Movie Review: CONAN O'BRIEN CAN'T STOP

CONAN O'BRIEN CAN'T STOP

2011
R


"I'm like Tinkerbell - without applause, I die."
-- Conan O'Brien

Conan O'Brien Can't Stop is a 2011 documentary directed by Rodman Flender that centers around Conan O'Brien's 2010 comedy tour, "The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television Tour." The idea came to O'Brien after his highly-publicized departure from NBC after Jay Leno decided he wanted to continue appearing on television as a talk show host. NBC severed ties with O'Brien, prohibiting him from appearing on television for a period of six months. The documentary shows the creation of the tour's show as well as the ups and downs it put Conan through during the 45-show schedule.

I first heard about this film after it hit film festivals and was generally well-received. I didn't have the opportunity to give it a view when it hit theaters earlier this year, but you can now find it on NetFlix Instant Watch. Being a fan of O'Brien, I knew that I had to give this one a gander at one point or another, so it was just a matter of time until I sat down and did just that.

I honestly have some rather mixed feelings about the film. While it's an interesting, in-depth look at the creation of Conan's tour, it just felt a little bit empty and a little bit flat. There didn't seem to be anything truly redeeming about the film. Yes, we get to see a very personal side of a highly-publicized figure in today's society, but there are times where I wasn't quite sure I liked the Conan we got to see. At certain moments, he seems like a man who lets his celebrity and fame get to his head, but he immediately comes back and says that because he's so hard on himself, he has to be hard on the people that work for and with him.

(On a side note, be on the lookout for cameos from the likes of Jack Black, Jim Carrey, Stephen Colbert, Jon Stewart, Jon Hamm and Jack McBrayer.)

In his review for the Arizona Republic, Billy Goodykoontz wrote the following about the film:

It's hard to feel sorry for a guy who banked millions for not hosting "The Tonight Show" anymore, but it's also fascinating to see a man this compulsively driven to get back in front of people and tell jokes, to hear the laughter, to soak in the applause.

In that sense, I suppose there's something rather interesting to see in Conan O'Brien Can't Stop. We see the sheer determination and will that he drives into his comedy tour. After his nasty NBC break-up, the fan support was overwhelming, and it's nice to see that a man in his position took the time to give back to that support, even if it took a physical and emotional toll on himself. Even if he has his moments where you want to hate him, you can't deny that Conan O'Brien is driven and dedicated. If that's all you get from this documentary, then I'd have to say it's a success. If you're a fan of Conan, this is a must-watch.

Movie Review Summary
Grade: B+
1.5 Thumbs Up

Movie Review: SUCKER PUNCH

SUCKER PUNCH

2011
PG-13

Sucker Punch is a 2011 action film directed by Zack Snyder. It follows a young woman known as Baby Doll (Emily Browning) who is institutionalized by her stepfather after she accidentally murders her younger sister in the wake of her mother's death. Baby Doll meets Blue (Oscar Isaac), the head of the institution that proves to be a twisted and conniving individual. During her tour of the facilities with another young woman called Rocket (Jena Malone), Baby Doll learns that the girls in the institution are basically glorified escorts who have to dance for paying customers. They are taught to dance by an older woman/therapist named Dr. Vera Gorski (Carla Gugino) who takes a particular liking to Baby Doll's very raw approach to dancing. Because of her recent past, Baby Doll has been ordered to have a lobotomy within a matter of days in order to "erase" her memory; she therefore sets out to escape the institution. With the help of Rocket and her reluctant sister Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish), as well as Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens) and Amber (Jamie Chung), Baby Doll uses her dancing - as well as an imagined, alternate reality - to acquire the tools necessary to make her escape.

I'm still feeling a little bit torn about Sucker Punch, so this may not be the final will and testament I give it. I think I need to think about it a little bit more before being set on my final grade and rating, but for now, we'll run with what I'm currently feeling. As with most Zack Snyder fare, visual spectacle takes the forefront. If you've seen any of his previous work (i.e., 2007's 300 or 2009's Watchmen), you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. Yes, there's stories and acting underneath all the computer-generated effects, but the visual nature of his films is so palpable that it could be cut with a knife. It's not like it's a terribly bad thing to have great visuals, but I think it might have been just a little too much this time around. In a lot of the special effects-laden scenes, I found myself becoming very annoyed with it all. It got a little too hectic, and it definitely felt like they were showing off their skills a little too much. I've never felt this strongly about a Snyder film's visuals, but this one might have been the straw that broke the camel's back.

Let's talk about acting because I know exactly what I want to say about it. Browning is decent as our lead, but I picked up very early on that she really doesn't have much in terms of actual dialogue. Most of her scenes consist of her either standing in one spot preparing to "dance" or fighting some CG creature, so there's really not a ton of room for her to work in any characterization. A couple of the girls give decent performances - for example, Malone and Cornish are good enough as sisters who constantly butt heads. I found Isaac to be rather good. I'd first seen him in last year's Robin Hood and was pleased with his performance there as well, so I went in with a little bit of hope that he might be able to do something. He's not amazing, but he doesn't disappoint, either. Scott Glenn makes a couple of appearances throughout the film and plays an integral role in the film's plot, but he just didn't seem to fit into the movie at all. I couldn't tell you why - he just stuck out a little too much to me. We've also got a slightly extended cameo for Jon Hamm, who does the best he can with the role.

Now onto the screenplay, which is what I'm most struggling with. Let's start with the positives. It's definitely an innovative story; you can't take that away from Snyder who co-wrote the screenplay. It also nearly comes full circle, which I'm generally a sucker for. If a movie can leave you without any massively pressing questions about the plot, then it's succeeded in some degree. I did, however, have a couple of questions with pieces of the plot, but I won't delve into them here considering you probably have yet to see the movie, and I wouldn't want to give anything away too soon. I wasn't entirely convinced with the dream-like alternate reality that the girls put themselves into to deal with their surroundings, and considering that's central to the storyline, I think it needed to be more convincing. I know I'm not really making a good argument either way for the screenplay, but I'm still mulling it all over at the moment.

Basically, the jury is still out for Sucker Punch. The latest critical consensus has been generally negative (it currently holds only a 20% approval rating on the online review aggregate RottenTomatoes.com), but I don't think it was absolutely terrible. It has its good moments - for example, the opening sequence (set to a cover of Eurythmics "Sweet Dreams Are Made of These") is damn near brilliant. In fact, the one truly great thing about this film is the soundtrack, which'll have you tapping your toes all the way through. But a soundtrack doesn't make a movie. Maybe once I get a set feeling about Sucker Punch, I'll come back and say some more, but for now, all I can say is that I'm up in the air.

Movie Review Summary:
Grade: C-
Thumbs Sideways