• Home
  • Classic Reviews
  • 2015 Reviews
  • 2016 Reviews
  • 2017 Reviews
  • 2018 Reviews
  • 2019 Reviews
  • 2020 Reviews
  • 2021 Reviews
  • 2022 Reviews
  • 2023 Reviews
  • 2024 Reviews
  • 2025 Reviews
  • Movie Talk
  • Fan Fictions
    • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Ultimate Ed-Chronicles >
      • The 'Beginnings' Saga >
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Rise of Maleficent >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Rise of Maleficent Full Movie
        • Transformers: Legend of the Black Cauldron >
          • Transformers: Legend of the Black Cauldron Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy meets the Penguins of Madagascar >
          • EEEMTPOM Full Movie
        • The Eds and Iron Man: Dawn of the Blowhole >
          • The Eds and Iron Man Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Fast and the Furious >
          • EEE: The Fast and the Furious Full Movie
        • The Eds and Kung Fu Panda: Battle for China >
          • The Eds and Kung Fu Panda Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy and the Lion King: The Full Circle >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy and the Lion King Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy meets Thumbelina: Revenge of the Shredder >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy meets Thumbelina Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: Journey to Neverland >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy: Journey to Neverland Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: All Tangled Up >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy: All Tangled Up Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Frozen Adventure >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Frozen Adventure Chapter One Full Movie
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Frozen Adventure Chapter Two Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Edventures in San Fransokyo
      • The 'Avengers' Saga
      • Fastformers: Rio Heist
      • The Loud Ghostbusters
  • Contact
  • About

A Futile and Stupid Gesture (2018)

2/3/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
“A Futile and Stupid Gesture” stars Will Forte, Domhnall Gleeson, Martin Mull, Joel McHale, Thomas Lennon, John Gemberling, Matt Walsh, Rick Glassman, Jon Daly, Seth Green and Emily Rossum.  Released on Netflix on January 26, 2018, the film chronicles the rise and fall of the popular humor magazine known as National Lampoon.

The film is directed by David Wain, who also directed films such as Wet Hot American Summer, Role Models, and Wanderlust.  It is based on the 2006 book of the same name by Josh Karp.  I was originally planning on seeing another film for the Oscars, but with the streets and the ground all covered with snow, I decided to stay home tonight and review one of the movies that just premiered on Netflix last weekend.  Better safe than sorry, folks.  The film I’ll be looking at shows the history of National Lampoon and how it changed the way people see comedy.  I’ve only known National Lampoon from the Vacation movies that starred Chevy Chase, especially Christmas Vacation, so it would be interesting to see if this movie can convince me to check out some of its other works.

The movie showcases the most notable accomplishments that Doug Kenney obtained during his career, such as the creation of National Lampoon, the controversies surrounding its humor, and the making of the cult comedy classic, “Animal House”.  While biopics usually display fact-based events in the form of dramas, this film takes a more comedic approach in telling the story about the pros and cons at running one’s own business, especially the magazine business.  Even though this approach wasn’t able to make it stand out as much in terms of its substance, it was able to tickle my funny bones as well as providing an interesting look at the guy who changed comedy forever.  Will Forte delivered a very impressive performance as Doug Kenney with Gleeson following suit as Henry Beard.  Martin Mull provided the narration of the events as the modern version of Doug Kenney.  He’s clearly the best part of the film for me because of his comedic timing.  Every scene he’s been in was nothing but hilarious.  The comedy in this film is nothing too offensive or bizarre compared to the humor from National Lampoon, but for what it’s worth, it did its part in delivering some worthy laughs that may please fans of the popular magazine.  As for the storytelling, it definitely explores the pressures of a simple man running a magazine business.  It’s not a strong representation of the situation, but the film’s charm and humor were able to keep it from going out of business.

Overall, it wasn’t able to join the “Best Biopics” club, but “A Futile and Stupid Gesture” is still a fascinating and humorous look at National Lampoon.  With a solid cast, some decent storytelling, and a suitable amount of laughs, this is the first solid film that Netflix has put out this year.  If you’re a fan of National Lampoon or if you’re just interested in how it came to be, it’s worth checking out.
Picture

B-

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Home of the most friendly movie reviews on the planet.

    Categories

    All
    2015 Reviews
    2016 Reviews
    2017 Reviews
    2018 Reviews
    2019 Reviews
    2020 Reviews
    2021 Reviews
    2022 Reviews
    2023 Reviews
    2024 Reviews
    2025 Reviews
    Classic Reviews
    Movie Talk
    The Oscars

    Follow Me

    Exclusive stuff on Patreon
    Follow me on Twitch
Copyright © 2015
  • Home
  • Classic Reviews
  • 2015 Reviews
  • 2016 Reviews
  • 2017 Reviews
  • 2018 Reviews
  • 2019 Reviews
  • 2020 Reviews
  • 2021 Reviews
  • 2022 Reviews
  • 2023 Reviews
  • 2024 Reviews
  • 2025 Reviews
  • Movie Talk
  • Fan Fictions
    • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Ultimate Ed-Chronicles >
      • The 'Beginnings' Saga >
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Rise of Maleficent >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Rise of Maleficent Full Movie
        • Transformers: Legend of the Black Cauldron >
          • Transformers: Legend of the Black Cauldron Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy meets the Penguins of Madagascar >
          • EEEMTPOM Full Movie
        • The Eds and Iron Man: Dawn of the Blowhole >
          • The Eds and Iron Man Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: The Fast and the Furious >
          • EEE: The Fast and the Furious Full Movie
        • The Eds and Kung Fu Panda: Battle for China >
          • The Eds and Kung Fu Panda Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy and the Lion King: The Full Circle >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy and the Lion King Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy meets Thumbelina: Revenge of the Shredder >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy meets Thumbelina Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: Journey to Neverland >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy: Journey to Neverland Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy: All Tangled Up >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy: All Tangled Up Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Frozen Adventure >
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Frozen Adventure Chapter One Full Movie
          • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Frozen Adventure Chapter Two Full Movie
        • Ed, Edd n Eddy's Edventures in San Fransokyo
      • The 'Avengers' Saga
      • Fastformers: Rio Heist
      • The Loud Ghostbusters
  • Contact
  • About