"Dude, Where's My Car?" Makes Dumb Funnier Than it Should Be

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 66 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux


Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000)
Running time: 83 minutes (1 hour, 23 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for language and some sex and drug-related humor
DIRECTOR: Danny Leiner
WRITER: Philip Stark
PRODUCERS: Broderick Johnson, Andrew Kosove, Gil Netter, and Wayne Rice
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Robert Stevens (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Kimberly Ray

COMEDY/SCI-FI/FANTASY

Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Seann William Scott, Jennifer Garner, Marla Sokoloff, Kristy Swanson, David Herman, John Toles-Bey, and Hal Sparks

I planned never to see Dude, Where’s My Car?, figuring my initial curiosity to be a sign of intellectual weakness. After seeing Seann William Scott in Bulletproof Monk and really digging his performance, my intellect further weakened, I decided to seek out some of his other films and came across Dude, Where's My Car? again. Scott co-stars in this outlandish comedy with Ashton Kutcher, who came to prominence in the television series “That 70’s Show.” Whatta you know: this turned out to be one of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen.

Jessie Richmond (Kutcher) and Chester Greenburg (Scott) wake up one morning to find Jessie’s car missing, and they have no memory of what happened the night before except for the wild and crazy things people tell them that they did. At first, Jessie and Chester are excited and proud of the calamity and craziness they allegedly committed, but in time they come to be frustrated that they got so wasted that they can’t remember anything. And they need their memory to find the car, which is the key to a lot of weird trouble for them. They owe a transvestite strip dancer a suitcase full of cash, and people claiming to be aliens are looking for an important, universe-endangering object. Losing the car was just the beginning; you have to see the film to believe how hilarious the adventure to find the car gets.

I’m sure this film was cynically conceived and produced to cash in on the youth movie craze. Film studios figure that if they make movies starring familiar young faces from TV and pad the story with jokes about sex, bodily fluids and functions, teenage jargon, twentysomething slang, and general crassness, they’re bound to make a mint, if not in theatres then in home video and television. It’s a can’t-lose option: marrying the lowbrow, the dumb, the rude, and a bit of cultural decay.

This time the studio got lucky and the movie turned out way funny. I’d rather believe that this was a happy accident, but regardless this is funny, in the vein of Dumb and Dumber, accept that Jessie and Chester, for all their dimwittedness, tend to be a little smarter than their adversaries. You can root for these guys, by awed by their occasional show of smarts, laugh at them, and with them. Dude, Where’s My Car? comes close to being the perfect dumb-but-funny movie. Don’t take it seriously, and you’ll laugh your proverbial ass off. Don’t be stuck in the mud; see it and laugh like a madman.

7 of 10
B+

2011 Primetime Emmy Awards Winners Complete List

The Emmy Award is a television production award that is considered the television equivalent of the Academy Awards in film and the Grammy Awards in music. Winners for the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards were revealed during the Sunday, Sept. 18 ceremony hosted by actress Jane Lynch (“Glee”) and broadcast live on Fox.

The full list of winners in all categories:

DRAMA

BEST DRAMA SERIES
"Mad Men"

BEST DRAMA ACTOR
Kyle Chandler, "Friday Night Lights"

BEST DRAMA ACTRESS
Julianna Margulies, "The Good Wife"

BEST DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTOR
Peter Dinklage, "Game of Thrones"

BEST DRAMA SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Margo Martindale, "Justified"

BEST DRAMA SERIES DIRECTING
Martin Scorsese, "Boardwalk Empire" - "Pilot"

BEST DRAMA SERIES WRITING
Jason Katims, "Friday Night Lights" - "Always"

COMEDY

BEST COMEDY SERIES
"Modern Family"

BEST COMEDY ACTOR
Jim Parsons, "The Big Bang Theory"

BEST COMEDY ACTRESS
Melissa McCarthy, "Mike & Molly"

BEST COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTOR
Ty Burrell, "Modern Family"

BEST COMEDY SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Julie Bowen, "Modern Family"

BEST COMEDY SERIES DIRECTING
Michael Alan Spiller, "Modern Family" - "Halloween"

BEST COMEDY SERIES WRITING
Steve Levitan and Jeffrey Richman, "Modern Family" - "Caught in the Act"

TV MOVIE/MINISERIES

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES
"Downton Abbey"

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES ACTOR
Barry Pepper, "The Kennedys"

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES ACTRESS
Kate Winslet, "Mildred Pierce"

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES SUPPORTING ACTOR
Guy Pearce, "Mildred Pierce"

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Maggie Smith, "Downton Abbey"

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES DIRECTING
Brian Percival, "Downton Abbey"

BEST TV MOVIE/MINISERIES WRITING
Julian Fellowes, "Downton Abbey"

REALITY

BEST REALITY-COMPETITION PROGRAM
"The Amazing Race"

VARIETY

BEST VARIETY SERIES
"The Daily Show"

BEST VARIETY SERIES DIRECTING
Don Roy King, "Saturday Night Live" - "Host: Justin Timberlake"

BEST VARIETY SERIES WRITING
"The Daily Show With Jon Stewart"

50 Cent Film, "All Things Fall Apart" Due Early 2012

Image Entertainment Acquires All Things Fall Apart Starring Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Ray Liotta from Hannibal Pictures

Mario Van Peebles Directs and Co-Stars!

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Image Entertainment, Inc. (OTCQB:DISK) has acquired all U.S. rights to the heart-wrenching, yet truly inspirational film, All Things Fall Apart, starring Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Ray Liotta, Mario Van Peebles and Lynn Whitfield, with Van Peebles directing. The deal was finalized shortly before the beginning of the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival and announced by Image Entertainment’s Chief Acquisitions Officer, Bill Bromiley. All Things Fall Apart is slated for an early 2012 theatrical release with home entertainment, VOD, digital and broadcast to follow under the company’s One Village label.

“We are thrilled to be working with Hannibal Pictures again on such a wonderful film, directed by the talented Mario Van Peebles,” commented Bromiley. “Audiences are going to be quite surprised with 50 Cent’s performance.”

Added Rionda Del Castro, “All Things Fall Apart is a strong emotional film, a labor of love for all involved. Given our superb relationship with Image Entertainment, we know they will nurture the film and help it find the audience it deserves.”

“50 lost so much weight I started calling him 25 Cent,” jokes Van Peebles. “But what impressed me was his willingness to evolve past his rap persona and totally commit to his first dramatic lead without relying on guns. No backup, this is 50 like you have never seen him.”

All Things Fall Apart tells the story of a Heisman-bound college football star whose career hits a wall when he is diagnosed with a tumor only inches from his heart. Says Rionda Del Castro, “I found the script compelling and heartfelt, and have always admired Mario Van Peebles as a director. What finally sold me was a meeting with ‘50’ during pre-production.” Rionda Del Castro arrived for the meeting and did not recognize Jackson, who had shed a reported 80 pounds in preparation for the role. “I was stunned by his dedication to the movie. At that moment, before a frame of film had been shot, I knew we had something special.”

All Things Fall Apart is produced by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Randall Emmett of Cheetah Vision Films. Patricia Eberle, Rionda Del Castro, Anthony Gudas, and Michael Corso are the executive producers. All Things Fall Apart marks Hannibal Pictures’ third collaboration with Cheetah Vision Films. Their previous film together, the action-packed Gun co-starring Val Kilmer, was released on DVD in early 2011 by Image Entertainment, and their next film Setup, co-starring Bruce Willis and Ryan Phillippe, will be released later this month.

All Things Fall Apart has played to packed theaters at several film festivals, including the Miami International Film Festival, the Atlanta Film Festival, the Aruba International Film Festival and the Peachtree Village International Film Festival in Atlanta, with more than 20 foreign territories sold to-date.

Image Entertainment’s Bill Bromiley and Brett Dismuke, along with Hannibal Pictures’ Richard Rionda Del Castro, were central in finalizing the domestic deal. Martin J. Barab of Hamrick & Evans, LLP acted as legal counsel in the deal for Hannibal Pictures, the film’s worldwide sales agent.


ABOUT HANNIBAL PICTURES
Founded in 1999 by Richard Rionda Del Castro, Chairman and CEO, Hannibal Pictures finances, produces and distributes three to six motion pictures per year with budgets between $3 and $15 million. For more information about Hannibal Pictures, please go to http://www.hannibalpictures.com/.

ABOUT ONE VILLAGE ENTERTAINMENT
Launched in 2007, One Village Entertainment, a division of Image Entertainment, is devoted to the development, production and acquisition of feature films, comedy specials, stage plays, documentaries and music content targeting the African-American consumer and urban market. The programming is distributed across multiple platforms including theatrical, broadcast, Blu-ray™/DVD and digital streaming and downloading. Among the more than 50 titles that carry the One Village imprimatur are live stand-up performances featuring Kevin Hart and Charlie Murphy, documentaries 2 Turntables and a Microphone: The Life and Death of Jam Master Jay and Soulmate, and the feature films American Violet starring Oscar-nominee Alfre Woodard and the acclaimed theatrical romantic comedy Russ Parr’s 35 & Ticking. Bestsellers in the One Village line also include the stage play productions What My Husband Doesn’t Know and Love in the Nick of Tyme by David E. Talbert, who is described by Variety as "the acknowledged kingpin of urban musicals."

ABOUT IMAGE ENTERTAINMENT
Image Entertainment, Inc. is a leading independent licensee and distributor of entertainment programming in North America, with approximately 3,200 exclusive DVD titles and approximately 340 exclusive CD titles in domestic release and more than 450 programs internationally via sublicense agreements. For many of its titles, the Company has exclusive audio and broadcast rights, as well as digital download rights to over 2,100 video programs and approximately 400 audio titles containing more than 6,000 individual tracks. The Company is headquartered in Chatsworth, California. For more information about Image Entertainment, Inc., please go to http://www.image-entertainment.com/.

Happy Birthday, Cale

You're 19!  Seems like just yesterday...

Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin in Next Jason Reitman Film

PARAMOUNT AND INDIAN PAINTBRUSH TEAM WITH REITMAN, WINSLET, AND BROLIN FOR “LABOR DAY”

Paramount Pictures and Indian Paintbrush jointly announced today they will co-produce, and Paramount will distribute, Academy Award®-nominated writer / director Jason Reitman’s Labor Day starring Academy Award®-winner Kate Winslet and Academy Award® nominee Josh Brolin. Indian Paintbrush will co-finance the project, with the company’s Steven Rales and Mark Roybal executive producing.

The movie will be produced by Academy Award®-nominated producers Lianne Halfon and Russell Smith of Mr. Mudd Productions, along with Reitman and Helen Estabrook of Right of Way Films.

Adapted by Reitman and based on the novel by Joyce Maynard, LABOR DAY tells the story of an escaped convict (Brolin) who seeks shelter with a single mom (Winslet) and her young son over a long Labor Day weekend.

The film marks the fourth collaboration for Jason Reitman and Paramount. His latest film “Young Adult,” starring Charlize Theron, will hit theaters on December 9, 2011. The studio previously released his Academy-Award® nominated “Up in the Air” in 2010. Earning over $160 million world-wide, the movie earned six Academy-Award® nominations, and five Golden Globe nominations, with Reitman taking home the Golden Globe for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Indian Paintbrush, Mr. Mudd and Right of Way Films also produced the upcoming Paramount Vantage film “Jeff, Who Lives At Home,” starring Jason Segel and Ed Helms. Directed by Jay and Mark Duplass, the movie is set for release in March 2012 and will have its world premiere at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival.

Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin are repped at CAA. WME reps Jason Reitman and Mr. Mudd.


ABOUT PARAMOUNT PICTURES CORPORATION
Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company's labels include Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Famous Productions, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studio Group and Paramount Television & Digital Distribution.

ABOUT INDIAN PAINTBRUSH
Indian Paintbrush, a film development/production/finance company, is currently in production on THE UNTITLED DRAKE DOREMUS PROJECT starring Guy Pearce, Amy Ryan and Felicity Jones. Indian Paintbrush and Paramount Pictures acquired Doremus' LIKE CRAZY at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Grand Jury Prize as well as a Special Grand Jury Prize for Felicity Jones and Paramount Vantage will release the film on October 28, 2011. Indian Paintbrush is in post-production on: Lorene Scafaria’s SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD, starring Steve Carell and Keira Knightley to be released by Focus; Wes Anderson’s next feature, MOONRISE KINGDOM, starring Bruce Willis, Ed Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton, also distributed by Focus; and THE UNTITLED DAVID CHASE PROJECT with James Gandolfini, Brad Garrett, Bella Heathcote, Christopher McDonald, Molly Price and Lisa Lampanelli to be distributed by Paramount. Previously, Indian Paintbrush co-financed and executive produced Anderson’s FANTASTIC MR. FOX and THE DARJEELING LIMITED.

Happy Birthday, Bubba Coston

I know you're having a good time.

"Dylan Dog" Finds Fun in the "Dead of Night"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 78 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux


Dylan Dog: Dead of Night (2011)
Running time: 107 minutes (1 hour, 47 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for sequences of creature violence and action, language including some sexual references, and some drug material
DIRECTOR: Kevin Munroe
WRITERS: Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer (based upon the Italian comic book Dylan Dog by Tiziano Sclavi and published by Sergio Bonelli Editore)
PRODUCERS: Gilbert Adler and Scott Mitchell Rosenberg
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Geoffrey Hall
EDITOR: Paul Hirsch

HORROR/COMEDY/FANTASY

Starring: Brandon Routh, Sam Huntington, Peter Stormare, Anita Briem, Kurt Angle, Marco St. John, Kent Jude Bernard, Brian Steele, and Taye Diggs

Dylan Dog: Dead of Night is a 2011 horror comedy. The movie is based upon the long-running Italian horror comic book, Dylan Dog, created by Tiziano Sclavi and published by Sergio Bonelli Editore (published by Dark Horse Comics in North America). The movie focuses on a paranormal detective hired to investigate a murder case that is part of a bizarre conspiracy.

After her father, Alfred Ryan, is murdered, Elizabeth Ryan (Anita Briem) calls on private investigator, Dylan Dog (Brandon Routh), to find out who killed him. When Dylan discovers that Alfred’s death involves the supernatural, however, he refuses the case. You see, New Orleans is the favorite home for the undead like vampires, werewolves, and zombies. Once upon a time, Dylan was the Big Easy’s go-to-guy when it came to the undead; now, he wants no part of it.

After he finds his assistant, Marcus Deckler (Sam Huntington), dead, Dylan decides to take on Elizabeth’s case. He suddenly finds himself digging through a conspiracy that revolves around an ambitious young vampire lord named Vargas (Taye Diggs). And this plot has possible end-of-the-world implications.

Dylan Dog: Dead of Night is like a more fun version of Constantine, the 2005 film that is also based upon a comic book about a detective/investigator of the supernatural. Dylan Dog has many problems. There are a lot of characters; some of them are just stereotypes, and some are not even necessary to the story. Others are good, but are underutilized and poorly developed. The acting is mostly average to sometimes a little better – best exemplified by Brandon Routh, who is intense one moment and bored the next.

Still, Dylan Dog is really fun, primarily because it is a horror movie that looks like a proper monster movie, but manages to find plenty of humor in its various situations. No matter how gross and creepy it gets: guts, gore, graveyards, maggots, body parts, blood, etc.: director Kevin Munroe and his actors extract wit, absurdity, and comedy from the screenplay.

As Marcus Deckler, the delightful Sam Huntington steals practically every scene in which he appears. He goes a long way in selling everything about this movie. If the horror film genre had its own Academy Awards, Huntington would deserve a best supporting actor nomination, at the very least. Think that sounds crazy? Then, watch Dylan Dog: Dead of Night and become a believer.

6 of 10
B

Friday, September 16, 2011