Movie Roundup - Memorial Day 2010

I had a chance to watch three movies during the recent Memorial Day break. As it turned out, it was a case of really good, decent, and just so-so.

Whip It!
Whip It! was a lot of fun, with a quirky, indie feel and great performances. The movie follows Bliss (Ellen Page), a small town teen who joins a women's roller derby team in Austin, Texas. Drew Barrymore really impresses in her directorial debut -- the film has a lot of energy, the characters are believable, and the film avoids the girlsploitation trappings that might have been tempting or hard to avoid in a story about a provacative women's sport.

Bottom Line: Definitely recommended.

Date Night
Date Night was pure comfort food. Steve Carrell and Tina Fey are two of the funniest people on the planet, and you generally are guaranteed to be entertained when you watch one of their movies. They don't disappoint in Date Night, and even though the script isn't great, they wring as many laughs and funny moments as they can from the material.

Bottom Line: Worth seeing if you like Steve Carrell and Tina Fey but lower your expectations.

Couples Retreat
That Couples Retreat had some funny parts is the most I can say about it. I'm probably being generous, too, because I still revere Swingers and always give Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughan the benefit of the doubt. But this was just okay, and maybe not even that good.

Bottom Line: Steer clear unless you have to see everything starring Favreau and Vaughan.

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