STACK NZ Jan-Feb #59

30 / 60

WISH I WAS HERE
Like the Veronica Mars big screen adventure, Zach Braff’s belated follow-
up to Garden State was funded through Kickstarter. Assuming that many
of those who contributed were big fans of his debut indie smash, it’s not
surprising that Wish I Was Here doesn’t stray too far from the style and
themes of his breakthrough film. Braff plays an actor whose career is in
terminal decline and whose wife (Kate Hudson) is the main breadwinner.
When his father (Mandy Patinkin) tells him that he will no longer be able
to pay for Braff’s kids’ education, he decides to home school them; of
course, along the way he learns a few important life lessons of his own.
Although Braff doesn’t quite recapture the quirky charm of Garden State,
this still makes for an intriguing companion-piece.
Daddy Day Care
TAMMY
Although she actually has a house, Tammy (Melissa McCarthy) is pure
trailer trash. Lazy and foul-mouthed, she decides to embark on a road
trip after losing her job at a burger joint and discovering that her husband
is having an affair with their neighbour. Unfortunately, she doesn’t have a
car, so she is forced to take her hard-drinking grandmother Pearl (Susan
Sarandon) along as well. Co-written by star McCarthy with her husband
Ben Falcone (who also directs),Tammy is a tad self-indulgent, but fans of
her distinctive brand of loud, outrageous comedy won’t be disappointed
and she is well supported by an A-list cast that includes Kathy Bates,
Toni Collette, Gary Cole and Dan Aykroyd.
Poor White Trash
THE SKELETON TWINS
aturday Night Live alumni Kristen Wiig and Bill
ader’s comic abilities have never been in question,
ut here they reveal hitherto unknown depths in
is sardonic comic drama. The pair play estranged
ins who are reunited after 10 years when Hader,
struggling gay actor, tries to kill himself. She takes
im back to her home town to recuperate, but it
on becomes clear she has just many mental
roblems: Wiig, too, has flirted with suicide and
although married to the nice-but-dim Luke Wilson,
she has been having affairs with the instructors of various adult
education courses she has been attending. Hader, meanwhile,
reconnects with Ty Burrell (Modern Family ), a former high school
teacher whom he had an affair with as a student. If it all sounds
a little heavy, never fear: while emotionally wrenching at times,
it’s also very, very funny – the scene in which the siblings lip sync
to Starship’s Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now is an instant comedy
classic. Highly recommended.
Twin Freaks
Release Date:25/02/15 Format:
Format: Release Date: 04/02/15 Format: Release Date:21/01/15
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