A Complete Review of Todd Phillips's work

Cast : Joaquin Phoenix, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Steve Coogan, Zazie Beetz

What was it about?
Struggling with his dual identity, failed comedian Arthur Fleck meets the love of his life, Harley Quinn, while incarcerated at Arkham State Hospital.

My two cents:
Maybe due to the fact that I seriously lowered down my expectations but I don't think it was so bad after all. The fact that 'Joker' didn't really blow me away in the first place also probably helped. Anyway, it turned out to be a sweet love story involving two really messed-up up individuals and I really enjoyed that Arthur Fleck finally managed to connect with someone which was actually really sweet. Furthermore, Joaquin Phoenix was again really good, I wouldn't expect less from him, Lady Gaga also delivered a solid performance and they had a nice chemistry together. However, I have to admit that the damned thing still had some issues though. First of all, the musical angle was just a rather useless gimmick to add some buzz and, this way, since they hired Lady Gaga, they had seemingly a good excuse to have her delivering some songs. Furthermore, it was fine to have Joaquin Phoenix destroying a song but to have him doing it again and again was more cringe-inducing than actually entertaining. However, what really derailed the whole thing was the approach they took for the 3rd act though. Indeed, sure, Arthur Fleck had pushed back his Joker personality and you had to wait for a while to see him again but it was fair game. However, when this demented personality was finally back, they should have gone all the way. Indeed, when he escaped, the city should have gone in flame and total mayhem and they should have given us the Joker and Harley Quinn holding hands and riding into the sunset, that would have been a nice ending. However, instead, they completely backtracked, Arthur somehow cancelled and even repudiated the Joker which was weird but, above all, seriously anticlimactic and, quite frankly, rather frustrating. Anyway, the enormous bashing against this movie turned out to be seriously exaggerated, in spite of its flaws, it was actually a decent watch.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz

What was it about?
An original standalone origin story of the iconic villain not seen before on the big screen, it's a gritty character study of Arthur Fleck, a man disregarded by society, and a broader cautionary tale.

My two cents:
To be honest, even though I did like this movie, I can’t say I was completely blown away after all. To be honest, it took me a while to figure out what actually bothered with this movie which had been virtually universally loved so far. Was it the saturation? I mean, we get such an overdose of super-hero movies. Even with the Joker himself, it has been already at least the 5th iteration of this iconic character in 30 years and, even if Joaquin Phoenix was quite amazing, Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger and even Mark Hamill were just as heralded as he was. Furthermore, even though they are all making a big fuss about the fact that this movie could be a revolution in this genre but, in my opinion, the story was actually rather basic and predictable. I mean, it was a decent story but this tale of a rather sad mentally ill man slowly becoming homicidal was not really original. Eventually, the genius moves from Todd Philips was not to deliver a great story but to include the Joker in the mix and to have this popular character played by one of the best actors around. Seriously, if you would remove these 2 elements, I wonder if this movie would make so many waves. And, yet, there is no denying that, once again, Joaquin Phoenix gave us here another intense and spellbinding performance. Basically, the whole thing was some kind of amazing dark one-man-show and Phoenix definitely made the most of it.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Miles Teller, Jonah Hill, Ana de Armas, Kevin Pollak, Bradley Cooper

What was it about?
Loosely based on the true story of two young men, David Packouz and Efraim Diveroli, who won a three hundred million dollar contract from the Pentagon to arm America's allies in Afghanistan.

My two cents:
I have to admit that I really have a weak spot for this kind of stories and, while the whole thing was nothing really groundbreaking, this tale was pretty wild, awesome and entertaining to behold. Obviously, a lot of it was made up (for example, these guys never went to Irak to deliver some weapons) but it didn’t bother me. Something more disappointing was the relationship between Miles Teller’s character with his girlfriend played by Ana de Armas. Indeed, it is such an old trick to have the girlfriend complaining about the fact that the main character didn’t tell her the truth. Not only it has been done to death before but, above all, it is such a drag. Another issue was that the character played by Jonah Hill, Efraim, was such an unreliable loose canon which was just so predictable. I mean, even though it was supposed to be funny, it was rather annoying that they got busted apparently because Efraim didn’t pay a simple bill. Anyway, even though it was nothing really original, I thought it was quite entertaining and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong, John Goodman, Melissa McCarthy, Heather Graham, Mike Epps, Jamie Chung

What was it about?
When one of their own is kidnapped by an angry gangster, the Wolf Pack must track down Mr. Chow, who has escaped from prison and is on the run.

My two cents:
To be honest, I have never really understood why ‘The Hangover’ franchise turned out to be so popular. I mean, I have to admit it, the concept was decent but I never understood why, if you have a bunch of colorful characters having a very wild night in Las Vegas or in Bangkok, why would you bother show the day after, when all the fun is gone and the guys spend all their time to recover the damages and their senses? Anyway, at least, with this movie, they didn’t completely recycle the plot of the 1st movie but even so I’m afraid it turned out to be even more underwhelming than the previous installment. Indeed, the main issue with this whole franchise is that, even though Alan was supposed to be hilarious, he is in fact most of the time completely obnoxious and, with this 3rd movie, it became so bad that his buddies of the Wolf Pack simply couldn’t stand him anymore and would rather have never met him. As a result, the whole thing is basically about Alan completely antagonizing his so-called ‘friends’ and it was really cringe-inducing to watch. To conclude, it was pretty weak.

My rating: 05/10

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Cast : Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong, Paul Giamatti, Mike Tyson, Jamie Chung

What was it about?
Two years after the bachelor party in Las Vegas, Phil, Stu, Alan, and Doug jet to Thailand for Stu's wedding. Stu's plan for a subdued pre-wedding brunch, however, goes seriously awry.

My two cents:
Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much from this sequel but since it was again a huge hit at the box-office, I still wanted to check it out. Eventually, it was pretty neat that they went to Bangkok which was a great location but, like everyone else, I was rather underwhelmed by the fact that the plot was just exactly the same as for the 1st installment. Actually, I would say that it shows how limited the whole concept was, even for the 1st movie which I enjoyed but also found rather overrated. I mean, if you have a bunch of colorful characters having a very wild night in Las Vegas or in Bangkok, why would you bother show the day after, when all the fun is gone and the guys spend all their time to recover? I mean, once again, at the end, they show some pictures about the infamous night and, once again, I thought ‘Damned! It would have been so awesome to see that instead!’. At least, the characters were still pretty fun and I was fairly entertained throughout the whole duration but the whole thing still felt like a missed opportunity.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Robert Downey Jr., Zach Galifianakis, Michelle Monaghan, Jamie Foxx, Juliette Lewis, Danny McBride, RZA, Charlie Sheen

What was it about?
High-strung father-to-be Peter Highman is forced to hitch a ride with aspiring actor Ethan Tremblay on a road trip in order to make it to his child's birth on time.

My two cents:
Honestly, it was pretty obvious what the producers were up to with this movie. Basically, following the surprising massive success of 'The Hangover', they decided to quickly cash-in on the popularity of the new funny guy in town, Zach Galifianakis. In the directing chair, you had again Todd Phillips and as the sparring partner, you had Robert Downer Jr, hotter than ever, so it did sound like a pretty good combo. Unfortunately, I didn't like it much, I'm afraid. Basically, it turned to be some kind of a remake of 'Planes, Trains and Automobiles' and even though I enjoyed this classic, it didn't really blow me away. Anyway, this new version didn't add much to the formula and I had really a hard time to care for the whole thing. Fortunately, even though Galifianakis's character was more obnoxious than funny, Downey Jr delivered the goods as usual and saved me from total boredom. There were a few cameos, some totally wasted (Juliette Lewis, Jamie Foxx) and some pretty good (RZA, Danny McBride) but, again, they didn't redeem the whole thing. Anyway, I think I'm being rather generous with my rating but I guess it is still worth a look.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Heather Graham, Ken Jeong, Mike Tyson

What was it about?
Three buddies wake up from a bachelor party in Las Vegas, with no memory of the previous night and the bachelor missing. They make their way around the city in order to find their friend before his wedding.

My two cents:
Before watching this, like everybody, I heard many things about it and everyone seemed to agree that it was completely hilarious so I was quite eager to finally check the damned thing. Well, to be honest, I think the whole thing was actually rather overrated. I mean, sure, it was fairly entertaining but I never thought it was seriously hilarious at any moment. I have to admit it, the concept was pretty awesome though and it definitely had some potential for an epic R-rated comedy but I never understood why, if you have a bunch of colorful characters having a very wild night in Las Vega, why would you bother showing the day after, when all the fun is gone and the guys spend all their time to recover from their hangover? Seriously, at the end, when you finally get to see what happened during this wild night, it seemed to be so much more fun than what they actually gave us in this movie. Anyway, in my opinion, it was nothing great after all but, I have to admit it, it is still a decent comedy.

My rating: 07/10

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Cast : Billy Bob Thornton, Jon Heder, Jacinda Barrett, Michael Clarke Duncan, Sarah Silverman, David Cross, Ben Stiller, Jim Parsons, Jessica Stroup

What was it about?
A young guy short on luck, enrolls in a class to build confidence to help win over the girl of his dreams, which becomes complicated when his teacher has the same agenda.

My two cents:
To be honest, it is a rather obscure flick and the only reason I wanted to check it out at the time was because Billy Bob Thornton was involved. Indeed, I really like this actor and, in this movie, he had some pretty nice scenes but, unfortunately, this movie didn’t have much else to offer, I’m afraid. It's too bad because the concept was actually pretty neat and it could have been a nice R rated comedy. Eventually, even though it wasn’t completely lame, the story was really nothing great at all. Above all, I thought it was rather unbelievable that a cute girl like Amanda (played by the lovely Jacinda Barrett) would fall in love so easily with Roger (played by the really uncharismatic Jon Heder). Anyway, even though I have seen worse, it was a really rather average flick and I don’t think it is really worth a look.

My rating: 05/10

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Cast : Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Snoop Dogg, Vince Vaughn, Juliette Lewis, Jason Bateman, Amy Smart, Carmen Electra, Chris Penn, Will Ferrell

What was it about?
Two streetwise cops bust criminals in their red and white Ford Gran Torino, with the help of a police snitch called "Huggy Bear".

My two cents:
The first time around, I really hated the damned thing and, as far as I was concerned, it was easily one of the worst TV adaptations I had seen. I mean, I didn’t even have some huge expectations about this flick back then but even so it ended up being a disappointment. Well, after all these years, I have to admit that it wasn’t such a complete disaster after all. However, it was still nothing great though. First of all, I never really liked this trend of taking a respected, gritty TV show and transform it in some kind of big farce. Sure, ’21 Jump Street’ was a surprise success back in 2012 but it is an exception and, in general, I just don’t care much about the whole concept. Above all, when I was a kid, I thought Starsky and Hutch were really badass so I was not really pleased with what they did with these characters. At least, I must admit that the cast was pretty spot on (Ben Stiller as David Starsky, Owen Wilson as Ken Hutchinson and Snoop Dogg as Huggy Bear). Above all, the first time around, I thought it was really not funny at all but just only seriously annoying. However, after rewatching the damned thing, I have to admit that it was actually rather harmless after all. I still don’t think it was really hilarious though.

My rating: 05/10

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Cast : Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn, Jeremy Piven, Ellen Pompeo, Juliette Lewis, Elisha Cuthbert, Seann William Scott

What was it about?
Three friends attempt to recapture their glory days by opening up a fraternity near their alma mater.

My two cents:
For many of the actors involved, this movie was where it all really started. Indeed, following the release of this movie, the press created the concept of the ‘Frat Pack’, a nickname given to a group of comedy actors who have appeared together in many of the highest grossing comedy movies since the late 1990's. Anyway, for Will Ferrell and Vince Vaughn, that’s when it all started to really take off. It was also another success for Todd Phillips and, 6 years later, he would even be more successful and get a massive blockbuster with ‘The Hangover’. Coming back to our main feature, I wasn’t sure about the concept, in fact, I thought it was actually rather moronic if you ask me. Indeed, the whole thing about some grown-ups starting a college fraternity did sound pretty stupid. Still, back in those days, Ferrell and Vaughn were pretty much on fire and the jokes were often quite hilarious. Eventually, the main issue I had is that they didn’t dare to go even further and the whole thing remained rather safe and predictable but I have to admit that it is still a decent watch.

My rating: 06/10

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Cast : Tom Green, Seann William Scott, Amy Smart

What was it about?
Four college buddies embark on a road trip to retrieve an illicit tape mistakenly mailed to a female friend.

My two cents:
Since it actually has a rather decent reputation, I thought it might be actually a decent raunchy comedy. The fact that I’m not a huge fan of this usually absymal genre probably didn’t help but I was expecting something more after hearing so many good things about this movie. At the end of the day, it was not bad but there was nothing original and nothing I haven't seen several times before. It also always difficult to enjoy anything involving the terrribly obnoxious Tom Green but I have to admit that his movie was actually fairly entertaining. On a side note, it is interesting to note that Seann William Scott managed to start his career back-to-back with ‘American Pie’, ‘Final Destination ‘ and this movie and, even though I might be the first to argue that all these movies were nothing really amazing, they all become eventually some cult-classics. Anyway, I have to admit it, it was actually a decent watch and if you're a big fan of such teen comedies like 'American Pie', you may end up enjoying it more than I did.

My rating: 06/10

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What was it about?
This movie digs into the outrageous ecosystem of fraternity life long before the country turned against it.

My two cents:
Apparently, it was supposed to be released by HBO but it was banned because it was supposedly fake or, at least, some part of it. My guess was that the first part was genuine but, when Phillips got stuck half way through, they faked the rest as it seemed rather unlikely that the filmmaker would get involved himself with the pledges. Anyway, eventually, it doesn't really matter, at least, not to me. Indeed, I have to admit that I was expecting a movie dealing more with the everyday life in a frat house, especially the wild parties. Instead, it was more about the pledges and hazing you have to go through to get accepted in a fraternity. Well, while this process was interesting and, I'm afraid, fairly realistically depicted, it was also rather repetitive and barely entertaining. Basically, you get to see a bunch of stupid grown-ups doing some awful things to another bunch of equally ignorant grown-ups just because, well, they can. And after that, you are supposed to believe that College is/was the best part in the average life of most American men.

My rating: 06/10

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What was it about?
Documentary about the life and death of the notorious underground punk icon GG Allin, the foul mouthed, heroin shooting lead singer of the Murder Junkies, who would throw excrement at the crowd, start fights with the biggest guys in the audience, and threatened to kill himself onstage. He was considered the lowest common denominator of our society by some, an avant-garde artist by others.

My two cents:
When I heard about this movie, it sounded really interesting so I was quite eager to check it out. The fact that it was Todd Phillips's directing debut and the fact that it was miles away from his usual raunchy comedies made the damned thing even more intriguing to me. Well, even though GG Allin had quite a notorious reputation, I was expecting him to be a grotesque and pathetic guy ready to do any stunts just to get some attention but I thought he was actually quite charismatic and, in my opinion, he was a real and genuine punk rocker. I have to admit that I never really cared much about real Punk from a musical point of view but I always admired the attitude and way of thinking of Punk fans. The other advantage of watching this movie was that you could experience his live shows without actually being physically present because I don't think I would have dared to go to one of his concerts as the outcome was always so unpredictable and seriously hazardous.

My rating: 07/10

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