Tag Archives: Regina Hall

ME TIME (2022): The Things I Liked…

Me Time (2022), Mark Wahlberg, Netflix
Me Time (2022), Mark Wahlberg, Netflix

Me Time, director John Hamburg’s latest comedy about a dad who reluctantly decides to spend his me-time reconnecting with a childhood friend, does have some memorable scenes. 

To put it another way, I wasn’t feeling great about Kevin Hart and Mark Wahlberg’s latest buddy comedy until the scene with Sonny (Hart) and the mountain Lion cub about 35 minutes into the screening. Said scene is fun and guaranteed to have your full attention while you find yourself happy to be simultaneously scared and amused. 

There are other amusing moments scattered in Me Time. I just can’t say that I was adequately engaged by most of what happened as the movie played. Turns out that the story and how it’s written/ executed didn’t quite prove to be new or exciting enough for me. 

Furthermore, I found it hard to see Wahlberg as his character. And I’m half convinced that the story might have been better suited to characters at least a decade younger. Perhaps that way, a few of their choices might have proven more believable.

I still feel that a Hart and Wahlberg movie is a good idea. Me Time just wasn’t the right film.

In addition to the mountain lion moment, other highlights include the dialogue of the characters played by Andrew Santino, Jimmy O. Yang, and Shira Gross’s Dorit.

Give Me Timea chance if you must. You may find that it holds your attention far better than it did mine. 

Happy Film Loving 

G

LITTLE (2018): The Thing I Liked…

Little (2019), Issa Rae, Universal Pictures
Little (2019), Issa Rae, Universal Pictures

Little, the comedy about a woman struggling with the pressures of adulthood, and somehow gets to relive the life of her younger self is a movie that did not live up to the promise of the its great trailer. I actually enjoyed the Little trailer so much that for a few days there, I confess to playing it instead of uptempo music as I worked out.

Starring Issa Rae, Regina Hall, Justin Hartley and Marsai Martin, I knew things weren’t great when I found myself losing interest approximately 12 minutes in. The disappointment was so real for me that I actually became quite impatient for Martin’s young character’s arrival; all in hopes that my feelings about director Tina Gordon’s film would improve. They did not. Instead I felt a strong sense of disappointment coursing through me. Okay, maybe ‘coursing’ is a tad strong but I definitely wasn’t happy. In fact I’d best describe Little as mostly flat and bad, with moments of dodgy dialogue including some ‘definitely could have been better acting.’ 

I’m sure it didn’t help that once again, near enough all the best bits were featured in the trailer, leaving not much else to enjoy. And since the premise is far from fresh, the chances that Little would be a great experience weren’t the best. I still like Hall and Rae. I’m just not pleased with the end result of this movie that they made.

In terms of what I liked about Little, that would be everything before the twelfth minute, when I was still hopeful. I also enjoyed the back of Hall’s character’s striped blue shirt – including the joke that’s made at its expense. 

If you like Tom Hanks’ 1988 classic Big, the film that inspired Little,  watch it again instead. Unless you really need to see Little for yourself. Who knows, perhaps the end result would have been different – in a good way if Martin had been a teenager, as Hanks’ character was in Big. Perhaps 

Happy Film Loving 

G

SHAFT (2019): New Trailer From Samuel L. Jackson, Regina Hall, Jessie T. Usher, Richard Roundtree…

Shaft (2019),Jessie T. Usher, Samuel L. Jackson, Richard Roundtree
Shaft (2019),Jessie T. Usher, Samuel L. Jackson, Richard Roundtree

Directed by Tim Story, Shaft is the latest crime / action movie starring once again Samuel L. Jackson as New York City police detective John Shaft.

Shaft’s son John Shaft Jr. (Jessie T. Usher) is in town to enlist his father’s help to uncover the truth behind his best friend’s untimely death.

I don’t remember seeing the Shaft movies that came before this new instalment. All I know is that so far, I like the humour. Especially Shaft’s response to his son’s reference to James Bond: ”If that dude was real, he’d think he was me.

Shaft Release Dates: June 14th, 2019 (US & UK)…

Happy Film Loving

G

SUPPORT THE GIRLS (2018): The Thing I Liked…

Support The Girls (2018), Regina Hall
Support The Girls (2018), Regina Hall

I was looking forward to Support The Girls as a fan of Regina Hall and an enthusiast of movies that show beautiful, healthy sisterly bonds. Having made it to the end of writer / directer Andrew Bujalski’s movie, I’m still a fan of Hall who performed well. Nevertheless, I found this movie quite awkward.

Hall plays the general manager of a highway-side sports bar. Through the course of one day, her incurable optimism and faith in herself, her customers and her team – which features some peculiar characters is tested. 

Soon after hitting play, the pace of Support The Girls started to dull my initial excitement. The film seemed to move slowly and part of the problem is that I found myself very often wondering what exactly was going on.

In the end I could appreciate and identify with Hall’s character’s need to take care of her team. Particularly as, situations where women are taking care of each other, especially when confronted by toxic masculinity always warm my heart. Unfortunately, this movie’s rhythm just never quite synchronised with mine.

As for the ‘comedy’ categorisation, I don”t recall laughing, though I may have smiled a few times.

Even though I didn’t love it, there are definitely people who really had a good time watching Support The Girls, so maybe you’ll be one of them. Watch it if you’re curious enough.

Haley Lu Richardson, Dylan Gelula, Brooklyn Decker, Dylan Gelula, AJ Michalka and Lea DeLaria also star.

Happy Film Loving

G

SUPPORT THE GIRLS (2018): New Trailer From Regina Hall, Haley Lu Richardson, Dylan Gelula, Brooklyn Decker…

Support The Girls (2018), Haley Lu Richardson, Regina Hall
Support The Girls (2018), Haley Lu Richardson, Regina Hall

In the Andrew Bujalski written / directed comedy, Support The Girls, Regina Hall is Lisa, the general manager of a highway-side ‘sports bar with curves.’

The story is set over the course of a long strange day that tests Lisa’s incurable optimism and faith in her girls, her customers, and herself. Haley Lu Richardson, Dylan Gelula, Brooklyn Decker, Dylan Gelula, AJ Michalka and Lea DeLaria co-star…

I’m in for the love and sisterhood between the ladies. I’m also quite happy to see Hall in a promising leading role. I’ve been a fan ever since her ‘Candy’ character in The Best Man (1999).

Read my spoiler free movie review of  Support The Girls

 Support The Girls Release Dates: August 24th, 2018 (US)…

Happy Film Loving

G

THE HATE U GIVE (2018): New Trailer Staring Amandla Stenberg, Anthony Mackie, Regina Hall, Issa Rae, K.J. Apa

The hate U Give (2018), Amandla Stenberg
The Hate U Give (2018), Amandla Stenberg

In new crime / drama The Hate You Give, Amandla Stenberg stars as young Starr, a teenager who witnesses the fatal shooting of her best friend at the hands of a police officer. A tragic event that forces her to find her voice and stand up for what’s right.

Directed by George Tillman Jr., key cast includes Amandla Stenberg, Anthony Mackie, Issa Rae, Regina Hall, K.J. Apa, Common, Russell Hornsby…

I’m very interested in watching Starr’s journey from relatively carefree teenager to community leader. Such a timely story –  The Hate You Give is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Angie Thomas.

The Hate U Give Release Dates: October 19th, 2018 (US); November 2nd, 2018 (US)…

Happy Film Loving

G

GIRLS TRIP (2017): The Thing I Like

Girls Trip (2017), Regina King, Jada Pinkett Smith, Queen Latifah, Tiffany Haddish
Girls Trip (2017), Regina King, Jada Pinkett Smith, Queen Latifah, Tiffany Haddish

Girls Trip is a Michael D. Lee (The Best Man Holiday (2013) directed comedy about lifelong friends getting together, in New Orleans for a fun-filled few days after several years apart. 

The film’s main stars Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett Smith and Tiffany Haddish all got to shine in their respective roles. However, as everyone has been saying, it is indeed Haddish who absolutely stole the show with her loyal and rather ‘out there’ character – thanks no doubt to her impressive comic timing/delivery.

Girls Trip features a healthy amount of outrageous fun to keep you engaged. As hilarious as it all was, what I loved most about this movie is the way the story of love and general sisterhood between the four friends is handled. A sisterhood enriched with a certain level of realism that I wasn’t expecting; particularly in regards to the relationship between Latifah and Hall’s characters.

I liked that New Orleans was the setting for this story, if only because it reminded me that I need to make it to that place one day. The setting and the music also had me thinking of Chef (2014), a movie I love and recommend, not just because part of it is also set in New Orleans.

Watch Girls Trip because there’s truth in all the positive feedback. 

Happy Film Loving

G

NAKED (2017): It’s…

Naked (2017), Marlon Wayans
Naked (2017), Marlon Wayans

Naked is another movie that’s inspired by Groundhog Day (1993). Except this time, instead of a weatherman, a future groom is forced to relive the same nerve-wracking hours over and over again until he learns what he’s supposed to learn to become a better person.

Directed by Michael Tiddes, part of my issue with Naked is that Marlon Wayans’s character just wasn’t trying hard enough to make it to the wedding. Some of the movie  felt quite silly and sadly not as smart as such a story ought to be. Wayans’s character ended up being too over the top in pats to be amusing. I’ve basically concluded that I’ll probably have to stick to a younger me’s memories of Senseless (1998), one of the few Wayans performances I really enjoyed. There’s also the Scream parody films Scary Movie too, I think.

This year alone I’ve seen 3 movies all for the first time and about characters re-living the same day over and over again. There are a few well executed moments in Naked but not enough to make this movie the kind I recommend.

Watch it if you must, but only if you simply must.

Happy Film Loving

G