(2016) Clay Vanstone (T.J. Miller) is the kind of guy who spent his college years partying and surrounded by a constant haze of weed ... but being a trust-fund kid, is now the branch manager for a successful company in Chicago. Still the loose party dude, Clay has gotten out of touch this holiday season with the fact that his staff is overall unhappy and bitter ... until his hard-ass sister Carol (Jennifer Aniston), the interim company CEO after the death of her and Clay's father, who has had a big grudge against Clay since childhood (and vice versa), shows up to inform Clay that she's shuttered the Florida office just that morning, and plans a 40% reduction of Clay's staff - IF she can keep the Chicago office open at all. Seems the company is rapidly losing money and she has to make cuts, so Carol further cuts off all bonuses and extra expenses for the office - including that night's Christmas party - and in a private moment even tries to cop Clay's Chief Technical Officer, the newly-divorced Josh (Jason Bateman), for her New York branch that afternoon, before leaving town. But Clay and Josh have one last idea - land a huge client they've been courting, who would bring millions into the office and save everyone's job - and to prove their company is the feel-good organization this guy wants to work with, they not only get that night's office party going again, but turn it into the loudest, crudest, most brazen Christmas party in the history of the holiday. I wanted to see this because - I can't help it - I just love Jennifer Aniston, and truthfully she's probably the best part of this otherwise crude, rude, and oddly unfunny film that has one of the strongest yet most wasted casts I've seen in some time. Not a complete time-waster (it has its moments), even if you might actually be able to feel your I.Q. drop as you watch this predictable film that tries a bit too hard. (unrated version)4.5/10 stars
(2016) Buster Moon (voiced by Matthew McConaughey) is a koala bear who has always dreamed big. Growing up with a love for musical theater, Buster himself has now owned a theater for some time that has never seen a hit show or even turned a profit. Facing bankruptcy and the loss of the theater his father worked hard to get for him, Buster comes up with the idea to hold a city-wide singing competition to bring in publicity and fill seats, and finally turn his luck around. Set in a Zootopia-like big city full of every animal breed you can think of, the finalists Buster picks - Johnny (Taron Egerton), a piano-playing gorilla trying to break ties with his wannabe-crime family; Rosita (Reese Witherspoon), a pig determined to find a way to remain a crackerjack wife/mother for her husband and large family while pursing her dream; Mike (Seth MacFarlane), a wise-cracking mouse who croons like Sinatra; Gunter (Nick Kroll), a German pig who fancies himself the king of disco; Ash (Scarlett Johansson), a rock-n-roll porcupine burdened with an angry boyfriend when she makes it into the competition and he doesn't; and Meena (Tori Kelly), a painfully shy elephant who, too paralyzed with fear to sing, ends up as Buster's backstage flunkie - all have their own backstories making them determined to win the top prize ... until a misplaced decimal and a gang of larcenous bears not only put the competition but Buster's very theater in jeopardy. The top-notch cast, a strong sense of humor, some good musical numbers, and likable characters aid the colorful but standard animation, and while the ending fell a little flat for me overall the film is a fun, funny, mostly family-friendly tale of following your dreams and making them come true. (rated PG) 7/10 stars
