Zoolander 2

Zoolander 2

Red Hour Productions etc.

February 12, 2016

Comedy
DVD
C-

This misfire sequel, released almost fifteen years after the original, doesn't seem to understand what made the original work.  I mean, seeing Justin Bieber riddled with bullets in the opening sequence doesn't exactly spell comedy to me.  And I can't remember whether or not I saw it in the theater.  Ben Stiller again stars, directed, and co-wrote.

Zoolander

Zoolander

Village Roadshow Pictures

September 28, 2001

Comedy

DVD
B

I thought this was hilarious at the time but hadn't seen it since.  It is still hilarious in spots, and generally amiable, with of course incredible fashions and fun music.  It also exists in a universe where almost anyone can show up, from pre-marriage Donald and Melania Trump to Garry Shandling to at least two of the Spice Girls.  (I laughed uproariously for several minutes at the David Bowie cameo.)  I tagged who I could.

Ben Stiller of course stars, but he also directed and co-wrote.

The Watch

The Watch

21 Laps Entertainment

July 27, 2012

Comedy, Sci-Fi

DVD
C-

Uneven and never quite funny, but I could see it working with a better script.  Seth Rogen co-wrote, and Akiva Schaffer directed.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

20th Century Fox etc.

May 22, 2009

Fantasy, Comedy

DVD
D+

I haven't seen any of the movies in the series before, but I found this pretty flat.  Robin Williams is of course the best thing about it, and he's playing an unrecognizable version of Teddy Roosevelt.  (I mean characterization, not appearance.)  Shawn Levy directed, and I tagged the people I recognized in the first quarter hour.

The Cable Guy

The Cable Guy

Sony Pictures Releasing

June 14, 1996

Comedy
DVD
D+

I tried to watch this once before, but it definitely falls into the "annoying" category of Jim Carrey movies.  (The Truman Show would not.)  Ben Stiller directed.

Keeping the Faith

Keeping the Faith

Buena Vista, i.e. Disney

April 14, 2000

Comedy
DVD
C-

Kind of cliched.  Star Norton directed.

DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story

DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story
20th Century Fox
June 18, 2004
Sports Comedy
DVD
D

Crude, homophobic, and unfunny except for sort of the pirate.  Rawson Marshall Thurber wrote and directed, a dozen years before Central Intelligence.

The Cable Guy

The Cable Guy
Columbia
June 14, 1996
Comedy
DVD
C-

I have a low tolerance for Jim Carrey, The Truman Show aside, but I didn't hate this (well, the first quarter hour), and it's certainly a time capsule, with "the information highway" of cable when the Internet was still in its infancy as a major cultural force.  Ben Stiller directed and appears as the Sweet twins.