Hamlet 2

"Oh my god, writing is so hard!"

Dana Marschz (Coogan) is a failed actor, who teaches the fledgling theater program at a high school in Tucson, Arizona.  His plays are plagued by negative reviews, and he only has 2 students: Rand (Astin) and Epiphany (Strole).  At the start of the new school year, his classroom is full because all the other arts classes are cut.  The other students don't care about theater and would rather ridicule than learn.

Dana's life is equally complicated at home.  His wife, Brie (Keener), is focused on having a baby and hates their boarder Gary (Arquette).  As he seeks to motive the class, he starts to write an original play based on Shakespeare's Hamlet.  While the students get onboard with the project, his wife and the community are not impressed... the principal locks them out of the school and various groups call for the show to be cancelled.  Can Dana realize his dream?


When this film I had no desire to see it.  However, it received good word of mouth and some decent reviews, so I decided to give it a try.  The first time I saw the film, I saw the end: the entire Hamlet 2 play.  I laughed more than I expected, so I decided to add it to my Netflix queue to see the entire film.

This film was created as a spoof of the "inspiring teacher" films.  The film manages to succeed to mock genre, and still throw in some surprises.  They wisely chose British actor Steve Coogan for the lead.  At this point in time, Coogan was best known for his TV roles, but a few small turns in American films (including a small but memorable role in Night at the Museum).  This film, along with his role in Tropic Thunder later that year, served as his American breakout roles.  He embodies the part and makes you root for his sad-sack character.

Catherine Keener takes Brie, a one-dimensional and horrid character, and makes you feel for her.  Elizabeth Shue gets to poke fun at her own image, and Hollywood as a whole, and makes you like her even more.  The students are caricatures... but they make it work.

The writing is interesting.  If you enjoy parodies with irreverent / non-PC humor, this is the film for you.  The actually play is bad, but in a "so-bad it's good" kind of way.  And the "Rock Me Sexy Jesus" song is infectious, even now it is stuck in my head.

Is it offensive... yes.  They manage to offend a wide variety of people.  Don't take it too seriously, and you'll probably laugh a few times.

Interesting idea, good stars... grating character / not enough character development.

Hamlet 2 (2008) 92 minutes
Rating: R for language including sexual references, brief nudity and some drug content
Director: Andrew Fleming
Starring: Steve Coogan as Dana Marschz
Catherine Keener as Brie Marschz
Joseph Julian Soria as Octavio
Skylar Astin as Rand Posin
Phoebe Strole as Epiphany Sellers
Melonie Diaz as Ivonne
Arnie Pantoja as Vitamin J
Michael Esparza as Chuy
Natalie Amenula as Yolanda
Marshall Bell as Principal Rocker
David Arquette as Gary

The Bad News Bears (1976)

"Come on, fellas. Rome wasn't built in a day."

"Yeah, it took several hundred years."

Morris Buttermaker (Matthau), is a former minor league baseball player.  He is hired by city councilman, Bob Whitewood (Ben Piazza), to coach a little league team called the Bears.  The kids don't know anything about baseball and Buttermaker prefers drinking to coaching.  Their first game is a massacre.

Their opponents, coached by Roy Turner (Morrow), are ruthless and taunt the team after the game.  When the team threatens to quit, Buttermaker brings in two ringers: pitching star Amanda Whurlitzer (O'Neal) and talented delinquent Kelly Leak (Haley).  Can they come together as a group and win some games, or will they always be the screw-ups.


This film is considered a baseball classic.  It is popular enough, that it was remade in with Billie Bob Thorton.  The film has all of the well-known sports movie troupes: a cranky / reluctant coach, a group of underdogs, an unexpected star player, etc.  I'm not sure if these were established before this film or because of this film... regardless, it works here.

Nobody plays a curmudgeon better than Walter Matthau.  The kids are great, even though only two continued to act as adults: Jackie Earle Haley and Tatum O'Neal.  While both O'Neal and Haley are great, the other boys gets bigger laughs.  My favorite character is Tanner, played by Chris Barnes.  He gets some great lines and just cracks me up.  Each of the boys gets a moment to shine, even if you don't remember their names when the movie is over.  They area riot (as is their hair, but that is a different issue).

A timeless baseball movie.

The Bad News Bears (1976) 102 minutes
Director: Michael Ritchie
Starring: Walter Matthau as Coach Morris Buttermaker
Tatum O'Neal as Amanda Whurlitzer
Jackie Earle Haley as Kelly Leak
Alfred Lutter as Ogilvie
Chris Barnes as Tanner Boyle
Erin Blunt as Ahmad Abdul Rahim
Gary Lee Cavagnaro as Engelberg
Quinn Smith as Timmy Lupus
Jaime Escobedo as Jose Agilar
George Gonzales as Miguel Agilar
David Stambaugh as Toby Whitewood
David Pollock as Rudi Stein
Scott Firestone as Regi Tower
Brett Marx as Jimmy Feldman
Vic Morrow as Coach Roy Turner

Iron Sky

"Whoo! The Eagle has landed, baby."

"Please keep that fool off the main frequency."

In 1945, Nazi Germans escaped to the moon and established a settlement.  In 2018, an American space expedition lands on the moon and discovers the Nazis on the Dark Side of the moon.  The surviving "astronaut," James Washington (Kirby), is captured and taken to the compound.  Nazi commander Klaus Adler (Otto) believes Washington was sent by the "United States of the Americas" to spy on and destroy them.  However, Washington is a model, who was sent into space to improve the image of the President (Paul) in her bid for reelection.

After discovering that Washington's cell phone increases the power of their new weapon, Adler convinces the current Fuhrer, Wolfgang Kortzfleisch (Kier), to send him back to earth to obtain modern computers.  He is accompanied by Washington, and Earth expert Renate Richter (Dietze), who is extremely naive and engaged to Adler.  Adler and Renate are introduced to Vivian Wagner (Sergeant), who is running the President's re-election campaign.  Soon they are heavily involved in the election campaign, and as Adler's ambition grows, Renate is educated about the reality of the Nazis.  Can Renate and Washington stop Adler and the Moon Nazis, or will earth be controlled by the Fourth Reich?


This film kept showing up on Netflix instant, and I was curious enough to read the description and check it out. This is the type of film that you take a chance on, but don't have high expectations for... and then end up enjoying the film more than you'd expect.

The premise is intriguing and carried out in interesting ways... could the film be better, of course, but is still highly entertaining.

I was not familiar with the cast, they have not appeared in many American films, but was pleasantly surprised.  New Zealand actress Stephanie Paul is entertaining as the Sarah Palin-esque President, she is mostly played for laughs.  Julia Dietze and Gotz Otto are well-known German actors.  He has had appeared in a few American films, most notably in the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies.  She has yet to appear in an American film.  Australian actress Peta Sergeant is a TV actress and Christopher Kirby has a diverse acting portfolio.  Despite that, none of these actors are well-known names in Hollywood.

I was impressed with Finnish director Timo Vuorensola, and just added his parody of the Star Trek franchise Star Wreck: In the Pirkinning to my Netflix queue.

Iron Sky (2012) 93 minutes
Rating: R for language and some violence
Director: Timo Vuorensola
Starring: Julia Dietze as Renate Richter
Christopher Kirby as James Washington
Gotz Otto as Klaus Adler
Udo Kier as Wolfgang Kortzfleisch
Peta Sergeant as Vivian Wagner
Stephanie Paul as President of the United States
Tilo Pruckner as Doktor Richter

7 Zwerge-Manner allein im Wald: 7 Dwarves-Men Alone in the Woods

"I thought dwarves were smaller"
"Most people think that"
"A common misconception"

The notorious 7 Dwarves live in the Enchanted Forest and avoid all contact with women.  The dwarves, led by Brummboss (Hoenig), who never talks about his past, are dimwitted Bubi (Waalkes), military-esque Tschakko (Nontschew), gourmet chef Cookie (Majowski), slow-moving / talking Speedy (Schneider), perpetual optimist Sunny (Schmitz), and eternal pessimist Cloudy (Aljinovic).  When a women crosses the bridge to the forest, they decide to discourage future visitors.

Meanwhile, in the kingdom across the river, the Queen (Hagen) has undergone a series of beauty treatments with the hopes of being the most beautiful woman in the land.  However, Spiegel (Hoffmann) is not impressed and names Snow White (Shiva Hagen) instead.  Soon Snow is on the run in the Enchanted Forest and at the dwarves doorstep.  Can they help each other evade the Queen?

I discovered this film while randomly searching through the instant streaming films on Netflix.  I love fairytales and took 4 years of German in high school, so it seemed like a solid choice.

The film takes the well-known Snow White fairytale and adds to it.  The film (specifically the dwarf characters) is slapstick-heavy.  The dwarves repeatedly hit each other, they even play a game that involves hitting each other with boards.

The film also features a large amount of sexual innuendo, and is not suitable for young children.  The humor is a bit juvenile, but it is still entertaining.  In fact, the film was popular enough to get a sequel 7 Zwerge-Der Wald is nicht genug (7 Dwarves-The Forest is Not Enough), which reunited the original cast (with one exception).  I loved some of the gags, like all the bad brunette jokes... Spiegel's attitude, the "bloodhound," etc.

German punk rocker Nina Hagen is the Evil Queen, has excellent timing.  Her daughter, Cosmo Shiva Hagen is the film's other female character, Snow White.  The other characters are entertaining, with a few exceptions.  I don't know anything about German cinema, so I don't know about the usual roles these actors play.  Overall, an entertaining and extremely silly film.

7 Dwarves - Men Alone in the Woods [7 Zwerge - Manner Allein im Wald] (2004) 90 minutes
Director: Sven Unterwaldt Jr.
Starring: OttoWaalkes as Bubi
Heinz Hoenig as Brummboss
Mirco Nontschew as Tschakko
Boris Aljinovic as Cloudy
Markus Majowski as Cookie
Martin Schneider as Speedy
Ralf Schmitz as Sunny
Cosma Shiva Hagen as Snow White
Nina Hagen as The Queen
Hans Werner Olm as Spliss
Norbert Heisterkamp as Ralfie
Rudiger Hoffmann as Spiegel

The Librarian: The Curse of the Judas Chalice

"I think it only fair to warn you that I am a librarian."

Flynn Rider (Wyle) is sick of saving the world, while his personal life crashes and burns.  After being dumped by his latest girlfriend, Flynn suffers a breakdown.  Charlene (Curtin) tells him to go on vacation.  He dreams of a beautiful woman, and decides to go to New Orleans for vacation.

In New Orleans, he stumbles upon lounge singer Simone Renoir (Katic).  Simone is the woman from his dreams and she needs his help: she is protecting the first marker of the Judas Chalice.  They are being pursued by former KGB agent Sergei Kubichek (Tulaine), who wants to raise Dracula.  Can Flynn and Simone rescue the kidnapped Professor Lazlo (Davidson), an expert on Eastern European cultures who is unwillingly helping Kubichek, and protect the Chalice?


The third and "final" film in the successful TNT Librarian franchise.  Like The Librarian: Quest for the Spear and The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines, this film is pretty good for a TV movie. Noah Wyle is entertaining, as usual, as Flynn.  This time he is joined by Stana Katic, best known for her role on ABC show "Castle."  The character of Simone is very different from Kate Beckett, and she did her own singing for the part.  Bruce Davidson is good, if unexpected, in his role.  Dikran Tulaine is menacing as Sergei, with his assorted Russian henchmen.  Bob Newhart and Jane Curtin are still great and underused.

The plot involves vampires... really, vampires is the best they could come up with?  I know vampires are popular, but was it necessary?  That said, it is an interesting take on them and it makes the journey a little more interesting.  It is not my favorite Librarian film, but it is still entertaining.

I hope this is not the last Librarian film... I would like to learn more about Judson and explore more of the secrets of the library.

The Librarian: The Curse of the Judas Chalice (2008) 120 minutes
Director: Jonathan Frakes
Starring: Noah Wyle as Flynn Carsen
Bruce Davidson as Professor Lazlo
Stana Katic as Simone Renoir
Bob Newhart as Judson
Jane Curtin as Charlene
Dikran Tulaine as Sergei Kubichek

Iron Man 3

"I hope I can protect the one thing I can't live without."

After teaming up with the Avengers in New York, saving the world, and falling through a wormhole, Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) can’t sleep.  All of his time is spent working on his Iron Man suits.  His girlfriend, Pepper Potts (Paltrow), runs Stark Enterprises.  She is approached by scientist Aldrich Killian (Pearce) with new technology, but she passes on the offer.  Her head of security, Happy Hogan (Favreau), thinks something shady is happening and follows Killian's collaborator, Eric Savin (Badge Dale), and is severely injured.

The attack is claimed by terrorist The Mandarin (Kingsley), and Stark is furious.  When he is confronted by reports, Stark issues a challenge to the Mandarin and even gives out his home address.  Later that day he is visited by an old flame, Dr. Maya Hansen (Hall), who has a warning... but it comes too late, when Stark's mansion is destroyed, and he is believed dead.  Can he rebuild his life with only his ingenuity and instincts, and still protect the people he holds dear?

After the overwhelming success of The Avengers, Marvel Studios unveiled the next stage of their plans, called Phase 2.  Like Phase 1, the first film featured Iron Man, followed by Thor: The Dark World and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  Then they will introduce The Guardians of the Galaxy and end Phase 2 with The Avengers 2 and Ant-Man in 2015.  Phase 1 was a success, and makes the new plan seem like an obvious choice.

Robert Downey Jr. continues to embody the character of Tony Stark / Iron Man.  It is difficult to imagine any other actor as the character... it is hard to separate the character and the actor playing him.  This film shows how much Tony Stark has changed since first donning the Iron Man armor, and Downey makes it look effortless.  He has excellent chemistry with Gwyneth Paltrow, who gets a chance to be more involved in the action sequences...and even gets to don the Iron Man suit (which is featured in the trailers, so I don't think it spoils anything)  And Downey has an easy chemistry / banter with Don Cheadle, who returns as Stark’s best friend Captain James Rhodes... their conversations are always entertaining.  Ben Kingsley is captivating as The Mandarin and Guy Pearce is intriguing as Aldrich Killian, and their characters are linked in a surprising way.  Rebecca Hall  is fine as Maya Hansen... and James Badge Dale is menacing as Eric Savin.

This is the first Iron Man film not directed by Jon Favreau, who relinquished directorial duties to Shane Black.  Black is familiar with action films, having written the first two Lethal Weapon movies and directed Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (which also starred Downey).  Black injects a new energy into the franchise and raises the stakes for Stark.  They don’t play it safe, and it pays off, it will be interesting to see where Marvel takes things from here.  Favreau does appear in the film, reprising his role as Stark’s friend / bodyguard Happy Hogan.

There is also a funny Avenger cameo at the end of the credits.  As usual, comic creator / legend Stan Lee has a memorable cameo (it got a big laugh in my theater).  A good start to Phase 2, and I am intrigued by the new Thor film, which premieres later this year.

A strong, superhero film.  Lots of action and plenty of humor.  A great film, worth the price of admission (and it has some great previews).

Iron Man 3 (2013) 130 minutes
Rated: PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence throughout, and brief suggestive content
Director: Shane Black
Starring: Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man
Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts
Don Cheadle as Colonel James Rhodes / War Machine
Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killian
Rebecca Hall as Maya Hansen
Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan
Ben Kingsley as The Mandarin
James Badge Dale as Eric Savin
Paul Bettany as JARVIS

Hitchcock

"You shouldn't wait until half way through. Kill her after thirty minutes."

After his latest film, North by Northwest is a success, director Alfred Hitchcock (Hopkins) starts to look for his next project.  The studio wants him to keep churning out thrilling hits, but Hitch is bored and wants to try something different: make a real horror film.  He discovers the novel "Psycho" written by Robert Bloch, based on the life of Ed Gein (Wincott).

Hitch is adamant that he can make the film work, despite reservations by the studio.  His wife and collaborator, Alma Reville (Mirren), is not excited about the project, but agrees to help.  He casts blonde bombshell Janet Leigh (Johansson) as his star, and becomes obsessed with her.  Alma is frustrated with his obsession with his blonde leading ladies, and begins working with writer Whitefield Cook (Huston).  Can Hitch's vision come to life, or will he lose everything that he holds dear?


I have a deep appreciation for Alfred Hitchcock films.  They are well made and exciting.  In 2010 I read "It's Only a Movie: Alfred Hitchcock, A Personal Biography" by Charlotte Chandler, and decided to watch all of his films (I took a little break from that goal).  Having said that, I was excited to see both films about Hitchcock that were released in 2012: this film and HBO TV film The Girl about Hitch and Tippi Hedren (which is in my Netflix queue, but I have yet to see).

The film is based on Stephen Rebello's "Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho."  Obviously took artistic license with their portrayal of the events, so this should not be taken as the 100% accurate account of how the film was made.  Hitch and Alma's daughter, Pat Hitchcock, was not consulted / involved in the film, and is one of the few people still alive that was involved in the film.  Actress Vera Miles, who appeared in several Hitchcock films including Psycho, had a difficult relationship with Hitch, which is shown in the film... which has been documented in other places.

Anthony Hopkins is a good choice to portray Hitch... he embodies the Master of Suspense down to speech and mannerisms.  Helen Mirren is an interesting choice for Alma.  They don't look even remotely alike, but she is a talented actress and leading lady and works in the role... but she wouldn't be my first choice.  The rest of the cast felt pretty spot on.

A decent film, but I didn't love it.  A little more focus on actually making Psycho and less on all the other crap, and it would be a better film.

Hitchcock (2012) 98 minutes
Rating: PG-13 for some violent images, sexual content and thematic material
Director: Sacha Gervasi
Starring: Anthony Hopkins as Alfred Hitchcock
Helen Mirren as Alma Reville
Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh
Danny Huston as Whitfield Cook
Toni Collette as Peggy Robertson
Michael Stuhlbarg as Lew Wasserman
Michael Wincott as Ed Gein
Jessica Biel as Vera Miles
James D'Arcy as Anthony Perkins