Thanks for the memories!

Overrated

One of my all time favorites.

Admirable film.

MacGruber (2010) This is an action comedy film based on the Saturday Night Live sketch of the same name. It is a parody of action-adventure television series MacGyver and 80s action films in general. It's imperative you have a sense of what SNL parodies the do and what the film is riffing on, before watching it. If you aren't a fan of SNL or never watched Macgyver, this movie will likely be lost on you. I don't feel this movie had a chance to stand on its own, without the above referenced precursors. This is also why I think it was marginalized by critics and did poorly at the box office. No matter, it's now considered a cult classic. This is largely due to a stellar cast. Although there we a few missteps, this movie generally avoided avoided the common mistakes of cheap humor often made in these type of movies. This film delivered a decent blend of comedy and nostalgia that makes it worth checking out.

I've seen a lot of funny movies in my time, and this one is right up there in my top-10 all-time funny movies.Will Forte, like Kristen Wiig, are some of the finest funny actors to have come out of SNL since Murphy, Sandler and Murray. The writing in this film is not for everyone - but if silly, over-the-top comedy is your thing, then you'll love this movie. It's non-stop laughs from the word go, with each scene carefully thought out and written for optimal laughs.The movie isn't so much about presenting a rock solid plot (although one exists) - it's about really funny lines and gags along the way. If you don't need a bigger meaning from every film you watch and love big belly laughs - than you'll love this movie.

Okay, I hate to start by blatantly stealing someone else's quote, but, when reading other reviews of MacGruber, someone else described it as 'Team America, but without the puppets.' Yes, I'd say that's a fair definition - only Team America was very funny and clever. MacGruber has a lot to live up to.When I started watching MacGruber, I hated it. I was totally with those many 1/5 star reviews I'd seen describing it. My main gripes were that it simply wasn't funny and that the main character (MacGruber, believe it or not) was completely annoying. I was practically on the brink of turning it off after about half an hour, when, to my amazement, I actually laughed.It's possible that by watching half an hour of this film lowered by IQ enough to watch - and enjoy - the rest of it. Okay, so the second half wasn't comedy gold, but I seemed to have a better idea as to what this film was trying to be and I laughed enough not to qualify this as a complete flop. However, it's worth noting that this film bombed at the box office, so perhaps I'm in a minority here.It's a (loose) satire on action films where the 'burned out hero' is plucked from retirement for 'one last mission.' It has been done a fair few times before - Hotshots Part Deux was done nearly twenty years ago (and it's probably consistently funnier), but it has enough moments (in the second half) to make it just about worth watching.And - seriously - don't eat the celery.http://thewrongtreemoviereviews.blogspot.co.uk/

I have heard some describe this movie as not a MacGyver parody but an 80's action movie parody. They are right. But what they fail to mention is that as an 80's action parody, it fails flat on its face. Most of the jokes are unfunny and MacGruber is not a likable character. You are force-fed his humility and therefore it comes of as cliché, and unbelievable. When your main character is a jerk throughout the movie who know you have a problem. Val Kilmer in my mind is one of the perks of the movie. The other is Ryan Phillipe. The jokes are usually crude and come off as mostly juvenile. What this movie needed was someone to write a better MacGruber characterization. Let's remember Wayne's World. Both Wayne and Garth's characters in that movie were likable from the start and furthermore, the character's that came out were flesh and blood, real and genuine. That's what this movie needed, a genuine character, not stock and cliché. Definitely a rental.