The Invention of Lying

The Invention of Lying is a Ricky Gervais movie with Jennifer Garner set in an alternate universe where the human race has never evolved the ability to lie. Then a local loser spontaneously evolves the ability to lie and uses this to amass personal gain and become Jesus.

Ignoring the obvious scientific inaccuracies and the fact that the inability to lie makes a world with no religion and no normative statements, the movie was on a whole a disappointment. I've never been a fan of Ricky Gervais's work, and now that I've actually seen one of his movies, my dislike has been justified. Even the idea behind the movie is childish and its execution left me feeling that the more interesting aspects were covered only briefly while I had to sit through watching Gervais act like a loser.
Still, it was mildly entertaining at points.

My Rating:

2 1/2 Arbitrary Shapes

Theme- The Romantic Comedy Formula #1

The protagonist is romantically interested in the super popular (and likewise super attractive) member of the opposite sex, usually in a longing, sort of "(s)he'll never notice me" sort of way. At the same time, the protagonist has a close friend of the opposite sex who is romantically interested in the protagonist, but for some reason that is never fully explained, never deigns to express those feelings until immediately before or after the protagonist has managed to go on a date with his or her super popular crush. Eventually, the protagonist figures out that the popular crush is actually a jerk and realizes that he or she actually loves the friend who has been there all along.

Examples: The Princess Diaries, Starter for 10, Observe and Report
Notable Exception: My Best Friend's Wedding
Parody: Not Another Teen Movie (Please note: This is neither an endorsement nor suggestion that you actually watch this movie.)

Starter For 10

Starter For 10 is a romantic comedy/coming-of-age film that looks into the life of a new college student from a nowhere town in Britain's first year in college and centers around a competition he is a part of, called the "Challenge", basically a televised equivalent of Quiz Bowl.

When I picked this movie out, I didn't expect anything like what I got, and it was truly an emotionally true and funny story with competent acting on all parts. For a large part in the beginning, I expected it to fall into the Rom Com formula, and for a while, it looked like it was going to avoid that, but then it fell right back into it. Still, even with the predictable romance ending, the movie still had plot fluctuations and a satisfying ending.

My Rating:


4 1/2 Arbitrary Shapes

Doctor Detroit

Doctor Detroit is a comedy starring Dan Aykroyd as a geeky comparative literature associate professor who finds himself battling a mob boss to protect prostitutes by assuming the guise of Dr. Detroit. I laughed aloud many times, and Akykroyd gives a wonderful performance. See it.

My Rating:


4.5 Arbitrary Shapes

Being There

Being There is a comedy based on a popular (and personal favorite) novel of the same name written by Jerzy Kosinski.

The movie, though it took a few cosmetic changes and slight plot tweaks, was largely loyal to the book, going so far as to lift several lines verbatim. That being said, the movie was less than I expected. My expectations were likely too high because of how much I like the book, but despite Peter Sellers's wonderfully convincing performance, I felt some important themes of the book just didn’t translate onto the screen, while entire new themes were introduced that were nowhere in the book. Additionally, multiple points in the book where the omniscient third person perspective (read: narrator) was describing the protagonist's thoughts (or lack thereof) were transposed into film as long periods of character silence and TV background.

My Rating:


4 Arbitrary Shapes

The Magic Christian

The Magic Christian is a comedy starring Peter Sellers and Ringo Starr with several Monty Python guest appearances.

The movie basically asks: what won’t people do for money? And answers, as anyone who has watched reality television might assume, is absolutely nothing. Entertaining, but slow and repetitive. Judged by the play count (3), the movie was filmed as a vehicle for the song “Come And Get It” by Badfinger, which isn’t a bad song the first time you hear it, but when it's played excessively and as a substitute for dialogue and action, it has been known to cause homicidal thoughts. Worth watching if you love anything British without regard to quality, or if your only other option is a Kevin Costner film. Otherwise, use it only as background noise at your next party.

My Rating:


2 1/2 Arbitrary Shapes

The Experiment

Welcome to my mlog (pronounced how it’s spelled), an experiment in movie review blogging. After watching too many movies and having them never again benefit me in any way and lay forgotten in the cavernous wastelands of my mind, I made the decision to document and review every single movie or film I see, if not so just I can go back and remember what is and what isn’t worth watching. In addition, I will occasionally explore some themes and meta-themes to help the further appreciation and comprehension of what is not individually obvious to the casual viewer.

I can't imagine what use this will be to any reader, but feel free to poke around and you might just discover a movie to occupy your otherwise pointless and banal life.

Regards,
Ben Miller