The MacGuffin

The more I think about The Five-Year Engagement (2012), the less I like it. That’s not to say that the film is bad; in fact, it has quite a few good things going for it. There are plenty of laughs to be had, and there’s certainly an earnest quality that helps push it up above your normal, run-of-the-mill romantic comedy. But the more I reflect on it, the more I play the film over again in my head, the more I start to see the weaknesses floating to the surface—which probably means I should write this review as quickly as possible. Have you ever had those experiences when you watch a film for the first time and you completely buy in to it, only to watch it again some other time and be surprisingly disappointed that it hasn’t held up as well as you thought it would? I’m suspecting that this is one of those movies for me.

In honor of the release of The Five-Year Engagement, Spencer and Greg look back on Jason Segel’s career.

Another Top 5 segment from The MacGuffin. This time Allen and Brandi share their top 5 cliched but awesome moments.

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You would think I had produced the film, with how desperately I wanted Bridesmaids to make a ton of money this past weekend. I’m not a person who makes a point to read box office predictions, and in this case I actively avoided it—any prediction, high or low, could only add to my anxiety. Now we know that it landed at number two in its opening weekend, with just under $25 million, around $10 million less than the second weekend numbers for Thor. I hear that this is good, about $10 million above where predictions were tracking last week. And yet, my exact words on hearing that number were: “And when The Hangover 2 makes three times that, I’ll weep.”

Allen Almachar: Bridesmaids (2011) stars the comedian Kristen Wiig, who, for the last couple of years, has been one of the funniest people around, and perhaps one of the last reasons to still watch Saturday Night Live. I for one, am glad to see her finally take the lead role in this film. Here, she plays the lovelorn ex-baker/current jewelry saleswoman Annie. Annie has had bad luck in love and life, with a failed bakery on her resume and brother/sister roommates who seem to be a little closer than is appropriate.

I have been an avid fan of Judd Apatow’s ever since he produced one of the best TV shows of all time, Freaks and Geeks. I’ve loved nearly everything he’s directed or produced in the years since. Superbad is one of my favorite films of all time. The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and Pineapple Express are some of the best comedies of the last ten years. Audiences seemed to agree with me on Apatow up until around 2009. None of his films since then have made as much money as those early hits, and aren’t as well regarded. Many people have seen them as more of the same, similar premises featuring all of the same actors. Apatow’s new film as producer, Bridesmaids, comes out today and seems to be made to answer the criticism of his past work. Gone are Seth Rogen and Jonah Hill, and in their places is a group of very funny women. The film also sees Apatow re-team with Freaks and Geeks creator Paul Feig, now a director, and the end result is the best film he’s been involved with since Forgetting Sarah Marshall.

Even if nothing else had worked in Going the Distance, I would have had to thank the film for its lead female character, and in particular for her introductory scene. Running down the hallway at work, her first line of dialogue is an outburst of profanity as she hurts herself; the second, a snarky aside to a co-worker who points out her lateness. Swearing and sarcasm: a girl after my own heart.

Spencer and John reflect on the careers of Steve Carell and Paul Rudd in advance of the release of Dinner For Schmucks, discuss independent DVD distribution companies, and finish the episode with their DVD picks of the week.

Spencer is joined to by guest host Brandi Sperry for a discussion about Judd Apatow’s work in advance of the release of Get Him to the Greek, they reflect on the careers of Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, and give their DVD picks of the week.