Movie 43(2013) Film Review

Rating: 4 Stars out of 4, Thumbs up.

Rated R For Strong Pervasive Crude And Sexual Content Including Dialouge, Graphic Nudity, Language And Some Violence.

1hr 34min/94min.

74 uses of the F-word.

Neil: "How's your acid reflux?"

Veronica: "How's your HPV?"

Neil: "It's your HPV Veronica, I'm just carrying it."

So, a lot of people are not going to agree on my opinion, even wildly disagree with it. And that's OK. As of this writing, Movie 43 currently stands at a 4% on Rotten Tomatoes. It is being regarded as one of the worst films of all time (Which I can think of plenty worse). I was one of the few people that saw this film in theaters. This film, though I can understand why people would hate it, I really like. When I saw it, I took it as the type of movie you don't see everyday. Keep in mind, I'm into stupid humor, so I dug this movie. The film is a sketch comedy featuring an all star cast and some of the raunchiest humor ever to grace the silver screen.

The film's wraparound story involves a writer named Charlie(Dennis Quaid) who wants to become a hit screenwriter, in a meeting with Hollywood executive Griffin(Greg Kinnear). However, after a few of the sketches are pitched to him, Griffin becomes disgusted and is about to throw him out, until he pulls out a gun and threatens him to listen to the rest of his pitch. Griffin obliges and the film's sketches finish up.

First up is The Catch. Kate Winslet plays a business woman who is about to go on a blind date with the city's most eligible bachelor(Hugh Jackman). When they get to the location of the date, it is revealed that Hugh Jackman has a scrotum on his neck. Next is Homeschooled. Naomi Watts and Liev Schriber play the parents of a high school kid. They homeschool their child, but they want to incorporate the negative aspects as well, such as relationship issues and high school parties.

The Proposition involves a couple(Anna Farris and Chris Pratt) who are about to be engaged. However, before anything happens, Farris has the desire for her loving other to defecate on her. Veronica involves supermarket clerk Neil(Kieran Culkin) and ex girlfriend Veronica(Emma Stone) having a vulgar conversation with the PA system of the store still on. iBabe involves a meeting within the company figuring out how to make teenage boys stop having sexual relations with the product(it is made to look like a naked woman). Head of the company(Richard Gere) simply doesn't see a problem, much to everyone's dismay. Superhero Speed Dating involves Batman(Jason Sudekis) and Robin(Justin Long) undercover at a speed dating event. Middleschool Date has a young couple(Jimmy Bennet and Chloe Grace Moretz) on a calm date, but things go awry when Moretz starts having her period for the first time with Bennet and his brother(Christopher Mintz-Plasse) trying to help her stop it.

Happy Birthday involves two friends(Johnny Knoxville and Seann William Scott) capturing a leprachaun(Gerard Butler). All they want is his gold, but this foul-mouthed little bastard won't give it to them. Truth Or Dare has Stephen Merchant and Halle Berry on a blind date. Things start to get bland, so Berry suggests a game of Truth Or Dare that spirals wildly out of control. Victory's Glory is the most famous one. It involves a basketball coach(Terrence Howard) giving the simplest motivational speech in the history of sports, "You're Black, They're White!" Finally we have Beezel, which involves an animated cat that has a sexual fascination with his owner(Josh Duhamel) and wants to murder his girlfriend(Elizabeth Banks).

As of this writing, the film has been nominated for total of 6 Golden Raspberry awards. Worst Picture, Worst Director(all 13 of them), Worst Screenplay, Worst Screen Combo(The entire cast) and Two Worst Actress nominations, Halle Berry(also for The Call) and Maomi Watts(also for Diana). From a critical standpoint, the movie is not very good. The humor is crass, the jokes hit below the bar far too many times to count, the writing is ridiculous, the direction is just OK and the sketches including the wraparound story is very poorly done, ranging from bad to godawful. From my own standpoint, yes the movie is tasteless, it panders to the lowest common denominator. I think, however, that we need this kind of movie that takes risks and goes balls to the wall. I'm not saying that all tasteless movies are unfunny, but this one struck a chord with me, and I'm not quite sure what it is.