ScreenCrave.com » Cameron Diaz

Bad Teacher: Movie Review

Damon Houx — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 01:00:42 +0000

Black comedies are tricky, because you are usually following a main character who is a terrible human being. But when they work they become classics – like the more recent Bad Santa. That film seems a direct inspiration for Bad Teacher, which stars Cameron Diaz as a teacher who’s happy to show her students movies every class until she learns she can get money for having them do well on a test. Though not as scathing as Bad Santa, Teacher is an amusing lark, with solid performances by the cast who keep the film moving. Find out more below…

The Players

Director: Jake Kasdan
Screenplay: Gene Stupnitsky, Lee Eisenberg
Actors: Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Jason Segel, Lucy Punch, Phillis Smith, John Michael Higgins
Original Music: Michael Andrews
Cinematography: Alar Kivilo

The Story

After being dumped by her rich boyfriend, Elizabeth Halsey (Diaz) is stuck back teaching kids. She decides the best way to get ahead is to get breast implants, and tries to court substitute teacher and rich kid Scott Delacorte (Timberlake), even though Gym teacher Russell Gettis (Segel) is not very subtle about wanting to hook up. Elizabeth often sleeps her way through classes, which annoys her rival Amy Squirrel (Punch), but even more annoying is when Elizabeth finds out that she can win money for having high test scores. And since Amy starts dating Scott, their rivalry must come to a head.

The Good

Comic Ringers: Though Diaz is front and center (and great), the film is peppered with great comic performers. From The Office’s Phillis Smith, John Michael Higgins and David “Gruber” Allen as fellow teachers, to Thomas Lennon as a testmaker – everyone is funny, and everyone who shows up kills when necessary.
No Real Moral: Though the ending is a positive change for the character of Elizabeth, with black comedies you don’t want your main character (who Bugs Bunny would refer to as a “stinkah”) suddenly figure out that they’re a asshole, and try to atone. It’s fun to watch people behave badly, the film knows it, and so there may be compromise, there thankfully isn’t an about-face.
Jason Segel and Justin Timberlake: Segel is a reliable comic foil, and his stoner gym teacher has the right attitude about Diaz’s character. And though Timberlake has proved he’s got chops before, there is something sort of “pink poodle”-y about watching him do a film like this. Yeah, he’s done his time on SNL, but it’s fun to watch him play a buttoned up loser who’s also a terrible musician.
Cameron Diaz and Lucy Punch: Cameron Diaz as an actress knows her limitations (or should after Gangs of New York), but here she gets to be a real bitch, and it’s fun for that – you’re with her. And though Lucy Punch’s chipperness will make her a “love her or hate her” character, it’s great that you can root against the person who is – it turns out – the most right about Elizabeth.

The Bad

Modesty: Though the school year gives the film some structure, it’s a lackadaisical film that mostly sets up things and then pays them off, but not with such a great wit that the film builds into something. If Bad Santa was the role model, that film goes deeper and darker, and builds to a great third act. And though the film goes to some less than savory places (the film features cinema’s greatest dry-humping scene), the film never feels transgressive. Where Bad Santa also functions as a critique on consumer culture, Bad Teacher never expresses much contempt for teachers or public education, etc. Here, it’s a pleasant enough ride, but it feels like something that will be more enjoyable in the comfort of one’s home. The film could easily be turned into a TV show.
The Shooting Schedule: Bad Teacher is what amounts to a studio low budget film and star Segel has talked about how he shot for eight days. Watching the film you can sense that – other than Diaz – most everyone was on set only for when they were needed, and so often it feels like Diaz is playing to one person, even if there are more than one people in the scene.

Overall

Though the film doesn’t sizzle or reinvent the wheel, it’s still consistently funny. That’s really all a comedy needs to be, and this works, though it feels like there’s a slightly better movie in the material. But director Jake Kasdan knows how to make watchable films, and much like his Walk Hard (which is often more conceptually funny than something that makes you laugh out loud), the replay factor on this one looks high.

Rating: 7.5/10

Bad Teacher hits theaters June 24!

Trailer:

Cameron Diaz in Bad Teacher Trailer and Poster

Krystal Clark — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 16:41:12 +0000

Last month we posted the first trailer for Cameron Diaz’s upcoming comedy Bad Teacher. It was a red band version and as you might suspect it featured some explicit content. Every curse word under the sun was used, and a scantily clad Diaz was shown washing a car in nothing more than a crop top and daisy dukes. We’re sure that will get guys into the theaters. Over on Yahoo Movies, they’ve released a teaser trailer that’s less gratuitous and more low key. Check it out…

We’re convinced that Diaz watched Billy Bob Thornton’s performance in Bad Santa and made it her own for this movie. The similarities between the title and the content are hard to ignore. The plot itself is paper thin and predictable, but what else would you expect from this type of comedy? You be the judge..

This trailer needs some more Jason Segel. Justin Timberlake is fine and all but Segel is the man! We love the argument he has at the end of this trailer with the young kid about Michael Jordan vs Lebron James, because haven’t we all heard that one before? It hits so close to home.

Poster:

Bad Teacher opens in theaters on June 24th.

What do you think of the new trailer for Bad Teacher?

Cameron Diaz in Bad Teacher Red Band Trailer

Krystal Clark — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 16:05:06 +0000

The first trailer for the Cameron Diaz comedy Bad Teacher has hit the net. It debuted over on MySpace and it’s a red band version, which means some of the film’s raunchier material appears in the video. Besides Diaz, Bad Teacher stars Justin Timberlake, Jason Segel, and Lucy Punch. Those four sound like a hilarious combination on paper but can they pull it off on the big screen? Check out the trailer to find out…

Surprisingly, we didn’t laugh once during this trailer. There are a lot of funny actors in the movie but none of them deliver here. It looks like their basing a lot of their laughs on gross out jokes and F-bombs, which is pretty weak. This looks like a teacher-based version of Bad Santa, except that film actually made us laugh at some point.

Synopsis:

Some teachers just don’t give an F. For example, there’s Elizabeth (Cameron Diaz). She’s foul-mouthed, ruthless, and inappropriate. She drinks, she gets high, and she can’t wait to marry her meal ticket and get out of her bogus day job. When she’s dumped by her fiancé, she sets her plan in motion to win over a rich, handsome substitute (Justin Timberlake) – competing for his affections with an overly energetic colleague, Amy (Lucy Punch). When Elizabeth also finds herself fighting off the advances of a sarcastic, irreverent gym teacher (Jason Segel), the consequences of her wild and outrageous schemes give her students, her coworkers, and even herself an education like no other.

Bad Teacher opens in theaters on June 24th.

What do you think of the red band trailer for the movie? Are you interested in seeing it?

Cameron Diaz Joins Colin Firth in Gambit

Krystal Clark — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 21:33:20 +0000

Over the past year, Ethan and Joel Coen, along with director Michael Hoffman have been developing a remake of the 1966 film Gambit. We know a lot of you were probably thinking of the famous X-Men character when you read the title, but alas, it’s not him. He may not be a mutant, but this Gambit is also a thief, and he’ll be played by Oscar hopeful Colin Firth. Deadline is reporting that the female lead, which was previously played by Shirley MacLaine, has been filled with Cameron Diaz.

The original Gambit centered on a cat burglar who tries to rob a billionaire of his priceless statue and enlists the help of a waitress who is a dead ringer for the victim’s late wife. While the burglar has carefully planned the job in his head, the execution is complicated by his relationship with his pretty accomplice.

The remake will have Firth playing a London art curator who plans to con a wealthy collector into buying a phony Monet painting. He enlists a Texas steer roper (Diaz) to pose as a woman whose grandfather liberated the painting at the end of WWII.

Hmm, the plots seem close enough. Gambit will mark the first time in 25 years that the Coen brothers have written a script for a film that they won’t also direct.

What do you think of Diaz and Firth teaming up?

The Green Hornet: Movie Review

Krystal Clark — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 04:45:09 +0000

The Green Hornet is opening in a theater near you and he’s accompanied by his trusted partner Kato. Seth Rogen co-wrote and stars in this big screen adaptation of the popular TV series and radio show that centers on a millionaire who tries to clean up the crime-filled streets. The film is directed by Michel Gondry, and features a few of his visual signatures but nothing overwhelming. For more on the film, check out the review…

The Players:

Director: Michel Gondry
Screenwriters: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
The Cast: Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Cameron Diaz, Tom Wilkinson, Edward James Olmos, David Harbour
Cinematography By: John Schwartzman
Original Music By: James Newton Howard

The Plot:

The Green Hornet centers on a Britt Reid (Rogen), a party boy and heir to a publishing empire. After the sudden death of his father, he along with his new companion Kato bond over a desire to rebel and end up becoming vigilante heroes. With the help of the newspaper and Reid’s secretary Lenore (Diaz) they work their way up the crime ladder until they reach the top dog, Chudnofsky (Waltz).

The Good:

The Homages: There were several homages to The Green Hornet TV series in this film. I won’t tell you what or where they are because their impact would be ruined. Just take comfort in knowing that there’s more than one wink to the source material, and fans of the original will notice.

The So-So:

The 3D: This 3D film was post-converted, but the process took a lot longer than most. You would assume that with that extra time, the effect would be near perfect right? Wrong. The beginning scenes start off strong and clear, but after 30 minutes in, you can notice excessive blurriness in the background and the depth of field isn’t as sharp.
The Action: It’s no secret that Kato dominates all the fight scenes but the choreography used was nothing to write home about. It was standard. He doesn’t do anything that blows you away. There’s a lot of build up but never a huge pay off.

The Bad:

James Reid: Is he supposed to be loved or hated? James is Britt’s father and to be frank, he comes across as an a-hole. They even refer to him as a “dick” and a “douche” multiple times. Who is this guy?
Britt/Lenore/Kato Triangle: The relationship between Kato and Britt goes from 0-60 in a matter of 10 minutes. If that’s not strange enough, they throw in Diaz’s character Lenore who’s sort of a love interest but not really. Their dynamic is strange, forced, and unnatural.
The Casting: Everyone is wrong! Besides the obviousness of Rogen, Diaz was an odd choice to play the female sidekick, Olmos sulks the entire time he’s on screen, Wilkinson is wasted, and Waltz is completely unrecognizable as the Oscar winner he is. A lot of talent is underused.

Overall:

The Green Hornet is a standard action comedy that has a buddy cop feel to it. At the end of the day, this adaptation wasn’t needed. It does nothing to improve upon the original. It’s just here.

Rating: 6/10

The Green Hornet opens in theaters January 14.

Photo Gallery:

Trailer:

Will you be seeing The Green Hornet this weekend?

Cameron Diaz Interested in Charlie’s Angels 3?

Krystal Clark — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 16:03:00 +0000

The last time we saw Charlie’s Angels on the big screen it was 2003, when Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Lui were joined by a young Shia LaBeouf and Bernie Mac. The modern day send up of the vintage television show made a decent amount of money but seemed to have run out of steam shortly after its release. Recently, Diaz was asked about her stance on the future of the franchise and whether or not she’s interested in reprising her role to complete a trilogy.

Diaz stated that she’d love to do another movie because they’re fun and exciting, but she feels that it’s time for a new group of Angels to hit the scene.

“I don’t know if we’ll do it. I mean, we played the movie as the new crop of Charlie’s Angels and we never were trying to be [or] pretend we were the other girls. So it might just be time for a new crop of girls to come on.”

Her co-star Barrymore also served as a producer on the films, and her and Diaz are very close friends. Perhaps she can persuade her to give the team another shot? If not, we don’t think anyone will lose sleep over it. This year we’ll see our fair share of ass-kicking girls with Zack Snyder’s Sucker Punch. Those ladies can pick up where the Angels left off.

Do you want to see another Charlie’s Angels sequel? Should the old cast return? Who would you pick as the new girls?

Source: Showbiz Spy

Five Green Hornet International Posters

Krystal Clark — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 19:53:19 +0000

Next month’s The Green Hornet has gone international. Five posters have been released overseas for Michel Gondry’s latest feature film, and one of them includes Cameron Diaz. Is it bad that we’ve almost completely forgotten about her involvement with this movie? Sorry Cameron. Check out the five full sized one sheets below…

The Green Hornet is based on the long running radio turned television series that ran during the 1930s and 1960s. The film stars Seth Rogen as Britt Reid, the heir to a major media conglomerate who spends his free time fighting crime as a vigilante hero after the death of his father (Tom Wilkinson). He’s typically aided by his driver Kato (Jay Chou), who just happens to be a martial arts master.

As you might have figured from the posters, Christoph Waltz plays the main villain in the film, while Diaz’s character works with Rogen’s Britt Reid. Personally, the character poster featuring Waltz is our favorite and the French group version comes in as a close second.

The Green Hornet opens in theaters everywhere on January 14, 2011.

What do you think of the posters? Which one is your favorite?

Sources: IMP Awards Allocine

New Action Packed Trailer for The Green Hornet

Krystal Clark — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 00:42:47 +0000

A new trailer has been released for Michel Gondry’s latest film, The Green Hornet. Doesn’t it seem like everything “green” is debuting this week? First we had the Green Lantern trailer from Warner Bros and now Sony has released a new one for Hornet. What can they do to set this film apart from the other green guy? They can add Kato-vision!!! Check it out…

Green Hornet is based on the long running radio turned television series that ran during the 1930s and 1960s. The film stars Seth Rogen as Britt Reid, the heir to a major media conglomerate who spends his free time fighting crime as a vigilante hero after the death of his father (Tom Wilkinson). He’s typically aided by his driver Kato (Jay Chou), who just happens to be a martial arts master.

As much as we all want to hate this film, the early reviews for it haven’t been bad. Maybe we’ll be pleasantly surprised by what Rogen and Chou have to offer? I’m not personally invested in it because Bruce Lee will always be Kato in my eyes, but I don’t hold a grudge against Chou.

The Green Hornet will open in theaters on January 14.

What do you think of the new trailer for The Green Hornet? Are you interested in seeing the film?

Source: Yahoo

Explosive Green Hornet Trailer Plus Two New Photos

Krystal Clark — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 15:00:14 +0000

As promised, the first trailer for Michel Gondry’s The Green Hornet has finally arrived! It was originally scheduled to premiere on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” but I guess Yahoo Movies said screw that and decided to debut it instead. Either way, its time to see if months of reshoots and recasts were a good or a bad sign of things to come. Check out the trailer and tell us what you think…

Green Hornet is based on the long running radio turned television series that ran during the 1930s and 1960s. The film stars Seth Rogen as Britt Reid, a young newspaper publisher who spends his free time fighting crime as a vigilante hero. He’s typically aided by his driver Kato (Jay Chou), who just happens to be a martial arts master. The film also stars Cameron Diaz as the female lead and Christoph Waltz as the villain.

I’m not completely blown away by this trailer but it’s not as bad as I thought. It looks like every other glossy superhero movie that’s come out in the past few years. There’s nothing really groundbreaking here.

Green Hornet is scheduled to hit theaters on January 14, 2011 and will be available in both 2D and 3D. The film will also open simultaneously in IMAX and conventional theaters.

What do you think of the first photo of Green Hornet? Does it look better or worse than you thought it would?

Source: Collider

Sneak Peek Video: Green Hornet Trailer

Krystal Clark — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 23:59:28 +0000

Update: The theatrical trailer is now online. Watch it now!

Entertainment Tonight has released a sneak peek at the teaser trailer for Michel Gondry’s The Green Hornet. It’s scheduled to debut on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” this evening with an introduction by star Seth Rogen. The clip from ET is about a minute long and shows some pretty slick action on Jay Chou’s part and we get our first glimpse of Christoph Waltz as the villain. Take a look…

The majority of the dialogue in the footage is muted with the exception of Mark Steines’ voice over. We see Britt Reid (Rogen) being shown the world of vigilante crime fighting via Kato his driver and sidekick. Cameron Diaz also makes an appearance as a news reporter, and Waltz is doing his best contemporary bad guy impersonation complete with a leather jacket and a Caesar hair cut.

Earlier today we brought you the first official photos released from the film and now this preview clip. Columbia is pulling out all the stops to make sure that this movie has high visibility prior to its release.

Green Hornet is scheduled to hit theaters on January 14, 2011 and will be available in both 2D and 3D. The film will also open simultaneously in IMAX and conventional theaters.

What do you think of the preview footage for The Green Hornet trailer?

Extended International Knight and Day Trailer

Krystal Clark — Thu, 27 May 2010 19:14:52 +0000

Another trailer has been released for James Mangold’s action comedy Knight and Day, and not only is it new, but it’s international and extended! That means you get more of Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz’s wacky antics to occupy your screen for a good 3 minutes. But your personal affinity for the couple might determine whether or not you enjoy this trailer. Check it out…

Knight and Day centers on a lonely woman whose harmless meeting with a man turns her life upside-down when a super spy takes her on a violent worldwide journey. The film also stars Peter Sarsgaard, Paul Dano, Marc Blucas, and Maggie Grace.

It looks like they’ve pretty much shown the entire movie in this trailer. We wouldn’t be a shocked if these were all the best parts of the film and the rest of the movie is nothing but filler material to occupy our time until we get to this stuff. Come on trailer editing people leave something to the imagination!

Knight and Day is scheduled to hit theaters on June 25, 2010.

What do you think of the international and extended trailer for Knight and Day? Are you interested in seeing the film?

Shrek 4: Movie Review

Mali Elfman — Fri, 21 May 2010 00:00:21 +0000

Another Shrek, another chance to see your favorite animated characters and another chance to be reminded of the genius that was the first film, without this being the first film. The problem with this entire series is that it started with a bang, fell to a whimper, and with it’s grand finale is simply enough to make up for how much it’s lost without really ever wow-ing us. Shrek Forever After is a good movie, they were creative in finding a way to make the characters fresh again, and there were definitely enough laughs in it to leave me satisfied, BUT it wasn’t without a few problems. But lets starts at the top…

The Players:

Director: Mike Mitchell
Produced by: Teresa Cheng and Gina Shay
Writers: Josh Klausner and Darren Lemke
Actors: Mike Myers (Shrek), Eddie Murphy (Donkey), Cameron Diaz (Princess Fiona), Antonio Banderas (Puss in Boots), Julie Andrews (Queen), Jon Hamm (Brogan), John Cleese (King), Craig Robinson (Cookie), Walt Dohrn (Rumpelstiltskin/Priest/Krekraw Ogre), Jane Lynch (Gretched)
Music By: Harry Gregson-Williams

The Synopsis:

As Shrek settles into his perfect life, he begins to get bored and wishes he could have just one day to himself. He makes a pact with deal-maker Rumpelstiltskin to get back to feeling like a real ogre again, but of course he forgets to read the fine print and is damned to a twisted version of Far Far Away — where Rumpelstiltskin is king, ogres are hunted, and he and Fiona have never met — he sets out to restore his world and get a kiss from his true love in order to set everything right again — oh what a kiss can do in Far Far Away!

The Good:

Bit of a Comeback: This is definitely no where near as good as the first film, but it’s definitely a revival from the third and on a slight improvement from the second.
Donkey: Whichever main characters you liked in the first film, you’ll like in this film, mainly because they went back to the beginning, came up with a way to make it fresh and then capitalized on what you loved. For me The Donkey is still the saving grace and the minor characters are really where the belly laughs come in.
Kids/Adult Film: This is definitely a good kids/adult film, meaning that there were definitely a lot of opportunities for both parties to enjoy the film. I would bring my little brother, despite the little girl next to me who pointed to the screen and said “I don’t like that movie.”
Music: The music and the throw backs to famous songs is so important for this film and as always the music was well placed and well used to really make those laughs hit home.
Solid Ending: It’s as predictable and cheesy as it comes, but a nice twist on the original story and if there was ever a moment to go a little over the top, this was it.
Fun Cameos: As always, it’s the smaller characters that pop up in each film that make this series so fun. There were a lot of good cameos but…

The Bad:

Not Enough in the Cameos: There were lots of different characters and cameos, but they were never fully utilized. Craig Robinson has about 3 lines, 3 good lines, but that’s all. Same goes for John Hamm and Jane Lynch. They were solid and fun, but just not as potent as say the gingerbread man in the first film.
No Surprises: Overall, the film is very predictable. Which might have worked for the ending, but you need some suspense in the middle to keep you going. The thing that the first film had going for it was that it was an original idea, with brand new animation and a something different for us to be blown away by. This film tried to revive itself by creating a new world and did so in part, but it was very predictable and may have been an improvement for the Shrek series, but doesn’t really compare to some of the other animations out there today.
3D: For me, the 3-D in this film felt like a gimmick. It was fun and well added but not needed. It felt like they were trying to make a little extra money on their last hoora!

Rating: 7.5/10

Shrek Forever After made it’s premiere at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival on April 21st and is scheduled to hit theaters on May 21st.

Overall:

It’s no work of genius but the last 30 minutes have the best jokes which will definitely leave you walking out of the theater smiling and it’s worth seeing.

Photos:

Trailer:

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ScreenCrave.com » Cameron Diaz

Bad Teacher: Movie Review

The Players

The Story

The Good

The Bad

Overall

Rating: 7.5/10

Trailer:

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The Green Hornet: Movie Review

The Players:

The Plot:

The Good:

The So-So:

The Bad:

Overall:

Rating: 6/10

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Trailer:

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Shrek 4: Movie Review

The Players:

The Synopsis:

The Good:

The Bad:

Rating: 7.5/10

Overall:

Photos:

Trailer:

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