Entourage (4/10): An extended episode of the series more than a stand alone film

"Take me for a round, I last 30 seconds you'll let me take you on a date.”

It's been four years since actor, Vincent Chase, and his crew were last seen on TV, and now these characters are back for their feature film following the footsteps of other TV series such as Sex and the City and Veronica Mars. I personally wasn't familiar with the show, but I wanted to see if the film could be judged on its own (Veronica Mars succeeded to do so). In an early scene we get a summary of who these characters are through an informative newsreel from Piers Morgan. It didn't feel like it was a smooth transition, but at least it tried to introduce everyone in a simple way. Apparently the film picks up right where the series ended, Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) has recently been separated from his wife after only nine days of being married so his friends Eric (Kevin Connolly), Turtle (Jerry Ferrara), and his older brother, Drama (Kevin Dillon) are all joining him for a party on his boat. The guys begin planning Vincent's next project and he immediately calls his former agent, Ari (Jeremy Piven), who is now a studio head. Ari wants him to star in his next film, and Vincent agrees with the condition that he can direct it as well. Eight months later, Vincent is in post-production of his movie, which is already over budget, but he needs more money to tweak it. Ari is forced to travel to Texas to meet with the financiers, Larsen McCredle (Billy Bob Thornton) and his silly son Travis (Haley Joel Osment). Ari must agree to let Travis return with him so he can see the film and decide if it is worth the risk to lend them more money. After seeing the film, Travis tells his father it is no good, but it seems that his decision is personal rather than professional. 

As we follow Ari trying to convince everyone that the film will be a success, we get smaller subplots revolving around some of the characters personal relationships. Turtle runs into professional MMA fighter, Ronda Rousey, who he has a huge crush on, while Vince is currently dating professional supermodel, Emily Ratajkowski. Eric is being supportive of his ex-girlfriend, Sloan (Emmanuelle Chriqui) who is expecting their child anytime now, while he is dating other women. And Drama is crossing his fingers to finally get recognized for his supporting role in his brother’s film so it can boost his fading career as an actor, while he is trying to deal with an internet scandal that has gone viral. The many subplots made this film feel more like an extended episode of the series than an actual movie, and I’m sure fans of the series will enjoy it more than audiences who come into it for the first time. I wasn’t a fan of this movie, but I will admit there are some funny scenes usually revolving around Ronda Rousey or Jeremy Piven’s angry outbursts. There are some great cameos as well of actors and athletes playing themselves, but they don’t all work. My favorite would have to be the scene in which Ari comes across Liam Neeson who sticks his middle finger at him and drives off as Ari yells “leave no Jews behind, Schindler.” 

Doug Ellin who wrote most of the screenplays for the TV series and directed some of the episodes, writes and directs this film as well. I don’t know if the series is similar in style, but I found the movie misogynistic and disrespectful. It isn’t a satire of the Hollywood lifestyle, but a celebration of it. I didn’t really care too much for these characters despite their strong bond, but I did enjoy seeing some of the cameos and film references. If you came for the cameos they might be sufficient enough to keep you entertained, but if you expected more from this film you’re in for a major letdown because the film feels more like an extended TV episode than anything else. Entourage doesn’t stand out on its own as a film and I’d only recommend it to its TV fan base. Other than getting to see Jeremy Piven play once again the role he was meant for, there isn’t much more worth recommending about Entourage.  

My Review: The Judge (6/10)

“My father is a lot of unpleasant things, but murderer is not one of them.”

The Judge may not be the highly effective powerhouse courtroom drama we were expecting when we first heard about the pairing of Robert Downey Jr and Robert Duvall, but it isn’t the terrible film some critics are describing it as either. Most of us had high expectations for The Judge but once the first reviews started coming in my expectations were lowered so I went into this with moderate expectations. It is a somewhat effective melodrama when it centers on the father and son family dynamics, but when it tries to include other subplots like the courtroom drama scenes and the relationship with a former lover, the film falls flat and feels overlong. 

Director David Dobkin succeeds when he gets Robert Downey Jr and Robert Duvall in a room together. Those are the most effective scenes of the film and they standout because both actors are on the top of their game. Dobbin however fails when he tries to cram other dramatic elements into this film, and he does so way too often. At 144 minutes, The Judge could have been more effective if it were cut short and centered exclusively on the family dynamics rather than on the rest of the subplots that Dobbin is cramming into the film. The problem is that Dobbin is trying too hard to make a serious film since this is his first time directing a non-comedy. 

Audiences who were expecting a Grisham style courtroom drama will be disappointed because that aspect of the story falls flat, but as a film centering on a dysfunctional father and son relationship it succeeds thanks to the two lead actors. When the two Roberts get together The Judge pulls at your heart strings effectively, but the rest of the scenes do feel clichéd and manipulative (especially the scenes involving those home movie projections). I also enjoyed this as a character study of the different family dynamics and I appreciated the films intentions about giving an honest portrayal of aging through Duvall’s character. There are some powerful scenes, but they are ruined sometimes by the cliches the film follows.

Aside from Robert Downey Jr and Robert Duvall’s powerful performances (they are both at their best here), there is also a very interesting supporting performances from Vincent D’Onofrio. His scenes with Downey are relevant as well and he holds his own. Billy Bob Thornton doesn’t really get much character development considering the court case is simply included as an excuse to keep this family together. Farming is a wonderful actress and she gives a strong performance as well, but her scenes really don’t add anything to the film and their subplot could have been left out. 

The premise of the film isn’t anything we haven’t seen before either. The story centers on a hot shot lawyer from a big city who is returning to the small town he grew up and ran away from, for his mother’s funeral. He doesn’t want to stay long because his relationship with his father is a disaster and we get a glimpse of it early on. Those scenes are powerful but not entirely original. Downey plays the smart mouth witty son to perfection, while Duvall is the uptight and stern father who he can easily play in his sleep. The only moment where Duvall and Downey were on screen together that didn’t work for me was when they begin discussing their personal issues while his father stands on trial. That was just one example of a forced moment where melodrama seemed more important than authenticity. There are several moments like this that hurt this film, but the few authentic moments are powerful enough to recommend this it. The Judge isn’t a bad film, it’s just one that had the potential to be so much more.

My Review: Parkland (7/10)

¨It's the first time that the secret service has lost a president under its watch.¨

I'm actually surprised I enjoyed this film so much considering the bad reviews it has been receiving and my lack of knowledge on the historical details about the assassination of John F Kennedy. There have been many films made about this specific event, but very few have taken this approach where you get to experience things through the eyes of secondary characters and people behind the scenes like the Parkland medical staff that had to attend the president, or Oswald's brother who is shocked to hear his brother has shot the president. The apparently small scaled moments of this tragic event (like how the medical staff decide to keep the president's boxers on during surgery to preserve his dignity, or the urgency with which the Secret Service agents were trying to get a film of the assassination developed, or how Robert Oswald reacts when he hears that his brother is the prime suspect of the murder) are what truly make this film gripping and unique. The film has its flaws such as failing to have narrative cohesion and the characters are underdeveloped at times, but I think it worked really well considering everything happened so fast and these people had to make split second decisions. The overall feeling of chaos and messiness of the events that took place really transcend here as everything happens so fast and the film is reduced to a length of merely 90 minutes. The film follows a semi documentary style that totally works because you can feel the tension and urgency with which they had to deal with during such a catastrophic event. Parkland is Peter Landesman's first feature film and somehow the movie touched me in a way that apparently hasn't touched most audiences or critics. I didn't expect to like this film as much as I did, but I really felt engaged from the very opening scenes up to the very end. It doesn't offer new insight to a popular historical event, but it does tell the story differently. As we approach the 50th anniversary of Kennedy's death this might be a movie worth checking out (just don't go into it thinking you are going to get another Oliver Stone JFK). The film's strongest strength relies on this sense of urgency and how it depicts the events in real time as everyone had to make life changing decisions in a matter of seconds. But it also seems to be its weakness as many consider it to be a little too over the place and chaotic with little cohesiveness.

The film follows the tragic events that occurred in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963 involving the assassination of President John F Kennedy. The story focuses on the perspective of the people in the sidelines that witnessed the event first hand like the medical staff in Parkland Hospital that were there that tragic day. Young Doctor Jim Carrico (Zac Efron) was the resident doctor that day in Parkland, and some of the nurses that were there to assist him were Nurse Doris (Marcia Gay Harden) and the emergency room nurse played by Mallory Moye. We get another perspective of that day through the eyes of a small businessman named Abraham Zapruder (Paul Giamatti), who happened to capture the assassination on his Super 8 camera. We also see things through the eyes of Dallas's chief of the Secret Service, Forrest Sorrels (Billy Bob Thornton), an FBI agent named James Hosty (Ron Livingston) who was investigating Lee Harvey Oswald (Jeremy Strong), and Lee Harvey's brother Robert (James Badge Dale) and mother (Jacki Weaver) who react differently to the news about the murder. All these different perspectives are weaved together giving us an engaging film and different insight into what was going on. Tom Welling, Mark Duplass, Colin Hanks, Jackie Earle Haley, and Kat Steffens all play secondary characters in this star studded cast. 

There were some strong performances in this film although not really Oscar worthy. I specially liked James Badge Dale in this film who gives a quiet but brave performance, while Paul Giamatti rings true with his emotional performance as he has to deal with the pain of viewing the horrific event he captured on camera. The rest of the cast didn't really stand out considering they all had very little screen time, but it was good to see some of these talented actors working together. Jacki Weaver is a talented actress and she proves it once again in this small role. The cast is solid and the script is also pretty engaging. I was glad everything was depicted so fast and that the film didn't run too long.