The Duff: A Review

March 7, 2015March 10, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

Since the 80’s there has been a great tradition of high school comedies at the movies. Most of them are on the ‘She’s All That’ forgettable to terrible level but every once in a while they can be great like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Clueless, Mean Girls, Perks of Being a Wallflower, and Juno.

The new teenage comedy The Duff is definitely trying to be like these great movies especially Juno but it just can’t quite get there. It dips far too often in sitcom territory and I found myself wishing an edgier writer like Diablo Cody was at the helm. In fact, it’s practically the same movie as Drives Me Crazy with Melissa Joan Hart from the 90s which is no masterpiece. It’s not terrible and the target demographic will probably enjoy it but it could have been great.

The Duff stars Mae Whitman of Parenthood and Tinker Bell fame as a teen girl who finds out she is the DUFF of her two best friends. In the world of this movie that means the Designated Ugly Fat Friend.

Whitman is Hollywood’s version of ‘fat’ and ‘ugly’ and she looks like she is 30 (26 in fact) but so does everyone else in the movie and she is very appealing in the lead. I don’t know if it is quite the star turn of say Emma Stone in Easy A or Ellen Paige in Juno but she is very likable and fun The script is based on a novel by an actual 17 year old which is surprising because it dips into the cliches of a teen sitcom on ABC Family far too often. Scenes like the makeover or the caddy beautiful mean girl have been done to death and are so maudlin here. We even get the big unrealistic high school party you’ve seen in a thousand other movies.

It tries to tackle deeper themes of labels, social media, reality tv, shallowness of communication and even sex in today’s teen culture but it just doesn’t go far enough, and sticks with the obvious and duh types of revelation. As a youtuber I can also say that uploading, editing, adding graphics and promoting a video is not nearly as easy as they make it seem. They keep saying things like ‘make it viral’ and ‘how many hits are we getting?’ when it hasn’t been uploaded. It makes me think the movie doesn’t know as much about social media and movies as it thinks it does. You don’t just throw around keywords and get social commentary. There is also a principal who is an obvious copy of Tim Meadows in Mean Girls. Sigh…Usually in these types of movies the ‘ugly girl’ has a mentor who teaches her how to be cool and win the guy all the while actually making said mentor fall in love with her….Spoiler alert- there is not much different here. It is alarmingly similar to that Taylor Swift music video with the boy next door who see’s all her crazy antics but she’s really in love with him. Actually the Taylor Swift video is more clever because she plays the mean girl and the girl next door…You know your movie has problems if a Taylor Swift video is more original.

But it’s not completely awful. The cast is pretty likable and Whitman and her mentor boy have ok chemistry. I also liked that her pretty friends aren’t actually jerks like she thinks they are. In fact, she kind of dumps her life-long friends pretty quickly which is awkward for our hero. They haven’t done anything wrong and yet she treats them like the mean girl who is posting the mean videos. In fact, her one friend removes the offending videos. It’s kind of strange.

There were just so many times when I could see better movies trying to break free from the script. Like when Whitman was so clearly following the look and rebuttals of Juno but the dialogue wasn’t nearly as sharp with none of the weightier subject matter. They even have Allison Janney playing Whitman’s mother (she is the stepmom in Juno). Janney is great in her few scenes as a divorcee who became a motivational speaker and guru and loves to give advice in cliches. This made me laugh because I also have an aunt who is a motivational speaker/guru.

I kept trying to think about my teen self and if I would have loved this movie. I think I probably would have enjoyed it like Can’t Hardly Wait or Never Been Kissed. I knew they were bad but they had likable performers and I liked them. I’d be curious to know what my 15 year old sister thinks of it when she gets a chance to see it (she’s in Disneyland right now and didn’t answer her phone!).

One interesting thing in The Duff is she gets a pretty embarrassing video of her sent to the whole school. They laugh at her but then she ‘owns it’ and it blows over pretty quickly. I wonder how accurate that is? I mean if someone had done something like that to me in high school I would have been in extensive therapy but I wonder if everyone has an embarrassing video or photo these days so it is increasingly less of a big deal? I have no idea but I was surprised how light the movie treated something that to me seemed like it should be extremely devastating. Different world since I went to high school back in 1995-1998!

Like I said, it’s not a terrible movie, just kind of forgettable and average. I wasn’t miserable watching it. The performances are fine and it has a nice message about putting out the best version of yourself and ‘owning it’. The music wasn’t very unique or special for this kind of movie which usually have a soundtrack as part of its character and personality (think Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller, Clueless). Whitman actually reminds me a lot of a smarter Britney Murphy and she’s likable. Hopefully she can finally get out of playing a teen.

It’s target demographic will probably enjoy it but I don’t think it’s the kind of teen movie that will become a classic. It’s just too sitcomy and ordinary for that.

I know I have some teen readers- what did you think of The Duff? I’d love to hear.

For us old fogies what teen movies did you like and do you still enjoy it?

As far as content there is some profanity, a scene in a male locker room but it is pretty tame. Nothing kids don’t get in actual high school. (I swear you couldn’t pay me enough to go back to high school and my experience wasn’t that bad but still…Ugh)

Overall Grade C Content Grade- B

Drop Box Film

March 6, 2015March 6, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

Yesterday I had the chance to see a special documentary at my theater called The Drop Box. This is a three day event movie that ends tonight at theaters sponsored by Focus on the Family. It tells the story of Pastor Lee Jong-rak who takes in abandoned babies in South Korea through a special mailbox of sorts called the ‘baby box’.

The idea for the baby box started when babies were left at the doorstep of his church, often special needs children and he heard about a baby box in Croatia that helped mothers when desperate to leave their babies rather than abandon or kill them.

Pastor Lee has also adopted 15 of the children and have 2 of their own, one named Eun-man who is severely disabled and cannot function beyond a smile. Yet in one of the most touching segments we learn that the son despite being a burden in a way is deeply loved and was in fact the inspiration behind the baby box and Pastor Lee’s ministry.

The film is directed by Brian Ivie who lived at the Lee’s orphanage for 6 months and converted to Christianity during the filming. He does a good job painting Lee as a normal man who saw a need and filled it. It is not overly aggrandizing, which I think actually makes it much more moving and relatable.

He also does include voices who see the baby box as a ‘too easy of an out’ for women who are merely scared of the challenge of a special needs baby but could do it. It also can be challenging for the caregivers who have no knowledge of the genetics or family history of the baby.

It would seem to me that putting your baby in a box would never been an ‘easy out’ but I thought it was good the movie at least acknowledged some of those concerns. Pastor Lee says many of the mothers are minors who are too ashamed to raise their baby or go through the lengthy process of adoption. He said many come to him umbilical cord still attached, only hours old. That kind of blew my mind.

The letters the mothers leave are so tragic and almost all start off with “I’m sorry. Please forgive me…” . It breaks your heart but at least there is somewhere for the babies to go to not die on the street or in a trash bin but to be loved by Pastor Lee. That’s pretty amazing. The orphanage also reunites some families who return for their child. I believe they said 145 in the segment after the movie.

The month they were shooting Pastor Lee had gotten a baby in the box every day for 8 days straight. He hadn’t slept because he didn’t want to miss the bell which signaled a new baby. It breaks your heart.

We get to learn about Pastor Lee’s family and have little vignettes about the children who are the sweetest boys and girls. I particularly liked his middle son Ru-ri who is missing some fingers and was mocked for it but then ran for class president and won the kids over with his charms. He loves taekwondo and wants to keep his father’s mission alive when he grows up. That was just lovely.

What impressed me the most is Pastor Lee’s unending ability to love everyone. When I think of my own squabbles with people (and I’m sure he isn’t perfect) but each time a new baby came or a child with severe problems was presented to him Pastor Lee loved that child. You could see it in his face, like he was holding the most perfect child he’d ever seen. That’s such a gift from God to love all things. My beloved Grandpa was like that and its what I strive to be like.

Pastor Lee’s wife is also wonderful- so positive and upbeat in the midst of what must be incredibly stressful. Just the lack of sleep and caring for an adult severely disabled son would be enough but she was a special lady. It made me wish we could get the extreme home makeover crew over there to make life a little easier for the Lee’s.

Some may wish that abortion and other birth control would be discussed but that is not my personal feeling and belief or the perspective of this movie or Pastor Lee. This worldview believes children are a gift from God and have divine value no matter how they are brought into the world but I don’t want to get into politics. It’s just simply the view of this movie. If you don’t like that view than the movie may not be for you but all movies can’t be everything to everyone, especially documentaries.

Maybe partly due to director Brian’s conversion while making the film it felt very personal and it made me feel like I could do something to help. Pastor Lee seemed like an ordinary man who decided he could help and then did it. It’s motivated me to look into how I could serve my community a little bit better.

In the live broadcast there was a segment from Jim Daly of Focus on the Family and his team which was a bit too long and will probably be better as a bonus feature on a DVD but the main point was to encourage adoption and foster care through their organization Wait No More which puts foster children with their ‘forever families’. It definitely had the feel of a 700 Club segment but I didn’t mind it because I believe in adoption and what they were sharing. However, some will definitely want to leave at the end of the film.

I really loved this documentary. I feel inspired by Pastor Lee’s example of service and love and shouldn’t movies inspire us from time to time? Especially if you are Christian I would encourage you to hunt the Drop Box down when it comes out on blu-ray and support the lifesaving missions of all involved. I’m certainly grateful I saw it and felt very close to God’s spirit while watching it. Can’t say that too often these days and it was a rewarding experience.

Thoughts on Backlash

March 4, 2015March 4, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about fandoms and backlash. When I was growing up (back in the old days of 1980s…) most kids got a lot of their identity from the things they liked and didn’t like. I loved The Little Mermaid. I knew every scene, song and wished I could be like Ariel. Then in high school I loved Les Miserables. I saw it in New York, watched the 10th Anniversary Concert special over and over again. It was great! I loved Jewel, Simpsons, REM and Clueless. I saw Jurassic Park 6 times in the theaters. My friends all saw Titanic over a dozen times and I was annoyed by it but it wasn’t a big deal.

In college it was Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Pixar, Jane Austen, Norah Jones, romcoms and Jane Eyre that caught my attention.

Back then I may have gotten a little bit of backlash from friends and family who were sick of my talking about Ariel, Les Miserables or Clueless but none that I can really remember. My sister loved Star Wars and had 7 or 8 life size cutouts lining the hallway to her basement room. My brother loved skateboarding and movies in general.

What I’m getting at is growing up you were allowed to have your fandoms and love something not really being challenged about it.

I kind of miss those days…

Now being a fan of something is very different. You aren’t allowed to just love something but are confronted with loud voices who hate, criticize or are ‘sick of’ everything you like. It turns you from a fan into a defender which isn’t nearly as much fun.

I’ve even seen a contrast between when the Twilight books first came out in 2005 and the fandoms of 2014-2015. I feel the Twilight books were allowed to simmer longer and most people didn’t really start hating on them until the 2nd movie came out. I actually liked the first 2 Twilight books and saw them as kind of a guilty pleasure but the 3rd entry I didn’t care for and wasn’t a fan of the movies. Still, I didn’t feel a need to lambast people who liked them (which was most girls I know).

But now in 2014-2015 fandoms aren’t allowed to simmer but boil over in a manner of weeks. Something like Lego Movie or Frozen is loved by many people but seemingly overnight hated by just as many. It kind of leaves you feeling like ‘wait this was so much fun and all the sudden it’s not…’

I saw it with Guardians of the Galaxy, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Interstellar and Boyhood. The period fans could gush over these movies was very brief.

I also have the strange personality that doesn’t get sick of things like others. It has often happened that I’m still riding high on something while my friends have gone sour and like I said the souring happens so quickly now. It really can be kind of discouraging.

Now I am far from innocent on this trend. In the past I didn’t really care that everyone thought Rushmore was a classic and I didn’t really care for it or that I didn’t think Goodwill Hunting was all that great. I could just let it go.

But in the last year or so I found myself in the department of naysayers with Birdman. I really did not like it and found myself bothered by its popularity. Why? Well, in that case I thought it wasn’t just a harmless film like Lego but that it had some harmful depictions of women, rape and female sexuality. It bothered me it got so much praise. I also felt a little bit this way about Breaking Bad which is not a favorite of mine. I grew to despise the mere mention of Walter White and his meth business.

Perhaps part of it is a defense mechanism? After seeing films I like nitpicked to death and criticized it is natural to want to retaliate when I’m on the other side of the conversation. Perhaps it is just the way things are? Most of the time I try to keep my mouth shut but not always.

But either way I am going to try harder to let people enjoy their movies. If they like it that’s great. I always want people to have a good time at the movies. That doesn’t mean I don’t express my feelings in a reasoned and concise way but I’m determined to let other people have their favorites as well. If someone hates what I like that’s ok. If they like what I hate that’s great!

Being a member of a fandom is fun. It’s exhilarating to be a part of something bigger than yourself. It’s fun to bond with people who love the same things you love. I get that with Survivor and the fan group I’m a part of but its harder than it used to be.

If others can’t respect that and are going to troll around saying mean things than so be it. I’m just going to be more conscious of the trend and try to support the things I love more than criticize things I don’t. Join me!

Let’s at least agree to let kids decide what they like and not give them grief if you think it is ‘overhyped’.

Say no to backlash and yes to being movie fans again!

I’m also over the whole angry critic shtick and feel it is partly responsible for this behavior. Everyone is trying to be the Nostalgia Critic and it has gotten very old. What wasted energy. At least NC used to be funny (rarely is any more IMO). A lot of his copycats are just angry, mean-spirited and negative.

New 2014 Top 20 Movies

March 1, 2015March 1, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

So I had previously done a top movies of 2014 but now I’ve seen many more movies so I’ve come up with a new top 20 list. My worst list hasnt changed that much except I would take out Muppets and put Hero of Color City in there.

What do you think? How would you rank them?

A great year for movies! What I especially like is how diverse a year it was. The only thing I missed is a great comedy. Lego Movie was probably my favorite and Grand Budapest Hotel but they weren’t roll on the ground side splittingly funny. It was a particularly great year for animation, sci-fi and superhero movies.

1. Boyhood
2. Song of the Sea
3. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
4. Edge of Tomorrow
5. Interstellar
6. Guardians of the Galaxy
7. Captain America 2: Winter Soldier
8. Selma
9. Lego Movie
10. American Sniper
11. Tale of Princess Kaguya
12. Big Hero 6
13. Life Itself
14. Locke
15. Xmen Days of Future Past
16. Grand Budapest Hotel
17. Hundred Foot Journey
18. How to Train your dragon 2
19. Whiplash
20. Chef

Movies I Saw in February

March 1, 2015 | Rachel's Reviews

I thought I would share with all of you my latest videos on my channel. I would be grateful if you gave the videos a watch, give them a thumbs up if you find them valuable at all and subscribe to my channel. That would be amazing. Thanks!