Currently browsing the "Lisa Kudrow" tag.

Review: Better NATE than Ever

The DUMBO in the room with Disney’s family-friendly musical dramedy Better NATE Than Ever is the irony of timing–as the film’s release just happens to coincide with the passage of Florida’s ridiculous ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill. Nate is a charming little message movie that draws from the likes of Billy Elliott, Adventures in Babysitting, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off— if Ferris were in middle school, and a musical theater geek struggling to find his place and his people. That place is Broadway baby!

Review: Booksmart

Ever dream of a high school do-over? Wonder what you might have done differently in those final years of anxious adolescence? Booksmart tackles the what-ifs in a smart and entertaining way as two best friends – both academic overachievers – suddenly realize they probably could have partied more and studied less, without jeopardizing their futures. Their epiphany comes on the eve of high school graduation, leaving the gal pals one last chance to experience all the fun and hijinx they’ve missed out on the past four years. This isn’t a stereotypical ‘teens transform from nerds into popular kids’ movie. Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) and Molly (Beanie Feldstein) are self-confident and comfortable in who they are and plan to be. They approach their night of fun with the same commitment they applied to their studies, only to learn that book-smarts don’t always translate into street-smarts.

Table 19

Table 19 is a so-so romantic comedy that practically screams CHICK FLICK from the get-go. We haven’t had one of those in a while, so for anyone craving the genre, it’s worth taking a seat at the Table. The film has some genuinely funny and poignant moments and is extremely relatable for anyone who’s ever been seated with a random group of strangers at a wedding reception. It’s a bit like The Breakfast Club – wedding edition. The plot centers around ex-Maid of Honor Eloise McGarry (Anna Kendrick, Pitch Perfect, Up In the Air) whose boyfriend, the bride’s brother, recently dumped her via text message. After a raging internal debate, Eloise decides to attend the wedding as originally planned and is exiled to Table 19, along with five other misfits who fall into the category of obligatory invitees who “should have known to just send regrets – but not before sending something nice off the registry.”