( 24 reviews )
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Posted: Jun 17 2009
We'd never heard of this movie upon seeing it at the library yesterday and I'm always up for a Spacey film, especially a comedy. His cynicism is so wonderfully dry and usually ignites its material, and The Ref is no exception. Spacey is in fact the highlight of this occasionally very funny and always very nasty little Xmas flick. He plays his character close to the chest at most points, avoiding the near-slapstick of some other actors here. Leary is better than usual, toning down his inherent meanness and doing his role justice in the meantime (but I will never love this guy, both for his complete ripoffs of so much of Bill Hicks' material and for his unbelievably mean comments at the end of his Comedy Central roast). The real highlight here is the script, in any case, and the cast can barely keep up with its endlessly scathing lines. The counseling scene at the start is truly excellent; sounds like the man and woman who wrote this have logged some hours in that room. The small town cop scenes also smell of writers' revenge, especially the exceptionally nasty riposte from the police chief at the end. Ouch. But the writing is invariably tight and everything moves along quickly and without too many dead moments. All in all, well worth watching, but not with the family and not with someone you're having relationship issues with; it might all hit a little too close to home. We laughed our butts off, though, so if your partner has a dark and somewhat twisted sense of humor this should fit the bill.
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Posted: May 31 2009
This is one of the best Christmas movies ever made -- as long as you like your holiday with a little (check that, a lot) of profanity. Denis Leary is hysterical as the robber-in-over-his-head, and Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis are a riot as the couple who grate on your last nerve (as well as your funny bone). Instantly quotable in probably the most offensive way the holiday season can offer, it's a classic that you must own and watch every year.
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Posted: Apr 7 2009
Great cast with chemistry that just won't quit! The story line gets a little sappy, but Leary's performance keeps it edgy.
