Snap Judgments Review: 'Don Peyote'

Dan Fogler (Take Me Home Tonight, Balls of Fury) co-writes, co-directs, and stars in the trippy stoner comedy Don Peyote as Warren, an unemployed graphic artist who goes down the rabbit hole of conspiracy theories and Doomsday scenarios to deal with anxiety over his upcoming marriage.  The film co-stars Anne Hathaway, Josh Duhamel, Jay Baruchel, Topher Grace, and Kelly Hutchinson.

Check out my Snap Judgments review of Don Peyote below. The film is available now On Demand and will hit theaters on May 16th.

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Josh Duhamel joins Hilary Swank and Emmy Rossum in 'You're Not You'

Josh Duhamel may not be returning for the next Transformers film after featuring in the previous three, but he's still a star who is steadily on the rise. The Las Vegas actor has the sappy Nicolas Sparks adaptation, Safe Haven, coming up next which will be a pretty good test for his leading man cred. And now he'll give his dramatic chops another push by joining Hilary Swank and Emmy Rossum in an adaptation of Michelle Wildgen's novel, You're Not You.

Directed by George C. Wolfe, the story follows a self-absorbed college student(Rossum) who sees her life turned around when she takes a job as caretaker of a woman(Swank) stricken with ALS. Duhamel's role is unclear at this point, but given that he's...well, Josh Duhamel, I'm going to assume he's a love interest of some sort.

Duhamel will be seen next in the outrageous ensemble comedy, Movie 43.[THR]

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Every actor ever stars in the screwed up red band trailer for 'Movie 43'

Ensemble sketch comedies have a fairly poor track record as feature films, but there have been some pretty good ones. A particular favorite of mine was David Zucker's The Kentucky Fried Movie, which has the classic A Fistful of Yen sketch that remains hilarious to this day. "Take him to Detroit" has been a part of my personal lexicon ever since. But for every good one there are a dozen terrible ones that think merely being raunchy and disgusting is enough(like The Underground Comedy Movie). Movie 43 is the latest sketch comedy on the way, and whether it's good or not probably matters less than the jam packed roster of celebrity actors and directors basking in all their R-rated glory.

Brett Ratner, Peter Farrelly, Elizabeth Banks, James Gunn, and many more direct the various risque segments that star top tier talent like (*deep breath*) Emma Stone, Halle Berry, Terrence Howard, Gerard Butler, Kristen Bell, Chloe Moretz, Josh Duhamel, Johnny Knoxville, Elizabeth Banks, Naomi Watts, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Richard Gere, Justin Long, Liev Schreiber, Uma Thurman, Seann William Scott, Kieran Culkin, Leslie Bibb, Jimmy Bennett, Kate Bosworth, Patrick Warburton, Tony Shalhoub, Chris Pratt, Jason Sudeikis, Jack McBrayer, Aasif Mandvi and Bobby Cannavale.

There's a reason why Movie 43 was originally titled Red Band, and every moment of this trailer is an explanation for it. Anna Faris and her real life husband star in a skit where she reveals her fetish for being pooped on; Halle Berry picks on a blind kid during his birthday; and in what I think is the funniest and unquestionably racist bit of all, Terrence Howard convinces his all-black basketball team of their inherent superiority over their white opponents.  Little people, the mentally challenged, and many other touchy subjects get skewered mercilessly. If you ever wanted to hear Emma Stone talk about how she sucked off a hobo, this movie is for you.

Movie 43 opens on January 25th 2013. Will you be seeing it?

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Michael Bay's 'Transformers 4' will be his last; will feature totally new cast

There may have been some doubts whether or not Michael Bay would return for a fourth film in his box office shattering Transformers franchise, but there wasn't any doubt where Paramount stood on it. They were going to keep the cash cow going one way or another, but they never let Bay get too far out of reach. In fact, they dangled Transformers 4 in front of him when it came time to start talking about his passion project, the small budget crime comedy, Pain and Gain.

Since he was confirmed to return back in February, we haven't heard much of anything except for a random comment from co-star Josh Duhamel, which I'll get to in a moment. Now as Bay talked up the new Transformers: The Ride opening at Disney's California Adventure, he revealed a few details to Hero Complex.

He says that the next film, which has been set to release in June 2014, will definitely be his last. Of course he said the same thing before and after Transformers: Dark of the Moon, and was still convinced to come back. He sounds a little more serious this time, though, as he says the film will set things up for "the next guy", whoever that may be. I'm sure Peter Berg is getting his resume ready as we speak.

As for who will star in it? Shia Labeouf is out, that much is for certain. Bay revealed that an entirely new cast will take over, and even the Transformers themselves will be redesigned. This confirms what Duhamel said a few months ago when he said nobody would be coming back and that Paramount would keep making Transformers movies "as long as they can". Looks like he knew what he was talking about. 

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Josh Duhamel says none of the cast is returning for 'Transformers 4'

When it was finally announced that Michael Bay would be returning to lead a fourth Transformers film, we pretty much already knew one guy who wouldn't be coming back. You can all but write off series star, Shia Labeouf, apparently tired of being the least masculine human in every movie, even when paired up with a Victoria's Secret model. While his departure leaves a skinny little void, what about all those military guys like Tyrese Gibson and Josh Duhamel, or the bitchy government folk like Frances McDormand and John Turturro?

E! caught up with Duhamel and asked him about who might be returning for the film, and according to him it sounds like Bay and Paramount may have to start totally from scratch...

Duhamel: "I don't think anybody's doing it. I know Shia [LaBeouf]'s not doing it. I don't think Tyrese or Rosie [Huntington-Whiteley] or anybody else is doing it. Whenever these movies make that much money they're going to make as many as they can. [But] I haven't heard anything about it."

Now take this with a grain of salt. First of all, they caught up with him at a party so maybe he had already tossed a few back by then. Also, he seems to be speaking off the cuff here. While it's unlikely that Huntingon-Whiteley would return without Labeouf, Tyrese certainly could without Duhamel having to be involved. The same goes for other members of the cast. Basically, it doesn't sound as if he has any inside information, and he kinda sounds a little bitter. 

The only one Bay really needs to bring back is Optimus Prime. And maybe Bumblebee. If the plan is to follow the G.I. Joe: Retaliation model, carrying over a few loose plot threads and characters while presenting a whole new story, then it's unlikely we'll see any of the human cast return. 

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The New Wave: 10/8/10

I love horse racing and sports dramas as much as the next guy, but I'm not convinced that Randall Wallace, the guy who wrote Braveheart and We Were Soldiers, is the dude for this task. Actually now that I've seen the movie I know that he's not. Disney's banking on a Seabiscuit amount of awards and nominations for this inspirational tale. You can find out if I think they have a shot at any by checking out my review here.

Greg Berlanti(Brothers and Sisters) brings his gift for familial drama to the big screen in this schmaltzy rom-com about two unnaturally attractive single folks thrust into parenthood when their goddaughter's parents suddenly pass away. Josh Duhamel is starting to round into shape as a less flashy McConaughey type, while Katherine Heigl has settled in for the umpteenth time as a stick in the mud. You can check out my full review here.

Funny to think that Zach Galifianakis took a role as a looney to give his most down to earth performance yet. The breakout star from The Hangover stars in the third film from Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden, directors of Half Nelson, finaly putting aside their penchant for raw dramas and going a little more mainstream comedy. It's a step I'm happy to see them take. You can check out my review here.

It's been 32 years since the original I Spit on Your Grave caused such a friggin' panic across the country. The rape/revenge thriller was banned throughout a large part of the country for its excessive violence and sexual brutality. And it was awful. The remake by Steven Monroe is equally vile and disgusting, but there's much more of an attempt to portray the woman as a pillar of strength and not just a victim. Frankly, we see worse movies than this multiple times a year, so the effect is dulled.  You can check out my review here.

Woody Allen has gathered an all-star cast for his latest neurotic romantic comedy. Naomi Watts, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, and Gemma Jones star as a pair of couples who let their own personal anxieties drive them into the arms of others. Without going into too much detail I'll just say that I expect better from everyone involved. I was a bit punchy when I wrote it but you can find my review here.

The luster has long since faded off the name "Wes Craven", making me skeptical of his upcoming Scream flick. My Soul To Take looks like standard teen horror fare, with 3D tacked on for no apparent reason. The fact that they didn't screen it for press only makes me more wary. However I really liked the energetic, old school trailer, so maybe it'll be a pleasant surprise.

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Life As We Know It

You might be surprised to discover that Josh Duhamel and Katherine Heigl make for quite the cute couple. It's undeniable. Heck, they even make sure people in the movie tell us just how attractive they are. Good looks and a cute baby aren't enough to save a strictly formulaic expanded sitcom that can't seem to decide if it wants to be funny or poignant. It accomplishes neither very well.

Just once it'd be nice to see Heigl play someone other than an uptight stick in the mud. Here she's Holly, a woman who seems to be on the verge of having it all. Good looks, a successful cafe and catering business, and two best friends(Christina Hendricks and Hayes MacArthur) who love her dearly. When they introduce her slick womanizer, Eric(Duhamel), the two mix like milk and liquid Drano-O. Despite hating eachother for years, Eric and Holly remain in eachother's lives through their friends, becoming godparents to their daughter Sophie. When tragedy strikes, leaving Sophie an orphan, it's decreed in the will that Eric and Holly are to be Sophie's guardians.

It plays out terrible at first. Neither is willing to give up what they perceive to be perfect lives just because parenthood was thrust upon them. Living together is a disaster. Holly's overbearing, and Eric just wants to nail chicks and nurse his career as a stat junkie for the Atlanta Hawks. It's all too much too fast. As the responsibilities of parenthood begin to wear them down, they begin to grow fonder of eachother. I know you're shocked.

Director Greg Berlanti(Brothers and Sisters) brings his touch for familial drama to bear early on, and for awhile there are hints of a powerful film about family and responsibility as Holly and Eric deal with their newfound roles in life. Simultaneously they're  trying to work through their grief at the loss of their two best friends, and figuring out how to pick up where they left off in raising their daughter. Heigl and Duhamel are both particularly strong at this point, and it was nice to see Heigl actually stretching herself a bit for the few minutes that she does. Duhamel is starting to grow on me. He's almost like a poor man's Matthew McConaughey, only without the need to show his abs every 5 minutes to keep folks interested.

Then the floor drops out, and what had been working so well devolves into what can best be described as an hour of poor TBS sitcom hijinks, as Eric and Holly go through the usual parenting comedy tropes: baby vomit in the face; stinky diapers; lack of sleep.  As if we aren't suffering enough already, we also get lame romantic comedy junk piled on, especially when Holly begins dating an all too perfect pediatrician(Josh Lucas) who's the polar opposite of Eric. Does she go off and be happy with the man of her dreams? Or does she figure out that true happiness lies with the guy who's been banging women right under her nose for months? Do bears crap in the woods? Does the Pope live in a big ol' house?

A wasted supporting cast led by Melissa McCarthy(she's the hefty neighbor lady in EVERYTHING), Will Sasso(MadTV) and Jean Smart(why is she in this??? I have more lines than her!!) only add to the disappointment.

In a terribly contrived and unfunny moment, Eric and Holly find some weed and rather than smoking it decide to bake it into brownies. You already know that somebody unexpected wants to eat one, but that's besides the point. The point is they should hand out some of those funny brownies before every screening of this flick. It might be the only way anybody leaves happy.

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Trailer Time: The Romantics

Maybe I am just a sucker for a good quirky romance, because I love the look of this trailer. Paramount has released the trailer for The Romantics, a new romantic comedy from writer/director Galt Niederhoffer. The film is actually adapted from Niederhoffer's own novel, about a group of friends who reunite for a wedding, only to see sparks fly when the bride and maid of honor clash over the groom.

The cast is phenomenal, featuring Josh Duhamel, Anna Paquin, Elijah Wood, Adam Brody, Malin Ackerman, and Katie Holmes looking like she's returned to form somewhat. It's easy to forget how cute and energetic she used to be on screen. 

The Romantics is due out in theaters on September 10th, 2010. Check out the trailer followed by the official plot synopsis.

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