MOVIE OF THE WEEK #2: SEX TAPE
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| "You get the top for the blender ... And batteries for the flashlight ... I'll just walk slowly and pretend that you may not accidentally further injure me with that shovel you are unwieldy wielding!" Jay (Jason Segel) and Annie (Cameron Diaz) are on the hunt for ... Something ... Following the leak of a very private article in a scene from director Jake Kasdan's comedy SEX TAPE. Credit: Claire Fogler © 2014 CMTG, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
KEY CAST MEMBERS: Jason Segel, Cameron Diaz, Rob Corddy, Ellie Kemper, Harrison Holzer, Rob Lowe and Jack Black
WRITER(S): Kate Angelo, Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller (screenplay); Kate Angelo (story)
DIRECTOR(S): Jake Kasdan
WEB SITE: http://sextape-movie.tumblr.com/60 SECOND PLOT SYNOPSIS (OR AS CLOSE TO IT AS ONE CAN TRY TO MAKE): Annie (Cameron Diaz) is by most standards a happily married woman. She's got a great husband in Jay (Jason Segel), two good kids in Nell (Giselle Eisenberg) and Clive (Sebastian Hedges Thomas) and good friends in Tess (Ellie Kemper and Robby (Rob Corddry). And as Annie writes about on her blog, she had Jay have a great sex life.
Well, they had a great sex life ... And now, despite their love for one another, they haven't quite been able to find the time to get it back due to their respective hectic schedules. Things are especially busy as Annie is hoping to impress Hank (Rob Lowe), the seemingly conservative CEO at Piper Brothers, a huge children's company that is considering paying her for her blog. Following her meeting with the company, Annie (and by association Jay) has great reason to celebrate, which leads to what seems like a great idea to reinvigorate the spark in their sex life: A sex tape featuring her and Jay re-creating every position in the classic The Joy of Sex. And it works.
There's just one catch: An app on Jay's computer syncs all the files to every device that was once connected to it ... Which includes every iPad he's ever owned for work and since have been given away to friends/business contacts like the mailman, Tess, Robby, Hank, Annie's mom Linda (Nancy Lenehan) and even Hank as gifts. Of course, Jay doesn't find any of this out until he gets anonymous texts from a number letting him know that they enjoyed the sex tape in the first place.
Now, Jay and Annie have to get all the old iPads back or risk the consequences of their 3 hour sexcapade falling into the hands of ... Who knows?!
WHO WILL LIKE THIS FILM THE MOST?: Jason Segel fans, people who enjoyed films like Bad Words, Horrible Bosses and Neighbors; couples who can relate to Jay and Annie's relationship troubles
WHO WON'T – OR SHOULDN'T – LIKE THIS FILM?: People who find the film in both concept and execution too silly; don't like anything relating to and/or regarding pornography
BOTTOM LINE – IS IT GOOD, GREAT, BAD OR DOWNRIGHT AWFUL? For a film that seems about 6-8 years too late (remember when sex tapes were a big deal, at least among celebrities?), Sex Tape comes off as current with a nice mix of actually funny, silly humor and a bit of useful advice that should strike a cord with couples nationwide.
WHAT'S GOOD (OR BAD) ABOUT IT? Sex Tape works for the following reasons: One, Segel and Diaz have very good chemistry together. Two, the jokes are executed well as the actors commit to the bits and third, the subtle relationship issues Annie and Jay address throughout their ordeal are realistic even at times when the ridiculous actions they take are not. Could the movie have worked harder to be an outright laugh out loud comedy? Yes, but it does deliver a solid does of laughs while being date friendly (well, maybe not first date friendly) without switching into an entirely different movie a la Hall Pass. (Remember how that could have been so much funnier before it became a standard romantic comedy?)
Diaz and Segel feel like a real couple who really enjoy each other's company and therefore must fix their situation, a quality which really helps the film as a whole. This is balanced well by Kemper and Corddry as their wackier-but-not-ridiculously-so friends, all four couples addressing the issue of sex and what it means in relation to a healthy relationship.
Other than that, there's not much more to say about Sex Tape except for if you are looking for a simple, entertaining little film that will surprise you in terms of how it explores its subject and what it says about it. It's not a classic, it's not as funny as it might have been in the hands of a more prolific comedy duo – one can't help but wonder what Judd Apatow or Will Ferrell's Gary Sanchez Productions might have done with the same concept – and it's definitely not the first film you'd likely suggest to your spouse, but it's a decent flick you'll enjoy.
It'll at least be as enjoyable as the average sex tape (barring you having a starring role).
WHO WON'T – OR SHOULDN'T – LIKE THIS FILM?: People who find the film in both concept and execution too silly; don't like anything relating to and/or regarding pornography
BOTTOM LINE – IS IT GOOD, GREAT, BAD OR DOWNRIGHT AWFUL? For a film that seems about 6-8 years too late (remember when sex tapes were a big deal, at least among celebrities?), Sex Tape comes off as current with a nice mix of actually funny, silly humor and a bit of useful advice that should strike a cord with couples nationwide.
WHAT'S GOOD (OR BAD) ABOUT IT? Sex Tape works for the following reasons: One, Segel and Diaz have very good chemistry together. Two, the jokes are executed well as the actors commit to the bits and third, the subtle relationship issues Annie and Jay address throughout their ordeal are realistic even at times when the ridiculous actions they take are not. Could the movie have worked harder to be an outright laugh out loud comedy? Yes, but it does deliver a solid does of laughs while being date friendly (well, maybe not first date friendly) without switching into an entirely different movie a la Hall Pass. (Remember how that could have been so much funnier before it became a standard romantic comedy?)
Diaz and Segel feel like a real couple who really enjoy each other's company and therefore must fix their situation, a quality which really helps the film as a whole. This is balanced well by Kemper and Corddry as their wackier-but-not-ridiculously-so friends, all four couples addressing the issue of sex and what it means in relation to a healthy relationship.
Other than that, there's not much more to say about Sex Tape except for if you are looking for a simple, entertaining little film that will surprise you in terms of how it explores its subject and what it says about it. It's not a classic, it's not as funny as it might have been in the hands of a more prolific comedy duo – one can't help but wonder what Judd Apatow or Will Ferrell's Gary Sanchez Productions might have done with the same concept – and it's definitely not the first film you'd likely suggest to your spouse, but it's a decent flick you'll enjoy.
It'll at least be as enjoyable as the average sex tape (barring you having a starring role).
OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):
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