I can’t remember the last time I laughed so hard in a movie. At times, I had trouble catching my breath. Maya Rudolph was fantastic and John Krasinski’s character Burt Farlander reminded me of of a certain other resident at The Orange Door.
Bechdel score. Two women: nope.
The montage at the beginning of the movie that shows the whole of Carl and Ellie’s relationship is perhaps one of the most perfect pieces of film making ever. A “family” movie you can bring your kids too, but adults in the audience will perhaps appreciate this adventure story in a way their children won’t be able to for a few decades. This will probably be a top 10 film for me this year, don’t you miss it.
Bechdel rating. Two women. Nope.
I took Matt to see this and he enjoyed it. One of the things I enjoyed about this movie, on second viewing, was the complete lack of harpy-ness of Rashida Jones’ character. Most movies of this genre would have the female lead be more shrill.
Bechdel review. Two women: sort of. Who talk to each other: somewhat. About something besides a guy: nope.
This movie was a hot mess which gave me time to contemplate many things including: why did Liev Schreiber torture himself with the bulking up and the high protein diet when he wears an overcoat for 98% of the movie? And: Could a movie as cool as Star Trek be made if the male-to-female ratio was reversed? That’s right, I was contemplating gender theory of an entirely different movie, which means that this movie is a waste of time.
Bechdel score: Two women: nope.
I’m a minor consumer of the Star Trek franchise, which means I saw that movie where they saved the whales and a few episodes of the original series. I didn’t expect to love this movie, but I did! The first scene choked me up, the majority of the rest had me alternately smiling, laughing out loud, peeking through my fingers, or jumping in my seat; I can’t ask for more than a movie like this.
Bechdel rating: The movie has two women. Yep. Who talk to each other. Not really.
The fairies in this film were a bit too twee, and the title makes me laugh (did they think we would confuse it with the other guy’s Midsummer Night’s Dream?) I saw this in the theater, but was again reminded how Sam Rockwell (Sam Rockwell, of all people!) managed to steal an entire scene. Might I also observe that Calista Flockheart is unable to look anything but ridiculous in Edwardian garb?
I have a problem with a movie “hearkening back” to a year which I was actually an adolescent, but other than that, this was a charming story of the awkward post-college transition period that no one tells you about. The characters are flawed, but not fatally so, and there is a lot of humor sprinkled throughout. If you spent some of your post-college years not at all living the life you thought you would, this movie is for you.
Someday in the future, some film studies student will write a thesis with a title such as “Tentative reachings, men expressing their love for each other (in a strictly platonic way): early 21st century explorations of the bonds of men friendships.” Seriously, there is a lot of this going on in cinema right now. It helps that I really like all the main actors in this movie, but I think most people (under the age of 50 and aware that men are kind of gross when left to themselves) will find this a sweet, funny picture.
Bechedel score: Two women: yes. That talk to each other: yes. About something beside a man: alas, no. But we knew that was coming, no?
ps. People who have endured boyfriends/friends who are fans of Rush should see this picture. Trust me. A whole level of hilarity will ensue for you. People unaware of the “awesomeness” of Rush will miss this entirely.
I only watched two-thirds of this movie, so it only gets two sentences.
For a movie about men joining the army, this had a lot of boob shots. It was the 80s, what can you say?
Bechdel score: Two women: nope.
