Category: Movie Reviews

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:48 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Elijah Wood
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Focus Features
Release Date: 2004
Kiddie Movie: A little too involved for them.
Date Movie: Sure, it’s romantic.
Gratuitous Sex: A little.
Gratuitous Violence: Not really.
Action: Not really.
Laughs: Quite a few, but not gutbusters.
Memorable Scene: Joel and Clementine trying to hide the memory of her somewhere else in Joel’s memories.
Memorable Quote: Nothing stood out.
Directed By: Michael Gondry

Part of me really appreciated the clever story and great acting in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” but as I was leaving most of me was saying “What the hell was that?” Let’s start with the story.

As the movie begins, we are introduced to Joel (Jim Carrey). He wakes up, finds his car is damaged, and begins his trek to work only to decide on a whim to go to Long Island. In a diner Joel sees Clementine (Kate Winslet), and makes the comment that he falls in love with any woman who will give him time of day. Low and behold, we see Clementine and Joel on the train back to the city where they hit it off. Then the opening credits roll, and we next find Joel, ready to give Clementine a Valentine’s Day/Make-up gift (they got in a big fight). At the bookstore Clementine doesn’t seem to know who Joel is, seems to already have a boyfriend, and Joel is really confused, until he finds out that Clementine had all memory of him erased. Not to be outdone, Joel decides to visit the same clinic and have Clementine erased from his memory as well. And then the fun begins.

So he meets Dr. Mierzwiak (Tom Wilkenson), his receptionist, Mary (Kirsten Dunst), and the Doc’s technicians, Stan (Mark Ruffalo) and Patrick (Elijah Wood). Joel gets set for the procedure by bringing every memento of him and Clementine, to trigger memory responses, which our good technicians will erase when Joel is drugged to sleep. So at first Joel is alright with these memories being erased, after all, they are the crappy memories at the end of the relationship. But slowly he gets to memories of Clementine when things are good and he no longer wants to forget her, but remember the good times. The problem is that Joel’s asleep, that and the fact that we’ve got two of the most unethical technicians and a stoned receptionist not paying attention to Joel’s fighting the procedure.

This is where the fun comes, with Joel and Clementine trying to find a place to hide Clementine’s memory in an old memory not scheduled to be erased. We get a trip to one of Joel’s most embarrassing moments (it’s pretty funny), Joel as a little kid in a giant kitchen, until eventually the Doc has to be called in to finally get rid of Clementine once and for all.

Alright, the story sounds a little complicated, and it is, but if you follow along, I think you’ll have fun with this movie. The only problem I had was that from the trailers, well, it really depicted this as more of a comedy than this movie is. It’s actually more of a romantic drama, with some comedic spots put in. Don’t think Jim Carrey as funny man, think of Jim Carrey as drama man, kinda more like he was in “The Truman Show” rather than “Bruce Almighty.” And he’s great at it, playing the loser-ish Joel, then the guy in a crappy relationship, then the guy in love, then the guy trying desperately not to lose the memory of the love of his life. Kate Winslet is great too. She plays Clementine with a whimsical look most of the time, until the end of their relationship when her talking too much is the problem, mostly because she’s not really asking how they can get their relationship back to its blissful period. You hate her, but then you really like her, and then everything comes together at the ending.

So, is the movie good? Well, I’m classifying “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” as an artsy romantic drama with some comedic elements to lighten the mood. Visually impressive with a creative story, Charlie Kaufman writes an entertaining look at if we really want bad memories erased. This is also the first movie that comes close to showing a person inside a dream, sometimes able to control the actions in the dream, then losing control, then controlling it again. It’s a weird experience when you’re dreaming, then realizing you’re in a dream and can control what’s going on (sometimes I’m able to do that), and the filmmakers have really brought this to light. And if they’re looking for any more wacky stories in a dream state, I can give them tons, like the butterman incident or the magic stones that turn into a staircase at the bowling alley. I’m sorry, I digress, back to the movie.

Anyway, if you like a more artsy movie, “Eternal Sunshine…” is as good as any. If you’re looking for an all-out comedy, keep looking and stay away. So I guess, in the end, even saying “What the hell was that?”, that I did like this movie. The acting was great, you get to see Kirsten Dunst in panties and an almost see-through top, and the story is kinda wacky. It’s just not the story I expected from the trailers. 4 stars out of 5 for this one, but remember, this isn’t an all-out laugh fest.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Entrapment

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:50 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Entrapment
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Sean Connery, Catherine Zeta-Jones
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: 1999
Kiddie Movie: Nothing really bad.
Date Movie: Sure.
Gratuitous Sex: No. Damn.
Gratuitous Violence: Nothing gratuitous.
Action: The scenes where they actually go to steal things are cool.
Laughs: Nothing really.
Memorable Scene: Zeta-Jones contorting around the laser beams.
Memorable Quote: None.
Directed By: Jon Amiel

If you’re a dude I have two words, or is it technically three words, as to why go see “Entrapment”: Catherine Zeta-Jones. “Hubbalabubbalaboomskee” I can still see her slithering her way while avoiding the laser beams. If you’re a dudette, well, Sean Connery is in it, but I make no judgment on him. But is the movie any good? Not great, but not bad either.

“Entrapment” deals with two thieves, Gin (Zeta-Jone) and Mac (Connery), both seemingly set on not so much the challenge anymore of stealing things, but more on the challenge of who holds the record for the biggest score. Gin has the plan – a bank transfer that puts most fears of the Y2K bug to reality, but she needs Mac’s help to pull it off, so in cahoots they go. Gin starts the movie by seemingly trying to set up Mac to get busted by stealing some Chinese mask, posing as an insurance investigator, but I’ll spoil a little of the movie by saying she has another agenda, and eventually Mac finds out that it’s an 8 billion dollar agenda. So, Mac’s in, but he has another agenda, too, the least of which is trying not to get in Gin’s pants (it’s bad for partners to get emotionally involved says Mac), and the movie goes on from there.

Storywise what else is there to tell? It is basically a movie about two, high-tech thieves set to pull off the biggest caper ever. We get to see some really cool ways to steal things, we get to see Zeta-Jones contort her body every which way, and they even throw in some twists and turns as to the real motive behind the actions of the major players in the movie. Other than that the movie didn’t do anything for me.

I’ll give “Entrapment” 2 ½ stars out of 5. It’s an okay movie to see, but nothing spectacular.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!!! L8R!!

Enemy of the State

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 2:07 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Enemy of the State
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Touchstone Pictures
Release Date: 1998
Kiddie Movie: Violence, things blowing up, slinky lingerie – leave them at home.
Date Movie: Sure.
Gratuitous Sex: A couple of scenes.
Gratuitous Violence: Yea, quite a bit, and a dude gets run over by a fire engine.
Action: Car chases, buildings blow up, and spy stuff.
Laughs: Some good one-liners.
Memorable Scene: The Asian lady in the hotel room, and a kick-ass gunfight between the mob and the NSA.
Memorable Quote: Dean throws his watch with a tracking device in it off the roof and the NSA dude says “Either he just committed suicide or has learned to fly.”
Directed By: Tony Scott

“Enemy of the State” is one of those movies that is cool to see as long as you don’t try to make sense out of it all. Enjoy the car chases, enjoy the gunfights, enjoy the technology gadgets, enjoy the ladies in the lingerie store, just don’t try to make sense of the actions of our stars.

The story kind of goes like this: Will Smith plays Robert Clayton Dean, a lawyer who generally deals with the unions and the mob. One day he finds himself in a lingerie store buying some slinky clothing for his wife. Earlier in the day there was a murder, caught on videotape by accident, by a guy that Dean knew from college. Well, the dude is being chased by the NSA folks trying to get the tape, somehow makes it out of his apartment, over the roof, through an alley, and into the same lingerie store. The dude is scared, puts the tape and little TV into one of Dean’s Christmas bag, runs out of the store, and gets run over by a fire engine. So, Dean has this tape that he didn’t know about, but the super-sneaky NSA guys think he knows about it, and proceed to ruin his life.

Now, through a series of strange twists and turns, Dean finds Brill (Gene Hackman), who used to work for the feds, but now is in hiding, but knows how to help Dean. We find that two can play at the surveillance game as Brill and Dean get sneaky with the NSA dudes. Intermingled we have the mob, a loving wife, some kids, and the underlying fear that the government is always spying on us.

I guess the story is a little more complicated than that, but like many action films, sometimes the only important thing about the plot is that it leads to cool gadgets, things blowing up, and some fun characters. “Enemy of the State” ends up having all of these, as long as you forget common sense. Dean does a good job at wondering how his life is getting so screwed up and finally putting together the pieces, Brill is good at the “knowing too much for his own good, suspicious of everyone, but trying to find a way to get back at those who screwed him” guy, and Reynolds (Jon Voight) plays a great, corrupt, sneaky politician type guy.

But, even with that, I still couldn’t get past the lack of common sense and that hurt the film for me. Among the many things that made no sense to me were things like: How the hell couldn’t the NSA guys catch the dude who had the tape in the first place? Why didn’t the NSA dudes just say something to Dean like “We’re from the NSA. Your friend in the lingerie shop stole some top-secret information and we think he may have passed it on to you. We need your help.” Then, when Dean realizes he has the tape, why doesn’t he just head to his local TV station and give it to them?

So, where am I going with this? Well, I’ll give “Enemy of the State” 3 stars out of 5. As an action film it was pretty good, the surveillance stuff was cool, and it had a kick-ass gunfight. But for some of the supposed brightest and sophisticated government and lawyer types, they were sure pretty stupid.

That’s it for this one, I’m The Dude on the Right! L8R!!

Enemy at the Gates

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 2:11 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Enemy at the Gates
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Jude Law, Ed Harris, Joseph Fiennes, Rachel Weisz
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Paramount Pictures
Release Date: 2001
Directed By: Jean-Jacques Annaud

My only hope is that this movie doesn’t try to get too artsy. The basics of the story is about two snipers, Jude Law and Ed Harris. One is confident the other is kinda scared. One is set on his job the other is falling in love. The trailers show a good drama, some lovey-dovey stuff, and some quality war stuff to there is a lot of potential, but, well, the movie is looking to cinematographic so I’ll probably go see it although still be a little hesitant.

That’s it for this preview! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Employee of the Month

MPAA Rated – PG-13
It’s 1:43 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Employee of the Month
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Dane Cook, Jessica Simpson, Dax Shepard, Andy Dick
MPAA Rated: PG-13
Released By: Lions Gate Films
Release Date: 2006
Kiddie Movie: Only if you want your son staring at Jessica’s boobs.
Date Movie: She’s got to be easily amused.
Gratuitous Sex: Low cut shirts and Vince being crude is about it.
Gratuitous Violence: Slaptstick.
Action: Nah.
Laughs: There’s a funny couple of lines.
Memorable Scene: Every scene being able to stare at Amy’s rack.
Memorable Quote: A great bit of advice before a date: “Don’t forget to wash your balls.”
Directed By: Greg Coolidge

Heading to my local gigaplex to catch a flick to review this weekend, I pretty much gave myself two choices, the Martin Scorcese epic “The Departed,” or the Greg Coolidge, umm, film, “Employee of the Month.” With it being a gorgeous day outside, I opted to save an hour stuck inside a movie theater and caught “Employee of the Month.” Maybe I should have just opted to save another extra hour and a half inside a movie theater.

Anyway, “Employee of the Month” gives us Dane Cook as Zack. He’s pretty much a slacker who lives with his Granny and works with group of slackers at the local bulk food mart, SuperClub, ala Costco. His nemesis is Vince (Dax Shepard), the head cashier and management suck-up who has been the employee of the month for the past 17 months. If he can be employee of the month for one more month, well, he wins a car and the love of the corporate boss.

Enter a new cashier, Amy (Jessica Simpson).

Amy transfers from another SuperClub, and Zack and her hit it off right from the start, mostly because they can finish each others sentences. Zack finds out from her employee file that at the previous store she seemed to have a thing for the employee of the month, and not wanting Vince to get the girl, Zack decides he will make a valiant attempt at employee of the month. And so the fight between Vince and Zack is on.

Yup, you can guess that Zack gets so wrapped up in beating Vince and becoming the model employee that he deserts his friends, eventually Amy will find out that at the start Zack just wanted to be the great employee to get in her pants, and in the end, Zack will learn his lesson and get the girl.

It’s a simple story, and the jokes are pretty much what you would expect, and no one here will be getting any accolades for their acting. Jessica Simpson looks like she got the role because all she has to do is smile and wear low-cut shirts (I’m guessing that her Dad, one of the Producers on the film, has no problem with that because we know how he admires her boobs), and Dane Cook didn’t seem to add to his comedic actor resume for this flick. I will say, though, that Dax Shepard does a great job as the smarmy Vince, which really helped redeem this film.

In the end I did laugh a couple of times during the film, so it wasn’t horrible, but really I would have to say this is a definite “wait for the rental” or “wait for cable” type of movie. It’s 2 stars out of 5 for “Employee of the Month.”

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Eight Below

MPAA Rated – PG
It’s 2:00 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Eight Below
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Paul Walker, Bruce Greenwood, and the pie…, I mean, Jason Biggs
MPAA Rated: PG
Released By: Disney Pictures
Release Date: 2006

Here’s a feel good movie for everyone, probably, especially, dog lovers. You get some scientist dudes hanging out in Antarctica, doing their scientist things, when the best way to get somewhere is by sled dogs. They get there, do there exploring, but than an accident happens and people are hurt. The rescue teams come, but there isn’t any room for the dogs, so, yea, the dogs are left to fend for themselves. Then the bad weather comes, and the dogs are really stranded. The movie tells the story of the dog’s survival and those that love them trying to get back to the Antarctic to save them.

It’s a feel good story, really can’t go wrong to make things feel good, but sometimes, that’s all that you want, although I’ve got to guess there will be a tear jerk here and there.

That’s it for this preview! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

ExistenZ

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:37 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

ExistenZ
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jude Law
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Dimension Home Video
Release Date: 1999
Kiddie Movie: Oh no, I don’t think so.
Date Movie: She might get scared and snuggle a little closer, or she might just go “Huh? This movie sucks.”
Gratuitous Sex: Almost, but not quite.
Gratuitous Violence: Yea, some pretty good violence, especially with the organic gun.
Action: Some.
Laughs: Not really.
Memorable Scene: Most of the movie had me thinkin’.
Memorable Quote: None that stand out.
Directed By: David Cronenberg

“eXistenZ” is one of those movies that you probably didn’t see in the theater and might pass up on the video shelf saying “I haven’t heard of that one. Let’s find “The Matrix.” It didn’t have the hype and is not the high-packed, action-filled, blast your senses movie like “The Matrix,” but if you like the psychological twistedness of “The Matrix” I urge you to rent “eXistenZ.” It’s kinda like “The Matrix” without all of the gunfire.

“eXistenZ” is a virtual reality game, but taking it to the next level. In this world, or one of the worlds, you plug this living game pod into a computer-like port in your spine. This puts you in a sort of trance in which you, in conjunction with the other players who are hooked up to the pod, become an actual part of the game, almost like a dream with multiple players controlling the outcome. We are introduced to the game designer, or is she(?), Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh), who is on the run from game manufacturers set on seeing that eXistenZ doesn’t make it to market. Her protection is supplied by Ted Pikul (Jude Law), about the only dude on the planet who doesn’t have a game port and who really isn’t a security guard. But, Allegra needs to see if her game is damaged so she plugs up Ted and they enter the game, where reality and imagination meld into one, and get lost in it.

This movie is so multi-layered that going into it more might just ruin it more for you, but I’ll just say that it’s got gross-you-out scenes, it’s got some quality violence, it’s got some steamy moments, and you’ll wonder throughout the movie just what scene is reality and what is part of the game.

Like “The Matrix,” I came to the end of “eXistenZ” saying something like “Whoa, that was fucked up,” and I was pleased. But if or when the future of computer games comes to the point of something like eXistenZ I’m scared. It’s just too fucked up.

4 ½ stars out of 5. This movie was most excellent. Rent it.

That’s it for this one, I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!

Evan Almighty

MPAA Rated – PG
It’s 1:36 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Evan Almighty
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Steve Carell, Lauren Graham, Morgan Freeman, Wanda Sykes, John Goodman
MPAA Rated: PG
Released By: Universal Studios
Release Date: 2007
Kiddie Movie: It’s better for them.
Date Movie: Only if she’s sort of religious.
Gratuitous Sex: Nope.
Gratuitous Violence: Nope.
Action: The flood I guess.
Laughs: Not really.
Memorable Scene: Nothings stands out.
Memorable Quote: Something like: “I feel like that Indian in front of the garbage.”
Directed By: Tom Shadyac

I know there will be people who will like “Evan Almighty.” It has a nice story, like “Bruce Almighty” it does some preaching about believing in God’s plan for us all, and the movie folks made it PG instead of PG-13, which for me, sadly, means no jokes about growing boobs or sex, but for you, well, you can safely bring your kids. The problem I really had with the movie, though, is along with no boob or sex jokes, well, there really weren’t many jokes at all.

Let’s get to the story…

Evan Baxter (Steve Carrell), the same anchorman dude from “Bruce Almighty,” has decided to further his career by running for political office, and winning, on the platform of changing the world. He packs up his wife and kids and move to a new housing development in Washington D.C., and even though he says he will spend more time with the family, we all know that won’t be the case. He quickly is being bamboozled by Congressman Long (John Goodman) to support a controversial environmental destruction bill, mostly because Evan is still just enamored with actually being a Congressman.

Enter God.

Yup, Morgan Freeman is back in his role as God, and his plan this time isn’t to give Evan his powers, nope, God wants Evan to build an ark, just like Noah in the bible. Suddenly animals are following him, his hair is growing long, and he can’t wear normal clothes anymore, just a robe. With the help of a building an ark for dummies book, Evan, with only tools that might have been around during biblical times, embarks on his ark building. The kids are enjoying time with dad, Congressman Long has him booted from Congress, and mom, Joan (Lauren Graham), is freaked by Evan’s new passion, hair, and clothing.

But God, of course, has a reason for Evan to build this ark, and the family becomes closer than ever, thanks to God who ends up having to explain to Joan why she should stand by her man.

On paper “Evan Almighty” probably looked to have promise, but for me, on the screen, there just wasn’t much there. Now I’m usually able to suspend reality for a while during a movie, but there were too many times when I really wanted to screen talk, or rather screen yell, like when Joan was questioning Evan about his beard, with Evan telling her when he shaves it just grows right back, and of course she doesn’t believe him – I so much wanted to stand up and yell “Just take her to the bathroom and shave your beard you idiot!!!” Then there was the obvious reason why God had Evan build the ark in the first place, given away subtly at the beginning of the movie, and then not so subtly on the big day. I also thought it would have been funnier if God didn’t transform Evan into a Noah look-a-like, but rather had Steve Carell building an ark.

I laughed once, right at the beginning of the film, when Evan, at the TV news station on his last day, turns to the camera and says something like “I feel like that Indian in front of the garbage” (a joke no one else seemed to get in the theater), but most of the time I just groaned in my seat with scenes like a stray dog taking a dump in Evan’s new yard, the overuse of bird pooping on Congressman Long, the movie marquise of “The 40 Year Old Virgin Mary,” and the “Spider-Man” quote of “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Look, the movie isn’t horrible, and like I said some of you will probably like it, especially if you are looking for something with a nice, swell, religious overtone to it, and is also safe enough so you can take your kids to it and tell them “See, God always has a plan for us.” For me, though, the premise of getting God’s powers and learning from it (“Bruce Almighty”) had lots of potential and worked on the funny scale; the premise of building an ark and turning into Noah, not so much. It’s 1 star out of 5 from me for “Evan Almighty,” although for some of you it is probably a 4 star film.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Eurotrip

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 1:33 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Eurotrip
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Scott Mechlowicz, Michelle Trachtenberg, Travis Wester, Jacob Pitts, Matt Damon, Kristin Kreuk
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Dreamworks SKG
Release Date: 2004
Kiddie Movie: Don’t even think about bringing them to this one.
Date Movie: Enough nudity for dudes and dudettes.
Gratuitous Sex: Yup.
Gratuitous Violence: Yes, but it’s in slow-motion, robotic style. And funny as hell.
Action: Not really.
Laughs: I laughed my ass off!
Memorable Scene: The fight with the robotic street performer and the little kid prancing around the living room like Hitler had me busting a gut.
Memorable Quote: Too many to quote.
Directed By: Jeff Schaffer

I guess I’m a sad young lad in a state of mid-pubescent anxiety. At least that’s according to another reviewer who said “Eurotrip” will appeal to that kind of audience. Me, I thought I was just easily amused, but in any case, “Eurotrip” has quickly landed in my all-time comedy list. Here we go…

“Eurotrip” gives us a relatively unknown cast of characters making their way through Europe trying to find Mieke (Jessica Boers), the computer pen-pal of Scott (Scott Mechlowicz). I suppose I should set this up a little better. It’s graduation day and Scott gets dumped by his girlfriend, Fiona (Kristin Kreuk). That’s not bad enough, now they’re at the proverbial drunken high school graduation party and Donny (Matt Damon, yes, that’s Matt Damon), the lead singer of the punk band, lets everyone know that Scott doesn’t know about his boffing Fiona via the new hit song “Scotty Doesn’t Know.” And that’s still not bad enough. With a nice hangover, Scott’s little brother is going through Scott’s e-mail and nicely informs him that his pen-pal isn’t Mike, as Scott thought, but Mieke, the hot dudette in the picture Scott has from her. The problem is that while Scott was thinking Mike was a dude, he got an e-mail from her saying they should hook up, that she would even come to America to do so. Freaked out, Scott rifled back an e-mail saying he didn’t want to talk to him ever again. So Mieke, freaking out, blocks Scott’s e-mail address, and now that Scott knows Mike is really a hot chick, well, he can’t get a hold of her to apologize. What is a crazed teenager, thinking Mieke might be the girl for him, to do? Well, he sets off with his buddy Cooper (Jacob Pitts) to find Mieke in Berlin, starting in London (it was a cheap flight) only to get sidetracked by a bunch of soccer hooligans.

As our heroes find themselves now in Paris, they hook up with their brother and sister friends, Jamie and Jenny (Travis Wester and Michelle Trachtenbert respectively), and now the four of them begin there hilarious trip through Europe on their way to Berlin, finally ending up in Rome where the Pope is a bit surprised to find that he is dead. Trust me; you’ll understand that last statement when you see the film.

Anyway, that’s really about all you need to know about the plot. This movie is about sometimes crude, sometimes politically incorrect, and pretty much non-stop humor, maybe more for the dudes, but there’s also things in this one for the dudettes as well. The thing is, you’ve got to be one of those types that likes this type of comedy, you know, where you can find the humor in a youngster giving himself a Hitler mustache and high-kicking around the living room, or be able to laugh at people having sex in a church confessional. If you are one of those easily offended type, stay away, but for the rest of you who appreciated a movie like “Old School,” I urge you to find “Eurotrip” on your next movie excursion.

For me “Eurotrip” was a 5 star comedy out of 5, but those of you who regularly read my reviews know that I am easily amused. I can take a comedy like “Eurotrip” for what it is, not a masterpiece, but a bunch of fun. If you’re like that, you’ll probably like the movie, but if not, you’ll think it’s a total piece of garbage. You know who you are, make the decision to see it on your own.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Erin Brockovich

MPAA Rated – R
It’s 2:11 Long
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Erin Brockovich
Movie Stats & Links
Starring: Julia Roberts, Albert Finney
MPAA Rated: R
Released By: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 2000
Kiddie Movie: Lots of swearing and an way adult story.
Date Movie: She’ll make you take her and you’ll like reluctantly go on the outside but be excited to see Julia Roberts in skimpy clothes on the inside.
Gratuitous Sex: Julia keeps the clothes on.
Gratuitous Violence: Erin’s car getting broadsided.
Action: Nothing action.
Laughs: Lots of them – Julia is very sassy!
Memorable Scene: See “Violence.”
Memorable Quote: Too many to write.
Directed By: Steven Soderbergh

Well, I’m back in love with Julia Roberts. Not that I was ever really out of love with her, but after seeing “Erin Brockovich” I remember what I really liked about Julia Roberts – her smile. Alright, there are many other things about her that aren’t bad, but for me, she just has a killer smile.

Alright, enough about my infatuation with Julia Roberts, what about the movie. “Erin Brockovich” was great. I could be really lazy and just end the review there, but I guess I’ll explain some more.

Julia Roberts plays Erin. She’s a single mother, struggling to make ends meet, when she gets in a car accident. She hooks up with Ed (Albert Finney), the head of a small law firm, who takes her accident case, but Erin’s mouth kind of messes up the case. So, Erin’s still out of work, and decides that since Ed’s law firm couldn’t get her a settlement, she would just start working there, and she does. Dressed in short skirts and low tops, most of her co-workers don’t like her (I failed to see the problem), and she stumbles upon some realty files that contain health information and she puts the connection together – the man is screwing over the little people and the little people are dying. But Erin isn’t a lawyer, she’s a mom, and her drive for justice isn’t based on money but by seeing the big, bad company disgraced by the actions they pulled on the local town folk. So, she convinces Ed to take the cases, and she slowly shows him that it isn’t always the money that is important.

Now, kind of like “A Civil Action,” “Erin Brockovich” shows some of the problems that arise when a small firm tackles on a corporation and their team of lawyers, but unlike “A Civil Action,” this story proved just a little more sad and had a little bit of humor thrown in. Why? Because Erin was a sassy, loving, caring, tell it off the cuff, sexy, stepped on, and just lovable person. You feel bad when she gets screwed over, you feel vindicated when she wins, and you can’t help but like her. It was the perfect role for Julia Roberts and Julia Roberts played it perfectly.

The story is serious, Erin is just fun to watch, and up until the end you sometimes loath the lawyer Ed but realize he is just a lovable, big lug. “Erin Brockovich” proved entertaining, combining a touching story about big business trying to screw over the little people, and also showing that just being a nice person can get people to trust you. I liked the movie, think it is one of Julia Roberts’ best performances, and give “Erin Brockovich” 4 ½ stars out of 5.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!