tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post8375038367365740575..comments2024-03-10T10:56:38.185-04:00Comments on the passionate moviegoer: Mike Judge's Jack Lemmon Moviejoe baltakehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467420961490314339noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-28502844314649444442010-03-07T05:32:57.206-05:002010-03-07T05:32:57.206-05:00I completely forgot about this film.. need to see ...I completely forgot about this film.. need to see it..The Kid In The Front Rowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11284758898483746863noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-65594353073514751722009-12-01T04:21:30.759-05:002009-12-01T04:21:30.759-05:00A good movie, but it's on the margins of the m...A good movie, but it's on the margins of the mainstream...i hope that Judge future will be more in-stream of the mainstream, what about another B&B movie? :)stream movieshttp://www.moviesplanet.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-2366315227542035342009-09-14T12:09:52.471-04:002009-09-14T12:09:52.471-04:00Idiocracy depressed me (because it really seems li...Idiocracy depressed me (because it really seems like that's what our world is becoming). It was a little too accurate.Sylkonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-33899574392477211852009-09-10T21:15:02.305-04:002009-09-10T21:15:02.305-04:00I love the way Mike Judge's mind works. This ...I love the way Mike Judge's mind works. This wasn't as good as Office Space or Idiocracy but still entertaining and insightful. It was a (refreshing) surprise having the Kristin Wiig character act on her impulses; I was sure it was going to be a big misunderstanding, so that was quite a twist. Loved the awful neighbor.Anna O.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-88776879523135822352009-09-10T15:30:15.153-04:002009-09-10T15:30:15.153-04:00I hope to see this before it gets away. Like Judg...I hope to see this before it gets away. Like Judge's other live action films, this one looks destined for poor returns and a short run, followed by cult devotion. <br /><br />Bateman was also excellent in HANCOCK, in another role that might have been an interesting fit for Lemmon.jbryantnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-86406905879528166332009-09-10T10:41:57.707-04:002009-09-10T10:41:57.707-04:00Hey, Dan-
Amazingly I agree with some of your res...Hey, Dan-<br /><br />Amazingly I agree with some of your reservations, particularly about how condescending the Bateman character is to his workers. That definitely isn't something you'd find in a Lemmon film. Also, Lemmon was never smug but, frankly, I have never found Bateman very smug either. But that's me. Maybe it's just a matter of perception. One man's smile is another man's smirk.<br /><br />No, Judge is no Billy Wilder, but "Sam" was directed by David Swift - although that doesn't seem like a good comparison either.<br /><br />I, too, was amused by Gleiberman's misguided reference to a bad Segal comedy from the '70s. He's not only a full decade off, but I also think that Segal's brand of urban angst was hardly a template for Judge's film.<br /><br />Read you often on phawker.com. So feel free to plug away!joe baltakehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11467420961490314339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-15056109270313748512009-09-10T10:26:49.276-04:002009-09-10T10:26:49.276-04:00I wish I could see the film you're imagining, ...I wish I could see the film you're imagining, oh what Billy Wilder could have done with this material!<br /><br />But Judge doesn't have the steady hand with tone that Wilder did (who does?) and Jason Bateman is no Jack Lemmon (something about Bateman always comes off as smug to me). <br /><br />And something about the set up just seems wrong to me. Neither Bateman's philandering nor his wife's seduction by the gigolo is given the proper justification. A sixties sex comedy would likely dangle the sex without having them give in; it seemed to alienating to have both the characters indulge in their fantasies without guilt. <br /><br />I also went on at length on a piece at phawker.com (excuse the self-promotion) about it being less funny to have a boss laughing mean-spiritedly at his workers than vice-versa. I'll accept the charge that this is just the old Lefty in me.<br /><br />I did laugh at Owen Gleiberman's review in Entertainment Weekly, saying the film "plays like Kevin Smith remaking a bad George Segal comedy from 1978". I really enjoyed Judge's first two films but EXTRACT's script fell far short for me. I think it might be the hardest task for a director to attempt, to consistently craft quality comedies.Dan Buskirkhttp://phawker.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-32113624666216198152009-09-10T10:21:50.121-04:002009-09-10T10:21:50.121-04:00Bateman has been especially terrific of late - &qu...Bateman has been especially terrific of late - "Juno," "The Ex," "State of Play," "The Promotion" and smaller roles in "The Break Up" and "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." And he isn't bad at all in his first major role - "Teen Wolf, Too"! I could easily see him stepping into some of Lemmon's signature roles, particularly "The Apartment" and "Mister Roberts." It looks as if Judge had a good time directing him as a good-natured shlub in "Extract" who somehow entrances people, getting loyalty (and the best) out of them. Very Lemmonesque.Alexnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-63546714402252312852009-09-10T09:21:37.191-04:002009-09-10T09:21:37.191-04:00Both Lemmon and Bateman have that everyman qualit...Both Lemmon and Bateman have that everyman quality, although I think Bateman is more low-keyed. So I disagree with Brian's use of the word "antic." I think what the two actors also have in common is an ability to play all gradations of the everyman achetype. Lemmon had Billy Wilder to show him the way and maybe Judge will do that for Bateman. I'd like to see them make more films together.B. Robbinsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18439960.post-7828852569396861502009-09-09T22:01:35.127-04:002009-09-09T22:01:35.127-04:00Hey, I agree! I hadn't thought about it when ...Hey, I agree! I hadn't thought about it when I saw "Extract," but "transport" is the right word. It is definitely a throwback to Lemmon's sex comedies of the '60s. Bateman even kinda looks like the young Lemmon and he has Lemmon’s antic physical manuevering down pat. Lemmon specialized in frustration, angst and unfulfilled desire and all those things come through in "Extract"Briannoreply@blogger.com