When I ripped apart The House Bunny in December, many of you told me that I needed to chill the heck out as you jumped to the defense of Anna Faris, the comedy's leading lady who took on the, um, formidable role of a Playboy Playmate turned sorority house mother. First in line to challenge my views was fellow redblogger Locke -- you can see his retort here.
More recently, Locke and I were on the same page about Faris -- we both thought she was perfect for the part of spacey cosmetics countergirl Brandi in Observe and Report. But I maintain that it's still hard for me to be all that impressed with the actress because -- by and large -- she's best known for depicting the stereotypical "dumb blonde." Even in Entourage, where she was supposed to be playing herself, she seemed like a flake. It makes you wonder if she was really stretching her acting chops all that much in the aforementioned films, or Lost in Translation, or the Scary Movies...
So I can't help but be curious to learn Locke's response to the news that Faris is going to be the voice of one of the Chipettes in Alvin & the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel. (Yes, it's called The Squeakquel.) Once again, Locke and I have diverging viewpoints. I had to go see Alvin & the Chipmunks with my young nephews over the holidays in 2007, and I was pleasantly surprised by the live-action film. However, Locke has often mocked it, and even posted this ominous quote when news of follow-up movie broke last winter. Now his beloved funny lady is hyping her involvement with the very same CGI rodents he lambasted not so long ago, will Locke (and other pro-Faris, anti-Chipmunk fans) be able to forgive her?
It's not like she's in bad company -- Christina Applegate (The Rocker) and Amy Poehler (Horton Hears a Who!, Baby Mama) will voice the other two Chipettes.
As I was never a fan of Anna's and I actually enjoyed Alvin & the Chipmunks, I'm certainly not going to knock her for being involved with its sequel. In fact, perhaps she'll take on more voice work in the future and give some other poor actress a chance to take over as the go-to airhead.
The Squeakquel will follow the marketing formula of its predecessor and will be released over the holidays this year. So while we wait to see if we can even recognize Faris's voice after it's sped-up and raised to an impossibly high pitch, you can refresh your memory of the Chipettes with the video below.
What say you now, Locke?
Why were you pleasantly surprised? It was awful! My 7 year old brother in law hated it. Though, for a 7 year old, he has impeccable taste-- his favorite musician: Not the Jonas Brothers... Miles Davis.
But really, it was awful.
Posted by: Jason | June 11, 2009 at 01:10 PM
What do I say? I say you need to stop huffing so much glue on the weekdays...
You LIKE Alvin & the Chipmunks and DON'T like Anna Faris... and *I'M* the one who has to defend MY taste?
And you would prefer she STOP playing airheads so someone ELSE can get those roles? That's like saying you wish Martin Scorsese would stop making movies so Uwe Boll can step up and make more. Why ask someone to stop doing something they do SO perfectly? Any comedian or comic actor can tell you that, like poetry, playing dumb is easy to do and HARD to do well--and Faris does it BRILLIANTLY. She has perfect comic timing and responses. You're going to question her abilities after Lost in Translation? Where she executed a near-perfect, razor-sharp take down of a certain blonde actress?
As for "forgiving" Faris, eh... everyone's gotta eat... I don't hold my favorite performers to any sort of high standard or take it personally when they make dumb choices... or in this case, sign on in support of what is clearly an unclean harbinger of the End Times...
Everyone has a Doogal on their resume. (Sit down, Paul Rudd... sit right the hell down over there next to Over Her Dead Body...) Now if it becomes that ALL they do is make Doogals and Chipmunk movies, then you have a problem.
That said, when we finally are able to organize the Resistance and overthrow our unholy vermin overlords, I'm afraid the delightful Ms. Faris may have to stand before the People's Tribunal and defend her involvement with this abomination... But if she does it with a goofy face and a flawless prat fall, all will be forgotten...
Posted by: Locke Peterseim | June 11, 2009 at 04:07 PM
I like her.. and if you watch the dvd features where she is kind of directing and brainstorming she seems totally normal and sweet. I am, however, NOT a fan of Chipmunk remakes with real people.
Posted by: Angela | June 11, 2009 at 04:18 PM
So first off, I should probably clarify that while I was "pleasantly surprised" by the Chipmunks movie and did, as I said in my post, "enjoy" it, both of those sentiments are functions of the fact that I had EXTREMELY low expectations going in. I have had to watch a lot of crappy kids' movies, and I simply didn't find the Chipmunks to be as awful as I had assumed it would be. Therefore, I do not like the Chipmunks in the same way that Locke and others likes Anna Faris (I would assume on many levels).
And while I agree that Faris was spot-on in Lost in Translation, I guess my beef with her boils down to the fact that the Dumb Blonde is ALL SHE PLAYS. Even freakin' Ashton Kutcher branched out a few times from playing a himbo, you know? So I guess that is what would make me feel better about Faris -- if she ever attempted not even necessarily a serious dramatic role, but simply something where she wasn't supposed to be completely and utterly stupid. If she's already done this and I somehow missed it, let me know, but I've reviewed her filmography and I don't think there's anything I failed to notice.
It just so happens that Anna made a few comments about her "dumb blonde" reputation in the article below. The bottom line: she doesn't care what I think. She's laughing all the way to the bank, as my mom would say.
http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSTRE5386XN20090409
And finally, since I've got nothing to lose, I might as well state for the record that I ALSO enjoyed and was pleasantly surprised by Rudd's "Over Her Dead Body." I would watch that again over The House Bunny any day. (Ducks for cover)
- e
Posted by: Erika Olson | June 11, 2009 at 07:35 PM
" I ALSO enjoyed and was pleasantly surprised by Rudd's "Over Her Dead Body." I would watch that again over The House Bunny any day. "
Erika, we all love you. We CARE about you. We're here for you.
Put down the glue...
Do it for the children...
(And Brokeback Mountain... Faris's serious dramatic role)
Posted by: Locke Peterseim | June 11, 2009 at 10:38 PM
One day, Anna Farris will regret letting herself get typecast so thoroughly.
...or not. Is Eddy Murphy regretful? He didn't seem so on Conan O'Brian the other night.
Posted by: Jason | June 12, 2009 at 09:40 AM
Anna was delightful in House Bunny..it was the production values(photography, editing) that were not top-notch. She has a memorable personna and is capitulizing on her character. Rather than rip her apart, we should be complimentary of her success in a very difficult industry. As a former actor in the 70s and 80s, the chances of getting where she is today are one in 10,000. Give her the right vehicle, director and budget, and she will shine. Good for her!!
Posted by: randall burns | June 12, 2009 at 12:54 PM