Sausage Party (2016)

Directed by Greg Tiernen and Conrad Vernon

Written by Kyle Hunter, Ariel Shaffir, Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill 

Starring Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill and Michael Cera

      When I think of how the story of this movie was created- I picture a group of men lead by Seth Rogen sitting in a room high as a kite, brainstorming movie ideas. In this case, I think that is exactly what happen- because only the minds of extremely high men could craft such a weird movie. I mean, its literally talking food. The weirdest part of this whole movie was that I actually kind of liked it. It wasn't horrible. It was fun to imagine that if food could talk, this is how they would act. The humor was often lost behind the vulgarity of the script- but overall it was a tastefully (no pun intended) funny movie. 

     Sausage Party begins with a grocery store full of hopeful food, singing about the "great beyond" and the excitement that lies behind those sliding doors. All the food wishes to get chosen, especially the hotdog, Frank (voiced by Seth Rogen) along with the other hot dogs in his package, Barry and Carl (Michael Cera and Jonah Hill). Frank strongly wishes to get picked off of his Fourth of July display so he can live out his life's destiny- insert himself into the beautiful hot dog bun, Brenda (Kristen Wiig). When they all finally get chosen, Frank and Brenda escape their packaging and fall out of the cart, losing their chance to venture outside to the great unknown. Following the wise influence of the spiritual fire water (voiced by Bill Hader), Frank and Brenda are off on a search to figure out what really goes on outside the grocery store- while also being hunted by the vengeful douche (Nick Kroll). They are joined on their journey by some pretty unforgettable characters like the sexy, Teresa Taco (Salma Hayek) and Sammy the bagel (Edward Norton).
     This animated film definitely had its moments. Seeing the horrific reactions of the food that ended up in some woman's kitchen, ready to be cooked- was pretty hilarious. This film tries to get most of its laughter from its excessive amount of sex jokes mixed with an over the top use of profanity. While these things sometimes gained a chuckle from me, they were mostly just too much. The end scene of the movie is where this movie gets it's R rating, for sure.
     Overall, this is a pretty stupid movie that is strangely funny simply because of the idea of our food having these inane beliefs of this great beyond. The actors that bring the voices to these characters contribute to the humor greatly. Bill Hader provides multiple voices in the film and is great per usual, Michael Cera voices a lovable deformed hot dog that you just wanna hug- and his quiet voice is perfect for this character. A well rounded funny cast to bring life and voices to our everyday food and supplies.

I give Sausage Party a...

5/10

Bridesmaids (2011)

Directed by Paul Feig 

Written by Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo

Starring Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne and Melissa McCarthy 

     Kristen Wiig wears two hats in this comedy masterpiece as main actress and writer- and does a brilliant job. Despite the negative reviews this film may have gotten, I always had high hopes for it considering how much I enjoyed the Wiig and Rudolph duo on the Saturday Night Live days. My expectations were more than exceeded. Bridesmaids is genuinely funny. 

     Annie (Kristen Wiig) is living the single life, in an apartment with two adult roommates, and working as a jewelry store clerk- after the closing of her bakery, Cake Baby. It's easy to say her life is pretty "blah" at this point. Annie then gets the news that her best friend from childhood, Lillian (Maya Rudolph) is getting married, and wishes for her to be the maid of honor. Annie agrees to take on the responsibility and thus ensues the normal pre-wedding events. We then meet the fellow bridesmaids; Lillian's cousin, Rita (Wendi McLendon-Covey), the innocent work friend, Becca (Ellie Kemper), the eccentric sister in-law, Megan (Melissa McCarthy) and finally comes the best friend stealer- the elegant and beautiful Helen (Rose Byrne). As the days until the wedding start to countdown, Helen steals Annie's thunder any chance she gets. Wether it be coming up with a better idea for the bachelorette party, having a better speech at the engagement party, or getting the ladies into a fancy wedding dress store. At this point all that it seems Annie is capable of is getting the women sick off Brazilian food- which leads to a disgusting yet the most hilarious scene of the movie. After Annie eventually cracks under pressure, we luckily see friendship prevail in the end. 

     Aside from the humor throughout the movie, Bridesmaids also has a great storyline, a budding romance between Annie and a cop who pulls her over (sounds cliche I know, but it is cute), and a very positive message about friendship. Annie goes though a lot in this movie and gets to a point where she feels she has nothing good in her life. She is reminded that is not true however, by a friend. 

     This movie serves as a sort of comedic coming out for Melissa McCarthy. Sure, she did have some smaller roles before this film, and began the TV show, Mike and Molly before this- but this film was a real catalyst for her career. She was comedy gold in this movie. Her character was so enjoyably weird and quirky and often had me laughing out loud. She even was nominated for an Oscar for her supporting role in the film! Kristen Wiig led this movie with a lot of great humor as well. Her and Rudolph has a lot of funny moments between them.  The supporting roles from the other women in the bridal party were sometimes comical, but this was Wiig and McCarthy's movie. 

      For Wiig's first time writing s screenplay, Bridesmaids was very impressive. It had a lot of fresh, real humor that i'm sure many people can relate to- especially if you're a woman going through the stress of planning a wedding. McCarthy will always be a comedy favorite of mine after this movie. A definite must see. 

I give Bridesmaids a... 

9/10

The Martian (2015)

Directed by Ridley Scott

Written by Drew Goddard (screenplay) and Andy Weir (novel)

Starring Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Kristen Wiig

      A gripping sci-fi story brought to the big screen by writer, Drew Goddard and adapted by novelist, Andy Weir, The Martian will leave you at the edge of your seat, mentally and audibly cheering at every small victory that gets astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) one step closer to getting home. Directed by the exquisitely aged mind that brought us other science fiction films such as Alien (1979), this film has a refreshing splash of comedy thrown throughout to leaven the sometimes confusing dialogue filled with lots of astro physics and chemistry. However this film did have me bragging to my friends after that I know how many Earth days equals a Mars sol. 

     Set in the near future, Mark Watney and his fellow Hermes crew members lead by Commander Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain), are on a routine walk when a storm strikes the dry planet and sends the crew in a frenzy as they hustle to get back to their ship. The impending situation leaves the crew with no other choice but to evacuate, but while doing so Watney is struck by flying debris and left stranded on Mars while the rest of the Hermes crew presumes him as dead. Talk about some bad luck. Mark wakes impaled by a metal rod and still on Mars. With enough food rations to last him about a month, and stuck in a small life habitat not meant to keep humans alive for very long, his death seems imminent. With the tireless efforts of NASA and Watney's own brilliance, he perseveres and we witness humanity unify as we "bring him home."

     Brilliantly casted, the real beauty behind The Martian lies behind the importance and fluidity that every cast member brings to this storyline. There is no evil NASA scientist secretly plotting against Wateny's heroic return to Earth. Everyone in this film comes together and is genuinely sincere over the efforts to send this astronaut home, and their acting performances show this. Damon's role scored him an Oscar nomination for best lead actor and won him a golden globe. Matt Damon brings a very personable character to the screen that we all cant help but relate to and root for. He doesn't have some sob story of his wife and kids that he needs to get back home to. He's just a man who was doing what he loves and suffered a terrible accident that no one could've predicted. He bring's a very astonishing level of intelligence matched with a dry sense of humor that makes this one of my favorite roles that Matt Damon has played. 

    Aside from Damon, this movie brings us a cluster of strong supporting cast members riddled with Oscar nominees and winners. Jessica Chastain has always and will always be one of my favorite actresses after her roles in The Help (2011) and Zero Dark Thirty (2012), so seeing her play this intellectual commander of the Hermes ship that had a manned mission on Mars was so different than her other roles but she did a stellar job. You can really feel guilt for leaving Mark behind but admire and believe her conviction in getting him back. The rest of the Hermes crew (Michael Pena, Sebastian Stan, Kate Mara, and Aksel Hennie) all contribute to the collective greatness of this film. The most prominent NASA crew member was Vincent Kapoor played by the growingly talented Chiwetel Ejiofor. Ejiofor's character, along with Kristen Wiig's character, give us faith that everyone on ground control is doing everything in their power to help Watney. Donald Glover plays astrophysicist Rich Purnell and brings some comical moments to the film. 

     Screenplay writer Drew Goddard beautifully made a film that could've been 142 minutes of confusing science diction and boring scenes that tend to drag on, into something that is brimming with humor and really appeals to a wide audience. I left the film shocked that over 2 hours had passed because every minute had me intrigued. I especially enjoyed the music in the film and found myself downloading lots of old songs that The Martian re-surfaced (Like David Bowie's "Starman"). With a cast that is out of this world (had to throw at least one space pun in there), tremendous visuals, and an unforgettable storyline, The Martian will undoubtedly be deemed a Science Fiction classic. 

I give The Martian an...

8/10