Mini Reviews: Bad Moms (2016), Keanu (2016) & Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016)

It's a 2016 comedy special here at Mini Reviews today! As much as I love summer comedies, I didn't get the chance to see them all in the cinema and so I've been saving them up for 1 post. Plus, it's nice to remember these kinds of movies before we move into the seriousness that winter cinema brings!

Bad Moms (2016)

Amy (Mila Kunis) is fed up of Moms like Gwendolyn (Christina Applegate), who take control of the PTA, and scrutinise every single bake sale in case heaven forbid, some of the cake is unhealthy or store bought. She has every right to be fed up! The thought of being a Mom in this decade is terrifying. Thankfully, she isn’t alone, and so Amy befriends Carla (the ever-hilarious Kathryn Hahn) and Kiki (Kristen Bell, the sweetest human being on Earth) and the three of them wear the label ‘Bad Mom’ with pride.

Perhaps it was the cinema effect, or the wonderful company (this one Jenna and I saw together) but I was laughing from start to finish for this, it took me by surprise. Sure, you had to wonder where everyone’s kids actually were whilst these Moms were partying, but who cares! The whole cast just looked like they had so much fun making this movie. Plus, it has some of the greatest clips in the credits I’ve ever seen.

Keanu (2016)

How did a movie about a cute little kitten called Keanu slip under my movie radar? In a plot not so different from John Wick (starring Keanu Reeves, geddit?) Rell (Jordan Peele) comes across little Keanu by absolute chance when he is heartbroken from being dumped. He develops an intense love for this kitten but in a case of confused identity, his house gets trashed and Keanu is stolen. Rell teams up with his cousin Clarence (Keegan-Michael Key) to infiltrate a nearby strip club and get the little furball back.

The movie brings nothing new to the comedy genre, and the plot is entirely predictable, but it’s the chemistry between Key & Peele that makes this so funny. Watching them trying to act ‘gangsta’ never got old, and the recurring George Michael theme was great. It even had a sensible, logical ending, which is often lacking with these kinds of movies. Worth a watch for sure.

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates (2016)

This one came out right around the time of my wedding, and as much as I was looking forward to it, as the day got closer anything wedding related was making me feel ill so it was ages until I eventually saw it. Mike (Adam Devine) and Dave (Zac Efron) are brothers who constantly get each other into trouble, and when their sister’s wedding approaches, they are forced to find ‘nice girls’ to bring as dates. Enter Alice (Anna Kendrick) and Tatiana (Aubrey Plaza) who can’t be further from the description of ‘nice girls’.

A cast as stellar as this should have been a clear winner, but the entire movie was ‘meh’ for me. It had a few solid laughs, a really awkward massage scene, and a boring plot. A huge shame, because I honestly love everyone in that cast list and I had really high hopes. The highlight was when the four got on stage for a musical number, Zac Efron for Pitch Perfect 3 please!

I think this still leaves Ghostbusters (2016) as my favourite comedy of 2016, although I haven't seen them all yet. What about you guys? What's been the funniest for you? Hold up a sec, I just remembered The Nice Guys (2016). That's my favourite!

Mini Reviews: High-Rise (2016), Triple 9 (2016) & Dirty Grandpa (2016)

As we approach the middle of the year, all the movies that I missed in January and February are slowly released on DVD and VOD, meaning I can finally catch up and rack up a few more 2016 releases on my 'watched' list. That means, for the first time in forever, one of my Mini Reviews posts has a theme. These three movies were all released in the UK at the start of 2016, and I've caught up!

OH MY GOD WHAT WAS EVEN GOING ON HERE. Seriously. I was so excited for High-Rise (2016) when I first saw the trailers. A suited and booted Tom Hiddleston? I’m in. A weird and quirky plot? Excuse me, I already told you I’m in but now I’m excited. I was gutted I missed this in the cinemas, but now? I’m relieved. This movie was so weird. It was like Snowpiercer but in a high-rise building. Snowpiercer also had a plot! This had so many suit-clad characters I forgot who was who. What made it worse was that the movie starts with the ending, so it’s not like I felt the need to stick with it to find out what even happens. Argh!

I had no intention of seeing Triple 9 (2016) in the cinemas, truth be told, it’s not my kind of movie, but I saw it get a lot of decent reviews, so I made sure I gave it a try once I could. It’s your typical action-heist movie, filled with dirty cops and criminals, and takes a few turns that the veteran action fans probably smelt a mile away, but I really enjoyed it! My fiance (probably husband by the time you read this!) plays a game called Rainbow Six Seige, and I got that vibe from this, so he was kind of bummed that I watched it without him. Still, he gives me this proud kind of look when I start spewing lines about breaching the door and stuff…

I don’t know what made me give Dirty Grandpa (2016) a watch, but sometimes you just need to watch some mindless comedy, you know?! These things are so hit and miss and even though general consensus seems to be that this is one a stinker, it just hit my funny bone in a way that a comedy hasn’t for a long time. Maybe it’s my growing appreciation for Zac Efron, or the shock of such foul words coming from Robert De Niro, but this worked for me. Sure, the plot is tired and has been used time and time again, and yep, 99% of the comedy relies on rude jokes, but what more did you expect? I’m still laughing at the ‘Jenny from the c*ck block’ line, and it’s been weeks.

Review: That Awkward Moment (2014)

I actually watched this on a plane, I can confirm for certain that it is NSFP!!!  As it was on the movie listings on the plane, I thought 'how bad could it be??' It was bad and it got worse, I was in a world of my own watching the film and all of a sudden this face appeared in front of me and it was a steward asking if I wanted a drink.  So I paused the film, only to realise it was the scene where Zac Efron lies across the toilet naked to go to the loo, then the guy next to me wanted to get out to go to the toilet so I couldn't play again.  I felt like everyone was staring at me and I must have been the colour of a beetroot.

 

That Awkward Moment follows three best friends who, after Mikey (Michael B. Jordan) finds out his wife has been having an affair, choose to make a pact to stay single.  Things start to get more complicated when Jason (Zac Efron), the serial singleton, meets the girl of his dreams.

This is a typical American comedy with stacks of sex and toilet humour (sometimes both, see above!) and gross out gags galore.  However, it still made me laugh, there is a scene around the middle with Jason and Daniel (Miles Teller) in a sex shop that literally had me howling with laughter (which is pretty impressive on a plane when you consistently fight the urge to laugh/cry/shout at the screen at all costs).

 

That scene was brilliant, I also loved the 'dress up' party scene - 'Rock out with your c*ck out!'. I have to say that after this and Bad Neighbours, Zac Efron has done well to shake that High School Musical image away from my mind.

 

I absolutely fell in love with Jason and Ellie (Imogen Poots). Both me and Jenna are suckers for a good love story and theirs was just adorable. One of the final scenes with them at the book reading was my absolute favourite, I was smiling from ear to ear!

 

There are some awkward moments in the film (should have expected it really) that make you cringe so badly that you desperately want to turn the film off but no you don't because all of a sudden that awkward situation becomes quite funny.  The film plays the rom-com cards from the male perspective, which although has been done before, is quite refreshing.

 

I would say that although there are plenty of funny (and awkward!) parts in That Awkward Moment, it most definitely leans more towards the romantic side of the romcom, which I actually enjoyed. The plot isn't completely predictable either, as I boldly claimed 20 minutes in I knew how it would end, and I wasn't completley right.

The rom-com that both men and women will enjoy, bit too much toilet humour for my liking but would definitely watch it again.

Review: Bad Neighbours (2014)

I'm used to busy cinema screens, as the only time I really go is on Orange Wednesdays. Who can afford a full price cinema ticket these days?! Certainly not me. What I wasn't expecting was for our screen to be completely full, every single seat sold, for Bad Neighbours this week. Wow!  See this is where we differ, I have a Cineworld Unlimited card, so I avoid Wednesday's like the plague, however they have recently introduced allocated seating which is AMAZING! - Sorry little off topic there! You leave my review sat in draft for 6 weeks and then hijack it with your Cineworld nonsense?!



 

The last time I was in a cinema screen that busy was a few years ago for Horrible Bosses, and the atmosphere was fantastic. It's always a worry, especially with a comedy like this, that the screen will be full of rowdy kids but apart from missing all the trailers so staff could find seats for everyone, it was absolutely fine! Cinema Etiquette is a big deal to us here, which you'll know if you've read our Guide to Cinema Etiquette before!

 

If you've seen the trailer you'll know the gist of the film. Mac (Rogen) and Kelly (Byrne) are trying to deal with their new 'grown-up' lives now that they have a house and baby together. The unoccupied house next door gets taken by a fraternity, and Mac and Kelly then face the dilemma of trying to keep cool but also getting some sleep at night! Things take a turn for the worse when they call the cops on the frat house one night, and war ensues...

 

 

From what I've seen, reviews for Bad Neighbours are mixed, but I loved it. I laughed from start to finish, and probably missed a few jokes because I was still laughing from the last. There was one moment that I thought was maybe going one step too far, but Rose Byrne made it fantastic! I really can't wait to see this again.  I reckon when I finally get around to watching this, I will find it hilarious.  Mainly because I have just watched 'That Awkward Moment' and laughed violently out loud (on a plane) multiple times! I'm actually super excited about That Awkward Moment now, I didn't know how to feel about Zac Efron but he was brilliant in this.

 

There's always a worry with comedies that all the funny moments were put into the trailer (Identity Thief, anyone? So painfully true!), but that isn't the case with Bad Neighbours. There aren't many clips on YouTube just yet but let me share this one with you... 

 

 

I will be buying this on DVD as soon as it comes out, invite some friends over, order some pizza, and stick this on for a night of laughs. Jenna I suppose you can come too!  I probably still wont have seen it so yeah I'm in ;-)