This Weekend's Box Office Battle - Will "Get Smart" beat out "The Love Guru" and other comedic revelations....

And it begins…
This summer is turning out to be a battle of the lukewarm openers. This weekend will mark the opening of “The Love Guru starring Mike Myers and “Get Smart starring Steve Carell. Myers, the one time king of the comedy box office will be pitted against one of the funny men to attempt and possibly succeed in removing the crown. Meyers has not had a “box office success” in the past six years and the last time he grabbed a top spot was with the third installment of the hilarious “Austin Powers” franchise. The reviews are in for both films and it seems that the critics are all choosing “Get Smart” to win the weekend with its fresh take on the classic sitcom from the 1960’s, starring Don Adams. Critics are panning “Guru” and Meyers for the potty mouthed humor and overplayed jokes that are weaved throughout the meditation master spoof. While Myers’ continued commitment to his characters remains strong, viewers aren’t sure there is enough material to really be true to. In an interesting twist, the always lovable Carell took a huge leap, once again, stepping in a role that is almost synonymous with the original creator. Don Adams not only embodied the role of Max Smart, but one might even say that he battled this characterization for the remainder of his years. This is familiar territory for Carell since he became a household name after stepping into the shoes of another funny man, Ricky Gervais, in the American version of “The Office”. “Get Smart” is seemingly winning the battle with the critics, but neither film is being universally touted as a true rip roaring comedy for the summer. In fact that job might have to be taken care of later in the summer with upcoming comedies like ”Step-Brothers” starring Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, ”Tropic Thunder” starring Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black and ”Pineapple Express” starring Seth Rogen and James Franco.

This change in the scope of comedy is a long way coming and it seems that whatever Mike Myers had tried this time around, it might have failed. The comedian, who was recently profiled in not the greatest light by Entertainment Weekly, has been battling the rumors of his being difficult and insane dedication to his roles in Hollywood for years now. But isn’t the true battle him and his comedy stylings are having with the viewers themselves? This weekend’s battle could signal more than just one person being funny over another, but could really be the nail in the coffin to 1990’s style comedies. With the success of Judd Apatow and Co. and their more truthful comedies, it seems that the comedy genre audience itself is developing different tastes, making it more difficult for the old standard to continue to succeed. Ferrell recently hit a wall block with his 8,000 version of the same story with the dismal ”Semi-Pro”, which was too painfully bad to even finish. Ferrell hopefully took the clue and will continue to produce funny comedies that utilize different plot synopsis than “kooky, over weight, out of the limelight big name gets his glory again”, well you get the picture right? We live in a world of entertainment where “Saturday Night Live” is no longer the producer for successful box office demons it once was and actually the only ones coming out of the sketch comedian paradise with the goods are the female comediennes, which is a whole other topic to discuss at a later date. The new comedy camp seems reside in the behind the scenes magic of “Apatown”, with its ever presence of funny men and woman churning out heartfelt comedies. I for one hope that comedians can see the writing on the wall and more importantly, Hollywood execs can once again produce rip roaring comedies all the time. I have not had the opportunity to see either of the big comedies opening up this weekend and will present my personal reviews of them next week. I can say though that I have been beyond psyched for “Get Smart” and not only just for the always funny Carell, but to finally see Duane Johnson, previously known as The Rock, to become a genuine all around movie star, a development way too long in the making.












Whether the box office results show “Guru” or “Smart” at number one, the battle has already been won by the next generation.

Welcome to Apatown: Population Funny!

So today "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" is hitting theaters and nationwide and seems the media is obsessed with it as I am! Last week, I discussed the movie and the big ass star that Jason Segel is about to become and after all the reviews, I can see this picture possibly coming in the number one spot this weekend. Defamer did an interview with Nicholas Stoller the director of the flick and graduate of Apatow and its HILARIOUS! To add into the "FSM" mania, Moviefone posted an interview the stars did, Kristen Bell and Jason Segel did together.


I can't wait to see this movie and I would love to hear what you guys thought of it. Woohoo, only a few months until Pineapple Express!

This weekend, I am going to begin the series on modern Comedy - which will detail the rise of females on SNL, Apatown, Frat Pack and more. This will become a weekly column here, which will coordinate with an upcoming project I am very happy to be working on and you will be learning a lot more about in the near future. So get excited for comedy kids!!!!

I'm so excited for......Forgetting Sarah Marshall

First things first, any movie that has the words Judd Apatow attached to it will be viewed by me. Even if the movie looks like a pile of poop, I will go see it. If you add Jason Segel to the mix, then I am there with bells on. I fell in love with both of these people during the Freaks and Geeks first (and only) season on NBC. So I have been hearing about the “Sarah Marshall” flick since Knocked Up hijacked the media last year and began touting Apatow as the next godfather or comedy.




Over the past two months, they have kicked off a crazy viral marketing campaign that might mirror the intensity of the effort poured into “Cloverfield”. Billboards are all over NYC and I am sure other places, echoing bitter break up comments like” You do look fat in those jeans Sarah Marshall” and various I hate Sarah blogs are sprung up in support of the film. This might be showing us the marketing efforts of the future and how studios are looking to the blogosphere to do their bidding for them. Universal, the studio behind the film, worked directly with MySpace as well to give new content and cast commentary on clips of the film. They are also hosting “break up vlogs” from Peter. I mean my mom asked me “What’s the deal with this Sarah Marshall girl?” the other day.






Now that we know the smarts of the marketing effort, let’s get to the movie itself, which focuses on the lovelorn Peter, Jason Segel, after his breakup with actress Sarah Marshall, played by Kristen Bell. Peter, to get over his love after sleeping with random girls doesn’t work, flies to Hawaii to a resort recommended by Marshall. Of course, Sarah is there as well, with her new rocker boyfriend and let the hilarity ensue. With costars Mila Kunis, Jonah Hill and Bill Hader, this looks like another quality comedy in the Apatow tradition. And from the early reviews I have read, Segel steals the show and proves his worth as a leading man. Segel to me is the quasi lovechild of Tom Hanks circa ’87-’93 and Judge Reinhold circa ’84-’88.



Below is the official trailer for the flick. I am super psyched for this movie to come out finally and will be there opening day!!! You can also check out the Yahoo Sarah Marshall page for other clips and commentary from the cast. e movie is opening in theater nationwide next Friday, April 18th.

Daily Rounds....

As predicted by myself last week, Superbad hit the number one spot this weekend! The Apatow clan vehicle, starring Michael Cera, Jonah Hill and Seth Rogen, made over 31 million dollars this weekend and cementing the new group of comedians in Hollywood. This summer has been amazing for Judd Apatow and his loyal band of funny men with the success of Knocked Up and now, Superbad. And many industry insiders are now describing Apatow and his group the new hit makers. Personally, I am pretty sure NBC is kicking themselves for canceling this FREAKING AMAZING show show after one season. And here are the rest of this weekend’s box office results:

I am going out on a limb here and will say this blind item is about Cuba Gooding Jr.???? This dude has been running all over NYC making out with young ladies, who are not his wife, with a whole crew of friends. If you want your chance, he usually finds himself at Stereo or PM….enjoy you lucky ladies.

Joel Madden and Nicole Richie are engaged. Since the celebutante is now eating for one Madden, lead singer of Good Charlotte will make her an "honest" woman and the two will be married by the end of the year. I am actually interested in what type of wedding these characters will throw.

High School Musical 2 sets records. The tween targeted Disney movie with 17.6 million viewers, became the highest rated cable telecast in history. The made for tv sequel beat out its original hit maker by almost 10 million viewers

Leona Helmsley dies at age 87. The “Queen of Mean”, who was jailed in 1990 for tax evasion, died of heart failure in her Connecticut home earlier this morning. The real estate developer and hotelier was a staple in New York society until her downfall in the late 1980’s. Her image never recovered after the tax issues, even though she had been supporting charitable work since completing her jail sentence in 1992.

Rove apparently has not retired yet. Apparently the chief of staff likes to attack Senator Clinton as much as he likes breakfast. Does this mean this woman actually has a shot of winner:?

Lohan finally realizes her true calling. Lindsay is said to be more then ready to jump back into the studio and record a sophomore album. Finally, she figured out who can get away with drunken binges and DUIs – rock stars. I am thinking she needs at least one member of Motley Crue to make a guest appearance and I’m pretty sure Dave Navarro could fit it into his schedule.

Geek favorite, Kristen Bell is set to be a hero. Bell is set to join the cast for a few episodes of Heroes and will be connected to Peter and Claire. Man I can not wait until this show gets back on to TV!!!