The Longest Yard (1974)

1st View
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell

I've made it my mission to watch more Burt Reynolds films in 2012. Why? Mustache, err uh I mean, must you ask? Anywho, as much as the remake was trashy...I kind of enjoyed it. But what will probably get me crucified is the fact that I thought there were elements of the original upon which the remake actually improved. Don't get me wrong Burt is a faaaaar better leading man than Sandler, but there are parts of the original that are downright sluggish and that is where the silly, MTV sensibilities of the remake tighten things up. All in all, the original is still quite fun.


Rating: 6/10 Atkins

Burke and Hare (2010)

1st View
Format: DVD
Venue: Rivendell

John Landis directing a pseudo horror comedy based on true events starring Simon Pegg? All the ingredients are there for something I would truly love. However, Burke and Hare meanders lazily through its plot; things just happening in succession grounded to nothing. Utterly forgettable.


Rating: 4/10 Atkins

Midnight in Paris (2011)

1st View
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Stately Salisbury Manor

Watched this with my parents for the first time and absolutely loved it. Typically, I am not a fan of Woody Allen. But this comedy is so impossibly charming and sincere, and geared toward writers and nostalgics (of which I am both), that it's hard not to get wrapped up in its elegance. One of my favorite films of 2011.


Rating: 9/10 Atkins

Topper (1937)

1st View
Format: TCM
Venue: Stately Salisbury Manor

While home for Christmas, I watched this film with my parents on Turner Classic Movies. Carey Grant and Constance Bennett star as a well-meaning, but trouble-attracting ghosts who make one poor sap's life a living nightmare. Breezy, fun plot, hilarious slapstick, and Grant is effortlessly charming. Great little movie I'd never even heard of.

Rating: 7/10 Atkins

Bridesmaids (2011)

1st View
Format: Awards Screener
Venue: Rivendell

I was very excited to see this movie. I like Kristen Wiig quite a bit and the idea of a crass all-female comedy sounded fresh and intriguing. Instead, I quickly became bored with the obnoxious reliance on female cattiness and the lazily slapped-together love story between Wiig and Chris O'Dowd; an actor I love on the British series The IT Crowd. The few chuckles the film earned, mostly thanks to Melissa McCarthy, weren't enough to keep me engaged. 


Rating: 5/10 Atkins

Home Alone 2 (1992)

Revisit
Format: Blu--ray
Venue: Rivendell

Not as good as the first, I recognize that, but still a lot of fun and I have plenty of childhood nostalgia for the first two films in this franchise. The sequel, as with the first, contributed to creating A Very Junkfood Christmas for Film School Rejects.

Rating: 6/10 Atkins

Home Alone (1990)

Revisit
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell

A holiday tradition around the Mullensbury household. Love it! It actually had the honor of kicking off Junkfood Cinema's A Very Junkfood Christmas.


Rating: 8/10 Atkins

Our Idiot Brother (2011)

1st View
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell

Nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be and, in fact, fairly charming. Paul Rudd does not, as one would assume, play a total manchildish buffoon. He's just a guy who's a little naive and far too trusting of strangers as well as his highly dysfunctional family all of whom are much worse than he is but treat him as if he's the black sheep.


Rating: 7/10 Atkins

Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)

Revisit
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell

Revisited this chuckle fest and wrote it up in this week's For Your Consideration at Hollywood.com. Check it out why don't you just!

Rating: 6/10 Atkins

The Birdcage (1996)

Revisit
Format: Netflix
Venue: Rivendell

Was working late, needed a great comedy to provide background noise. The Birdcage is a true classic. Love it.


Rating: 8/10 Atkins

A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas (2011)

1st View
Venue: Galaxy Highland (Press Screening)

I must say I am a fan of the first H&K film. It's a weird infusion of Cheech and Chong and the Crosby/Hope "on the road" movies. While I haven't seen the second film, since seeing the first I have become a huge fan of How I Met Your Mother starring, among others, the incomparable Neil Patrick Harris. I was therefore doubly excited about A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas and the return of the storied NPH from the H&K universe. He definitely did not disappoint. The film was as raunchy and low-brow as you'd expect, and yet simultaneously smarter than you'd think. Also, I now desperately want a WaffleBot.

Rating: 7/10 Atkins

Young Adult (2011)

1st View
Venue: Alamo South Lamar (Press Screening)

Self-indulgent writing, zero likable characters, and completely insults the audience's time and effort by...well, I won't spoil the ending seeing as the film isn't in theaters yet. Repugnant filmmaking all around. Patton Oswalt's ultimately undermined performance is the only reason this film doesn't warrant a rating of "0."

Rating: 2/10 Atkins

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: New Kids Turbo (2010)

1st View
Country: The Netherlands

Rating: 6/10 Atkins

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: Clown (2010)

1st View
Country: Denmark

Rating: 7/10 Atkins

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: A Boy and his Samurai (2010)

1st View
Country: Japan

Among the most acclaimed films at this year's fest, and with good reason. Read my review for Badass Digest here.

Rating: 9/10 Atkins

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: Kill Me Please (2010)

1st View
Country: France

Rating: 7/10 Atkins

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: Borderline (2011)

1st View 
Country: France

Rating: 6/10 Atkins

Ernest Goes to Jail (1990)

Revisit
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell

Not as good as Ernest Goes to Camp. Still fun.

Rating: 4/10 Atkins

Ernest Goes to Camp (1987)

Revisit
Format: Blu-ray
Venue: Rivendell

Paul Gandersman and I made a late night double feature out the Ernest Goes to Camp/Jail Blu-ray. It was kind of awesome. I hadn't seen these films in years; they're pretty...special. This one managed to find itself canonized in the annals of Junkfood Cinema.

Rating: 6/10 Atkins

Ghostbusters 2 (1989)

Revisit
Format: Netflix WI
Venue: Rivendell

Luke had only seen the original about a year and a half ago. I hadn't seen it since I was a kid. It's real bad.

Rating: 4/10 Atkins