NY1 reviews some of the films that made their debut in August.
August 7, 2008
"Pineapple Express" Entertainment Weekly Review
One of the most distinctive, and subversive things about Judd Apatow comedies like “Superbad” or “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” is that none of them really has a plot. They spill forward with casual abandon, twisting and turning with the rambling stoned logic of '70s movies. Apatow's latest production, “Pineapple Express,” does that quite literally, since it's the tale of two happy potheads who get caught in a world of murderous crime.
Dale, played by Seth Rogen, is a process server who basically spends his days driving around and getting stoned. His trusted dealer, Saul, played with spot-on spaced-out glee by James Franco, is a long-haired slacker who's so perpetually blasted he can't see past the next moment. For a while, as the two sit around Saul's living room, trying out his latest shipment of a super-dynamite weed called Pineapple Express, the movie is amusing in a verbally dissociated, been-there-smoked-that way. Rogen and Franco make an amiably wacked comedy team--it's like watching a buddy film with Albert Brooks and Joe Dallesandro. But then Dale heads off and witnesses a murder. Before long, the two are being pursued by hit men, cops, and God knows who else, and Pineapple Express turns crazy and bloody violent--without ever quite losing its goofy stoner vibe.
The director, David Gordon Green, knows what's funny about potheads: They're always trying to think, and act, straight. Pineapple Express is fitfully amusing, but the more it goes on, and the loopier it gets, the less it connects with experience. It becomes Judd Apatow's hash-bar version of a cynical action joyride, and its charm begins to ebb away. The movie wants to be a jolly dope spree turned nightmare, but it ends up subverting its own subversion, arriving at a place that can only be called conventional.
– Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
August 6, 2008
"Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants 2" Neil Rosen Review
Three years ago a nice little film called “Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants” hit theatres and charmed audiences. Now there's a sequel, “Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants 2,” that reunites the original cast.
For those unfamiliar with the original, a magical pair of jeans is Fed-Exed between four best friends while they're off on different globetrotting adventures during the summertime. These special jeans have the power to make their dreams come true.
Now three years later, the girls find themselves in the summer between their freshman and sophomore year at college. They're still shipping the pants around and dealing with new problems in their lives.
Tibby is hanging out in New York and has a boyfriend who adores her, but she's dealing with a pregnancy scare.
Bridget leaves a Turkish archaeological dig to find her long-lost grandmother in the Deep South.
Lena, who's studying art for the summer in Rhode Island, debates having a fling with a hunky male model, but she still can't get over her first true love, Costas.
Finally, Carmen gets involved in a summer theater up in Vermont and is coaxed into auditioning for the lead role.
The movie bounces back and forth between all the stories, culminating in the girls’ trip to a beautiful Greek island where the pants are lost.
The movie lacks much of the charm of the original. In the first film, the pants played a key role in conjuring up minor miracles for the girls. In the sequel, the jeans don't play much of a role at all. They're an afterthought and this movie is more about the sisterhood aspect of things.
The individual stories are somewhat clichéd and aren't as captivating as the first go-round. Some of the gals, like “Ugly Betty” star America Ferrara and “Gossip Girls” star Blake Lively, have become TV stars and it's fun to watch them return to their roots.
Director Sanaa Hamri, who wasn't involved in the first film, has made a movie that is pretty to look at, but despite some moving moments along the way, it lacks the overall emotional power and magic of the original.
Neil Rosen’s Big Apple Rating: 2 Apples
August 5, 2008
"Pineapple Express" Neil Rosen Interview
Seth Rogen and James Franco's latest film, “Pineapple Express,” is a stoner comedy about a heavy pot smoker who witnesses a murder and then goes on the run with his equally inept drug dealer.
NY1’s Neil Rosen spoke with the comedy duo about creating, as they call it, “a Cheech and Chong movie, but good.”
Click the Real Video links above to view the complete report.
Neil Rosen NY1's Neil Rosen reviews the latest films throughout the week.
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Neil Rosen
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