The first place slot was mercilessly seized in its third week by the “holy shit that’s a real movie” movie Gnomeo and Juliet with $14.2 million (that’s 728.4 million in gnome dollars). Second place went to Hall Pass, which opened this weekend to a total of $13.4 million. The weekend’s REAL disappointment, though, was Drive Angry 3D, which, despite being a batshit crazy movie starring Nicolas Cage, only managed to collect $5.1 million. Sorry, Nicolas Cage. Maybe next time.

You can get a more complete run-down of the weekend’s disappointment over at Box Office Mojo.

I went into Hall Pass thinking I’d have to accept the stereotype and appreciate what comedy could be mined from it, if any. Personally, I don’t have a desire to not be in a committed relationship. But, I know there’s this public fantasy about getting a free pass, so that could be funny. The film actually has a clever perspective and good values.

Rick (Owen Wilson) and Fred (Jason Sudeikis) are married men in a rut, or two separate ruts to be accurate. Rick’s wife Maggie (Jenna Fischer) hears about hall pass from her friend Dr. Lucy (Joy Behar). It’s actually designed to make the men appreciate their wives when they inevitably try and fail to seduce young hotties.

Already this is a pro-relationship movie. It’s manipulative but the idea is to reinforce the value on monogamy. The misguided intention of that is funnier than any bickering opposites attract rom-com. Rick doesn’t want the pass. I’m with that. Fred’s more eager when his wife Grace (Christina Applegate) follows suit but you know he’s going to learn his lesson. Sudeikis is the ultimate comedy buddy. He’s the perfect instigator but never obnoxious.

The big joke is not to have a raucous wife-free party, but rather that these guys are total posers. Just the introduction of “Day 1” is hilarious. Then the delays and the setbacks take up half the week. The film doesn’t overstay the premise. They do the joke and then cut to the next development. Old guys get tired, boom. They suck at the bar scene, boom. The guys who want that party fantasy may be disappointed, but it speaks to me.

The group of friends is really funny. Flats (J.B. Smove), Gary (Stephen Merchant), and Hog-Head (Larry Joe Campbell) make a classic group of funny companions, even though they unfortunately disappear halfway through. The plot kicks in a little with Rick’s real prospect, Leigh (Nicky Whelan), but it’s always on point. These guys get into hilarious trouble trying to cash in their hall pass.

This is the Farrelly Brothers’ best movie since There’s Something About Mary. I know, I know, even better than Stuck on You. They’re more subdued here. It’s not about crushing pussy or penises stuck in zippers. The penises here are tame compared to Forgetting Sarah Marshall or Walk Hard. Fake chow funny because it makes sense (I’m opposed to it, ladies, but I get why it exists.) Jerking off illustrates the mature feelings of a married man. The joke is the reactions to it, not a cum shot. Okay, there are two poop scenes but the first is somewhere I’ve never seen it before, and the second is earned with character.

It’s not golden era Farrellys like Kingpin but it’s good. Fischer and Applegate have thankless parts. They’re really the cutaways to have the serious relationship talk. They give some counterpoint to what’s going on with the guys, but it’s not funny or perceptive.

There are two scenes where characters’ embarrassing conversations are caught by surveillance. That’s redundant and not that funny either time.

Hall Pass is the first real comedy of the year. It’s worth staying for the credits for another scene with Gary and Hog-Head. There’s a blooper near the end of the credits that’s not great but it pays off the jerking off joke. And there’s a final blooper and dedication which you should also stay for, because come on, you’ve already gotten to music credits. Honestly, after The Dilemma The Eagle Unknown Just Go With It, Never Say Never and all the January movies I didn’t see, it’s relief.

Carly on her role in Hall Pass: “I play [Jason Sudeikis’ hall pass, whom he meets at a club. Even though we have nothing in common, he takes me home because his friend tells him, “You’re not looking for a pen pal—you’re looking for a poon pal.”

A word from Alexandra: “I grew up in an environment where acting wasn’t necessarily considered a real career — you go to college, you go to Harvard and you become a lawyer or a doctor. But that wasn’t something that I loved and I knew that I wanted to be an actress.”

So you’ve decided to have an affair. Good for you. Cheating on one’s partner is one of the most rewarding things a person can experience. Just kidding! Unless you’re a complete scumbag, it’s a non-stop roller-coaster ride of fear, anxiety and unrelenting guilt. Sure, the sex itself is fun, but you pay the price.

That being said, some of you are still going to try, and chances are, you’re going to get caught. However, thanks to the countless films that have been made about the subject, you can learn from the mistakes of others, even if the “others” in question happen to be fictional. No, we’re not talking about “Lost.” What we are talking about is A Film Lover’s Guide to Having an Affair.

It’s All About the Details (Brokeback Mountain)

Remember, cheating isn’t just one lie. It’s a million little lies. As such, you’re going to have to remember an amazing amount of details. It doesn’t matter if you’re having an affair at the office, or “trimming the rose” with an old cowboy friend out in the woods. You need to think things through. For example, in Brokeback Mountain, the main characters use the cover story of a fishing trip as an excuse to meet up and have gay sex. It’s not a bad story, except for the fact that one of their wives realizes that the fishing poles were never even used. The devil is in the details.

Commit to the Lie (Sideways)

Aside from remembering the details, it’s imperative that you commit to the lie. You can’t half ass it. After all, as George Costanza once said, “It’s not a lie if you believe it.” A great example of of this type of thinking can be found in Sideways. When Jack is attacked by a spurned lover, he is left with a broken nose. Unable to tell his fiancee the truth, he concocts the story of a minor car crash. In order to sell the story, he goes the extra mile by actually crashing his friend’s car. Jack is committed to the lie, even if he isn’t committed to his fiancee.

Don’t Trust Your Friends (The Last Kiss)

If you’re going to cheat, do not involve your friends under any circumstances. First of all, it’s not fair to them. Second of all, despite what you think, they can’t be trusted. Third, and most importantly, they’ll probably f*ck it up, even if it’s unintentional. It’s hard enough to keep track of your own lies. How in the world do you expect your friends to pull it off? In The Last Kiss, Michael is using his friend Chris as cover for meeting with another woman. When Michael’s girl friend runs into Chris sans Michael, Chris is left in a helpless situation, and Michael’s cover is instantly blown.

Please don’t judge me for having seen this film.

Hide Your House Pets (Fatal Attraction)

No matter how cool your partner in crime might be, chances are you’re cheating with a raving lunatic. Crazy people love drama, which is why they’re drawn to married people in the first place. As such, don’t give them any more details then absolutely necessary. Don’t talk about your home life, don’t talk about your kids, don’t talk about how you leave a spare key hidden under a rock next to you drive way. And if you’re cheating with someone who already knows about your personal life, you better keep an eye on your house pets, or they might end up as dinner À la Fatal Attraction.

Deal with the Guilt (Extract)

Unless you are a sociopath, you are going to feel guilty about cheating. If you can’t handle it, don’t cheat. If you do cheat, suck it up and admit you’re a scum bag. Don’t try to justify your actions. More importantly, don’t try to make it about your spouse in order to alleviate your own guilty conscience. In Extract, Joel wants to cheat, but doesn’t want to hurt his wife. In order to justify his urges, he hires a pool buy to seduce wife, his logic being that if she cheats first, he has a free ticket to bang someone else. As you’d expect, the plan blows up in his face. The lesson here is that it’s all or nothing. If you’re going to cheat, deal with it.

Make Sure Your Partner’s Grandmother Isn’t a Black Dude In Drag (Diary of a Mad Black Woman)

Remember, if you get caught cheating, you’re not just going to piss off your partner. You’re going to piss off your partner’s entire family. That’s why before you cheat, it’s so important to make sure that your partner’s grandmother isn’t actually a big black dude in drag. If so, you’re probably going to be subjected to gun violence and heavy-handed Christian overtones. Not to mention, all of you’re stuff will probably be destroyed via chainsaw. It’s bad enough to have to sit through a Tyler Perry movie. Imagine having to live through it.

Don’t Introduce Your Lover to Your Younger, More Attractive Daughter (The Graduate)

This is specific to older women who are having affairs with younger men. If you find yourself in this situation, do not, under any circumstances, introduce your lover to your younger, more attractive daughter. Don’t buy into the “cougar” nonsense. It’s important to realize that no one really wants to be with an older woman, and you are being used for cheap and easy sex. You are not a bottle of wine. You are a more like a jug of milk. No one prefers old milk to new milk. As The Graduate shows us, your daughter is a newer, better version of you. Keep her out of the picture.

Get Permission (Hall Pass)

Is it really cheating if your partner says it’s OK? That’s between you and your god (or gods). But if Hollywood has taught us anything, it’s that the best affairs are the ones where your partner has given you the go ahead. Of course, Hollywood has also taught us that these arrangements usually end up in a madcap comedy of errors where both partners realize that they don’t want anyone else, so what’s the worst that could happen? Oh right, feelings of jealousy and bitterness followed by a painful breakup.

If Possible, Get Paid (Indecent Proposal)

At the end of the day, cheating is a lot of hard work. And isn’t hard work supposed to be rewarded? All that lying and sneaking around certainly takes its toll, and you deserve some compensation. If you can somehow manage to get paid out of the deal, like the film Indecent Proposal, take the money and run, especially if you’re married. After all, once your spouse hires a divorce lawyer, you’re going to need all the cash you can get.

But just because they’re raunchy, doesn’t mean they’re funny. Also strange that Owen Wilson only has about four lines in this trailer with most of the attention going to Jason Sudeikis‘s take on a role that typically goes to Dan Fogler. I’ll have to wait until we see the film before officially calling the time of death on the Farrelly’s comedy skills but I’m prepping our 40 oz’s for sip-pouring all the same. (IGN)

Director: Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly

Cast: Owen Willson, Alyssa Milano, Christina Applegate, Jenna Fischer, Jason Sudeikis

Synopsis: A married man is granted the opportunity to have an affair by his wife. Joined in the fun by his best pal, things get a little out of control when both wives start engaging in extramarital activities as well.

Release Date: February 25, 2011

Hall Pass checks into theaters February 25, 2011.

The other day I had the opportunity to speak with comedian and actor JB Smoove about his current and upcoming projects, his unique approach to stand-up comedy, and a way of life that he defines as “The Ruckus.” You may best know JB as Leon, Larry David’s ex-brother-in-law, from The Black family on “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” He’s gearing up to shoot the 8th Season of “Curb,” but JB’s also got several other projects poppin’ at the moment. Take a gander at our conversation below.

SJ: Tell me about this new show you’re hosting, “Russell Simmons Presents Stand-Up at the El Rey.”

JB: Anytime Russell Simmons calls you and tells you he’s doing something you gotta do it. This show could have been about cake. It could have been called "Russell Simmons Presents Birthday Cakes" and you gotta consider it. So Russell calls me up and says I’m doing this new show and I’d love for you to host it. The El Rey is a historic theater in the Wilshire District of Los Angeles. So I’m hosting the show. It’s a version of Def Comedy Jam. It’s young comics, comics from all over, and I’m just the captain of the ship.

SJ: Are these up and coming comics? Will we know some of the names?

JB: Mostly up and coming comics, which is great. Everybody killed it. Everybody murdered it, man. You notice how the world has changed? How bad words have become good words? They killed it. They murdered it, man.

SJ: So if we tune in we can expect a whole lot of killing and murdering.

JB: Killing and murdering, man. Verbal ass-whoopings. Comedians, that’s our thing. The worse condition we leave you in, the better. Comedians try to murder you, they try to kill you. They try to make you piss on yourself. We try to make you shit yourself. We are horrible. Comedians have bad intentions for a good audience. You make someone spit their drink out, that’s pretty common, but if you can make their whole bod break down. Murder ‘em, kill ‘em, they fall off their chair, they spit their drink out, piss on themselves, shit on themselves, and get thrown out the club. The full f*ckin’ monty, man.

SJ: What’s it like having Russell Simmons as a boss? Does he make it rain constantly?

JB: That dude is f*ckin’ loaded with cash. It would take you five days to rob that dude. Take this advice: always ride the coattails of the rich and famous. Russell Simmons could have done a show about Chlamydia and I would have done it.

SJ: Speaking about somebody with weight, are you working with Larry David on the 8th Season of “Curb You Enthusiasm?”

JB: You cannot get rid of Leon. You’d have to assassinate Leon to get rid of him. I’m looking forward to some new Leonisms, too. I’m looking forward to gettin’ in that ass.

SJ: You’re going to get into your character’s ass?

JB: I’m gonna get in Larry’s ass. I bring the ruckus. The ruckus will be brought this season, again.

SJ: Can you let us in on anything about the new season of “Curb?”

JB: Man, I don’t know anything. All I know is they’re shooting some in New York and some in L.A. I don’t know anything until I get to the set. I’m one of those guys that don’t like information until I get there. Larry’s pretty secretive. I know a little bit about nothing.

SJ: How was it working with the Farrell Brothers in their new film Hall Pass?

JB: Huge fans of those guys. Loved working on the movie with Owen Wilson and Jason Sudeikis. Had a ball doing it. And Stephen Merchant. What is that guy, like 6’9’’? Normally I’m the tall guy on set, this dude was like 6’9’’ or some shit.

SJ: Can you tell us some about your character in the film?

JB: I just play one of the homies. One of the friends. My name is Flats. I play Stephen Merchant’s brother-in-law.

SJ: What other projects do you have going on at the moment?

JB: I’ve got a ton of shit going on. A few other films I’m considering. Working on a few other shows. Doing my stand-up on the road. I’m just trying to pay Discover and Mastercard off. One thing you don’t want is motherf*ckers calling you the rest of your life.

SJ: Inception comes out next week and everyone is really excited for it. Are you excited to see it?

JB: Anything that Leo DiCaprio is in, I’m going to see that shit. They could combine his movies and I’d see that shit. The Inception of the Titanic. The boat could come back out the water and I’d see that shit. He’s got a cool-ass name.

SJ: In the movie, Leo’s character goes into dreams. If Leo went into your dreams, what would he find?

JB: Oh man, he’ll find some shit, man. The ruckus just flies in my body. He’ll go into my bloodstream and find that my ruckus level is high. I’m in the 90% range of ruckusness. The ruckus makes you thick skinned. You ever been to a petting zoo and rubbed a rhinoceros ass? His ass is like leather. That’s what the ruckus is.

So there you have it, everyone. The ruckus is like a rhinoceros ass. I want to thank JB for taking the time to speak with me. Be sure to look for him hosting “Russell Simmons Presents Stand-Up at the El Rey” Sundays at 11PM/10c on Comedy Central. The new season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” premieres next year on HBO.
 

The Farrell Brothers have been busy rounding out the cast of Hall Pass, the comedy where Owen Wilson is allowed to rub his genitals against any woman he wants with zero wifely consequences for one week. The cast currently consists of Wilson, Jenna Fischer, Jason Sudeikis, Amanda Bynes, J.B. Smoove, and Stephen Merchant.

This morning comes news of the alluring actresses who will play the pontential recipients of the genital-rubbing. Christina Applegate, Alyssa Milano, Vanessa Angel, and Nicky Whelan have all inked deals to swell Wilson and Sudeikis’s pants. If the Farrellys are hoping to attract the lucrative demographic of dumpy girls with low self-esteem, they’re going about it the wrong way. (THR)

We’ve reported previously about the Farrell Brothers upcoming Hall Pass. It’s the comedy that stars Owen Wilson as a man given a pass by his wife, Jenna Fischer,  to pursue extra-marital ass-tappings for one week. Now there’s word that child actor turned tappable-ass Amanda Bynes has joined the cast. Possibly as a young ass that will be granted tapping amnesty.

That could be good but I’ve got an axe to grind with Bynes. She’s one of those girls (Kaley Cuoco is another offender) who made goofy faces during their recent Maxim shoots. It’s confusing for the penis. I hope she doesn’t do that in bed. Like, all of a sudden she’s winking at you while you’re in the throws. She’s definitely on my list and had better clean her act up if she wants to be on my other list. (Variety)

Before they move forward with their now back-on Three Stooges movie, the Farrell Brothers will make Hall Pass with Owen Wilson their next project. Wilson stars as a man who has been given a one-week pass from his wife to sleep with any woman he wants. SNL‘s Jason Sudeikis stars as his best friend because Rob Corddry and Dan Fogler were otherwise indisposed. The film will follow their misadventures as they try to crush ass.

Between this and Vince Vaughn’s new project, why are there so many movies about getting some strange lately? Is it because of Tiger Woods?? Is Hollywood now only accepting pitches that align with Twitter trend topics?

Anyway, the movie sounds like it could be a return to form for the once hilarious Farrellys. But mostly it just sounds like season four of Curb Your Enthusiasm.

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(via THR)

Cast: Owen Wilson

Synopsis: Centers on a married couple who find themselves in a lull in their marriage and just going through the motions. The wife then gives her husband a "hall pass," a free ticket to engage in extramarital encounters.