The Lincoln Lawyer (2011)

Brace yourselves: I'm about to give a positive review to a Matthew McConaughey movie. Correction, a Matthew McConaughey drama. I know, I'm as shocked as you are.

Defense attorney Mickey Haller (McConaughey) rolls around Los Angeles County arguing for common criminals who wouldn't get the time of day from other lawyers. His work was easy until he lands a case representing a Beverly Hills playboy named Louis Roulet (Ryan Phillippe). He is accused of practically beating a prostitute to death. Haller thinks Roulet is innocent and begins working on evidence with his investigator. They soon begin to notice holes in Roulet's story and start to dig a little deeper. The case soon begins to bear a striking resemblance to a case he had years earlier that sent a man to jail. But as they go further and further into the old case, Roulet starts becoming suspicious that his lawyer is working against him. He's a lot more dangerous than he looks, but he's still exuding innocence in this particular case. Now, Haller has to find a way around attorney-client privilege and protect himself from a case he no longer wants to take part in.

McConaughey was fine in this role. He's not really a good actor, but this role worked well for him. It was Phillippe that surprised me more. I've never really been a fan of his, but his character was a person I wouldn't want to cross in my life. The supporting cast of Marisa Tomei, William H. Macy and Frances Fisher were all terrific, yet they should have gotten more screen time. My one real gripe was the ending of the movie, which was satisfying but predictable. Fans of a good legal drama with a dash of crime thriller thrown in will like this movie. Grade: B+

MacGruber (2010)

There used to be a big stigma with SNL skit based movies being, well, terrible. For the most part, that statement is true. Think of Superstar, The Ladies Man, and It's Pat. This movie isn't quite that bad, but it's not great.

MacGruber (Will Forte) was the best the United States military ever trained. An explosives expert with the skills necessary to rip out a man's throat. But that was 10 years ago. Now, he's the military's only hope against international super terrorist Dieter van Cunth (Val Kilmer), the same man who killed MacGruber fiance during their wedding. He assembles a team which includes his old friend Vicki St. Elmo (Kristen Wiig) and Dixon Piper (Ryan Phillippe), the current best the military's got. Cunth has hijacked the X-5 Missile and is threatening to detonate it in Washington DC during the State of the Union. MacGruber and his team now need stop him before it's too late, but can MacGruber overcome his past demons to make sure this does not become his one defining failure.

I didn't hate this movie, but it was not nearly as funny as I expected it to be. Forte was great at committing to his character, but I was expecting more of his SNL routine to shine through. What was surprising was how good Phillippe was at playing the straight guy to the ridiculousness that Forte and Wiig portrayed around him. There is a fair amount of gross out humor, so be prepared for that,m but I can't recommend this movie unless you are a real MacGruber fan.