Gru & Crew Are Back With a Perfectly Enjoyable Follow-Up!: Our Review of "Despicable Me 2" (2013)

Directed By: Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud (Despicable Me) 

Starring: Steve Carell, Kristin Wiig, Benjamin Bratt, Steve Coogan, Russell Brand

Rating: PG for rude humor and mild action

Run Time: 1 hour, 38 minutes

Synopsis: Famed supervillain Gru (Carell) has retired from villainy to focus on being a good father to his daughters - Margo, Edith and Agnes - as well as starting his own jam and preserves company. But when the Anti-Villain League comes asking for his assistance to find and stop a new supervillain, Gru must team up with an agent named Lucy (Wiig) to stop a villain named El Macho (Bratt) who was long-thought to be dead.

REVIEW

Andrew: Hello dear readers! Our sincerest apologies for our absence on the blog lately, we’ve been pretty busy the last week or so with me traveling back to Michigan last weekend for a wedding and then hosting Sarah’s younger sister all week out here for an East Coast visit. Haven’t had a whole lot of down time when you combine those things with work, but things have slowed down juuuuust enough that we can finally post reviews we’ve been meaning to get to!

First up, Sarah and I were able to catch a morning showing of last weekend’s hit animated film Despicable Me 2, the sequel to 2010’s Despicable Me, which is one of our favorite animated films of all-time.

Steve Carell returns as Gru the supervillain-turned-adoptive father to his three daughters Margo, Edith and Agnes.

Sarah: This time around instead of being a bad guy he’s recruited by the Anti-Villain League to help them bring down a new super-villain they can’t quite seem to catch. We were really excited to see this one because we absolutely love the first one, and this one didn’t disappoint! What are your thoughts on Despicable Me 2?

Katy Perry: Probably Better In Concert Than the Silver Screen: Sarah's Review of "Katy Perry: Part of Me" (2012)

Directed By: Dan Cutforth & Jane Lipsitz

Starring: Katy Perry

Rating: PG for some suggestive content, language, thematic elements and brief smoking

Synopsis: Documenting Katy Perry's rise from young gospel singer Katheryn Hudson to one of the world's biggest music stars, Katy Perry: Part of Me uses home footage and behind-the-scenes footage of her "California Dreams Tour" to present both the public and private side of Perry's life.

REVIEW

Sarah: Hello readers, Sarah here! We have come to one of those rare times when I went and saw a movie without Andrew. Considering the movie, I can't really fault him for it. So, a girlfriend and I went and saw Katy Perry: Part of Me all by our lonesome! I have to say that I really enjoyed it! But for further details, Andrew and I are going to go the question/answer route on this review. Bring on the questions Andrew!

Andrew: My first question: would you consider this movie to be more of a concert film or a behind-the-scenes documentary-type film?

S: That's a tough one. I would have to say that it's more of a concert movie. She pretty much went through her entire tour and the sets she played in them. Those were then inter-spliced with behind-the-scenes footage. It was an interesting progression of footage.

A: Can you explain what you mean by "interesting progression of footage?" That intrigues me.

S: Well this was the documentation of a yearlong tour, so when it started Katy was excited and very hands-on. That actually never changed. But as it went on and she was trying to keep the energy up for every show around the world AND keep a marriage together, we started to see the toll it was taking on her. It was exhausting just to watch.

A: How far into her relationship with Russell Brand did it get? Did it show much of the deterioration between them?

S: It did a little bit. It definitely showed her in the positive light and him in the negative, which obviously made sense. When she would have a day or two off, she would automatically jump on a plane and fly to wherever he was - no matter if she was in Europe and he was in L.A. He apparently never came to her. How exhausting would that be?!

It was actually pretty sad. There is footage from when they did finally separate and divorce and they did a great job at tugging at the audience's heartstrings.

A: Tugging at the heartstrings, that brings me to my next question: in your opinion did this film come off more as a true representation of what Perry's career and life is, or more of a promotional movie that maybe shied away from putting Katy in any sort of negative light? Basically, did the movie feel fake at all?

S: I definitely feel like this was a promotional video but I don't think that it was fake. I actually find that when Katy gives interviews, she sounds pretty fake. That was not the case in this movie. But I will say that after the movie was over, we wanted to go to a Katy Perry concert, and I think that was the point of the movie too. It’s quite smart in my opinion.

A: Gotchya. Speaking of a concert, how were the concert scenes? You saw this is 3D and from what I could tell from the trailers, it looked like only the concert scenes were in 3D. Is that right?

S: No, everything was in 3D and it was pretty good. We also saw it on a film projector so it was kind of lacking on that point, but oh well. All in all, this was a fun movie to see in the theatres. It gets you pumped up with Katy Perry music and is definitely a chick flick.

It’s a fun movie to watch, but based purely from the standpoint of grading it as a quality movie, I give it a …

(Out of Five Clapboards)

Photo Courtesies: Movie Fanatic

Ain't Nothin' But a Good Time!: Our Review of "Rock of Ages" (2012)

Directed By: Adam Shankman

Starring: Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones

Rating: PG-13 for sexual content, suggestive dancing, some heavy drinking and language

Synopsis: Set in 1987, Sherrie (Hough) is a bright-eyed young singer who leaves Oklahoma for the bright lights of Hollywood. When she arrives she meets Drew, a bartender at the popular nightclub The Bourbon Room, who's also an aspiring rocker. When the wife of LA's mayor (Zeta-Jones) makes it her mission to shut down The Bourbon Room, it comes down to a big show my the famous but temperamental rocker Stacee Jaxx (Cruise) to save the place. Instead he ends up turning everyone's lives upside down.

REVIEW

Andrew: Hello readers! Sarah and I just got out of seeing this weekend’s new musical, the film adaptation of the Broadway hit Rock of Ages starring Tom Cruise (Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol), Julianne Hough (Footloose) and many more famous actors with various ranges of singing prowess that we’ll touch on later.

Sarah, first things first, what are your immediate thoughts on Rock of Ages?

Sarah: It was AWESOME. I mean it was pure rock and roll. This is a Broadway musical that has been adapted to film, something that’s been done many times before and will be done many times in the future, but this movie ROCKED. I was really nervous about how good it would be, but it kicked ass.

A: I could not agree more with you. And I’ll say this: it’s not a perfect movie by any stretch of the imagination, but it is just a FUN movie. I can’t even articulate how much I enjoyed this film. I love 80s music to begin with, but every aspect of this film related to the 80s, I’d have to imagine they made it perfectly. This was obviously a passion project by those who made it because it LOOKED and SOUNDED perfect. I had a smile on my face, literally, from beginning to end.

S: Yeah, it was awesome. Now let’s get into how the actors fared. I was a little concerned that this had such a huge cast with so many big names.

A: But they fared well, right? So let’s pick out a couple of the songs and actors and talk about the best, and then the worst if there were any.

First and foremost, the best performance, hands down, was Tom Cruise as Stacee Jaxx.

S: Oh, he hit this one out of the park.

A: I can’t even pick which song I think he did best. I think if I had to choose I would say it was his rendition of “Wanted Dead or Alive.”

Tom Cruise gives 110% in his performance as the rock star Stacee Jaxx, and he alone makes this movie worth seeing

S: Yes! What was crazy for me was that when he sang that song, as a woman, I felt what it would be like to have been around when rockers were considered gods by women. When women would just throw their bras and underwear on stage at these guys, cuz they were SEX ICONS. He OOZED sex in this film!

A: And he slinked around so perfectly and he just embodied a man who’s seen a million faces and rocked them all. I think it helpful that he actually went through all that crap he went through when he had his downfall, and now he’s resurrected his career because you could see that experience in his performance.

S: What’s crazy is it was like watching Steven Tyler, Brett Michaels or Axl Rose, just these guys that were considered icons of their age. And yeah, I would have to say that not only was Tom Cruise perfect in this role, but he can make no wrong decisions in his career right now. I don’t know who is managing him but he cannot make a wrong decision.

A: Ever since his cameo in Tropic Thunder…

S: He’s been on fire! Untouchable. Ok, so the other songs…

A: There were so many good songs. And it’s tough to pick only a few out, cuz off the top of my head they did “Jukebox Hero”, “Sister Christian”, “Pour Some Sugar on Me”…

S: “Paradise City”, “Wanted Dead or Alive”, “I Want to Know What Love Is”… but let’s be honest, the “We Built This City” and “We’re Not Going to Take It” mash-up was the pinnacle of the movie. Everything had built up to this part.

A: I think it was a good part, but everything actually built up to the final song. I don’t even want to say what it is so as not to spoil it, I thought it was so perfect.

S: I was surprised! Were you surprised by the song choice for the finale?

A: A little bit but I’m glad they did because it’s one of our all-time favorite songs.

S: It’s one of the most ICONIC songs in all of music history.

A: Exactly, and that’s why I think it’s perfect. I like that they ended it the way they did. But let’s go back to the actors - Julianne Hough did a great job…

S: Diego Boneta, which was a breakout role for him, did really well.

A: His look kind of bothered me a bit, like he looks really too fresh faced for me. But any scene that he was singing in and really rocking out he was perfect. Russell Brand’s (Get Him to the Greek) not bad, not great but not bad; Malin Akerman (The Proposal) was pretty good in the song she did with Cruise.

Sherrie (Hough) and Drew (Boneta) meet cute as soon as she arrives in LA via Oklahoma. Both actors do great job singing the classic songs they're given in Rock of Ages

S: Mary J. Blige was great obviously, but she didn’t have much to do.

A: And they did do a really cool rendition of “Any Way You Want It” by Journey. Just in general, this film is exactly what I thought it should be. It was a straight-up musical and it made me smile from start to finish. But I also enjoyed it because, and I’ve said this many times before to my friends, I think it would be awesome if people actually did just burst into song in real life situations.

S: Oh I tweeted as soon as we left that I wish life was a musical.

A: Because that’s what they did well with this one, they didn’t just stage songs but they told the story through the songs. That was the strength of the film. Like if we were going to grade this on a normal scale, it’s not a 5 out of 5, it’s not perfect. It’s a little long…

S: But it is a musical. There were definite acts, there was an intermission type feel to it with a first act and a second act. It was adapted well from the stage to the screen and I think the music had a lot to do with that. There were times where it got really slow, but again that’s a show. That’s a Broadway show for you. I would have to say that they’ve gotten a lot better transitioning theatre shows to the screen. They’re not cutting things out, they’re not making it tighter, and they’re staying true to the story.

A: I was okay with the two hour run time because I feel like that’s what the actual show is. And you have to get all the songs in there.

S: And they did have to end up cutting some songs out!

A: The director, Adam Shankman, who directed Hairspray a few years back, did a great job and I think this is actually better.

S: Oh gosh yes.

A: But a lot like Hairspray, everyone gave it 110% - the hair, the sets, the costumes…

S: Everyone just had fun! We hope it does well this weekend because it was awesome. I would have to say that if you’re a fan of the musical genre, if you’re a fan of the 80s, this is definitely one you have to see in theatres. And not because it’s any better in theatres than it would be on your TV, but just the sheer spectacle of it. You gotta rock out to it. I wish it had been louder.

A: And again, I can’t stress this enough, see this because of Tom Cruise. Yeah he’s crazy, but you can’t deny that the man gives it his all. From being on the outside of the Burj Khalifa in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol to just giving it his all as a rock star in this.

What’s our final grade for Rock of Ages?

S: It’s not a five out of five, but we’re buying this. We’ll own it. And I think it’s one of the few that we’ve given that level to!

(Out of Five Clapboards)

Photo Courtesies: Geek Tyrant, Art and Seek, USA Today

Our Preview of This Week's New Releases (for Friday, June 15th)

Andrew: Hello readers! While we've been a little quiet here this week on Two Tickets For... because of heavy workloads with our day jobs, it doesn't mean we're going to miss our weekly preview!

Sarah, this week we only have two big releases: a film adaptation of the Broadway hit Rock of Ages (directed by Adam Shankman, who also did Hairspray) and Adam Sandler's new R-rated comedy That's My Boy. Let's talk about Rock of Ages first because let's be honest, we love the trailer for this film every single time we see it (and you can see below if you haven't).

Official Trailer for Rock of Ages

Sarah: SO excited for Rock of Ages! We’ve been waiting a long time for this to come out and I couldn't be more excited. This cast is going to rock out. With such powerhouse performers, some of whom are proven amazing singers, this musical will bring new life to this Broadway hit. However, with such a large cast there is always the risk that it will be a complete flop, especially with such a personality as Tom Cruise. 

What do you think?

A: I'm very intrigued to see how the different actors perform in a singing role. That's usually what makes or breaks a musical film, you know? We know some of the actors have some singing chops, like Mary J. Blige, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Julianna Hough and Russell Brand. But how will Malin Akerman sound? Alec Baldwin? Paul Giamatti? Yikes.

But I'm VERY interested to see how Tom Cruise does. By all accounts so far he's the main reason to see the film and he gives it his all as rock star Stacee Jaxx. Also, it's no secret if you know me that I absolutely love 80's music, so I'm particularly interested to see the film's renditions of Journey and Foreigner songs.

S: Oh yea, I totally cannot wait to rock out to all the classic rock. I love me some musicals. I am really hoping that Cruise's role it as awesome as his role in Tropic Thunder. I love that as part of his comeback he isn't himself too seriously all of the time. 

Anyway, I think it's safe to say that we're excited about this one. Ok, so the next one that we have is That's My Boy. I'm not going to lie, I am a little nervous about this one. I am not always the biggest fan of Adam Sandler. He's kind of a joke in my opinion and I'm not sure how I feel about the actual story.

A: I figured this might be one that we go into a little split on, because I'm actually looking forward to this one. I'm not expecting it to be a classic comedy like Sandler's old films Billy Madison and Happy Gilmore, but the fact that it's a hard-R comedy gives me some hope. It's definitely not one of his family comedies like Grown-Ups or Just Go With It.

Official Trailer for That's My Boy

I like the plot set-up of Sandler playing a guy who knocked up his junior high school teacher at a young age and has a son almost his age that he royally screwed up. I'm not expecting the story to be phenomenal but I'm looking for lots of laughs, and I'm assuming we'll get some because of this cast. Look at this list of people who are in it along with Sandler and Andy Samberg (that consists of lots of former SNL-ers):

- James Caan

- Will Forte

- Rachel Dratch

- Nick Swardson

- Ana Gasteyer

- Colin Quinn

And then a whole LOT of cameos from the looks of it on IMDb. If it makes me laugh more than The Dictator I'll call it a rousing success.

S: I will have to agree with you that. It can't be much worse than The Dictator  so I am hoping for some more laughs. I just am worried that his cheese-ball accent and Jersey-Shore look will really distract from the story. The hard-R will probably help with some of the comedy, but I really don't have high hopes for this one.

A: I should add that while I like the comedic premise of Sandler's character knocking up his junior high school teacher, it will be interesting to see what the general public's reaction will be for a film that starts with statutory rape to kick off the ensuing hijinks. I think that's something that we'll touch on in our review.

S: Yea I guess I hadn't really thought about it that way. Yea what is up with all the movies bringing up topics that really are a little touchy?! 

Oh well, it's still going to be another fun weekend at the movies!

A: So with these being the only big releases, we guarantee that we will be seeing them at some point this weekend and our reviews will be posted shortly thereafter! Have a great weekend, readers, and as always thanks for reading!