Baby Mama

Baby Mama
April 25, 2008
Universal etc.
Comedy, Romance
DVD
B

In some ways, this is sort of the flip-side of Juno, although Amy Poehler is the working-class surrogate mother for the baby that single yuppie Tina Fey hopes to have, rather than an accidentally pregnant teen.  There are more stereotypes here, not just with Poehler's character but also with Romany Malco as Oscar the African-American doorman.  I do feel that the performances and the witty screenplay humanize and expand on these stereotypes, but I can see how some might object.  Similarly, the whole "ticking biological clock" thing can be seen as both '80s dated and anti-feminist, but Fey and the others manage to tweak this.  Similarly, the movie plays with rom-com tropes (most obviously in the "Endless Love" sequence) and applies them to two straight women who become unlikely best friends.  The two leads, friends in real life, play off of each other well, and are ably supported by (among others) Steve Martin as Fey's New-Agey boss, Sigourney Weaver as the 50-something but incredibly fertile manager of the surrogacy agency, the eternal Holland Taylor as Fey's mother, and Greg Kinnear as Fey's love interest, one of the more realistic characters, although not without humor.

Siobhan Fallon Hogan, who plays the Birthing Teacher, was (minus the speech impediment) Stanley's Mother in Holes.  Mark A. Keeton was Sloane's Dinner Companion in Music and Lyrics and is Denim Suit Guy here.  Fred Armisen, the Stroller Saleman here, would be the Pastor in Easy A.

Holes

Holes
April 18, 2003
Disney
Comedy, Mystery, Historical, Romance
DVD
B

Based on one of the quirkiest children's novels ever, probably the quirkiest to win the Newbery Award, this film is a relatively faithful adaptation by Louis Sachar of his book.  My main quibble, which is more of an issue onscreen, is that not all the plot threads are tied together for the hero Stanley Yelnats IV.  The reader/viewer is shown the various time periods and clues, but he's not.  Yet he nonetheless has to solve the interlocking mysteries.

One of these periods is the Wild West of 100 or more years ago.  My other quibble is that the timeframe just doesn't work in terms of the Warden's family, unless her grandfather lives to be about 120.  Still, I thought that the scenes involving the interracial romance were among the best.  There are some surprising subjects in this movie, it being Disney and all.

The main subject though is friendship and family, and how they can get you through hard times.  Shia LaBeouf as Stanley and Khleo Thomas as Hector Zeroni are appealing and believable buddies.  And the other boys at Camp Green Lake (where there is no lake) are memorable.  Just about every character here is a "character," but it never gets to be too much, even when Henry Winkler (as Stanley Yelnats III) is singing about odor-free shoes.  And the soundtrack is pretty good, particularly the "Dig It" song by the Boys of D Tent.

Steve Kozlowski was Carmine Friend #1 in Good Will Hunting and is Lump here.  Siobhan Fallon Hogan, who plays Stanley's mother, would be the Birthing Teacher in Baby Mama, while Sigourney Weaver (playing the Warden here) would be Chaffee Bicknell there.  (She was Alvy's movie date back in Annie Hall.)