He's Just Not That Into You

Look , I get that HE’S JUST NOT INTO YOU was not made with me in mind. I didn’t expect to see any stuff get blown up real good, nor did I expect to see anyone kick anyone else in the face. But I sat down for it anyway: a friend recommended it, and I like to tell myself that I don’t believe in guy movies and chick movies, but only good movies and bad movies.

This movie begins with a “girl talk” voiceover about the nature of relationships that effectively announced that not only was it not made with me in mind, but it was made with a mind to specifically exclude members of my gender and orientation. This movie was just not that into me.

And that’s ok. I’ve been out with my wife and sat drinking my coffee while she talks with her female friends or relatives. I get that things don’t need to cater to my tastes to have value. But while HE’S JUST NOT INTO YOU is professionally written, photographed, and acted, it’s an intellectually dishonest film that spends 7/8 of its running time advocating for a world view that it abandons when it’s time to put smiles on faces before the closing credits.

I can forgive a film many flaws, but that kind of dishonesty is not among them. HE’S JUST NOT INTO YOU is a liar. Don’t get into it.

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

So, "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," George Clooney's directorial debut. Sam Rockwell, the Once and Future Zaphod Beeblbrox, plays 'Gong Show' creator Chuck Barris in the kind of autobiography one might expect when listening to the life story of a compulsive liar. I don't even know if the real Barris is a compulsive liar, but this tale is so cool, has so many loose ends, and makes such a fun antihero of Barris that it set off my bullshit alarm in a big, big way.

But pay no attention to the bullshit alarm. Focus, instead, on the cool and fun story of a guy whose contempt for his fellow man led to a small fortune in the world of television (This part really happened.), astonishing success with women (This part probably happened - I'm told that cocaine is a remarkable drug.), and survival in the deadly world of international espionage (Bullshit!). Sam Rockwell (quickly becoming one of my favorite actors) as Chuck Barris is a hustler born, and watching him hustle his way through life is a great deal of fun. George Clooney does a fine job of making a tiny film seem less tiny through the inclusion of a quality supporting cast - I mean, who else could have gotten Julia Roberts and Drew Barrymore to show up in such a tiny film? And the whole thing hums along in a sort of alcoholic - nihilistic - bullshitter's groove.

I liked it.

Fever Pitch

There's a scene early in FEVER PITCH in which Drew Barrymore tells the shaggy-haired guy (SHG) that someone in her office is going to get promoted (Plot Point!!). SHG does a bit in which he cracks wise about backstabbing while making whiny squeaking noises and pantomiming the stabbing motion. It's supposed to be cute, and it's supposed to endear us to his character. DB & I both reacted with, "What a loser."

FEVER PITCH is a reasonably cute romantic comedy that doesn't hold a candle to earlier Farrely Brothers efforts such as SOMETHING ABOUT MARY and STUCK ON YOU. It's drawn from a Nick Hornby novel that doesn't translate as well as ABOUT A BOY or HIGH FIDELITY and, if I had to put my finger on why, I have to say that it's the shaggy-haired guy's fault. Like Bruckner letting a ground ball slip by him, SHG is simply unable to make the plays when they matter. Poor Barrymore's acting her heart out against this guy, but he just can't pull off "endearing man-child." If ever there was a movie that demanded the presence of Adam Sandler, this is it.