Tag: Seth Rogen

Pam and Tommy

Post author By Mark
Post date March 14, 2022

You might not be too familiar with the story of Pam and Tommy. Sure, you’ve probably heard at some point about the Baywatch star or her Motley Cruë drummer husband, but – for those not ingratiated in 90’s pop-culture – the tale of their infamous sex-tape and its effect on modern culture might not be as well known. And as a fun retelling of that inherently weird and whacky story, show-runner Robert Siegel and his gang of top-tier directors (Craig Gillespie, Lake Bell, Gwyneth Horder-Payton & Hannah Fidell) deliver in almost every way, capitalising on phenomenal performances from series leads Sebastian Stan and a transformed Lily James. It is only when Pam and Tommy tries to move beyond the fun that it falters; its attempts to go deeper into the psyches of its leads never feeling like they coalesce into anything other than a messy jumble of admittedly well-intentioned ideas.

After a whirlwind romance and impromptu proposal abroad, Tommy Lee (Stan) and Pamela Anderson (James) suddenly find themselves back in the States, newly married and committed to starting a new life together in Tommy’s Californian mansion. When contractor Rand Gauthier (Seth Rogen) is wrongly fired by Tommy – who refuses to pay the man for renovation work he has already completed – he becomes enraged, breaking into the mansion late one night and making off with a safe full of valuables. Perhaps the most valuable of these items is a sex-tape made by the newlyweds on their honeymoon; the possession of which triggers an idea in Rand to release the tape to the world and make back the money owed to him tenfold. As the production of the tape begins to snowball beyond Rand’s control, it drives a wedge into Pamela and Tommy’s burgeoning marriage; with each at a different point in their career and affected by the tape in vastly different ways.

On the surface level, Pam and Tommy operates as a fairly straightforward recounting of the story of the sex tape’s theft and subsequent explosion in popularity, leading to what many believe is the rise of internet pornography. It’s a wise decision considering how unbelievable the story already is, made even more so by the larger than life way these characters operate in the real world. Tommy is the perfect example of this and Sebastian Stan delivers a surprisingly endearing portrayal of someone so deeply flawed as to fire workers after weeks of work and then refuse to pay them a dime. The show posits that there is a decent person buried deep beneath all the crazy antics and Stan is able to draw this out in the quieter moments with Pamela in the tender way he approaches and looks at her. Tommy is also where the show is able to have the most fun, shifting into the utterly fantastical in a hilarious scene where Tommy is given a pep talk by… his penis. It’s a brilliant deconstruction of the way Tommy views himself as the biggest man in every room despite his many flaws and is the rare below-the-surface moment that actually works in adding more to a character.

For the most part, these attempt to go deeper into Pam and Tommy’s psyches fall short. Pamela’s arc in particular is primed to get under the skin of an actress that could have been so much bigger if the circumstances were different, but every time the show delivers a powerful scene for Pam, it is almost always undercut by a decision to pivot away from her entirely. One particularly powerful scene taking place at a traffic intersection is the exception here – James is continuously excellent as the Baywatch star, mimicking everything from her physicality right down to vocal cues flawlessly – but this is a stark contrast against all the meaningless backstory of Anderson’s famous flop Barbarella. You get the sense that despite the excellent performances from James and Stan and all the absolutely amazing prosthetics and make-up work that has gone into transforming them, Siegel doesn’t have total faith in this story being enough to carry the series.

In fact the opening episode barely features the duo at all, honing in on Rogen’s disgruntled worker for almost the entire run-time and cutting back to his moral dilemma far too often throughout the series. For his part Rogen is excellent in conveying Rand’s torn conscience and his interactions with Nick Offerman’s hilariously grimy porn producer are consistently hilarious, but for a show named after its titular pairing, Pam and Tommy seems hard-pressed to create much more out of this narrative at times. The inference that this whole endeavour was the start of the internet pornography boom is an interesting side-story sure, but feels like such a distraction that you begin to think the show has run out of steam long before its end, and like Pam and Tommy’s marriage, is just treading water until it is all over.

Pam and Tommy is a breezy trip through 90’s nostalgia anchored by two incredible performances from Sebastian Stan and Lily James that bring these larger-than-life personalities to the screen in a way we have never seen before. It gets bogged down in the specifics of its story and side-characters a little too often – distracting from the central duo in the process – but its light tone and kinetic pacing make for an always enjoyable, if inconsistent watch. Let this be a lesson to anyone out there thinking of short-changing Seth Rogen.

Pam and Tommy stars Sebastian Stan, Lily James, Seth Rogen, Taylor Schilling, Fred Hechinger, Paul Ben-Victor, Andrew Dice Clay & Nick Offerman – Streaming on Hulu in the US and Disney+ in Australia now.

7/10

Tags Craig Gillespie, Fred Hechinger, Lake Bell, Lily James, Nick Offerman, Pam and Tommy, Robert Siegel, Sebastian Stan, Seth Rogen, Taylor Schilling

Movie Reviews

The Lion King (2019)

Post author By Mark
Post date July 19, 2019

The world seemed to collectively take a beat when Disney announced their plans to remake The Lion King in the same vein as Jon Favreau’s excellent 2016 remake of The Jungle Book, utilizing photorealistic computer technology to bring the animals to life on the big screen. It’s not that the announcement was unexpected – with Disney clearly on a path to remake every animated feature they’ve ever produced – it’s more that the 1994 film is the defining Disney film for so many people, a seminal achievement in animation and storytelling at the time and one of the biggest animated films of all time. For good reason too, as the original still holds up today; featuring some stellar voice work, a pace that moves at a clip, and vivid, bright animation that captures your attention and never lets go. Favreau’s 2019 remake is truly a visual spectacle – somehow it actually looks better than The Jungle Book – yet it’s one that lacks the heart and charm of the original due to the limits of the real animal’s ability to express the emotion and depth of the dialogue. It’s an impressive demonstration of just how far modern technology has come, but ultimately, like most of Disney’s live-action remakes, it doesn’t bring enough new material to the table to justify its existence.

Given the praise I’ve just heaped on the original it’s no surprise that Favreau opts to stick pretty close to the source material, in fact the film is almost a shot-for-shot recreation of the 1994 film. If you’ve been living under (sorry in advance) Pride Rock and aren’t familiar with the story, it revolves around young lion Simba (JD McCrary), son of the king Mufasa (James Earl Jones) and his journey to find out who he is and just why he is the right choice to take on the mantle of king. The first half of the story focuses on Simba as a cub learning about the kingdom his father rules over and frolicking with fellow lion Nala (Shahadi Wright Joseph). When the two young cubs are tricked by Simba’s uncle Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor) into entering an elephant graveyard infested with Hyena, they set off a chain of events that ultimately lead to a tragedy which Simba is held accountable for. As he flees into exile, Simba encounters the dynamic duo of Timon (Billy Eichner) and Pumbaa (Seth Rogen), a meerkat and warthog who roam the jungle doing what they want when they want, a philosophy they refer to as Hakuna Matata. The pair take young Simba under their wing and live out their days carefree until Simba finds himself drawn back to the family and kingdom he had left behind, with a choice to make between living a selfish life or rising to the mantle of his father and becoming king of the pridelands.

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first, The Lion King is gorgeous to look at. Never has computer animated imagery looked this life-like and real with such an amazing attention to detail. From the large spanning savannah planes and lush jungle landscapes down to the way the wind moves the individual strands of fur on the animals, nothing has been left out and it makes for a completely immersive experience where you feel as if you are actually in Africa. Several establishing shots, usually focusing on a small animal or insect and panning into the larger scene, are so lifelike that you’d be forgiven for thinking you were watching a National Geographic or David Attenborough special. It’s amazing to see the advancement of this technology when you reflect on films from last decade where CGI creatures stood out like a sore thumb, and it’s even more impressive from a technological standpoint to know that almost the entire film has been created digitally on a soundstage in Los Angeles. The decision to basically recreate the original film in this computer animated form is a strange one however, given that the only notable addition to the film is a new song by Beyoncé that serves as odd background music in a later scene. There was such an opportunity to really add to the story of The Lion King for new generations who will discover it through this film and the fact that this wasn’t capitalised on calls into question the purpose of the film. Why make this if you’re not going to play with it and introduce new or different ideas? It makes the film seem like more of a technical demonstration and less of a fully formed decision to bring something new to a classic tale.

Whilst a monumental technical achievement there is something of a fatal flaw in this hyper realistic approach to the animals, namely the loss of the ability to convey a lot of emotion in the animal’s delivery of dialogue. It’s a strange sight to see lions and warthogs speaking English, their mouths contorting in awkward ways to form the words or just not moving at all as the speech is dubbed over; a few instances of this are glaringly obvious and make you feel like you’re watching some kind of children’s show with a story dubbed over animal footage, taking you out of the experience entirely. On top of this, there’s the simple fact that there’s only so much emotion that you can get out of an animal’s face. The original animated film circumvented this by using a medium where it wasn’t uncommon for almost human like features to be given to an animal and the facial movements were just a part of the animation style. The remake attempts to hit every single beat of the original script-wise and some of it just doesn’t work plain and simple. It will never not be creepy to see a lion’s mouth flap awkwardly to simulate laughter or stay stretched open for a comical amount of time to hold a high note. On a side note, Seth Rogen’s iconic laugh is his and his alone and the times that it is delivered by his Pumbaa counterpart should make the man feel good about never losing any roles to a real warthog. It’s a disappointing reality that comes with the territory of this kind of animation animation that takes you right out of the film, somewhat undercutting all the hard work that has gone into rendering the beautiful environments and animals.

One of the aspects of the remake that assuaged audiences fears was the announcement of an absolutely stellar voice cast made up of old and new talents, with a distinctly more musical bend than the original in the form of leads Donald Glover and Beyoncé as the adult Simba and Nala. For the most part these casting choices work extremely well, the voice acting similar enough to the previous interpretations to be comforting yet bringing a different take on the material in the inflections and delivery of certain lines. If, like me, you’re a big fan of the original it might be a good idea to check your expectations at the door. The characters are never going to sound exactly as they did before, with the exception of James Earl Jones who reprises his role as Mufasa, and the key is to be open to the new versions. Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Scar perfectly, delivering all the menace and underhandedness you expect from the character, which works particularly well with the visual aesthetic of the lion himself; a disheveled, almost malnourished beast hungry for his next kill. Donald Glover and Beyoncé give competent musical performances, infusing their personal styles into the classic songs. This may be a deal breaker for some who prefer the older versions but with the two stars in huge demand at the moment, it was certainly a choice made to please as big a modern audience as possible and most will likely enjoy their iterations. Whilst Glover gives terrific voice work – channelling a younger, more naive voice akin to some of his earlier work on Community – Beyoncé seems to struggle with the material and the delivery of her lines comes across as abrupt and jarring at times. The real stars of the show, like the original, are Timon and Pumbaa, voiced by Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen respectively. They have an extremely difficult job, taking over the roles of such iconic characters, and they do so brilliantly with Eichner giving a more biting, sassy performance than Nathan Lane’s original while Rogen makes Pumbaa an adorable idiot, delivering his lines with a charming innocence, even if the sight of a real warthog speaking is nightmare fuel.

The Lion King ultimately ends up like most of the recent Disney remakes, albeit far more advanced and successful in its technical achievements. With barely an addition or change to be seen to the original story however, this is the studio’s most barebones remake to date and doesn’t do much to justify its existence outside of the visual effects. It’s a fun experience to hear the songs again and revisit the story on the big screen but without the charm of the original or the ability to really latch on and care about the characters, due to the photorealism of the animals, the whole affair seems cold and there isn’t much incentive for repeat viewings. If you’re a fan of the original this might be worth your time to see how the story you know and love translates to real life and what the new voice cast do with the material but you’ll most likely find yourself gravitating back to the comforting classic 1994 masterpiece.

The Lion King stars Donald Glover, Beyoncé, James Earl Jones, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Keegan-Michael Key, Eric Andre, Florence Kasumba, John Kani and John Oliver – in cinemas now.

Tags Beyoncé, Billy Eichner, Disney, Donald Glover, Eric André, James Earl Jones, John Oliver, Jon Favreau, Seth Rogen, The Lion King

Movie Reviews

Long Shot

Post author By Mark
Post date May 5, 2019

Jonathan Levine faced a difficult task with his latest film Long Shot: making a modern romantic comedy that feels fresh during a time where most similar movies are generic and cliché-ridden. While Long Shot does occasionally employ a few of these clichés, the chemistry and comedic timing of Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron, the timely political setting and messages, as well as a veritable smorgasbord of amazing comedians in supporting roles, elevates the film above the rest of the pack.

Long Shot follows Fred Flarsky (Rogen), a talented yet hotheaded journalist who loses his job writing for a local paper due to his opinionated stance on the company’s acquisition by a media conglomerate. When Fred stumbles into US Secretary of State Charlotte Field (Theron) at a party, he and his childhood babysitter make awkward conversation, eventually resulting in an unlikely job offer – accompanying Charlotte around the world on a press tour as a speech writer. From here the story hits those familiar beats: the pair travel the world, becoming closer as they go until a relationship blossoms, they are then confronted by outside forces attempting to drive the pair apart – can they survive it? What differentiates Long Shot from its contemporaries the most is the heavy role politics has to play. The film is as much a commentary on the current political climate as it is a romance or comedy story. A key arc for Theron’s character is getting the environmental bill she has championed agreed to by world leaders, and it’s a topic that is more relevant now than it ever has been. Then there’s the push for Theron to run a presidential campaign, which asks the question “shouldn’t we elect the person who cares and is best suited for the job?”. Whilst Flarsky is a staunch democrat, the movie also looks at the the republican side of the debate too, raising issues about the increasing problem of blind public declarations of political support without a thorough understanding of both sides of the argument.

The best aspect of Long Shot is undoubtedly the chemistry between the two main leads. Rogen has shown that he is more than capable of playing the wild one in a relationship, just look at his brilliant turns in Knocked Up and Neighbours, but here he gets to play someone out of his depth. Flarsky is out of a job and down on his luck when he meets Charlotte, who is the complete opposite – well put together and at the top of her field. It’s a laugh riot watching Rogen try to ingratiate himself in Charlotte’s world, while at the same time resisting and voicing his opinions on every facet of her political world that he disagrees with. Some of the best jokes come from Flarsky’s misunderstanding of the life of a political candidate and, not to spoil anything, we get the obligatory Seth Rogen drug scene, which – in keeping with form – is hilarious and had the cinema howling with laughter. Charlize Theron proves that she can do no wrong and that she’s much more than just her Mad Max: Fury Road role, showcasing some serious comedy chops. She plays the character with just the right mix of seriousness and lightheartedness, which when combined with Rogen, makes for one of the most endearing on-screen couples in recent memory.

My favourite part about Long Shot however, has to be the stellar supporting cast. The film really helps shine a light on some brilliant comedic actors who might not be as well known to the general public. June Diane Raphael is wonderful as Theron’s assistant Maggie, and acts almost as a surrogate for the audience, in disbelief that this relationship is even a thing. Delivering her lines with a deadpan that will cut you to the core, she shines in the role and I genuinely hope that this pushes her into more roles in the future. The standout though is O’Shea Jackson, who has so many laugh-out-loud moments that I was almost annoyed when he wasn’t on-screen. He plays Rogen’s best friend Lance, who takes it upon himself to cheer Fred up following the loss of his job, and a scene where he leaves work in order to go party might have been the funniest of the film. Between this and an upcoming role in the new Godzilla movie, Jackson is forging a path for himself in Hollywood without relying on his father’s status, and I can’t wait to see what he does next. The film also features a slew of great actors in minor roles, all of whom crush their small parts, such as: Paul Scheer as a misogynist news anchor, Bob Odenkirk as a television actor turned president (sound familiar?), and Andy Serkis as a prosthetic laden, scenery chewing manager of a media company who vehemently opposes Charlotte’s environmental bill. It’s these small parts that really work to flesh out the world and bring in some comedy when the film decides to forego jokes from the leads to focus on the romance, and everyone gets a chance to shine.

While this may all sound perfect, there are still some flaws to be found in Long Shot. At a little over two hours, the movie is too long and enters some dry stretches where some cute romantic things happen, but nothing of real consequence to the story. This is here to flesh out the relationship more but it’s unnecessary given how invested we are in their relationship already through the jokes the couple share. The third act of the film also devolves into typical romantic comedy story beats, which was a shame given the stellar two acts that had come before. I was still invested in the characters, I just would have liked to see the momentum carried into the final act with some more jokes or a better executed finale.

Overall, Long Shot is a hugely enjoyable romantic comedy which will be a big crowd pleaser in a box office otherwise dominated by those avenging folk. While it does lose some of its momentum in the final act, there’s still plenty to love here and the chemistry and humour of Rogen, Theron and the entire supporting cast will ensure you walk away from this movie having gone through a pretty gruelling ab workout. Whilst it isn’t the best rom-com ever made, it doesn’t have to be and it certainly sits at the top of the pack in regards to recent offerings in the genre.

Long Shot stars Seth Rogen, Charlize Theron, June Diane Raphael, Andy Serkis and Alexander Sarsgård and is in cinemas now.

Tags Charlize Theron, Jonathan Levine, June Diane Raphael, Long Shot, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Seth Rogen