Brief Interviews With Hideous Men (2009)

Call this "The Penis Monologues." Not my quote, but true nonetheless. John Krasinski's directorial debut was disappointing to say the least, even with the talent involved in this movie.

Sara (Julianne Nicholson) is a doctoral or graduate student who is trying to do an experiment on men and what makes them tick. All of the subjects are interviewed on their relationship ability. In particular, the questions revolve around sex and family. This experiment may have been pushed into existence by a recent break up with an unfaithful Ryan (John Krasinski). It has left her with a lot of questions, especially after Ryan's explanation was either too specific or too vague, depending on how you look at it. The hideousness in the title comes from either the inside or outside of these subjects on a case-by-case basis.

Adapted from a David Foster Wallace novel, Krasinski tried to wrap it all into a movie. While this makes me want to read the book, this movie left everything open-ended, and that was unfortunate. From Krasinski to Will Arnett to Christopher Meloni, the talent could have been used much more effectively. There was one great scene though involving Subject #42 "confronting" his father. I could watch that scene over and over. The rest of the movie, not so much.

Away We Go (2009)

I absolutely loved this movie. This indie comedy has two people that are truly in love and not in the basic romantic comedy style. I read a review that said John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph's characters came off as smug, and that couldn't be farther from the truth.

Burt and Verona (John and Maya) are getting prepared for the unexpected little miracle that came to be. The hope is that Burt's parents (Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels) will be available to help raise the child since they live in the same town. When that whole thing falls through, the two thirtysomethings set out to find the best possible place to raise their child. They visit cities across the continent and get help from friends and family. Their journey leads them to find out more about raising a child than they thought existed.

You will have a hard time finding two happier, nicer people in a film. The chemistry the two of them had was spectacular and you almost thought you were watching a documentary of sorts. The supporting cast, especially Allison Janney and Jim Gaffigan, was terrific and the movie made me laugh out loud throughout while being genuine at the same time. One of the best of the year so far. Watch this movie.