Movie Review: “Entourage”

Starring
Adrian Grenier, Kevin Connolly, Jeremy Piven, Jerry Ferrara, Kevin Dillon, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Haley Joel Osment, Billy Bob Thorton
Director
Doug Ellin

It’s been four years since “Entourage” ended its incredible run on HBO, and in that time, there’s been a lot of talk about a potential big screen revival from series creator Doug Ellin, producer Mark Wahlberg and the cast. But now that it’s finally a reality, does anyone still care? That seems to be the biggest question surrounding the film, although if the success of “Sex and the City” (which had a similar hiatus between its series finale and the first movie) is any indication, the studio has absolutely nothing to worry about. And why should it? “Entourage” has a built-in fanbase that’s getting bigger every day thanks to the cultural phenomenon of TV binge-watching, and while you don’t necessarily need to be a fan of the series to enjoy the film, it definitely helps.

For those who’ve never watched a single episode of the show, “Entourage” opens with a Piers Morgan-hosted puff piece on movie star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his friends that serves as a very basic cheat sheet on where the characters are in their lives to get you up to speed. The story itself picks up a few weeks after the series finale, with Vince freshly divorced following his impulsive (nine-day) marriage to Vanity Fair journalist Sophia and ready to get back to work. Recently retired super-agent Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) has also returned to Hollywood after accepting a position as the new studio head at Warner Brothers, and he wants former client Vince to star in his first movie: a modern day, big-budget adaptation of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” The only problem is that Vince will only agree to do it if he can also direct, something he’s never done before.

Fast-forward eight months and the film is almost finished, but Vince needs more money, despite having already gone over budget several times. But before the film’s financier, Texas billionaire Larsen McCredle (Billy Bob Thorton), will release more funds, he sends his son Travis (Haley Joel Osment) out to L.A. to watch an early cut of the film. Ari isn’t concerned because he knows the movie is great, but when Travis tries to meddle with the production for unknown reasons, Ari is pushed to the breaking point as he tries to protect Vince’s vision and his job. Meanwhile, Eric (Kevin Connolly) and Sloan (Emmanuelle Chriqui) hit another snag in their on-again-off-again relationship as the latter prepares to give birth to their child, Turtle (Jerry Ferrara) tries to woo UFC fighter Ronda Rousey, and Drama (Kevin Dillon) has his livelihood threatened just as he’s about to get his big break.

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Bullz-Eye’s 2011 Fall TV Preview: What’s New for CBS

Monday

2 Broke Girls

(8:30 – 9 PM, Sept. 26, with special preview on Sept. 19 at 9:30 PM)

The competition: Dancing with the Stars (ABC), The Sing-Off (NBC), Terra Nova (Fox), Gossip Girl (The CW)

Starring: Kat Dennings, Beth Behrs, Garrett Morris, Matthew Moy, Jonathan Kite, Brooke Lyons

Executive producers: Michael Patrick King and Whitney Cummings

What the network says: “A comedy about two young women waitressing at a greasy spoon diner who strike up an unlikely friendship in the hopes of launching a successful business – if only they can raise the cash. Sassy, streetwise Max Black works two jobs just to get by, one of which is waiting tables during the night shift at the retro-hip Williamsburg Diner. Sophisticated Caroline Channing is an uptown trust fund princess who’s having a run of bad luck that forces her to reluctantly give waitressing a shot. At first, Max sees Caroline as yet another in a long line of inept servers she must cover for, but she’s surprised to find that Caroline has as much substance as she does style. When Caroline discovers Max’s knack for baking amazing cupcakes, she sees a lucrative future for them, but they first need to raise the start-up money. While they save their tips, they’ll stay at the restaurant, working with Oleg, an overly flirtatious Russian cook; Earl, a 75-year-old kool-kat cashier; and Han Lee, the new, eager-to-please owner of the diner. Working together, these two broke girls living in one expensive city might just find the perfect recipe for their big break.”

What we say: What’s this? A new sitcom in CBS’s Monday night lineup that isn’t a Chuck Lorre production? Will wonders never cease! Better yet, it’s a relatively strong one, though like so many other sitcom entries this season, it’s one where the leads are strong but the ensemble surrounding them is hit or miss…and, unfortunately, that includes Garrett Morris, who deserves so much better than hackneyed one-liners. (There’s a Duke University locker room joke, for God’s sake. Uh, zing?) Dennings, however, is the sarcastic version of Zooey Deschanel, which is to say that she’s cute, funny, and she could take you down a peg without even blinking, and Beth Behr is, for lack of a more elaborate phrase, sweet and pretty. The two of them also have instant chemistry together. If a cast as strong as “Mad Love” couldn’t make it more than a season, we probably shouldn’t pin any major hopes on “2 Broke Girls,” but it’s a certainly a show that we wouldn’t mind seeing succeed.

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