21& Over, 2013 Comedy

 21 & Over is a 2013 American comedy film written and directed by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore, in their directorial debut. The film stars Justin Chon, Miles Teller, and Skylar Astin, and follows a trio of friends who go out drinking to celebrate one of their 21st birthdays despite having a medical school interview the following morning. The film was released on March 1, 2013 and received generally negative reviews from critics with a gross of $48 million.

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PLOT

Casey and Miller invite their college friend, Jeff Chang, out to celebrate his 21st birthday. Jeff declines, citing an important medical school interview early the next morning that his domineering doctor father arranged; Jeff finally agrees to having one drink.

At a bar, Jeff accidentally hits a guy with a dart, and the trio flee, interrupting Casey's chat with Jeff's attractive friend, Nicole. Enthused about drinking legally, Jeff over imbibes and passes out. Casey and Miller want to take Jeff home but forget where he lives.

Thinking that Nicole knows Jeff's address, they sneak into what they believe is her sorority house, only to discover it is a Latina one. Upstairs, they encounter two blindfolded pledges undergoing initiation. Miller paddles the girls' buttocks, ordering them to make out. Upon realizing they were tricked, the entire sorority is furious. Casey and Miller escape, first tossing Jeff from an upstairs balcony onto a covered pool. Bouncing off, a drunken Jeff lands in a rose garden still passed out.

The boys locate Nicole at a pep rally. She refers them to her boyfriend, Randy, the angry guy from the bar. When he refuses to look up the address in his phone, they steal it. Jeff no longer lives at that address but a party is in progress there. Searching for somebody who knows Jeff's address, Casey and Miller leave him alone with two stoners. For fun, they strip Jeff, write "Douche Bag" on his forehead and glue a teddy bear to his crotch. He then wanders into the street, causing a commotion. The police apprehend and transfer him to the campus health center.

As Casey and Miller head to the clinic, the vengeful Latina sorority girls abduct them. They find themselves in a ritualistic setting, stripped and shackled to the floor. They are forced to endure what they tricked the two pledge girls into doing. Embarrassed, bruised, and sporting bright-red spanked buttocks, they are released and walk across campus wearing only tube socks over their genitals. Casey blames Miller's immaturity for their predicament, unleashing long-simmering mutual resentment that culminates into a brawl.

At the health center, Casey and Miller discover Jeff is on a 24-hour hold due to a previous suicide attempt. They encounter Nicole. She is there with Randy, who was injured at the pep rally, though she has just broken up with him. Casey and Miller eventually deduce where Jeff lives and smuggle him out of the clinic. Groggy and barely sober, Jeff steals Randy's truck, fleeing with Miller and Casey. Randy and his buddies, and also the police, chase them until the vehicle careens down an embankment, losing the pursuers.

CAST

Justin Chon as Jeff Chang

Miles Teller as Miller

Skylar Astin as Casey

Sarah Wright as Nicole

Francois Chau as Dr. Chang

Jonathan Keltz as Randy

Daniel Booko as Julian

Samantha Futerman as Sally Huang

Eddy Martin as Eddy

Dustin Ybarra as PJ Bril

Christiann Castellanos as Pledge Gomez

Jeremiah Sird as Dr. Cabahug

Rating: 10 Stars

The Dirt, 2019

The Dirt is a 2019 American biographical comedy-drama film directed by Jeff Tremaine from a screenplay by Rich Wilkes and Amanda Adelson, about heavy metal/glam metal band Mötley Crüe. The film stars Douglas Booth, Colson Baker, Daniel Webber and Iwan Rheon.

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PLOT

In 1973, Frank Carlton Feranna Jr. walks away from his mother Deana after years of abuse and moves from Seattle to Los Angeles in 1978. After a failed attempt to connect with his biological father who abandoned the family at birth, Frank legally changes his name to "Nikki Sixx" in 1980. A year later, after a falling out with members of London at the Whisky a Go Go, Nikki befriends drummer Tommy Lee and reveals to him that he is forming a new band. Joining the band is guitarist Mick Mars, who suffers from ankylosing spondylitis. The trio then recruit Tommy's high school friend Vince Neil from the cover band Rockandi as lead vocalist, and after some brainstorming, the quartet name themselves Mötley Crüe.

Despite a brawl with some crowd members, Mötley Crüe's first gig at the Starwood is well-received. They progressively sell out night clubs all over Los Angeles and rookie producer Tom Zutaut of Elektra Records approaches them with a five-album deal. They sign Doc McGhee as their manager. During their first national tour, the band is given advice by Ozzy Osbourne to know the limits of their partying before he snorts some ants and licks his and Nikki's urine on the pool floor. Before long, the band's albums go platinum and they each spend millions of dollars as fast as they earn them. Vince marries mud wrestler Sharise Ruddell, while Tommy announces his engagement to a woman named Roxie, but after his mother calls her a groupie, they get into a heated argument and Tommy punches Roxie in the face.

On December 8, 1984, during a party at Vince's home in Redondo Beach, California Tommy meets Heather Locklear, while Vince and Hanoi Rocks drummer Razzle drive out to buy more drinks. They get into a car accident that kills Razzle, and has Vince sentenced to 30 days in jail for vehicular manslaughter, which is subsequently reduced to 19 days. Nikki becomes addicted to heroin and starts to display destructive behavior towards his bandmates. He fires McGhee for bringing Deana to visit him. On December 23, 1987, shortly after Tommy and Heather's wedding, Nikki overdoses on heroin and is initially declared dead, but a paramedic who is a fan of the band brings him back to life with two shots of adrenaline. Following this, Nikki has the band go to rehab. A sober Mötley Crüe rebounds in 1989 with Dr. Feelgood, which becomes their first number one album on the Billboard 200, followed by a lengthy world tour. The months of touring and staying sober take their toll on Vince and Tommy, who resort to drinking again after being away from their families for too long.

Following the tour, Vince discovers that Sharise and their daughter Skylar have left him, causing him to miss several rehearsals and eventually part ways with the band in 1992. The band then hires John Corabi as his replacement. In 1995, Skylar dies of stomach cancer at the age of four, while Heather divorces Tommy after he is caught having an affair with a porn star two years earlier. Mick starts to abuse painkillers as the disease is starting to overwhelm his body and movement. Seeing the backlash by fans over Vince's departure from the band, Nikki negotiates with Zutaut to give them back the rights to their songs in exchange for their release from Elektra Records. After visiting his father's grave, Nikki regroups with Tommy and Mick, who has had hip surgery, before they reconcile with Vince. Mötley Crüe would perform together for another 20 years, playing their final show on New Year's Eve 2015.

CAST

Douglas Booth as Nikki Sixx, Mötley Crüe's bassist

Trace Masters and Vince Robert Mattis play eight-year-old and 14-year-old Sixx (then known by his birth name of Frank Feranna Jr.), respectively

Iwan Rheon as Mick Mars, Mötley Crüe's guitarist who suffers from Ankylosing spondylitis

Colson Baker as Tommy Lee, Mötley Crüe's drummer

Daniel Webber as Vince Neil, Mötley Crüe's lead vocalist

Pete Davidson as Tom Zutaut, an Elektra Records executive

David Costabile as Doc McGhee, Mötley Crüe’s longtime manager

Leven Rambin as Sharise Ruddell-Neil, Vince’s wife who is a mud wrestler and a model

Kathryn Morris as Deana Richards, Nikki's mother

Rebekah Graf as Heather Locklear, Tommy's second wife

Tony Cavalero as Ozzy Osbourne, former lead vocalist of Black Sabbath struggling with drug addiction who headlined one of Mötley Crüe's earlier tours

Max Milner as Razzle, drummer of Hanoi Rocks

Katherine Neff as Lovey, Vince's first girlfriend

Jordan Lane Price as Roxie, Tommy's first fiancée, who prior to their breakup was having an affair with Nikki

Christian Gehring as David Lee Roth, lead vocalist of Van Halen

Anthony Vincent Valbiro as John Corabi, Mötley Crüe's second lead vocalist (1992–95) after Vince's departure from the band

Kamryn Ragsdale as Skylar Neil, Vince's daughter who died of cancer

Iris D'Aquin and Lyra D'Aquin play two-year-old Skylar

Melanie Hebert as an MTV VJ

Courtney Dietz as Athena Lee, a musician and Tommy’s younger sister

Joe Chrest as David Lee, Tommy’s father

Elena Evangelo as Voula Lee, Tommy’s mother

Michael Hodson as Rodney Feranna, Nikki's half-brother

Alyssa Marie Stilwell as Kayla

Rating: 8 Stars

We are your friends, 2015

We Are Your Friends is a 2015 drama film directed by Max Joseph (in his feature directorial debut) and with a screenplay by Joseph and Meaghan Oppenheimer, from a story by Richard Silverman. The film stars Zac Efron, Emily Ratajkowski and Wes Bentley, and follows a young Los Angeles DJ trying to make it in the music industry and figure out life with his friends.

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PLOT

Cole Carter, a San Fernando Valley native, former track star, college dropout, and struggling 23-year-old DJ in the electronic dance music (EDM) scene, dreams of becoming a major record producer. Cole's friends Mason - an aspiring club runner, Ollie - an aspiring actor, and Squirrel - gifted with math, partner up to canvas for a nightclub. With Mason’s help, Cole was able to perform that night, where he meets the headliner, a once-innovative DJ, James Reed. James invites Cole to a party, where Cole hallucinates because a spliff they shared contained Phencyclidine (PCP). The morning after, Cole wakes up at James' lavish home, where he is introduced to Sophie, James' girlfriend and personal assistant, who drives him home. Unhappy with their earnings from canvassing, Cole and his friends seek employment with Paige Morrell, who manages a real estate solutions firm, providing promising income.

Later, James employs Cole to DJ for a house party and is impressed by his performance. Mason, Ollie, and Squirrel show up and after a party-goer insults Mason; a physical dispute takes place. The group is forcefully escorted out of the gathering. However, James sees the potential in Cole and takes him as his student; focusing on organic originality, increasing the number of performances and earnings. One night, Cole was invited to escort Sophie to her college soirée - where it was revealed that Sophie dropped out due to humiliation after being sexually exploited. Cole defends her and Sophie expressed her and James’ appreciation for his demeanor and artistry. One weekend, Cole and his friends head to Las Vegas for a electronic music festival, where he meets up with Sophie, whom James ditched. Sophie gives Cole MDMA - both leave the festival for the Las Vegas Strip in which a one-night stand ensues. Back in Los Angeles, James provides Cole with new equipment and presented the opportunity to open for him at an upcoming music festival in Downtown Los Angeles called ‘SummerFest’. Cole graciously accepts the offer. One day, Cole and Paige meet up with Tanya Romero, whose house is in the process of being foreclosed. During the negotiation, Paige buys her house and rents it back to her, intending to sell it quickly at a higher price, which angers Cole. Despite a brief confrontation, Paige substantially pays Cole for his assistance in the acquisition. Amidst relationship problems, James finds out about Cole and Sophie’s relationship - forcing him to cut ties with them.

Returning to his three friends, it is revealed that Squirrel had been looking for better job opportunities, wanting to expand his horizons outside of the San Fernando Valley. Using his earnings, Mason enthusiastically reveals to Cole, Ollie, and Squirrel that he rented out a house intending for them to live and grow in their respective paths. Following an intense night of partying with alcohol, drugs, and music; Squirrel is found unconscious the next morning, eventually passing from an overdose. After the funeral, the remaining friends begin to question their future. Ollie comes to a realization that they are unable to actualize their goals. The confrontation briefly turns violent as Mason blames Ollie for the drugs that killed Squirrel, causing Ollie to leave the group. Cole visits James, whose alcoholism has completely consumed him, to let him know of Squirrel's death and that it could possibly have been his fault. James consoles him and mentions that Sophie moved to the San Fernando Valley and works at a local coffee shop, where he later visits.

During a run, Cole begins to notice the natural sounds of his surroundings, which inspires him to record samples and integrate them into his long-awaited track. Cole tells James that he is ready and has something for SummerFest - James gives him another chance. The festival is set outside the American Apparel building in Los Angeles. Cole plays his track, which contains soundbites of conversations with Sophie and Squirrel. When the song ends, Cole is met with enthusiastic acclaim from the audience and James. The film concludes with a montage of the characters venturing out into their respective paths of life: Ollie prepares for an audition, Mason running operations at the nightclub, and Cole remains positive about his future and creating a proper relationship with Sophie, who returned back to school.

In the mid-credits scene, Tanya opens her front door to an Adidas shoebox that Cole has been saving his earnings in throughout the film.

Rating: 10 Stars

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising, 2016

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (released in some countries as Bad Neighbours 2 and on home release as Neighbors 2) is a 2016 American comedy film directed by Nicholas Stoller and written by Stoller, Andrew J. Cohen, Brendan O'Brien, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. A sequel to Neighbors (2014), the plot follows the Radners (Rogen and Rose Byrne) having to outwit a new sorority led by Shelby (Chloë Grace Moretz), living next door to sell their house currently in escrow. Zac Efron, Dave Franco, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jerrod Carmichael, Ike Barinholtz, Carla Gallo, Hannibal Buress, and Lisa Kudrow reprise their roles from the first film; it was Rogen's first live-action sequel. The film premiered on April 26, 2016, in Berlin and was released on May 20, 2016, in the United States, receiving mostly positive reviews and grossed $108 million worldwide.

TRAILER

PLOT 

Mac and Kelly Radner are expecting their second child, and prepare to sell their home to the Baiers family; the Radners' realtor reminds them that the house is in escrow for 30 days. Mac's friend Jimmy and his wife Paula are also expecting a baby. College freshman Shelby meets fellow freshmen Beth and Nora. Learning that sororities are not allowed to host parties, and disgusted by sexist and predatory frat parties, the trio create a new sorority, Kappa Nu, to throw their own parties.

Teddy Sanders hosts poker night with his former frat brothers. Pete has become a successful architect and come out of the closet, Scoonie has launched his own mobile app, and Garf is a rookie cop since graduating, but Teddy now has a criminal record and cannot find a worthwhile job.

The friends help Pete's boyfriend Darren propose, leading Pete to ask Teddy to move out. Distraught, Teddy runs to the old frat house, next door to the Radners. He meets Shelby, Beth, and Nora, the girls hoping to rent the house for Kappa Nu but unable to afford it. Finding an opportunity to be valued, Teddy offers to help them throw parties, earning enough donations and new members to pay rent.

Fearing that the sorority will scare off the Baiers, Mac and Kelly ask Shelby to temporarily refrain from partying, but she refuses. The Radners go to Dean Gladstone, who cannot control an independent sorority, and Shelby's father, who also fails to help, leading Kappa Nu to prank the Radners. Mac, Kelly, Jimmy, and Paula retaliate, infesting the sorority house with bed bugs, forcing the girls to evacuate and pay for fumigation tenting, just in time for the Baiers' visit. Teddy argues with Pete about the state of his life and moves into the sorority.

Low on funds to pay rent, the girls plan to sell marijuana at their 'tailgate party', eliminating the competition by getting all other dealers arrested. When Teddy objects, the girls kick him out, and he joins the Radners to take down Kappa Nu. They infiltrate the party, and Teddy distracts the girls while Mac steals their marijuana. Realizing Teddy's lack of direction in life, Mac and Kelly let him stay with them. The girls switch Mac and Kelly's cell phone numbers with their own and send text messages tricking Mac into flying to Sydney, Australia. Returning home, the Radners find Kappa Nu has robbed and vandalized their house, and the Baiers threaten to pull out from the sale unless the sorority is kicked out.

The sorority receives an eviction notice, and Shelby reluctantly organizes a sexually gratuitous frat-style party to raise money. As Mac and Kelly wait to call the police, Jimmy and Paula sneak into the party, while Teddy is unable to shut off the sorority's power. Shelby steals Mac and Kelly's phones and locks Mac and Teddy in the garage, but they break out using airbags. Overhearing Beth and Nora confront Shelby for compromising their original goals, Kelly encourages the girls not to give up on themselves. Paula goes into labor, and Teddy reconciles with Pete and Darren, happily agreeing to serve as their best man. The sorority enjoys a more empowering party for themselves and discover a crowd of girls from other sororities wanting to join Kappa Nu. With an overflow of money and new members, the sorority is able to keep their home, and the Radners agree to rent their house to Kappa Nu as well, earning them a bigger cashflow than selling the house.

Three months later, Teddy has become a successful wedding planner for gay couples, utilizing his party-planning experience; he prepares Pete to walk down the aisle. Mac and Kelly have moved into their new home, with no close neighbors, and realized they have been good parents all along. They bring home their new baby, Mildred, to meet Jimmy and Paula with their new son, Jimmy Jr.

Rating: 10 Stars