30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 2- Mayor Cupcake (2011)

It is day two of the real 30 day film challenge that everyone should do if they want a real challenge and the agenda for today was to watch a film from my favorite actress. My favorite actress currently in Hollywood and if you haven't told from a lot of my selections is Zoey Deutch (Beautiful Creatures) as 2011's Mayor Cupcake not only signifies her first ever film, but it's also the 10TH film I have seen with her. The always beautiful Lea Thompson (The Year Of Spectacular Men) stars as small town cupcake maker Mary Maroni who thanks to her daughter (Zoey) is elected mayor of the town after the Incumbent dies and she was the runner up. Unfortunately for her, there is a lot of work that needs to be done in the town, but she is just the one to do it. The film also stars Judd Nelson (The Breakfast Club) as Donald Maroni, Madelyn Deutch (The Year Of Spectacular Men) as Anita Maroni, Dorian Harewood (Full Metal Jacket) as Albert Peach, Frankie Faison (Coming To America) as Lenny Davis, Peter Patrikios (21 Bridges) as Greg Grundle, Michael Petted (American Horror Story) as Quail, Lexy Rutt (Soul Harvest) as Tanya Maroni, Peter Schmitz (Fargo) as Black Bart, and the film was written and directed by Alex Pires in his directorial debut.

Now I am not sure if this film ever made it to theaters because it had no business debuting anywhere but on television. It had the workings of a made for TV film from the minute it started to the minute it finished almost like you would see this on Lifetime. I love Lea Thompson who definitely kept the film together as she was the glue, but she couldn't save it from itself. Judd Nelson looked like he was just phoning it in the whole entire time like I was the bad ass in The Breakfast Club to playing a small town Delaware cop whose wife seems to wear the pants in that family. The only cheesy nostalgic moment that I liked was when Nelson show up to the club to watch his daughter perform, she busts out with Don't You (Forget About Me) from The Breakfast Club Soundtrack. Other than that, there was not enough Zoey Deutch in the whole film, she does play alongside her sister and mom for the first time (and as we know, it's not the last). There are some funny moments here and there, but I had to wipe the made for TV cheese off first just to get to those. This is definitely a watch at your own risk kind of film and if you like Lifetime movies then this is the perfect film for you. It just has that Lifetime formula which we will be visiting later on in the challenge and I can't wait for that. I am going to go ahead and give the film an C+/B- (it's somewhere in that range) for a final grade. I'm indecisive because it's structurally sound story wise, but just cheesy.

The Year Of Spectacular Men (2018)

I had to take some time off from checking out a Zoey Deutch (Vincent N Roxxy) film, but after taking some time off I was ready to jump back in. The film I decided to check out is one big family affair as the film The Year Of Spectacular Men was written and stars Madelyn Deutch (Outcast) and it features and was directed by Lea Thompson (Back To The Future) who is their mother (in real life and in the film). Madelyn plays Izzy Klein, a young woman who has just finished college, but can't seem to keep a relationship going. After her boyfriend in New York breaks up with her, she decides to move to LA to be closer to her older sister Sabrina (Zoey) while trying to navigate through life and all of it's challenges including men, finding a job, and more. The film also stars Cameron Monaghan (Vampire Academy) as Ross, Brandon T. Jackson (Tropic Thunder) as Logan, Zach Roerig (As The World Turns) as Mikey,  Nicholas Braun (The Stanford Prison Experiment) as Charlie, Jesse Bradford (Bring It On) as Aaron,  Avan Jogia (Zombieland: Double Tap) as Sebastian, Melissa Bolona (Acts Of Violence) as Amythyst Stone, D.W. Moffett (How to Get Away with Murder) as Teacher, and Troy Evans (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas) as Sketch.

It's a rare occasion when I choose a film and I don't end up enjoying it because I try picking based on what the story is about and what people have said about it. When it came to this film I had no idea that Zoey was the supporting actress, but in the end it didn't matter because this was a really good film. I thought it was actually an enjoyable film to watch and while I must admit that it is a chick flick, I think this may be one that men can enjoy as well. Madelyn who I had no idea was Zoey's sister actually did a fantastic job both in writing the film and in acting because she played a super quirky kind of girl very well in the film. I love how Zoey played the sister who becomes an actress and is entangled in the Hollywood life. There is one point in which they keep referencing a film that she worked on with Zac Efron in which the tabloids want a scoop on her relationship with him. I wonder if that was a poke at what she went through after filming Dirty Grandpa in which she co-starred alongside him in? Throughout the whole film, Madelyn looked like she was the royal screw up when it came to relationships, but by the end of the film she seemed to be the one with her sanity intact. I thought it was a really good film that is available to watch on HULU right now as we speak and I think you should check it out. I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade.