This Weekend, Watch This
A comparison of the new releases for August 6, 2010
By Curt David
August 6, 2010
New movies are released into theaters every weekend. How do you decide which movie to watch? Some people could pick a movie based on the title (surprisingly, The Ugly Truth, Coyote Ugly, and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly all have different genres). Some people watch trailers (misleading), some people listen to their friends (friends can be idiots), and some people only go to the movies if their Hollywood crush is on the screen (My Top 10: Actresses I have crushed on... #2: Freida Pinto from Slumdog Millionaire).
More likely than not, each weekend there is a movie that you have never heard of in the theaters. I'll save you the hassle of researching every movie, by comparing the new releases for each weekend in this column. Then, I'll tell you which movie to watch.
For the weekend of August 6th, the movies in wide release are The Other Guys and Step Up 3-D.
| The Other Guys | Step Up 3-D | WINNER
(1 point per category)
|
| Clearest Title | I like to think that I´m not "that guy" and am part of the other guys. | The third movie in the Step Up trilogy!!!! | Step Up was filmed in my hood in Baltimore. It wins this point and makes things look grim for those other guys. |
Best Genre
and Rating | Action/Comedy (PG-13) | Drama/Dance (PG-13) | I always would choose an action comedy over a dance movie. But this is Step Up!!! Hmmm...I guess we´ll go 50/50 for this point. |
Cleverest Tagline
(out of 5 stars) | "N/A"
WHAT?!?!Will Ferrell couldn´t think of a tagline for this comedy? Shame.
0/5 stars
| "Take the biggest step of all in 3D"
BIGGEST STEP OF ALL!!! STEP UP 3D!!! WOOT WOOT!
1/5 stars
| Not the best tagline of all-time, but the best one this week. Step Up 3D wins another point.
|
| Best Part of Trailer | This looks closer to a good Will Ferrell movie (Anchorman, Elf) than a bad one (Land of the Lost, Kicking & Screaming, etc.) | It looks like a dance movie. | Despite being from Bmore, I´m giving The Other Guys the point for the best trailer. |
| Coolest Lead Actor | Will Ferrell from the aforementioned movies, and from SNL, Talladega Nights, Zoolander, and Old School. | Alyson Stoner was the most famous person I could find in the cast list. She has been in Step Up, Camp Rock, and many Disney shows. | Will Ferrell steps up and wins. |
| Best Cast Member | Mark Wahlberg from Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, Planet of the Apes, The Italian Job, The Perfect Storm, and he was Oscar-nominated for The Departed. | Harry Shum Jr. has danced in You Got Served, Stomp the Yard, Step Up 2, and Center Stage:Turn it Up. | Mark Wahlberg has a nice resume. Yet, the only thing I think of when I hear his name is Andy Samberg´s impression of him. Point for Marky Mark. |
Best Street Cred
For the Production | Director Adam McKay has also directed SNL, Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and Step Brothers. | Director Jon Chu has also directed Step Up 2: The Streets. | Having Adam direct this movie truly gives The Other Guys more street cred. Point. |
So out of a maximum of 7 points per movie, The Other Guys scores 4 1/2 points and Step Up 3D scores 2 1/2 points.
You may interpret this column for your own movie preferences. For example, if you´re from Baltimore, watch Step Up 3D. However, if you are still on the fence, please read the following conclusions from the scientific data gathered in this column.
Conclusion 1: On paper, The Other Guys is the movie to watch this weekend.
Conclusion 2: For real, I lived in the same neighborhood that Channing Tatum´s character lived in the original Step Up movie. Street cred point for Curt David.
Conclusion 3: While some people like Will Ferrell´s SNL sketches of George W., Jeopardy, or a Spartan cheerleader the best....my personal favorite is when he played Tom Wilkins on Morning Latte.
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