REVIEWS - 'Tammy', 'Jersey Boys', 'Transformers 4'

Well....camp has kept me a bit busy and I've got a bit of catching up to do as far as this blog goes before I get too too far behind.  In addition to these three movies I also have to play catch-up with 'Fault In Our Stars', '22 Jump Street' and 'How To Train Your Dragon 2'.  And I'll be seeing 'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' soon as well.  But enough about that for now, let's get back to talking about Melissa McCarthy's latest comedy, Clint Eastwood's latest directorial effort, and the return of Optimus Prime and company. 

 'Tammy' (R) ***
After having been fired from her job and discovering that her husband was cheating on her, the titular character (Academy Award nominee Melissa McCarthy, who also co-produced and co-wrote) hits the road with her alcoholic Grandma Pearl (Academy Award winner Susan Sarandon) and shenanigans ensue.  With Academy Award nominee Kathy Bates as Pearl's pyromaniac lesbian cousin, Mark Duplass as Tammy's potential love interest, Gary Cole as Pearl's equally as drunk love interest, and Sandra Oh, Allison Janney, and Academy Award winner Nat Faxon in small roles.

This one has been a bit divisive.  I know some people who liked the movie, others who thought it was just okay, and a few others who just thought it was plain dumb with no real consensus being made about the movie.  Usually I like Melissa McCarthy.  I loved both 'Bridesmaids' and 'The Heat', although I didn't care for 'Identity Thief' all that much.  As far as 'Tammy' goes, well....overall I liked it, although I will admit that as far as comedies go there are better ones out there.  I laughed out loud once or twice and had some occasional chuckles throughout, but 'Tammy' largely succeeds due to three factors:  The overall likability of Melissa McCarthy, and the crazy performances by both Susan Sarandon and Kathy Bates.  If you're a diehard Melissa McCarthy fan I recommend seeing it.  If you're a bit mixed about her I'd say just rent this or just skip it entirely.   





'Jersey Boys' (R) ***
Clint Eastwood's latest movie since 2011's 'J. Edgar' is an adaptation of the hit Broadway musical of the same name which centers on the rise and fall of the band The Four Seasons:  Frankie Valli (John Michael Lloyd), Bob Gaudio (Erich Bergen), Nicki Massi (Michael Lomenda) and Tommy DeVito (Vincent Piazza).  With Christopher Walken as Angelo 'Gyp' DeCarlo, a local mob boss whom Tommy and Frankie are involved with.

I had never seen the musical on which this was based, but I still wanted to see this for a few different reasons:

1.  Clint Eastwood directed it and I'll watch anything that he directs.
2. For a little while when I was younger my siblings and I were only allowed to listen to the local Oldies station, so I remember hearing certain Four Seasons songs on the radio.

Overall, this was a fun movie and it's the only Clint Eastwood directed movie I've liked since 'Gran Torino'....and it has been a LONG five years ('Invictus', 'Hereafter', 'J. Edgar'......yeah).  It's incredibly well shot, in the same kind of dark, gray-ish way that's similar to 'J. Edgar'.  The music is great, and it's interesting to hear someone be able to match Frankie Valli's rather...interesting singing voice.  The acting is also great, particularly from John Michael Lloyd and Vincent Piazza.  Could've used more Christopher Walken, but then again every movie could use more Christopher Walken.  Even movies that he isn't in at all still need more Christopher Walken.  If you like The Four Seasons, music from the 1960s in general, or the actual stage musical, I recommend this movie.






'Transformers:  Age of Extinction' (PG-13) **1/2
Taking place four years after the events of 'Dark of the Moon', 'Age of Extinction' follows a mechanic (Mark Wahlberg) and his daughter (Nicola Peltz) as they end up joining the Autobots as they are targeted by a bounty hunter from another world.  With Kelsey Grammar as a mysterious C.I.A. agent, Stanley Tucci as a mysterious businessman, T.J. Miller as Mark Wahlberg's business partner, Peter Cullen as the voice of Optimus Prime, and John Goodman, Ken Watanabe and Frank Welker voicing various Autobots and Decepticons.

Look:  The cast (apart from Nicola Peltz) is indeed a huge improvement from the original trilogy.  The special effects are still amazing.  And it's awesome seeing giant robots fight each other.  But my main problem with this movie is that this movie is WAY TOO LONG and DRAGS A LOT.  After a while I was gradually losing my interest and just kinda wanted it to end.  The acting from Nicola Peltz is also kinda bad and T.J. Miller provides the dumb "humor" that has plagued the last few 'Transformers' movies.  Although I will admit the dumb "humor" is toned down a lot from those movies and is actually limited to pretty much the first 45 minutes.  Pacing issues, some bad acting and the dumb humor aside, that pretty much is all I have to say about 'Transformers 4'.  In comparison to the other 'Transformers' movies....well, it's better than 'Revenge of the Fallen', but then again most movies are.  It's a smidge lower than 'Dark of the Moon', but still doesn't quite hold a candle to the first movie.



Usually I talk about trailers but quite frankly since it's taken me a while to write up a review for some of these I just kinda forgot what the trailers.  Might just do a separate post just about various trailers but we'll see.