Playing Catch Up, Part Two

Bruno (C) After watching this so-so comedy, it occurred to me that not only does Sacha Baron Cohen have his comic character destruct after the release of the film, his 'shtick' of pretending to be a fish out of water for laughs played on the unsuspecting is played out at this point.

Chuck (C+) Lightweight comedy/thriller about a nerd who's got a government computer full of secrets in his head, and the two agents from different intelligence agencies that 'handle' him. The laughs were, for me, more of the 'in my head' than 'out loud' variety. It's a premise with a limited run, not unlike Dollhouse, actually. That is, the humour's too slight to justify watching for any length of time, and once the story arc starts to take itself too seriously, it'll have to come to it's logical conclusion. (Nerd gets computer removed, one way or the other.) Not bad, though I don't get the groundswell of support this series has achieved amongst the general public. Also, the historical precedent the U.S. intelligence agencies have set in security compromises has always been to 'shoot, shovel and forget'. Though if you're going for an outlandish premise like this, you might as well take all the gimmes you can get, I suppose.

The Wrestler (C+) The big flaw in this film is that if you're going to make the main character so beaten up and degraded by life that his only real option is to go out dying what he loves, (professional wrestling) it's a good idea to not have a charming and likable actor like Mickey Roarke as your lead. Classically speaking, tragedy is the tale of a good man coming to grief because of character flaws within himself that others can see, but he himself cannot. In this case, the only flaw I can see Roarke's character having is an inability for long-term planning. Consider this: His daughter is so estranged from him, he'd of have to have been a molester. His financial situation is so bad, he starts the film locked out of his trailer. He spends the film trying to connect not only with his daughter but with stripper Marissa Tomei, who comes across as really self-involved. (Yeah, unlike the daughter, I can understand her motivations, but c'mon, Marissa! It's Mickey Roarke, for God's sake!) As a pro-wrestler, we see him as committed and dedicated (and respected by his colleagues.) So at the end of the day, the movie just beats up on him to turn him into a Christ figure.

On a political note, I've just got a quick point regarding the defacto leader of the 'Birther' movement in the States, Orly Tate. Orly, honey, if the likes of Karl Rove and Ann Coultier are saying that the "Kenyan Certificate of Birth" is a fraud up there with Piltdown Man, it's time to get the hell out of the spotlight...

See for yourself...