My Review: Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (7/10)

"You made one mistake today. You messed with somebody from San Diego."

Director Adam McKay and Will Ferrell have teamed up once again for the sequel to their most successful film after nearly 10 years with very big shoes to fill. Despite having worked together in Step Brothers, The Other Guys, and Talladega Nights (which is my personal favorite), Anchorman was their most quoted and remembered film so expectations were high for this sequel. Despite not being as great as the first film, this sequel manages to entertain thanks to several hilarious scenes and many memorable characters that are just fun to be around. Some of the jokes are a bit familiar and repetitive, but Will Ferrell brings in the laughs and reminds us why he is such a big star. Anchorman does feel a bit overlong and several scenes could have been cut out (his relationship with Linda for example), but I did have a really fun time with this entertaining but ridiculous comedy. In the midst of all the familiar sexist, racial, and blind man jokes, I loved the satire on the 24 hour news networks in the way it criticized their lack of ethics in reporting. Without giving away any spoilers I have to admit that the funniest moment of the film came near the end with some hilarious and unexpected cameos so stick with this film to the end. 

The screenplay was written by McKay and Ferrell following the success of their first film and using familiar elements. Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) and Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) now live and work together in New York with their son Walter (Judy Nelson). Their happy lives are shook when their boss (Harrison Ford) promotes Veronica to lead anchor and fires Ron. Ron asks her to choose between him and her job and returns to San Diego on his own. Living a miserable life, Ron gets a second chance when a man named Freddie Schapp (Dylan Baker) comes knocking at his door to offer him a position as an anchor for Global News Network (GNN), the first 24 news channel. Ron accepts and decides to bring along his former local news team: Champ (David Koechner), Brick (Steve Carell), and Brian (Paul Rudd). Together they come up with an idea to change the way people watch news and rise to the top once again.

Will Ferrell pulls it off once again considering he plays a despicable character who is racist and sexist, but somehow we still pull for him because deep down he's a nice but ignorant guy. Several of the gags and jokes feel repetitive, but it's still worth hanging around with these funny characters who we never know what stupid thing they are going to come up with next. Steve Carell being the most unpredictable of the bunch, and in this film he shares some very funny scenes with the always hilarious Kristen Wiig. Their scenes together were much more entertaining than the ones involving Ferrell and Meagan Good (who plays Linda, their producer). Other than the hilarious cameos and the clever spoofs on the 24 hour TV news channels, I also found several other memorable scenes like the one involving the four friends in a car accident, and Ferrell's character living in a lighthouse after he's gone blind for some time. Of course there are also several scenes that didn't work at all, but I still laughed a lot during these ridiculous moments. I really like these characters and despite their somewhat crazy rants they still win me over every time. This sequel may not have as many memorable quotes as the original, but it was still a lot of fun to see these characters reunited taking punches at the 24 hour News networks.

My Review: Going the Distance (5/10)

¨A comedy about meeting each other halfway. ¨

Oscar nominated documentary director Nanette Burstein brings us ¨Going the Distance¨, which marks the first time she directs a fictional film. It`s a rom/com that deals with long distance relationships and the screenplay was written by first time screenplay writer Geoff LaTulippe. Justin Long and Drew Barrymore play the two main characters who begin a no strings attached relationship, but end up falling in love despite the fact that Drew`s character, Erin, is moving from New York to San Francisco. Justin Long is Garrett, a guy who works in New York for a record label and who isn`t looking for a serious relationship with Erin because he knows she is going to leave soon, but their friendship grows and love blossoms. Both decide they can`t let such a good thing end and decide to continue their relationship despite the distance. Justin and Erin try to make the relationship work, but they face several difficult situations that most people who have had long distance relationships can identify with. The movie mixes comedy with romance and at the same time it has several situations we can identify with. Some of the secondary characters enhance the comedy, such as Christina Applegate who plays Erin`s married sister who is very uptight and overprotective. Charlie Day and Jason Sudeikis play Dan and Box, Garrett`s best friends who have some of the funniest lines in the movie. The chemistry between Barrymore and Long is good and the screenplay has several funny moments, but at the end of the film you realize you have already seen this movie before since it ends up being pretty predictable. This is one of those movies that had potential to be so much better, but at the end it stuck with Hollywood`s predictable rom-com formula. You might have an enjoyable movie going experience with Going the Distance, but it is far from memorable and by the end of the day you will have forgotten all about it. For people who have gone through long distance relationships and its struggles, then they may feel drawn towards it and identify with some of the things happening, but as a comedy I was expecting a little more.

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