DCT Episode 37: Lovecraft Country (HBO), or This Would Probably Work If It Was Guillermo del Toro

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Da Couch Tomato Podcast, Episode 37, discussing the HBO series Lovecraft Country, the idea of musical anachronism, and how to effectively pull off genre mixing.

Sting Lacson's original rating: 7/10

    Jamie Chung: +0.05

    Jurnee Smollett: +0.05

Sting Lacson's final rating: 7.1/10

Rachel's rating: 7.1/10

Final rating: 7.1/10

The Hangover Part II

Basically, it's almost the same as The Hangover Part I. But instead of Vegas, it's in Bangkok.

Honestly, there weren't as many laugh-out-loud moments in here compared to the first one. This sequel in my opinion was kind of darker, more criminal, in a way. There were even Russian mobsters and a drug-dealing monkey. Also, a severed finger. Eeewww.

And I don't know when Alan (played by Zach Galifianakis) became such an asshole. I don't think he was that bad during the first film. Here, he's just a total douche. Funny, yes. But still a douche.

"Am I?"

Justin Bartha still doesn't get any action. Just like the first film. Though he's not the victim here. He's just a wuss. Or maybe because he's married. Which still makes him a wuss.

"You can tell I'm a wuss because my wife is taller than me."

Stu the dentist (played by Ed Helms) got his shining moments. He is, after all, the bridegroom. But at what expense? Putting the "cock" in Bangkok, that's what. It almost made me want to throw up.

Bradley Cooper=Man-crush. No words necessary.

Kaboom.

Jamie Chung didn't get that much screen time. Probably because she was the bride. And this is a guy flick. So don't expect any chicks in here.

Lovely.

Ken Jeong is back as Mr. Chow. Still as annoying as before. But he's still funny. That cameo from Iron Mike Tyson was entertaining, but at the same time, terrible. He already took singing lessons for his few minutes of screen time. But it was still pretty much off-key. No, not pretty much. Very off key. Paul Giamatti's cameo, on the other hand, was fantastic.

So this got me thinking: If they do The Hangover Part III, will it be Zach Galifianakis who gets married then? That would probably be a riot. And I hope they set it in Europe. Not in a city that reminds me so much of Manila.


The Hangover Part II. USA. 2011.


Rating: Six and a half out of ten.



*some info from IMDb
pics from YouTube, All Movie Photo, and I Heart Flicks



You may also want to check out the reviews of The Hangover from Sting Lacson and Cholo Mercado.

Sucker Punch Awards

This is another pseudo-review.

All those who didn't like Sucker Punch, please raise your hands. Okay, what were your problems with it? Too much eye candy? You could actually tell that from the poster, so it's your fault you chose to watch this over Justin Bieber's movie. What's that? Too much action? Again, you could've watched Justin Bieber. Come again? You didn't like the story? Let's clarify. Did you not like the story, or did you not get the story? Either way, Justin Bieber.

Anyway, let me just shut myself up and start with the review, where I shall be handing out awards like...

Best Action Sequence

Not pictured: Action.
Also not pictured: Germans.

The German trenches

I love World War II. Although technically, this takes place in a World War I trench, but, whatever, right? And I hate Germans, because of their racist, white supremacy bullcrap. I also hate zombies, because... they're zombies. So this sequence is perfect. It's like a Steampunk version of A Very Long Engagement.

Sucker Punch

There was a ridiculous amount of hype for Sucker Punch. It was inevitable, with such a gorgeous, scantily clad cast, and Zach Snyder at the helm.

Then the bad reviews started rolling in and with 80% of my Blondie costume done, you can't blame a gal for being a little anxious. But you know what? The critics can suck it. I enjoyed Sucker Punch.

Emily Browning's character, Babydoll, is institutionalized by her stepfather and is scheduled for a lobotomy in five days. She retreats into her mind and has these dream-within-a-dream fantasies about finding a way to escape with the help of four other inmates: Rocket (Jenna Malone), Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish), Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens) and Amber (Jamie Chung).

Yes, the film’s strongest point is that it’s just so visually stunning (And I’m not just talking about Abbie Cornish. Oh, Abbie. Make an honest woman out of me. ♥), but the core of it had potential. The plot and character development were a little lacking, but I think that was mostly due to the scenes they cut out to get the rating down from an R to a PG-13. I’m hoping they come out with a director’s cut because I’m insanely curious about that scene with Jon Hamm and the Burlesque stage numbers that they edited out.

The soundtrack is absolutely amazing. Emily Browning does a hauntingly beautiful cover of "Sweet Dreams" that you should watch out for, and the songs they used for the fight scenes just made everything so much more bad-ass.

Sucker Punch's biggest fault is that it was over-hyped. Forget the hype. It's a fun movie (up to the second half which I can't explain without spoiling) that's an odd-but-kinda-works combination of girl-power and a fanboy's wet dream.




You may also want to check out the other Sucker Punch reviews from Claire and Sting Lacson.