Jeff Who Lives at Home

This film is not what I expected. Jason Segal being the star made me think it would be a movie with broader humor but it really was more of a funny movie with a spiritual or holistic flag.

Jeff is a 30 year who lives at home in his Mon's basement. Susan Sarandon is his frustrated Mom.

Ed Helms is his brother who thinks his wife is cheating on him.

Jeff gets a wrong number phone call from someone looking for Kevin and thinks that he now has been shown his future, his purpose, and it has something to do with Kevin.

His brother tells him to grow up, get a real job, but Jeff will not be deterred.

A traffic jam brings the story to a conclusion that one should have felt coming but for me was a surprise.

Not a great movie. Still it is almost impossible to not find Jason Segal likable in whatever he does.

The Muppets

The whole family went to see The Muppet Movie Wednesday night. All the kids, even the teenagers and Nana too. It has been quite sometime since The Muppets made a movie.

In this movie which was written as a labor of love by Jason Segal we meet two brothers. Gary, played by Segal and his brother Walter who is, although not noticed by them a Muppet. Walter is also the worlds greatest fan of all things Muppet.

Gary is to visit Hollywood with his long time girlfriend Mary, played by Amy Adams. A short aside here, is there anyone in the movies today who at least appears cuter and sweeter than Amy Adams. She might be on her way to being this generations Domma Reed. Then I remember that she played the mouthy girlfriend in The Fighter and realize that she has little to worry about as far as being typecast.

Gary and Mary decide to take Walter so they can visit The Muppet Theatre and are shocked to find that it is falling apart with only a dusty tour to prove it was ever a building that housed The Muppets.

Walter after having snuck into Kermit's office while the tour goes on overhears Tex Richman talking about his plan to buy the theatre when The Muppets lease runs out and then drill for the oil discovered under the theatre.

What follows is a montage of gathering up the old gang including a going gray Fozzie Bear and Miss Piggy in France. Watch the Muppets travel by map and you will wish that you could.

This movie is sweet. It also feels like it is true to it's origins. Guest Stars abound including Neil Patrick Harris, Dave Grohl, and many others.

My son told his friends he went and told them it was a cute little movie. For a 16 year old to admit this means it must have been.

Bad Teacher

What to do on a Saturday night as you wait for the snow to start flying and ruin your Halloween decorations. Netflix is cancelled so you have not ordered a movie and cannot stream one. You go to the RedBox ( which now lets you reserve a movie ) and rent Bad Teacher for a dollar.

I am not a Cameron Diaz fan. I think her movie roles have gotten crasser and crasser and after having seen her on a few talk shows I am not sure she is a person that comes across as particularly likeable. That said with Jason Segal and others the movie had potential.

Quickly however the movie becomes a one joke, and not a good joke, pony. Diaz is a bad teacher. She does not try. She drinks, smokes, and curses......at school. Trying to seduce the new teacher ( Justin Timberlake) who she presumes to be wealthy she loses him to a rival teacher. A teacher that loves teaching and is just a little too peppy.


The car wash scene is gratioutus and over time even Miss Halsey ( Diaz ) comes to realize just how superficial she has become. By the end of the movie she has had a revalation and decided that everyman gym teacher is a better choice. Jason Segal is very likable in this role.

Not a great movie though. Not one I can reccomend. In fact two of the movies I have panned lately have been Justin Timberlake movies. He needs to make better choices.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

This movie was my most recent " I cannot sleep what's on HBO" find. I remember when it first came out and all the talk was of Jason Segal and his full nude scenes. And he did. But after you got over that the movie was good.

Playing Peter a composer dumped unceremoniously by his girlfriend Sarah Marshall ( Kristin Bell ) Segal is the star of the show. His everyman looks and natural likability carries the film. Kristin Bell is cute and attractive but her character is not likeable, although she does become more sympathetic when we hear of the rut Peter was in pre breakup.

Mila Kunis form That 70's Show is good as the hotel hostess who starts a relationship with Peter but for me the real surprise was the role of Aldous Snow played by Russell Brand. I had only known of Brand as the nasty comic host of MTV video awards and as Mrs Katy Perry of late but he was quite funny and likable in his role as Kristin Bell's new man.

Nothing unpredictable in this movie but at 1230 at night it was well worth a few chuckles.

Rating: 6