Goon

Sports movies are always something of a crapshoot. Sometimes it’s all hackneyed and cliched and not especially compelling; other times the effort captures the inherent drama of the game perfectly; and the rest of the efforts fall somewhere in between. This film sits closer to the good end of the spectrum than most such movies. The two great strengths here are Seann William Scott’s low-key, almost childlike performance as the titular brawler, and a script—written by Canadians Jay Baruchel and Evan Goldberg—that nails it in terms of hockey culture both on the ice and among the game’s devotees. There’s a lot of fun throughout, including big (if rather profane) laughs, excellent hockey action, and even a touch of cute and sweet in the relationship between Scott’s unlikely hero and Alison Pill as a reluctant and less-than-ideal love interest. Yes, this film does include that most prevalent of sports flick clichés, exposition through broadcaster narration, but that’s a minor sin in relation to a whole lot of good deeds. To mix appropriate metaphors, he shoots and lands his punches. Light the lamp. 

Finding Dory

There are moments, particularly early on, when you have to be a bit worried that this flick is going to be tedious and not worth your time. But then the sheer inventiveness of the storytelling—in figuring out ever more clever ways of having marine creatures get around out of the water—works its magic, and you can’t help but admire the cumulative effect of the thing. There aren’t many home runs in this tale, but there sure are a lot of singles and doubles here, enough to ensure this movie makes it home—pun/entendres intended—with more than enough scores to earn the win. Go fish.

A Mighty Wind

Christopher Guest is still pumping out the parodies; this time '60s folk music gets the treatment. This one's a little more uneven that prior efforts, but the laughs it does have hit strong when they come. Special mention goes to Eugene Levy, who never breaks from a very weird character, even when the temptation to go nuts had to be there.

Best in Show

Satire goes to the dogs. A typical outing in Christopher Guest's oeuvre, with plenty of zany contributions from a lot of the usual comedic suspects. If you liked any of the director's other works, it's for you; if you're not a member of that fan base, the humor may fly a shade over your head. You'll have to decide for yourself if this is your dish of kibble or not. Personally, I like it.

Waiting For Guffman

Given the talents involved--Spinal Tap veteran Christopher Guest is the auteur here--this should have been better. Still, it has its moments.