David Dobkin’s The Change-Up arrived earlier this year following a marketing campaign pitched at the level of an out-of-control air siren, made a couple of bucks at the box office, and was then promptly forgotten about until now, when the film hit DVD and Blu-ray.  Admit it:  you didn’t even remember this film came out this year until you saw the title of this review.  You probably didn’t bother seeing it in theaters, but if you did, you’ve blocked it from your memory.  Now that it’s available on home video, you’ve got the option of either A) reliving the magic, or B) seeing Dobkin’s film for the very first time.  Should you?  Find out after the jump, folks.

Looks like summer 2011 had one more blockbuster left after all.  Cowboys and Aliens may have been a late-July disappointment but, so far, Fox’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes is performing more like a June release than your typical August afterthought.  Surpassing all early projections, the sci-fi vehicle took in an estimated $54 million from 3,648 locations for an easy number one at the US box office.

This week’s “Top 5″ is a special one for me. Before letting your imagination run away from you, I’ll just say that it’s not for any nostalgic reasons that connect back to the content at hand but rather because I’m writing it while literally in the midst of moving. For those who haven’t experienced this joyous task first-hand, this means that I’m currently a sweaty, disheveled, unorganized mess who can’t for the life of me figure out when/how/why I accumulated so much junk. For the record, Mom, I’m not referring to my posters. They’re awesome. Period. End of story.

All venting aside, this week’s installment features the first official look at Henry Cavill in director Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, a video interview with director Len Wiseman where he discusses his Total Recall remake and the return of everyone’s favorite three-breasted woman, the first image of Anne Hathaway in The Dark Knight Rises along with a cornucopia of set photos from the film, an exclusive interview with Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds for The Change-Up, and a Star Trek 2 update from J.J. Abrams. You can find brief recaps and links to all of the above after the jump.

Looks like the marketing got it right: this weekend the apes will rise.  Fox’s modern entry in the classic Planet of the Apes franchise – Rise of the Planet of the Apes – opened on Friday with $19.75 million from 3,648 locations.  That puts the prequel /remake /reboot on track for a three day estimate of between $45 and $50 million.  Not only is that significantly above early projections for the film, but it is also well over what last weekend’s higher-budgeted Cowboys and Aliens pulled in for its (just barely) number one debut over The Smurfs.  After missing out on that top spot, the family film went on to beat the smurf out of Cowboys and Aliens all week long; including Friday where The Smurfs placed second.  Though statistically tied for third place, the weekend’s second new release is a big disappointment no matter how you slice it.  The R-rated comedy The Change-Up opened with an estimated $4.7 million from 2,913 locations and is not expected to make even the modest mid-teens that Universal projected.  Details and analysis tomorrow.

When I first heard that Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds were going to star in a body switching comedy, my first thought was, “Hasn’t this concept been beaten to death?”  But, when I found out the guys who wrote The Hangover (Jon Lucas and Scott Moore) were writing the script and the director of Wedding Crashers (David Dobkin) was helming the project, I thought The Change-Up had the chance to be very funny.  And it is.  It’s actually the hardest I’ve laughed in a theater in a long time and I absolutely recommend checking it out this weekend.

Anyhow, I recently got to talk with David Dobkin on the phone.  We talked about how the project came together, how hard it was to get made, casting, his thoughts on extended editions and director’s cuts, and deleted scenes.  In addition, we talked about how he’s producing Jack the Giant Killer and R.I.P.D., his King Arthur movie, the Vacation reboot, and a lot more.  Hit the jump to either read or listen to the interview.

The body-switching comedy is a silly concept which is why it’s been resigned to family films.  Two people who don’t understand each other’s lives switch bodies through magical means and are given new appreciation for what the other does.  The Change-Up turns that concept on its head by re-setting it into a raunchy, gross-out R-rated film and making the characters look inward at to what they’re missing in their own lives rather than appreciating the person whose form they’ve taken.  The result is a film that’s painfully funny, quickly forgettable, and a little bit mean.

When I first heard that Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds were going to star in a body switching comedy, my first thought was, “Hasn’t this concept been beaten to death?”.  But, when I found out the guys who wrote The Hangover (Jon Lucas and Scott Moore) were writing the script and the director of Wedding Crashers (David Dobkin) was helming the project, I thought The Change-Up had the chance to be very funny.  And it is.  It’s actually the hardest I’ve laughed in a theater in a long time and I absolutely recommend checking out the movie this weekend.

Anyhow, I recently got to sit down with Bateman and Reynolds for an exclusive interview.  They talked about making the movie, the babies (you’ll understand after you see the movie), whether or not they were nervous to sign onto the project, the line between realism and “Hollywoodising” a scene, and a lot more.  Reynolds also gave me an update on R.I.P.D.. Hit the jump for more.

The body-switching comedy The Change-Up opens this weekend and stars Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds have taken it upon themselves to explain why you should go see it. The video is really funny, and features Bateman and Reynolds playing off of each other perfectly. Plus, there’s Green Lantern and grandma jokes, which is really all you can ask for.

Hit the jump to watch the video. The movie stars Bateman, Reynolds, Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde and Alan Arkin. The Change-Up hits theaters August 5^th.

With director David Dobkin’s (Wedding Crashers) The Change-Up opening next weekend, we’ve been provided with six clips from the very funny comedy.  Like Matt said, “The film is a body-switching comedy like Freaky Friday except instead of kooky hijinks that bring a mother and daughter closer together, it’s a raunchy, foul-mouthed set of hijinks that centers on two estranged friends played by Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman.  Bateman is the uptight family man while Reynolds’ character is a man-child who dreams of making it big as a Hollywood actor even though he lives in Atlanta. ”

I saw it before doing interviews and thought it was the funniest film I’d seen since Bridesmaids.  Really. I laughed my ass off and definitely recommend catching it next weekend.   Hit the jump for the clips and look for my interviews with Bateman/Reynolds and director David Dobkin’s next week.

I know the premise of The Change-Up is a little corny but so are all body-switching comedies.  What sets this comedy apart isn’t even its R-rating but simply because you have two great leads in Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman.  A new trailer has gone online and it has some raunchy humor but the best jokes are simply from Bateman and Reynolds playing off each other and how they react to their outlandish circumstances.  I really dug what I saw when I went to the set and I’ve heard that the finished film is painfully funny.

Hit the jump to check out the new red-band trailer.  The film also stars Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde, and Alan Arkin.  The Change-Up opens August 5th.

With director David Dobkin’s The Change-Up opening in a few weeks, I was able to get on the phone with him yesterday to talk about the movie.  While I’m embargoed from writing a review…I will say that The Change-Up is extremely funny and the last time I laughed that hard in a theater was Bridesmaids.  Definitely recommended.

Anyway, towards the end of the interview, Dobkin gave me some updates on his King Arthur movie and also what’s up with the Vacation reboot/sequel which he’s producing.  While I knew his King Arthur movie was a priority at Warner Bros., I had no idea they were already casting and they’re planning on filming this January in London.  Much more after the jump.

In case you missed last week’s inaugural “Top 5″ installment, fear not. You need only know that we’re introducing this new feature with the hopes of giving readers a concise glance at some of the site’s best content from the preceding week. This week, we’re bringing you a look at the Wonder Woman television pilot that NBC said “thanks, but no thanks” to, our visit to the set of the Jason Bateman and Ryan Reynolds comedy The Change-Up, the first trailer and poster for David Fincher’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo adaptation, Matt’s X-Men: First Class review, and Steve’s video interview with legendary director Richard Donner (Superman, The Goonies).

Hit the jump to find a brief recap and link for each.

With the smashing success of The Hangover, screenwriters Jon Lucas and Scott Moore have become a couple of Hollywood’s go-to guys for R-rated comedy.  The Change-Up will be their first R-rated follow-up to The Hangover, and expectations are high, but it looks like the duo have delivered yet again.  This time they’ve spun the family-friendly concept of a body-switching comedy into a R-rated comedy and they could very well have another hit on their hands.

On our visit to the set, we spoke with Lucas (unfortunately, Moore was unable to be there that day) about his R-rated take on traditionally PG material, the process of developing the script, what the cast brings to the table, and more.  Hit the jump to check out the interview.  The Change-Up opens August 5th.

While The Hangover receives a lot of credit for creating the recent R-rated comedy boom, the short-term memory of audiences has forgotten that back in 2005, director David Dobkin was behind the biggest R-rated comedy of all-time with Wedding Crashers.  The film grossed over $200 million domestic off a $40 million budget, and raked up a 75% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.  But even if you set those other factors aside, you would still have a hilarious movie that stands on its own as Dobkin skillfully wove together raunchy comedy, dark humor, and a surprising amount of heart.  After taking a detour with the PG Fred Claus, Dobkin has returned to R-rated comedy and while eclipsing Wedding Crashers is a high bar, he may have cleared it with his new film The Change-Up.  The film stars Jason Batetman and Ryan Reynolds as two old friends who piss in a fountain and end up switching bodies.  Freaky Friday this is not.

My fellow movie bloggers and I spoke with Dobkin on the set of the film and talked about his return to R-rated comedy, borrowing the visual language of the traditionally family-film oriented “body-switching comedy”, what appealed to him about the story, and much more.  Hit the jump to check out the interview.  The Change-Up opens August 5th.

This year, we’re getting two Jason Bateman movies and two Ryan Reynolds movies, and that is reason to celebrate.  Both actors have superb comic timing, and can carry a movie on their own.  The thought of them playing off each other is exciting, but their chemistry in The Change-Up becomes even more of a thrill when you realize that they’ll be playing against type.  While the beginning of the movie might have shades of Michael Bluth and Van Wilder sharing the screen (as if anyone would hate that), their characters Dave and Mitch switch bodies after peeing in a fountain and suddenly Bateman gets to go broad and Reynolds does more of a sardonic tone.  This may throw some audiences for a loop but fans of Reynolds and Bateman already know that both actors can excel at these kind of roles and the real hook is watching them share the screen.

On my visit to the set of The Change-Up, I spoke with the actors about filming in Atlanta, how they’re playing their roles, alternate takes, the hilarity of child endangerment, and much more.  Read this interview and you’ll instantly get a sense of how well Bateman and Reynolds play off each other.  The Change-Up opens August 5th.