Our Idiot Brother

Paul Rudd, Zooey Deschanel, and Rashida Jones in "Our Idiot Brother"

*** out of ****

Paul Rudd's film career has spent the past decade with a concentration in comedy. While the man is meant for more genres, I can't deny, he's a deadpan genius. "Our Idiot Brother" shows off his knack for timing as he subtly coveys the gears of his character's head having trouble turning. It's so refreshing to see someone play a dim hippie stoner without doing a Slater ("Dazed and Confused") voice.

As he involves himself in the lives of his three sisters, the scene stealer is, no surprise, Elizabeth Banks who's always great.

I should take this opportunity to point out a woman who I love so much I'm going to look up her name on IMDB... Here she is: Kathryn Hahn. What an amazing talent. Why? Because she disappears into every role I've ever seen her in. It's the versatile ones who don't get the fame and I suppose most of them like it that way.  It's amazing that this was the sister-in-law in "Step Brothers" and the repressed housewife in "Revolutionary Road". In this movie, she plays Rudd's ex-girlfriend and a total hippie-crite without an ounce of compassion. 

This movies comedy seems to be immersed in a left wing world and hippies are still the biggest joke in the scheme of where the laughs are directed. The protagonist has a Jesus persona. Is this movie calling Jesus a dumb hippie? Maybe.

Rudd's character is always doing the right thing because it rarely occurs to him when doing the right thing may compromise his standing with family, the law, and self-preservation. There are identifiable scenarios of idealistic yet idiotic behavior in this movie because we've either known someone like this or we've caught ourselves being this way.

The weak part is something that comes along with many comedies: It sometimes seems to shift between the sincere and the insincere. This is something I'm likely to grow used to with repeat viewings but it always bothers me on the initial experience. I am losing my objectivity if I forget to ask myself if I laughed anyway -and yes, I certainly did.

Here's a slightly less favorable review from the AV club.

The Rum Diary

(Left to Right) Giovanni Ribisi, Johnny Depp, and Michael Rispoli in "The Rum Diary"

*** out of ****

I really enjoyed this one.

Don't expect "Fear and Loathing".

What makes "The Rum Diary" incredibly different from the over-sensory zaniness of "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" and appropriately different from the Landis-inspired bad comedy of "Where the Buffalo Roam", is how objectively realistic this film feels even thought it is telling embellished tales of misadventure.

There is only one scene I can think of where the filmmaking seems to be under the influence with it's characters. Like Hunter S. Thompson's writing, it is disjointed and episodic. You should go into this one expecting something that is trying to transport you to a time and place. This is a film that is strong on atmosphere.

Bruce Robinson hadn't made a film in almost two decades and was a rather fitting choice by Depp and Co. to get this long awaited project off the ground.

Johnny Depp delivers a very different version of the Hunter S.  character than we have come to expect. This is a younger less judgemental man who is easily distracted by luxury. This portrayal of his character has it's fault with the film when it involves his obsession with a beautiful yet underdeveloped love interest played by Amber Heard. As soon as she is onscreen the score shifts to a romantic theme which seems like a little much for this cynical movie. It doesn't work since there's nothing in the script to suggest that the main character's attraction is anything more than one of lust. Amber Heard just has a screen presence that begs for a classic hollywood tone. Wrong movie.

The cast is great all the way through. Richard Jenkins is an angry and inept newspaper editor. Aaron Eckhart is a greedy entrepreneur. Michael Rispoli plays an alcoholic yet energetic photographer.  Giovanni Ribisi plays a character so foul, we're thankful we can't smell him because if we could we could we wouldn't laugh as much.

Here's a fun argument on "Ebert Presents"

and the Scott Tobias review on AVclub.