Peeples

Cast of Characters:

Wade Walker - Craig Robinson

Grace Peeples - Kerry Washington

Virgil Peeples - David Alan Grier

Daphne Peeples - S. Epetha Merkerson

Simon Peeples - Tyler James Williams

Melvin Van Peebles - Grandpa Peeples

Nana Peeples - Diahann Carroll

Director - Tina Gordon Chism

Screenplay - Tina Gordon Chism

Rated PG-13 for sexual content, drug material and language

      Craig Robinson has been a consistently dependable comic actor in supporting roles such as Knocked Up, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Zack and Miri Make a Porno and is probably best known for his role as Darryl Philbin in the great American version of The Office on television. In 2013, he finally gets his own starring vehicle in Peeples.

      Wade Walker (Craig Robinson) is a "Kounselor" (the K was his idea) for kids that are struggling with childhood problems. He manages to hit a bit of success with a kids motivational song he wrote, "Speak It (Don't Leak It!)". His girlfriend, Grace Peeples (Kerry Washington) is a lawyer who comes from a successful Kennedy-esque type family (Wade refers to them as the Chocolate Kennedy's). Wade has been trying to muster the courage to finally propose to her, but just hasn't been given the right opportunity to do so.

      Over at Sag Harbor in the Hamptons, Grace's family plans on celebrating their annual reunion for Moby Dick Day. Grace, being particularly intimidated at the thought of introducing Wade to her family, decides to attend the reunion without him. After a year of dating Grace, Wade decides it's the right time to meet her family in person, so he heads out to Sag Harbor to surprise Grace and maybe even eventually "pop the question" to her. Upon arriving at her family's house, he meets Grace's father, a Federal Judge named Virgil Peeples (David Alan Grier) who's instantly not too thrilled with the fact that the man courting his daughter is one who has achieved success from "singing songs about urine to minors".

      Here's the problem with this film - outside the fact that Tyler Perry's name is attached to it. Tweak the story a bit with the surprise element of meeting the family and switch the characters from White to Black. You still have Meet the Parents - a much better film. Everything about this movie - the demanding father, the boyfriend in a line of work the dad isn't keen on, the slacker teenage brother causing trouble that everyone assumes is Wade, the "little secret" the dad's trying to keep from the family - it's all a mirror image of the Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller comedy from 2000. You could maybe get away with it if you advertised it as say, "the Black version of Meet the Parents". While not a good film, 2005's Guess Who, starring Ashton Kutcher and the late Bernie Mac at least gets credit for blatantly being advertised as a remake of the classic Guess Who's Coming to Dinner with the race roles switched. Honestly, I don't know how they could advertise it any other way.

      Craig Robinson is obviously a terrific comic actor and the lovely Kerry Washington is always a screen presence. The two of them do have their moments and there is some shared chemistry together. Plus, it's great to see David Alan Grier back onscreen. That being said, Peeples is too much of a Meet the Parents ripoff ending in a predictably lackluster conclusion for me to give it even a mild recommendation. While not as overly preachy as other Tyler Perry films (he produced this film), Peeples is still overall just a mediocre effort. I give Peeples a C- (★★).

Benjamin's Stash: Video Pick of the Week

      Readers, it’s time for this week’s video pick. My recommendation this week recently won Best Picture as well as Best Actor, Director, Original Score, and Costume Design at the 2012 Academy Awards. It also utilizes a style of film not commonly seen since decades ago.

      The Artist tells the story of silent film star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin). Valentin is the biggest star of the silver screen set during the silent era of film in the mid to late twenties. While posing for pictures outside a film premiere of his a young woman, Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo), accidentally bumps into him. Valentin takes no offense and reacts with amusement, even allowing Peppy to be in a few shots. The next day Peppy winds up as front page material with the heading, "Who's That Girl?" Things keep looking up for her when Valentin insists on her having a part in his next film, despite the objections of his studio boss, Al Zimmer (John Goodman). Gradually, Peppy begins to rise within the industry, eventually becoming a star in her own right. Two years later, Zimmer brings in Valentin to show him a new film. The difference is this film has sound. Despite Zimmer telling him that the silent film era is coming to a close and that the "talkies" are the future of film, George is dismissive and views sound in film as only a fad. Refusing to take part in the new and burgeoning film era, Valentin finds it harder and harder to achieve film success, all the while Peppy's now become the big silver screen star that he once was.

      Some of you might be a little turned off at the thought of seeing a silent film. Let me tell you, though, a great film is a great film regardless of style or genre, and The Artist is a great film. Writer/director Michel Hazanavicius earned every bit of the directing Oscar he won with his pitch perfect ode to silent films. Everything from the black and white color, the 1.33:1 screen ratio to the slightly lower frame rate of 22 fps, giving the film a more sped-up look (standard is 24) are all nods to that period of film set during the early 20th century. To be fair, the film isn't entirely silent, but the moments where there are sound - as few as they may be - are great touches of cleverness from Hazanavicius. Both Jean Dujardin and the beautiful Berenice Bejo deliver two terrific performances, and the chemistry between them couldn't be any better. Obviously, since there is no spoken dialogue, their performances are sold through their body language. There is a risk of going over the top or as they say in the film, "mugging for the camera", but both Dujardin and Bejo give just the right amount of body language and strike just the right tone with their Oscar worthy performances (Both were nominated, Dujardin won). There are also some fine supporting work from many other well known performers such as Penelope Ann Miller, James Cromwell, and John Goodman, and I can't forget the Oscar winning score. With any silent film the score is by far essential to its greatness considering the music goes hand in hand with the performances. In a way, it's like the phrase, "Let the music do the talking." Take my word for it, this is a phenomenal film that I hope you enjoy as much as I did. With flawless direction and perfect performances, The Artist is a funny, romantic, and moving tribute to a once great era of film now long past.

What the Hell Were They Thinking?!

      Hello, readers, it's time for this week's "What the Hell Were They Thinking?!" This week's car crash is a little bit different from what you'll normally see in this segment. Most films here - about 99.99999999% of them - will be the type of movie with the general consensus that it's pure crap. This week's pick is a film that received a bit of critical acclaim and even a couple top ten lists.

      Across the Universe is a romantic drama/musical set to a number of Beatles songs featuring the characters Lucy ("Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds"), her brother Maxwell ("Maxwell's Silver Hammer"), his friend Jude ("Hey Jude"), along with Sadie ("Sexy Sadie"), Jojo (mentioned in "Get Back"), and Prudence ("Dear Prudence"). Well, isn't that cute? Lucy and Jude join an anti-war movement after Lucy's brother Maxwell is drafted and sent to Vietnam. Others in the movement with Lucy and Jude is Sadie and Jojo, two musicians that resemble Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix so much, you'd swear at some point a Jim Morrison lookalike will pop up too, but probably not 'cause they wanna keep it PG-13. Why Janis and Jimi parallels? Why not Desmond or Vera or Molly or Julia or Sally or, hell, even Rocky Raccoon?

      The good news for this movie is that you'll laugh out loud through quite a bit of it. The bad news for it is it'll mostly happen when you're not supposed to. This film may have had its share of critical acclaim (to be fair, reviews were mixed), and award nominations, yet that didn't stop me from wondering after the first few seconds went by, "How the hell did this get the green light?" When the film wasn't downright unintentionally laughable, it was eye popping, mouth dropping bizarre. Eddie Izzard as Mr. Kite and Bono (excruciatingly bad here) as Dr. Robert are two prime examples. Hey, see what they did there? In particular, Bono's scene belting out "I Am the Walrus" in his "Beyond" bus along with a number of other crazy, groovy, possibly drug addled hippies had me actually wondering just how high I really was. Keep in mind, I've never done drugs in my life. It's just that part in the film had me second guessing for a moment. Then we get the number of wink at the camera moments. Prudence shows up at the group's little Greenwich Village hippie pad and crawls through the bathroom window. When Sadie - yes, looking all sexy at the moment - asks where she came from, Jude and Maxwell respond back, hell do I even have to say it? The writing is so cutesy and overly sugary sweet with all its bull shit winks and nods I'm surprised the writers didn't use the pseudonym "Savoy Truffle". Hey, see what I did there. All this coming from one who does not have a bias against musicals (The Wizard of Oz, The Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street are just to name a few of the ones I love). All this coming from one who has really admired lead star Evan Rachel Wood's film career. All this from one whose favorite band just so happens to be The Beatles. Clearly a film like this more than divides viewers' reactions, even amongst Beatles fans. There will be some that think this is an "amazing adventure", and they'll laugh heartily at all the stupid little nods that are as subtle as screaming at the top of your lungs in the middle of packed crowd. I on the other hand kept running "Yer Blues" off the classic "White Album" through my head, "The eagle picks my eye/The worm he licks my bones/I feel so suicidal/Just like Dylan's Mr. Jones/Lonely wanna die/If I ain't dead already/Ooh girl you know the reason why." John and George obviously get a pass here, and I know both Paul and Ringo experimented with drugs during their heyday. I just find it hard to believe there's enough acid in this world to get either of them to agree to this. At least then they could've blamed it all on drugs once done watching it, after which Paul probably would wish he's dead and Ringo would, in fact, like to be under the sea... That is, after hurling himself off the London Bridge. Eh - I'll just blame Yoko.

Star Trek Into Darkness

Cast of Characters:
Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu - John Cho
Commander John Harrison - Benedict Cumberbatch
Dr. Carol Marcus - Alice Eve
Rear Admiral Christopher Pike - Bruce Greenwood
Lieutenant Commander Montgomery “Scotty” Scott - Simon Pegg
Commander/Captain James T. Kirk - Chris Pine
First Officer Spock - Zachary Quinto
Lieutenant Nyota Uhura - Zoe Saldana
Lieutenant Commander Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy - Karl Urban
Starfleet Admiral Alexander Marcus - Peter Weller
Ensign Pavel Chekov - Anton Yelchin

Director - J. J. Abrams
Screenplay - Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman & Damon Lindelof
Based upon Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence

      Spock, Scotty, Uhura, Sulu, Chekov, Bones, and Captain Kirk are all back in one of the most anticipated summer blockbuster sequels this year. Does director J. J. Abrams succeed or will he fall prey to the sophomore slump with his second entry belonging to one of the most beloved sci-fi franchises of all-time?

     Star Trek Into Darkness opens with the crew of the USS Enterprise on a mission to the planet Nibiru in order to observe a primitive civilization. When the life of First Officer Spock (Zachary Quinto) becomes jeopardized, Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) violates the Prime Directive by exposing the ship to the civilization. This results in Captain Kirk's demotion, with the Enterprise's command being turned over to Admiral Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood).

      The demotion turns out to be short-lived though following a bombing in London. At Starfleet Command, they discover the bombing was caused by former Starfleet Agent Commander John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch). Following another terrorist attack by Harrison, Starfleet Command finds outs Harrison has fled to the Klingon homeworld of Kronos. Captain Kirk, now reinstated, has been given orders by Starfleet Admiral Alexander Marcus (Peter Weller) to take his crew of the Enterprise to Kronos in order to track Harrison down and kill him. They also ordered to be as discreet as possible as to not bring about all out war against the Klingon race.

      2009's Star Trek was a huge hit both critically and financially and one I really enjoyed. While I don't consider myself a "Trekker", I still love the Star Trek films as well as the original television series, and what made J. J. Abram's first entry in this series so effective was that it was neither a sequel or a remake. Much like Christopher Nolan's Batman series in relation to Tim Burton's and the original television series, J. J. Abram's Star Trek was a new and different take on the iconic film and television series dating back almost fifty years. Like its predecessor, Star Trek Into Darkness delivers once again. Obviously, the visuals and special effects are eye-popping. You'd expect nothing less from not only a Star Trek entry, but a J. J. Abrams film in general. The casting is spot-on. Chris Pine is once again solid as Captain Kirk, playing him with a "to hell with authority" maverick sensibility we all know Kirk to have. Zachary Quinto is particularly strong as Spock, adding a little bit more of an emotional touch this time around to the normally emotionless Vulcan known for dictating his decision making to what can only be "logical". John Cho as Sulu, Zoe Saldana as Uhura, Bruce Greenwood as Admiral Pike, Anton Yelchin as Chekov, and Karl Urban as Bones all turn in solid supporting work. Simon Pegg as Chief Engineer Scotty is so perfectly cast it's sick in the role once owned by the late James Doohan, and Peter Weller (that's right, Robo-Cop) also shows up in a small yet dependable role. Benedict Cumberbatch plays the villain in an eloquent style that at times may seem over the top, but that's not to say he isn't an effective Star Trek baddie. Despite, this film - like it's 2009 predecessor - being what you could consider a reboot, director J. J. Abrams (a die-hard Star Trek fan himself) still shows an immense respect to the original series offering us a number of nods to the Star Trek films of the past.

      While not perfect, this is still an entertaining thrill ride that in no way disappoints. The action sequences are exhilarating. The visuals are mind blowing. The performances are great, and J. J. Abrams shows once again why he's become such a staple within the sci-fi genre. Plus, midway through the film, there is a twist (that I will not give away in the slightest) that got quite a few people in the theater to gasp a little. I give Star Trek Into Darkness a B+ (★★★½).

REVIEWS COMING LATER NEXT WEEK...

What the Hell Were They Thinking?!

Benjamin's Stash: Video Pick of the Week

Peeples

Epic

Fast & Furious 6

The Hangover Part III

Sightseers

Cast of Characters:

Tina - Alice Lowe

Chris - Steve Oram

Director - Ben Wheatley

Screenplay - Alice Lowe, Steve Oram, & Amy Jump

Not Rated

      When it comes to dry, black comedies, no one does it better than the Brits. Whether it's parodies such as Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, In Bruges, Death At a Funeral, or all the way back to the Kings of British dry comedies, Monty Python, the British have always had a way of combining oddball humor with sharp, witty dialogue down to a perfection. In the late spring of 2012, the newest British black comedy, Sightseers, opened at the Cannes Film Festival. A year later, it has now opened up in a limited release.

      Tina (Alice Lowe) and Chris (Steve Oram) are a thirty-something year old couple from England going on their first holiday (Brit speak for vacation) together. Tina's live a bit of a sheltered life, living with her passive-aggressive mother who thinks nothing of Chris. Chris is an aspiring writer wanting to take Tina away for a bit to visit certain sites around the British Isles (the Crich Tramway Museum, the Ribblehead Viaduct, the Keswick Pencil Museum, etc.) with his Abbey Oxford Caravan.

      Following a tragic accident, Tina and Chris's finds their own dream vacation shaken up, yet they insist on not letting that event get in the way of their vacation. However, after a few more irritating incidents, something within Chris snaps, revealing a side of him Tina would've never expected.

      Opening at Cannes in May of 2012, then in the UK around November of the same year, Sightseers finally was released by IFC Films in the U.S. this year in May. While it is only in limited release, if it does happen to be playing at theater near you, I can't recommend this film enough as I laughed non-stop from beginning to end. This film is witty, sharp, hysterically funny, violent, crazy, and absurd all rolled into one, and my crazy, demented self loved every second of it. Director Ben Wheatley along with writers/co-stars Alice Lowe and Steve Oram (who also received additional material from Amy Jump) do an impeccable job establishing a darkly funny and uneasy tone through the couple's twisted intimacy. Committing their maddening acts of violence and then reacting with such proper politeness (would expect anything else from Brits?) adds much more to the humor. There's a particularly funny moment between the two when Tina realizes what her boyfriend's capable of and she ultimately rationalizes it as eliminating carbon footprints (fewer people = fewer emissions). Who knew serial killers had such an eco-friendly conscience?

      Director Ben Wheatley has now made three feature length films, and up until this film, I had yet to hear of him. Having now seen Sightseers, I'm definitely interested in seeing his two past movies, Kill List and Down Terrace from a couple years back. Granted, I'm sure there will be a number of moviegoers that find the extremely dark humor a bit of a turnoff, but this is by far one of the funnier comedies I've seen in some time. The writing is as sharp and clever as I've seen yet this year, both Lowe and Oram turn in two pitch-perfect, deadpan performances, and the final moment of the movie had me nearly spitting my drink out from laughter. Just a side note about the rating. Despite not being rated, this is obviously a film with R-rated material, so keep that in mind for those of you with reservations. I give Sightseers an A (★★★★).

Mud

Cast of Characters:
Mud - Matthew McConaughey
Ellis - Tye Sheridan
Tom Blankenship - Sam Shepard
Galen - Michael Shannon
King - Joe Don Baker
Senior - Ray McKinnon
Mary Lee - Sarah Paulson
Carver - Paul Sparks
Neckbone - Jacob Lofland
Juniper - Reese Witherspoon

Director - Jeff Nichols
Screenplay - Jeff Nichols
Rated PG-13 for some violence, sexual reference, language, thematic elements and smoking

      Matthew McConaughey, Academy Award nominee Sam Shepard and Academy Award winner Reese Witherspoon star in the character driven southern drama, Mud. It’s been receiving rave reviews from everyone else. That being said, what’s my take on it?

      Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and “Neckbone” (Jacob Lofland) are your typical young, teenage, southern boys. They love to fish as well as go on adventures in Ellis’s motorboat, an everyday escape from the personal struggles his family is going through. His parents are on the verge of a divorce which would mean the deconstruction of their old river houseboat due to recently passed laws. One particular day, Ellis and Neckbone head out to a small, nearby island in search of a boat stuck in a tree. They find the boat as well as some fresh food inside it, meaning someone is recently occupying it. They head back to their boat to find the same boot prints that they found by the boat in the tree. That’s when they meet Mud (Matthew McConaughey). Mud has been looking to reunite with his old girlfriend Juniper (Reese Witherspoon) for some time now, but being that he is a fugitive wanted for an act of murder he sees as justified, it’s close to impossible for him to reunite out in public with her.

      The boys take a liking to Mud and vice versa, and Ellis manages to do what he can by bringing Mud food. In exchange, Mud promises to give the boys the boat in the tree. However, that promise falls flat when the police ramp up their search for Mud. Things grow more dangerous when the brother of the man Mud murdered, Carver (Paul Sparks), is in town to put a hit on Mud. Mud needs the boat, and asks the boys for help. In return for the help, which includes finding spare parts for the defunct boat, Neckbone wants Mud’s .45 pistol, a deal they both agree on. They also seek out the help of Tom Blankenship (Sam Shepard), an old father figure to Mud that lives across the river from Ellis. Tom at first wants nothing to do with Mud’s situation. In his mind, he can’t bring himself to help a fugitive wanting to reunite with a woman he feels has only brought Mud trouble.

      There’s no question Matthew McConaughey is a gifted actor. Unfortunately, more often than not, he has been cast in one too many chick flicks not worth your time let alone your money. Every now and then, though, he pulls out a gem of a performance. Here he gives what I believe to be a performance that’s nothing short of Oscar worthy. Perfectly cast as the title character, McConaughey, with greasy hair and dirt stained face, is both charming, quirky, crazy, yet most importantly empathetic. Despite the “fugitive from the law” storyline being no doubt a large part of the film, this is not your typical fugitive vs. the law showdown type of movie. This mostly focuses on the relationship between Mud and the two young teens (newcomers Sheridan and Lofland), both of which are genuinely terrific. Lofland, in particular, immediately struck up River Phoenix from Stand By Me comparisons. Character actor Sam Shepard gives a great supporting role as the man Mud looks up to most. While never a Reese Witherspoon fan myself, she still gives one of her best performances to date, and proves that her Oscar winning turn as June Carter in 2005's excellent Walk the Line was definitely not a fluke. There’s also small yet dependable supporting work from Ray McKinnon, Sarah Paulson, and Michael Shannon - writer/director Jeff Nichols “go-to guy”. Overall, there’s a sweetness to this film that never comes close to running the risk of being emotionally manipulative or sentimentally sappy. Young and impressionable, Ellis personally experiences moment after moment that give him every right to believe love ain’t worth it and that it will only break you. It’s the grimy fugitive Mud though - of all people - that gets him to believe that in spite of inevitable moments that bring you down in life, love is still worth fighting for.

      Writer/director Jeff Nichols shows how much of an underrated talent he is, following both equally strong Shotgun Stories and Take Shelter with another character driven drama that’s part fugitive on the run and part coming-of-age tale. The characters are richly written and the story keeps you engaged from being to end. Never settling for unnecessary over-the-top moments, there’s a quiet tone throughout the film (similar to 2010's excellent Winter’s Bone) and the showdown happens at just the right moment and never runs further than it needs to be. Add to that David Wingo’s haunting, “southern swamp” score and Adam Stone’s exquisite cinematography that at times is downright beautifully hypnotic, this is an excellent film and one of the year’s best. With last year’s Killer Joe and Bernie, this film, as well as the upcoming Dallas Buyer’s Club, Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and next year’s Interstellar from Christopher Nolan, McConaughey’s proving he’s capable of more than being the guy that falls for Kate Hudson in just another dumb chick flick. Whether or not he's trying to shed his chick flick image, this is the McConaughey I love to see. I’ve waited all year to say this and it doesn’t come easy. I give Mud an A+ (★★★★).

Benjamin's Stash: Video Pick of the Week

      Busy week, readers. I'll have four movie reviews up later in the week, but tonight we have my video pick. This week's pick is one of the most underrated comedies ever, and despite starring two of the most recognizable talents in film, still flew under the radar.

      Captain Ron tells the story of Martin Harvey (Martin Short), who upon learning that his recently deceased uncle has bequeathed him a sailing yacht once owned by - of all people - the late Clark Gable, decides to take his family on a vacation to the island of Ste. Pomme de Terre so he can retrieve the boat. When they reach the island, they find out the boat is actually in terrible condition. Upon hearing this, the yacht broker decides to not hire an experienced captain to help navigate the Harvey family back to the states. Instead, he goes local, hiring Captain Ron Rico (Kurt Russell). Despite Captain Ron's quirky behavior, Martin, needing to get back the U.S. so he can sell the boat, settles for his services.

      This is one of those movies that you don't expect much from until you actually watch it. The plot is as simple as they come, but that's not the film's strength anyway. The film's strength lies solely in the comic back and forth between Kurt Russell and Martin Short, who are both hilarious together. Credit should also go to casting directors Mary Gail Artz and Barbara Cohen for casting both Russell and Short in their respective roles. It would've been so expected and easy just to cast Kurt Russell as the straight man and Martin Short - who even prior to this film was no stranger to quirky roles - as the crazy, yet well meaning, Captain Ron. It really is a shame this film flew under the radar as much as it did when it first came out (although today it has gained somewhat of a cult-following), 'cause there really are quite a few laugh out loud moments here whether it's Ron's unorthodox ways of looking after Martin's son, Martin's diary narration or his rant on misreading Ron's warning about "gorillas" ("He could've said freedom fighters... Revolutionaries, but no he says guerrillas!"). All in all, this is a film where you simple leave your critic's brain at the door and just enjoy a good laugh with two great comic performances.