Posts tagged Ed Helms
MOVIE REVIEW: Vacation
MOVIE REVIEW: Vacation

To this writer, the success of a remake, reboot, or sequel is contingent upon matching the tone of the original work to the best of its ability.  If a film gets that tone right, it can be a drastic revision full of changes and updates and still feel respectfully aware and in tune with the previous well-remembered greatness the new film is trying to emulate.  That's the taste test that should be put on "Vacation," the new long distance sequel/update of the 1983 National Lampoon comedy classic.

Read More
2015, 3 STARS, ADVANCE MOVIE REVIEW, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanVacation, John Francis Daley, Horrible Bosses, National Lampoon's Vacation, Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Ed Helms, Christina Applegate, Chris Hemsworth, Leslie Mann, Jonathan M. Goldstein, Griswold, Clark Griswold, Skyler Gisondo, Steele Stebbins, Harold Ramis, Walley World, Road trip movies, remakes, reboots, sequels, 2015, 1983, 2015 Summer Movies, Summer Movies, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Don Shanahan, Donald Shanahan, life lessons, life lessons from movies, life lessons from film, movie review, movie commentary, Lindsey BuckinghamComment
MOVIE REVIEW: They Came Together
MOVIE REVIEW: They Came Together

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that we might have a new entry into the pantheon of parody classics with the recent release "They Came Together."  The new comedy from director David Wain, best known to audiences for "Wanderlust," "Role Models," and "Wet Hot American Summer," checks all of those above boxes for being a great parody.  The film is packed with smart humor, joke complexity, clever approaches, and an elaborate sense of storybuilding and delivery that most parodies lack.  Best of all, Wain assembles a near-perfect cast of his old pals, led by Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler, that never cease to entertain.

Read More
2014, 4 STARS, MOVIE REVIEWDon ShanahanThey Came Together, Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, David Wain, Michael Showalter, Christopher Meloni, Cobie Smulders, Ed Helms, Adam Scott, John Stamos, Norah Jones, Jason Mantzoukas, Wet Hot American Summer, Young Frankenstein, Movie parodies, Film parodies, Parodies, Mockumentaries, Mel Brooks, The Wayans Brothers, Christopher Guest, Abbott and Costello, Jerry Zucker, David Zucker, Jim Abraham, Bill Hader, Ellie Kemper, Wanderlust, Role Models, Airplane!, Jason Friedberg, Aaron Seltzer, Shrek, Mike Myers, Austin Powers, Scary Movie, film commentary, film review, life lessons from film, life lessons, life lessons from movies, Every Movie Has a Lesson, Don Shanahan, Donald Shanahan, They Came Together film review, They Came Together movie reviewComment