Vince Vaughn – Way Too Indie http://waytooindie.com Independent film and music reviews Fri, 02 Dec 2016 17:34:42 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Way Too Indiecast is the official podcast of WayTooIndie.com. Our film critics grip and gush about the latest indie movies and sometimes even mainstream ones. Find all of our reviews, podcasts, news, at www.waytooindie.com Vince Vaughn – Way Too Indie yes Vince Vaughn – Way Too Indie dustin@waytooindie.com dustin@waytooindie.com (Vince Vaughn – Way Too Indie) The Official Podcast of Way Too Indie Vince Vaughn – Way Too Indie http://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/waytooindie/podcast-album-art.jpg http://waytooindie.com Everyone Has on Their Serious Faces in Two New ‘True Detective’ Trailers http://waytooindie.com/news/everyone-has-on-their-serious-faces-in-two-new-true-detective-trailers/ http://waytooindie.com/news/everyone-has-on-their-serious-faces-in-two-new-true-detective-trailers/#respond Mon, 08 Jun 2015 17:38:53 +0000 http://waytooindie.com/?p=36973 The HBO gods give two new 'True Detective' trailers without revealing too much. ]]>

Last night in media you were either jazz-handing your way through the Tony Awards, screaming at LeBron on your television screen, or getting rather depressed at the unfolding events in Westeros. Which means you probably missed that HBO gave us TWO new True Detective Season 2 trailers.

The show, which returns with an all new cast and plot June 21 at 9pm on HBO, has thus far only hinted at plot and characters and now it, well, it hints a little bit more? The first trailer is another non-verbal mood-focused trailer letting us know that, similar to the first season, we should probably prepare for some Debbie Downer characters in the midst of some truly dark cases. Well at least we know they’re keeping the theme of cops-who-need-antidepressants alive.

The second trailer gives us our first taste of dialogue. Colin Farrell’s Ray Velcoro asks immediately if he’s supposed to solve this thing. We’re hoping this means he’s moody AND cocky. Love a cop who knows what he’s good at a la Matthew McConaughey’s Rust Cohle. Vince Vaughn’s Frank Semyon claims to be “no good on the sidelines,” so we can only hope for some rogue bad-boy action on his part. And Rachel McAdams’ Ani Bezzerides generally looks tired, wary, and needing of a stiff drink. Given the twisted mystery of the first season, it makes sense that neither of these trailers would give us a whole lot more to go on, plot-wise, but our appetites are still most certainly whet.

Watch below and let us know if you’re as excited as we are:

 

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Unfinished Business http://waytooindie.com/review/movie/unfinished-business/ http://waytooindie.com/review/movie/unfinished-business/#respond Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://waytooindie.com/?p=31029 A wretched and dumpy comedy, 'Unfinished Business' is a total bummer.]]>

It almost feels like Ken Scott’s Unfinished Business was originally intended to be a somber drama about a broken workaholic scrambling to glue his home and work lives back together, but then someone said, “This sh*t ain’t gonna sell! Throw some dumb jokes, boobies, dicks, and beer in there, and we’ll have a real winner on our hands, fellas!” This movie is wretched. It lacks focus, style and ambition, and not only is it the unfunniest comedy I’ve seen in recent memory (I just watched Hot Tub Time Machine 2, by the way), its strangely depressing tone totally bummed me out. (I took a sadness-induced nap when I got home from the theater. No joke.) Since the Apatow era began, Hollywood’s manufactured dozens of test-tube movies designed to plunder the pockets of dim-witted dude-bros, but Conrad’s film may be the most defective piece of junk to slide down the assembly line yet.

The film’s premise is laid out in the first five minutes, with businessman Dan Truckman (Vince Vaughn) being slapped with a five percent pay cut by his boss, Chuck (Sienna Miller), as a reward for working so hard he hasn’t eaten in three days or had time to spend with his family. (The film’s explanation of exactly what kind of business they’re involved in is cursory at best; they deal in goods of some sort and shake hands with other suits, but that’s pretty much all we know.) In a strangely blasé act of defiance, Dan quits on the spot, telling his co-workers to walk out the door with him if they want to join him in his exciting new venture. Cut to Dan walking out the door and into the parking lot…alone.

But by some fluke, he actually ends up finding two partners before he reaches his car: Tim McWinters (Tom Wilkinson), an elderly horn-dog, and Mike Pancake (Dave Franco), a meek, ebullient young man who may or may not be mentally challenged. Old-timer Tim is carrying a box of office supplies because he’s just been let go due to his age. Mike’s also carrying a box of office supplies, not because he’s been let go, but because he had a job interview that day and wanted to “look confident”. For better or for worse, these two dumbos complete Dan’s underdog squad. Flash forward a year later, and the three amigos are flying to Portland, Maine to close their first deal, a real game-changer (something to do with a product made of leftover metal called “swarf”). Just as Dan’s gearing up to seal the lucrative deal with the all-important “handshake,” his nemesis Chuck swoops in and threatens to trump Dan once and for all. Not willing to lose to his former company and boss, Dan flies with the boys to Germany to meet with the man at the head of the business of which they’re pursuing partnership.

Dan is a tragically deflated version of the smart-talking, chauvinist cool-guys Vaughn’s played in the past. While the Wedding Crashers star isn’t exactly known for his range, you can always count on him to at least bring a bit of energy and spunk to the table. He’s a good actor, and with his charm and large frame always fits nicely into leadership roles. (How many times have we seen him give motivational, “We can f*cking do this, guys!” speeches in ensemble comedies?) In this movie, though, he’s incredibly mopey and unenthused, his every line sounding half-hearted to indifferent. Vaughn is a shell of himself, leaving everything appealing about him at the door.

Making the movie even dumpier is a secondary plot involving Dan trying (and failing) to be a good dad and husband via phone and Facetime. While he’s in Germany partying and drinking like a fool, his son’s getting bullied at school for being fat, and his daughter gets caught on camera “beating the sh*t” out of an Indian girl in the cafeteria. Despite Dan’s negligence, his wife (June Diane Raphael) is unusually forgiving, even being so generous as to hit him up for phone sex while their children are probably crying themselves to sleep in their bedrooms. It all feels very off-putting and sour, and I can’t imagine the film would have suffered had Dan’s family been cut from the picture altogether.

Believe it or not, I did enjoy one aspect of the movie. Franco is exceedingly fun to watch; his hilarious malapropisms and winning childishness make him feel like a quieter, more lovable take on Charlie from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.” The youngest adult actor in the film, Franco overachieves and manages to elicit some smiles in an otherwise dismal affair. Raphael and Wilkinson are criminally underused, as are Nick Frost and James Marsden, who play the good and evil employees of the sought-after business, respectively. There isn’t much room for their characters to do much because most of the movie is spent following Vaughn as he hangs his head and drags his feet through terrible sight gags and party scenes that feel swept up from the cutting room floor of The Hangover. My brain melts a little every time I have to watch a slow-mo montage of late-night debauchery and drink-spilling, but alas, such is the fashion in comedies these days.

Beyond the fact that it’s laugh-less, unoriginal, and bland, there’s a deeper problem with Unfinished Business. Had it been played as a straight drama, it actually might have been pretty good. There are little golden doors of opportunity throughout the film where, had Scott pushed through them, real emotion might have been found on the other side. Instead, we see Franco fall face-first into a flaccid dick hanging out of a glory hole. ‘Nuff said.

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Happy Birthday, Sean Astin! Here’s 15 Things We Love About You http://waytooindie.com/news/happy-birthday-sean-astin-heres-what-we-love-about-you/ http://waytooindie.com/news/happy-birthday-sean-astin-heres-what-we-love-about-you/#comments Mon, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000 http://waytooindie.com/?p=31149 In honor of Sean Astin turning 44 today, we highlight 15 things we love about him!]]>

Remember the old question, “If an alien landed on Earth, how would you explain America to him?” The answer is: Sean Astin. He is the embodiment of so much of what has shaped our cinematic history. From cult classics to box office blockbusters, child actor to leading man, the movies he has been such a memorable part of are staples for any avid movie buff’s collection and his public life has been something to be proud of as well.

Here are 15 reasons we love Sean Astin in honor of his 44th year.

#1. His feature début was The Goonies playing the adorable asthmatic, Mikey in 1985.

Sean Astin Goonies
That was his feature DEBUT. What were you doing at that age?

#2. He didn’t always play cute and cuddly.

Sean Astin Toy Soldiers
In 1991, he played rebellious bad boy Billy Tepper in Toy Soldiers alongside Will Wheaton as Joey Trotta, two teens who take on a criminal trying to hold their school hostage.

#3. He has at least one silly super ’90s film under his belt.

Sean Astin Encino Man
In 1992, he was Dave in Encino Man, who with his friend Stoney Brown (Pauly Shore) befriended newly unfrozen caveman Link, Brendan Fraser.

#4. His mom is the incredible, indelible, Patty Duke!

Patty Duke
You know, from the Patty Duke Show? How could this not make someone instantly awesome? Not to say it’s all rainbows and butterflies. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1982 and together they have been active in promoting public awareness for mental health issues.

#5. His adopted father, John Astin, played Gomez in the 1960’s TV series, The Addams Family.

John Astin
He calls 3 other men ‘father’ as well: his biological father, Michael Tell, the man thought to be his biological father for the early years of his life, Desi Arnaz, Jr. and his mother’s current husband of 29 years, Michael Pearce. However, John Astin is the one he most associates with that title.

#6. He’s a family man.

Sean Astin family
In 1992, Astin married Christine Harrell. They will celebrate their 23rd anniversary on July 11th this year and have 3 daughters. His eldest, Alexandra, also played his onscreen daughter, Elanor, in one of his last scenes in Lord of the Rings: Return of the King.

#7. In 1993, he won our hearts with his portrayal of Rudy.

Sean Astin Rudy Ruettiger
With Astin capturing the soul of this true story about a kid with not much going for him but incredible heart whose dream in life was to play football for Notre Dame, this was also the first movie Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn would share a scene in. That’s history, folks.

#8. In 2001, he surprised us all as Samwise Gamgee in Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring.

Sean Astin Lord of the Rings
He would reprise his role twice more in 2002 and 2003 with The Two Towers and Return of the King.

#9. He shares a tattoo with 7 of the other Fellowship actors.

Sean Astin Tattoo
He’s inked with the number ‘9’ in Tengwar script, the language of the Elves of Middle Earth. John Rhys-Davies is the only one of the nine without out it, though his body double got inked with it!

#10. In 2004, Astin published his memoir, There and Back Again.

Sean Astin There and Back Again
Co-written with Joe Layden, it focuses on his cinematic career with emphasis on his experience in Lord of the Rings.

#11. He is good buddies with Adam Sandler.

Sean Astin 50 First Dates
He’s had major roles in both 50 First Dates (2004) and Click (2006).

#12. Since 2012, Astin has been the voice of Raphael in Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Sean Astin Mutant Ninja Turtles

#13. Gaining weight for the role of Samwise was really difficult for him.

Sean Astin Samwise
Astin had to gain 35 to 40 pounds to play the role of the very round but dependable hobbit. This was an issue, however, because Sean Astin has been an avid long distance runner since he was a teen and has since completed 9 marathons and even more half-marathons, 10k and 5k runs. He basically had to cool it on the running so he wouldn’t lose the weight. He is also a spokesperson for RunDisney and in 2012 he created the Twitter movement and running group #Run3rd.

#14. Sean Astin is hugely interested and involved in politics.

Sean Astin Politics
He’s served on two presidential campaigns, two non-partisan Presidential committees, and was a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army from 1995 to 2005. He is the host of Vox Populi Radio a non-partisan platform to discuss politics and current issues.

#15. He is currently producing and narrating the documentary Remember the Sultana.

Sean Astin Remember the Sultana
Slated to be released this year, it brings attention to one of the worst maritime disasters in U.S. history.

And that’s the long and short of it!

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