Have You Heard About... The Big Year

Fran J — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 06:22:23 +0000

… how funny bird watching can be? OK, The Big Year was seriously hilarious. At first I thought, “Oh great, three of the world’s biggest hams together in one movie. They are just going to try to upstage each other the whole time.” Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson. Enough said, right? But they were all perfect! Each had some super silly moments to shine, but overall they played very real characters and I found myself looking past the actors and caring about the people they portrayed.

According to the film, having a “big year” is an expression in bird watching (or birding as the professionals call it) for a calendar year in which an avid birder tries to see as many North American species as possible. It was fun to see the beautiful birds, but you don’t have to be into birding to enjoy this movie. The Big Year also starred Brian Dennehy as J.B.’s father, one of my favorite parts of the movie.

Don’t miss this one; it’s a blast and family friendly!

Reviewed by Heidi (staff)

Have You Heard About... Coupling

Fran J — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 20:56:00 +0000

… the sexy sit-com from Britain? Coupling is a fun series about sex and relationships, centered on a group of six friends – a couple, their exes, and their best friends – played by Jack Davenport, Gina Bellman, Sarah Alexander, Kate Isitt, Ben Miles, and Richard Coyle. The first series includes episodes on breaking up, starting new relationships, pornography, and funerals. That may sound typical for a relationship-focused sit-com, but it also covers the Sock Gap, the Giggle Loop, and the Relationship Zone.

The characters in Coupling are a bit stereotyped, but mostly so that they can poke fun at the stereotypes. Each of the characters also has his or her own quirks, neuroses, and in some cases, outright insanity. What do you do when your girlfriend doesn’t accept being dumped? Is there a good way to explain why you’re hiding in someone’s closet of pornographic tapes? How can anyone manage to accidentally tell a woman that they collect ears in a bucket?

If you like British humor, like Monty Python and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, or buddy sit-coms, like Friends, then you’ll probably enjoy Coupling. It’s full of beautiful British deadpans, wry humor, and wackiness, plus good friends who put up with one another’s oddities.

Reviewed by Fran (staff)

Waukegan Public Library - Comedy

Have You Heard About... The Big Year

Have You Heard About... Coupling