World Wide Ebb (and Flow)

Mel Gibson kittens, Beyonce impostors, oil-soaked SpongeBob: There's more onlinethan the corpse flower

You can't click your mouse anywhere online today without being hit by a barrage of corpse flower hoopla. Twitter and Facebook are littered with virtual coverage, and you can't get a tweet in edgewise.

The media is unabashedly turning this one-trick pony into a national equestrian championship (and we're not above it, either).

But please don't judge us. It's a muggy July day in Houston. If we're not in Aspen, our bums are squarely planted in front of a computer for an eight-hour corporate sentence. Let us have a little entertainment at our own expense.

Some, however, aren't resting on the social web's stench-obsessed laurels. Resourceful technology mavens holed up in their air-conditioned basement offices are still nibbling at tastier, less rotting-flesh-smelling cheese.

So, as a corpse flower coverage respite, here's your virtual brie sandwich. It's our treat.

If You Want to Yell, Mel, Use a Kitten!
What's worse than being Mel Gibson's girlfriend? Being his ex-girlfriend, of course. If you can't stomach the misogynist, racist rants making the Internet rounds, soften the blow with kittens. Being called a see-you-next-Tuesday never seemed so precious.

Three iPhones, One Girl
Leave it to the Asians to make impersonating someone as multitalented as Beyonce so technically effortless. Not only does the unassuming girl in this YouTube video have the pipes of a pop princess, but she mixes the entire beat for "Irreplaceable" via iPhones. From the comfort of her couch. We're not worthy.

R.I.P. SpongeBob; With Love, BP
Living in a pineapple under the sea was always an impractical residence for the darling Mr. SquarePants. But his fancy-free lifestyle has come to an abrupt halt following the onset of the BP oil spill, mercilessly portrayed by local graphic designer Ben Gillin. Which means there's some newly-available real estate with a prime disasterfront view. Or fruit for your Giada de Laurentiis creation.

A Betrayal of the Juiciest Double-Double Kind
Josh Capon, you low-down, greasy creep. It's not as if anyone wanted the secret behind the fast-food decadence of In-N-Out Burger. And yet, your treachery exposes the wonderburger in all its gory glory, then applies it to your dishonest Lure burger.

How dare you call your burgers anything but what they are — stolen goods. We're branding you a burger bandit.

A Question That Needs an Answer
Who doesn't enjoy a good acoustic cover? Samwell's strangely mesmerizing "What What in the Butt" video made him an Internet celebrity in 2007, but he recently teamed up with Them Crooked Vultures' Josh Homme to pull a classic rockstar revival move — the unplugged series.

Overproduced electronic synthesizers or not, "Do you wanna do it in my butt?" never quite loses its campy humor. Nor elicits quite a more empassioned response.

unspecified

Movie Review

An all-star cast delivers clever laughs in new comedy The Invite

Photo courtesy of A24

Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton in The Invite.

Once upon a time, well before scandal embroiled him, Woody Allen made great comedies aimed at adults. That type of film — which is different from the raunchy, R-rated comedies of the 21st century — has fallen out of favor in Hollywood, but as the new film The Invite proves, when done well it can be as funny as anything else out there.

Joe (Seth Rogen) and Angela (Olivia Wilde) are an unhappily married couple living in San Francisco. As we meet them, Joe has arrived home to Angela preparing for a visit from their upstairs neighbors, Hawk (Edward Norton) and Piña (Penélope Cruz), who have moved in relatively recently. Their impending arrival starts a new round of arguing between Joe and Angela, something they can barely contain once the other couple comes to their door.

What proceeds is a getting-to-know-you process that is mostly awkward as Joe and Angela continue sniping at each other while Hawk and Piña put in their two cents in a much calmer manner. A sticking point between the two couples — the loud sex Hawk and Piña have on an almost nightly basis — turns the film on its head with an unexpected invitation.

Directed by Wilde and written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones, the film is a fast-paced chamber piece that takes place almost entirely in Joe and Angela’s apartment. Wilde, the writers, and the actors speed the story along not with action but through almost non-stop dialogue that often has the characters overlapping each other’s lines. The rapidity of the speech fuels the humor of the situation and establishes the differing personalities of each person.

Sex is very much top of mind for each of the characters for most of the film, but the filmmakers approach the topic in such a way that it never feels salacious. Each of the characters is a rational adult who can talk about sex in a mature manner while also acknowledging their unique feelings on the matter. And it’s the discoveries each of them makes along the way that brings about the most comedy.

But, like any comedy for adults, the film also has a dramatic tilt to it, and Wilde edges the story back-and-forth between the two tones extremely well. Joe and Angela fighting is played for laughs at times, but the sadness of their relationship comes through loud and clear. Hawk and Piña are much more intimate with each other, but the funniness of their openness is juxtaposed with a depth that arises through their conversations.

In the 2020s, Rogen has managed to make the transition from goofy stoner to stoner with real acting chops. In a stacked cast, he is the one who sells every moment the best. That’s not to say that Wilde, Norton, and Cruz don’t measure up, though; each of them inhabits their respective roles magnificently. The four actors play off each other as if they had been working together for years.

While The Invite will likely play better to those who have experience with long term relationships, its insights — and occasional bawdiness — make it a comedy that can be appreciated universally. With four actors at the top of their games and a razor-sharp script made even better by some well-done improv, it proves that you don’t need to go low to get great laughs.

---

The Invite is now playing in theaters.

movies film