Movie review - "Woman of the Hour" (2024) ***1/2

 The story is fascinating - woman meets serial killer on a dating show - but doesn't really have legs because she had the meeting and that was it. So the writer cleverly expands it by adding a woman in the audience who recognises the guy but is ignored, and there are flashbacks to other attacks, which are done well - including quite a sizeable role for Autumn Best who plays a runaway (this character is shown to be responsible gor getting the guy and good on Anna Kendrick for not hogging this role for herself0. 

It's all done very well. A most impressive directorial debut.

Book review - "Rebel Rising" by Rebel Wilson

 She has the courage of her convictions. The book explains a lot. A slightly dodgy dad (gambling) obsessed with status. A mum who acts as if everything is fine all the time. The constant list of achievements - property owned, fees earned ($10 million for Pitch Perfect 3), likes on Instagram, views on Netflix, perks at Disneyland, trips to exotic resorts.

She hypes her poverty in LA, but everyone in LA has log cabin fever, i.e. telling stories as if they were born in a log cabin and overcame incredible obstacles. The omits a lot of stuff (not a lot of discussion about Anna Kendrick) but everyone does that in their memoirs.

The best bits are when Rebel encounters tough opposition. The chapter on Sacha Baron Cohen is terrific, and also the stuff about her exploring her sexuality, but also the chapter on making The Wedge where the boorish behaviours of the producers is all too believable. Good on her for admitting she lost her virginity at 35 (I think it helps to start rooting when you're a millionaire film star). All the hot guys she slams seem to have addiction issues.

She's an odd duck but the book explains why, I think.

TV review - "Love Life" Season 2 (2021) ***

I can see why it wasn't as popular as the first. The lead guy isn't a star in the way Anna Kendrick was... I think Jessica Williams is a star and she would've brought them in, but I recognise they wanted to tell the male story.

On the male thing... it was maybe too honest in its depiction of men! In season one Anna is always looking for love... In this one the guy gets sick of his wife pretty quick and has an emotional affair. He meets the one, Jessica Williams, but it takes a bunch of episodes for them to get together.

Maybe the lead could've been dealt a few more curve balls - like if Becca had had the baby and it was disabled, or just had the baby, or he'd fallen out with his friends. Or something.

Some of the writing is terrific though. The acting can't be faulted. It's smart entertainment, easy to watch.

Movie review - "Trolls Band Together" (2023) ***

 Big fun psychedlic visuals. Some very, very funny gags and there's a lot of them. Enjoyable manufactured pop star villains with Amy Schumer stealing the show. Justin Timberlake embraces his past. The plot is very traumatic when you think about it (TImberlake has all these brothers who abandoned him, Anna Kendrik's father didn't tell her about the existence of a sister - to be fair this plot was clearly thrown in to give her something to do).  Good fun,

TV review - "Love Life" (2020) ***1/2

 A great concept, quite well done. Doesn't break new ground - it's still about a single gal in New York looking for love, with sassy best friends - but the anthology nature of the piece is effective and makes you reflect about your own life. I preferred the earlier eps. I really liked the one about the mother having a break down and the flashback to high school (was that guy based on Jake Gylenhaul? Was Augie based on Edgar Wright?)

Movie reviews - "Drinking Buddies" (2013) **1/2

Most mumblecore - or mumblecore-ish - movies don't get much of a run in Australia, but this one did, because of it's all star cast (okay maybe not "stars" but names): Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick and Ron "oh yeah that guy" Livingstone.  Plus Jason Sudeikis and Ti West have small roles. Several of the men have beards - it seems to be a real thing.

The world of brewery workers is a fresh one and the relationship between work pals Wilde and Johnson is universal and well handled - flirtatious, fun, undermining both their other romantic relationships, but neither seemingly wanting to actually commit to each other.

It is well acted, particularly by Wilde, though I could have done with more story or at least more unusual characters. It didn't quite sustain its running time for me, and I felt needed a decent plot twist/fillip. But I didn't mind it while it was on.

Movie review - "What to Expect When You're Expecting" (2012) ***

The critics got stuck into this one and it didn't perform as well at the box office as you'd expect a girly film packed with stars to do - but I guess the public figured this material is tackled on TV enough. And it's about babies rather than falling in love. 

Still it's quite a bright, entertaining film which some good moments, particularly the dad group - Chris Rock and company are so funny (many of their lines feel ad-libbed - though this may not be the case) that they are strong enough for their own film. There are lots of laugh out loud moments and a warm heart. Elizabeth Banks and Ben Falcone are particularly good.

It does feel like an opportunity that got away, though - Cameron Diaz and Matthew Morrison's plot in particular feels undercooked (their major conflict is over whether their child gets circumcised); so too does Anna Kendrick and Chance Crawford's plot (their scenes together feel too much like people acting rather than something naturalistic - Judd Apatow has set the bar high here and it's not reached); often the movie feels like it's pulling punches (e.g. the relationship between Falcone and dad Dennis Quaid, some of the darker material). 

But it was much better than I'd been led to believe and I can understand why the people who made it might be scratching their heads.

Script review - "Up in the Air"

Smart, stylish, sceptical, cynical, with a heart - Jason Reitman is proving himself the true heir to Billy Wilder. This is two films - the minor one of a business sacking people (really the George Clooney job could have been anything that involved travel, but it does have terrific thematic echoes), and the major one of Clooney's company learning to connect. Some of the bantering dialogue involving the Clooney and his love interest (e.g. sizes of miles, crashing the party) and protege/threat (e.g. talking about ideal match) is of Golden Years of Hollywood (the good stuff) quality. It has heart and point and only goes Hollywood in one bit - when Clooney runs away from the speech at the end. At least he doesn't quit his job.

Movie review – “Up in the Air” (2009) ****1/2

Wonderful movie – I was a bit hostile coming in to watch it, all that acclaim and Jason Reitman being so damn talented – but was totally disarmed by it’s brilliant writing, excellent acting and all-round skill. George Clooney is good as ever, there are superb performances across the board – that new girl is great, Jason Bateman is having the most wonderful second act to his career, Vera Farmiga is the perfect girl, the small roles are spot on. I can imagine the studio asking several times for the ending to be tweaked (“can’t Vera turn out to be nice”) but that’s what rises this to true greatness. There is also the fact part of Clooney’s life is very attractive – going around the country, nice treatment, minimal commitment (I was reminded in some ways of Hugh Grant in About a Boy). My favourite bit was crashing the techno people party - Young MC makes an appearance!