Gideon58's Reviews

David O. Russell followed up his brilliant Silver Linings Playbook with a somewhat effective excursion into Scorsese territory called American Hustle, an explosive and elaborately mounted period piece that takes a bitingly accurate look at the hedonistic 1970's and the art of the con, seen primarily through the actions of three characters that is allegedly fact-based. We are told at the beginning of the film that "Some of this actually happened," whatever that means.

The main players here are Irving Rosenfeld, the owner of a string of dry cleaners who begins a very profitable confidence scheme with Sydney Prosser, a sexy and smart hustler who not only knows how to watch the bottom line, but how to manipulate it in her favor. Irving and Sidney's increasingly cushy existence is stalled by one Richie Di Masso, a smart-ass FBI agent who offers Irving and Sidney immunity in exchange for their help in aiding him to nail some much bigger fish, as well as lining his own pockets.

Other key players on this complex but fascinating canvas include Irving's wife, Roselyn, a not as dumb as she appears housewife and mother, who refuses to be seen and not heard and is not above using Irving's son as leverage against him; Carmine Polito, the mayor of Camden, New Jersey, Stoddard Thorsen, Richie's boss, and a phony Arab sheik.

Russell has undertaken one of his largest stories that is on the surface a look at the greed and hedonism of the 1970's but does whittle its way down to an intense look at mob and political corruption, keeping the involvement of actual mobsters and politicians to a minimum and the complicated triangle formed by the trio of central characters, anchored by a dizzying monitoring of Sydney'as loyalties, which is the apex of the triangle primarily because Sydney really is the smartest character in the movie. Unfortunately, the film does lose a few points in the originality department, as images of Scorsese work like Goodfellas and Casino leap to mind, minus a lot of the in your face violence we get from Scorese.

The performances are, for the most part, first rate. Christian Bale, cinema's second greatest chameleon behind Jared Leto, undergoes a remarkable physical transformation to bring the slick yet pathetic Rosenfeld to life, though he really just seems to be sort of channeling Robert De Niro. Amy Adams turns in the performance of her career as Sydney, a rich performance that effectively nails the character's intelligence and vulnerability. Bradley Cooper scores with his slick FBI agent too, though I think he was better in Silver Linings Playbook. Jennifer Lawrence offers another explosive performance as Roselyn that rivals her Tiffany in Silver Linings and Jeremy Renner is an eye opener as Mayor Carmine.

As with most of his work, Russell's direction trumps his writing, which, as always tries to encompass a little too much, but most of the film's running time is legitimized. Russell, Bale, Adams, Cooper, and Lawrence were all nominated for Oscars and I think Adams should have won, an actress I once thought of as a one-trick pony who has proven to be anything but. The film also boasts a kick-ass song score of some of the greatest music from the late 70's early 80's. Russell makes a mighty big leap into Scorsese territory here and though not completely successful, has mounted a watchable film that sustains interest for most of its running time.

Plus rep for the reviews. Though I personally could not get into American Hustle. For all the talks and comparisons to Scorsese, I find the comparison a little thin. Now David O Russell is great at getting performances from his actors. Despite not caring for his films his actors are always at their best. Especially Lawrence. So in that regard O Russell is similar to Scorsese, but Scorsese is the far better storyteller. I just could not connect with this flick at all. And sadly, it was a let down after being propped up so high during last years awards season.

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Fear and Loathing in MoFo... The Gunslinger 45's Top 50 Favorite Films

In the 10 Ring: Gunslinger45's reviews

I agree with you that Scorsese is the superior storyteller that's why Russell's attempt to tell this kind of story just didn't ring true...Russell just seemed a little out of his league here, but he does get great performances out of his actors...Lawrence was a lot of fun in this movie and I was blown away by Amy Adams.

Surviving Christmas is a lame and offensive comedy that suffers from a silly and unbelievable story and a really obnoxious lead character.

This 2004 comedy stars Ben Affleck as Drew Latham, a young and extremely wealthy businessman who, after being dumped by his fiancee, travels to his hometown where he plans to spend Christmas. He goes to the actual house he grew up in and offers to pay the family currently residing there a stupid amount of money to allow him to move into his old bedroom for Christmas and for this family to actually pretend to be HIS family for the holidays. We watch as Drew butts head with the family patriarch (James Gandolfini), brings Mom (Catherine O'Hara) out of the shell she didn't even realize she was in, and begin a very rocky romance with the daughter (Christina Applegate) home from college who is adamantly against this whole arrangement.

This film grates on the nerves from jump, primarily because the leading character has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. We see the way he runs his business and the way he throws money at anything that doesn't go his way and you just want to punch the guy in the face. Affleck's performance doesn't help matters, which can best be described as uneven.

What the film does have going for it is a pair of first rate performances from Gandolfini and O'Hara as Tom and Christine Valco, the couple who agree to this charade despite the effects it has on their holiday season and their marriage. Gandolfini's dry and understated delivery is a perfect compliment to Affleck's scenery chewing and almost makes the proceedings barable...almost. Strictly for hardcore fans of the late James Gandolfini.

Sadly, I think 4/10 is too generous for Surviving Christmas.

Love & Other Drugs is a 2010 romantic comedy that combines all the best elements of some contemporary love stories, as well as some classic love stories and takes some effective digs at the medical profession and the commercialism that invades some aspects of same.

Jamie Randall is a charming and gregarious womanizer who can sell a stereo as effectively as he can talk a woman out of her panties, who gets fired from the stereo store and becomes a pharmaceutical rep for Pfizer, on the fast track to leading all other reps in the sales of prozac and zoloft.

Maggie Murdock is a 26 year old woman who is very bitter about the fact that she has contracted Parkinson's disease at her young age and is afraid to become romantically involved with anyone because she's afraid that her medical condition will scare suitors away or that she will become a burden to them someday.

It is the accidental meeting of these two very different people that forms the crux of this unconventional but winning romantic comedy that provides laughs, warmth, and the occasional misty moment without ever becoming cliche or maudlin. This is the real anti-romantic comedy that movies like Friends with Benefits profess to be, but weren't.

Jake Gyllenhaal is slick and sexy as Jamie and Anne Hathaway offers one of her most affecting performances as Maggie...I don't think I have ever enjoyed Hathaway onscreen as much as I did here...Hathaway creates a character of strength and vulnerability, who tries and mostly fails to disguise her anger about her medical condition and is convinced she can never have a normal life or a normal relationship. And together, Gyllenhaal and Hathaway create mad onscreen chemistry that was only hinted at five years earlier in Brokeback Mountain.

Director and co-screenwriter Edward Zwick scores points for presenting a realistic look at Parkinson's Disease and reminding the viewer that it is a condition that can be lived with. Zwick also provided the leads with a solid supporting cast including Oliver Platt as a co-worker of Jamie's; Hank Azaria as a doctor of questionable ethics, and Joshua Gad as Jamie's brother. Mention should also be made of a brief cameo by George Segal and the late Jill Clayburgh as Jamie's parents.

I have to admit I was onboard with this film almost immediately because I happen to think Jake Gyllenhaal is one of the sexiest men on the planet and those who don't might want to take a point off my rating. but there are other rewards to be found here for most fans of romantic comedy.

Despite a fact-based story that strains credibility, an insightful look at the cinematic phenomena that was Marilyn Monroe makes the 2011 docudrama My Week with Marilyn worth watching.

This film centers on an aspiring English show biz hopeful named Colin Clark who has been hired to be the Third Assistant Director to Sir Laurence Olivier during production of the film The Prince and the Showgirl and how Colin inexplicably becomes the only person that Marilyn trusts on the set of the film, and that includes her acting coach Paula Strasberg, who was a permanent fixture in Marilyn's life during this period.

Director Simon Curtis has mounted an expensive, fact-based drama that so accurately brings to the screen the mania behind Marilyn and though it provides some mixed messages regarding the woman vs the myth, the messages are convincingly projected here. We always think that there's nothing new to learn about Marilyn at this point and this film doesn't really provide any new insight into the sex symbol, except for the possible fact that like a lot Marilyn's handlers, Marilyn was also aware that Marilyn Monroe was a "product" and that she was somebody else...someone else who whose deep-rooted sadness stemmed from the lack of strong parenting and that the feeling no one really loved her, including current spouse Arthur Miller.

As expected with any film about Marilyn, the film documents the production schedule delays due to Marilyn's chronic lateness, the constant interference from Paula Strasberg, the inability to remember very simple lines, and best of all, Olivier's conflicted feelings about his leading lady...we see Olivier's aggravation with the actress' work ethic combined with his fascination with the woman who makes him feel young again and has wife Vivien Leigh more than concerned. I love the scene of Olivier sitting alone in a screening room being captivated by dailies of Marilyn. What I did find hard to believe here is that a movie star like Marilyn Monroe would become so completely enamored of a Third Assistant Director that she would forsake everyone else around her, including Olivier, Paula, and Arthur Miller.

The film is well-cast with a nicely understated performance from Eddie Redmayne as Colin Clark, a young man who falls under the spell of Marilyn without even realizing it is happening. Kenneth Branaugh is charismatic as Laurence Olivier and mention should also be made of Julia Ormond as Vivien Leigh and a lovely turn from Dame Judi Dench as Dame Sybil Thorndyke, a co-star of The Prince and the Showgirl, who becomes Marilyn's onset saviour, but what this film has above everything else is a luminous, Oscar-nominated performance by Michelle Williams as Marilyn, a richly complex performance that nails Marilyn's vulnerability, insecurity, and best of all, her intelligence.

The film boasts some impressive production values, including first rate cinematography and a lush music score and helps to make this film lovely to look at...along with the incredible Michelle Williams.

I liked My Week With Marilyn too. Eddie Redmayne is very good as well as Michelle Williams.

As regards Dinner with Schmucks , the film it was based on, the Le Diner Des Cons is hilarious as is the directors Francis Verber's film Le Placard . Give them a go

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues is Will Ferrell's 2013 return to the character that made him an official movie star in a sequel that provides nothing in the way of originality, realism, credibility, continuity, but still delivers laughs.

This time around, we find our hero being fired from his network job while wife Veronica (Christina Applegate) is made sole anchor and within a year, is asked to be part of a new media concept called 24-hour news, which prompts Ron to reunite with his news team: Champ Kind (David Koechner), who is now running a chicken-fried bat fast food joint, Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) is now a kitten photographer and Brick Tamland (Steve Carell) has just risen from the dead (don't ask) and how they eventually rule Global News Network from the 2:00 am to 5:00 am slot.

As mentioned, the film does deliver laughs but that's primarily because the laughs are laughs that we have been privy to before this movie. Ferrell and Adam McKay's screenplay borrows liberally from the first film, as well as other Ferrell films like Blades of Glory and Talladega Nights. I guess Ferrell and McKay thought they did enough tweaking to the original ideas that we wouldn't notice.

There are some odd casting choices here, primarily Meagan Good, miscast as the young head of Global Network News and Dylan Baker as the slick GNN executive who recruits Burgundy, but Ferrell, Koechner, Carrell, and Rudd are still a well-oiled machine, though the character of Brick has been reduced to a level of retardation that is hard to swallow and his so-called romance with a female version of himself (Kristen Wiig) is a serious waste of screentime. James Marsden has some funny moments as GNN's lead anchor who has it out for our hero. And cameos by Tina Fey, Sacha Baron Cohen, Liam Neesom, Will Smith, Jim Carrey, Vince Vaughn, Marian Coitillard, and Amy Poehler don't help either. But despite the lack of originality here and the fact that the film really doesn't fit any of my criteria for a good sequel, I found myself laughing in spite of myself.

I actually was never a fan of the Anchorman movie. So I never saw this movie.

Despite a preachy screenplay delivered with sledgehammer-like intensity on a well-worn cinematic subject, 2012's Flight is a riveting and emotionally manipulative drama that effectively showcases the horrors of addiction on a surprising canvas and delivers the goods, thanks to polished direction and a powerhouse lead performance as a very unlikable character.

This uncompromising drama stars Denzel Washington as Whip Whitaker (terrible character name), a veteran airline pilot who we meet the morning after an evening of sex, booze, and cocaine with a flight attendant who is glanced snorting a huge line of cocaine and then seen boarding a plane that he is actually scheduled to fly. After navigating the plane through some brief initial turbulence, Whitaker actually has another drink while assuring the 102 passengers aboard that everything is going to be all right. Whitaker then returns to the cockpit and the plane malfunctions and is forced to glide to an emergency crash landing. Thanks to Whitaker's expertise and experience as a pilot, the crash only produces six fatalities, four passengers and two flight attendants and Whitaker is initially proclaimed a hero until the toxicology report reveals that he was under the influence of alcohol and cocaine while flying, which could result in four charges of manslaughter and the rest of his life in prison.

This film angers almost immediately because it seems like we are supposed to sympathize with Whitaker, but I found that impossible. What is made clear here is the denial, rationalization, and justification that goes through the mind of an alcoholic, but there is no excusing it here because Whitaker's actions resulted in the loss of life. It is further exacerbated by the fact that Whitaker knows he is wrong and and actually tries to cover up what he did. We watch in horror and disgust as Whitaker is released from the hospital, escapes to his family hideaway and spends hours throwing away all of the liquor that he has hidden in the house, a lengthy and effective scene filmed with a hand-held camera that shows the lengths an alcoholic will go to cover up what he's doing. We then watch Whitaker try to save his own ass when he realizes it is on the line by looking for crew members, including the co-pilot who may never walk again because of the crash, to have his back when they are asked to testify against him. Any sympathy the character might have evoked disappears during the scene where he asks the head flight attendant (Tamara Tunie) to lie for him.

Director Robert Zemeckis has mounted a familiar story on a unique canvas that will make the viewer give pause for a myriad of reasons...watching Whitaker's story is properly disturbing as it makes us think twice, not only about drinking and drugging, but about ever boarding a plane again without seeing the pilot's toxicology report that an airline's attorney (Don Cheadle) actually tries to bury in an attempt to save Whitaker's undeserving ass, but even those actions turn out to be pointless and Whitaker eventually must suffer the consequences of his actions, which seems to be the underlying theme of this story, but the really disturbing aspect here is how long it takes for these consequences to surface and the deep denial of Whitaker's addiction.

Zemeckis directs with a master hand again...the plane crash he presents here is as harrowing as the one he mounted in Cast Away. The shots of the plane completely inverted are dizzying and frightening. Washington completely invests in a completely unsympathetic character and delivers a performance of such power it merited him an Oscar nomination. Cheadle is solid as the attorney as are Bruce Greenwood and John Goodman as professional and personal allies of Whitaker and mention should also be made of Kelly Reilly as Nicole, a pathetic heroine junkie who becomes Whitaker's enabler up to a point. Yes, the message here is delivered with a sledgehammer but it works and the climax doesn't quite ring true considering what we have witnessed prior, but the denoument is somewhat satisfying as we do see Whitaker pay for his actions, though his alleged redemption implied near the ending is a bit much. Still a riveting film experience thanks to a harrowing story and one of our greatest actors delivering the goods.

Well, if you didn't like the first one, there's no reason to watch this one.

A clever screenplay filled with some imaginative twists and some on-target performances make the 2000 comedy The Whole Nine Yards worth checking out.

The film stars Matthew Perry as Nicholas "Oz" Oseransky, a mild-mannered dentist who lives in Canada with an obnoxious and emasculating wife (Rosanna Arquette) and a sexy and exuberant assistant (Amanda Peet), who finds his life turned upside down when he finds out his new neighbor is actually a former hit man named Jimmy "The Tulip" Tudeski (Bruce Willis). Oz' life is further complicated when Jimmy's in-name-only wife (Natasha Henstridge) stumbles into his life as well through her involvement with an enemy of Jimmy's (Kevin Pollak) and it is revealed that Oz' assistant is a Jimmy the Tulip junkie who has followed his career forever and also longs to learn his business.

This fast-paced and richly entertaining comedy works thanks to a screenplay that offers surprises at every turn...you never know what's going to happen next and you can't wait to find out. The cast is terrific, especially Perry who proves he has the chops to carry the weight of a film and a beautifully understated turn from Bruce Willis as the former hitman who wants to start a new quiet life, but can't thanks to Peet's hero-worship. Peet scores playing one of her most likable characters and the sexual heat generated by Perry and Henstridge is off the charts.

Jonathan Lynn's breezy direction and a fun music score by Randy Edelman and Gary Gold are the final touches on a goofy and unpredictable comedy that provides consistent laughs. Followed by a sequel called The Whole Ten Yards.

Flight I thought was very good, and a great live action return for Zemekis.

The Whole Nine Yards is also a very good film. Funny, charming, and some clever writing as you said. Then that goes straight to hell with it's muddled sequel.

Yeah, I hated the sequel too, it was pointless...this was one of those cases where I felt the story was told in the first film and I hate the fact that a sequel was fabricated just because the first film was successful.

Disney/Pixar initiated a new sophisticated form of animation with the 1995 box office smash Toy Story, a richly entertaining and imaginative animated adventure that not only spawned two sequels, but became a merchandising dream.

The film opens in the bedroom of a little boy named Andy who is moving in a couple of days. The central characters are Andy's toys, who are led by a cowboy action figure named Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), who is apparently Andy's favorite toy. Woody and the other toys feel seriously threatened when Andy receives a space action figure called Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Tim Allen) for his birthday. Immediate antagonism materializes between Woody and Buzz when Woody feels he might be replaced in Andy's heart, but Woody and Buzz are forced to bond and actually become friends when they become prisoners of Andy's next door neighbor, Sid, a sadistic little kid who likes to torture toys.

This deliciously imaginative story works thanks to a brilliant screenplay that brings vivid and believable emotions to toys, effectively showcasing the world from a toy's point of view. The jealousy and resentment between Woody and Buzz rings completely true and is actually the glue that keeps this story moving. Though the story provides consistent laughs, there are a couple of poignant moments as well...watch when Andy stops sleeping with Woody, who gets demoted from Andy's bed to the toy box or watch when Buzz sees a commercial for himself and finally realizes that he is a toy and is not real.

As always with Disney animated films, the voice casting is perfection, with standout work from Hanks, whose work here rivals the voice work of Robin Williams in Aladdin...he makes us love and care for Woody and puts us in his corner from jump. Mention should also be made of Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head, Jim Varney as the Slinky Dog, Wallace Shawn as a very insecure toy dinosaur, John Ratzenberger as a piggy bank named Ham, and R. Lee Ermey as a toy soldier. Really liked Annie Potts as a Little Bo Peep doll too, though I just couldn't get past my trouble with the fact that a little boy would own a Little Bo Peep doll, but I did not allow this to deter my enjoyment here.

Randy Newman contributed a couple of nice songs to the film, one of which, "You've Got a Friend", received an Oscar nomination. John Lasseter's direction and his contribution to the Oscar nominated screenplay are the final touches to this entertaining adventure that actually conjured up images of Spielberg work like Raiders of the Lost Ark and Robert Zemeckis' Back to the Future, and though the story does have a couple of extra endings, it is a richly entertaining fantasy adventure that had me laughing and smiling throughout the entire running time.

An undeniably powerful motion picture experience, 21 Grams is a blistering and mesmerizing look at the lives of three people whose lives are affected by faith, power, courage, addiction, the consequences of moral choices and above all, the power of guilt.

This 2003 film centers on three characters: Paul Rivers (Sean Penn) is a mathematician who has had a heart transplant which has affected his decision to have a child with his wife (Charlotte Gainsbourg) via artificial insemination; Cristina Peck (Naomi Watts) is a suburban housewife and mother of three struggling with cocaine addiction; Jack Jordan (Benicio Del Toro) is an ex-con trying to start his life over again through his discovery of born again christianity. The story brings these three characters together through a horrible accident, which affects all three people in profoundly different and surprising ways. Reviewing this film without including major spoilers is difficult.

Director Alejandro Inarritu and screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga have constructed an initially confusing story because in the style of Quentin Tarantino, the story is told out of sequence and the screenplay takes a little too long letting us in on what parts of the story are the past and what parts are the present. But as the story begins to come into focus, we can't help but become completely invested in this tragic story. Another effective storytelling tool is that the accident that is the linchpin of the entire story, is never really seen, just giving the life-altering event even more power. Every scene of the film provides importance information, no superfluous waste of screentime here.

This film had my stomach in knots for most of the running tine, had me on the verge of tears, but most important of all, never allowed me to take my eyes off the screen.

This gritty and uncompromising drama is anchored by three superb lead performances. Watts and Del Toro both received richly deserved Oscar nominations. Del Toro is especially brilliant, in a performance that easily trumps his Oscar-winning work in Traffic. Penn actually won the Oscar for Lead Actor the same year for Mystic River, but I am now wondering if he should have won for this film instead. Not for every taste, but fans of Tarantino and Robert Altman will have a big head start.

A powerhouse ensemble cast is the primary selling point of the 1961 version of A Raisin in the Sun.

This is the first film version of the play by Lorraine Hansberry that centers on the Younger clan, a black family living in a cramped Chicago tenement whose lives are about to be altered because of a financial windfall. Lena Younger (Claudia McNeil) is the strong, God-fearing matriarch of the family who is patiently awaiting the arrival of a $10,000 insurance check she is receiving because of the death of her husband. Walter Lee Younger (Sidney Poitier) is Lena's son, a chauffeur who wants to change his life by getting his mother to give him the money so that he can invest it in part ownership of a liquor store. Ruth Younger (Ruby Dee) is Walter Lee's level-headed wife and family referee, who has just learned she is pregnant with her second child; Beneatha Younger (Diana Sands), Walter Lee's sister, is a radical-thinking college student, , who wants to be a doctor someday and torn between her comfortable relationship with George (Louis Gossett) and an African student (Ivan Dixon) who is turning Beneatha's head by exposing her to her African heritage.

This film sizzles primarily due to the conflict created between Lena and Walter Lee from Lena's belief that liquor is just a tool of the devil and Walter Lee's belief that his father would have wanted him to use the money to be more than a chauffeur and be the captain of his own destiny.

As expected, a 1961 film with an all-black cast was filmed on a shoestring budget, but the powerhouse performances make this film appointment viewing. Next to To Sir with Love, this is my favorite Poitier performance...he is intense and riveting despite the fact that Poitier's screen persona is so much more intelligent than the character he is playing and yet he doesn't make a single false or affected move onscreen. McNeil, Dee, and Sands provide solid support to Poitier, who completely dominates this film, but they never allow Poitier to blow them off the screen either. Loved Gossett as Beneatha's tight-ass fiancee too.

The film works due to a compelling story and a charismatic performance from Poitier that makes this film still watchable after all these years. This film was remade for television twice with Danny Glover and Sean "Puffy" Combs taking over Poitier's role. It was also turned into a Broadway musical during the 1980's called Raisin.

Despite some dated plot elements and some performances that are a matter of personal taste, 1956's The Catered Affair is a warm and engaging family drama that, if caught in the right mood, can definitely tug at the heartstrings.

The story revolves around the Hurley family, who live in a cramped Brooklyn apartment. Daughter Jane (Debbie Reynolds) comes home one day and quietly announces to her parents Tom (Ernest Borgnine) and Agnes (Bette Davis), that she and her fiancee Ralph (Rod Taylor) are getting married in a week. Jane explains to her parents that they want a quiet simple ceremony with no frills and no reception. Tom has no problem with this since he has been saving his money to buy his own cab, but Mama Agnes is another story...Agnes' obsession with saving face because friends and neighbors suspect they can't afford a fancy wedding and Agnes' personal disappointment at her own no-frills wedding has her pressuring Jane into an elaborate wedding with all the trimmings that the family can't afford.

Gore Vidal's screenplay, based on a play by Paddy Chayefsky, provides believable characters and realistic situations that can arise from the story presented. The issues confronted in this film regarding wedding expenses are just as timely today as they were in 1956, though the prices have definitely changed. The film does come off like a photographed stage play, but a watchable one.

Ernest Borgnine is strong and sincere as Tom and despite a questionable Brooklyn accent, Bette Davis offers one of her most understated yet effective performances as Agnes...critics were sharply divided regarding her performance at the time of release, but I liked it...Davis keeps scenery chewing to a minimum and creates a character who we don't always sympathize with but we completely understand. Debbie Reynolds' performance as the pressured bride-to-be is surprisingly rich.

Director Richard Brooks creates a warm family atmosphere and pulls some very effective performances from his cast, including a fun turn from Barry Fitzgerald as Agnes' brother Jack. Classic film buffs should eat this one up.

Director Garry Marshall proves that he can attract star power as well as Woody Allen can with the cast of the 2010 comedy Valentine's Day, though the finished product proves that it takes more than star power to make an entertaining film.

This episodic comedy establishes separate storylines with paper-thin connections to each other in this alleged look at the highs and lows of relationships during one particular Valentine's Day in Los Angeles. Among the characters we meet are Liz (Anne Hathaway), a phone sex operator trying to keep her profession from her new boyfriend (Topher Grace); a brief encounter between a lonely sports agent (Jessica Biel) and an aspiring sports reporter (Jamie Foxx) and a teenager (Emma Roberts) who is planning to lose her virginity to her boyfriend before they are separated by college.

The only story that really held my attention was the story of Reed (Ashton Kutcher), the owner of a floral business who has been dumped by his girlfriend (Jessica Alba) right after he proposes but is then forced to confront his true feelings about his BFF (Jennifer Garner) when he learns that her boyfriend (Patrick Dempsey) is married. Love past the age of 30 is also examined in a lovely vignette between an older couple (Shirley MacLaine and Marshall's good luck charm Hector Elizondo) whose marriage is tested when the wife confesses to an affair from many years ago with her husband's business partner.

There's a lot of stars running around here...Bradley Cooper, Julia Roberts, Queen Latifah, Goerge Lopez, Kathy Bates, and Eric Dane, but it's all just comes off as so pointless, much like the holiday that the film is centered on. Katherine Fugate's paper-thin screenplay doesn't have the substance to sustain a film of this length and of such fluffy subject matter. The plot threads connecting the stories are credible, they just take WAY too long to materialize.

The performances range from uneven to annoying...I never bought Eric Dane as a gay pro football and Hathaway was beyond annoying in her scenes on the phone. Jamie Foxx and Kathy Bates are wasted, but MacLaine and Elizondo do manage to rise above the cotton candy, but even they aren't enough to keep this silliness watchable to the end.