Netflix Recommends... What's Your Number (2011)

* *
Director: Mark Mylod
Starring: Anna Faris, Chris Evans

Based on my having watched This Means War, The Other Woman, and Brokeback Mountain, this time Netflix thought I might like What's Your Number?, a romantic comedy which has maybe a little bit in common with those first two films, and nothing at all in common with the third, unless you think that having a minor character who happens to be gay qualifies What's Your Number? to be compared to Ang Lee's Oscar winning masterpiece. I didn't really know a lot about What's Your Number? going into it (I vaguely remembered trailers for it from 2011) and picked it from among my recommendations because I was intrigued by the bizarre trio of films that made up Netflix's reasoning, and I have to say that it was surprisingly not terrible. It's not good by any stretch, and its premise is more than a little insulting, but it does have a certain degree of charm courtesy of its two stars.

Review: Just Friends (2005)

* *
Director: Roger Kumble
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Amy Smart, Anna Faris

Oh, Anna Faris. What won't I watch for you? Please try to be in better movies in the future. Not that Just Friends doesn't have its moments, but objectively speaking it's really not a good movie. However, if all you require from a comedy is someone in a fat suit, a bunch of pratfalls, and a fiery massacre of Christmas decorations, you will not leave Just Friends disappointed.

The film begins with Ryan Reynolds in a fat suit playing Chris Brander, an unpopular guy who is best friends with Jamie (Amy Smart), the most popular girl in school. He's in love with her, but she thinks of him like a brother and only wants to be friends, which becomes the defining event in Chris' life (that should tell you quite a bit about Chris' life). Just Friends is kind of like Nice Guy: The Movie, in that that Chris is under the impression that because he's friends with Jamie that somehow makes her obligated to become romantically involved with him (and, as an aside, that sense of obligation paradoxically negates itself since believing it means that he isn't really her friend after all) and her rejection is seen as an enormous betrayal. A decade later, having lost the weight, moved to LA, and become successful, he's still complaining about how Jamie messed with his head in high school, though as far as I can tell "messing" with him involved hanging out with him as if they were, you know, friends.

Chris hasn't been back to his hometown since high school but through a twist of plot-friendly fate gets stuck there at Christmas with pop star Samantha Jones (Anna Faris). Chris and Samantha used to be involved but since she's crazy it didn't work out, though he continues to feign interest in her in order to secure a deal between her and the company he works for. The scenes involving Samantha are the ones that redeem Just Friends and kind of, almost, make it worth watching. The romantic plot between Chris and Jamie is less worth watching, primarily because Reynolds and Smart have very little chemistry, and also because of Chris' sense of entitlement and subsequent behavior. I mean, if he wants to believe that his weight was the only reason she wasn't interested in him, that's his prerogative, but it doesn't change the fact that he's also kind of a dick.

In the end, Chris more or less realizes the errors he's made with regards to Jamie thanks in no small part to Dusty Dinkleman (Chris Klein), a character who acts as a mirror to Chris having also been unpopular and in love with Jamie in high school and having since become a player intent on avenging his younger self. The fact that Chris does a bit of a turnaround at the end combined with the fact that Reynolds is a very likeable actor, means that he emerges from all this unscathed. When he's in good movies, Reynolds shines, and when he's in bad movies you can't help but wonder how such a bad movie ended up with such a good lead.

The real star of the show, however, is Faris who can go so far over the top (as she does, frequently, here) while still seeming to be in total control of her performance. The writing for the character is extremely thin, but Faris puts everything into the role and manages to be the most entertaining thing in any given scene, even when she's not physically there, such as during a scene where Chris listens to multiple voice messages she's left for him. Like Reynolds, she always seems to be at the top of her game even when the material isn't really giving her much to work with. Just Friends is a 90 minute wasted opportunity that just shows you why Faris and Reynolds deserve to be in better films.

Maythew #1: The House Bunny (2008)

* * *
Director: Fred Wolf
Starring: Anna Faris

If it accomplishes nothing else, The House Bunny begs the question of why Anna Faris isn't in more movies. She is a singularly delightful screen presence who has the ability to make even a terrible movie kind of worth seeing just because she's in it. The House Bunny is by no means high art, but it was much better than I was expecting and offers a nice showcase for Faris' considerable comic talents.

Faris stars as Shelley and explains in an opening monologue that her life has been exactly like a fairytale "only vastly different." An orphan who has never felt like she particularly belonged anywhere, Shelley eventually finds a home in the Playboy mansion, where everybody loves her except for one Playmate who totally wants to be rid of her. When Shelley turns 27, she's unceremoniously kicked out of the mansion and wanders aimlessly before ending up on a college campus and getting the idea that she could become housemother to one of the sororities.

The sorority in need of a housemother is Zeta, which is full of misfits and on the verge of losing its charter because they never have any pledges. Natalie (Emma Stone), the leader of the Zetas, argues that if Shelley can help them become more popular, they might be able to save the house and the others - including ultra feminist Mona (Kat Dennings), pregnant Harmony (Katherine McPhee), and back brace wearing Joanne (Rumer Willis) - reluctantly agree to give her a shot. Shelley teaches them how to throw great parties and attract boys and when Shelley meets Oliver (Colin Hanks), the girls show her how to attract him with her brains rather than her body.

The screenplay by Kirsten Smith and Karen McCullah Lutz, who also wrote Legally Blonde and The Ugly Truth, is pretty weak and derivative. There are two mean girl/villain subplots that never really get off the ground because the film just doesn't seem that interested in them, the third act is a mess of quick reversals and changes of heart, and the middle section of the film is essentially a series of montages strung together by brief, plot-forwarding scenes. And yet... I enjoyed it despite these many, many flaws. I laughed a lot during this movie, particularly at the running joke of Shelley's trick for remembering people's names, which is all I will be able to think about whenever I meet new people from now on. Like it's protagonist, The House Bunny is dumb but absolutely endearing.

Matt's Thoughts: Barring the Scary Movie series, Anna Faris can do no wrong. A lesser actress might come across as mentally challenged in the role of Shelley, but Faris's comedic timing really saves the character.

While the plot is...obvious, and the B-plot involving Pooter's shenanigans at the Playboy Mansion was cut from the final film, I love this movie beyond words. Admittedly, I may not have the most cultured taste when it comes to cinematic masterpieces.

I do feel that the movie could have done more with the idea of changing one's-self to fit in among the masses. While Shelley's attempt to give the sorority a makeover in both style and personality is shown, at first, as an utterly positive situation, it's nice to see that the script at least attempted to show the error of her ways. On the other hand, Shelley is also given a slight makeover when she tries to become smarter to win the heart of a man. Because Shelley is the main character, and the focal point of the film, her makeover is the message the audience shall receive, and the end result is that Oliver is unimpressed by her attempts to grow wiser, and much preferred her when she was just a lovable moron. That's pretty much how I feel about this movie, too. It's stupid, but that's kind of why I love it.