Genres

Visitors Review

2013-05-23 03:15:59

Is this movie trying to be funny or moving?

Is a meaningful movie possible that tries to be both at the same time? After watching this you will only feel what a stupid movie because it self destroys any seriousness.

DoubleUK 2013-05-22 16:36:55

Loved it...

I find it strange to see an American movie, being released over here inThe Netherlands, before it's release in the states. And why is it notreleased in th US? Because it's not good? Nope. This is a very goodmovie. I enjoyed it thoroughly. And the people present in the theateralso did enjoyed it. Ben Affleck has a knack for comedy. He plays JackGiamoro, heading a big agency for writers and actors in Hollywood. Heis married to a beautiful woman (Nina, played by Rebecca Romijn) andtakes care of his father, who needs attendance, suffering from astroke. Jack secretly attends a course in writing journals in order toget grips with his life. The movie starts with Nina confessing that shehas been unfaithful to him. Jack cannot cope with this, especially whenhe hears that she did it with one of his clients. He throws her out ofthe house and threatens to end the contract with his client, a very,very successful comedy writer and very important to the agency. Whatfollows is the world of Jack falling apart, his colleagues and friendstaking different sides. A rejected Chinese screenwriter tries to getback at him by exposing the fraudulent basis on which the agency isfounded. A burglary, a really horrendous but funny dental job, JohnCleese making easy money as a teacher and an audition of 'BasicInstinct'. It's all there and more.This movie is at times funny, hilarious, touching but all the timeconvincing and engaging. I loved it. I don't know why it's not alreadyin American cinemas. And if you had your doubts about Ben, see thisflick. You won't regret it.

grumpy736-1 2013-05-20 04:05:54

Mike Binder does corporate backstabbing perfectly

After commenting last week on Man About Town I looked up Mike Binder onhis blog. I ended up buying a DVD from his Freebird connection for $17for a non-theatrical-release film called The Search for John Gissing.How could I not acquire it after watching the trailer for it on theblog showing Alan Rickman and Janeen Garafalo in a London based comedyabout international business. If I had seen it when it was made, backin the year 2000 or so, I would have thought the film was the freshestcomedy ever. But since 2000 I've seen Extras on cable with Bob Gervaisand John Gissing uses similar devices to entertain us. Close, oh whatthe heck, still give it a cigar.

Rob Streeten 2013-05-19 12:07:23

Worst movie... ever.

This is the single worst film ever made. Please do not see it.The problems with this film are principally with the writing,directing, acting and editing.Of these problems, though, the writing and directing are the mostserious. This movie is narrated and even with this hackneyed device itmakes almost no sense at all. The plot is paper-thin and there is nocharacter development at all. The dialogue sounds as if it had beenwritten by someone who'd once been told about human interaction buthadn't ever experienced it.The direction is sloppy and underscores the fundamental lack ofidentity this film suffers from. It's neither comedy, nor drama. The"jokes" (THAT teeth gag) are old and flimsy and the drama (really uglyviolence) is completely out of character and largely non-sensical.I can't go on as it's making me angry, again. I want my time back. Thismovie is an insult to the medium.

kenneth-r-close-1 2013-05-17 20:47:40

Romantic Comedy?

This movie was advertised as a romantic comedy, but there was noromance and no comedy. All I saw was a boring story about a horribleperson, a talent agent, whom I found myself rooting against. Talentagents are, in general, not likable characters. So why did the directorthink we'd enjoy spending a few hours with one, even if he's played byBen Affleck? The nepotism and shallow nature of Hollywood seem to beaccurately portrayed in this movie. Behind the red carpet glamour ofthe movie industry lies a dirty business totally lacking any morals orethical standard. But this was well documented in "The Player" anddoesn't need to be repeated. I couldn't bring myself to care aboutAffleck's character, and thus didn't get emotionally involved with thismovie.

2013-05-17 11:17:10

Enjoyable and Meaningful:A Ben Affleck Classic

There are so many people who have never heard about this movie.Its not a bad movie but if you take the trouble to understand it, you'll get the picture.It is about a man who is frustrated of himself for not making the better of his life.He has a good life but is still unhappy with himself.He is haunted by his past,the death of his elder brother during his teen and his insecure parents and himself.He has a wife and his father whose screw is loose,still alive and living with him.He finds out that his wife has been chaeting with one of his most important client.This movie demonstrates Ben Affleck's skill in playing a confused and unsatiesfied man.Its not a comedy but has afew parts that can make you laugh.Overall, its one of those classic movie about a normal man's life turning upside down but most importantly, its a Ben Affleck classic.

Hilary 2013-05-11 17:32:02

Man About Town

I have seen Ben Affleck do better roles, but this movie kinda was confusing, and slow paced, but it had some funny spots. There were plenty of cameos from other actors and such, but overall, I was disappointed.

intelearts 2013-05-11 02:49:17

A very rounded film: Jersey Girl for grown-ups

Stress and Success: I believe that "Man About Town" gets to the soul ofwork-life balance in a surprising way. A head review on IMDb comparesit to American Beauty -- I think this makes it too heavy and the themestoo weighty -- it is Jersey Girl with grown-ups - has farce, charm, andtruly poignant scenes, as well as a man who as his life goes down thetoilet makes his soul play and work for him. Is it about the material waste vs. romance? : well, no not really; amodern parable of values; a little; an Italian drama with Americanvalues played out like a french comedy romance: definitely. There is a strong cast: A pythonesque cameo breaks up the story intosegments. Howard Hesseman as the father is a better role than expected:and he delivers a class performance. A face I hadn't noticed before,Damien Wayans, (well according to IMDb his previous credits include"cousin carrying plastic bag" in Don't be a Menace to South Centralwhile Drinking Your Juice in the Hood, 'nuff said...) here he handlesthe foil of Ben Affleck's necessarily flack-like performance with realaplomb as the put-upon PA. He has behind the fluff a serious look thatwould lend well to comedy and/or drama. Bet we'll see more of him.The treatment lends to being real handled with verve and vigor:covering the gamut from farce to bathos - and for my money hit asurprising number of home runs. Ben Affleck - a man driven to the pointof desperation, and reconnection gives a deceptively light performance:I would have to say they are some awesome skills going into this -sometime he makes it look too easy, too, what's the word, smiley ?, butit is nicely played. It is his most mature role to date and he handlesthis tale of a man discovering his true values and maturity with ameasured casualness. On filming: I found the approach to filming itself more complex than Iexpected the lighting and sound are both clever and discrete; and it iswell lit. Obviously style and architecture and the LA dream are nicelydisplayed: great design. The office really looks right, down to thedoor handles.The editing makes good sense and keeps the pace in a natural story thatjumps pace and genre : and there are some shots with lifts that areunique (!) and worth checking out for that reason alone.It is funny particularly good on the visual jokes, but not overlycrude, but It also moved me to tears four times - no mean feat - and mywife even more.Mike Binder, who both wrote and directed this, is getting really closeto having a real hit - I sense a director ready to take on a big star,and big themes and fly with them. Overall, I enjoyed this tremendously and would say: more like itplease. It is kind of familiar territory and many critics will point toit as too mixed up to be clear: but I would argue that the theme ofredemption is clearer than the lax comic relief that occasionallysurfaces -- and the silliness is light relief and flows out of theplot.This film about a film executive who caught the success train early andnow feels the baggage carriage rocketing up fast could itself bedifficult to categorize as comedy romance drama etc; and that may be aweakness in marketing, but it is a strength in the telling: I found ita very rounded experience. Who wouldn't want to find films that touchthe soul and here we have.Worth the rental (And a release - This should be a release with realmarketing values - right?) -- yup and how.

2013-05-08 16:44:04

PAY ATTENTION!!

This is truly a thought provoking movie that you need to PAY ATTENTION TO....think about it...he goes to a class to learn how to write his "Journal" and he really dos not know WHO he really is...just WHAT he is..his job, his possessions,etc...he starts thinking about his life, and he realizes that all the people surrounding him..at work,etc...are the same way..no ethics,no morality,no compassion,just concerned about making the big bucks regardless of having to lie,cheat,etc to get that...Going to the class makes Ben start thinking about what IS really important in life. WATCH IT . GREAT MOVIE !!

Siamois 2013-05-08 07:00:21

A worthwhile drama

My expectations for this movie were pretty low. Ben Affleck's resume isvery much hit and miss, with the misses being sometimes being of epicproportion. As well, I had seen two recent movies by director MikeBender (Upside of Anger and Reign over Me) which certainly did not liveup to praises and high ratings they received. It was thus withskepticism that I decided to kill time watching Man About Town,expecting a total dud. I was proved wrong.Much like its successor Reign Over Me, the main character here is goingthrough issues and everything is rather organic and poignantlydirected, contrary to the usual remote third person view employed in"safer" Hollywood work. There are some light comedic moments here butwhat makes them work is how human and heartfelt the struggles aredepicted. And while Ben Affleck will never be the second coming of a EdNorton or Anthony Hopkins, here he gives a very honest and balancedperformance and we cannot help but sympathize with this charactercaught in the artificial life of Los Angeles and talent agencies.If anything, one plot tread about his book takes perhaps too muchimportance in what is otherwise a sober treatment of character and theissues he has to deal with in his personal and professional life. Theentire cast is extremely good and was well chosen, although it doesfeel like they could have done more with John Cleese. One exception: Ireally felt Bai Ling was off in her performance.Overall, this is a very enjoyable movie with a satisfying conclusioninstead of the usual eye-rolling fest with the easy way out.

neverfeartruth 2013-05-01 13:17:43

hypocritical director

Thankfully not a lot of people saw this movie, but it's scary that afilm like this could be made in 2006. I enjoy politically incorrectmovies when they make fun of people's ignorant perspectives, but thisfilm was flat out racist. How many Asians are really represented in thefilm industry on or off camera. Here you have an unlikeable Asiancharacter who has a "chip on her shoulder" because the "white man"won't let her in the film industry. She's poked fun of like thedirector's saying "take off the training wheels- you're justuntalented." But, let's pose this question: is it really unjustifiablefor her to have the perspective that the industry is a closed industry.Open your eyes and look at the amount and quality of work that's outthere for minorities, especially Asians. Go to the DGA or SAG and getthe facts. It seem like the director is saying that the industry is notclosed- people make it on their own talent. If Asians areunderrepresented, is he saying they have no talent (just look at AngLee, Zhang Yimou, Gong Li)? Why mock a person with no talent and makeher Asian, who belongs in Chinatown to a buffoon-like family of kung fuartists. The fact that this director is Jewish and has no ability tomake reference to being a victim of prejudice is hypocritical and plainidiotic. It seems like he had his own personal vendetta and made thishorrific picture. How would he feel if people thought every Jew in theindustry is working because of nepotism.

flashwok 2013-05-01 05:16:47

Absolutely Atrocious

Just when you think Affleck can't get any worse, he, and his moviechoices do just that...reliably so.It is hard to believe that someone with an academy award for screenwriting (undeserved, boogie nights deserved it)can't select even ahalfway decent script when it arrives for him. Or maybe people simplyaren't sending him any good scripts because they have realized hecannot act.Regardless, I cannot in good conscience give a full review of thisfilm, since it was so horrid that i turned it off 40 minutes in towatch Meerkat Manor...because it has better acting and a better story.chalk up another disaster for Affleck, a man who has dropped more bombsthan the air force.I really do not know what else to say...avoid it if you can...thetheaters sure did.

2013-04-30 04:42:12

Man About Town's Ben Affleck

The running joke on the 'Mallrats' DVD commentary was that not even another Ben Affleck flop like 'Phantoms' would dare list 'Mallrats' on the back of its case for fear of being associated with the Kevin Smith film. 'Man About Town' can safely take the distinction of being the worst Ben Affleck movie that nobody should ever want to be associated with. This film is so bad it makes other Affleck flops like 'Paycheck' and 'Gigli' look like 'Good Will Hunting' by comparison. Among this film's numerous crimes is the utter wasting of a talented cast that includes Rebecca Romijn, John Cleese, Jerry O' Connell, Gina Gershon, Bai Ling and Kal Penn. Writer/director Mike Binder, who appears as Affleck's friend in the film, is a much better actor than director. He gives himelf the only real laugh in the movie after he grabs a fire extinguisher and goes after an actor who has stormed into his office to complain about some insignificant detail.Jack (Affleck), a once successful agent, is devastated to learn that one of his only clients, a T.V writer (Adam Goldberg), is sleeping with his wife (Romijn). His other client, a self centered actor (O'Connell) is ready to fire him and seek new representation. Jack's partners (Gershon, Penn and Binder) want him to put aside his personal feelings and keep the writer as a client since their business is going under. To help sort out his feelings, Jack takes a journal writing class presided over by a snooty professor (Cleese). At first Jack isn't sure what he's trying to write about and it takes him the whole movie to realize he's trying to figure out what went wrong with his marriage. He wants to find out who he really is and how his childhood with an abusive dad, who he's now caring for, affected him growing up. Enlightened Jack comes to the life changing revelation that he's imperfect. But before Jack can sort all this out his journal is stolen by a fellow student (Ling). She plans on releasing all of Jack's true feelings about his rich clients to the media unless he pays up. Her motive has as much to do with money as pride - Jack refused 12 of her screenplays over the years. The most painful moment in this film involves Affleck, after getting his two front teeth knocked out, wearing blindingly white buck teeth and doing his best Tom Cruise impression. There's also a charmingly racist scene later in the film that finds Jack and his office mates, who all take kung fu classes together, squaring off in an alley against Ling and her family (who not surprisingly run a Chinese restaurant). This film is shockingly bad. The only thing not shocking is that it was dumped on DVD. This is Affleck at his absolute worst. You actually feel embarrassed for him as you watch him ham it up in painfully unfunny scene after scene. The DVD extras are for masochists only. There's 11 more excruciating minutes of Deleted Scenes, 3 featurettes and a humorless gag reel. Surprisingly the featurettes don't include appearances from Affleck or director Mike Binder. At least they had the good sense to sit those out.

nerdbomber 2013-04-29 12:15:26

What is going on with this flick

I saw this movie in a test screening, and it is not good. Bad acting,especially by Affleck, and i wants to be Jerry Maguire, but it doesn'teven come close. The director did a good job with The Upside of Angerbut here he really messes up. I thought this was supposed to beAffleck's comeback movie? I hear its has been on the shelf for over 2years in the US and is currently being released overseas...now I hearLions Gate has picked up and it is going STRAIGHT TO DVD!! In otherwords, it sucks. This must be embarrassing to Affleck, as he waspraising it in interviews last year. This guy needs to learn how topick scripts. Surviving Xmas, Gigli, Jersey Girl, anyone? Wow, he isturning into the male version of Tara Reid.

surrenda 2013-04-26 13:25:33

Surprisingly Entertaining

I wasn't expecting much from this film.After reading some of thesecomments, I was surprised to see how divided the audience was.It sure wasn't the greatest film I've seen lately, but it also wasn'teven close to the worst. I know how fun it can be to take shots at the man partially responsiblefor Gigli, but give the guy a break. It was cute,although AmericanBeauty it is not. I liked how the potential for comedy was kept rightunder the surface, and kicked in at times I least expected it.A lot ofthe humor was so subtle, I don't think some of the audience even caughtit. Yet it was warm and endearing at other times.I won't be buying thismovie, but I may watch it on cable again sometime.

2013-04-26 02:27:33

DOESN'T KNOW WHAT IT WANTS TO BE

This movie was very weird and I really didn't know if it was a drama or a comedy. The acting and story are OK. I guess it shows, I wasn't really impressed by this movie,but it was an OK watch. If your bored and want to see it, rent it.

2013-04-23 20:19:36

Man About Town

This is a confused and rather dreadful movie. The only person who emerges with any credit is Rebecca Romijn - who could have a real future if she is given the right roles.

ldavis-2 2013-04-23 09:46:52

"I look like Tom Cruise's retarded cousin!"

Caught this during Showtime's free-view as the first of what (I hope)was an unintentional Ben Affleck Marathon, as this stinker was followedby another stinker (The Third Wheel), then one more stinker for sh*tsand giggles (Reindeer Games). Why a Lifetime Razzie has so far eludedBenny's talentless clutches is beyond me! As one of the posters said,just when you think he can't sink any lower, he does!You think Jack A-Hole would have figured out what his minions REALLYthink of him when they haul him to that dentist! Au contraire! Afterbeating the crap out of the guy who beat the crap out of him, he goesback to the SAME DENTIST when he should be hauling the clown into courtfor making him look like Tom Cruise's retarded cousin! And some peoplewonder why this turkey was shelved for 2 years!The female characters are even more loathsome than the male characters:Barbi is a Dragon Lady racist cliché; Mrs. Jack A-Hole is a brainlessTrophy Wife; and the less said about the Sharon Stone wanna-be, thebetter. At the climax of this masterpiece, Trophy Wife and Dragon Ladyduke it out over Jack A-Hole's precious journal in one room, the SharonStone wanna-be crosses and uncrosses her legs in another room, and JackA-Hole's Top Client (over whom he kicked Trophy Wife out of the house)drops in to beg forgiveness. That whirring sound you hear is PrestonSturges spinning in his grave!So who winds up running Jack A-Hole's agency after he and Trophy Wifekiss and make up in his fish tank (I kid you not)? The token lesbian,who has more cojones in her pinkie than all the men in the movie puttogether!

murod2000 2013-04-19 07:23:42

moral of this movie is wrong?

First of all I am sorry for my poor English, I just want to say thatthe moral of this movie is just wrong, I would say stupid, the wifebetrays her husband and he "cuckold" forgives her easily... No way,this is not real, so what is the moral then, I could not understand, Ilike Ben Affleck and enjoyed some parts of the movie where he saysabout his family and his father, these parts are good and makes peopleto think, moreover the movie is full of funny stories, however, themain idea and subject is totally wrong and this movie may cause somewives to betray their husbands, thinking their husbands will forgivethem?! This movie can destroy normal families, I would not recommend tosee it, it may mislead one, These are my opinion and I would glad tohave any comments from you, my e-mail is: murod2000@yahoo.com sorry ifI said something wrong and wish you and your families all the best...Best regards, Murodkhon

Comeuppance Reviews 2013-04-18 11:02:29

The First 40 Minutes...

"Man About Town" is the biggest DTV movie of 2007. I can see why itdeserved that fate.The plot: Jack Giamoro (Affleck) is a smarmy talent agent who has asuccessful life and a beautiful wife (Romijn). He realizes that hiswife is cheating on him with his top client (Adam Goldberg). This setshim off emotionally and he starts a journal and it contains all hisdark secrets. Unfortunately, it gets stolen in a robbery and he needsit back desperately.The first 40 minutes are excellent. Affleck and Romijn are great andthey have some strong chemistry. Then it falls apart....fast. Thejournal class\robbery subplot just doesn't work. If they cut that outand focused on the infidelity it would have been a stronger movie. Ithink this went straight to video because of its wildly uneven tone.It's not really a comedy, it's more of a drama. The climax, whileentertaining, is predictable and feels rushed. The supporting cast isgood however, with John Cleese standing out as Jack's teacher.Overall, "Man About Town" is worth seeing for the first 40 minutes. Ifyou like Affleck, you might enjoy it. Take a look at the trailer! (Doescontain spoilers!)