Welcome back everyone! Another school year has begun and I have been asked to come back and review some more films for the Frostburg students, and of course I am always up to the challenge. This week, I will review two films already in theaters, just to get things going. So everyone sit back, relax and enjoy the show!
BEERFEST
Starring Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, Erik Stolhanske
Rated R for pervasive crude and sexual content, language, nudity and substance abuse (110 minutes)
The comedy team that is Broken Lizard, who brought us Super Troopers and Club Dread, is back with Beerfest, a mediocre, if not tired comedy about what else? Beer.
Two American brothers go to Munich, Germany to spread the ashes of their late grandfather during Oktoberfest. While there, they meet up with their mean German cousins, who have no respect for their grandfather or any other member of the family. After losing bad to their cousins in an underground drinking contest known as Beerfest, the brothers head back to the States and assemble an oddball team. They train for a year and eventually would go back to Germany for one final showdown.
I love comedy romps with endless alcohol abuse and sexual content, but I only love them when they are done right. This movie does not do it right. There were some funny moments, however they were rare and far in between.
The majority of the jokes seemed forced, and at 110 minutes, the movie dragged and you can only do so much with toilet and masturbation jokes. I think people who actually go to parties every night and drink until there's no tomorrow - which I will say is most college students - will find this movie very entertaining and "true to life."
Though I enjoy an occasional beer myself, I left the theater with just a minor buzz.
Grade: C
INVINCIBLE
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Greg Kinnear
Rated PG for sports action and some mild language (99 minutes)
In 1976, a part-time bartender named Vincent Papale get the opportunity of a lifetime and tires out to be a Philadelphia Eagle after a young coach named Dick Vermeil holds open tryouts. Of course, Vincent makes the team, despite the disapproval of the players and owners.
This is your by-the-numbers underdog story just like Rocky was. The only difference is that this is a true story. Mark Wahlberg gives a very quiet, strong, sensitive performance and Greg Kinnear nails it as the legendary head coach Dick Vermeil, and any football fans out there will appreciate his performance even more.
Movies about down-and-out wannabe athletes have the cliché story where we watch the character rise from nothing to get their million-to-one shot and though I've seen it so many times before, I can't help but cheer right along with them.
The football sequences are well done and any scene with Wahlberg and Kinnear together was always worth it. Though predictable, there's something about watching a good person get a chance at something they truly love to do that we all can relate to.
It's a well-acted, straightforward movie with a great message and you don't have to be an Eagles fan to appreciate that.
Grade: B
2008 Woodie Awards
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