Movie 43 Review

Movie 43

2 stars out of 4

By Brett Takeshita

I mustered the courage to check out Movie 43, the film that some critics are positing as one of the worst films of all time. Thus, I already had my doubts going into Movie 43. However, I was quite surprised when it was over. Don't get me wrong -- this is not a "good" movie in the slightest. But is it as terrible as everyone says? No. Movie 43 "misses" way more than it "hits," but it is so tasteless, crude, in-your-face, and unashamedly wild that you have to sorta admire this mess of a film.

Okay, allow me to attempt to explain Movie 43. It's a sketch-anthology comedy consisting of 14 little shorts all bunched together to make up a 94-minute film. There are a slew of well-known directors here such as Peter Farrelly, Brett Ratner, and Elizabeth Banks. And do I even need to mention the cast? Refer to the movie poster above. It's easier to list who is not in this film. "Biggest cast ever assembled" might very well be correct. It seems that these prestigious actors had some fun taking a break from their serious movies to make something stupid and small. What's amazing is that all of these actors are great in this film and give it their everything -- so much so that they often make the material seem better than it actually is.

The main short in this film is entitled "The Pitch." Charlie (Dennis Quaid) is an insane screenwriter who is desperate to get his movie made. He attempts to pitch his work to Griffin (Greg Kinnear), a powerful film executive. And as you might have guessed, Charlie's script is the basis for Movie 43. Charlie pitches each vignette of his screenplay, and then we cutaway to the shorts within the film.

Yup, Movie 43 is just as messy and weird and disjointed and convoluted as you expected. What is Movie 43? I'm not even sure I can totally answer that for you.

Movie 43 is not trying to be a great comedy. It's simply trying to shock you with as much disgustingly filthy material as it can. This movie is absolutely nuts. Kudos to the filmmakers and actors for daring to cross the line -- for going as over-the-top as they possibly can. Unfortunately, most of the shorts fall flat. Many are just not that funny. 

One of the weaker skits is the Brett Ratner-directed "Happy Birthday," starring Sean William Scott, Johnny Knoxville, and Gerard Butler, in which two friends beat up a leprechaun for a chance at a pot of gold. Its wild frenetic energy cannot make up for the fact that it overstays its welcome and becomes more unfunny as it goes along. Another disappointment is "The Proposition," starring Anna Faris and Chris Pratt. Faris and Pratt are amongst the finest comedic actors working today, but unfortunately, they are given one of the most disgusting, abhorrent shorts in the entire film. Not even they can save it. This one involves Anna Faris requesting something very specific from Pratt during intimacy. I won't reveal it for you here, but I guarantee that those who can't handle filth will feel queasy within the first couple of minutes. And I wouldn't dare reveal what happens in the Kate Winslet and Hugh Jackman sketch "The Catch." These two actors are so brave for taking on such a shockingly gross project. This short had me cringing the whole time, so much so that I couldn't even laugh. Talk about uncomfortable to the max, and it definitely tests your patience and your sanity.

A big disappointment with Movie 43 is that many of the shorts have clever, funny ideas but lack skilled execution and fail to deliver the laughs. "Homeschooled" shows parents Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts hazing their "homeschooled" son so that he can get the full high school experience. The idea is wacky and amusing, but for some reason, the actual short isn't nearly as funny as it should be. "Truth or Dare," starring Halle Berry and Stephen Merchant, involves two singles on a first date who decide to liven things up with an extreme game of truth or dare. The premise is brilliant -- imagine where you can take this thing in a couple of minutes. This short starts off as funny and wildly entertaining and then just goes too far over-the-top by the end. Again, the laughs trickle off as the short goes on. What is perhaps my least favorite sketch in the film, "iBabe," has a hilarious idea at hand. Teenage boys are sticking certain body parts (ahem) in the MP3 player that is in the form of a beautiful, human-like, naked woman. Richard Gere plays the iBabe executive who must figure what to do so that these boys stop hurting themselves and suing the company. This skit could have been outrageous and ballsy (pun semi-intended), but actually is entirely dull and boring.

However, I must give credit where credit is due. The sketches in Movie 43 that work are very funny. By far the funniest short in this entire film is the Elizabeth Banks-directed "Middleschool Date," which involves Chloe Grace-Moretz -- how do I put this -- maturing into a woman within a house full of men. Banks injects this short with such lively vigor that I was laughing from beginning to end as it just becomes more ridiculously stupid yet riotously hilarious as it goes on. "Superhero Speed Dating" is a star-packed short featuring Justin Long, Jason Sudeikis, Uma Thurman, and Kristen Ball as superheroes and superhero characters going on speed dates whilst a lethal bomb can detonate at any minute. The idea is clever, and the short is often very funny, mostly because the actors lay it all out there. Perhaps the shortest sketch in the film, "Veronica," is a solid one. Kieran Culkin and Emma Stone play two young lovers arguing and then sizzling with sexual angst as their conversation progresses. Little do they know that their whole conversation is audible to customers of the supermarket at which Culkin's character works. And lastly, the post-credits short "Beezel" deserves praise for daring to go the distance. Josh Duhamel and Elizabeth Banks play a couple in love. Unfortunately, the boyfriend's gay cartoon cat is interfering with his love life, and the girlfriend wants this cat gone. This is an absolutely nasty piece of filth that shocked me like no other. And yet, it's bold and unhinged, and as ashamed as I am to admit it, I was thoroughly entertained.

Movie 43 is not a movie that I am recommending to everyone because it fails way more than it succeeds. However, for brave comedy fans who want to see something bizarre, kooky, perverted, disgusting, vulgar, sickening, repulsive, and just plain unbelievable, they might want to consider seeing it. I didn't like this movie, per se, but I appreciated it for actually shocking me on so many occasions. At a time when so many movies are playing it safe, Movie 43 simply lays everything out there and doesn't care what you think. Is this a stupid or smart decision? Ultimately it's up for you to decide. Two stars out of four.