Hats Off To You, Ben Affleck!

You remember Good Will Hunting: Best Original Screenplay that catapulted then 24-year-olds Matt Damon and Ben Affleck to instant celebrity? You remember the movies Matt Damon went on to star in: Saving Private Ryan, The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Departed, Ocean's 11/12/13, Invictus, and the Bourne trilogy? And you remember the movies Ben Affleck went on to star in: Forces of Nature, Pearl Harbor, Daredevil, Jersey Girl, and (gasp!) Gigli? No? Doesn't ring a bell? Probably because you either A) were wise enough to prefer a root canal over anything with Affleck's name attached to it or B) flirted with the idea of asking Regal Cinemas for your money back and then promptly forgot about the movie entirely in that same train of thought. I fell into category "B".

Apparently Ben himself wishes he could turn back time. According to an entertainment magazine, "I was definitely frustrated and wanted to withdraw from a part of my life that I was starting to hate," he says. "I was caught in that intersection of celebrity and tabloid culture, and it was beginning to upstage the movies I was trying to do." Remember "Bennifer" (Affleck's high-profile relationship with his Gigli costar Jennifer Lopez)? Shudder.

Then in 2007, Affleck decided to get behind the camera rather than in front of it with Gone Baby Gone, a haunting adaptation of Dennis Lehane's South Boston-set novel. The movie received terrific reviews, gave Ben's little brother Casey his first major leading role, and drew an Oscar nom for Amy Ryan. Not too shabby. Looked like Ben was onto something. Little did we know that three years later, his childhood hometown would be the key player in yet another Affleck-directed movie.

Curtain up on Act 2 - The Town. My friend Tiffany lives in Charlestown, the backdrop for the film, and after seeing this movie, I am in fear for her life. Ok, that might be a bit dramatic but according the statistic shown in the beginning of the film, Charlestown is infamous for producing more bank and armored-car robbers in one square mile than anywhere else in the U.S. Dear Lord. Tiffany, please buy Mace.

In The Town, Affleck (who also co-wrote the screenplay, based on Chuck Hogan's 2004 novel, Prince of Thieves), plays Doug, the ambivalent leader of a practiced heist ring, who falls in love with Claire (Rebecca Hall), a bank manager who is briefly held hostage during one of the group's robberies. I won't give anything away here, but it's definitely not your typical heist flick. Not only does The Town have a delicious supporting cast including Mad Men's Jon Hamm as an FBI agent, The Hurt Locker's Jeremy Renner as Doug's volatile ex-con buddy, and Gossip Girl's Blake Lively as Doug's drug-dealing ex-girlfriend but Affleck also studded the cast with real-life working class locals and ex-cons with thick Beantown accents. Though I'm not quick to say the movie's the best heist film I've ever seen (that title goes to Michael Mann's 1995 film Heat), it is a triumphant comeback for Affleck and a chance for him to pull out the big guns - literally.

Welcome back, Ben! Hats off to you! You may be a late bloomer but I'm sure glad you are finally showing your true colors. Now stay put behind that camera. Yours truly, Amateur Critic.

NEW: I'm adding trailers at the bottom of my reviews... starting now.

Trailer for The Town

Feeling Like A Barrymore

For any city-dweller, there are days when you simply loathe living in the city. Here in Los Angeles, it's any day you sit in traffic (read: every. single. day.) and when you are forced to deal with the crazies (my trendsetting - that's questionable - hippie-vegan neighbors). Then there are some days when you can't imagine living anywhere else. Here in La-La Land, today is that particular day.

A dear friend of mine, who happens to be an Ellen Show staff member on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank (damn straight I'm bragging!), invited me to attend a private screening of Going the Distance (the movie doesn't hit theatres until Sept. 3). The film was screened in WB's theatre, an elegant cinematic space centrally positioned on the expansive lot. Only WB employees were invited to the screening so I felt so Hollywood! with my guest pass. I was even asked to "flash my pass" at the security gate before entering the lot. After smiling coyly and wishing the security guard a good day, I walked away thinking, "I'm so made for this!"

Going the Distance, starring real life on-again-off-again couple Drew Barrymore and Justin Long, follows Garrett (Long) and Erin (Barrymore), a couple who try to sustain a relationship 3,000 miles apart (she's in San Francisco, he's in New York). They meet when Erin is in NYC for the summer working as an intern for a New York newspaper. When Erin returns to San Fran at the end of the summer, they agree to a long distance relationship. What follows is a romantic comedy that tries very hard not to conform to a standard rom-com formula.

In a hopeful attempt to amuse any male audience member, Going the Distance is bursting at the seams with f-bombs, s-e-x scenes, and vulgar supporting characters (all of whom I actually adore... in other films), and Barrymore's typical sugary sweet-tomboy act (i.e. "I'm totally okay that your roommate listens to us having dirty fun time through the paper-thin walls."). Personally, I prefer Barrymore with costars she hasn't dated in real life (i.e. Adam Sandler and Jimmy Fallon). The chemistry between fictional Garrett and Erin is much too similar to the probable chemistry between Long and Barrymore. It's like watching their relationship play out on the big screen. To be fair, there are a couple of scenes and one-liners (shout outs go to Christina Applegate as Erin's overly protective sister and Charlie Day from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia who plays Garrett's roommate) that spark a collective laugh from the audience, but for the most part the film is predictable fun. It's entertaining but forgettable.

Movie aside, my VIP experience on the WB lot rocked! After the movie, I accompanied my friend back to her personal office (yeah... she's kind of a big deal, not gonna lie) for a quick tour of the Ellen Show offices (squeal!). If it wasn't forbidden to take photos, I absolutely would have clicked away! I mean, these offices house Emmy-winning writers for crying out loud!! I was awestruck to say the least. I looooove having friends in high places!

It's days like today that remind me why I love living in LA.