It’s a totally rational decision to search out a movie review online before heading to your local neighborhood cineplex to drop close to the amount of cash a minimum wage worker earns in a single day for a couple tickets, a couple sodas, and a bag of popcorn with a calorie count that rivals blooming onions.
In order to make sure your money is well spent surf on over to RedLetterMedia and click on Half in the Bag, a half-hour movie review show hosted by mad genius Mike Stoklasa and his fellow creator, commonly known as “the other guy,” Jay Bauman.
Fans will remember Mike Stoklasa and Jay Bauman as the directors and stars of Feeding Frenzy, a tongue-in-cheek tribute to horror flicks of the 80’s. Stoklasa is also known as the hilarious throaty voice-over talent for the popular Plinkett Reviews produced by Red Letter Media, which have garnered worldwide online fame ever since the pair uploaded their classic seventy-minute video review of the 1999 film Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.
Half in the Bag might only be generating a fraction of the hits of Plinkett’s in-depth critiques, but it’s definitely capturing the interest of movie fans around the web. The co-creators play a couple of frauds who pretend to fix a VCR while milking the savings of an elderly man with a familiar surname, Mr. Plinkett, played by Rich Evans. A well-rounded review source, the co-hosts manage to provide insightful commentary on romance fanfiction, B-movie horror flicks, independent cult classics and Hollywood blockbusters.
Red Letter’s regular review series has chosen to look at a slew of traditional films, including The Adjustment Bureau, Battle Los Angeles, The Galaxy Invader, Paul, Sucker Punch and more upon which the duo bestows a comical thumbs up or down critique for film fans. All films are fair game according to this testosterone filled duo, who belt and belch what they think about the plot, characters, actors, editors and directors. Whether they are making fun of Nicholas Cage’s hair in Drive Angry or dissing the talent of January Jones in X-Men: First Class, Mike and Jay tell it how it is with a no-holds barred approach.
In episode 10, the guys recount their short film submission to Milwaukee’s 48 Hour Film Project, where contestants make a film within 48 hours. Stoklasa and Bauman explain how they snatched up actors from their previous films, Feeding Frenzy and The Dude Bros and brainstormed with beer to create a alien slap happy sci-fi short, chock-full of a gorilla, the “F” word and plenty of T&A. They demonstrate the step-by-step process of making the film, manage to make fun of themselves, and then premiere their sci-fi entry and winner of Best Costumes, The Great Space Jam. It’s worth a watch if you’re in the mood for quirky sci-fi, phallic symbolism and big breasts.
Half in the Bag’s laid back, blue collar reviews of the movies we are either dying to see or have a fear of dying if we do, give a tell-all examination of Hollywood’s finest or Indie films weakest links. And, if you are a true Red Letter Media fan, then you might want to download the Mr. Plinkett app on your hand held device. Cuz, that elderly psychopath has definitely changed internet movie reviews forever.