Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)

I avoided this movie for a long time, because I thought it was something that it wasn't. In my head, I got the trailer mixed up with all those Dane Cooke or Paul Rudd "bromance" flicks that all, to a one, just totally suck. That is not this movie. In fact, if I would have known Kristen Bell was in it, I would have so watched it, except I did know, but I wasn't a fan of hers yet, not having watched Veronica Mars until after this movie had come out. That makes sense, right? Sure. I did know that Mila Kunis was in this film, so I had almost watched it based on that, except that I think she was dating McCaully Culkin at the time so that probably mitigated against her, at least a little bit. The only other people I knew in it were all Saturday Night Live alums, and well that isn't really a selling point.
Jason Segel has good chemistry with both Kristen Bell and Mila Kunis. Lucky bastard.  Of course he also gets naked with both of them, not counting sex scenes where he presumably wasn't naked and where both of the young ladies are filmed in such a way as to not show anything. It's kind of funny, because Segel actually does full frontal nudity in this movie - twice. Um, maybe I should mention that I'm watching the 'unrated' extended version. There is a photo of Kunis's character flashing that is a plot device, but I'm pretty sure it's her head on another woman's body.
Ruseell Brand as the other guy in Sarah Marshall's life is brilliant. I've read interviews that say he wasn't really acting that he is like the character. In which case I say, huzzah to the person in charge of casting. Also quite funny is Jack McBrayer who I loved on 30 Rock. Interestingly this character is very religious just like his Kenneth character, but not so stupid.
What's really the most interesting parts of the movie, though, are the two fake television shows that the Marshall character is involved with. The first with Billy Baldwin and the second with Jason Bateman, both of whom play themselves in the movie playing characters on these fictitious shows. The Baldwin show is a CSI spoof called "Crime Scene: Scene of the Crime" and is CSI but with every line full of intentional and/or obvious sexual innuendo. The Bateman show is called "Animal Instinct" where he's a cop and Sarah Marshall plays an animal psychic. They both look totally ridiculous, but honestly, if they were ever made, I would probably watch them, because I like procedurals, in the first case, and I like Bateman, in the second case. Interestingly, the shows were both on NBC and not some made up network. I know that Segel has ties to NBC, I find it interesting that they would let him use their logo, but then I guess that any advertisement is good advertisement (see above where I said I would probably watch the shows).
So, I'm painting a pretty rosy picture but there are some awkward moments, and not just the good kind played for comic or dramatic value. There were several scenes where I was embarassed for the actor and Segel in his role as the writer. There are two actors in this that I really don't like - Bill Hader and Jonah Hill. I'm sure they're both great guys, so let me instead say that I don't like their characters. Not in this or in anything else. Sorry. They both annoy the fuck out of me. Some of my dislike for Hader is misplaced dislike for Jim Carey because they remind me of each other in so many ways. But, there are a couple of roles of Carey's that I quite like, so I will hold out hope that someday Hader and Hill will not so utterly disapoint.
I don't want to end on a downer, so I've been saving the bestest mostest awesomest thing for last - Dracula the musical. Why do I have the feeling that Segel wrote more than just the couple of songs we see performed? And puppets? That totally rocked! I would love to go see that musical. I love that he made it a comedy and that Dracula has more than a passing resemblance to the Count from Sesame Street and that Van Helsing has no resemblance to Hugh Jackman.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall at IMDb

The Muppets (2011)

I came into this one knowing that I wasn't going to like it. My librarian didn't have anything good to say bout it, and in fact had bad things to say about it. Plus, and only slightly more importantly, I hadn't viewed any new muppet endeavors since the passing of Jim Henson. I don't care how close they got with Kermit's voice, it wasn't the same voice.
A funny thing happened though, maybe it was the magic of the moment or that I was also enspirited by Walter's dream of getting the muppets back together, but the snarky comments faded on my lips. I let the cynicism drop away and gave the mupets a fresh look and a fresh chance.
This movie was funny and entertaining. It was like putting on a favorite pair of old sneakers that you find while cleaning out the garage. It's like a...rehash of the first muppet movie, but you don't mind. Right?
Okay, I've been all nicey-nicey as long as I can. I had this hope of pulling a fast one on my readers, so she'd be all like, "what? this isn't the eric i've come to know and love!" Except that I used "know" where she actually said "accidentally read" and instead of "love" she actually said, "not hate as much as I thought I would". Gotcha!? (He almost confidently states holding his arms out straight in a way he's seen on television that rascals use to show that you gotta love them.)
Honestly though, I don't take back anything I said about the movie - there is just more to say, and I'll try to stop the snark before it hits because it really is unsolicited.
This movie is not for adults, or at least not for adults that watch it alone. Or watch it without playing the accompanying drinking game. I mean the adults when they are alone. The kids should not play the drinking game, though I suppose that two or more adults together might enjoy the drinking game.
When did Disney but the muppets? Is the Richman character a subtle poke at Disney? If that were the case, the movie just got a whole lot better. It certainly explains the uber-predictability of the movie and it's gags. I will concede that people were not watching this for cutting edge anything and on multiple occassions the muppets themselves make fun of this very fact.
Who knew that Amy Adams could sing? Also that she could dance? Also that if you drink every time she twirls you will get very drunk? Also that she is an Academy Award nominee? Also, that I could keep on going like this? Also, did you think I would add the mandatory extra question to make the previous one predictably funny? Also that by funny I mean not funny except in a groany kind of way? Also that groany is too a word?
Okay, okay, okay. I see the elephant is still in the room. Well, both of them. I didn't hate this movie and parts of it I even liked, sometimes in spite of myself. How could my friend be so wrong on this? Usually, it is that she likes things that I don't not vice versa. And what about my moratorium against the new voice talents? I think I have asked more questions in this post than in any other. I mean, haven't I asked more questions? The voices are not the same. I think I'm okay with that. I think. Here's my rationale - there are two ways to think about Kermit and company. First, and the way I have been thinking about them, Kermit for example is an entity akin to an actor who also happens to play the role of Kermit and is voiced by some guy named Jim, just like Miss Piggy plays the role of Miss Piggy and is voiced by some guy named Yoda, I mean Frank. Or the second way to think about, and the way I am allowing myself to try out this night, Kermit is a role just like Hamlet or Batman, and he just happened to be played by Jim Henson. Other actors will play the role and they will be different but not necessarily bad, though some may be as time goes on. But in years to come people might say, "That Robert Pattinson plays a dashing Kermit, but no one compare to the time I saw Jim Henson play Kermit - he was not acting, he was Kermit." Or something.
Also, if you were playing a drinking game while reading this post, you should be drunk if the game was to drink every time I asked a question. Right? You didn't cheat? Not once? And you were drinking alcohol?

The Muppets at IMDb