KANSAS CITY, Mo — FOX 4’s Shawn Edwards and Russ Simmons are back in the screening room with the latest movie releases and their opinions on “The Boy Next Door,” “Wedding Ringer,” “The Gambler,” and “Inherent Vice.”
- THE BOY NEXT DOOR (R)
Universal
RUSS
Jennifer Lopez took a break from her judging duties on “American Idol” to star in the derivative thriller, “The Boy Next Door.” J Lo plays a schoolteacher who discovers that her handsome neighbor is a violent and obsessive psycho.
SHAWN
This is a fantastic throw away movie with b-movie chills and c-level story. Clearly better in a communal setting but perhaps still effective when watching at home thanks to J-Lo’s deliciously campy performance.
RUSS
This one is a strictly ‘by-the-numbers’ white-knuckler that’s far too predictable to achieve any real thrills. “The Boy Next Door” is enough to make you want to move.
SHAWN
Naw, it’s fun stuff and J-Lo has a couple of steamy scenes that won’t soon be forgotten.
RUSS: 2 Popcorn Bags
SHAWN: 3 Popcorn Bags
2. THE WEDDING RINGER (R)
Sony Screen Gems
RUSS
Kevin Hart plays a ‘Best Man for Hire’ for friendless bridegrooms in the witless and painfully unfunny comedy, “The Wedding Ringer.” Hart and Josh Gad are talented comics, but their efforts go for naught in this plodding and infantile mess.
SHAWN
There are plenty of funny moments and Kevin Hart and Josh Gadd are funny together. But have to admit that these Kevin Hart comedies are beginning to feel like assembly line produced fodder fir the cinematically lazy. Can someone say overexposed?
RUSS: 2 Popcorn Bags
SHAWN: 3 Popcorn Bags
3. THE GAMBLER (R)
Paramount
RUSS
Mark Wahlberg is solid in this remake of the 1974 James Caan drama about gambling addiction. His character is so unlikable, however, that it becomes a burden to watch.
SHAWN
“The Gambler” just felt like everyone involved got dealt a bad hand. Mark Wahlberg is literally sleep walking through the proceedings and nothing at all happens that would make anyone care.
RUSS: 3 Popcorn Bags
SHAWN: 2 Popcorn Bags
- INHERENT VICE (R)
Warner Brothers
RUSS
People said that “Inherent Vice,” Thomas Pynchon’s psychedelic novel about a pothead private eye in 70s LA, was un-filmable. After seeing Paul Thomas Anderson’s big screen adaptation, I think they may be right. This decadent romp meanders like a pothead’s dream, never amounting to much more than a minor distraction.
SHAWN
A wayward spiral of jibberish and characters so false the movie almost felt like a 2-hour inside joke.
RUSS: 3 Popcorn Bags
SHAWN: 2 Popcorn Bags
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