Dropping on Netflix February 24th, 2023 is Director and Writer Christopher Landon’s comedy WE HAVE A GHOST.
The film stars David Harbour, Jahi Di’Allo Winston, Tig Notaro, Erica Ash, Jennifer Coolidge, Anthony Mackie, Faith Ford, Niles Fitch, Isabella Russo, Steve Coulter.
Finding a ghost named Ernest (David Harbour) haunting their new home turns Kevin’s family into overnight social media sensations. But when Kevin (Jahi Winston) and Ernest go rogue to investigate the mystery of Ernest’s past, they become a target of the CIA.
Landon has helmed Freaky (2020), Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones (2014), Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (2015) and Happy Death Day films.
With Memorial Day weekend looming, what better time to kick back and enjoy and a noisy action blockbuster. That’s the way movie fans marked the beginning of the Summer season, well, in those before times. Sure this week’s new blockbuster began running on several screens last weekend, but the main focus of its marketing right now is about its “dropping” on a major streaming service (several would say “the streaming service”). It, however, “changes up” the usual formula for thrillers, aside from its distribution, since it’s another “high-concept hybrid”. You see this is a modern-day action heist flick, complete with the all “big plan’ and assembling the team. Y’know like the main variations, reboots, and sequels to OCEAN’S ELEVEN. So what’s the twist? Well, the big “window of opportunity” for the “grab” is opened due to a big disaster, though not a natural one like the big storm in 1008’s HARD RAIN. Nope, this is another one of those pesky zombie outbreaks. Yes, it’s extra tough to make that “big score” when you’ve got to contend with an ARMY OF THE DEAD.
The story does begin with the start of said “outbreak” when two newlyweds begin their honeymoon on the road to Vegas. The very distracted driver collides with a heavily armored military transport, dislodging its deadly cargo” a ravenous cannibalistic super-powered murder machine. Naturally his bite turns the surviving escort soldiers into killers who are quickly drawn to that “bright-light city”. Via an opening title montage, we see the town become overrun by the undead mobs, which also overwhelm the military. It’s soon determined that “Lost Wages” is a loss that needs to be isolated by a containment fence-like wall made of boxcars dropped by helicopters. A tent city is also set up outside the city by the World Health Organization to quarantine and monitor the evacuating citizens. As the TV news reports of plans to obliterate the infected city with a tactical nuclear strike (on July 4th, natch’), the grill man at a dusty diner, Scott Ward (Dave Bautista) is stunned to get a visit from casino kingpin Bly Tanaka (Hiroyuki Sanada). His insurance has already re-reimbursed him for the 200 million stuck in the big vault beneath his showcase hotel/spa, but he now wants a team to secretly sneak into the city and grab the vault’s contents prior to it getting “nuked”. Since Scott’s a decorated vet and former Vegas resident, he’s offered 50 million to assemble a team (and split that dough any way he wants). He reluctantly agrees and puts together his crew of old cohorts. First is super-mechanic Maria (Ana de la Reguera), “muscle” Vanderohe (Omari Hardwick), and ace chopper pilot Peters (Tig Notaro). Then some “newbies’ are recruited: safecracker ‘savant” Dieter (Matthias Schweighofer) and social media zombie-killing star “Guz” (Raul Castillo) and his “right-hand” Chambers (Samantha Win). Everyone is startled when they’re joined at the last minute by Tanaka’s security chief Marin (Garret Dillahunt). Is he there to keep them on track, or does he have his own agenda? Scott decides the best way to enter Vegas is through the detention camp which entails an uneasy reunion with estranged daughter and WHO worker Kate (Ella Purnell). She enlists a “Coyote”, who has been sneaking folks into town, Lilly (Nora Arnezeder), who also brings in an abusive military guard Burt (Theo Rossi). Oh, and much to Scott’s ire, Kate insists on coming so she can keep an eye out for a mother who made the trek recently. As the clock ticks down to the nuclear blast, can this motley crew make the grab and fly out, while avoiding a horde of rampaging hungry hordes? If they stick to the plan, everything will work out, right?
In his best post-Drax leading role, Bautista proves to be a compelling screen presence casting a commanding silhouette, but still showing a bit more of his human side. Scott is able to shake off the “biters’ as though they were ragdolls, but he can’t shake off the guilt of his failure during the attack on his family. His MCU role may present more of his wry comic timing, but we’re getting a bit more of his heartfelt dramatic side, especially as he finally opens up to his daughter close to the big finale. Purnell, as that sibling kate, is a strong sparring partner for him, never backing down, though the role often seems abrasive and headstrong. Scott’s other partner, perhaps his BFF, is the warm, but no-nonsense de la Reguera who can now add action lead to her growing resume. Hardwick also is an impressive physical presence but is best as a big brother/straight-man to the tightly-wound, eccentric Schweighofer as the endearing, often dense Dieter. Notaro projects just the right amount of “fly-boy swagger” as the sweetly sarcastic Parker. And Rossi, Amezeder, and Dillahunt add an air of mystery as characters who may be a great back-up, though often have secretive motivations.
After a seventeen-year hiatus, in which he became the controversial guiding force in the Warner/DC franchises (“wrecking ball” springs to mind, IMO), Zack Snyder returns to the land of the “non-living” with this epic tale (clocking in at nearly 150 minutes (brevity alludes him). And as in DAWN, these ghouls are almost Olympic sprinters (a trait George Romero chided in his LAND OF THE DEAD), while several new twists are added (they all tend to get into Spider-Man-style poses since I’m guessing that most are played by “Cirque du Soleil” vets). An almost-social hierarchy (maybe a class system) is established. “Alphas”, those bitten by “Zombie Zero” AKA “Zeus”, seem a bit smarter and lord over the majority known as “shamblers”. And there’s a huge development that I won’t spoil, but I’m guessing it will figure into the sequel (or prequel). Still, for all the “rules” set up, Snyder gleefully bends them so that the monsters can slowly advance the plot. And it is a slow build-up into the mayhem that finally begins (we learn that the dead “hibernate”). Snyder, who co-wrote the screenplay with Shay Hatten and Joby Harold, does get the sun-drenched Hell vibe of Vegas correct (as does the current HBOMax series “Hacks”), but certain “out-of-nowhere character confessions are poorly planned. Much of the big action set-pieces quickly devolve into “first-person shooter’ video game homages, slowed down to a crawl (Z love his ultra “slo-mo”) and backed up by campy choices of pop tunes and Vegas standards. And after, what is it, 30 seasons of TV’s “The Walking Dead” (which has two spin-offs now), many of the creeping around/zombie ambushes feel awfully familiar. And I think I mentioned the two-and-a-half-hour runtime. Even a bit of Snyder’s superhero flicks, Zuess sports a cape and a bullet-proof cowl, creeps in, but he doesn’t add enough to now trite Canibal creep tropes. Action and gore fans will get their fill, but for many ARMY OF THE DEAD is a ponderous platoon march through “glitter gulch”. Cash me out.
2 Out of 4
ARMY OF THE DEAD is now playing in select theatres and begins streaming exclusively on Netflix beginning Friday, May 21, 2021.
In Select Theaters May and on Netflix May 21 is the latest zombie movie ARMY OF THE DEAD.
From filmmaker Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen, Zack Snyder’s Justice League), ARMY OF THE DEAD takes place following a zombie outbreak that has left Las Vegas in ruins and walled off from the rest of the world.
When Scott Ward (Dave Bautista), a former zombie war hero who’s now flipping burgers on the outskirts of the town he now calls home, is approached by casino boss Bly Tanaka (Hiroyuki Sanada), it’s with the ultimate proposition: break into the zombie-infested quarantine zone to retrieve $200 million sitting in a vault beneath the strip before the city is nuked by the government in 32 hours. With little left to lose, Ward takes on the challenge, assembling a ragtag team of experts for the heist. With a ticking clock, a notoriously impenetrable vault, and a smarter, faster horde of Alpha zombies closing in, only one thing’s for certain in the greatest heist ever attempted: survivors take all.
Starring Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera, Theo Rossi, Matthias Schweighöfer, Nora Arnezeder, Hiroyuki Sanada, Tig Notaro, Raúl Castillo, Huma Qureshi, Samantha Win, Michael Cassidy, Richard Cetrone, and Garret Dillahunt.
So the family’s all together for the big holiday, well why not head over to the multiplex to enjoy a family film? And hey, “family” is even in the title. That’s what the studios are counting on, hoping audiences will go for a breezy all-ages comedy in between those somber awards contenders. Most of the time, the studios will go a couple of different ways with a “family” comedy/drama. Either it’s a multi-generational gathering of uncles and cousins like PARENTHOOD and more recently, the reviled LOVE THE COOPERS, or it’s about a family with lots and lots of kids like CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN (original and remake) along with blended families like YOURS, MINE, AND OURS (ditto), which begat that iconic TV show and its feature film THE BRADY BUNCH MOVIE. But this new flick has fewer kids and a message. The filmmakers want to give us a look at the foster parenting system (which often leads to adoption), and perhaps inspire viewers to get involved. The movies have tackled the subject, usually in “tearjerkers”, notably in 1941’s PENNY SERENADE. The kids here aren’t the typical movie kids looking for parents. They’re not plucky orphans like ANNIE, because, well, they’re not technically orphans. Lots of heart-tugging and comic complications occur when they join a couple and become an INSTANT FAMILY.
Pete (Mark Wahlberg) and Ellie (Rose Byrne) are a fun-loving married couple in their thirties (can we still call them “yuppies”) who work together as “house flippers” (buying run-down homes, fixing them up, and selling them for profit). As they’re showing off their newest property to Ellie’s pregnant sister and her hubby, a causal comment gets them pondering. Ellie and Pete think that maybe they should start a family. Or maybe not, as Pete wonders if he could keep up with a newborn. This prompts Ellie to consider fostering a child. After scanning and viewing countless adorable tykes online, they call the local fostering center. There the duo meets another duo, social workers Karen (Octavia Spenser) and Sharon (Tig Notaro), who welcome them into a class for prospective foster parents. After several sessions with the other couples, it’s time to meet the kids at a big foster parenting picnic, sort of a mix and match. Pete notices that the tots and pre-teens are getting all the attention while the teenagers are left to mingle amongst themselves (as Pete crudely comments, “People are avoiding them like they’re dipped in s#*t!”). One of the teens, Lizzy (Isabela Moner) overhears this and fires back with a snarky retort. That seals it for Ellie and Pete, they want to foster her. Ah, but there’s a hitch! Lizzy doesn’t want to be separated from her two younger siblings. A “package deal”. No problem as the couple takes in Lizzy, her twelve-year-old shy, insecure brother Juan (Gustavo Quiroz) and high-spirited six-year-old sister Lita (Julianna Gamiz). This “instant family” endures many highs and lows as Ellie and Pete hone their parenting skills. The main challenge is Lizzy who pushes back against the duo. Then things get really complicated when the kids’ birth mother is released from a court-ordered drug rehab program. Will the kids go back to live with her? And will Pete and Ellie be able to let go and do what’s best for the trio?
Wahlberg and Byrne have an effortless chemistry, making you wonder why these two talented actors haven’t been paired up before. As the energetic, firmly focused Pete, Wahlberg has smoothed out some of the rougher edges of his usual screen comedy persona, as in the often coarse TED and DADDY’S HOME, film to give us an affable everyman, a “good Joe” eager to accommodate though his enthusiasm often gets the better of him. The same can frequently be said for Byrne’s Ellie who’s just as smitten with these new additions to her life. And she can “go off the deep end” at times adding a little bit of zany spice to the couple’s partnership (they each know just when the other is losing focus). The duo has a formidable sparring partner in Moner as the strong-willed teen Lizzy. She’s not as easily won over as her siblings and rankles when the “pretend parents” doubt her method of dealing with the wee ones (Lizzy’s been their protector for seemingly quite a while). But Moner also shows us the vulnerable side of Lizzy, as she starts to let her guard down and embrace this home before “catching herself’ and “shutting that door”. It’s a complex role that this impressive young actress handles with great skill. There’s another great duo in addition to Pete and Ellie, and that’s Spenser and Notaro as the Oscar and Felix of social workers, Karen and Sharon. Spenser “shoots from the hip” with a boisterous “no B.S.” attitude while Notaro is the quieter, “by the books” guide to fostering challenges. Though their methods differ, both are committed to the same goal and provide some of the film’s best laughs. Speaking of inspired match-ups, kudos for casting the stars of the two biggest comedy hits of 1980 as Ellie’s parents, Julie (AIRPLANE!) Hagerty and Michael (CADDYSHACK) O’Keefe. Hagerty has an ethereal child-like, loopy air as Jan in stark contrast to Margo Martindale as Pete’s “steamroller” mother, Sandy. This “force of nature” provides another source of comic conflict as she tries to get everything and everyone back on track. Quiroz is endearing as the jittery Juan who over-apologizes as he frets over any misstep, while Gamiz is adorable and often exasperating as “I only eat chips” Lita. Aside from Notaro, several other stand-up comedy stars pop up in supporting roles, such as Tom Segura as trouble-maker Russ and particularly Iliza Shlesinger as the single parent foster candidate October, who has a very specific list of requirements for his desired child.
Comedy film veteran Sean Anders (HORRIBLE BOSSES 2 and the DADDY’S HOME flicks) gets the most of the slapstick situations and keeps the pacing fast and frantic for funny “throw-downs” and verbal fights. But he handles most of the dramatic scenes with equal ease. making a simple scene of Ellie gently brushing Lizzy’s hair very moving and warm. The film’s main flaws seem to come from the script he co-wrote with John Morris. As we many comedies, especially domestic life sagas, the story feels like several episodes of a TV situation comedy crammed together, though with the fostering classes and at home adjustments and problems, it could be two separate sitcoms thrown in a mixer. There are the wacky potential parents butting up against Ellie and Peters’ challenges and triumphs. Big conflicts are brought in (Lizzy is “sexting”), then quickly dismissed with a gag and forgotten. The birth mother is introduced for the climactic final act, but she has little to do other than acting uncomfortable and staring listlessly. The biggest misfire is the film’s big emotional finale. As the principals are pleading and pouring their hearts out, the wacky down-the-street neighbor wanders in, almost as if from another movie, to sabotage the pathos with some awkward (I really enjoy this comic actress, but her annoying role baffled me) asides. This scene is immediately followed by an uplifting epilogue that brings in almost the entire cast for a feel-good finale that would’ve seen cloying and contrived in a 60’s sitcom. I will give them points for discussing the “white savior” aspect of this and even name-checking THE BLIND SIDE, but this doesn’t excuse the many loopy bits of whimsy (who tries to douse a fire with ketchup when several glasses of water are within reach). This movie is full of good intentions as it encourages childless couples to consider the foster system, but it doesn’t make for a consistent comedy or drama. INSTANT FAMILY isn’t instantly forgettable, but it’s not the movie that the noble subject deserves.
Sean Anders made a name for himself in Hollywood as a writer of rowdy raunchy comedies for the last dozen or so years. For the past decade, he’s become a double threat by directing several of his screenplays, such as THAT’S MY BOY, the two DADDY’S HOME flicks, and the second HORRIBLE BOSSES movie. With this Friday’s new release INSTANT FAMILY, Anders goes for the hat trick as co-writer, director, and producer. Plus he’s gotten a PG-13 rating rather than his usual R. As you’ll read here, this is in service of a story that’s close to his heart. Recently Mr. Anders visited St. Louis to promote the film. I was able to ask him a few questions, along with 590 the Fan and KSDK.com’s Dan Buffa, on October 30.
Jim Batts: This is one of the few comedies that could also be called a “message” movie. I believe Sam Goldwyn is credited as saying, “If you want to send a message, use Western Union” (if anyone remembers telegrams). But this film works. Was your original idea to do a comedy promoting foster parenting, or did this occur to you as you made your own “instant family”, thinking “Hey, this is funny. It should be in a movie.”?
Sean Anders: A little bit of both, really. After hearing several of the hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking stories, my writing partner John Morris pushed the idea of turning this into a film. I jumped at the chance to put the word out about the experience of taking these kids in, and how that can change your life because most people just don’t know about this. Fortunately, I’ve kept in contact with my old social worker who in turn put me in contact with several other families who shared their stories and situations, many of these found their way into the film.
JB: Much of the film cuts back and forth between Pete and Ellie’s (Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne) homelife and the parenting classes they attend with several hopeful parents. Was there ever a thought of doing an initial film just about the classes and saving the introduction of the kids for a sequel?
SA: Not really, because we wanted to show the entire scope of the fostering experience. Bringing the kids in was important because a lot of folks that might be thinking about getting involved were sometimes afraid of the kids who have sent so much time in the system. We want to show that many of these fears are unfounded. That’s why we cast several foster families in the big crowd sequences.
JB: The film has autobiographical elements, though Pete and Ellie are not in the entertainment business, but rather are “house flippers”. Did you go through several possible occupations, or was the thought that the couple was “flipping” their lives?
SA: The house flipping has been a hobby for my wife and I. Just like the movie couple, we like to relax at night and watch the cable “house renovation” shows that we’ve DVR’d. But yes, that part of the story lends itself to that metaphor! They’re having a great life together, but something seems to be missing.
JB: Wahlberg and Byrne have such terrific chemistry, you’d think they had played a couple onscreen before. Was the process of pairing them a long one, or was she in mind when you and John wrote the screenplay?
SA: Well, John and I had a long list of ideas for possible Ellies for Pete (Mark was on board from the onset). We needed someone who could handle the comedy and drama, plus an actress who would ask all the right questions about the story and the character. Rose fit the bill, and then some. I recall the first scene she shot with Mark was the one in which they look at the foster child website. After we cut, a couple of crew members remarked about their chemistry. They seemed like a couple who’ve been married several years.
JB: Isabela Moner (as the elder of the trio, Lizzy) delivers a powerful performance. Were you thinking of making the oldest child a male before meeting her, or was the dynamic always older girl, middle boy, and youngest girl?
SA: No, we always wanted that dynamic as it was very close to our own reality. Lizzy is a powerful force, trying to keep the kids together for the birth mother. She reflects many of the conflicts, showing that everything doesn’t “fall into place”. We were turned down by the teen foster child in own first attempt at adoption.
JB: Pete and Ellie aren’t the only terrific comedy team in the film. Karen (Octavia Spencer) and Sharon (Tig Notaro) are an inspired Oscar/ Felix pairing. And then there’s the casting of Ellie’s parents. Were you intending to reunite two of the stars of two comedy classics from 1980 as a gift to film fans of that era?
SA: That’s one of the great happy coincidences in movie making. Growing up, I was a big fan of both AIRPLANE! and CADDYSHACK, so I, and the rest of the cast and crew, were delighted to pair Julie Hagerty and Michael O’Keefe for the first time in a film. It’s not just nostalgia, as they are great together.
JB: Hagerty’s Jan is flighty and soft-spoken. Did you cast her to specifically as the opposite of Margo Martindale’s “steamroller”, Grandma’ Sandy?
SA: No, Jan and Sandy were always written that way. Julie saw and played Jan with almost a child-like quality, while we and Margo saw Pete’s mother as this bombastic “force of nature”.
JB: The Christmas “box” sequence is somehow both funny and tragic, something you’d usually associate with toddlers. Was this culled from a holiday at home, or did it come from interviews and research?
the interviewee earns a prize from the interviewer!
SA: This happened with my own son, Not only at the holidays but as we began to order more and more items from Amazon. He had to go grab those grinning boxes. And this came up in several stories from the families we talked to.
JB: Another remarkable scene that is unexpectantly moving is when Ellie brushes Lizzy’s tangled hair. The teen feels as though she’s about to bond with her foster parent, then fights the feelings, that she must remain loyal to her birth parent.
SA: Yes, this was a real human moment, where we wanted to go for the emotion rather than the “gag”. I was lucky to have a friendship with the late, much missed, filmmaker John Hughes. He gave me some great advice about screenwriting, “It’s not the size of the laugh, it’s how it feels”. Does it ring true? That’s more important. That’s one reason the message in the movie means more than getting laughs. I want people to come away from this movie with a better understanding of foster families and to erase the stigma around these kids. They aren’t weird misfits or monsters, they’re just good kids that deserve a chance. My hope is that more people will do the research and get involved. It’ll not only change their lives, but it’ll also bring joy to yours.
JB: Thank you for your time, Mr. Anders. And best of luck.
YouTube Comedy Week kicked off this week and is showcasing the best of comedy with live events, video premieres and creative collaborations from the world’s funniest people. From May 19-25, YouTube Comedy Week is bring together the biggest names in comedy on YouTube and beyond to create a one of a kind experience for comedy fans.
To kick things off YouTube put together THE BIG LIVE COMEDY SHOW, a live 2-hourcomedy variety show that was live streamed across the globe featuring Sarah Silverman, Seth Rogen, Vince Vaughn, The Lonely Island, Key & Peele, Reggie Watts and many more comedy stars. The show was produced by JASH channel co-founder Daniel Kellison, along with Joel Gallen.
The all-star list of performers includes:
3 Loco, Barely Political, Beardyman, Brody Stevens, Craig Robinson, Dax Flame, Epic Meal Time, Eric André, FIDLAR, Garfunkel & Oates, Gregory Brothers, Hannibal Buress, ImprovEverywhere, Jack McBrayer, Jeff Ross, Jenny Slate, Jerrod Carmichael, John Dore, Justin Willman, KassemG, Key & Peele, Kyle Kinane, Lil’ Bub, Michael Cera, Nathan Fielder, Norm Macdonald, Pete Holmes, Reggie Watts, Sarah Silverman, Seth Rogen, The Lonely Island, Tig Notaro, Tim & Eric, Tummy Talk, Skrillex, Vince Vaughn, Workaholics and many more.
WAMG was on the red carpet to snap pictures of some of the performers and guests of the show. Check out the photos below. (All photos are the property of WAMG and Melissa Howland… so don’t be a goon. Stealing’s for jerks!)
THE LONELY ISLAND
TIM & ERIC
WORKAHOLICS Adam DeVine and Blake Anderson
REGGIE WATTS
JEFF ROSS
Check out some more shots of the stars as they walked the red carpet before the big event below, and make sure to check out YouTube Comedy Week at www.youtube.com/comedyweek
