What type of movie is this? - A Review of The Tourist

Johnny Depp isn't cranking out hits lately,  but this movie came out a while ago and starred Angelina Jolie alongside him.  What was this all about? - I decided to rent it and see if it was as bad as the critics seemed to think.  First off - the acting is good - it was the story that really lacked something.  Angelina plays a spy of sorts who is working with someone mysteriously who tells her to pick a non-suspecting tourist and try to make those who are following her believe it is the man she really intends to make contact with.  So she picks Johnny Depp's character who claims he is a math teacher from America.  He seems like a nice enough guy and although kind of clumsy kind of likes the idea of Ms. Jolie following him around and rescuing him from danger.   However, that plotline didn't save the movie from an overall lackluster journey.  Here is where this movie fell short in my opinion:

1. Like stated before it wasn't the acting - it was the story behind the movie that really was missing something.

The story had potential, but when you are making a movie in the same genre as The Bourne Identity or James Bond series, you have some high expectations to compete with.   Unfortunately, I don't think this movie has the same ingredients that made The Bourne Identity so great and it also tried to blend too many genres of movies like point #4 below elaborates on.

2.  Bad guys who are hard to take seriously. 

Are they meant to be funny and comedic or are they really trying to be threatening?  This movie kind of leaves you guessing and the result is that you aren't rooting that hard for the good guys to get away and come out ahead, because you don't know if the bad guys are going to be so stupid they will end up sabotaging themselves.

3. A twist that feels forced and not that surprising.

A good twist can really keep you guessing throughout the movie and make you feel a sense of surprise and admiration for the writers. This movie's twist (although it does contain one) - doesn't seem to deliver that result.  It feels a bit too forced and not really that surprising.  Compared to the ending/twist of Limitless, which is open to interpretation and almost makes you want to re-watch the movie, this movie doesn't deliver a satisfying one.

4. Not sure what type of movie this is trying to be.

I had heard spy adventure and comedy so I watched it expecting something like that - but after it was all over - I actually thought this movie came off more of a romance??  I prefer adventures, action movies and comedies all to romances - so that definitely took some stars away from my review.  In the end, I'm not positive what type of genre the directors/writers were going for.   I guess if you aim at too many targets you won't hit any of them.

Conclusion: while this movie wasn't terrible, it delivered a movie that left you thinking it could have been so much better.  If that is the best you can say about a movie - I would say this is no more than a 2 star rating out of 5.

A Different Type of Comedy : A Review of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

Ben Stiller hasn't done a whole lot of movies recently (other than Zoolander 2), but he recently came

out with this movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.  This is kind of a different movie in the comedy department.  It doesn't revolve around sophomore humor (a definite plus in my book),  and I wouldn't call it intensely witty either.  Instead it revolves around an outlandish plot and awkward humor like you would witness in The Office TV show.   However, despite that set-apart trait, it does seem to work.  I recently found out this movie is a remake of a movie that came out with Danny Kaye with the same name.  I have not watched the older version,  so I can't contrast this one with that version.  Ben Stiller does play a convincing part, and the story works.  Here is what I liked about The Secret Life of Walter Mitty:

1. Funny story about a guy who wants to live another life.  Many people fantasize about another life with different circumstances.  This movie appears to play the "what if?" line out in Walter Mitty's own life as he nurses kind of an alter-ego to be someone unlike his normal day-to-day self.

2. A comedy that is funny but doesn't rely on dirty jokes to make it that way.  Too many comedies today have to add off-color humor and situations to make it a comedy.  The Secret Life of Walter Mitty doesn't do that.  It is still a very funny movie that doesn't cross the line into adult humor.  Since I've never seen the Danny Kaye version I don't know if that is the case in his version of the movie, but my guess is that Ben Stiller kept that part faithful to the original movie of the same name.

Here is what could have been better:

A. More witty humor lines, and less dependence on situational comedy scenes.  Ben Stiller has the ability to deliver a good line, so I wish there were more humorous lines and less dependence on funny scenes.  The funny scenes didn't distract from the story though,  I would have just preferred a wittier script for the comedy.  Maybe I'm expecting too much for what this movie tries to be though.

B. Less "crazy stupid" parts in the movie.  There is one scene in particular that I wonder if it went a little too far in the "crazy" direction (those who have seen this will know when I mention this scene also involves a Brad Pitt movie theme) - but I guess it is matter of taste.  When funny movies go too nutty they can either make you bust your gut laughing, or leave you scratching your head as to why that part even got approved to stay in the movie.    I guess I felt more of the latter on some parts of this movie.

Most of Ben Stiller's movie I have found to be funny.  This one is no exception.  I thought it was well acted, directed, and still a funny movie to enjoy with the whole family.  If you want to know what The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is really about,  I recommend checking this one out.