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+ Best Action Comedy of the Year + Best American Movie of the Year + Best Mega-flop Movie of the Year + Best Satire of the Year
With a hilarious top center tag-line, this USSR propaganda styled poster for Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen's The Interview sells the movie brilliantly
One of America's most popular, - but fairly unintelligent, - talk show hosts manages to secure an interview with North Korea's fabled Communist dictator, who is a fan. But the CIA feel that the opportunity needs to result in the demise of the notorious villain!
The Interview is written by Dan Sterling (South Park (1997-98)), with great British Columbian filmmakers, co-writer/co-producer/co-director Evan Goldberg and co-writer/co-producer/co-director/co-star Seth Rogen (This Is the End (2013), both) contributing story elements.
The Interview is a Dr. Strangelove (1964) reminiscent adventure that's closer to reality than most would care to admit. It is not only a party to watch, it is also a very unique film, and one whose like you'll never see again, due to the dire ramifications for Sony it incurred, (read about those in the section under the trailer.)
This is an extremely ludicrous and insane comedy, - and you can argue that the enormous controversy it caused makes it less foolish. Because it obviously hit a tender nerve, (in North Korea), and hit it bull's eye.
James Franco (The Disaster Artist (2017)) is permanently keyed up, and Rogen is also a bowl of fun as the odd team heading to the normally hermetically sealed dictatorship. Diana Bang's (Fast Layne (2019, TV-series)) performance as the North Korean Sook, whom Rogen's TV producer falls for, is off the charts. The Interview is a patriotic, freedom-loving kick in the nuts for Kim Jong Un and mad dictators everywhere. It is a howl, and you need to watch it!
= Mega-flop theatrically but may have become profitable in the end
[The Interview premiered 11 December (Los Angeles) and runs 112 minutes. The original script centered on Kim Jong Il, but the project only gained traction after his 2011 death, at which point it was rewritten to focus on his son, the current president of North Korea. Rogen was paid 8.4 mil. $ for his work on the film; Franco got 6.5 mil. $. Shooting took place from October - December 2013 in New York and British Columbia, including in Vancouver. The script was obtained by the North Korean regime, who began sending threats to distributor Sony, who made minor alterations of the film in response. But the threats got worse and were followed up by a massive hack of Sony Entertainment on 24 November, leaking personal e-mails, films and sensitive records to the public, while threats of terrorist attacks against cinemas screening the film increased the pressure further, to the point that cinema chains backed away from distributing the film and Sony eventually pulled the plug on their wide release plan. Marketing was already advanced, and around 30 mil. $ were apparently spent for this purpose. The (North Korean) hackers now switched focus more to the White House and President Barack Obama, who were against Sony's curtailed release. They eventually released the film in a few hundred cinemas (3,000+ had been the original plan), and it opened #16, its peak position, to a 1.7 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it grossed 6.1 mil. $ (52.1 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Germany with 1.8 mil. $ (15.4) and Australia with 935k $ (8 %). The derailed distribution was improved by almost 6 mil. online rentals within less than a month, netting 40 mil. $. The film also made in excess of 7.6 mil. $ on North American home video releases. It was also licensed to Netflix, and Sony may likely have been collecting insurance compensation for the shelved wide release, so it is likely that it has made Sony money by now. Goldberg and Rogen returned with many short, video and TV credits but has not released a feature as directors since The Interview. Rogen returned as an actor in Broad City (2015, TV-series), Kroll Show (2013-15) and theatrically in Steve Jobs (2015); Franco in I Think You're Totally Wrong: A Quarrel (2014), which he also directed. The Interview is rotten at 51 % with a 5.70/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
+ Best Los Angeles Movie of the Year + Best Stone Comedy of the Year
Three popular male stars, - with just two of them receiving credit, - on this smoke-filled poster for David Gordon Green's Pineapple Express
A civil servant visits a pot dealer and gets a new kind of weed called Pineapple Express. On his next trip, however, he witnesses a police murder, which gets connected to him and the dealer.
Pineapple Express is written by Evan Goldberg (Preacher (2016-19)) and co-writer/co-star Seth Rogen (Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (2016)), with co-producer/co-writer Judd Apatow (The King of Staten Island (2020)) contributing story elements, and directed by Arkansan master filmmaker David Gordon Green (George Washington (2000)), whose 5th feature it is.
It is a wacky, potty-mouthed film, ripe with stoner humor, - right from Bill Hader's (The Skeleton Twins (2014)) fairly unrelated 1937-set opening scene to the very end, - but also with flashes of crazy-comedy and deadpan gags. James Franco (The Interview (2014)), Rogen and Danny McBride (Arizona (2018)) compliment each other well and are seconded by scores of other funny folk here, of whom especially Craig Robinson (The Bad Guys (2022)) and the police women (Rosie Perez (Inside the Rain (2019)) and Cleo King (Deadwood: The Movie (2019, TV movie))) are funny.
Pineapple Express, and especially the extended home video version, is overlong, but the laughs are plentiful along the way.
[Pineapple Express premiered 31 July (Hollywood) and runs 112 minutes. Shooting took place from March - May 2007 in California, including in Los Angeles. The film opened #2, behind holdover hit The Dark Knight, to a 23.2 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent one more weekend in the top 5 (#5), grossing 87.3 mil. $ (85.3 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 6.9 mil. $ (6.7 %) and Australia with 3.6 mil. $ (3.5 %). The film was nominated for a Golden Globe, among other honors. Roger Ebert gave it a 3.5/4 star review, translating to a notch over this one. The film made an estimated 48 mil. $ on the North-American home video market as well. Plans for a sequel stranded, as the stars and filmmakers wanted 50 mil. $ for it, and Sony would 'only' allow 45 mil. $. Green returned with Your Highness (2011). Rogen returned in Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008); Franco in Nights in Rodanthe (2008). Pineapple Express is fresh at 68 % with a 6.30/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
An appropriately outrageous, funny poster for Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon's Sausage Party
Sausage Party is the first R-rated CGI-animated movie, described as a spoof on Pixar movies by some, it is a furiously horny raunch-comedy. It is writen by Seth Rogen (Superbad (2007)), Evan Goldberg (The Night Before (2015)), Kyle Hunter (The Night Before) and Ariel Shaffir (The Night Before), with Jonah Hill (21 Jump Street (2012)) contributing story elements, and directed by Greg Tiernan (Thomas & Friends: Sticky Situations (2012)) and Conrad Vernon (Shrek 2 (2004)).
Frank, a sausage who is in love with a bun named Brenda, has high hopes of the divine afterlife outside the store which are to be fulfilled on 'red-white-and-blue day' (4th of July). But new intelligence rocks the food items' firm belief in a great beyond...
Sausage Party deals with more real content than most audiences probably expect: SPOILER Namely the idea of a divine afterlife, - and in doing so staunchly reproving and rejecting all religions, which isn't my cup of tea, but at least it's done with a lot of humor here. SPOILER And on its ambitious path, it also attempts to solve the Israel-Palestine conflict and reproves reactionary, Islamic politics!
But don't kid yourself: While doing these seemingly serious things, Sausage Party delivers enough f-bombs and more finessed sexual references to satisfy even the most vulgar teen or adult. It really is outrageous SPOILER and, of course, all culminates in a joyous, funny, exhilarating food orgy. - Literally. The film also references countless movies and celebrities.
Of the many star voices in the film, Rogen and Kristen Wiig (Ghostbusters (2016)) as the leads do well, - although there wasn't that much Wiig-quality to Brenda, perhaps a side-effect of the lovely funny-woman's simply over-working herself these years. David Krumholtz (Hail Caesar! (2016)) is funny as Lavash, and Edward Norton (Moonrise Kingdom (2012)) stands out as Sammy, - in a good or bad way will be up to the individual viewer, - with a voice that's very recognizably shaped on Woody Allen. Salma Hayek (Frida (2002)) is also good fun as a lesbian taco.
Sausage Party is filled with amusing moments and some that are laugh-out-loud funny. The animation isn't on par with Pixar movies, (but look at the budget and go figure), and is still of impressively high quality. It is an outrageous, very funny and very horny movie, bringing to mind such flicks as Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex *But Were Afraid to Ask (1972) and Fritz the Cat (1972). It could only come from the warped, baked minds of Goldberg and Rogen.
Watch a trailer for the film here
Cost: 19 mil. $
Box office: 114.3 mil. $ and counting
= Huge hit
[Sausage Party premiered March 14 (SXSW Austin, Texas Festival) and runs 88 minutes. Rogen has stated that the film took 8 years to get made due to hesitance and fear in Hollywood and has said of its development: "What would it be like if our food had feelings?’ We very quickly realized that it would be fucked up." The film dodged a NC-17 rating by removing some pubic hair from one of the food characters in the film to receive its R-rating. Controversy has surrounded the film's production, as animators have allegedly been forced to work overtime without pay to complete the film on its assigned budget. A large number of animators have reportedly been removed from the credits due to complaints about this outrageous praxis, alleged to have been at the behest of co-director Tiernan. (This story seems to explain some of the reason why the film could be made for such a low budget.) The film opened #2, behind Suicide Squad, with a 34.3 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it stayed #2 for another week and remained in the top 5 for 5 weeks in total, and has to date grossed 93.9 mil. $. The film has yet to open in several important markets and so is likely to gross a good deal more still. Rogen has talked of an idea for a sequel, which is likely to materialize now. Sausage Party is certified fresh at 82 % with a 6.7 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
Hilarity-promising poster for Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's This Is the End
QUICK REVIEW:
Seth Rogen (Take This Waltz (2011)) receives his old, fellow Canadian friend Jay Baruchel (Knocked Up (2007)) in the LAX airport for catch-up and later a party at James Franco's (Palo Alto (2013)) house. But then it starts ... - the Apocalypse!
This Is the End
is a crazy-funny apocalyptic stoner sci-fi meta-comedy with lots of
memorable moments and lines, in which all the famous actors play
outrageous versions of themselves. Funniest of them all, probably, are Craig Robinson (The Office (2005-13)) and Danny McBride (Pineapple Express (2008)). At some point, though, debuting writer-directors Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen (The Interview
(2014)) let their preferences for vulgarity, obscurity and just plain
stoner-randomness get the best of them, so that some audiences will
undoubtedly get enough. This Is the End
is mainly for people who are already familiar with the stars in it, as
they play on their public images and many of the jokes rely on
actor-familiarity. The Channing Tatum-scene raises some questions (...), and the SPOILER exorcism of Jonah Hill (especially the puking part) is a low-point for the film. I also didn't feel that I really needed to see SPOILER Seth Rogen piss himself in his face, or Backstreet Boys perform in Heaven. Still, This Is the End wins on its personalities and many laughs.
Cost: 32 mil. $ Box office: 126 mil. $ = Big hit [The film came in 2nd behind Man of Steel's
phenomenal 116.6 mil. $ opening on June 12, and still managed a 20.7
mil. $ opening weekend. Due to the film's strong result in the US, it
was re-released on September 6. 80.5 % of the film's end gross came from
North America.] What do you think of This Is the End? What is your favorite line or scene from the film?
