Because it’s always good to remember that when you’re judging famous people on Twitter , they sometimes read it (and weep), Jimmy Kimmel corralled a gaggle of comedians and comic actors to read some of the meanest Tweet-critiques they’ve received for the camera. I think we can all take a few universal lessons from this video: Namely, that celebrities like Jason Bateman , Presidential candidate Roseanne , and Andy Dick really are like the rest of us little Tweeters — well okay, maybe not Andy Dick. Also: Will Ferrell reads his @ messages while on the can, too! If that can’t bring us together as a Tweeple, what will? [via Jimmy Kimmel ]
Because it’s always good to remember that when you’re judging famous people on Twitter , they sometimes read it (and weep), Jimmy Kimmel corralled a gaggle of comedians and comic actors to read some of the meanest Tweet-critiques they’ve received for the camera. I think we can all take a few universal lessons from this video: Namely, that celebrities like Jason Bateman , Presidential candidate Roseanne , and Andy Dick really are like the rest of us little Tweeters — well okay, maybe not Andy Dick. Also: Will Ferrell reads his @ messages while on the can, too! If that can’t bring us together as a Tweeple, what will? [via Jimmy Kimmel ]
What if kamikaze NYT op-edder Greg Smith were a chicken from the Henson Workshop? What else? “My proudest moments in life — laying a plastic egg in Johannesberg, my LGTB teen awareness work with Bert, becoming Gonzo’s 539th domestic partner — have all come through hard work, with no shortcuts. With its cheap efforts to turn Gen X parents misty with sentimentality, the Muppets just doesn’t feel right to me anymore. I’m no Chicken Little — if things don’t change soon, the sky will indeed be falling.” [ The Awl ]
Despite the late addition of “Redemption” to the title of The Raid , there’s little to no atonement to be had in this stripped-down action movie. These characters are not here to have some kind of emotional journey, they’re here to kick ass. And so much ass is kicked over The Raid ‘s 100 minutes that viewers may feel a little bruised themselves upon exiting, for the most part in a good way — this is a film that serves as a remind of just how wonderfully cinematic violence can be. Written and directed by the Welsh Gareth Evans but set in and populated with actors from Indonesia, The Raid takes place, with the exception of an introductory sequence, entirely inside a decrepit 15-story apartment building in Jakarta. It’s owned by Tama (Ray Sahetapy), an underworld boss who’s set up the structure as a safe house for criminals and drug addicts who rent rooms there when they need to hide out — the cops won’t go near it. That suggests the mission on which our hero Rama (Iko Uwais) and the rest of his elite police force have been sent has more to it than just clean-up — though when the question is asked of why now, it’s quickly dismissed. Armed and under the command of the no-nonsense Jaka (Joe Taslim), the team methodically makes its way up from floor to floor, cuffing room occupants and securing each level, until they’re spotting by a kid who sounds the alarm, and all hell breaks loose. Tama, flanked by his two lieutenants Andi (Doni Alamsyah) and Mad Dog (Yayan Ruhian), gets on the intercom to tell his tenants they’ll have free rent for life if they take care of the invaders. Guys with guns spring out of the apartments lining each long hall, and the film becomes a maelstrom of automatic weapons, machetes and elbows to the face. Uwais, whom Evans discovered while shooting a documentary about the indigenous Indonesian martial art pencak silat , is handsome and stolid and unlikely to win any major acting awards in the near future. But he does have a certain screen charisma and, once he gets moving, he’s an impossible and impressive blur of motion. Many of the fight sequences showcase the brisk efficiency of Uwais’s deadliness, as he works his way along a whole hallway full of men trying to kill him, leaving them battered or lifeless with some well-placed blows to the kneecaps or head. After the initial culling of the cops via sniper rifles and machine guns, The Raid: Redemption sets aside firearms in favor of fists and blades and lets fight scenes play out rather than chopping them to bits in the annoying recent style of shooting action. It certainly doesn’t hurt that Evans has actual trained martial artists at his disposal and doesn’t have to cut around actors who are replaced at key moments by stunt doubles. And they’re not all of the same school — Taslim, for instance, is a Judo medalist. While Uwais, whose character is devout and incorruptible and has a pregnant wife at home and another family member in the wind, is unquestionably the star, Ruhian, as his most deadly antagonist, steals the show. His character’s introduced as a bloodthirsty enforcer, but is noticeably smaller than everyone else on screen. It’s not until he orders Jaka into a secluded room in order to kill him in hand-to-hand combat (he puts the gun away, saying “these take away the rush”) that we get to see him in action, and he doesn’t seem constrained by normal forces of gravity. The movie takes a discernible pleasure in his two big fight scenes, letting them play out at almost decadent but fully deserved lengths. There’s a sliver of a plot to The Raid , but it’s really not worth going over — when the characters pause to talk, which is rare, it does tend to kill the film’s momentum. That’s not to say it’s all hallway battles and fire fights; one of the cleverest bits has two characters hiding in a tight crawlspace while a baddie idly jabs his machete through the thin wall, and another involves the men breaking through the battered floor of an apartment to get away from gunmen at the door. Set to a score from Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda, The Raid ‘s wall-to-wall action eventually gets a little repetitive — watching guys get their heads slammed into walls does start to lose its impact, no pun intended — but the film’s use of its space is never dull. It gets an entertaining element out of the juxtaposition of shabby domesticity with outrageous action, with one escape depending on an explosive inside a refrigerator. Staircases, elevators, atriums — the film may be set in one location, but it appears to make use of every nook and cranny of that setting. And while there’s a video-game quality to the way it proceeds in stages, leveling up, retreating and acquiring new objectives, at its heart The Raid is strictly old school, a film that gets a lot of glee out of the physical capabilities of its cast and their capacity to wreak havoc. Follow Alison Willmore on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
With Lionsgate’s big screen adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ teen-centric sci-fi survival-adventure The Hunger Games hitting screens this week, it’s kind of impossible not to draw comparisons to that other YA juggernaut series, which concludes its billion-dollar run on pop culture this fall. So how does The Hunger Games measure up to Twilight ? Some spoilers follow. THE BOOKS Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight , first published in 2005, spawned a total of four books (and one spin-off novella) that were adapted into five movies ( Breaking Dawn Part 2 hits screens this November), with over 116 million copies in print. Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games , first published in 2008, spawned a total of three books set to be adapted into four movies, with over 26 million copies in print. Advantage: Twilight THE HEROINE Twilight : Bella Swan is a 17-year-old girl who moves to gloomy Forks, Washington and falls in love with a vampire. Unassuming and average, she finds her inner strength after four novels’ worth of being imperiled by embracing her destiny and starting a family. Hunger Games : Katniss Everdeen is a 16-year-old girl who lives in gloomy District 12 in the fascist future world of Panem and must fight for her life in a televised battle royale. A skilled huntress, she finds her inner heroine after three novels’ worth of being a pawn in the Capitol’s games by embracing her destiny and becoming a symbol of the resistance. Advantage: Hunger Games SUPER POWERS (AND SUPER WEAKNESSES) Twilight : Left at the mercies of other people’s protection, Bella’s the lame duck for most of the saga, until she discovers that her secret power is, literally, the ability to protect her loved ones. Seriously. Meanwhile, her love for Edward keeps threatening to ruin everything – prom, her sex life, the future of all vampirekind. Hunger Games : Empowered at an early age thanks to her father’s untimely death, Katniss is the provider in her family for most of her life, until she enters the Games and discovers that compassion for others, and the newfound ability to trust in Peeta, is the key to survival. Her only weakness, it could be said, is that her personal drive to survive is so strong she has trouble seeing the big picture, and her place in it. Advantage: Hunger Games THE LOVE TRIANGLE Twilight : Bella must choose between two suitors – Edward Cullen, the sparkly vampire, and Jacob Black, her werewolf BFF. Heated tent scenes, make-out sessions, and torrid glances ensue. Hunger Games : Katniss must choose between two suitors – Peeta, the golden baker’s son (and her fellow Tribute in the Hunger Games), and Gale, her earthy BFF. Play-acted cave scenes, tender kisses, and internal struggles ensue – that is, when Katniss isn’t busy, you know, fighting for her life. Advantage: Twilight THE THEMES Twilight : Love, lust, abstinence, teen pregnancy, motherhood, sexuality vs. sin. Hunger Games : Fighting injustice, taking a stand, trusting others, personal responsibility. Advantage: Hunger Games. THE ONSCREEN PG-13 ACTION Twilight : Speed-ramped vampire running, bad wirework, CG werewolf-vampire melees, non-gory limb-shattering/ripping/beheadings, and one vivid, suggestive C-section by vampire scene. Hunger Games : Training exercises, arrow-shooting, hand-to-hand combat, bladed weapons, Tracker Jacker (i.e. hallucination-inducing poison bee) attacks, and one vivid, suggestive shaky-cam Cornucopia melee. Advantage: Hunger Games FILM PEDIGREE Twilight : Installments directed by Catherine Hardwicke ( Twilight ), Chris Weitz ( New Moon ), David Slade ( Eclipse ), and Oscar-winner Bill Condon ( Breaking Dawn Parts 1 & 2 ). Top Rotten Tomatoes score: Eclipse , at 49%. Hunger Games : The Hunger Games directed by Oscar-nominee Gary Ross, who is set to direct the next sequel, Catching Fire . Current Rotten Tomatoes score: 100% (with 17 reviews in). Advantage: Hunger Games — Seems like The Hunger Games has the edge over Twilight by most of the above criteria, stemming from its more complex and stirring lead character, story, and themes. That said, Twilight fandom outpaces Hunger Games fandom by the millions, circulation-wise. Will solid critical reviews and stellar pre-release ticket sales help bump The Hunger Games to Twilight -level box office returns — and convince non-fans to give it a shot? Sound off below, Movieliners!
With Lionsgate’s big screen adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ teen-centric sci-fi survival-adventure The Hunger Games hitting screens this week, it’s kind of impossible not to draw comparisons to that other YA juggernaut series, which concludes its billion-dollar run on pop culture this fall. So how does The Hunger Games measure up to Twilight ? Some spoilers follow. THE BOOKS Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight , first published in 2005, spawned a total of four books (and one spin-off novella) that were adapted into five movies ( Breaking Dawn Part 2 hits screens this November), with over 116 million copies in print. Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games , first published in 2008, spawned a total of three books set to be adapted into four movies, with over 26 million copies in print. Advantage: Twilight THE HEROINE Twilight : Bella Swan is a 17-year-old girl who moves to gloomy Forks, Washington and falls in love with a vampire. Unassuming and average, she finds her inner strength after four novels’ worth of being imperiled by embracing her destiny and starting a family. Hunger Games : Katniss Everdeen is a 16-year-old girl who lives in gloomy District 12 in the fascist future world of Panem and must fight for her life in a televised battle royale. A skilled huntress, she finds her inner heroine after three novels’ worth of being a pawn in the Capitol’s games by embracing her destiny and becoming a symbol of the resistance. Advantage: Hunger Games SUPER POWERS (AND SUPER WEAKNESSES) Twilight : Left at the mercies of other people’s protection, Bella’s the lame duck for most of the saga, until she discovers that her secret power is, literally, the ability to protect her loved ones. Seriously. Meanwhile, her love for Edward keeps threatening to ruin everything – prom, her sex life, the future of all vampirekind. Hunger Games : Empowered at an early age thanks to her father’s untimely death, Katniss is the provider in her family for most of her life, until she enters the Games and discovers that compassion for others, and the newfound ability to trust in Peeta, is the key to survival. Her only weakness, it could be said, is that her personal drive to survive is so strong she has trouble seeing the big picture, and her place in it. Advantage: Hunger Games THE LOVE TRIANGLE Twilight : Bella must choose between two suitors – Edward Cullen, the sparkly vampire, and Jacob Black, her werewolf BFF. Heated tent scenes, make-out sessions, and torrid glances ensue. Hunger Games : Katniss must choose between two suitors – Peeta, the golden baker’s son (and her fellow Tribute in the Hunger Games), and Gale, her earthy BFF. Play-acted cave scenes, tender kisses, and internal struggles ensue – that is, when Katniss isn’t busy, you know, fighting for her life. Advantage: Twilight THE THEMES Twilight : Love, lust, abstinence, teen pregnancy, motherhood, sexuality vs. sin. Hunger Games : Fighting injustice, taking a stand, trusting others, personal responsibility. Advantage: Hunger Games. THE ONSCREEN PG-13 ACTION Twilight : Speed-ramped vampire running, bad wirework, CG werewolf-vampire melees, non-gory limb-shattering/ripping/beheadings, and one vivid, suggestive C-section by vampire scene. Hunger Games : Training exercises, arrow-shooting, hand-to-hand combat, bladed weapons, Tracker Jacker (i.e. hallucination-inducing poison bee) attacks, and one vivid, suggestive shaky-cam Cornucopia melee. Advantage: Hunger Games FILM PEDIGREE Twilight : Installments directed by Catherine Hardwicke ( Twilight ), Chris Weitz ( New Moon ), David Slade ( Eclipse ), and Oscar-winner Bill Condon ( Breaking Dawn Parts 1 & 2 ). Top Rotten Tomatoes score: Eclipse , at 49%. Hunger Games : The Hunger Games directed by Oscar-nominee Gary Ross, who is set to direct the next sequel, Catching Fire . Current Rotten Tomatoes score: 100% (with 17 reviews in). Advantage: Hunger Games — Seems like The Hunger Games has the edge over Twilight by most of the above criteria, stemming from its more complex and stirring lead character, story, and themes. That said, Twilight fandom outpaces Hunger Games fandom by the millions, circulation-wise. Will solid critical reviews and stellar pre-release ticket sales help bump The Hunger Games to Twilight -level box office returns — and convince non-fans to give it a shot? Sound off below, Movieliners!
Susan Sarandon is a woman at her wit’s end in Jay and Mark Duplass ’ comedy Jeff, Who Lives at Home ; stuck in mind-numbing office job and still dealing with the problems of her two grown but immature sons – Jeff ( Jason Segal ), an unemployed pothead, and Pat ( Ed Helms ), a douchey sales rep – her Sharon spends her days daydreaming about the life she once wanted for herself. As Sarandon confessed in a chat with Movieline, there was plenty in Jeff she related to as a single working mother in an often unforgiving industry – but, as she’s discovered, there’s always “a new dawn, a new day.” In the new Duplass brothers’ comedy, stoner-slacker Jeff receives what he believes to be a sign from the universe that sends him on a day-long odyssey for answers, sweeping his brother Pat along in the intrigue in the process. Meanwhile, their mother Sharon (Sarandon) is dealing with an office mystery of her own: Who is the secret admirer sending her messages, promising the kind of adventure she’s longed for her whole life? Movieline spoke with Sarandon about the film and how many of its themes hit close to home, including the universal desire to find happiness in life, the often counterintuitive realities of being a parent, even the earth-shattering revelation that our parents are just as fallible and human as we are. As the mother of three grown children and a successful industry veteran, Sarandon’s found her way to a philosophy on life that embraces change, making mistakes, and positive thinking she’s embraced so much she tattooed her motto on her wrist. If there’s wisdom to be found in the teachings of the stoner-slacker hero of Jeff, why not also take inspiration from a Hollywood actress like Sarandon? Jeff, Who Lives at Home is a quirky Duplass brothers movie about a stoner but it’s also quite moving, isn’t it? I was crying when I read the script! That’s one of the reasons, I have to be moved by something when I read it, and not necessarily my character but just the idea of the film. I was surprised, didn’t see certain things coming when I started reading it, and I think family is so important and so easy to be estranged from your siblings, from your parents. And it’s so easy as a parent to lose your kids because as they become people they’re not who you expected them to be, and they’re not who you wanted them to be in order to feel safe. You lose track of them, and I think kids really don’t think of their parents as people unless they’re forced to. Sometimes it is strange to think of your parents as having had the same kind of problems or struggles as you, especially as you become an adult. As sexual, for instance? That’s a horrifying idea! Or making mistakes. You think, ‘They’re my parents, they should know what’s going on and be able to do anything,’ and you forget that they’re messed up just like you are. Maybe their parents were terrible, or whatever the circumstance. I think it’s a very big turning point when you forgive your parents for their frailties and just kind of feel bad for them and don’t resent them. I always think when I hear somebody in their thirties going on about their parents, I think ‘Move on! Let go of it!’ I mean, seriously. You do the best you can, you love your kids, and you make so many mistakes. It’s just impossible not to make mistakes, even when you are doing the best you can. Sharon is a single woman whose sons are grown but immature; she’s still dealing with their problems, and it all stems from the void in their lives, the father and husband they lost. Why do you think this family has ended up this way? I related to her quandary: How could she get to the point where she doesn’t even like the people that her kids are anymore? Even though she loves them, she doesn’t like them. And I’m sure she’s been a drag, because being Wendy all the time when everyone else is Peter Pan is a drag. And it’s almost always the woman who says, ‘Seriously, stop playing – it’s time to come in. You’ve got school in the morning. Did you do your homework? You can’t play Nintendo until you finish with your homework.’ It’s not the father, who comes in late. He’s like the dessert, he’s hardly ever around. You really want the dad and you’re desperate for his time because the mom’s always there. So when the dad in this story is gone, that’s such a big deal, to lose a parent. Depending on when you lose your parent in your life, it’s really an important factor. Did you connect personally to Sharon’s story, then, when you read the script? I hope everybody can relate personally to some aspect of it. But you’re also a mother with three kids who are now getting old enough to be on their own… Almost – the 19-year-old is still in school. The 22-year-old has graduated and is trying to find a job, trying to figure out what he’s doing. I think that the idea of real life taking away your dreams, though, is applicable to so many people. Very few people are in jobs that they really love, and life is hard. The economic times are really difficult. Doing something that you really care about seems so frivolous, seems so hard to find a way to do that. I think now that so many people sacrificed the present thinking that they would retire well and got laid off right before, that must be the worst-ever feeling because you played it safe and it still didn’t work. I guess one of the thoughts in watching this film is that you will be successful if you find something you really love to do. It’s certainly easier if you don’t have children and if you can live at home, because financially unless you live with a bunch of people these days it’s so hard in an urban setting to find an apartment you can afford, if you’re starting out at anything. Even with one or two degrees, it’s hard. This is all true, and some of these kinds of concerns pop up in the film – and yet the film is also very optimistic. It is very optimistic, and I love that about it too. Because every day is a miracle, and when you wake up, that is a miracle. You have another shot – a new dawn, a new day. That’s what your tattoo says, right? [Pointing to her wrist] Yeah, that’s my tat. Figuring out a positive framing in life, not that bad things don’t happen and not that you can’t be upset, but finding a way to see every good and bad thing that happens as contributing to a possible new paradigm is really helpful. Hearing you speak over the years, you’ve always seemed very zen in your approach to life. Would you say that’s true? What’s your own perspective on parenting and making mistakes? I guess you could say that. And the universe has dealt me up some really amazing choices, and luckily I threw out the logical one and did follow a path sometimes that I didn’t know where it was going. That is a strength of mine. I encourage my kids to make mistakes – to feel that making mistakes is a really positive thing, because that’s where you figure out where you’re going. As a parent I’m more cautious with their future and I have to fight against that and just make it clear to them that I have faith in them, because again, you’re bringing your conditioning to their lives. And you know, times aren’t even the same as when I was their age. Things are different. And we’re different parents, and they’re up against a whole other set of prejudices that I wasn’t. Pressures of having famous parents, you know. So you can’t say, ‘When I was a child I did that, and that worked’ because it doesn’t necessarily. When a parent disapproves of somebody that their child falls in love with, or a choice that they make in terms of their job, or not to work and to be taking small jobs that don’t seem like they’re worthy of them – I think you have to let your kids know that you trust their judgment and that they’ll find their way, and then be there for them if it doesn’t work out. Say, okay – the next one will. I think a lot of times, for instances, parents of someone who comes out, it can even be parents who aren’t homophobic who think they’re not homophobic but they think suddenly, that lifestyle, oh my god – this is going to be harder. And will I have grandchildren? And will they be accepted? All those things. It’s not so much that in some instances the parents of gays are homophobic, but you just think. ‘Oh my god, you want to be an artist? That’s not going to pay.’ And yet, you turn around and try to be practical. Those people don’t have jobs, either! It’s ironic that I should end up earning a good living and I’ve just been flying by the seat of my pants the whole time. Every time I took off a year to have a kid I thought, I’ll never work again. And you just never know. But that was important to me and I did it and I thought, well, I’ll find some way. Did you think the industry wouldn’t welcome you back after having kids? Well, I had my first child at 39, and I had my third at 45, so I was already over the hill in terms of the industry. [Laughs] And then you just disappear for a year, plus when I started having kids it was still thought in a way that you couldn’t be desirable once you started having children. And that’s clearly not the case anymore. Well, and I think it’s really great because gals your age or my daughter’s just assume they can have a family life and a career, it’s not one or the other! I mean, it doesn’t even occur. She doesn’t even like the word “feminist,” it sounds so strident, and I totally understand that. You don’t need the word “feminist” anymore, and you don’t have to apologize if you do want a family and you don’t want to work outside the home. A lot has changed since 1970, when I did my first movie. It’s interesting to hear such universal parental stories from a “famous” parent like yourself. Well, I have cool very interesting kids, where I’m now in that phase of my life where they’re teaching me. They’re bringing me up to speed on everything – all the music, all the writing… Not to mention the fact that your dog is on Twitter , isn’t she? My dog’s Tweeting! [Laughs] But my son, who has switched to contemplative studies, has been handing me books that I wouldn’t have found, and we’re discussing things that are really interesting. They’ve punched some holes in my mind — and working on this film was kind of like that, too because it was a different way of working. Not that I’d never done improve before, but [the Duplass brothers’] attitude was very fresh and loving. I felt safe with them. Really interesting things happen when you’re put with a lively group of people in an atmosphere where you’re not afraid to make mistakes 100% and look like a fool. I read a quote somewhere that said, ‘Genius is the ability to stay in an uncomfortable situation the longest,’ and I think that’s true. Something happens and instead of observing it or dealing with it you either get angry or you split, but when you can stay in that situation is when something amazing happens. Jeff, Who Lives at Home opens today in limited release. Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
If only all ticket buyers were anthro majors, amirite? “If I were an anthropologist put on Barsoom, I’d try to integrate myself within the Tharks and learn more about their lifestyle. I’d definitely need to know about the current political climate first. That’s always a good idea when you’re thrust into an alien environment , here literally. Political unrest kept me out of Bolivia… On Barsoom, I’d be drawn to the civil war, but I wouldn’t want to become involved. As an anthropologist, we like to keep our heads down in these types of situations. I actually have a shirt from my old archeology club at Boston University that says, “Don’t shoot — I’m an archeologist!” in 13 different languages. Then again, Tharks don’t read.” [ Box Office Magazine ]
You have to admire the chutzpah, if not necessarily the filmmaking skills, of Jay and Mark Duplass, the duo behind the stay-at-home-son comedy-drama Jeff, Who Lives at Home . With their 2005 debut, The Puffy Chair , the Duplass brothers took an uninteresting story fleshed out with lackadaisical dialogue and, using barely rudimentary camera skills, fashioned a noodly tale about love, life and relationships. It’s easier, maybe, to admire the Duplasses’ boldness more than the actual product, but you have to say this much for them: They sure do keep moving. Jeff, Who Lives at Home is the duo’s fourth feature, and if their sense of craftsmanship hasn’t grown by leaps and bounds in the past seven years, it has surely improved. Which raises the question: At what point do we stop applauding the Duplass brothers for their gumption and stick-to-itiveness and admit that, maybe, their storytelling just isn’t so hot? Or that their characters sometimes seem more like groovy-cute constructs than believable people? For example, the protagonist of Jeff, Who Lives at Home , played by Jason Segal, believes that everything and everyone in the universe is interconnected. Why? Because he keeps watching M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs over and over again. In the movie’s prologue, we hear him in voiceover as he writes in his diary, “It keeps getting better every time I see it.” Even if the movie’s title didn’t give it all away, you could probably guess that’s a setup for a story about a schleppy 30-ish guy who still lives at home with his mother (in this case, Susan Sarandon) but who will somehow find his purpose in life – his own sense of interconnectedness – during the course of the movie. And you’d be right. The whole conceit feels a little too manicured, too neat, even though the filmmaking around it is still pretty Duplassy – in other words, its earmarks are lots of (somewhat) shaky handheld camera moves and a decidedly uncinematic sense of composition. But there is, at least, a story here, and Jeff, Who Lives at Home suggests that the Duplass brothers really do want their movies to be better and better. Like the duo’s last movie, the 2010 Cyrus , Jeff deals with an adult son who isn’t, for vague yet understandable reasons, quite equipped to live in the real world. Sarandon’s Sharon, hoping to give him at least some purpose in life, just wants him to help out a little around the house – she sends him on a mission to buy some wood glue to repair a cupboard door’s broken slat. Jeff heads out to the store via bus, gazing out the window in a state of semi-wonder as it makes its way past some of the nondescript gas stations and fast-food eateries of Baton Rouge. He never makes it to the store: A mishap surrounding his certainty that the name “Kevin” is somehow of cosmic significance leads him into contact with his estranged brother, Pat (Ed Helms), whose wife, Linda (Judy Greer), has just given him the gate for being a fiscally irresponsible loser. (She seems to be right.) Jeff and Pat forge a tentative reconnection, reminiscing about their dead father and gradually – perhaps too gradually – wending their way toward a climax that gives real meaning to their lives. There’s some genuine sweetness in this story: Jeff may be a clueless galoot who overthinks everything, but he’s really searching for something here, and as Segel plays him, he does have a degree of lumpy charm. But even though much of the dialogue in Jeff is improvised, there’s still something deeply calculated about the picture: It has the distinction of feeling unshaped and sloppy and at the same time meticulously planned out in terms of what it’s asking us to feel. The picture demands that we feel protective of Jeff, and so we do. But we’re also supposed to find it gratifying when Jeff learns that the signs he’s learned to read by watching Signs really are signs. How you feel about the ending of Jeff, Who Lives at Home will depend on your capacity for cosmic delight, but I will say that one man’s date with destiny is just another man’s handy plot device. still, there’s one area in which the Duplasses’ instincts serve them well: The movie features a subplot in which Sharon learns she has a secret admirer at work. She’s pleased and flattered, but she has no clue who it is, and she shares her flutter of confusion with her co-worker and friend, Carol (played, with marvelous suppleness and grace, by Rae Dawn Chong). Everything Sarandon does here feels believable and natural — that’s in addition to the fact that she looks lovely, like a woman who’s happy to be living in her own skin instead of trying to shape it into a mask. She’s the kind of actress who can do a lot with a little, and it’s a pleasure to watch the way small gradations of feeling play across her face like the shifting sunlight on a half-cloudy, half-bright day. Her scenes with Chong (whom the Duplass brothers, God love them, also cast in Cyrus ) are superb, and they suggest that the Duplasses’ improvisational MO can work beautifully with the right kind of actors. Like the Duplass brother’s other movies, Jeff, Who Lives at Home worships at the altar of the small moment, without recognizing that some moments are just, well, small. But occasionally, the Duplasses hold their cracked magnifying glass up to something very real. And oddly enough, it’s the crack that makes all the difference. Follow Stephanie Zacharek on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
” Russell Brand was NOT arrested for a misdemeanor yesterday … turns out it was a FELONY, and the late Steve Jobs may be to blame. We did some digging and just found out … in Louisiana property damage that exceeds $500 triggers a felony arrest. You’ll recall, Brand allegedly snatched a photog’s iPhone Monday night and hurled it through a plate glass window . The iPhone alone costs more than $500…Steve Jobs famously believed he could charge a lot for the iPhone — and did. And now Russell is paying dearly for it.” [ TMZ ]
