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As I am sure many people will admit to, when I was little I seriously wondered if my toys could come to life when I wasn’t around.  Then Toy Story was released, and though I was a very sophisticated seven year old (don’t make that face mom) it was hard not to hope that maybe my toys were at home right then doing something ridiculous.  As I grew older I stopped looking for the life behind those beady little plastic eyes, yet while watching Toy Story 3 it’s impossible not to sink comfortably back into that childhood fantasy.

Mirroring the years that have passed since the last film, many years have passed for our beloved gang in Toy Story 3.  Their owner Andy has grown up and is days away from leaving home to start the college experience, packing all the necessities he will need in his home away from home.  Some things that have not made the “Things to Pack” list are the toys, who are coming to terms with this the best they can and accepting their future stored in the attic.  However, things don’t go quite as planned as they are mistakenly taken to Sunnydale Daycare (oops!  I mean Sunnyside, not our favorite Buffy Hellmouth.  But you can see how I might confuse these tots for demons), where a fresh batch of children are waiting to play with the neglected toys once again.

Other than one or two minor bumps along the way (*cough* Cars *cough*), Pixar has yet to let me down with the films they make.  Each and every time I am transported to a new world, and it’s hard not to fall in love with them.  Which is probably why the major changes going on in Toy Story 3 from the previous films threw me through a wide range of emotions.  I don’t even want to know what my face looked like for the first ten minutes of the movie.  You know that look when your mouth is hanging open, somehow still forming a goofy smile, as you are transfixed to the screen, oblivious to the ridiculous expression you are wearing?  I just know I had that.  And then before you know it the humor subsides into a moment of reminiscing as some home videos of Andy playing with his toys comes onto the screen.  I actually started tearing up.  Tearing up!  At fake home videos!  Stupid memory lane…

These first 10 minutes basically sum up how the entire film will affect you if you have any remnant of a soul in your body.  As I mentioned before, some major changes have occurred between the last film and now.  Andy has grown up, the puppy they got for Christmas in the first film has lived out a large stretch of its life, and some familiar faces have been removed from the toy chest (not Wheezy the Penguin!).  Fearing these changes, I clung to the familiar faces I grew up with, from Woody and Buzz to Rex and Slinky Dog, watching the adventures that somehow manage to top the previous films.  No, not top, almost blow them out of the water.

The story of this film introduces a plethora of hilarious situations for the toys to deal with, melding the familiar characters and their personalities with the absurd, which would be ruined by any attempt at an explanation.  All I can say is that it starts out strong and only gets better as it continues on.  So bottom line?  You have to see it for yourself.  The plot points were great, but the attention to detail made this film even stronger, especially in concern to the references.  Not only did it pay homage to what started it all thanks to little fan favorites like the Pizza Planet truck and yet another creepy baby doll, but the makers of this film also completely understand the world they are dealing with (that being toys).  Thanks to my roommate introducing me to the animation world of Hayao Miyazaki, I was overjoyed to see a plush toy of the Japanese character Totoro; but for those of you who are a little more mainstream, the Barbie and Ken interactions are hilarious and a great addition to the stories of the other characters.

When I returned home from the theatre I turned the corner in my room and noticed the box my mother and I had recently packed full of the stuffed animals I have had for as long as I can remember, and a sort of guilt crept into the pit of my stomach.  I thought of the toys in Toy Story 3 and how they made plans to make the best of their life in the attic until hopefully one day they were given to Andy’s kids to be played with once more.  It sounds silly, but I made a mental note not to lose track of this box.  So thanks Disney/Pixar for helping me see the life behind their eyes again.

Final Grade: A

With the changing times slowly effecting the disorderly, live-and-die-by-your-own-rules ways of the United States, John Marston decided to hang up his holster, giving up his life in a gang for a respectable life that his family could be proud of. Unfortunately for him, a life of crime leads to quite a reputation in certain circles, and this reputation is what leads to trouble knocking on his front door.  Seeing his past as their way to spread their influence and power over the area, a group of government agents kidnap Marston’s wife and son with the promise that they will not be harmed as long as he helps them hunt down the gang that he once rode with.

Before you just go strolling into a not-so-welcomed family reunion with your trusted gun strapped to your hip, there is a lot of grunt work that needs to be done to learn the ins and outs of this world.  But for all its trouble, the frontier is sure an amazing place to call your office.  While moving through the world different “stranger” missions will crop up that are worth the additional time tacked onto the main storyline length.  Roadsides are not just a place for road kill anymore (though you are more than welcome to provide some.  I will admit, in the beginning I went a little crazy because I felt like I was playing a cracked out version of Oregon Trail 2 as I hunted down the different types of animals that inhabit this land, especially considering there being an achievement for killing all the buffalo found in the great plains.  Take that Oregon Trail!  Marston can carry all the meat and skins he wants!  None of that killing tons of animals only to be able to carry back a leg worth of meat…Whew… Tangent over…); now they are littered with people begging for help as they are being carried off on a man’s shoulder, someone steals their horse, holds up their carriage, etc.  And the towns are no better.  They are filled with quite the collection of colorful characters, as well as the base of most main quest starting points.  And though they may seem to be all the same after a while, with the same shops, a bed to rest after a long day of killing, etc, they are just as likely to provide the little random event every now and again.  Ever ask yourself what it would feel like to save a whore from a man with a knife?  Now’s your chance to find out.

Even though you will eventually be able to quick travel from locations using a carriage or campfire, a lot of the missions still require a substantial amount of time in the saddle because there is nothing like the rhythm of horses galloping to use as a soundtrack for long pieces of exposition.  In these moments we slowly learn more and more about the man Marston once was and what these people really think about his past, and unfortunately this dialog can get quite repetitive.  No one has any issue with outwardly expressing their resentment towards this man who doesn’t really seem to deserve any of it based on the character we grow to love in the game, and he spends an awful lot of time reminding them that he just wants to find his family.  Eventually I was begging that they would dive into a game of I Spy or play the quiet game.  Anything to get them away from playing their game of Place the Blame.  Luckily enough it is quite the tale to tell.

Before you act on the question of what would happen if you just pull out your gun to stop this verbal abuse, just remember that there is plenty of gunplay to vent your anger out in the game thanks to a substantial number of great missions.  The controls of this game are very simple thanks to an auto-targeting system that locks on to the enemies in your line of fire.  In addition to this, another one of Marston’s special skills involves slowing down time in order to pinpoint exactly where he wants to shoot a man, even if it is just to taunt someone by shooting his gun out of his hand or his fancy hat off of his head.  Though these may seem to make things way too easy, it never feels like cheating because you will be way too busy having fun feeling like a BA cowboy.  The range of weapons also gives a different feel to the game, ranging from pistols to sniper rifles to a mounted machine gun from time to time.  This added a nice change to the usual gunplay, but sometimes the lack of a cover mechanic that saves your life on numerous occasions during the majority of the game is lost in these moments, making it a tad frustrating (especially when people are lobbing dynamite at you), and I just wanted to go all Master Chief on it, ripping it from its mount to mow people down in a more ambulatory fashion.

When it comes down to it, Red Dead Redemption has everything needed to provide a great experience.  The story is amazingly cinematic and full of fun and quirky characters to get invested in (though some can get a little annoying and/or quite creepy, such as a certain character that resembles a mutated cannibal in Wrong Turn.  Yeah, I’m talking about you Seth), the gameplay is addictive in most aspects and will carry on long past the main storyline, and the design elements are quite extraordinary, providing a beautiful environment to get lost in as you ride around on your trusted stead, possibly off into the sunset.

Final Grade: 9/10

P.S. – I actually gave the Free Roam multiplayer a try in this game, and other than taking on some gang hideouts with a friend, I wasn’t really all that excited about what it has to offer.  On the one hand, after spending the majority of the game avoiding killing any innocent people since I was one of the good guys, it’s quite liberating not worrying about who you are shooting at.  But it’s nothing new.  However, playing this part with friends has gotten me really looking forward to the co-op DLC.

Red Dead Redemption is available on the XBOX 360 and PS3.

Movies:

Conviction Trailer – A true story about a woman who becomes I lawyer after her brother is wrongly (?) accused of murder.  Check it out here. (Side note – can movie trailers stop using the musical scores from The Island?  Thanks)

Flipped Trailer – Nothing like a childhood crush.  Check out the trailer here.

Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World International Trailer – Some stuff you have seen before mixed with a bunch of stuff we haven’t.  Check it out here.

Gaming:

Lego Harry Potter Years 1-4 Demo – I don’t care how childish these LEGO games look, they sure are fun.  When I first heard that they were coming out with a game based on the Harry Potter world, I was a little concerned as to how the magic spells were going to be incorporated, but it looks like they pulled it off.  If you are a fan of the LEGO games, you should really go download this now.

This year’s main events at E3 can be more or less summed up by what the three big hitters (Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo) had to show off at their conferences.  To sum up, everyone thinks they are the best in the biz, the one to do it first, the one to bring the best and newest technology to the masses… Blah blah blah.  Tooting their horns aside, all three can be summed up as follows: motion controls, exercise, sports, 3D, and a new 250 gb XBOX 360 (I write that last bit glaring at the 360 I have now, which is the result of 3 separate red ring incidents).  Now you know everything you need to! …  Just kidding.  Well, partially.  If you want to get a full break down of the press conferences of the big three then be sure to check out my friend Zac’s write up here.  As for me, well, I am all about the gaming aspect of the show.  Which brings about this glorified Suggestion Box.  Here is what I was excited by:

• Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood – (360/PS3/PC) – After a short cinematic preview of the game during the Ubisoft Press Conference (click here) we were treated to a gameplay video, and surprisingly it looks better than ever before, mixing more cinematic elements into the gameplay, making minor adjustments to the combat, and adding horse riding through the cities (!!!). I know what you are thinking; my excitement for this is a little much.  I agree.  Oh, and multiplayer is being introduced into the game.  As all of my friends know I would much rather play a campaign then the multiplayer aspect, but following a viewing of this walkthrough I have no doubt that this is one I could definitely get into.  Check it out here.

• Bulletstorm – (360/PS3/PC) – Of all the first person shooters, including Medal of Honor and Crysis 2, the one game that I was actually impressed with the most was Bulletstorm.  As opposed to the average FPS that was shown, this was quite refreshing in its look, ridiculous dialog, and gameplay.  The trailer is kind of lame for it, so here’s part of what they showed on stage during the EA Press Conference.  That way you can also see some of the ways to attack a bad guy and hear the ridiculous dialog.  Check it out here.

• Dead Space 2 – (360/PS3/PC) – Though I have no interest in playing this because just watching my roommate play the first scared me enough, I will definitely recommend it for those who aren’t as chicken as I am.  Check out the trailer here.

• Donkey Kong Country Returns – (Wii) – Though it might not be as exciting as bringing back GoldenEye, Donker Kong is back as well in his good ol’ form.  Check it out here.

• Enslaved: Odyssey to the West Trailer – (360/PS3) – The more I see from this game, the more excited about it I become.  From what I read, it seems as if the relationship between the two characters is going to be rather important and more than just keeping the damsel in distress alive thanks to the option of giving her certain commands to help out given the situation.  Plus the combat, platforming, animation and characters seem to be really solid as well.  Check out the newest trailer here.

• Fable III – (360/PC) – Though I was a little disappointed that the video shown for Fable III didn’t really reveal anything new coming to the Fable series, but rather more of the same old same old (which seemed like a theme for Microsoft’s sequel heavy conference), I still can’t help but love the Fable series.  Check out the trailer here.

• Gears of War 3 – (XBOX 360) – Pretty much what you would expect from this series, but the demo showed off the 4 player co-op and newer breed of baddies.  Check out some of the gameplay here.

• Ghost Recon: Future Soldier – (360/PS3/Wii/PC/PSP/DS) – The demo shown presents both the stealth and the straight up gun fighting of the game, and though I don’t know why I wouldn’t just go through the whole thing using my invisibility cloak, the shooter stuff looks pretty fun.  If you only want to see some video footage of the game to see how it looks and plays, then start the video at 3:20.  Click here!

• GoldenEye 007 – (Wii) – A new GoldenEye!  Oh the memories… I remember convincing my dad that I was old enough to own the original game… This time around looks like Daniel Craig will be lending his likeness to the game, but some of my favorite moments from the first seem to be making a reappearance, such as dropping down on someone when he are sitting on the toilet.  Meh heh heh… I just wish it wasn’t Wii exclusive.

• Halo: Reach – (XBOX 360) – Though I am not obsessed with the multiplayer aspect of the game like most players are, I still like this franchise for the campaign aspect.  And looks like they are adding a new dimension to this game, which numerous fans on the message boards are dubbing Halo: Star Fox.  Check out the official trailer here.

• Infamous 2 Trailer – (PS3) – Not only does the main character Cole have a different look, but he can control ice now too?  You would think that water and electricity coursing through the human body together would be a big no no… but could lead to some more interesting electrocutions.  “Oh hello kind sir.  Don’t mind me as I flood this room.  Uh… could you please step into that puddle?  Why thank you, sucka!”  Check out the trailer here.

• Killzone 3 – (PS3) – Yet another FPS and game series I have never played.  But there is a jet pack in this one, basically screaming how cool it is.  That’s right, that was only half sarcastic, cuz I take my jet pack’s pretty seriously.  Check out the trailer here, which shows off a lot of the gameplay action.

• Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword – (Wii) – With the next installment to the Zelda series the wii control will be fully integrated into the control of the sword, which means no more flicking when you can full on swing.  In other words, no need to contain your excitement to wield Link’s sword.  Check it out here.

• Metal Gear Solid: Rising – (360/PS3/PC) – Another fan favorite franchise that I wasn’t overly impressed with since I jumped in late with the 4^th game.  It was good, but far too little gameplay for me, making it a more or less boring experience.  However, it’s hard not to want to stick around for a little more Metal Gear after seeing the trailer for the new game Metal Gear Solid Rising.  I mean, there are swords that allow you to go into slowmo hack and slash mode!  Who doesn’t want that?  Check out the trailer here.

• Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit – (360/PS3/Wii/PC) – I was never too big on racing games, but the one series I was always willing to check out was Need for Speed.  At least until they started pushing them out one after the other, moving further and further away from what the series started as.  But now Hot Pursuit seems to be going back to the beginning, featuring campaign modes where you can play as both a racer and a cop.  Check out the trailer here.

• Portal 2 – (360/PS3/PC/Mac) – Yet another game that I regret never playing before, but after seeing this trailer I am definitely going to go back and give the first one a try.  Check it out fore yourselves here.

• Shank Trailer – (360/PS3/PC) – Check out this new video that shows off the art style and a little bit of the gameplay of the action/adventure side-scroller Shank, which will hopefully be available for download sometime soon.  Check it out here.

• Spec Ops: The Line – (360/PS3/PC) – Another war game, but the trailer is enough to get me intrigued.  Check it out for yourselves here.

• Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 – (360/PS3/PC/Wii/PSP/DS) – Yet another sequel to a game I still have on my list of things to do.  I am starting to feel like a failure.  But you know what will make me feel better?  An amazing cinematic trailer.  YAY!  Check it out here.

• Star Wars: The Old Republic – (PC) – Though I am not a fan of the MMOs, as I said for The Force Unleashed these Star Wars games sure have some amazing cinematic trailers.  Watch it here.

So there you go.  Sure, the number of links is probably a little bit overwhelming, but if you are a gamer then they are worth your time because it seems like a lot of stuff is coming up in the near future that you will not want to miss.  So do yourself a favor and press them!  Peer pressure!

2009’s Fame may hit on some of the best parts of the entertainment industry with performances of music and dance, but all of this being crammed into one film leaves little room for an actual film to really form.

The New York Academy of Performing Arts is apparently the place to be for upcoming, high school aged artists of all types.  Auditions are brutal, classes are challenging, and you have to be just as studious as you are talented.  This film follows a group of kids who are lucky enough to be accepted into the school during the four years of their lives spent fine-tuning what they do best.

With the massive popularity of singing and dancing on TV and in films today, Fame is not the film that is going to shine above the rest as something truly memorable. Following a few of the overused, “fun” staples of similar films, such as the audition process mixing in the talented and the (attempted) comical performances of the less talented, as well as the random foodless cafeteria scene where everyone bonds through a “spontaneous” talent show, the film quickly disintegrates into something far less cohesive.  Because of this, I am going to make two suggestions as to what would have made this better:

1. Pick a smaller group of characters to follow.  Fame fails at being character driven because there are far too many students with stories to tell, and not enough time to tell them, making it completely impossible to get invested in any of them.
2. Have the film take place over a smaller amount of time, such as just Freshman Year.  This film is less than 2 hours long, with a lot of the time being devoted to music numbers and dance scenes instead of the characters themselves as they progress through the four years of their high school experience.  With little time for their stories, there is no sense of progression because all the audience gets to witness are the most heightened moments for these individuals, making everything seem so overdramatic more often than not, fully deserving of an equally overdramatic eye roll.

Though a lot of the performances in the film are pretty entertaining to watch thanks to the talents of the people cast, Fame blends these random performance pieces in with a laughable excuse of a story, creating a more than lackluster film.  Let me put it this way: most of the dance pieces on So You Think You Can Dance are able to express a far greater story than this film is capable of doing, and looks far better in doing so.

Final Grade: C-

As far as video games go, Alan Wake is the closest I have ever come to playing a game of the horror genre (because I don’t think my roommate handing over the controller for a minor section of Dead Space counts).  Technically it says “psychological action thriller” right on the box, but I will ignore this distinction and revel in my moment of accomplishment, because it is probably never going to happen again.  Let’s just say the harrowing setting and creepy story of Alan Wake gave me my fill of horror games for a good long while thanks to its abusive use of my childhood fear of the dark and things that violently go bump in it.

One of the worst things a writer has to deal with is writer’s block.  At least that is probably partly what Alan Wake thought when he was traveling to the large forested region of Bright Falls for a getaway with his wife and typewriter.  If only he was so lucky.  Quickly things go from bad to worse as his wife disappears from the cabin they are renting on the middle of the lake.  To add to the pile, the residents of the town are being possessed by a dark presence that turns them into murderous shadows that loom in the darkness of the forest, the same forest that Wake has a knack for ending up in as he searches for answers to what happened to his wife, his spotty memory, and what the heck is going on.

The controls are pretty basic for this game, which is an added relief considering my mind doesn’t quite function that well when I am freaking out.  While traveling through the world, Wake carries a flashlight and a small assortment of guns and light “explosives” with him (if he hasn’t managed to lose them somehow), and it is quite easy to switch between the two.  The left trigger controls the flashlight that is used to burn the darkness out of the “Taken,” and once a light flash indicates it is gone, there is no need to pull up a clunky in game menu to switch out; just pull the right trigger and shout your victorious expletives as the ex-citizen dissipates.  However, it is not rare that this straight forward point and click method is not enough to hold back the waves.  This is when Wake’s evasive maneuvers come into play.  Though I was hit by an ax-wielding psychopath or hatchet thrown out of the distant shadows more than I can count on my trembling hands, which I will blame on my reflexes being dulled by my fear, many a time moving out of the way at the last second will not only save some pain, but trigger some pretty cool slow motion movements.  Master this quickly because occasionally bullets will run low, guns always seem to need to be loaded, and running is not always enough because Wake gets winded far too frequently for a guy running for his life.

In addition to these slow motion action shots, pretty much everything else in this world looks amazing.  Though you would think a dense forest would all look the same, they somehow manage to make every section of it look beautiful.  And trust me, with all the times I turned around to check behind me, I sure saw a lot of it.  But if you don’t get excited about the fog drenched trees like I did, there are plenty of other locations to keep things fresh, all the while remaining just as scary.  In addition to the environments, the cutscenes look great, though a little more work could have gone into syncing up the voices with the lip movement because it can get a little distracting at times, throwing off how amazing the rest of it looks.

The look of the game might be enough to give it a gander, but it is far from the only thing that makes Alan Wake an excellent game.  It is set up in such a way that takes full advantage of numerous other aspects of entertainment, including a lot of influences from film and television. The game is broken up into numerous episodes, playing out like a TV show with introductory “previously on…” set ups to begin each section.  Though the game is quite addictive, these breaks between long expanses of gameplay were a relief because they provided some much needed breathing room from the fear and tension that builds inside you as you play; because let’s face it, there is quite a lot of this going on.  Even though I was playing in a fully lit room, whenever the fog would roll in I could feel myself tense up, just waiting for something to come running out of it at me.  And then the heavy breathing would start in, making the camera that would cling to Wake as if it was actually showing the perspective of someone breathing down my neck, though it is far more likely that the source of the breathing was waiting around the corner in anticipation of gutting me like a fish.

Some of the details of the story are still a little fuzzy to me as I try to understand what actually went on in Bright Falls, but that does not keep Alan Wake from a being an amazing game in pretty much every aspect.  The environments are just as distracting as they are scary thanks to my fascination of playing with the shadows my flashlight would create in reaction to the world around me, which on more than one occasion I was punished for by a sneak attack.  But above all, I have no qualms with admitting just how scared I was walking through the woods at night.  As it turns out, there sure are a lot of things going bump in there.

Final Grade: 8.5

Alan Wake is exclusive to the XBOX 360.

Gulliver’s Travels Trailer – Honestly I wasn’t quite sure about this trailer.  I actually enjoy a lot of what Jack Black does, but I still wasn’t so sure since I have already recently seen a movie with a giant guy surrounded by tinier people (that would be Night at the Museum.  Or that childhood movie with the little cabinet thing that brings action figures to life…anyway).  But then Emily Blunt shows up post Gulliver going through the Bermuda Triangle, and as sad as it is to say, that is what sold me.  I have no idea why, and it could honestly be for the simple fact that I just watched Young Victoria and the trailer for Adjustment Bureau, who knows.  Check it out for yourselves here.

[Rec]² Trailer – I didn’t know this when I saw Quarantine, but that was actually a remake of a foreign film called [Rec], which is now getting a sequel.  If you liked the American version like I did (or were cooler and saw the original), then give this trailer a gander here.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World Trailer – More footage of this film means Lauren = crazy happy.  And I can now say that I officially am pro Michael Cera in the lead role cuz he looks like he is holding his own.  Check it out for yourselves here.

Gaming

Assassin’s Creed 3 News – (360/PS3/PC) – Assassin’s Creed 2: Brotherhood hasn’t even hit the shelves yet, but that is not to say that they aren’t already working on the third installment of the game (AKA the 3^rd different historic character we are going to get to play as).  And it is looking like things might be heading towards Egypt.  Though I am bummed I don’t get to go all crazy ninja in Japan, I guess this will have to do.  Check out the short article at gamespot.com here (which includes the link to the full image).

Deus Ex: Human Revolution Trailer – (360/PS3/PC) – This trailer is beautiful and cinematic; everything I hope the cutscenes within the game will be like.  Plus the voice of the main character sounds just like Batman.  And Batman would not allow himself to be featured in a horrible game post Arkham Asylum.  Oh no, those horrible Batman games are a thing of the past.  Wait… What was I talking about?  Oh yeah… Check out Deus Ex: Human Revolution here.

Letters to Juliet is another entry into the romantic comedy genre that is about as cookie cutter as cookie cutters can get.  It is predictable, cheesy, and underwhelming more often than not, but somehow even though I was rolling my eyes at it all, I couldn’t help but be charmed by the familiar love story.

While sightseeing alone during her pre-wedding honeymoon in Italy, Sophie comes across a wall where women post letters to Juliet (yes, that Juliet), asking for love advice.  Seeing as she has a lot of free time thanks to her distracted fiancé, she decides to help out a group of women who call themselves the secretaries of Juliet by responding to a 50-year-old letter. Thanks to the power of movie time, it is not long before the author of this letter, who is now all grown up, has returned to Italy to take Sophie’s advice and hunt down her long lost love, to the dismay of the grandson who has come along, and just so happens to be Sophie’s age.  Oooo sexual tension…

Just incase my use of “cookie cutter” eluded you before, I will reiterate by saying that this is about as unoriginal as a rom-com can get.  Every plot point is telegraphed before it happens, every character is written in a stereotypical way for this genre, and watching the trailer for this film is just as effective in telling the story as sitting through the film itself.  Yet I left the theater feeling that sometimes that’s not necessarily a bad thing.  Sometimes all you really need is a reminder of these genre touchstones to be completely charmed by this genre, and any hopeless romantic will leave with an overwhelming, heart warmed sensation in their chest because of the representation of this woman’s unwillingness to give up on a love she felt 50 years ago.

Vanessa Redgrave plays this woman, and her performance seems to be the only one in the film that is capable of rising above the role she is given.  As the other actors seem stuck in their roles with little to do, she played up every aspect of her character, making her easily an individual that I would love to go road tripping with.  Unfortunately this film doesn’t play up this woman’s character and love story as much as it should, but instead weakly works in a second love story of the triangle variety between Sophie and the two men she must decide between that takes up far more screen time than it deserves.  For starters, Sophie’s character is far too weak to carry the film, giving Amanda Seyfried little to work with in her performance.  Sophie’s fiancé comes off as a completely oblivious jerk (giving Gael García Bernal little to do as well), which I am assuming is to give Sophie the justification of any romantic tinglings she may feel towards the other male role in this film.  However, the man who is supposed to inspire her to move away from her fiancé is also pretty undesirable for the large part of the getting to know each other period of the film.  Other than Christopher Egan’s strong resemblance to a British Matt Damon, I was slightly baffled as to how his character could be considered a leading man in a romantic film, which just further weakens Sophie’s character because of her inability to find a decent guy.

Even though I wasn’t expecting much from this film because of its stereotypical nature (and obnoxiously excessive use of Italian pop music), I was still disappointed in the vast majority of it.  Put it this way, I spent far more time taking in the beautiful Italian scenery as opposed to watching the main characters, and was far more excited by a building I thought I possibly scaled while playing Assassin’s Creed 2 (sorry for the video game reference, seeing as most fans of the romantic comedy genre probably have no idea what I am talking about right now) than by the possibility of romance blooming below.  Yet somehow the hopeless romantic in me was charmed by the story of the woman trying to find the man she knew 50 years ago, thanks to a great performance from Redgrave, and I found myself with an overwhelming, girly “Aw…” building in my chest as I groaned at the rest of the film.  Without her, this film would have been completely forgettable, lost in the mass of films that are almost identical to this.

Final Grade: B-

2008’s Forgetting Sarah Marshall introduced the scene-stealing character of Aldous Snow, who quite deservingly got a spin-off of his own with Get Him to the Greek.  Though it was not exactly what I hoped for, it had enough hilarious bits to tip the scales in a favorable direction.

Following the events of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Aldous Snow’s life has become something that would be the perfect source material for an episode of the E! True Hollywood Story series.  His sexual prowess is as strong as ever, but his sobriety has gone out the window, along with his career as a relevant rock star.  Luckily enough for him there are people like Aaron Green out there who remember the better times of Snow’s musicality. During a staff meeting at the record company he works for, Aaron throws out the idea that they should have a 10-year anniversary concert at L.A.’s Greek Theater in a few days.  Now he just needs to get Aldous there.

Before I delve into the more important parts of the review, there is something I need to say so that you don’t make the same mistake going into the film that I did.  As a spin-off, this film does a great job of throwing in little references to Forgetting Sarah Marshall while not relying on the past storyline in any capacity other than the main character.  However, there is one glaring problem about these two worlds: though Jonah Hill is in both films, he does not play the same character.  I repeat: HE DOES NOT PLAY THE SAME CHARACTER.  I wish there had been someone to type-scream that at me before I saw this because I was thoroughly confused by the change to the super fan, and was debating whether the writers were ruining his character, or if Hill just didn’t remember how he had played the roll before.  Okay, problem solved…

Russell Brand is back in the role of Aldous Snow, and is just as hilarious this time around as he was in his first performance of the role.  His delivery of the comedy is spot on in any capacity, whether it be the numerous drug/alcohol riddled scenes or the deadpan-leaning readings of his lines, though he is just as capable of pulling off the serious turns his character takes.  Jonah Hill gives a great performance as well as the normal guy thrown into this over-the-top rocker lifestyle for a couple of days, easily holding his own in the scenes against Brand.  However, with all the praise that can be thrown at the two leads, the one man that comes out of left field and surprisingly steals the spotlight in any scene he is in is Sean ‘P. Diddy’ Combs (I went with his imdb.com name to be on the safe side) as the head of the record label, delivering some of the most humorous bits in the film.  And finally, Rose Byrne proves that she is just as capable with comedy by playing Jackie Q, Aldous’s ex-wife and music star, venturing far away from all of the more serious roles that I have only seen her in prior to this.

Though this film is a comedy, it is not afraid to delve into the complete opposite end of the emotional spectrum by bringing up major issues in these characters’ lives, keeping them in the realm of complete believability as opposed to caricatures.  Both in these more dramatic moments and the heightened bits of comedy is where this film truly shines, but unfortunately it doesn’t really know what to do when it is in the middle ground.  For a large span of time in the middle of the film I could feel myself sinking into my seat as the film got a little too comfortable in its pacing, creating a lull that lasts for an uncomfortable length before it is knocked out of this rut by one of the most ridiculous scenes I have seen on screen in a long time.

As one of my fellow viewers and I agreed upon, Get Him to the Greek is basically Funny People with the music industry (random cameos and all).  Once it settles into itself, it struggles for the majority of the film to find its pacing, moving between highly hilarious moments and slumps, creating a film that feels like it has been stretched a little thin as it drags on for a little too long.  With that said, it is saved by some amazing performances and ridiculously hilarious moments, keeping it far more entertaining than not.

Final Grade: B-