Zookeeper (2011)/Movie Review

Release Date: 8 July 2011 (USA)   Runtime: USA: 102 min

Genres: Comedy | Family | Romance

Taglines:  Welcome to his jungle.

Director:  Frank Coraci

Writers:  Nick Bakay (screenplay), Rock Reuben (screenplay)

Original Music by  Rupert Gregson-Williams

Cinematography by Michael Barrett

Storyline

A group of zoo animals decide to break their code of silence in order to help their lovable zoo keeper find love -- without opting to leave his current job for something more illustrious.

Box Office

Budget: $80,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend: $20,065,617 (USA) (10 July 2011) (3482 Screens)

Gross: $76,771,335 (USA) (21 August 2011)

Production Co: Columbia Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Broken Road Productions

Filming Location: Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Soundtracks

"So Much Class"  

Written by Asani Charles, Joshua Sullivan, Gyula Dobos, Vernis Washington, Joseph Sabin and Vincent Reynolds

Performed by Doctor Jay featuring J. Sabin

Courtesy of The Creative Shop

By Arrangement with BZEE ROC Music Group, LLC

CASTS:  Kevin James,  Rosario Dawson , Leslie Bibb , Ken Jeong , Donnie Wahlberg , Joe Rogan, Nat Faxon , Steffiana De La Cruz , Nick Bakay , Jackie Sandler , Nicholas Turturro , Thomas Gottschalk, Brandon Keener , Robin Bakay , Gary Valentine

AWARDED:

2011 Teen Choice Award

Nominated

Choice Summer Movie Star: Female

Rosario Dawson

REVIEW

Kevin James plays Griffin Keyes, an average guy in an average job. He has a kind heart and an above average ability to relate to the animals in his care as the zookeeper of The Franklin Park Zoo in Boston.

The film opens with Griffin breaking up with his long time girlfriend Stephanie (Leslie Bibb). He weathers the disappointment and we fast forward 5 years where Griffin has now become the head zookeeper. At a celebration of his brother's upcoming wedding, Griffin spots Stephanie and his old feelings for her bubble to the surface. Lost and confused Griffin's animal buddies come to his rescue by 1 - letting him in on the secret that animals can communicate with humans (in English no less) and 2 - teaching him how to win the female of his species (advice that may be better left as that - advice) Some physical humor and not so funny scenes and lines fill out the movie for the long 104 minutes. Rosario Dawson plays Kate, the obvious new love interest for Griffin.

Unless you're between the ages of 8 and 12 leave this one unseen - it is  not worth the matinée price. Maybe catch it some time when it has been "formatted to fit this screen" and "shortened to fit in the time allotted".

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Ironclad (2011)/Movie Review

Release Date: 26 July 2011 (USA)   Runtime: 121 min

Genres: Action | Adventure

 Heavy metal goes medieval

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Director: Jonathan English

Writers: Jonathan English , Erick Kastel

Original Music by  Lorne Balfe

Cinematography by David Eggby

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Casts

James Purefoy, Paul Giamatti, Brian Cox, Kate Mara, Derek Jacobi, Charles Dance Jason Flemyng, Jamie Foreman, Mackenzie Crook, Rhys Parry Jones, Aneurin Barnard, Vladimir Kulich, David Melville

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Storyline

It is the year 1215 and the rebel barons of England have forced their despised King John to put his royal seal to the Magna Carta, a noble, seminal document that upheld the rights of free-men. Yet within months of pledging himself to the great charter, the King reneged on his word and assembled a mercenary army on the south coast of England with the intention of bringing the barons and the country back under his tyrannical rule. Barring his way stood the mighty Rochester castle, a place that would become the symbol of the rebel's momentous struggle for justice and freedom.

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Filming Locations:  Dragon International Studios, Wales, UK
Production Co:  ContentFilm International,   Film & Entertainment VIP Medienfonds 4 GmbH & Co. KG (I), Molinare Investment 

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REVIEW

Take a rather large bit of liberty with English medieval history, throw in some rather garbled declamations about the Magna Carta (yes, it led to more democracy, but no, it had nothing to do with liberating peasants, just giving the aristocracy more powers of their own versus the king's power) and take a huge bunch of medieval war-story battle clichés, and you have "Ironclad." You see, wicked King John (Paul Giamatti, not attempting an English accent), after having been forced to sign the document, then completely ignores its contents and instead goes after the noble signers and kills them one by one. Of course, to do this he must recruit a Danish army, which he does by promising the leader Tiberius (Vladimir Kulich, channelling the elder Malfoy) that the Pope will see to it that no Christians come in to take over the Danes' land and to convert them to Christianity. Against this vast horde are a motley group of seven (yes, this is based on "The Magnificent Seven," in part), led by Knight Templar Marshall (James Purefoy, so good in "Rome") and Baron Albany (Brian Cox, so good in, well, everything). In order to stop King John from continuing his tyrannous ways, they decide to take and hold the castle at Rochester, from whence the entire South of England can be held; to do so, they must take the current occupant, Lord Cornhill (the magnificent Derek Jacobi), and his young rebellious wife Isabel (Kate Mara) hostage. And in the process, young Guy (Aneurin Barnard, aka Frodo with a Sword), squire to Albany, must learn if he's a man or a boy. Can the Magnificent Seven – sorry, the Forces for Good – hold off an entire army laying siege to the castle for long enough (you see, the French are coming to their aid)? Can noble Marshall withstand the wicked wiles of the lovely woman, Isabel? Will Paul Giamatti get to have at least one pull-out-all-the-stops raving rant shouted at the top of his lungs? Well, what do you think? This is actually an extremely bloody movie for a mainstream film, lots of limbs shown being cut off and the like. But it's also quite a silly movie too, at least if you know any history. Suspension of disbelief is paramount in such action films, yet we constantly see Isabel and the other women of the castle wandering around freely, with their hair floating around the shoulders and bare arms and cleavage everywhere. In fact, Christian women (at least noble and/or respectable women) in 13th Century England wore wimples to cover their hair and were quite restricted in their movements, much like Muslim women in some countries today. And chopping off various limbs generally resulted in the victim bleeding out in minutes, not sort of lingering on for a few rousing statements to his mates. Still and all, this was a lot of fun if you don't mind cheering for either side as the mood strikes; seeing it with a FantAsia 2011 crowd was probably the best way to see it at all.

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The Tree of Life (2011)/Movie Review

Release Date:29 July 2011 (India)  Runtime: 139 min

Genres: Drama  Filming Locations:Austin, Texas, USA

The story centers around a family with three boys in the 1950s. The eldest son witnesses the loss of innocence.

Director:   Terrence Malick

Writer:   Terrence Malick

Original Music by Alexandre Desplat

Cinematography by Emmanuel Lubezki

STORYLINE

The impressionistic story of a Texas family in the 1950s. The film follows the life journey of the eldest son, Jack, through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his father (Brad Pitt). Jack (played as an adult by Sean Penn) finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith.

MAIN CASTS: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn , Jessica Chastain , Hunter McCracken , Laramie Eppler ,

Tye Sheridan , Fiona Shaw , Jessica Fuselier , Nicolas Gonda , Will Wallace , Kelly Koonce , Bryce Boudoin , Jimmy Donaldson , Kameron Vaughn , Cole Cockburn

Box Office

Budget:  $32,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:  $12,693,868 (USA) (21 August 2011)

Production Co: Cottonwood Pictures, Plan B Entertainment, River Road Entertainment

AWARDS

2011 Cannes Film Festival

Palme d'Or   Terrence Malick

Golden Trailer Awards 2011

Won  Golden Trailer

Best Independent   Mark Woollen

Nominated  Golden Trailer

Best of Show  Mark Woollen

Most Original  Mark Woollen

REVIEW

Little has to be said after seeing this movie. its beautiful, hypnotic, and memorizing. The fact that it doesn't follow a structured storyline is a big turn off for some people, and i respect that, but i completely embraced it. This movie gave me something more then just an experience. It was almost something outer worldly. The unstructured narrative WAS the journey for me.

Don't listen to the other reviews, or the 'booing' articles. Go see it for yourself. Submit for two complete hours, and just let malick enfold you in his wings. And I guarantee, that if you have a passion for life, and for art, then you will find yourself sitting in awe of this movie. Becayse when I came out of the cinema, i was sure i had just seen the greatest film within the last decade.

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Ghost Story by Jim Butcher/Book Review

Jim Butcher (Author)

Description

When we last left the mighty wizard detective Harry Dresden, he wasn't doing well. In fact, he had been murdered by an unknown assassin.

But being dead doesn't stop him when his friends are in danger. Except now he has nobody, and no magic to help him. And there are also several dark spirits roaming the Chicago shadows who owe Harry some payback of their own.

To save his friends-and his own soul-Harry will have to pull off the ultimate trick without any magic...

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Hardcover: 496 pages

Publisher: Roc Hardcover; First Edition edition (July 26, 2011)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 045146379X

ISBN-13: 978-0451463791

Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.5 inches

REVIEW

When I first picked up Ghost Story, I was expecting another high-octane thrill ride, picking up where Changes left off. My assumptions were incorrect. This volume of the Dresden files takes a much more simple, introspective approach to what's going on. The first half of the book feels a bit plodding, but you come to realize later than this was purposeful, and that it made for a much better second half.

Dresden again finds himself in over his head, this time on the other side. He's got a mystery to solve, and just about no way to solve it, considering he's incorporeal. Characters that you have come to know have changed, sometimes dramatically, in the wake of what has happened to Harry. After figuring out a way to interact with mortals, that method is stripped away from him, and he's again left with nothing but his wits.

If there's one thing that Jim Butcher does right consistently, it's that he knows how to plant a completely unexpected emotional moment into his stories. This one is packed pretty full with these, as Harry sees the world from an outside perspective.

The writing is solid, ad the plot moves on at an appropriate pace. the only complaint I have is that the villain was far too predictable. From the first encounter, I had the identity pretty much locked down. That's not to say that the baddie wasn't effective, just that there could have been a red herring or two thrown in the mix to keep things interesting

Also, prepare yourself to be left with some of the same questions you had at the end of Changes, along with a slew of new ones. Overall, this is a great read, and a worthy addition to the series. I recommend buying it immediately if you're a fan of the Dresden files!

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Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)/Movie Review

Release Date: 29 July 2011 (USA)   Runtime:  USA: 118 min

Genre: Comedy | Drama | Romance 

Tagline: This Is Crazy

Directors:  Glenn Ficarra, John Requa

Writer:  Dan Fogelman

Casts: Steve Carell , Ryan Gosling , Julianne Moore, Emma Stone , Analeigh Tipton,  Jonah Bobo ,

Joey King , Marisa Tomei , Beth Littleford , John Carroll Lynch , Kevin Bacon , Liza Lapira , Josh Groban,

Mekia Cox , Julianna Guill

Plot:

A father's life unravels while he deals with a marital crisis and tries to manage his relationship with his children.

Storyline

Cal (Steve Carell) and Emily (Julianne Moore) have the perfect life together living the American dream... until Emily asks for a divorce. Now Cal, Mr Husband, has to navigate the single scene with a little help from his professional bachelor friend Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling). Make that a lot of help...

Box Office

Budget:  $50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:  $19,104,303 (USA) (31 July 2011) (3020 Screens)

Gross:  $42,102,252 (USA) (7 August 2011)

REVIEW:

Bittersweet, emotionally uplifting and distinctly hilarious

Crazy, Stupid, Love. is one of, if not the best, American romantic comedies of the past decade. This may come as a shock to some (as it surely took me aback) but there is no other way to describe it. Going into an advanced screening of the film earlier this week, I had my doubts that it would be anything outside of generic. But instead of tripe, I got one of the most unexpected surprises I have seen all year.

Cal (Steve Carell) and Emily (Julianne Moore) have hit a rough patch in their long-time marriage, and Emily inadvertently announces to an entire restaurant that she wants a divorce. Down and depressed, Cal starts drinking away his sorrows at a local bar, attempting to make sense of his predicament with anyone who will listen. Jacob (Ryan Gosling), a professional bachelor, takes notice and makes it his personal mission to help Cal get over his wife, and become a new man in the process.

But this is just the main plot thread of the movie. It also follows Jacob's relationship with the absolutely stunning Hannah (Emma Stone), throws in a bit of curveball with Emily being romanced by David (Kevin Bacon), and even has a bit of a focus on Cal's son Robbie (Jonah Bobo) pining over his older babysitter Jessica (Analeigh Tipton). It may sound a little packed with threads and too many characters, but Crazy, Stupid, Love. is able to navigate between each character and couple with ease. It reminded me a lot of Valentine's Day, and how its main goal was to depict how different love is for a sizable amount of couples and singletons. Except it failed miserably at it, and stood out more as an example of every rom-com stereotype you could imagine. Thankfully, Crazy, Stupid, Love. takes the higher road and breathes new life into a stale genre.

If I hold anything against the film (other than the final act stumble and the oh-so convenient way one particular scene comes together), it is that it ended. I know I have harped on how unlike other typical romantic comedies Crazy, Stupid, Love. is, but there is really no other way I can rave about it. I easily could have spent more time with these characters, and pined to find out what happened to each of them after the final fade out. The incredibly unlikely pair of Ficarra and Requa has crafted a truly wonderful and hilarious film that is nothing like what you could have expected watching the trailer. It is bittersweet, and easily one of my favourite movies of the summer. And this is coming from someone who loathes almost every single romantic comedy ever conceived.

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Portrait of a Spy (2011) by Daniel Silva/Book Review

Portrait of a Spy (2011)

(Book 11 in the Gabriel Allon series)

A novel by Daniel Silva

A former journalist and television producer, Silva has crafted a novel so real, so timely that this reader soon began to feel a bit like she was reading a stunning newspaper account rather than fiction. Silva builds tension with architectural skill while the action jettisons from upscale auction houses to Washington power to the Saudi desert. PORTRAIT OF A SPY is extraordinary in every sense of the word.

- Gail Cooke

DESCRIPTION

In a dangerous world, one extraordinary woman can mean the difference between life and death. . . .

For Gabriel and his wife, Chiara, it was supposed to be the start of a pleasant weekend in London—a visit to a gallery in St. James’s to authenticate a newly discovered painting by Titian, followed by a quiet lunch. But a pair of deadly bombings in Paris and Copenhagen has already marred this autumn day. And while walking toward Covent Garden, Gabriel notices a man he believes is about to carry out a third attack. Before Gabriel can draw his weapon, he is knocked to the pavement and can only watch as the nightmare unfolds.

Haunted by his failure to stop the massacre of innocents, Gabriel returns to his isolated cottage on the cliffs of Cornwall, until a summons brings him to Washington and he is drawn into a confrontation with the new face of global terror. At the center of the threat is an American-born cleric in Yemen to whom Allah has granted “a beautiful and seductive tongue.” A gifted deceiver, who was once a paid CIA asset, the mastermind is plotting a new wave of attacks.

Gabriel and his team devise a daring plan to destroy the network of death from the inside, a gambit fraught with risk, both personal and professional. To succeed, Gabriel must reach into his violent past.

Set against the disparate worlds of art and intelligence, Portrait of a Spy moves swiftly from the corridors of power in Washington to the glamorous auction houses of New York and London to the unforgiving landscape of the Saudi desert. Featuring a climax that will leave readers haunted long after they turn the final page, this deeply entertaining story is also a breathtaking portrait of courage in the face of unspeakable evil—and Daniel Silva’s most extraordinary novel to date.

Gabriel Allon has been hailed as the most compelling creation since “Ian Fleming put down his martini and invented James Bond” (Rocky Mountain News). A man with a deep appreciation for all that is beautiful, Gabriel is also an angel of vengeance, an international operative who will stop at nothing to see justice done. Sometimes he must journey far in search of evil. And sometimes evil comes to him.

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Hardcover: 464 pages

Publisher: Harper; First Edition edition (July 19, 2011)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0062072188

ISBN-13: 978-0062072184

Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.4 inches 

REVIEW

We've read that Gabriel Allon has been hailed as the most compelling creation since "Ian Fleming put down his martini and invented James Bond." So true - a premier art restorer and an international operative bent on seeing justice done Allon is a fascinating character, a blend of intellectual acuity and fearlessness.

Gabriel, using the name Giovanni Rossi, is the talk of the Cornish village of Gunwalloe. He and his wife, Chiara, occupy a cottage with a twelve-month lease paid in advance "with all the paperwork handled discreetly by an obscure lawyer in Hamburg." Whoever he is, whatever he does all the villagers agree he has made Gunwalloe a much more interesting place. If they only knew.

When Gabriel takes his wife for what is intended to be a leisurely brief holiday in London he is walking toward Covent Garden when he sees a man he believes is a suicide bomber. There have been two previous bombings in Paris and Copenhagen, therefor he is on alert. But just as he aims his weapon he's knocked down so that all he could see "...was body parts and blood. It was Baghdad on the Thames."

Sick at heart that he was unable to stop the carnage Gabriel returns to Cornwall only to be called back into service by the chief of Israel's secret intelligence. There's no doubt that the Covent Garden bombing was the third in a series and, in all probability orchestrated by Rashid al-Husseini, a cleric in Yemen who was born in America and was so convincing re his loyalty to the States that he once worked for the CIA. Rashid learned a great deal during that period and used that knowledge against America, soon preaching "..that the only way to deal with the West is to destroy it."

It is Gabriel's task to stop Rashid before there are any more deaths, and accomplish this while keeping his operation secret from everyone including the President.

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)/Movie Review

Release Date:  15 July 2011 (India)   Runtime: 130 min

It All Ends

Director:  David Yates

Writers:   Steve Kloves (screenplay), J.K. Rowling (novel)

Original Music by Alexandre Desplat

Cinematography by  Eduardo Serra

STORYLINE

The final chapter begins as Harry, Ron, and Hermione continue their quest of finding and destroying the Dark Lord's three remaining Horcruxes, the magical items responsible for his immortality. But as the mystical Deathly Hallows are uncovered, and Voldemort finds out about their mission, the biggest battle begins and life as they know it will never be the same again.

MAIN CASTS Daniel Radcliffe , Rupert Grint , Emma Watson , Ralph Fiennes , Alan Rickman , Matthew Lewis , Tom Felton , Michael Gambon , Evanna Lynch , Jason Isaacs , Warwick Davis , Helena Bonham Carter , Maggie Smith , Bonnie Wright , David Thewlis

AWARDS

Teen Choice Awards  2011

Choice Summer Movie

Choice Summer Movie Star: Female : Emma Watson

Choice Summer Movie Star: Male  : Daniel Radcliffe

Box Office

Budget:  $125,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:  $169,189,427 (USA) (17 July 2011) (4375 Screens)

Gross:  $906,800,000 (Worldwide) (28 July 2011)

Production Co:  Heyday Films, Moving Picture Company (MPC), Warner Bros. Pictures

REVIEW

First off - Do not see this in 3D... The 3D is an after thought and literally added nothing to the experience. The only scene that was 3D that stands out in memory was the death of Voldemort and his confetti explosion.

What did they get right? Well its hard to say really.. I was really disappointed with the pacing for the first half of the 2nd part. It felt slow and weird and anti-climatic the entire way. The bank scene and special effects seems average and low budget for a franchise with such high profits. The acting from everyone doesn't quite do the job. Snapes "redemption" scene was acted out really poorly by Alan Rickman.. which is a shame because I was really looking forward to it as it's one of the more moving parts in the series. The only scene that felt like it mirrored the book accurately was the Kings Cross section (apart from Harry having clothes on...) My main gripe with the movie is that they left out so much considering they had two movies to cover it. Harry telling Neville to kill the snake and thus Neville having and important role in the ending of the war <- This part was the ONE part I was looking forward to when Neville pulls the sword out of the hat and cuts Nagini in two... Yet they changed it to Hermione and Ron battling the snake and Neville coming in as an afterthought... The entire war at the end was missing - Centaurs, Goblins/Kreecher, Hagrid/Aragog and just felt very anti-climatic and also have very poor CGI. The entire point of the Deathly Hallows is missed out with Harry not claiming ownership of the wand and reflecting Voldemorts death spell back onto him, and is replaced with a VERY tame action scene that went for about 10 minutes (its then mentioned as an afterthought by Harry post battle). The scene when Harry confronts Snape was also bizarre and seemed unnecessary... Overall the changes and missing scenes left me feeling very empty.

My girlfriend hasn't read the books and she enjoyed it.. So I'm sitting here wondering if the knowledge of the books hampered my enjoyment of it. I have no doubt this film will be hailed a success and will make bazillon dollars, but I can't help but feel that another director/team could've handled this a lot truer to the books.

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The Postcard Killers by James Patterson &Liza Marklund /Book Review

The Postcard Killers

James Patterson (Author), Liza Marklund (Author)

DESCRIPTION

Paris is stunning in the summer

NYPD detective Jacob Kanon is on a tour of Europe's most gorgeous cities. But the sights aren't what draw him--he sees each museum, each cathedral, and each cafe through the eyes of his daughter's killer.

The killing is simply marvelous

Kanon's daughter, Kimmy, and her boyfriend were murdered while on vacation in Rome. Since then, young couples in Paris, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, and Stockholm have been found dead. Little connects the murders, other than a postcard to the local newspaper that precedes each new victim.

Wish you were here

Now Kanon teams up with the Swedish reporter, Dessie Larsson, who has just received a postcard in Stockholm--and they think they know where the next victims will be. With relentless logic and unstoppable action, The Postcard Killers may be James Patterson's most vivid and compelling thriller yet.

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PRAISES:

"The Man Who Can't Miss" (Lev Grossman )

"Patterson boils a scene down to the single, telling detail, the element that defines a character or moves the plot along. It's what fires off the movie projector in the reader's mind." (Michael Connelly )

"Patterson's novels are sleek entertainment machines, the Porsches of commercial fiction, expertly engineered and lightning fast." (Publishers Weekly )

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Paperback: 464 pages

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; Reprint edition (July 12, 2011)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0446569941

ISBN-13: 978-0446569941

Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 1.2 x 8.2 inches

REVIEW

The two twentyish charming Americans tour Europe, but are uninterested in the sights. Instead the pair selects nice looking victims to butcher with knives. They send postcards warning the police they are coming to kill and afterward send pictures of their gruesome endeavors.

For six months NYPD Detective Jacob Kanon hunt the pair though he is always a few steps behind them. He lives for his obsession to butcher the two punks who murdered his twenty-one years old daughter Emily and her husband Clive. They send a postcard to reporter Dessie Larsson implying Stockholm is next following Berlin's homicides. Police Superintendent Duval refuses to protect Larsson, but unshaven Jacob arrives feeling this time he will find the pair who ended his life when they ended his daughter's life.

The serial killer cat and mouse game starts off with a powerful suspense but the latter half of the thriller feels padded. The killers are a frightening amoral pair while compulsive out of control demanding Jacob should have been deported for his behavior; though readers will empathize with his loss he is not likable as he seems to be a pale imitation of Liam Neeson's Mills in Taken. Still his is an entertaining tale as the audience anticipates the confrontation between the reporter and the crazed cop vs. the Postcard Killers.

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Horrible Bosses (2011)/Movie Review

Release Date:  8 July 2011 (USA)   Runtime:  USA: 98 min

Genres: Comedy | Crime

Taglines: Is your boss a slave-driving psycho?

Three friends conspire to murder their awful bosses when they realize they are standing in the way of their happiness.

Director:  Seth Gordon

Writers:   Michael Markowitz, John Francis Daley

Original Music by Christopher Lennertz

Cinematography by David Hennings

CASTS

P.J. Byrne, Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, Steve Wiebe, Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Lindsay Sloane, Michael Albala, Jason Sudeikis, Reginald Ballard, George Back, Barry Livingston, Meghan Markle, Donald Sutherland, Celia Finkelstein

STORYLINE

Friends Nick Hendricks, Kurt Buckman and Dale Arbus are average guys who want to work hard to get ahead in their respective jobs, but they each have the same professional problem in achieving this goal: they have a horrible boss and a job difficult to escape without starting from scratch. At the financial firm where he works, Nick's sadistic boss, Dave Harken, has long implied to Nick that he is in line for a senior vice-president position which was the farthest thing from Dave's mind. Kurt, who works for a family owned chemical company, used to have the best boss in the world in Jack Pellitt until he died, which meant that the reigns of the company were passed to his insensitive cocaine-induced son, Bobby Pellitt. And dental hygienist Dale's boss, Dr. Julia Harris, is sexually harassing him, which is made worse as Julia vows to tells Dale's fiancée that they did sleep together if he doesn't. He knows he can't get another job due to being on the sexual predator list for an innocent incident. After the three initially joke about wanting to kill their respective bosses, Dale is the first to state that he really wants to do it, to which the other two agree. As they are just three average guys, they have no idea how to go about doing it or even hiring a hit-man. With a supposed hit-man named Motherfucker Jones as their advisor and television crime shows and old murder mystery movies as their guides, the three go about trying to determine the best way to kill the three bosses while keeping as far away from the crimes as possible. Even with their guides, they commit a few errors in the initial reconnaissance and intelligence gathering stage which may thwart the entire plan. The motivations of Julia, Bobby and especially Dave, as well as Nick, Kurt and Dale's own morals may also factor into the success or failure of carrying out their mission

BOX OFFICE

Budget:  $35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:  $28,302,165 (USA) (10 July 2011) (3040 Screens)

Gross: $112,574,996 (USA) (21 August 2011)

Production Co:  New Line Cinema, Rat Entertainment 

Filming Locations: Glendale, California, USA

REVIEW

This movie is hilarious. Every scene is funny. Jennifer Aniston has never been better. She is not only a great actress, she is a great comedienne too. Charlie Day gives one of the funniest performances in a Hollywood movie in years. His phone scene with Ms. Aniston is hilarious, a take off on the Doris Day - Rock Hudson romantic comedies from the 1960s. Colin Farrell and Kevin Spacey give wonderful, strong performances. They are great actors and prove it in this movie. Playing heavies, they are perfect foils for the comics in this movie. The trio of Bateman, Sudeikis and Day is the best comedy combo since Chevy Chase, Steve Martin and Martin Short in Three Amigos. If this movie doesn't make you laugh, and laugh often, then either you're sleeping or you just don't like comedies. This movie is proof that when it wants to, Hollywood can make a comedy that actually produces laughs. The story is zany, goofy and upbeat. It's a farce, a romp, and a laugh-producing machine.

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