Author Greg Foster

Being a “smarmy jerkface” is an art. Not everybody can pull off that perfect blend of charm and condescension, but when an actor really gets it right, it almost always results in an unforgettable character. You know the type: their hair is either slicked back or perfectly coiffed (depending on the decade); they look down on a main character or hero without a hint of pity, guilt or self-awareness. Whether you love them or love to hate them, the smarmy jerkface has been a go-to character in comedy for decades now and it doesn’t appear they’ll be going anywhere soon. At least we can take solace in the fact they usually get their comeuppance at some point in the film. What follows is a list of some of my favorite egotistical jerks in recent mainstream movies. Read, enjoy and don’t be a jerk…leave a comment!

If you think Passion of the Christ is a foreign language film…If you think a…

If you think Passion of the Christ is a foreign language film…If you think a…

I’m from ‘Merica. Right smack dab in the middle of it. So I’m not allowed to like any sport more than American football, or what my Dad calls, “REAL football.” Like most sports, real football games are constantly slowed down by penalties, one of the most popular of which being “unnecessary roughness”. This penalty basically means a player used more force than they needed to to get the job done. I’ve got a yellow penalty flag of my own that I’d like to throw in this week’s edition of the column; a little something I like to call “Unnecessary Romance”.

Music and movies go hand in hand. The perfect score can elevate a movie to…

If you think Passion of the Christ is a foreign language film…If you think a…

The new [and improved?] Total Recall hit theaters last Friday, the latest in a seemingly constant string of familiar films and/or franchises that have become the subject of remakes or reboots. Though the remake trend is certainly not limited to one genre, there is one element that appears, at least to me, to be a common denominator of all remakes: take the old version and make it sleek and cool for the new generation. That’s the whole idea, right? To pull this off, remakes are chock full of CGI and younger actors tasked with reprising roles of those who have gone before. Total Recall is the second remake of an old Arnie action flick, with 2011’s epic [failure] Conan the Barbarian already in the books. For Conan they cast another young warrior muscled to the hilt in Jason Momoa. But for Recall they went with the slimmer and sleeker Colin Farrell. While the jury is still out on this latest reboot, it made me wonder: what if they decided to remake The Arnold’s entire list of action starring roles? And thus, another Mainstream Monday was born. Read, enjoy, argue and don’t forget to comment!

In the past we discussed cinematic Odd Couples: pairs of stars in dramas or romantic comedies who just didn’t seem to mesh well. Let’s look at the other side of that coin today and discuss movie couples who seemed to work so well together they got the chance to work their relational magic on the silver screen a second time. And in some cases, even a third time. This phenomenon isn’t limited to only dramas and comedies either; a variety of genres make an appearance. I’ve trade to steer away from sequels because that’s not really what we’re going for here. And just for added fun I’ve made a projection of which couple I believe has the best chance for long-term survival. (As always this isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list.) Let’s take a quick look at some of the best instances of “2nd Chance Romance” in film.

If you’ve ever seen the children’s program “Dino Dan” you’ve basically been introduced to childhood…