I be.

There isn't a brilliant formula to describe this, however, this piece implies that childhood traumas dramatically effect the way you act as an adult. I personally disagree up to some extent. In some way, we can be influenced a lot, on the other hand, surely you can acknowledge, whether you have become a mean version of yourself. And the trauma from childhood could here serve as an excuse - so they made me the way I am now. Philosophically put, you are the way you decide to be. You live the life you choose and not vice versa.

Philosophy aside, the movie is one of better Hw'd comedies in the last decade, bringing an enormous amount of sane humour and good scenes, where you should roll with laughter. And the ever popular chase for the girl. If nothing else, you will enjoy humorous chasings and rivalry between two guys to meet one girl's heart to claim forever.


My personal rating: 8,0 (a solid piece, worth seeing again. I can sense the director of American pie in this).

Just friends on IMDB

Buried, 2010

Buried, 2010
Director: Rodrigo Cortes
Cast: Ryan Reynolds


Stage: home theatre


Buried in short: Waking groggy in pitch darkness, Paul Conroy, an American truck driver working as a contractor in Iraq in 2006, slowly realizes he is trapped inside a wooden coffin, buried alive. With his cigarette lighter, he can see the trap he is in, and he quickly realizes that there's not enough air for him to live long. He finds within the coffin a working cellphone, which allows him contact with the outside world. But the outside world proves not to be very helpful at finding a man buried in a box in the middle of the Iraqi desert. Paul must rely on his best resource--himself.

Preps: Wanted to see this piece on LIFFE, the movie festival, but I missed it. Heard a great deal about it and wanted to see it badly. Now I get it at home..


Reality: A strong reminder, how little we are to the society and how the importance is being measured as long as we are valuable. To be blackmailed is nothing really new, but to be buried underground, figuring out how long your cellular is going to hold and not being able to get to anyone that could help, is another story indeed. The plot seems vague and empty in the beginning, but later on the movie turns out to be a critic of US staying in Iraq, all the innocent people trying to get money for their service, turning out in hands of terorrists to be blackmailed - the movie is filled with negative pesimism, that can drive the viewer mad in thinking, how did we get this far.

Having governmental bureacreacy up to this level, tailored to serve the citizens, ending up in serving themselves, is simply to ironic to handle. Too much of black humour /irony - or shall we say or admit truth in this piece it will rock your soul. What would you do in order to get out of the box is one thing - Paul in this case can do nothing really important. Who to call, who to say goodbye from.. those are the questions popping in Paul's mind. How unimportant he really is, is shown by the attitude of various institutions that he tries to call. The main idea I am left with is, may I never turn up in a situation like this. With only government with its great attitude to help me or to assist me with something. The administrative procedures that serve themselves are simply too much. Vividly shown in the piece, dramatically cast by Ryan Reynolds.

One of the masterpieces, made on a very static position. It is extremely hard to fill in the movie if you are limited to one position or one location (for instance, brilliant job at Phone Booth). Nevertheless, I keep wondering, what the government is all about. About citizen not, for sure.



My personal rating: 8,0 (a truly unique piece of work, showing us, how little and unimportant we are..)


Buried on IMDB

Buried official page