Review- Get The Gringo

On DVD and Blu-Ray- Get The Gringo - This surprisingly entertaining Action/Crime/Comedy is gritty, grimy, bloody and occasionally quite funny.  It's competently written and Directed, with a few impressive action scenes (featuring some very cool, almost Peckinpah-esque slow motion) and a fair amount of witty dialogue- it would make a great companion piece to star Mel Gibson's tonally similar Payback. The actor proves once again that he's as relevant and as likable (at least onscreen) as ever, with more believable presence than the vast majority of the current crop of budding action stars half his age.

Apprehended by Mexican authorities and thrown into a strange, hellish prison/town hybrid called "El Pueblito", career criminal "Driver" (Gibson, in a variation of his "Porter" character from Payback) is shown the ropes and taught the rules of survival by an 9 year old boy (Kevin Hernandez).  "Driver" soon plans his escape, battling it out with countless thugs, hitmen and crime-lords ruling the prison from the inside out, all the while establishing a bond with the boy and his prostitute mother.

Mel Gibson's face looks like a road map made out of dried leather- it's refreshing to see an older actor that hasn't had an obvious, extensive overhaul performed on his aging mug.  It's a shame he's so determined to piss his career away.  Other actors you may recognize:  Peter Stormare (Fargo) as a wealthy crime-boss, Bob Gunton (The Shawshank Redemption) as a crooked Lawyer and Dean Norris (Breaking Bad) in a very short role as a U.S. Border Patrol Agent.  Mexican actress Delores Heredia (Vantage Point) is a talent new to me- she's Gibson's love interest here. Young Kevin Hernandez (The Sitter) will probably grab quite a few more roles in the very near future.

Complaints: Add Mel to the list of action stars that have deemed it necessary to aim and fire their handguns while holding it sideways in an attempt to look cool (it's uninformed and just plain stupid).  A certain character's ridiculously short amount of recovery time from a major surgery will probably come across as laughably awkward.

It's a movie that would have been perfectly fine as a theatrical release, but held back and released straight-to-video because of Mel's off-screen tantrums.  Driven by the inherent talent of it's troubled, aging star, it's a dark and edgy little action film that might just be best of it's type released this year.

Recommended

Get the Gringo - 7.5 out of 10

Review- The Dark Knight Rises

At the Theater - The Dark Knight Rises -  Picking up eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, this supposed last film in Christopher Nolan's Batman Trilogy is equal parts awesome spectacle and over-plotted, pretentious bloat- it's an O.K. film that could have been great if Director/Co-writer Nolan would have re-visited the art of restraint.  I firmly believe that this film should have been rearranged/re-cut and split into two parts, the first part ending in a grim cliffhanger fashion (similar to The Empire Strikes Back) with the finale being released several months to a year later- it would have solved a myriad of pacing/timeline issues and broken up the tedium of so many momentum-killing sub-plots.

Nolan's heavy-handed approach to the Caped Crusader has promised a determination to ground itself in realism, yet he has apparently worked diligently to suffocate his story-lines with overstuffed plots, logic-shredding contrivance and a few too many secondary characters (many of them unnecessary); all problems that I felt marred other Nolan films like The Dark Knight (to a lesser extent, and held together by Ledger's performance), Inception and The Prestige. I think he's a very good Director who is far too overconfident as a writer- he's just nowhere near as crafty as he thinks he is.   Batman Begins is the shortest/leanest entry of this particular trilogy (140 minutes)- it's also the most fun and overall entertaining of the three. The Dark Knight Rises is approximately 164 minutes long, with about 25 minutes of that being expendable.

There's admittedly a few scenes of grand, high-flying action, though they're unable to fully ignite and sustain any kind of story momentum because too many other things are going on simultaneously- I think George Lucas started this whole mess with the last act of Return Of The Jedi (it later plagued his Star Wars Prequels)...

Hans Zimmer's thunderous score is a very good creative piece of work yet technically over-utilized and highly-problematic when it comes to the sound mix- it often drowns out the dialogue and you may find yourself hearing quite a few fellow movie-goers whispering, "What did he just say?" - It's a serious flaw that seems to be a universal complaint even amongst those that have loved this film.  Be forewarned- even I was wishing for subtitles to English dialogue...

Christian Bale continues his excellent turn as Bruce Wayne.  The guttural growl that his Batman has displayed (and has subsequently drawn much ridicule) is still present, but at a minimum.  There's a serious injury that his character suffers in this film- some may find the rather crude treatment/rehab to be laughably inadequate.  I still don't care for this Samurai/X-Games Biker inspired Bat-suit he is wearing once again (the suit in Batman Begins was superior)- it's just too damned cluttered and gaudy for my tastes.  Then again, there's an argument to be made that there's actually very little of the suited Batman character in TDKR at all...

Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle/"The Cat" (not once is she referred to as "Catwoman" here) steals the show outright- she's appropriately sexy and playful, with a few great one-liners. That said, I'm not so sure she unseats Michelle Pfeiffer's oh-so-sexy turn in Batman Returns... perhaps it was Hathaway's decidedly bland costume. I have a feeling we may be seeing a spin-off with her character... here's to hoping Pitof doesn't Direct it...

Tom Hardy (Inception, RocknRolla, Warrior and the future "Mad Max" Rockatansky in Fury Road) bulked up something fierce to play "Bane" here- it's something I felt the actor had to do to make up for his relative lack of height (Hardy's listed as 5'10", Bale 6').  I'm still not quite sure that it was necessary to cast him here (Nolan's familiarity with Hardy, Cotillard and Gordon-Levitt from the Inception shoot surely helped them all land roles), as his acting talents are rather wasted; "Bane's" electronically amplified voice comes across as a little awkward and some may have a hard time understanding snippets of his dialogue- again, the overbearing score is partially to blame while not being able to see his mouth/lips (due to his pain-alleviating mask) doesn't help matters.  I'm positive that there's a number of huge, athletic pro-wrestlers/athletes available that could have pulled off the role with equal success.  It's obviously an entirely different role in nature than that of Heath Ledger's "Joker" in TDK; there's an undeniable presence in "Bane"/Hardy, but the performance is nowhere near as mesmerizing and never carries the film as Ledger's did in the previous entry.

There is no reference to "The Joker" in this movie whatsoever- it's obviously intended but unappreciated and could be understandably looked upon as one amongst a myriad of plot holes given the storyline.  Cillian Murphy makes a couple of brief, unmasked appearances as "The Scarecrow" while Liam Neeson's "Ra's Al Ghul" shows up as a ghostly memory. 

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception, (500) Days of Summer) is serviceable in a pivotal role as an honest cop with a dynamic character arc.  I understood the intentions here (regarding his character), but couldn't buy into it's execution. Gary Oldman is still in top form as "Commissioner Gordon" and has quite a bit to do throughout. Morgan Freeman returns as "Lucious Fox" in several brief scenes while Marion Cotillard (Inception, La vie en rose) is "Bruce Wayne's" love interest harboring a dark secret of her own- she's solid in limited screentime. Michael Caine (one of my all-time favorite actors) is very good in a few small, but poignant appearances as "Alfred"- I've always had the utmost respect for the actor and fear his age may begin to limit his future screen appearances. Other notable actors include; Matthew Modine (Full Metal Jacket), Daniel Sunjata (FX's Rescue Me), Aidan Gillen (Blitz), Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom) and Juno Temple (Atonement).

Some of my many complaints:  There's an unforgivably stupid segment in which a shoulder-to-shoulder horde of heavily armed cops rushes to meet a (yes, shoulder-to-shoulder) horde of heavily armed thugs in the middle of a barren Gotham intersection that simply boggles the mind- so much for Guerrilla Warfare... or realism.

One of the issues I've always had with the "Batman" character is his unwillingness to dish out a bit of lethal justice when a golden opportunity presents itself- he could have saved hundreds, if not thousands, of lives had he not laid the "Bat-Pod" down when he had "The Joker" in his sights in TDK- there's a similar scene of wasted opportunity here involving "Bane" that's painfully out of touch.  Thankfully, "Selina Kyle"/"The Cat" doesn't share his stance on the matter (it's a very cool crowd-pleasing moment that the film desperately needed more of).

In the eight years since "Harvey Dent" died and "Batman" disappeared, Gotham has somehow miraculously rid the city of major crime with the passage of the "Dent Act"- that must have been one hellatious piece of legislature that replaced a dead D.A. and a missing Crimefighter.... why were they even necessary in the first place?

A segment involving Gordon-Levitt's character and school bus full of underprivileged kids trying to pass through an armed barricade should have been left on the cutting room floor. It's a tedius subplot, to say the least, and only helps to destroy any kind of momentum that the film has garnered through other, more impactful proceedings.

I guess it's not really a spoiler, but this particular trilogy ends without any mention of "The Penguin", "The Riddler", "Poison Ivy", "Mr. Freeze", "Killer Croc", etc.,- that's somewhat disappointing.  I'd love to see Joss Whedon, Guillermo Del Toro or James Cameron tackle the character of "Batman" next, possibly infusing a bit more fun into the matter and shying away from the self-seriousness the Nolan films have established.

Lastly, and probably most importantly- "Bane" and his army of henchman seal off Gotham City from the outside world and hold it's citizens hostage under threats of detonating an already ticking fusion bomb for a period of about 5 months- making no monetary demands and with apparently no means of escape, why not detonate the bomb immediately?  Why wait 5 months for the bomb to reach it's meltdown?  Think about it.

Things I liked: A first-half sequence involving our hero getting back into uniform and "flying" back into action in an attempt to thwart a Stock Exchange heist is admittedly heart-lifting but ultimately anti-climactic. "The Bat" is pretty damned cool.

The effects work is razor sharp; there's a relatively small amount of evident CGI - that's commendable in my book. Most of the action appears to be done with an excellent mixture of models/miniatures, stunt-work and life-sized props with an number of impressive set pieces as backdrops.  The film never looks bad.

The initial mano a mano confrontation between "Batman" and "Bane" is very well filmed and choreographed- for the most part, Nolan has addressed the spastic editing and shaky-cam approach that marred the hand-to-hand fight scenes of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.  Needless to say, it was appreciated.

A series of parting, conclusive shots will undoubtedly leave a smile on your face-  for myself, it was far too little and far too late.  In my opinion, the best Comic-Book movie of 2012 (by far) was released in May...


The Dark Knight Rises - 6.0

FWIW-

Batman Begins- 8.5
The Dark Knight- 8.0

Other Christopher Nolan films-

Memento- 8.5
Insomnia- 8.0
Inception- 6.0
The Prestige- 5.5

Just Because- The Lone Ranger & Tonto

Review- The Amazing Spider-Man

At the Theater - The Amazing Spider-Man - This franchise reboot comes across as more of a pale, paint-by-numbers imitation of 2002's Spider-Man- it's too familiar and expected, with far too much half-hearted time spent rehashing the origin of our hero simply to introduce mechanical web-shooters to the fold.  Marc Webb's ( (500) Days Of Summer) lack of directorial flair here hints at a Director that's either in over his head or a studio that ultimately lacked faith in his creative abilities, possibly reigning him in from implementing a personal style or imprint upon the film for some unknown reason (budgetary concerns/shooting schedule?). The final product is rarely any kind of high-flying fun, with only a moderate amount of emotion or tension. I just couldn't invest myself in the story and even found myself starting to nod off around the 1/3 mark of the movie.

I will have to admit feeling that a significant portion of the finished film was probably cut due to theatrical run-time concerns, though I can only comment on what I paid to see. I offer this because there are a few rather awkward sequencing and editing issues- a segment aboard a subway car involving Parker's first reaction to his new found abilities is so disjointed and poorly staged that I thought it would be revealed as a dream sequence- no such luck. 

Although I can respect the grittier approach of this film, I believe most will miss Director Sam Raimi's quirky sense of humor, penchant for wild camera shots and inherent ability to see a film unfold from an audience's perspective- he's a bona-fide film-geek and his crazy, energetic showmanship often bleeds through to aisle seats.  This particular film sorely missed his distinctive style- for that matter, there's nothing distinctive about it. The effects work is often impressive, but with so little heart/depth behind and around it, what's the point?

Andrew Garfield's a far better actor than Tobey Maguire, though the script fails to supply enough quality material to fully endear an audience to his character. There's a depth to the actor  that the script only briefly utilizes- I don't miss Maguire's blank, bug-eyed stare (given pretty much EVERY situation) and always felt his "lovability" as Parker in the first 3 films was more of a testament to Sam Raimi and the screenwriters.  Garfield should prove to have a more varied career, but needs to put on a little more muscle weight- it's difficult to believe that he's actually 28 years old.  The new Spidey suit... I'm still on the fence on this one...

The facial design of The Lizard is about as fearsome as the Geico Gecko after an all-night bender. The reptilian villain is my favorite of Spider-Man's extensive rogue's gallery featured in the comics, the "timid" approach and lack of creativity regarding the creature's countenance here is a personal letdown and appears as a marketing decision made solely to avoid scaring younger viewers. Rhys Ifans (Notting Hill) fails to command any kind of substantial presence in the role of "Dr. Curt Connors"- it's a completely forgettable villainous turn.

I'm a fan of Emma Stone- she's funny, talented and likable, with comedic timing to spare- it's refreshing that her "Gwen Stacy" character isn't allowed to fall into the constantly screaming, "damsel in distress" trap that Kristen Dunst's "Mary Jane Watson" couldn't climb out of in the first three films.  Sadly, we may not get to see much more of Emma's character in future Spidey films...

Martin Sheen (in a few brief appearances) and Sally Field are merely serviceable as "Uncle Ben" and "Aunt May", respectively.  I preferred Cliff Robertson as Parker's Uncle in the Raimi Trilogy and felt Rosemary Harris as "Aunt May" was a rare example of absolutely perfect casting.  I missed the latter pair in this film.

Dennis Leary (FX's Rescue Me) is criminally underused- I can't comprehend why the studio even bothered to cast him in such an undercooked role.  Other faces you may recognize in brief roles: C. Thomas Howell (The Outsiders) as the grateful father of a child that Spidey saves, Irrfan Khan (Slumdog Millionaire) as a sinister, corporate heavy, with Campbell Scott (The Spanish Prisoner) and Embeth Davidtz (Schindler's List) as the parents of a very young Peter Parker. Expect the obligatory cameo featuring Stan Lee- it might just be the best one yet in a short, but welcomed sequence that feels pulled from a craftier film.

The film features disposable (notice a theme here) original music by James Horner- a skirmish between Spidey and The Lizard in a High School hallway appears to be scored using a piece lifted from a SyFy original film.  It was senseless to part ways with Danny Elfman's score that was utilized so well in the first three films.

It's just an average, efficient film that's nowhere near as good as Spider-Man or Spider-Man 2, but better than Spider-Man 3- though only marginally so.

Lastly, I must confess- my biggest disappointment with this film might just be that Bruce Campbell, or the Oldsmobile Delta 88 (look it up), doesn't have a cameo here.

 *** Of Note***  There's a very brief scene a few minutes into the credits some might want to stay for- I didn't think it was worth the wait, but others may disagree.  At about the film's midpoint, look upon a desktop in Gwen Stacy's room and you might discover a reference to Spider-Man films of the past.

The Amazing Spider-Man    6.0

FWIW-


Spider-Man       8.5
Spider-Man 2    8.5
Spider-Man 3    5.0

Just Because- The Wolfman

Review- The Hunter

On DVD and Blu-Ray - The Hunter - Willem Dafoe portrays a professional hunter hired by a ruthless BioTech Corporation to track down and kill the last Tasmanian Tiger for it's priceless DNA in this intelligent, skillfully directed and gorgeously filmed Eco-Thriller/Mystery/Character Study. The on-location cinematography in the Tasmanian wild, which is plentiful here, is often breathtakingly beautiful- those with an appreciation for natural scenery should be highly pleased.

Dafoe's character, masquerading as a scientist, lodges with the devastated wife (Frances O'Connor) and children (Finn Woodlock and Morgana Davies) of a missing activist who last sighted the supposedly extinct creature.  The Hunter slowly finds himself falling for the small family and becoming conflicted with the nature of his mission. Dafoe gives a fine performance in a rare leading role- without a substantial amount of dialogue, the veteran actor expertly exhibits that rare talent of conveying a full range of emotions with only a subtle movement of his lean, weathered face. It's a shame he doesn't garner more leading roles in higher-profile releases.

Frances O'Connor (A.I.) reminds me of a younger, albeit prettier, version of Barbara Hershey- checking her filmography, she's a criminally underused actress with no good reason for that.  Sam Neill (Dead Calm, Jurassic Park) makes a few, brief appearances as a friend of the family with an ulterior motive.

The film's highly-realistic approach, sparse dialogue and deliberate pace may not be for all tastes- there's only one scene featuring a small amount of CGI, with only a few shots fired throughout and one onscreen death (human, that is)- I enjoyed it's attention to detail, it's apparent, deftly-conveyed themes of loneliness and seclusion and found myself glad that a film of this nature was even made.  It's a highly recommended gem, featuring one of the more poignant, emotional endings that I've seen in a while. I'm confident that this film will remain near the very top of my Favorite Films of 2012  list.

9 out of 10

Review- Savages

At the Theater - Savages - Fantastic performances from Benicio Del Toro and Salma Hayek (and a very good one in support from John Travolta) are nearly undermined by the awfulness of Blake Lively (Green Lantern) and Director Oliver Stone's inability to choose between two endings- he uses them both where he should have stuck with the "initial" ending.  Strange, given his history, but he simply wimps out.  As it is, it's a good film- but far from a great one.

Stone showcases a bit of his mid-career penchant for camera tricks and wild film effects in this tale of California pot growers duking it out with the Mexican Drug Cartel, though it's usage here is far more restrained than in Natural Born Killers or U-Turn.  I must admit that I've never been too much of a fan of the Director- my favorite Stone film, by far, is Platoon; it's his career highpoint and I don't think he'll ever match or surpass it.  Savages is appropriately violent and bloody as one would expect from a film looking to convey a realistic tale concerning the subject matter- expect a centerpiece hijacking/shootout complete with RPG and IED induced mayhem, head shots galore, several decapitated noggins lying around in one scene, a man being burned alive and an eyeball dangling from the socket of a screaming victim of Cartel-style torture.  Just don't act surprised or miffed with what you're walking into...

Taylor Kitsch (John Carter, Battleship) and Aaron Johnson (Kick Ass) are the Laguna Beach pot-growing duo that the Cartel wishes to muscle in on, while Blake Lively is their common love interest. Kitsch once again conveys a substantial amount of presence and believability as the battle-scarred, Iraq-war vet and brawn of the tandem, while Johnson shows a depth that hints at a long and fruitful career (I find myself wishing that he would steal EVERY role that comes Shia LeBeouf's way) as the contrasting, sensitive intellectual. Lively is pretty to look at but damned-near insufferable as a serious actress - her opening voice-over (it seemingly went on forever) is so light, airy and vapid that I found myself literally wincing.  Furthermore, her "No Nudity" contract clause is ridicuously evident and out of place here. A few lovemaking sessions where she remains fully clothed are real eye-rollers.

Salma Hayek gives one of the absolute best performances of her career as the head of this particular story's Cartel while Benicio Del Toro is excellent as her "Enforcer"- both are highly memorable here and deserve some serious consideration come Oscar time. Fans of both respective actors should be pleased. John Travolta portrays a crooked DEA agent- a scene involving a conversation between his character and Del Toro's is gold.  Other faces you may recognize- Emile Hirsch (Speed Racer) as a computer whiz, Shea Wigham (HBO's Boardwalk Empire) as a Cartel victim and Demian Bichir (Showtime's Weeds) as a Cartel lawyer.

It's entertaining enough and somewhat involving- with a few tense moments, bits of humor here and there and a couple of great performances. Ultimately, Savages owes a little bit too much of a debt to Tony Scott's True Romance- if you loved that film, you should like this one.

7.5 out of 10

Review- Ted

At the Theater - Ted - This oft-raunchy tale of a living, breathing, dope-smoking, foul-mouthed Teddy bear wished into existence by his young BFFL (the adult version played by Mark Wahlberg)  falls somewhere between good and very good. Perhaps I saw one too many "Red Band" (R-Rated, Uncut) clips on the internet before actually seeing the movie- the fewer of those that others have seen, the "fresher" the crude-humored material and overall experience will be.  It has a host of solid chuckles, though none of which I would call flat-out "gut-busters" (it would have to be something legendary to bust my gut).

Most of those individuals considerably younger than myself will feel that the film is highlighted by the unabashed antics and dialogue of the CG-rendered titular character, voiced by Writer/Director Seth McFarlane (creator of Family Guy, American Dad and The Cleveland Show), though I was far more pleased with a plethora of early 1980's Pop Culture references and several, unexpected, home-run worthy cameos.  The 1980 film Flash Gordon (it's so bad it's good) plays an important role in the story line, complete with a few very cool appearances by Sam J. Jones-  I was grinning from ear to ear. Fans of Vocalist/Musician Norah Jones are also in for a rather special treat...

There's another couple of cameos therein that I won't bother to spoil- have fun with that, yourself.

Mark Wahlberg continues to surprise as far as his comedic forays are concerned- I've never been overly impressed with his more serious roles, but he's fairly solid here with some spurts of excellent comedic timing.  Mila Kunis continues to shine and is as sexy as ever- she's one of the more talented young actresses and appears game for almost anything.  Patrick Warburton shows up a couple of times as one of Wahlberg's co-workers, while Joel McHale makes a few appearances as Kunis's lecherous boss. Bill Smitrovich (Life Goes On) and Matt Walsh (HBO's Veep) round out the familiar faces while Patrick Stewart chimes in periodically as the story's narrator.

Complaints; The third act is weighed down by the familiar pangs of formulaic melodrama and an uneven sub-plot involving a fanatical Father/Son duo (Giovanni Ribisi is the Father) out to snatch Ted- it's not enough to derail the movie, though it clearly sucks a little life from it  (I once started to tear up over a volleyball- not here...).  McFarlane will probably have plenty more to say in the very near future as a Writer and Director of feature films- he'll have to stray a bit from the fart/feces gag humor to show some lasting, quality talent (a couple of "comedic" references to Lou Gehrig's disease were unnecessary and in just plain 'ol poor taste).

That there's no Will Ferrell or Adam Sandler in sight with this particular entry is a minor victory in itself...

It's worthwhile, but nowhere near any of my Comedy favorites.  Check it out with a few friends.

(Rated R for Language, Nudity and Drug Usage)


8.0 out of 10

A Photo List - 2012 Midpoint Favorites (January thru June)

My Top 12 Favorite Films at the Midpoint of 2012 (January through June) + 4 Guilty Pleasures

Review- Magic Mike

At the Theater - Magic Mike - It took guts for a straight guy in his mid-thirties to walk up to a box-office window and order 1 (one) ticket to see this- you damned-well better appreciate it... 

All kidding aside, it's actually an entertaining and interesting little slice of life/character study/Drama powered by the dancing prowess and acting performance of Channing Tatum (I NEVER thought I would hear myself utter that last part), along with some very natural dialogue and Steven Soderbergh's efficient Direction.  Yes, there's plenty of the obligatory bare Man Ass on display (if I ever got around to shaving mine, it would hold up comparatively well), but there's also some female nudity as well- including the lovely Olivia Munn (HBO's The Newsroom) in her birthday suit.  That said, the film/story has much more going for it than just the stripping episodes- it's a helluva lot better entry than it's female counterpart films like Striptease and Showgirls.

Tatum (the titular character and an actor I previously haven't cared for) gives a surprisingly nuanced performance (leave it to Soderbergh to pull it from just about anyone)- there's a distinct possibility that he'll be be nominated for a handful of the more reputable, high-caliber awards.  I'll give him this, the dude can flat out move- I haven't seen Step Up (and don't intend to), thus I was previously unaware of how athletic he is.  Alex Pettyfer (I Am Number 4) is the young talent that "Mike" takes under his wing and introduces to the biz, where Cody Horn (FX's Rescue Me) is Pettyfer's concerned Sister and potential love interest for Mike. They're both somewhere between serviceable and good, with plenty of room to grow.  Matt McConaughey is the narcissistic club owner and legendary performer "Dallas"- yes, he does have his big moment onstage that should please those "fans" who are going just to see him.  His screen time is limited, though he'll probably receive a few nods come awards season, as well.  Other actors rounding out the strip-club crew are; Matt Bomer (USA's White Collar), Joe Manganiello (HBO's True Blood), Adam Rodriguez (CSI: Miami) and Kevin Nash (WCW's "Big Sexy").

The characters are believable and the story's involving (albeit a bit predictable here and there)- with a fair amount of glam, heart, chuckles and just enough of the "darker" side of the business to keep it honest.  Keep in mind that it's a lower-budgeted affair, maybe a bit too short for it's own good, and most of those interested should find themselves pleased.  I enjoyed it- most of it, that is... ;) 

Guys should treat their respective Gals to a showing - they might get lucky afterwards... if anything, the film should prove to be a satisfactory "Girls Night Out" flick...

8.0 out of 10

***Although it's an entirely different kind of film tonally, I liked The Full Monty (somewhat similar subject matter) a bit more.

Just Because- Blade

Just Because- Batman (1989)

My Best Photos- Dragonfly

My Best Photos- Windmill

My Best Photos- South Texas Horizon

My Best Photos- Purple Passion