Better Off Ted................Best Thing Since Sliced Bread

Better Off Ted
TV-PG

Two seasons of hysterical, laugh out loud, goodness.  This is the funniest television show since EVER.  When the family and I watch it, we sometimes have to pause and rewind to hear because we are laughing so hard. We even laugh that hard on second viewings!

Ted is middle management in the research and development department of a company called Veridian Dynamics.  Veridian Dynamics is the epitome of all that is wrong in corporate America.  Linda is the employee/love interest, Veronica is the maniacal boss,  and the team of Lem and Phil are the scientists.  These five are a tremendous ensemble that will keep you in stitches and leave you wanting more.

The real star of this series though, is the dialog.  Snappy, witty, and fresh, I don't remember it letting me down a single time.  I am going to try to give you an example but if you don't like it blame me, not the show.  "Oh, God, we have unhappy Germans. Nothing good has ever come from that."  Ta Da!!!!  Funny, right?

Things you need to know before viewing


1) When it is driving you absolutely mad trying to figure out who the actress that plays Veronica is........the answer is Portia de Rossi.  She is Ellen DeGeneres's partner.

2) The biggest surprise of all here is that the series didn't last longer. When you get to the last episode, you will be sad.

What about the kids?


I'm gonna have to go with iffy on that one.  I let my kids watch but there were times I regretted it.  As the series went on, it got more and more sexual.  I guess my advice would be to preview for yourself and see what you think.

Currently Available on Netflix Instant Viewing and on DVD 


5 Stars- "Love It"

For Your Consideration.................A Mockumentary

For Your Consideration
PG-13

Christopher Guest.  For those of you familiar with his work, all I need to add is "takes on the film industry" and you are good to go.  For those that aren't.......well...........where the heck have you been.  (joking) (sort of)  Seriously though, for those that aren't, Guest is the master of the mockumentary.  A genre that has the feel of a documentary but in reality it's poking fun at it's subject.  In this particular movie, we watch as the fake film "Home for Purim" is made and Hollywood buzz is created.

All of the actors that Guest likes to use are here.  Catherine O'Hara rocks it as a work a day actress. Ed Begley Jr.made me laugh as a makeup artist. Eugene Levy, Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Lynch, Fred Willard, Micheal McKean, and Parker Posey all show up plus a bunch of new folks. (I almost certainly forgot someone there so if you notice who it was, put it in the comments and I will add it.)  Sandra Oh's cameo was the biggest surprise for me. These are terrific comedic actors and it is a treat to watch such a cast

Things you need to know before viewing

1) This one has a much more solemn undertone than most of the mockumentaries.  I am guessing this subject is a little close too home for the people involved in making it and that always complicates things.  Parts of it border on heart breaking.  It is still really funny though.

2) My biggest disappointment was that Jane Lynch has a small role.  A picture of her makes me smile. When she walks onto the screen I giggle.  When she played Julia Child's sister in Julie and Julia, she stole the whole movie for me.  Can't explain it.  Just love her.

What about the kids?

PG-13 is about right.  Nothing egregious.  Just adult themes.

Currently available on Netflix Instant Viewing and on DVD

Four Stars- "Really Like It"

The Six Wives of Henry LeFay...................A Comedy

The Six Wives of Henry LeFay
PG-13

And so we embark on the hardest genre for me and the one which I am likely to provoke the most wrath. I love to laugh but I have a low tolerance for stupid.  I had high hopes for this one cause Tim Allen used to make me laugh on Home Improvement, I like him as Buzz, and I even liked the first couple Santa Clause movies.  What's her name, the Scientology chick, used to make me laugh on Dharma and Greg.  And I loved the movies Green Card, Groundhog's Day,  and Four Wedding and a Funeral, so even though Andie MacDowell is quite possibly the worst actress to continue to find work, she picks good material.  So, when I had the flu and I needed a pick me up, I sat down to enjoy.  I am not sure I ever reached enjoy.  The best I can give it is amused.

Henry is a rich ladies man who should thank is lucky stars for the rich part cause I can't see any other reason he would be the chick magnet he is portrayed to be.  He is involved in an accident in Mexico and  the news is sent home that he is dead. Chaos ensues.

Things you need to know before viewing


1) Andie MacDowell is still very attractive but her acting is unimproved.

2) If you have a low schmuck tolerance, this is not the film for you.

3) If you are a super huge fan of one of the actors, give it a shot.  I mean I sat through the whole thing without turning it off.  If I had had a crush on (fill in the actor/actress name) when I was 15 I might have enjoyed it.

What about the kids?


Just say no.  These are crazy people with no scruples.

Currently available on Netflix Instant Viewing and on DVD and Blue-ray


Two Stars- "Didn't Like It"

Penelope..................A Valentine Offering

Penelope
PG

Since today it Valentine's Day, I give to you Penelope.  A movie that makes my heart swoon.  A modern (ish) day Fairytale, this movie introduces us to Penelope, a girl born to a wealthy couple with a curse. Their first born daughter is born with a pig nose.  To break the curse she must marry a blue blood and so the quest begins.

The cast is stellar and includes Christina Ricci (of whom I am generally not a fan but I like here), Catherine O'Hara (in her neurotic glory), Reese Witherspoon (big name slightly more than cameo), and James McAvoy (be still my heart).  Penelope is touching, witty, and laugh out loud funny in a few part.

Things you need to know before viewing

1) This ain't rocket science folks.  Don't be looking for deep.  Just enjoy.

2) For my friends with OCD tendencies that can't stand inconsistencies in film, be warned.  There is plenty here to drive you mad.  I never notice stuff like that and I noticed on this one.

3)When you get to the scene pictured to the right, hold on to your hat.  It makes me go all gooshy inside.

What about the kids?


Nothing to worry about here.  All of my kids have seen and loved it.  It does lean chick flick though so teen boys may roll their eyes.

Currently available on disc through Netflix and on DVD

Five Stars- "Love it"

Paper Heart...........................Love?

Paper Heart
PG-13

This one is a little hard to describe and every sentence I start to form about it includes the word quirky.  So let me just get that out of the way.  Quirky, quirky, quirky, quirky, quirky.  In case you missed that, this film is quirky.

It is a documentary in which Charlyne decides to find out what love is. She claims over and over again that she doesn't believe in love and wants to understand.   She sets out to do so by interviewing people as she travels around the country.  During filming,  she meets Michael and she has some lessons on the topic that she wasn't expecting.

Charlyne, who really is the lynch pin of the film, is awkward and understated but endearing and you certainly feel for her and Micheal as their relationship emerges on film and they would clearly love to be rid of the cameras and crew.  One of my favorite scenes is in a diner when they are discussing what to order.  Charlyne, a vegetarian, says she is going to order a BLT without the B but with the P and C (pickles and cheese).  Micheal looks stunned and says something along the lines of "But the whole beauty of ordering a BLT is the simplicity of saying  BLT and them knowing what you mean."  (quirky- Sorry.  Had to slip in one more)

Things you need to know before viewing

1) Don't be surprised when puppets show up.  I am guessing the production was low on cash and this started out as a cheap way to show peoples stories.  First time they did it, I was like "What the heck!"  But by the end I was looking forward to them.  It was a really cute idea.


2) There is a totally bogus psychic scene where Charlyne goes to get a reading.  The folks involved find it bogus too and say as much but......yeah.......it's in there.


3) Don't expect a traditional ending.  This is real life.  Quests usually turn up more questions than answers.


4) Did you know that the Merriam-Webster Thesaurus does not have a synonym for quirky?


What about the kids?


There is one interview with a gay couple where they talk about having sex on the first date.  That could be uncomfortable with the kids and is likely the source of the PG-13 but is easy to skip.  Mostly, I think younger kids would just be bored.  


Currently available on Netflix Instant Viewing and on DVD and Blue-ray


Three Stars- "Liked It"

The Parking Lot Movie..............Seriously

The Parking Lot Movie
PG-13

Remember all those guys in school that were super smart?  You know the ones that talked about philosophy, economics, and politics and were no stranger to the worlds of Dungeons and Dragons. The ones that were (and I'm just going to say it) weird.   Maybe you were one of these people.  (Shout out to my brother on that one.)

Now imagine there was a place of employment that seemed to collect these kinds of employees.  That place, is this movie.  The Parking Lot Movie focuses on a pay to park lot near UVA in Charlottesville Virginia.   I know, it sounds dull.

But is isn't!  My husband came home from work and said his office mate had just seen this great film and he wanted us to watch it.  Dh will admit that of the two of us, I am the better movie picker but since it came from Tristan, I said I'd try it.

Well it turns out this film is witty, interesting, funny, and fascinating.  It's a world I never would have considered on the one hand and all too familiar on the other.  These folks are serious about parking cars.  I never would have guessed the intensity of emotion over a car driving away with out paying.  But it brought back all kinds of memories of my own forays into jobs in the service industry.

My husband says that next time we go to Charlottesville, we are going to park there and tip the guy $10.

Things to know before viewing

1) It will make you think about child rearing.

2) Easy to watch while folding laundry because close attention is not required.

What about the kids?

The PG-13 is earned by swearing, drunkenness, and violence.  Violence is not of the normal sort but throwing rocks at cars kind of thing.  I wouldn't have a problem with younger kids viewing it but they probably wouldn't be interested anyway.

Currently available on Netflix Instant Viewing and on DVD

Four Stars- "Really Liked It"

My Name Is Khan............................and I am not a terrorist.

My Name Is Khan
PG-13

Friends, I almost hate to be effusive on my first review, but what must be, must be.  It would be hard for me to find enough good words in the dictionary to express how much I liked this. At the same time it is hard for me to describe the story cause it is.........well................Forrest Gump meets Bollywood meets 9/11.   All that is good and bad about humanity is on display here and really, that is the point.

Shahrukh Khan as Rizvan and Kajol as Mandira will be well known faces to those of us who love Indian films. When it started I thought "Oh yeah, I know these guys.  I've seen them in a zillion things" but in true American style, I had to go look up their names for this post cause their names don't exact trip off my English only speaking tongue.  None of that takes away from their greatness though, cause even with the language barrier, the performances here shine.


Things you need to know before viewing


1) Subtitles my friend. There are English parts too but there is plenty of reading to keep up with.

2) There are some cheesy parts.  Particularly some of the stuff in English.  I could be wrong here, but I am guessing English was not the first language of the writers.  It works fine when the Indians said it but sometimes when the white guys were talking it was....well.........a little less than natural.

3) The main character has Aspergers Syndrome. I know this is hard to watch for some, so I wanted to give you a heads up.

4) You're gonna need Kleenex.

What about the kids?


There is some violence, so it probably deserves the PG-13 but it sure has some interesting things to say about bigotry.  If your kids are not the nightmare type, it is a good discussion piece.

Currently available on Netflix Instant Viewing and on DVD


Five Stars- "Loved It"