Friday Funnies

It was 10 years ago (good god) that Old School came out and graced our movie theaters. A great movie, and full of fantastic scenes, especially ones involving Vince Vaughn. The wife has always said that his role in this movie is what I may very well end up like. I'm cool with that.

Friday Funnies

No joke, I was fooled. I saw trailers for Ted and thought it looked funny, but figured the best parts were in the trailer. I've been burnt too many times.

But damnit, this movie is hilarious. It features two hours of one of my favorite things: Animal humor. Love it. Always comes through for me, no matter how many times I see it. And this time, the animal humor is a teddy bear that comes to life and grows into a classic Boston wiseass.

Can't recommend this movie enough, even when it gets into the usual emotional BS at the 3/4 mark. But there are some surprising performances that show up, especially from Giovanni Ribisi. But anyway, let's focus on the funny, because it's everywhere.

Friday Funnies

Over the holiday break the wife and I took in the movie version of Les Miserables, because nothing says Christmas like rape, prostitution, violence against children, and a heavy-handed dose of god, all with musical accompaniment.

Naturally, afterward the wife several times muttered to me, "Vive la revolution!" And instead of smiling and thinking about the movie we just saw, I smiled and thought of Christophe, from the South Park movie.

Friday Funnies

Well, it's Christmas time, so I have to bring up some holiday classics that I love for the Friday Funnies. This time around, we're going with Scrooged. This is not the funniest clip from this movie, but since my mother has so lovingly declared this year to be the Campbell Family Christmas of Coal. Apparently gifts are strictly forbidden and we may well end up eating toast and rotten wine for dinner, I'm going to hold out hope that I get a VHS while my sister gets stuck with a towel. No, scratch that, I'll take the towel. Thanks mom! And happy holidays, everyone.

Friday Funnies

Because ever since I saw this movie I don't think I can enter a steakhouse without checking the menu to see if they have something in line with the ol 96er. And the thought of eating a plate of gristle makes me want to vomit. But in a funny kind of way, much like getting "a bucket of salad." Just make sure you wrap a few Paul Bunyan hats for the kids, OK?



On a side note, hilarious that Annette Benning is in this movie, and I totally had a crush on the girl who gets stood up by the son in this clip. She was one of those classic '80s teen actresses whose name I never knew but who was the love interest in several flicks and you just couldn't help but fall for her.

My Childhood Bastardized

And the hits keep on coming from Hollywood. They are continuing to dip into the well of my childhood (or near-childhood, at least) and take things that I remember and sometimes deeply appreciate and mock sad mockeries or interpretations out of them.

First up is Carrie. This movie doesn't come out until 2013, but let's be clear … it's already been out before. Sissy Spacek rocked the pig's blood dye job, and Travolta even has some appearances. Of course, it's much more remarkable for Piper Laurie's performance as Carrie's cracked-out mother, who makes freakouts over wire hangers look like an innocent bake sale. I like Chloe Moretz and I kinda hope this movie does OK, but I have so little faith in remakes these days that I have little hope for this one.



Next is Evil Dead. This may be the greatest movie of the year or the decade, but to me it's an abomination. Honestly, go the "kids trapped in a cabin that turns into a hellhole" storyline and just call it something else. And I don't give two shits that Sam Raimi is behind this retelling of his classic. There is just no reason to invoke the name and all that is holy with Ash and that character and that run of cult classics. Yes, I may be a little too passionate about Evil Dead, Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness, but that still doesn't stop this "remake" from appearing like a gory cashgrab.

Friday Funnies

Because a world with Adam Scott and Jon Hamm working together is a better world for us all. It's a fact.

Friday Funnies

Tuesday was the 25th anniversary of "The Princess Bride" being released in theaters. I can't actually recall whether I saw this movie in the theaters or not. Problem is, I know I've seen it twice for special screening type things in high school and college, so those memories cloud the past.

Nevertheless, it's in the Campbell Pantheon of Favorite Movies ever, and it's one I can always stop and enjoy no matter what scene its own when I stumble across it.

It would have been easy to pick the duel or Wesley's last speech, but I figure there are a million worthy scenes, so I'll pick a more obscure one. This is Billy Crystal killing it as Miracle Max, and I always like it when he breaks character to talk about how thinly sliced the meat is.

Trailer Love

I know it's been awhile since I was on the blog. Believe me, it was hurting me more than it was hurting the 8 of you. This most recent class was a real test of skill and time management, so some things had to wait (like blogging, and my career move into synchronized horse dancing).

But hopefully I am back for a bit and ready to dive back into the thick of things. Having only seven posts in September is just bad form. You deserve better, audience of under a dozen.

First up, some recent movie trailers that have caught my attention.

This first one I had no idea even existed. Never heard any buzz or early talk of it, and that is rather rare. So color me surprised when I watched this red band trailer for the 43 Movie. Crazy stuff, and probably 100% ignorant but certain to make me laugh. Hell, the trailer alone got three good chortles out of me. Has the chance to tap into that Kentucky Fried Movie sensibility that all those Scary Movie hackjobs could only dream of touching. OK, perhaps my expectations are a bit high.



Next up is Promised Land. Let's not play games, we live in a world where all things being equal, you put talented people in front of and behind a camera and make some kind of movie about environmental issues, and there is a damn good chance I am going to watch it. This my heroin. Damn you, heroin.



Identity Thief last up for this edition. The premise sounded really juvenile and an easy cash grab for the stars, but then I watched the trailer and my hopes were raised. There may not be much new in this movie that we haven't seen in other places, but damnit whoever cut this trailer did a fine job.

Trailer Love

I'm always intrigued by a good conspiracy theory. Heck, I even created one from whole cloth for our fantasy football league that we still reference to this day six years later. The Kennedy assassination, the Matrix, Roswell, the Pentaverate, (Ok, so two of those are fictional) and others always pique my interest. I would not say that I believe in them so much as I just love watching and reading about them and seeing where they germinate and how they gain a life of their own.

The Conspiracy is a movie posing as a documentary, so it's not really to be trusted (much like a Dan Brown novel). Nevertheless, I like the position this one takes and I think the trailer is cut well to get you  wanting to see more.

Friday Funnies

I love a good "go fuck yourself" speech. If nothing else, because I'll probably never have the opportunity to give a full-throated one myself. I'm left to ginning up a situation beyond measure just to casually throw it in there, and it never comes off well. Lots of websites have been sharing clips of Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix since "The Master" is being released this weekend. This scene from Charlie Wilson's War is among one of Hoffman's best. I could have take something from any number of PSH flicks like Almost Famous and Boogie Nights, but this one I always enjoyed, especially looking back knowing that he's bitching out Roger Sterling.

Trailer Love

It's been awhile since I loved on some movie trailers. So let's bring back this long-running series with a trailer I stumbled upon the other day.

I'm not really one for "road trip" movies. After having gone to the mountaintop with National Lampoon's Vacation, it's somewhat difficult to imagine anything ever coming close to Clark and Rusty sharing a beer in the desert after giving Audrey her period. Alas, some fine British folk have taken a decidedly alternate take on the road trip movie. I don't want to give anything away because I think watching the trailer says it all.

It looks weird, but it also looks like it could be a lot of fun, in a Shallow Grave kind of way.

Friday Funnies

The fellas start rolling in today for our league's fantasy football draft. Yes, we're all grownups and this is how we escape our regular lives. Get over it. Plus, as a bonus, we gamble as well. And that makes everything just a bit sweeter and more enjoyable. To honor our ninth season, let's cheer ourselves on with some cheerleaders. Funny ones, that is.

Friday Funnies

I know it's been a while since I was actively posting, but trust me I am back and have plenty to share.

First up, some Friday Funnies, always a good time for you readers.

In this edition, it's all about getting geeky with some Star Wars stuff. But this is really good, believe me. What happened is some genius with a computer, a solid DVD collection and some free time culled together some choice quotes from James Earl Jones' blaxploitation films and dubbed them into his Darth Vader role in Star Wars.

Absolute. Genius. I almost shed tears in laughter at a few of these moments. Enjoy.

Friday Funnies

Last weekend the movie channels were replaying an old favorite, Made. This was the pseudo-sequel to Swingers and starred Favreau and Vaughn as bumbling gophers for a small-time crime family. I can't claim that the film was a piece of cinematic genius, but it included lots of great back-and-forth between the two of them, and Vaughn has a few scenes to really shine in. Including this one when he gets to fly first class for the first time.

Shit That Should Not Be

You all know that I don't read much fiction, but the few authors I do read, I revere. One of them is Lee Child, and his Jack Reacher novels. Reacher is a badass. An ex-MP officer who strikes fear in the hearts of those who wrong others, and is not afraid to put hands on someone who doesn't do right by whatever community he happens to be traveling through.

Look, I laughed a little when the wife's favorite series of books got turned into a Hollywood shitshow. But this is different. This time its my books (well, hers too, since she loves Reacher as much as I do) that are getting messed with, and I'm peeved. Tom Cruise is shorter than my sister I think, and the idea of him playing a 6-5, ass-kicking MP officer sets my teeth on edge. My dog cuts a more imposing figure than Cruise does. And this trailer convinces me that Hollywood is out to destroy anything I hold dear (well, unless it's a comic book movie, in which case they are more often than not knocking those our of the park).



Oh, and I've always had a little crush on Rosmand Pike. So that she's in this movie is probably the only plus going for it. But this movie had such easy potential, and they ruined it. And now it is shit that should not be. And I sure as hell won't be giving Cruise a dime of my money.

Friday Funnies

This past weekend one of the movie channels started replaying Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. I'm not going to condone or approve that illegal substances (or ones that at least require a prescription in some states) be taken when watching this movie, but damn it is funny.

This movie is quite hard to follow if you don't know or subscribe to Hunter S. Thompson's writings and view of the world. Quick with the words and turns of phrase, it's a great romp of two hours through Vegas, deserts, drugs and ... well ... more drugs. And this scene is just a brief highlight of what happens in the film.

But then again, maybe it's because I'll approve of any movie that features a Kentuckian doing what we Kentuckians do best ... acting weird.

Friday Funnies

I love me some bad cases of extreme over-acting. And these are some of the best I could find, and they are funny just because we are supposed to revere these actors as masters of their craft.

Friday Funnies

This week's Friday Funnies came to me as I was watching an old clip of Arrested Development on IFC. I randomly started thinking about The Brothers Solomon, a rather stupid movie starring Will Arnett and Will Forte that happened to feature some pretty funny clips now and then. The basic premise of the movie is that the Wills are homeschooled morons who have tons of off brain knowledge but little in the way of social skills or street smarts. Thus, every encounter they have with people in the real world tends to go terribly wrong. Such as in these clips.

Friday Funnies

Had to scour the known universe for this damn clip, and it's not even the best quality over there at BusinessTube (I'm sure I have a virus on my machine now). Anyhow, Kelly and his lady friend are soaking it in across the country in San Diego, so of course we have to celebrate his vacation with Ron Burgandy.