Mr. Woodcock

Mr. Woodcock **

Directed by Craig Gillespie
Written by Michael Carnes and Josh Gilbert

Starring:
Billy Bob Thornton as Mr. Woodcock
Seann William Scott as John Farley
Susan Sarandon as Beverly Farley
Amy Poehler as Maggie Hoffman
Melissa Sagemiller as Tracy
Ethan Suplee as Nedderman

87 Minutes(Rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, thematic material, language and a mild drug reference. )
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I think that I liked "Mr. Woodcock" as much as you could possibly like a movie called "Mr. Woodcock." In fact, I was surprised that it managed to stay away from any sort of joke relating to the dirty idea's that his name brings out. To go out of your way to hate this movie would be an exercise in having too much time in your hands. It has its moments, it does make you laugh at times, and then its done-no harm, no foul. You don't have to believe in any of the characters actions, you don't have to think. Just watch, laugh at the jokes that you find funny-and there will be a couple for everyone to find funny-and that's it. It wasn't made to be a masterpiece, and as a comedy that comes out in the middle of September, it really does end up being a decent experience. Of course, there are so many other good and great films coming out now that "Mr. Woodcock" doesn't have to be your first pick, but if you are stuck with you, you won't cheated.

Billy Bob Thorton continues his work as a crazy and angry and bitter man-a run that started off very high with "Bad Santa" and "The Ice Harvest," and has fallen with terrors like "Bad News Bears,' and "School for Scoundrels." Those films were just bad because they weren't funny, but Thorton plays a jerk so well that the routine always gets to me. Here he plays Mr. Jasper Woodcock, the meanest gym teacher in the world. We've all had that one professor that gets to us, and he gets to John Farley-played by the up until recently missing in action actor Seann William Scott. Years later, Farley has written a self-help book-Letting Go: How to Get Past Your Past. It's a huge hit, and he is returning to his small town home to get the key to the city. He there learns that his mother, a former beauty queen played by Susan Sarandon, is dating Mr. Woodcock and plans to get married to him. John is tormented by the fact that the man who ruined his life is about to be his step-father, and tries to find evidence to bring Woodcock down.

Silly plot, but its fun to watch Thorton being mean no matter how obvious the script is, and there are a few funny one liners. Many of them come from the content of Farley's book, and from the cover with his award winning smile and cheesy look, until the catchy sayings that the book's chapter titles have, it really does hit the nail on the head about how over the top those things are. What I found really fascinating was the fact that the movie was directed by Craig Gillespie. Now this is his second film as a director, but his first film is being released next month in limited release-the much better and much sweeter and much funnier "Lars and the Real Girl," which I saw in Toronto. In the end, "Mr. Woodcock" is what it is. It has its moments of decent comedy. Nothing original, I warn you, but you could do much worse. In a season where we're getting more adult and more artistic and award winning films coming out, this probably isn't your first choice of a movie to see, but it'll make you laugh if that's any constellation.

Also, I don't know which title is worse to buy a ticket for-"Balls of Fury," or "Mr. Woodcock."

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