Netflix And Chill: The Wrong Missy (2020)

Tyler Spindel is an actor who has recently built up his filmography with a number of directing jobs (including Father Of The Year, a film with the same lead). I don't think it's really fair to dismiss his potential talent just yet, because he at least shows a minimal degree of competency behind the camera, but it's fair to say that he needs to pick some better projects to work on if he wants to improve in his field.

The Wrong Missy is a star vehicle for David Spade. And I know that sentence is enough to scare away many sane movie fans. But it gets worse. The plot is all about how his character, Tim, somehow accidentally invites the wrong woman, Missy (Lauren Lapkus), along to a work retreat he is attending in Hawaii. Spade is trying to make a good impression, of course. He has an unbelievable attractive ex, of course. And if you are already starting to suspect that Missy may be annoying and disruptive in a way that leads to some valuable life lessons and potential resolutions for the characters then give yourself a cookie.

Unlike many people, I tend to enjoy the screen presence of people such as Spade. I still watch Adam Sandler movies (and not just Uncut Gems), I'll throw on some older Rob Schneider film if wanting something undemanding that will give me occasional chuckles, and Spade is part of that group. I can see why every single one of them would annoy people, but they frequently do enough to keep me moderately entertained. It's a low bar, I know, but it is what it is.

The Wrong Missy is pretty bad, even for a David Spade movie. He hasn't done anything solid in many years now (perhaps Joe Dirt being the last one that made me laugh enough to actually consider it one I enjoy, and own), and I have no reason to believe that he's suddenly going to start worrying about the quality of his output while being paid for crap like this. He's not helped by the weak script, from Chris Pappas and Kevin Barnett, and the film also suffers from the fact that it doesn't compensate for the leads, and material, with a better supporting cast. Schneider appears in a small role, Nick Swardson has a main role, and they're really the only ones worth mentioning. Oh, Sarah Chalke is the gorgeous ex, and always a welcome presence.

Although Spade is doing his usual stuff, it's all the more irritating when juxtaposed alongside the nonsense from Lapkus. I cannot recall seeing Lapkus in much, and this has not made me a fan. Her characters is made to be far too grating, unbalancing the whole film because you cannot believe that anyone would give her more than a minute of their time. By the time you get to the expected changes of heart in the third act, it's all just too hard to swallow.

If it wasn't clear enough already, I do not often have high standards when it comes to mainstream comedy movies. This film didn't even manage to meet those.

3/10

https://ko-fi.com/kevinmatthews

April Fools: A Haunted House (2013)

A parody full of juvenile humour that focuses on sex and/or flatulence, it must be something created by one of the Wayans brothers. Lo and behold, yes it is. Marlon Wayans co-wrote this one with Rick Alvarez, and he also gets the leading role, funnily enough.

Wayans is Malcolm, a young man about to take a big step in his relationship with Kisha (Essence Atkins). Yes, they're moving in together. Unfortunately, that's the cue for a lot of supernatural shenanigans, which leads to Malcolm fitting the house with lots of cameras, in an attempt to see just what is going on in their home.

Mainly referencing the Paranormal Activity series for most of the gags, this film also lifts moments from The Last Exorcism and The Devil Inside. That's not surprising, especially for anyone who saw the trailers. What IS surprising is how many gags manage to avoid being completely awful. I can't say that I thought A Haunted House was good, it's not one I would ever want to watch again, but it was certainly better than I thought it was going to be. There were even one or two moments that made me smirk.

Wayans is slightly less annoying than usual here, but he's still annoying. Has he ever done anything in which he wasn't annoying? Probably, but I really can't think of anything just now. Essence Atkins is a little bit more enjoyable, and the supporting turns from David Koechner, Cedric The Entertainer and Nick Swardson provide some chuckles. I just wish the same could be said of everyone given screentime (Affion Crockett isn't great, but he's also given some of the worst material to work with).

The script is as lowbrow as expected, and the direction from Michael Tiddes works with the material to hammer home each joke and ensure that things are kept tasteless. Why hint at something when it can be shown? Subtlety is not a keyword here.

There's an audience for this kind of movie (the sequel was greenlit a while ago, god help us) but I'll never be a fan. My generous rating reflects the few gags that worked, and worked well. The dialogue between Koechner and Wayans is particularly enjoyable, and perhaps it's worth noting that their best moment doesn't directly parody any other movie.

4/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Haunted-House-Blu-ray-Marlon-Wayans/dp/B00ECWY18E/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1397041646&sr=1-2&keywords=a+haunted+house

Reno 911!: Miami (2007)

While I never watched the TV version of Reno 911! I was somehow always aware of it. It was a parody of the "COPS"-style TV shows that have become so popular over the last decade or so and featured some great comedy from two people I really enjoy seeing onscreen - Thomas Lennon and Wendi McLendon-Covey. Maybe if I'd seen some episodes I would have enjoyed it. Maybe not.

The plot sees our hapless police officers invited to a big event in Miami. It's not that they're special, or that anyone actually wanted them there, but the fact is that this time around everyone was invited. Things start off as you would expect - the group are mocked and their details can't be found on the system - but things swiftly turn around the next day when a terrorist attack leaves every other officer quarantined inside the main event building. Law and order must remain and it's up to the folks from Reno to uphold it. Uh oh.

Directed by Robert Ben Garant (who also co-wrote the thing with stars Thomas Lennon and Kerri Kenney - and, I'm sure, everyone who was able to improv some lines), this movie suffers due to the fact that every single character is just slightly too dumb to be amusing for an entire film. The cops are dumb, of course, but The Rock pops up just to be dumb too. Then we have a dumb, though still amusing, Scarface-inspired baddie played by Paul Rudd. Patton Oswalt, as Jeff Spoder, does reasonably well until the big finale, in which he also becomes pretty dumb. It's a symphony of stupidity and that's a tricky thing to get just right, which is why the movie falls down slightly.

There are many individual moments that cause laughs (the aforementioned appearance from The Rock is one while attempts to remove the body of a beached whale is another) but there are many other moments that pile on the crudity and nonsense without success. Lennon is consistently great, as are Wendi McLendon-Covey and Kerri Kenney, but the other main characters are either undeveloped or just plain unfunny.

With a cast that also features David Koechner and Nick Swardson, and even a small and amusing cameo for Danny DeVito, there's enough stupidity thrown around to make this a passable time-waster but it's not one that I'll choose to watch again.

5/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reno-911-Miami-The-Movie/dp/B000RGUN2W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341255680&sr=8-1