Rhino's Review of "Along Came Polly" & "The Cooler" -- Rhinotainment

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In the month of January, it's tough to judge whether a film is going to be worth paying the high prices for. It's well known that the month of January is when the movie studios release the films that have been on the shelf because they either 1) didn't know how to properly market them, which means they could be good or 2) they stink and January has always been a month where moviegoers stay home. I was very interested in Along Came Polly by the trailer because it appeared to be a light hearted, screwball comedy featuring Ben Stiller (doing his thing) and the light of my life, Jennifer Aniston. But there was that nagging "What if it sucks?" in the back of me head.

Polly is the story of two newlyweds, Reuben & Lisa (Stiller and Debra Messing) that end up on a sunny island for their honeymoon. The first day of the trip, Lisa cheats on Reuben with a French scuba instructor, Claude (the always hilarious Hank Azaria). She decides she wants to stay on the island with Claude on the island and Reuben goes home to New York a broken man.

To try and bounce back, Reuben attends an art show with his best friend and aging child actor, Sandy (Phillip Seymour Hoffman, always remarkable). Reuben runs into a waitress, Polly (Aniston), who just so happens to have gone to grade school with him. From there, he can't stop thinking about her and rings her up and they attempt to plan a date. That proves difficult, as Polly has a hard time committing to anything. They prove to be the polar opposites of each other. Reuben is a statistician who calculates everyday risks in life and has become increasingly paranoid about everything he does. Polly, however, throws caution to the wind and lives life to its fullest. They agree to disagree about their differences and try to make it work, but will their differences prove too much for them to handle?

You can't ask for a more enjoyable time at the movies than with a film like this. Stiller's character is in the vein of his Greg Focker in Meet the Parents, bumbling and clumsy but eager to please. Aniston is as beautiful as the day is long and she again proves that she's worth the hype and magazine covers. She does a great job as the ever-confusing Polly, the type of woman that drives men mad but makes them fall in love, nonetheless. Hoffman is funnier than I ever recall him being in a film. He's the child actor who did a Breakfast Club-esque film when he was a kid and he's yet to achieve equal fame. He believes that he is one of the great actors walking and is quick to inflate the truth about his current "projects." And he's a "dynamo" on the basketball court, slamming up brick after brick but calling his shots like he's Larry Bird. The role is hysterically played by one of the great actors working today.

Any trepidation that I had about seeing this film was for naught, as I thoroughly enjoyed it. I mean, I should know better with a cast like this. *** 1/2

So, you say you have bad luck. When it rains, it pours, you say. Well, what if your luck was so bad that your presence alone ruined the luck of the people around you? That's William H. Macy's cross to bear in The Cooler.

Macy plays Bernie Lootz, a loveable loser with a noticeable limp whose job is to spread his disease to those who are winning at the tables in an aging, last of its ilk casino in Las Vegas. Years previous, Bernie tried to get one over on the casino manager, Shelly (Alec Baldwin at his dastardly best), and failed miserably. As a way of paying for his wrongdoings, he not only got a shattered kneecap but his current job as the Cooler. He has vowed to work his last week for the Shangri-La, as his debt will be paid off to Shelly.

Shelly has more problems than just losing Bernie, as the owner is planning on rebuilding the Shangri-La, making it touristy and similar to the theme park casinos that now inhabit Las Vegas, complete with a roller coaster. Shelly is dead against this idea, as he is old-school Vegas to the bone. He's slowly losing his grip on his baby, as a corporate goon (Ron Livingston, Office Space) looks over his shoulder constantly.

Meanwhile, Bernie and a Shangri-La waitress, Natalie (Maria Bello), begin to see each other and fall deeply in love with each other. Bernie's luck begins to change as he has found a purpose in life. But as his luck changes, his ability to do his job diminishes. People who are on a roll at the tables continue to roll as Bernie is no longer giving them the bad rub. This infuriates Shelly as Bernie is the key to keeping the money cycling through his teetering casino. It's a great story about the power of love and luck and it's told brilliantly by its characters and director (Wayne Kramer). However�

I was very much into this film, loving every facet of the film until the ending. The ending is terribly disappointing in this film. It's cheesy and unbelievable which really dropped the stock of the film in my eyes. It's such a bad ending that it nearly ruined the whole film. If it wasn't for spirited portrayals by Baldwin (his best acting since his searing performance in Glengarry Glen Ross), Macy and Bello, as well as the shimmering direction and cinematography, the film would have died in my mind.