Movie 43 Review
By Rich Cline
A collection of random shorts that focus mainly on idiotic male behaviour, this portmanteau comedy is only occasionally amusing, never making anything of its astonishing cast. Frankly, we spend most of the time wondering how the filmmakers lured these A-listers to appear in these pointless, nasty little films. And while the premises have potential, not a single one has a decent punchline.
As a prank, two teens make up a banned online film called Movie 43. While their brainly little brother searches for it, he runs across a series of clips that mainly focus on awkward vulgarity between the sexes. Bitter exes (Culkin and Stone) have a rude exchange that's broadcast on a supermarket sound system. Pratt is shocked when his girlfriend (Faris) asks him to "poop" on her, and agrees because he loves her. Parents (Watts and Schreiber) homeschool their teen son (White) with the goal of showing him how excruciating life will be. Two pals (Scott and Knoxville) kidnap a leprechaun (Butler) who's reluctant to give them his gold. And a 1950s basketball coach (Howard) tries to convince his players that they're winners because they're black.
Others are dating scenarios: Winslet goes on a blind date with a guy (Jackman) who has testicles on his neck; Berry and Merchant play an increasingly deranged game of Truth or Dare in a Mexican restaurant; a pre-teen (Bennett) can't cope when his young date (Moretz) has her first period; Batman (Sudeikis) messes up Robin's (Long) attempt at speed-dating; Banks struggles to cope with her new boyfriend's (Duhamel) obsessive cartoon cat. There are also a few random advert spoofs, including one for the naked-woman shaped iBabe, which leads to trouble for the company CEO (Gere).
There's the germ of a good idea in every segment, including a solid joke in each set-up and some underlying themes in racial, gender and sexuality issues. But nothing is properly developed into something that's either clever or funny. There is the odd moment that catches us off guard and makes us laugh (such as a group of men panicking about menstruation), and the most amusing thing about each clip is the way these Oscar-calibre actors play everything so straight-faced. So in the end, we may find the riotous wrongness of everything mildly entertaining. Until it turns into another cheap, ugly gag.
Rich Cline
Facts and Figures
Year: 2013
Genre: Comedy
Run time: 94 mins
In Theaters: Friday 25th January 2013
Box Office USA: $8.8M
Box Office Worldwide: $29.9M
Budget: $6M
Distributed by: Relativity Media
Production compaines: Relativity Media, Virgin Produced, Greenestreet Films, Wessler Entertainment
Reviews
Contactmusic.com: 2 / 5
Rotten Tomatoes: 4%
Fresh: 3 Rotten: 73
IMDB: 4.4 / 10
Cast & Crew
Director: Elizabeth Banks, Steven Brill, Steve Carr, Rusty Cundieff, James Duffy, Griffin Dunne, Peter Farrelly, Patrik Forsberg, James Gunn, Bob Odenkirk, Brett Ratner, Jonathan van Tulleken
Producer: Peter Farrelly, Ryan Kavanaugh, John Penotti, Charles B. Wessler
Screenwriter: Steve Baker, Will Carlough, Patrik Forsberg, Matthew Alec Portenoy, Greg Pritikin, Rocky Russo, Jeremy Sosenko, Elizabeth Wright Shapiro
Starring: Dennis Quaid as Charlie Wessler (segment "The Pitch"), Greg Kinnear as Griffin Schraeder (segment "The Pitch"), Common as Bob Mone (segment "The Pitch"), Charlie Saxton as Jay (segment "The Pitch"), Will Sasso as Jerry (segment "The Pitch"), Odessa Rae as Danita (segment "The Pitch"), Seth MacFarlane as Seth MacFarlane (segment, Mike Meldman as Mike Meldman (segment "The Pitch"), Hugh Jackman as Davis (segment "The Catch"), Kate Winslet as Beth (segment "The Catch"), Julie Claire as Pamela (segment "The Catch"), Katie Finneran as Angie (segment "The Catch"), Roy Jenkins as Ray (segment "The Catch"), Rocky Madigan as Waiter Jake (segment "The Catch"), Anna Madigan as Abby (segment "The Catch"), Jeremy Allen White as Kevin (segment "Homeschooled"), Liev Schreiber as Robert (segment "Homeschooled"), Naomi Watts as Samantha (segment "Homeschooled"), Alex Cranmer as Sean (segment "Homeschooled"), Austin Cope as High School Student (segment "Homeschooled"), Julie Ann Emery as Clare (segment "Homeschooled"), Anna Faris as Vanessa (segment "The Proposition"), Chris Pratt as Jason (segment "The Proposition"), J. B. Smoove as Larry (segment "The Proposition"), Jarrad Paul as Bill (segment "The Proposition"), Maria Arcé as Christine (segment "The Proposition"), Aaron LaPlante as Friend (segment "The Proposition"), Kieran Culkin as Neil (segment "Veronica"), Emma Stone as Veronica (segment "Veronica"), Arthur French as Old Man (segment "Veronica"), Brooke Davis as Tall Lady (segment "Veronica"), John Shuman as Short Guy (segment "Veronica"), Cathy Cliften as Robert (segment "iBabe"), Cherina Monteniques Scott as iBabe #2 (segment "iBabe"), Richard Gere as Robert (segment "iBabe"), Kate Bosworth as Arlene (segment "iBabe"), Jack McBrayer as Brian (segment "iBabe"), Aasif Mandvi as Robert (segment "iBabe"), Zach Lasry as Boy (segment "iBabe"), Darby Lynn Totten as Woman (segment "iBabe"), Marc Ambrose as Chappy (segment "iBabe"), Justin Long as Fake Wonder Woman (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Jason Sudeikis as Fake Batman (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Uma Thurman as Fake Lois Lane (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Bobby Cannavale as Fake Superman (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Kristen Bell as Fake Supergirl (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), John Hodgman as Fake Penguin (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Leslie Bibb as Fake Wonder Woman (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Will Carlough as Fake Riddler (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Katrina Bowden as Woman (segment "Super Hero Speed Dating"), Phil Crowley as Narrator (segment "Machine Kids"), Ed Blythe as Vending Machine Man (segment "Machine Kids"), Olivia Roberts Payne as Vending Machine Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Monique Delee as Vending Machine Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Jaron Henrie-McCrea as ATM Man (segment "Machine Kids"), Sebastian Brodziak as ATM Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Severyn K. Brodziak as ATM Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Rightor Doyle as Photocopier Man 1 (segment "Machine Kids"), Raven Burnett as Photocopier Man 2 (segment "Machine Kids"), Montana Byrne as Photocopier Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Jarrett Carter as Photocopier Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Phillip Michaels as Photocopier Child (segment "Machine Kids"), Christopher Mintz-Plasse as Mikey (segment "Middleschool Date"), Chloë Grace Moretz as Amanda (segment "Middleschool Date"), Patrick Warburton as Dad (segment "Middleschool Date"), Jimmy Bennett as Nathan (segment "Middleschool Date"), Matt Walsh as Amanda's Dad (segment "Middleschool Date"), Coleen Hoffman as Blonde Woman (segment "Tampax"), Elbe Van Der Merwe as Brunette Woman (segment "Tampax"), Gerard Butler as Leprechaun 1 & 2 (segment "Happy Birthday"), Seann William Scott as Pete (segment "Happy Birthday"), Johnny Knoxville as Pete (segment "Happy Birthday"), Esti Ginzburg as Fairy (segment "Happy Birthday"), Halle Berry as Emily (segment "Truth or Dare"), Stephen Merchant as Donald (segment "Truth or Dare"), Sayed Badreya as Large Man (segment "Truth or Dare"), Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi as Snooki (segment "Truth or Dare") (as Nicole Elizabeth Polizzi), Caryl Lippman West as Waitress (segment "Truth or Dare"), Ricki Noel Lander as Nurse Elizabeth (segment "Truth or Dare"), Paloma Felisberto as Bachelorette Party Girl (segment "Truth or Dare"), Jasper Grey as Patron (segment "Truth or Dare"), Ben Harris as Blanco the Bartender (segment "Truth or Dare"), Zen Gesner as Stripper (segment "Truth or Dare"), Terrence Howard as Coach Jackson (segment "Victory's Glory"), Aaron Jennings as Anthony (segment "Victory's Glory"), Jared Dudley as Moses (segment "Victory's Glory"), Corey Wayne Brewer as Wallace (segment "Victory's Glory"), Larry Eugene Sanders II as Bishop (segment "Victory's Glory"), Jay Ellis as Lucious (segment "Victory's Glory"), Brian Flaccus as White Guy 1 (segment "Victory's Glory"), Brett Davern as White Guy 2 (segment "Victory's Glory"), Evan Dumouchel as White Guy 3 (segment "Victory's Glory"), Sean Rosales as White Guy 4 (segment "Victory's Glory"), Logan Holladay as White Guy 5 (segment "Victory's Glory"), Mandy Kowalski as Cheerleader (segment "Victory's Glory"), Eric Stuart as Narrator (segment "Victory's Glory"), Elizabeth Banks as Amy (segment "Beezel"), Josh Duhamel as Anson (segment "Beezel"), Emily Alyn Lind as Birthday Girl (segment "Beezel"), Michelle Gunn as Mommy (segment "Beezel"), Christina Linhardt as Party Clown (segment "Beezel"), Devin Eash as Baxter (uncredited), Mark L. Young as Calvin (uncredited), Julie McNiven as ATM Woman (segment "Machine Kids")
Also starring: Chloe Moretz, Fisher Stevens, Peter Farrelly, Ryan Kavanaugh, John Penotti, Greg Pritikin
