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The Wendell Baker Story
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Owen, Luke, and Andrew Wilson combine their fraternal filmmaking talents to tell the character-driven tale of a small-time con man who gets a fortuitous shot at redemption while working in a run down retirement community. Wendell Baker (Luke Wilson) is a con man whose large heart betrays his criminal mind. Confident to a fault and consistently cool-headed, Baker is the kind of grifter who's always quick with a comeback and never lets the law get in the way of making a quick buck. When Wendell is busted for selling counterfeit Texas driver's licenses to undocumented Mexican migrant workers, he coasts through his prison sentence with the same unflappable attitude that made him the perfect swindler in the outside world. In order to pass the time behind bars without causing waves, mellow convict Wendell buries his nose in books about hotel management checked out from the prison library. Upon release the optimistic ex-con is distraught to discover his girlfriend Dorren (Eva Mendes) has taken up with a quick-tempered grocer (Will Ferrell) and his former partner Reyes (Jacob Vargas) has been forced into retirement by his law-abiding wife. Looking to put his hotel management know-how to good use and determined to win Doreen back, Wendell soon takes a job at the Shady Grove retirement hotel. Little does Wendell realize that scheming Shady Grove head nurse Neil King (Owen Wilson) has been dabbling in fraudulent Medicare payments and forced labor, and has no qualms about pinning his crimes on the carefree ex-convict. Now, if benevolent knave Wendell has any hope of turning the tables on his unscrupulous nemesis and proving that nice guys don't always finish last, he'll have to enlist the aid of fed-up Shady Grove residents Boyd (Seymour Cassel), Skip (Harry Dean Stanton), and Nasher (Kris Kristofferson), who are all more than willing to strike back at their casually cruel caretaker. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
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TenenbaumsTenenbaums The Shyamalan Report Card
by Tenenbaums in Tenenbaums Blog
lost interest.
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"M. Night Shyamalan's career is coming to a halt. But before the film community sends the Philadelphia writer/directer off, let's take a look at his works."The Sixth Sense" is masterful; "Unbreakable" is an underrated comic book gem; "Signs" is frustratingly dumb, then kills any chance of lingering suspense by doing the anti-"Jaws" and showing the wimpy water-allergic aliens; and "The Village" is an intriguing experiment that is far deeper that its apparently simple conclusion.Then there's "Lady in the Water." Possibly attempting to switch up his style or be exceedingly philosophical, Shyamalan's latest released film was critically panned and made little money. Disney, who had financed the director's previous four films, passed on the script, and with good reason. Seeing an opportunity to profit off of Shyamalan's name (perhaps despite the quality of the material), Warner Bros. bankrolled the project and attracted an impressive cast.As with any director of great works, it's clear wh ... " [More]
TenenbaumsTenenbaums Shaky Hand Luke
by Tenenbaums in Tenenbaums Blog
lost interest.
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"A few years ago on the talk show circuit, Luke Wilson liked to note that he had contributed one of the most memorable lines in Rushmore. Already cast as Dr. Peter Flynn, Luke was reading over the script written by Wes Anderson and brother Owen when he got to the restaurant scene after the conclusion of Max Fischer's "Serpico." Luke's character comes to the dinner in O.R. scrubs and he thought it would be funny if Max asked what the clothing was, got the response, and then asked, "Oh, are they?" Bill Murray's Harold Blume nearly gags on his whiskey after hearing the line and so do we.Luke played his part. He saw an opportunity, went for it, and it worked. Apparently, the experience gave him enough confidence to write a script of his own. His first attempt is The Wendell Baker Story, a project that looks wildly appealing on paper. Co-directed with brother Andrew, the film stars Luke, Seymour Cassel, Eddie Griffin, Kris Kristofferson, Eva Mendes, ... " [More]
Amc35JRAmc35JR The Wendell Baker Story
by Amc35JR in Amc35JR Blog
loved it.
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"Great movie! If you like most of the Wilson brother's movies, you'll definitely like this one. Luke Wilson is a likeable sleazeball. The kind of person you know you shouldn't like but do. The sort of character Vince Vaughn usually plays.The movie manages to shift back and forth between comedy and sentimental drama and back to comedy with ease. This is not easy to do. The only criticism I have is that Eddie Griffin's talents seem to have been wasted in a minor role. He is a great comic actor and if he was going to be in the cast the script should have given him more to work with. DVD extras: There is a hilarious interview of Seymour Cassel and Harry Dean Stanton by Andrew and Luke Wilson. Harry Dean Stanton is either convincingly acting crazy or certifiably nuts. " [More]
 



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justinm
justinm
loved it.
Amc35JR
Amc35JR
loved it.
schism_3
schism_3
liked it.
Tenenbaums
Tenenbaums
lost interest.
wonga
wonga
lost interest.
okiedharma
okiedharma
is not interested.