This will be a super short and sweet review. Well, not sweet for anyone involved in making the movie.. but. Oy. It could have been good. The premise was so-so, almost a ‘Hi, I want to be Brad and Angelina, but this Mr & Mrs Smith will be GOOFIER’. Yeah. Not even close.

I could watch anything with Katherine Heigl, bless her cotton socks I’ve loved her since Roswell days. Yep, way before everyone got on the Izzie Stevens on Grey’s Anatomy bandwagon. Ashton, well.. he’s good to look at? But as for loving anything he’s done, or wanting to rewatch it? Not so much.

The premise for the Killers is essentially girl gets dumped, goes on trip with her parents, meets bare-chested Ashton, and oh, he’s a hitman. Pretty by-the-numbers. Except there is NO. CHEMISTRY. I mean, they’re both young and hot, and yet when they meet, its almost as if Ashton’s character latches on to her because she’s literally the FIRST ‘normal’ (ie, person that does not commit homicide) person in the vicinity. Other than that, how they go beyond a first date… is beyond me.

The action? Its just not funny. Its meant to be almost slap-stick, and people trying to kill them being more ‘annoying’ and farcical but to tell you the truth, I was thinking about house chores, and what I needed to do at the time, rather than focusing on the absolute lack of any believable friendship, let alone romance between Ashton and Katherine. SUCH a letdown!

Thought it was time to do another of these – and its one that never, ever fails to make me laugh. Crazy dancin’ tends to do that! If you missed the first one, check it out here – it was a beautifully bad sing-along moment in Harold & Kumar go to White Castle.

This crazy dancing here, seen in Hitch is just so well done – you’d have to train to look so good.. dancing bad! Agree?

You’re a TEN! This will now be my go-to one liner for anyone wanting a pick me up. She’s Out of My League is so full of hilarious one-liners, and great bantering, I absolutely LOVE it.

I’ve now seen this, oh about three times. And I still pick up new things to chuckle over, or I reference Disney movies now the way one of Kirk’s buddies does in this rom-com.

Its a rom-com with a difference, as its slanted to the male demographic with some gross-out scenes involving manscaping, and arriving, er.. early. But its got heart. Its got this warmth, which is largely due in part to Jay Baruchel’s he’s-so-cute-you-just-wanna-hug-him qualities. Kirk is the nice guy of his group, working at the airport,  earnest and still pining over his ex girlfriend who left him 2 years previously. Painfully though, Kirk is forced to see her every day as she gets along with his family better than her own.

His brother and his fiance are rough-as-guts and talk down to him; when Kirk brings home Molly to the family, they assume she must be a real estate agent, someone evicting them. Or a hooker. Surely, Kirk couldn’t hook up with someone like her?! His father’s reaction is something like ‘niiiiiiiiice’, where his mother can’t stop giggling at how pretty she is.

Alice Eve plays Molly with a freshness, and she’s a hot girl without being pretentious or up herself, even if her best friend Patty wants her to be. Kirk and Molly are a gorgeous couple. Kirk is awkward, nervous while Molly is sweet and intrigued by Kirk – and if not for the hilarious supporting cast in Kirk’s buddies – including Stainer (played by TJ Miller, memorable as Hud in Cloverfield) Disney loving Devon (played endearingly by Nate Torrence) and manscaping guru Jack (Mike Vogel, also known for his role in Cloverfield).

Without the supporting cast here – anyone just watching the trailer would assume that Molly and Kirk’s surprising courtship may be quite predictable but this is worth seeing. This is more than you think it is. Also. You’re a ten. (Once you see it, you’ll understand this)

I’ve been meaning to put together a post such as this, with several links and videos and such.. and it just never happens. I think there are too many. Its overwhelming really. There are so many of those random moments in film and TV shows where someone will randomly dance. Or they’ll sing. It doesn’t necessarily have to be in a GOOD way either. Its all in the delivery.

So I thought I’ll do it in parts, volumes.. chapters if you will – of the awesomeness of those really surprising moments that you never saw coming.

This first video (that I totally put together 2 months ago!) is from Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle and is just brilliantly corny and its so easy to sing along to this song, in exactly the same way. I don’t really like the movie – I just like this bit!

Hold On (from Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle) from Miss Giggly on Vimeo.

So.. I should be in bed now. Its late. But I’m stubborn, and I generally decide my bed time entirely dependent on who the guests will be on Letterman. And about 1 minute into this evening’s Top 10 list, I was certain I had to share it with you.

I give you – Michael Buble singing ‘Top Ten Least Favourite Standards’.. I have no words. Just giggles. See for yourself. (Though #4 and #1 made me laugh the loudest.. oh heck, all of them)

I know, I know its been a while. Life happens! Although I’m still watching as many movies, and TV shows (Glee, FTW!) I’m working on more posts, trust me.

In the meantime, I’ve been inspired to watch more comedies in general to stay perky, to stay giggly, and FunnyOrDie has proven to be just the celebrity endorsed sketch comedy (online) I need. If its not Zach Galifianakis interviewing Bradley Cooper, or Breckin Meyer impersonating Perez Hilton (hysterically) there is this – a video featuring Alyson Hannigan, Emily Deschanel, Kat McPhee, Minka Kelly and Jaime King at what must be an ordinary ‘slumber party’ between celebrities, getting ready to do a breast check. Very tongue in cheek, but timely as October is national Breast Cancer Month. Take a look – it can’t hurt. Though I’m not sure I’d have friends around to perform this check. But that’s just me!

Let me tell you that even looking for an image for this post had me chuckling, giggling even; in just looking at screencaps from the film. I could go and see this again tonight if I wasn’t already bound by my love for True Blood..

The Hangover is as good as you’ve been hearing, no doubt about it. I know sometimes when you hear a lot of ‘hype’ about a movie, it makes you want to see it less. After all, you don’t want to be so agreeable, and seem like a lemming, y/n? But this is one of the rare occasions in which if you thought the trailer alone was hilarious; don’t worry, it actually hasn’t given away the best jokes.

I don’t think I stopped laughing during this movie for any length of time – it was so well paced, the jokes kept on coming, even just the physicality of watching guys wake up from a night so memorable they’ve forgotten it, and watching them wake up in a daze. Never before has watching drunken guys at a bachelor party been so hilarious.

The film follows four guys; Doug (Justin Bartha), Phil (Bradley Cooper), Alan (Zach Galifianakis) & Stu (Ed Helms) on the penultimate night before Doug is to wed Tracy. They stereotypically plan a trip to Las Vegas, though Stu tells his overbearing (let’s just say overbearing is putting it mildly) girlfriend that they’re off to Napa Valley for a winery tour. Doug has politely brought along Alan, his fiance’s brother who is a little bit weird.. The introductory scene has him and Doug trying on their wedding tuxes where Alan says a few kind words in uh.. open from the back underwear. Its a touching moment.

Phil played by Bradley Cooper (who I’ve known would be a star ever since he starred as Will Tippin in Alias) is a high school teacher, who compiles money for his class’s field trip – for his Vegas trip – and plays the overly confident ‘leader’ of the pack, who constantly admonishes even Alan’s presence on the trip; or the fact that he has a manbag. Or a purse. To which Alan responds its a satchel. And that Indiana Jones has one. Stu is ‘whipped’ by his girlfriend, and seems to wanting to get married also, whilst Doug is the nice guy.. (though in real life; dating an Olsen twin? Loss of a brownie point right there..)

What works is that whilst it could have just been a night of debauchery, and it could have been any other pushing-the-boundary type film about boys and their toys, and strip clubs and gambling; the way the evening unfolds after a single shot of Jagermeister (the only drink we see them drinking..) the hilarity of the evening unfolds from when Alan goes to the bathroom, and in his half-awake, but still dazed state nearly pees directly on the coat of a tiger. Not a tiger rug, but a tiger. From there.. it just keeps on going and it turns into a road movie through the streets of Las Vegas as Alan, Phil & Stu discover Doug has gone missing. The movie retraces their steps through the night, although the last thing they actually remember is that drink on the rooftop of Caesar’s Palace.

Through this night of drunkenness, gambling, and hitting up clubs, they also make enemies, go to the hospital, one of them gets hitched to Heather Graham (she really seems to be a bit typecast in the blonde ditz role, I think) and end up with a baby in their hotel room. And Mike Tyson’s tiger. And a lone chicken. And as far fetched and ridiculous as that sounds; as the extremely hung over guys manage to retrace their steps and come across characters they’ve met over the night that they don’t remember it all just flows beautifully and seamlessly.

As much as I have a fondness for Bradley Cooper, I can honestly say Zach Galifianakis owns this film. His bearded, beer bellied self and his odd observations are hard to describe. Apparently, he’s been some sort of cult comedian, a bit under the radar – and this may just be his ‘break-out’ performance. Some have compared his performance to that of the late Chris Farley; acting dumb in such a way that its so deadpan it makes it funnier. His character has such a heart and wins you over when you least expect it; and I think its all about timing. Zach and Mike Tyson’s tiger probably steal the show. And the baby.

I could almost, almost tell you ‘if there’s one comedy guaranteed to have your stomach hurting in hilarity for 2009′ – it’d be this one. I know its only.. halfway through the year. But I think this might be it. After all, for everyone that told me I had to see this, the word funny was preceded by another ‘F’ word. I’ll leave it to you to think of what that might have been..

Last week, three new shows premiered on different networks, hoping for the attention of an audience that does make up its mind rather quickly (especially a scatterbrain like myself).  Each show had an enticing cast, a ‘different’ premise, and therefore could be the new ‘IT’ show of the upcoming season. I think though, there is only one clear winner, and um.. one very big loser.

Southland

I went into this not knowing a thing about it, honestly. Just that it was Ben McKenzie, the oh so broody Ryan Atwood from The O.C as a cop. I was in! At least for the pilot, I’m not all about the actors! As soon as it started, grainy camera footage, quick-cut editing, it really reminded me of Homicide: Life on the Street. And that’s not a bad thing! I just hadn’t seen that style in a while. Then, with an accompanying cast of Regina King, Shawn Hatosy, and Tom Everett Scott to name a few; the only word I could think of was gritty, confronting and riveting. A cop drama that is less soapy, and sugary about life on the dangerous L.A streets. Ben McKenzie plays Ben Sherman, a rookie just out of the academy partnered with a tough talking cynical cop that thinks he should quit, that he must be weak and because he’s too quiet, he’s Canadian. It tails them on an ‘ordinary’ day, as well as shadow LA detectives played by King and Everett Scott. As I said, its definitely not a smoothly edited show, but that adds to the ‘COPS’ like feel of following real police officers. The 40 minutes flew by so quickly, it definitely had my attention and despite such an ensemble cast, I was enthralled, and cannot wait until the next episode.

The Unusuals

Again, another show that I had NO idea about. I just knew it was premiering the same night as Southland and it had Amber Tamblyn in it, who I have admired since Joan of Arc and her role as Tibby in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants films. Following on from Southland I had no idea this cop show would be a comedy! In her interview with MyTakeOnTV , Amber Tamblyn referred to it as an “eccentric procedural”. That is quite apt! And actually reading that gave me comfort, because it gave me context. Watching it immediately after something so serious.. it relaxed me a bit more and I could have a laugh at Amber Tamblyn’s character being pulled off a street corner to work with a more seasoned cop, and as she changed out of her hooker wear, removed  ‘chicken fillets’ from her bra. Gold. Quite an ensemble cast as well,including Adam Goldberg & Harold Perrineau, though I don’t recognise the others. A standout would be Kai Lennox as Eddie Alvarez, who refers to himself constantly in the third person. I’m thinking he’s like.. ‘The Todd’ of ‘The Unusuals’. I quite like the cast, and the banter they have with each other already. To give a bit of an idea; one of the cases in this episode is chasing a cat killer. Yes. Cats.

This is one I’ll watch again for sure, but it might take a bit of warming up to get into the quirky humour of the show comfortably.

Harper’s Island

This is the clear loser of the three. It actually took me several tries to sit still, as I felt it was so.. cringe-inducingly soapy that I found cleaning to be more exciting. (But if you take a look at Gnomeangel’s website you will see she has a differing opinion. (We often do, lol). But even with Christopher Gorham playing another Henry, and Katie Cassidy, formerly known as Ruby from Supernatural, it was just.. painful. The premise is that a wedding party go to this island, where 7 years earlier 6 people were brutally killed and hanged. Now a return to the island, and apparently, the show kills off one wedding guest per episode. Like, a game of Cluedo on TV? (Deja vu?) But.. from the opening introduction, the music is like a C grade TV movie, or a daytime soap. There are TOO many characters, and I can’t care about them at all. Even Henry! Sorry, I’ll stick with you as Henry on Ugly Betty. Hary Hamlin is back again, as a slimy older guy chasing after younger women. *shudder* (He’s reprising Aaron Echolls from Veronica Mars it seems).

This is one I will be really surprised with if it lasts up until the killer is actually revealed. Really surprised.

Everyone that knows me personally knows that I am somewhat of a teen movie lover; though, definitely not a teen. I was taken by a good friend, and her 13  year old cousin as a birthday present, because I am a fan of Zac Efron. There I said it, you know it. let’s move on..

I was a bit worried that on opening night, the eve of Good Friday and already a week into school holidays that the cinema would be filled with squealing teenage girls (the reason I avoided High School Musical 3 altogether!) and therefore I wouldn’t enjoy it, but surprisingly the majority of the audience seemed to be girls/women my age! A couple of guys? It was great!

But let’s just say by the end of it, 13-year-old and my friend were quite amused that perhaps my whimpering or giggling in certain scenes was more amusing to them. “Its called whimpering, I wasn’t crying..” was something I had to say as the credits rolled, just to ensure them I wasn’t a complete sap. I really am a sucker for romantic, or even just happy scenes I have to admit!

Yes, this premise has been done before. A middle aged person going back in time, magically, or becoming a teenager again for different reasons. To get together with the girl or guy of their dreams. To make different decisions. Sometimes, its swapping lives with someone else! I won’t say this is remarkably different, but I think this will be one of those movies that is more memorable and is less ‘childish’ than others such as Freaky Friday. I’m not biased at all.. really. (Although, that was when LiLo was all innocent..)

Mike O’Donnell (Matthew Perry) is on the verge of a divorce with his childhood sweetheart, who he married once discovering she was pregnant, literally walking off the basketball court when scouts were possibly there to offer him a scholarship. He chose romance over career, and regrets it wondering if his life would have had more success if he’d chosen basketball, and college over a pregnant teenage girlfriend. His two kids ignore him, don’t communicate with him and are the epitome of sullen, or rebellious kids that don’t want to be seen with their Dad in public.

He reminisces going back to the gym, and school hallway where his basketball team photo sits in a glass case proudly, and wishes out loud to a mysterious and all-knowing janitor that he wishes he could go back to those times, they were easier.

Hello, Zac Efron!

Mike wakes up in Zac Efron’s body, at his high school best friend Ned’s house; a Dundgeons & Dragons, or World of Warcraft uber-nerd (I mean.. to the MAX!) who sleeps in a ‘car-bed’ still, and has all manner of nerd movie figurines, and merchandise around the house. Ned is hilarious and a surprising scene stealer, as generally these characters are just.. a supporting character, but his seduction of the school principal is brilliant.

Zac becomes  ‘Mark’ as Ned’s son and goes back to school thinking that he is there to become the basketball star he was meant to be; then realises that his kids need his help. Alex is teased, bullied by his own sister’s scummy boyfriend Stan, who has yellow-bleached hair reminiscent of Keiefer Sutherland’s hair in The Lost Boys and Maggie thinks that as long as she has romance, she won’t need college, she’ll follow Stan to become manager at Home Depot, and that’ll be that!

The winning elements of the film are how Efron conveys his middle aged and naive view of how teenagers live. You forget that this is the latest IT Disney star, and he conveys the facial expressions of what we saw in Matthew Perry’s character, and the way he is an adult in a teenager’s body is charming. Its also in the way he bonds with his son Alex, and how he creeps out his daughter by just being interested in her (obviously her not realising who he even is!). The way that he meets his ‘wife’ all over again, and sees her in a different light is really special, and that is why I think this will be the role that Efron will be really noticed, and casting directors will be able to see he has depth, great comic timing, and a real sensibility for certain emotions, well beyond his years.

Its the feel good movie that I think any audience can relate to, and enjoy without needing to even know who Zac Efron is, having never seen High School Musical and just enjoy it for the ‘what if I went back to high school and relived life’ – what would it be like questions we sometimes have in our older years. (‘m such a Nanna hehe) The supporting cast is great, including Michelle Trachtenberg as Maggie, Leslie Mann as her mother (Mike’s wife) and Thomas Lennon as Ned is a standout and arguably makes this movie so much more than just the ‘Zac Efron not doing High School Musical’ movie. Go see it!

Whilst one would think I am a shopaholic and have a huge wardrobe of shoes, and clothes, and pretty things.. I pretty much have one pair of runners, one pair of heels that are actually wearable, one pair of boots.. you get the picture.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t be inspired – or deterred from becoming a shopaholic. Oh, don’t let that deter you from watching it; but the debt Isla Fisher’s character Rebecca Bloomwood gets into for the love of shopping, and labels in Confessions of a Shopaholic..well its scary!

It is definitely interesting timing in which this movie has come out, and makes anyone watching this really think about their luxury items, or clearly defining the line between want or need. But if I had Hugh Dancy as a boss.. one might want to buy a different outfit, for every day and night in his presence. Don’t worry; the movie is charming aside from my lustful yearnings for Hugh Dancy. (And its not just Hugh, its Hugh Dancy, its a brilliant name)

Isla Fisher rose to Australian fame first, as a character in Home & Away. But that doesn’t mean anything until you star in an American film – (or become a succesful singer – which is even harder to do. Makes or breaks Aussie soap stars!). She got a supporting, very memorable role in The Wedding Crashers, and nobody would forget her as the giggli epitome of clingy to her Vince Vaughn counterpart. This role will definitely add credibility and give her more job offers; however she does need to be worried about being typecast as a materialistic, ditzy character.

Rebecca Bloomwood is charming, cute, has great style; yet still the movie doesn’t represent her as really having much else going for her. We’re told she’s a journalist but because she is obsessed with shopping, and mannequins influence her to buy things despite running away from a debt collector, we never actually know if she is a good writer, or what her background in the field is. Mooching off her housemate who allows her to shirk paying rent because whoops. $16,000 debt. Its just a little too easy, and so we really just see her as quite the princess.

When she submits an article talking about the value of different types of shoes, and what they mean to women; accidentally sending it to a finance magazine, she gets the job. Wow! You’ve explained it in the most simplest terms, you’re hired! Hugh Dancy as Luke Brandon, the eager-to-please and impress editor of the magazine is painted as having no style, yet can ‘speak Prada’, but chooses not to because he wants to earn rewards, he doesn’t want to be known as son of his famous mother, he lives to work, and not work to live, or pay for couture as Rebecca seems to. Albeit, not succesfully otherwise she wouldn’t be in debt.

Rebecca is a breath of fresh air to Luke, and she is constantly embarassing herself, but the light slapstick moments or moments of embarassment don’t hit the mark here as they should. The dancing scene with the fan as a prop isn’t funny, its actually painful to watch, and cringeworthy and just doesn’t work in its context. Whilst Hugh and Isla have a bit of spark, and some chemistry, the character development isn’t strong in the screenplay, and its a bit too far fetched to think that an editor of a finance magazine would be so won over by someone as shallow as Rebecca’s character is drawn to be.

Despite this, there is still an enjoyable warmth to the movie, a perky soundtrack, and Hugh and Isla work best with the material given. A formulaic chick flick; BUT.. it could have been better.