The movie stars Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump, Phildelphia), Julia Roberts (Mystic Pizza, Mona Lisa Smile), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad tv, Saving Private Ryan), Cedric the Entertainer (Why We Laugh, the Honeymooners), Pam Grier (First to Die, Foxy Brown), Wilmer Valderrama (That 70's Show tv, Fast Food Nation), Nila Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding, My Life in Ruins), George Takei (Star Trek tv, Year of the Dragon), and Rob Riggle (The Other Guys, Super High Me).
The plot of the movie is Hanks gets fired from a box store because he has no college experience. He decides to get some college classes under his belt. Roberts is the teacher in one of his classes.
The first scene is a good one with good music. Its just a scene of people getting the box store, think Wal Mart or such, but its a good start. The scene where Hanks gets fired is a good one. It is filled sith some irony where people advanced not because of merrit but just because of a resume.
I usually like Roberts movies. This one she plays a character that just has no redeming qualities. She drinks a lot and she really hates her job and takes that hatered home with her. Now its not to say she does not have some reasons for her behavior. Her husband, Cranston, is an unemployed porn addected blogger who would drive any good woman to drink. Even though she has good reasons I cant see why anyone would be attracted to someone who is so misreable.
The movie was written by Hanks (who also directed) and Vardalos. There was a line Cranston spoke that just stuck out as really bad. To paraphase Im a guy being a guy. It came accross as just some really bad writting that should of been cut or rewritten. The movie over all was lacking any direction. By that I mean the characters did not seem to change that much. The implacation was Roberts character did stop drinking but it was a little too late for me.
A scene in the trailer was Hanks dancing after getting a first kiss from Roberts. The other part of the scene was Hanks had just taken a very drunk Roberts home. I just dont see decent Hanks getting excited about kissing a drunk and obnoxious.
There was a shot that seemed to want to channel the spirit of West Side Stroy. It did not work for me. There was a scend towards the end that reminded me of The Last Supper (it was the pizza eating scene at Cedrics house). Then I may be reading too much into the visuals of the movie.
I think they were going for the chaeracters to be alternative free spirits. For the most part it did not come through. The Vespa girl, the true free spirit, did not come through to me. The characters did not seem to make any real movement in there personalities. I thought that the lack of movements of the characters, not changing who they are, made the ending of the movie as unrealistic. Its almost like they took the ending of a diffrent movie and put it on the end. They hoped that no one noticed that the characters made no real movement to get to the point where they can be happy or were any diffrent then when the movie started. And as a final note the ending credits were bad. The scend they put the credits over was just bad.
Im rating the movie as a C-and it should probally be lower. My advice watch My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Mystic Pizza or Forrest Gump. So many decent movies out there.
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