Forget Me Not

Though I’m loath to kowtow to the tagline “from the guys who brought you…” in movie trailers, it’s hard to deny the catchphrase’s usefulness in identifying good films when it comes to the Judd Apatow comedy factory. The hitting streak continues with Forgetting Sarah Marshall, written and starring Apatow apprentice and How I Met Your Mother star Jason Segel. And while the big news making the rounds is that Segel shows his man parts during the movie, the more important thing is that he shows a great deal of heart.

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Summer Lovin’

I don’t care what the calendar says, because for me, it’s officially summer. Not because we’re three days away from possibly hitting 80 on the thermometer and not because my dad is bugging me for a check to pay for a week at the shore. No, friends, summer started when I opened my first bottle of Flying Fish’s Farmhouse Summer Ale. The perfectly balanced, nicely hopped brew is smooth, delicious and rare at the bars, so it’s especially important that I spent the summer stocking up on it for my personal stash. Beer fans, get to your local carrier and get a case. It’s worth it, and then some.

Love is a Marathon

Actor-scribe Simon Pegg has earned himself a devoted fan base in a relatively short time, largely built from Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, two movies that were produced in a relatively insular world made up of his friends (who are mostly British), and so it was confusing to see in the end credits of his new Run Fatboy Run that the top writing directing credit went to Americans Michael Ian Black and David Schwimmer, respectively. More surprising is that the tone of the movie is less Simon Pegg and more Nick Hornby. Nevertheless, Pegg successfully continues his campaign for mainstream success.

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Hit Me

It’s one of those stories that seems like it came straight out of Hollywood: brainiac students from MIT team with a slimy professor to count cards in Vegas, making a killing. And while 21, the film loosely based on Ben Mezrich’s true story Bringing Down the House, isn’t a total winner as either a “inspired by a true story” movie or as this generation’s answer to Rounders, it keeps viewers at the table long enough to cash in on a deck stacked with pure entertainment.

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