Agreed. And when you play the same charater over and over, it's hard to keep that staying power. I hate Stiller's usual character, so he has to abandon it alltogether(which he is capable of doing), or be in a movie that is good despite him(royal tenenbaums, meet the parents) for me to want to see one of his movies.
What about Keeping the Faith? I enjoyed that movie. It had a lot more to do with Ed Norton, but Stiller did a good job in it.
I haven't seen it, but I hear Stiller acted extremely well in Permanent Midnight. He played junkie, which he obviously has no real life experience from which to draw on. He's a good actor, but he's usually typecast as the straight man in a funny situation or as Mr. Furious.
re: Friends and Neighbors http://imdb.com/title/tt0119517/ Has anyone else seen this one? I think it's really underrated. Kinda quirky. Jason Patrick has some awesome, disturbing one liners.
'Friends and Neighbors' read better than it was, but still a good movie. Sorkin-esque, lots of dialogue that sounds great but doesn't get used in real life. "Permanant Midnight" is great. Stiller's made a career of playing the guy who gets shat upon, which I usually can't stand watching -- but his characters always turn out likable, in spite of their misdeeds.
Watch a movie called Bongwater one of the best movies of all time in the countercoultre. IMHO This is why he got the role on High Fidelity
I found Bongwater to be one of the least funny comedies ever made. I was amazed they could get so many funny people together (Luke Wilson, Jack Black, and to a lesser extent Jamie Kennedy, Andy Dick, Brittany Murphy and Alicia Witt) and manage to make a movie that doesn't contain a single laugh.
Yes sir I have read the same about the sequel. They say it picks up at the courthouse scene and you don't have to watch the first one to understand. IMDB says 2004 production year but apparantly the official Boondock website says that they won't start until next year. I'm going to look that up for sure so I know when to hold my breath. I'm willing to bet Halo 2 will arrive before Boondock 2.
I completely and utterly agree with you to the nth degree. The thing that I love most about Stiller flicks is their ability to get you emotionally. I'll admit, I got a little worked up. But then you don't feel like a big baby because you're too busy laughing shortly after. Even big budget stuff like Something About Mary had that emotional aspect. Keeping the Faith was so underrated, especially since it featured two of the best entertainers in movies today. Ed Norton can do no wrong.
