Code-name: "A Hard 10"
Director: Jim Field Smith
Type: R-rated comedy
Cast:
Kirk Kettner- Jay Baruchel
Molly McCleash- Alice Eve
Stainer- T.J. Miller
Jack- Mike Vogel
Devon- Nate Torrence
Patty- Krysten Ritter
Cam- Geoff Stults
Marnie- Lindsey Sloane
Ron- Hayes McArthur
Dylan Kettner- Kyle Bornheimer
Debbie- Jessica St. Clair
Mr. Kettner- Adam LeFevre
Mrs. Kettner- Debra Jo Rupp
Write-up:
Call me naïve, prudish or whatever... this was the first R-rated movie I saw in theaters, one of two I saw that year (The other was "Due Date"... not the greatest, but I still found plenty of laughs along the way).
2010 was a great year for movies, went to see so many good ones, and this was one I couldn't wait to see again.
Jay Baruchel, who I'd been hoping to see in a break-out lead role since I first saw him in "Tropic Thunder," got me into the theater.
It was the writing and the characters that had me wanting to come back for more. Sean Anders & John Morris don't have many credits under their belts, but I want to give them a shout-out here for making this effort memorable and irresistibly quotable.
In a nutshell, this is the type of screenplay I would have loved to have written because the character interaction is written the way I talk with my closest friends. :-P
It's hilarious. At times, it's thought-provoking, and it carries just enough raunchiness to give it edge, but never overpowers.
Going into the movie, Kirk (Jay Baruchel) is still getting over his ex-girlfriend, Marnie (Lindsay Sloane).He gives her his speech about why they should get back together, but of course, she isn't buying into it.
Be cautious, there be spoilers afoot...
The only place I feel the writers failed was writing her character arc. Not just the fact she's a total bitch that makes me want to claw her eyes out whenever she's on screen, but pieces of it make no sense.
Supposedly, she doesn't get along with her parents and the Kettners "adopted" her... meaning she lives with him at his parents' house even though she's dating some other dude named Ron.
They never did explain why he kept calling Kirk "pirate" either. :/
After we're more or less introduced to her and Kirk's circle of friends, he meets Molly (Alice Eve) in the most random place: at work.
The guys work at the airport. Kirk and Stainer ("It's a nickname. Doesn't mean anything."... we do eventually find out what it means and that his real name is Wendell) work at TSA. Molly goes through security, but accidentally leaves behind her cell phone.
Her friend, Patty (Krysten Ritter) calls her phone to track it down. Kirk answers and they agree on a rendezvous point where he can return it... but not before a man across the aisle from them complains about her being on the phone. What followed was a bit of dialogue that came to mind during a situation we ran into at an airport.
Our situation: our plane back from our Australia trip was delayed. my aunt was calling my cousin to bring him up to speed. someone in the lounge told her to take it somewhere else because there was a sign on the wall that said "quiet area"
My thoughts: Where's Patty when you need her? :-P
Man: Excuse me. You're not supposed to be on your phone. It's bad for the plane.
Patty: Oh, excuse me? Are you a plane doctor? No? So shut the f--- up!
After that outburst, the man pressed the call button to ask for an attendant and the phone call had to end.
Overall, Patty is the type of person who doesn't hold anything back. I'd go as far to say she's the kind of girl friend I'd love to have. #girlcrush
Molly and Patty are event planners and Kirk, along with his friend Devon, meets them at the Warhol museum (where they're hosting an event) to return the cell phone. She invites them to stay around, but Patty's sister, Katie, gets them thrown out.
To make up for it, she invites Kirk to a hockey game. Stainer is his co-pilot for this double-date and he's under the impression Molly is setting him up with Patty (aka "the bitchy friend" because, seeing as he was with Marnie previously, "you like bitches").
To everyone's disbelief (except for the audience), Molly is into Kirk and wanted to set Patty up with Stainer (neither was interested in that).
The majority of this movie, as Molly and Kirk are going out, is spent discussing the "Tao of Love." How guys like Kirk (who Stainer believes is a "5") never end up with girls like Molly (who is a "hard 10").
According to Stainer, Kirk is a "5" because he looks like a geek. Jack does the math, adding 1/2 a point cuz he's a nice guy, and another 1/2 cuz he's funny, but the point is taken away because he drives a Dodge Neon ("the people that make that car don't even like it").
Per his made-up system, Stainer proclaims himself a 6, possibly a 7 because he's in a band.
Kirk: You play in a Hall & Oates cover band. I'm pretty sure that's a deduction
Stainer: (stands firm) Adult Education is a tribute band.
At one point, we do get to see Stainer do his best Daryl Hall impression. Which actually isn't too bad, if you can forgive him for being slightly off-key.
I'm not entirely sure if it was because of this movie or it was pure coincidence that I was hearing a lot of Hall & Oates on the radio after seeing this movie... either way, I picked up a copy of their greatest hits a few months afterwards. "Kiss on my list" also happens to be the first of their songs I fell in love with.
Everything is going well with him and Molly, remarkably. She spends an afternoon with his family (this includes Marnie and Ron) and it does nothing to deter her.
There are so many quotes in those scenes that it's impossible to go through them all. But just to share a few:
Dylan: (in the pool) Just wear underwear. It covers all the good s---
Molly: Underwear would be fine... if I were wearing any (smiles)
Dylan: I can make any car into a convertible in 15 minutes. Wanna know why? Global warming
Ron: ...according to the movie "the day after tomorrow," Earth's temperature is actually getting colder
Dylan: (after Molly gives them a rough guesstimation of the price one of their events fetches) You got your head on right. And you don't do underwear.
Most of their characters have their "running jokes" and personality quirks that feed their dialogue.
Stainer is the keeper of the "Tao of Love."
Jack is the sex expert.
Devon alludes to a lot of Disney movies :-P including "Aladdin" and "Beauty & the Beast" and keeps asking Kirk if he came up in conversation since her friend Wendy (who was at the Warhol event) said to Kirk "I think your friend is hot"
And clearly Dylan becomes obsessed with whether or not Molly is wearing underwear.
So after this eventful afternoon, he and Molly get a little hot and heavy at her apartment. Kirk has a "premature denotation" just as Molly's parents unexpectedly stop by.
Fun fact: they're played by Alice Eve's actual parents
Not knowing what to do, Kirk rushes off with little to no explanation.
But at her next event, an air show featuring her ex-boyfriend Cam, Kirk gets up the courage (with help from Jack) to give it to her straight. Straighter than any guy, possibly, in the history of movies.
As Patty put it: "no guy in their right mind would make that up."
Cam met Kirk on his second date with Molly and, for whatever reason, he was under the impression he was her new gay friend that she was hanging out with.
Sooner or later, she does straighten him out.
Unfortunately, he plants another seed of doubt in his head (in addition to all the doubts from his friends and family).... not only that she doesn't like being called perfect, but she has a "defect."
The defect turns out to be webbed feet... and it isn't the only truth that comes out when Kirk and Molly are on the verge of having sex for the first time.
You'd think the most awkward part of it would be Molly finding out his balls were shaved (that was likely the most "graphic" scene in the movie, but we only saw the body double from behind). But all of the bits of insecurity Kirk has come out in this venting session where he more or less walks out of the apartment and they break up.
So of course the next logical step for Kirk to stay is getting back with Marnie and going with his family on their yearly Branson trip... yeah, I don't know why Ron is there either. The dude must be really deluded :-P
Lucky for him, Stainer comes to his senses about his own relationship with a "hard 10."
He tries to get Kirk off the plane, but fails miserably (did the flight attendants just overlook the fact he was TSA? ...yes, I'm aware he's an idiot).
Enlisting the help of Patty (their conversation is perfectly written for those two characters, just saying), they get Molly to the airport to get back with Kirk.
This is also the part where Stainer reveals the truth about his name, but I'll leave you to see the movie to find that out ;)
Kirk then goes on to defy another cliché in movies... he gives an epic "f--- off" speech to Marnie and his family, but he's unable to disembark cuz the doors are already closed... go figure.
He's just lucky his friends can pull strings in the airport to do him a solid... by the way, I'm not sure if any of their shenanigans are legal, but thanks to movie magic, they get away with it... and Kirk and Molly beat the odds.
Final Remarks:
Gotta give a final shout-out to Michael Andrews, the guy behind the music in this movie.
In the earlier parts of the movie, I thought for sure it was Christophe Beck behind the score because there are some similarities.
Mainly, though, I gotta commend him for including "Over my head (Cable Car)" and "She's so High" in the soundtrack. Being familiar with songs used in movie is a big thing for me, something I revel in and enjoy laying back to.
Michael Andrews also scored "Bridesmaids" and a few episodes of "Undeclared," a show that put actors like Jay Baruchel and Seth Rogen on the map. (I offer that up as trivia, not because I saw the show personally... although I probably should).
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