I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry and P2.

From the general reception of July 2007's I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry, I expected it to be a vile, vapid piece of shit. But I was surprised to find that it was a pretty good movie. I enjoyed it the whole way through. Kevin James and Adam Sandler are both naturally funny leads, and Jessica Biel was wonderful as an ass and pair of tits that is also a lawyer. In addition, Dan Aykroyd proves once again that he's an [inter]national treasure.

There's a few things in the movie that don't work. Some particularly surreal moments, plus every second of Rob Schneider screen time, just fall flat. But at the same time, we get some of that Sandleresque humor that really makes the scenes pop. And the movie ultimately has very noble intentions.

I had been especially curious to see it since I heard that Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor were credited as co-writers. Jurassic Park III notwithstanding, they did Sideways (one of my favorite movies), as well as About Schmidt and Election. But it's obvious that the shooting script for Chuck & Larry was not entirely their work. Unless they thought it would be hilarious for Rob Schneider to do offensive Asian things for more than one scene.

I had also been very curious to see November 2007's P2, particularly because of Wes Bentley. I've seen this guy exactly four times. Once in September 1999's American Beauty (a Best Picture-winning drama), where he was awesome. Then again in September 2002's The Four Feathers (a period piece). I was assigned to see that movie for a class, and have retained no memory of it. Then in February 2007's Ghost Rider (a comic book adaptation), which was pure CGI garbage. And the fourth would be P2. So like, what is his thought process when he decides what movies to act in? That's not a criticism; I just want to know.

P2, by the by, delivered. I made the mistake of watching it very late at night, so it was extra scary. I would recommend it to people who want a movie like Die Hard, except instead of fun action, there's just lots of scary stuff. Bentley's character in it makes for an interesting discussion piece. So after seeing the movie, you'll be able to debate with your fellow moviegoers as to what the fuck was going on with this guy.

Cheers,
Diego