Movie #366 - Can't Hardly Wait

Can't Hardly Wait
1998 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 40 min
Directors: Harry Elfont, Deborah Kaplan
Starring: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ethan Embry, Charlie Korsmo, Lauren Ambrose, Peter Facinelli, Seth Green, Freddy Rodriguez,  Sean Patrick Thomas, Donald Faison, Jaime Pressly, Selma Blair, Jason Segel, Chris Owen

Oh, high school. This movie came out the year before I graduate high school, so the whole party-before-college premise rung true for me at the time.  Jocks, nerds, cheerleaders, and X-filers alike can revel in this movie's accurate rendering of high school in the 90s.  And what a cast... so many great bit parts played by actors who have real careers now!

See if you can spot Selma Blair. Or how about Jason Segel?  Yep, that's him all right!  This was fun to revisit after so much time has passed.  Not only could I still remember my favorite lines, but finding all these "new" faces in the crowd became a game for me. 

Anyway, it's no Oscar winner, nor does it have the kind of original plot that keeps you riveted.  The characters are stereotypes, the acting's okay, but the real joy here is in what it represents for me.  If you didn't graduate high school in the late 90s, this might not strike the same chord for you.

Movie #265 - Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Hellboy II: The Golden Army
2008 - Rated PG-13 - 2 hr
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, John Alexander, James Dodd, Seth MacFarlane, Jeffrey Tambor, John Hurt

More of the Red guy isn't necessarily good or bad news in my opinion.  This installment takes a turn more toward a fantasy plotline, with an ancient army's resurrection and command at stake.  Can Red, Blue, and the team stop them in time? 

Meanwhile, more of the weird are they/aren't they love story between Blair and Perlman takes shape.  At least she's fully committed to the team this time around, allowing for more conflicts elsewhere... like with the weirdo in the deep-sea diving gear.

Somewhere between these two movies, Guillermo del Toro did Pan's Labyrinth and the artistic elements are apparent.  Having recently watched Pan as well, some of the characters could easily be lifted from this movie and placed into the world created in that one.  Visually, this is gorgeous to watch.

Movie #264 - Hellboy

Hellboy
2004 - Rated PG-13 - 2 hr 2 min
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Starring: Ron Perlman, Selma Blair, John Hurt, Rupert Evans, Jeffrey Tambor, Doug Jones, Karel Roden

Before seeing this movie, I was unaware that Ron Perlman could get uglier than he already is.  I was also unaware that Selma Blair could become more annoying.  Together, they're a weird match made in... hell? Maybe?

This movie's for boys, comic book fans, action film geeks. It is not for girls.  Still, I can appreciate some good CGI as much as the next girl, but there's not too much of that in here either.  The fish guy's kinda cool and I love John Hurt, so it's got that going for it.  Plus, that nerdy new kid is okay.

Mostly, though, this is one of those movies you'll enjoy more if you're a fan of the comic.  It's not geared to someone like me. So I don't hate it, but I don't love it as much as others might.

Movie #249 - A Guy Thing

A Guy Thing
2003 - Rated PG-13 - 1 hr 41 min
Director: Chris Koch
Starring: Jason Lee, Julia Stiles, Selma Blair, James Brolin, Shawn Hatosy, David Koechner, Julie Hagerty, Thomas Lennon, Jackie Burroughs

I think this movie is really funny, but I realize that not everyone agrees with me.  I mean, Jason Lee as the romantic lead? Torn between Julia Stiles and Selma Blair?  It's unlikely, but it does afford for many hillarious moments.

From bathroom crabs to underwear bins, Jason Lee tests the solidarity of the male sex.  Will his friends back up all his lies? What about total strangers?  He doesn't mean to be "cheating" and hiding things from his fiance, but stuff just keeps happening to him, whether he wants it to or not.

Yes, it's based on an infidelity...which I'm usually not a fan of in movies.  But everyone gets their own happy ending and no feelings are hurt in the process.  That's how we know it's only a movie...

Movie #140 - Cruel Intentions

Cruel Intentions
Columbia TriStar
1999 - Rated R - 1 hr 37 min
Director: Roger Kumble
Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair, Joshua Jackson, Swoosie Kurtz, Christine Baranski, Tara Reid

Ah, twisted rich kids and their sex games.  Based on the French novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, but with teenagers, this movie could have easily turned into a parody.  Thanks to its cast, however, the weird and complicated "bet" between two step-siblings actually works. It seems a bit excessive, but what else is there to do when you're rich, lazy, and oh-so-sexy?

Reese Witherspoon is adorable, even more so than her adult self just because of how petite and cute she is.  Actually, I think this is where she got together with Ryan Phillippe.  And a pre-American Pie, pre-plastic surgery nightmare Tara Reid is also pretty cute.

So this movie is weird, but it works. And, damn it, it's actually pretty sexy.