It’s quite the trick to tell a story that is both anti-gun and supportive of stand-your-ground doctrine. I’m almost positive director Brad Bird was going for only one half of that equation in “The Iron Giant” (1999), but I’m going to stand my ground, too. Aside from the deep-thinky pacifist stuff, this stylish piece of children’s animation is the classic story of the (mostly) gentle giant who is (mostly) misunderstood by the townsfolk, government, etc. Except for the kid who befriends him, of course. It all gets magnified through a Cold War paranoia lens and leads to a dramatic climax.
Archives for posts with tag: Jennifer Aniston
Yeah, I know “Office Christmas Party” (2016) is stupid, but it’s appropriately stupid for the plot (epic gesture needed to save the company). It’s necessarily stupid for its genre (R-rated farce). Simply put, it’s just the right amount of stupid (although I saw the unrated version, so, technically, what I saw was extra stupid). Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman have made like 377 films in the past few years, so they seem to be homing in on a formula in which they’re both uptight and everyone else is crazy (although I do wish the formula involved my seeing fewer penises).
Terminally ill old grump played by Frank Langella wants assisted suicide, but his dysfunctional family guilts him into a drawn-out, painful death. Forgive the spoiler alert, but you really have no reason to watch “Youth in Oregon” (2017). Not unless your one of those chronic empathy junkies who draws energy from experiencing the misery of others. None of the main characters are worth cheering for, the comedy isn’t comic enough and there’s too much damn yelling. Meanwhile, I’m getting the sense Christina Applegate (Langella’s control-freak daughter) is getting all the roles Jennifer Aniston has the good sense to turn down.
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