Tag: He Said She Said

Review: ‘The Ugly Truth’

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He Said:

So, when Jennifer said “I want to see that,” I looked up from my laptop and asked “see what?” She quickly backed up the Tivo and showed me a commercial for ‘The Ugly Truth’. All I remember thinking was… oh no, not again.

Fast forward and we’re at the premier and sitting in our seats eagerly awaiting the raging suck fest that most romantic comedies are. I said most. Not all. There are, in fact, a number of fantastic romantic comedies out there. Though, most of the ones I can think of involve Meg Ryan. Weird. So anyway, the movie begins and follows the path of Abby, a TV producer and neurotic control freak who is surprisingly well versed in handling her crew and talent. Knowing just what to say to keep them happily in line. She also shows off her ability to think on the fly when the guest chef on her show causes a small uprising with the dish he makes.

So, enter the struggle as poor Abby, played by Katherine Heigel (Knocked Up, 27 Dresses), is trying to save her failing show and find the ideal mate at the same time. When by chance, her cat changes the channel on the TV to ‘The Ugly Truth’, a show on public access TV hosted by Mike, played by Gerard Butler (300, RocknRolla).

Mike’s show is all about exposing the little fantasies we all have about dating and love. All the while making fun of the masks and slight of hand we use in our pursuit of romantic relationships. It was kind of refreshing to hear a man talk about being a man. Talking about what our real motivations are and how they relate to male and female interactions. If there is not a show like this one on the air now, there really should be.

After a very embarrassing moment as a caller on Mike’s cable access show, Abby finds herself in the unfortunate position of being Mike’s producer after he is brought onto Abby’s show as a weekly guest. The powers that be think that Mike is just the sort of audacious flare that the dieing show needs.

This is a fantastic movie. Heigle and Butler have a strong on-screen chemistry. Their fight scenes have sexually charged energy that makes them engaging to watch. I thoroughly enjoyed the film. It occurred to me as we sat watching the credits and waiting for the theater to clear out that this is a guy movie disguised as a chick flick. Take that Coyote Ugly!

— Chad

She Said:

The truth about romantic comedies is that they all follow a pattern. An established set of rules that you can check off as you work your way through the movie. ‘The Ugly Truth’ starring Katherine Heigel and Gerard Butler hits all of the required notes and unfolds exactly as you might expect. What I did not expect was the raunchy humor, explicit language and profanity. And yet, somehow they made it all work.

Tightly wound morning show producer Abby runs a tight ship at her Sacramento television studio (look for Cheryl Hines and John Michael Higgins as a hilarious husband/wife anchor team). Ratings are down, so her manager decides to liven things up by bringing in the host of a local cable access show known for sparking controversy about the truth about the sexes. Mike (Gerard Butler) is everything that Abby is not. She is determined to get him off of her show by any means necessary.

Opportunity presents itself on two fronts when Abby meets handsome Dr. Andrews (Eric Winter is the perfect Ken to Heigel’s Barbie). To help her land the man of her dreams, Mike offers to coach her on the ways of seduction and lust. If he is right, she gets Dr. Andrews. If his plan does not work, Mike will leave the show.

While I am sure we all know how the film ends I will not give away the ending. I will however warn the faint of heart that the blue screened ending scene is in jarring contrast to the rest of the beautifully shot film. I actually think that the special effects in ‘Plan 9 From Outer Space’ may have been better.

‘The Ugly Truth’ opens in theaters Friday July 24, 2009 and is rated ‘R’.

— Jennifer

He Said/She Said: ‘Terminator 2: Judgement Day’

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He Said/She Said is a column where we have a guy and a girl(Anthony and Heather) who are married and give us both perspectives on movies that may or may not appeal to both parties. With the release of ‘Terminator Salvation’ they covered ‘T2’ for this weeks.

Directed by the famous (or infamous) “I’m King of the World” James Cameron, ‘Terminator 2’ (or T2) was released to theatres July of 1991.   It’s release nearly 7 years after the first Terminator movie may have left some wondering if the franchise still had teeth.   Strong for the times, it opened with 31 million the first weekend and went on to make over half a billion worldwide.

Terminator 2 finds us 10 years after Skynet’s attempt on Sarah Connor’s life.   What’s Skynet you ask?   Skynet is the artificial intelligence computer network that has started thinking for itself.   Apparently, it doesn’t think to highly of the human race.   In the 21st Century, mankind finds itself in a battle to unplug the machines it created.   Skynet makes an attempt to eliminate the leader of that resistance John Conner by sending a cybernetic killing machine to terminate John’s mother before he is born, thus ensuring their victory.   That failed attempt brings us to 1994, where Skynet sends another terminator (the upgrade) known as the T-1000 to terminate John Conner personally.   The resistance, again led by John Conner, sends a little help of their own.   The Governator himself Ahhhnold!!!   Who will get to John Conner first?   Will the new parts in the T1000 match the Governator’s quips and catchphrases?   Buy the DVD to find out, but in the meantime, here’s our take on the movie!

She Said:

OK, so this is the Terminator movie that has the Terminator in it that just won’t die. You know the one. He is dressed up as a cop and is like the energizer bunny. It keeps going and going and going. That’s how I remembered it. No matter what you do to this thing, it just won’t die. You blow its head of, it just melts back. You put a bullet in its chest, it just melts back together. Even when you think that it is finally dead, it still just melts back together. The thing really just won’t die.

This movie came out in 1991. For this time period, its graphics are really cool. I like that in an action movie. When you blow something up, make sure it looks like it really is being blown up.   James Cameron did a great job with this.

Arnold has to act like a stiff, monotone robot. The role is perfect for him.    He just isn’t one of my favorite actors. I guess it doesn’t help that every time anything about Arnie or the Terminator comes up, my dad always quotes the lines… you know the ones. “I’ll be back” and “Hasta la vista, baby”. Ugh!

Linda Hamilton was pretty cool in the movie. She is one badass chick. I will give that to her. She is kinda like the “cop” terminator. She takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’ herself. Well, her character does anyway.   I wish I had half of her muscle tone that she has in the film.

As far as the movie itself, it isn’t one of my favorites. I liked it the first time I saw it, in the ‘90’s, and I would probably watch it again on HBO when there is nothing else on. The whole plot and storyline of the movie wasn’t bad. It is an action film after all. Girls, your guy probably loves this one, so tuck it away for one of those “suck up” nights when you have said something wrong or wouldn’t let him go to a poker night. Otherwise, keep it in the vault.

My rating: 2 out of 5 stars.

— Heather

He Said:

Given my rather young age when the first one came out, I remembered the Terminator movie as almost a horror movie more than an action film.  I mean no matter what you did the Terminator was still coming for you.  With that damn beady red eye. At the release of the T2, I can remember being blown away by this movie.  It had some great affects, and I being a huge Guns & Roses fan at the time, the soundtrack rocked. Time however has not helped this movie.  Sure, I’ll still watch it from time to time as I pass by it on a movie channel.  However, you’ve heard these catch phrases way too many times.

I am a big stickler for the continuity in movies, ya know, the guy starts out and his left hand is broken in the scene, but then they cut back to him and his right hand is broken.  I HATE THAT!  This movie is full of them!!  Yes, I realize I’m totally anal retentive, and I’m okay with that, but it’s like nails on a chalkboard… between seeing strings moving body parts or seeing windshields knocked out and magically reappearing, I just start losing interest in a movie.

That being said, it’s a Terminator movie… Ass kicking, bad-assery must ensue and it does throughout this movie.  Robert Patrick does a great job as the T-1000.  His relentless pursuit and the terror brought about by his self healing liquid metal body still comes through the screen to this day.  Of course, this was Linda Hamilton’s peak, I think she was even voted one of People’s most beautiful persons after this film.  She plays the near psychotic mother of the revolutionary leader with great attitude. She would so fuck your shit up in a bar fight.

My rating:  4 out of 5 (If only because I can almost guarantee I will say “Hasta La Vista, Baby” for the next few days!)

— Anthony

Review: ‘He’s Just Not That Into You’

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We are bringing back the “He Said/She Said” feature with our new writers Heather and Anthony, and the first movie they sat down for was “He’s Just Not That Into You”. Sit back and enjoy:

He Said:

As you’ve already read the synopsis by this point, I will say that overall I really didn’t enjoy this movie. As with most comedies, there is at least something to laugh about, but I think they could have done a better job bringing this to the big screen. With so many story lines, that maybe only slightly intertwined, the story jumped between them much too often. It left me not caring about what was happening to the majority of the characters. I think Ginnifer Goodwin was about the most perfect choice for Gigi out there. I’d definitely consider myself a fan of her work on the HBO series Big Love. The casting of Justin Long as a cynical and smug counterpart to Gigi’s vibrant, fun-loving naivety was also a good move. From the male point of view, you really can’t go wrong with Scarlett Johannson’s Anna as the willing temptress and while you definitely see Jennifer Anniston and Ben Affleck on the screen, the way the stories are cut it just felt like they were wasted filler.

So, for my movie going dollars, I would save them. Sure, if you know you are going to play poker on Saturday and need to build up some brownie points Friday night, give this one a shot. She’ll know by the end of the movie that there is no way you weren’t totally thinking about her when you picked this one out. Just remember when you see Anna (Scarlett Johannson) on the screen, try not to look too excited.

My rating: 2 out of 5 stars.

— Anthony

She Said:

Let me first start by saying that there was a certain expectation I had when I went into this movie. I am totally into your typical “chick flick”; a sucker for them actually. When I saw the preview for the movie, I was either going to see it with all my girls, those that would really appreciate the film, or I could drag my husband to the theatre and make him miserable for about an hour and forty five minutes. I chose the second of the two.

The star-studded film is made from the book penned by the Sex and the City writers Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo. It tells the story of a group of interconnected, Baltimore based twenty- and thirtysomethings as they navigate their various relationships from the shallow end of the dating pool through the deep, murky waters of marriage life, trying to read the signs of the opposite sex†¦ and hoping to be the exceptions to the “no exceptions” rule.

Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin) just wants a man that is going to call her when he says he will. Who wouldn’t? She is full of hope and desperation. During one of her hopeful episodes of waiting for her previous date to call, she meets a bartender named Alex (Justin Long) and he enlightens her with the fact that if guy doesn’t call a day or two after a date, he just isn’t interested. This is the whole plot of the movie. Goodwin was the perfect person to be cast as Gigi.

Beth (Jennifer Aniston), Gigi’s colleague, is wondering if she should call off a seven year relationship with Neil (Ben Afflack). Her sister got engaged to a man she has been seeing for a much shorter time. Neil has made no hint as wanting to tie the knot with Beth, and she is getting a little restless. Aniston masters your typical “I am not getting any younger here, and everyone but Neil is aware” character who tries to be optimistic about the fact, while everyone is rubbing it in her face†¦ unintentionally of course.

Anna (Scarlett Johansson) is getting friendly with a married man and, at the same time, is leading a guy named Conor (Kevin Connelly) on. Conor is oblivious to the fact that Anna is out of his reach. Anna consults her friend, Mary (Drew Barrymore), on her dilemma, which in my opinion wasn’t such a smart move considering the fact that Mary is searching for a “live” relationship with someone who isn’t gay. Johansson portrayed the other woman type pretty well while Barrymore nailed the ditzy all-my-relationships-happen-over-technology chick.

With Abby Kohn and Marc Silverstein (Never Been Kissed) writing and Ken Kwapis’ directing (Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants), they did a fairly decent job bringing this to the big screen. I wasn’t rolling on the floor laughing during the movie, but I will have to say that it was cute. There were a couple of times when I looked over and witnessed Anthony laughing, so I have to give them some credit there. This film was a little more than what I expected it to be, however, I would still recommend my married or committed friends to wait for it to come out on DVD. Â For all those ladies that are single trying to find out if they are the exception or the rule, this movie is made for you.

My rating: 3 out of 5 stars.

— Heather

We Agree: Total chick flick. Guys, if you need brownie points, take your lady to see this one, but don’t get caught snoring or rolling the eyes. It would be a wasted effort.

Ladies, if you are married or in a committed relationship, wait for this one to hit the shelves, but if you are single and looking for a good flick to see with your girls, head out for dinner, drinks and end in a theatre watching this one the big screen.

Overall Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5.

Review: ‘What Happens in Vegas’

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He Said:

I was very surprised at this movie because I was under the impression that this was your run of the mill romantic comedy. Granted, this is more of a romantic comedy than anything else, but at moments you forget and think you might be in the next Judd Apatow movie … OK, maybe not that far, but you get the idea.

The general idea, you can pick up from the trailer, but the movie is funnier than any of the rom-com’s you have seen lately. A bunch of other reviews of the movie have mentioned that there isn’t anything surprising and I will agree with that statement, but it sounds bad like the movie isn’t worth it. I will tell you otherwise … its definitely worth seeing, and worth your money even at the theater.

The highlight of the movie for me wasn’t Ashton Kutcher (Jack), or Cameron Diaz (Joy) but the supporting actors. Lake Bell plays Tipper who is Joy’s best friend, and Rob Corddry plays Hater which is Jack’s best friend. They have a bunch of great banter back and forth. There was also a great little role from Zach Galifianakis as ‘Dave the Bear’ who is one of the “boys”.

Currently, What Happens in Vegas has a 30% rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is completely ridiculous. Its obvious we are the only people whose opinions matter, because frankly we are right.

— Scott

She Said:

It turns out that Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher aren’t just a couple of pretty faces with sexy bodies. Go Figure. Although, it isn’t exactly an inventive movie idea: guy and girl are stuck together due to ________ circumstances. While they are busy hating each other they fall in love. Once that realization is made, though not admitted, one person’s love is questioned because of a misunderstanding. But in the end … love prevails.

Although the plot is older than your mom, it is actually a really funny movie. The dialog is very witty and the somewhat really childish attacks that come from the two main characters as well as their friends are really hilarious.

So, if you aren’t looking for something to ponder over while you smoke your pipe and listen to opera music in a satin smoking jacket and matching slippers, then you might enjoy this fun film.

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.

–Allison