Customer Reviews

House Bunny [UMD for PSP]

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Anna Faris is one of the popular comedic actresses with her roles in "Scary Movie" films but also showed us how versatile of an actress that she is through roles in films such as "Lost in Translation" and "Brokeback Mountain".

But this time, Faris has dual roles as executive producer and actress for "THE HOUSE BUNNY", a comedy film written by the creators of "Legally Blonde" and produced by Happy Madison Productions. And with that being said, if you are a fan of Happy Madison style of films such as "50 First Dates", "Deuce Bigalow" or more recently with films such as "Bedtime Stories", you know that you're getting a fun film that will generate a lot of laughs. But also films that are not meant to be taken seriously. Just sit back and enjoy.

"THE HOUSE BUNNY" features Shelley (Anna Faris), a young orphan who becomes a beautiful model for Playboy and lives in the Playboy mansion. Her dream is to become a Playmate and Miss November. But after celebrating an extravagant 27th birthday at the Playboy mansion highlighted by cameos by professional athletes such as Shaquille O'Neal and Matt Leinart, Shelley receives a letter that she must vacate the Playboy mansion.

Shelley becomes homeless and has some rough luck until she overhears a sorority talking about fashion and she follows them to their home. Not knowing what a sorority house is, she meets the house mothers who pretty much tells her to get lost while one feels sorry for her and tells her to visit another sorority, Zeta Alpha Zeta.

The Zeta Alpha Zeta sorority are a few women who are somewhat nerds, outcasts and are in danger of losing their house because they don't have 30 members. Fortunately for them, Shelley takes up a job to become their house mother and using her sexy body brings the attention to the sorority and hopefully help them get the 30 members that they need but also helping the women discover their inner beauty and to hopefully give them the courage to get a makeover and also meet guys.

Anna Faris really makes this film work. Faris really worked out for the role to make Shelley's part work. Having to wear short shorts and showing off her toned abs and body, it's definitely not a part that I would have imagined her playing but she executes her role convincingly.

Shelley is much more ditsier than Witherspoone's "Legally Blonde" character and because she is quite naive and only exposed to what goes on at the Playboy Mansion, she has an interesting way of viewing life and again, Faris does a great bringing life into her character.

Joining Farris are the Zeta Alpha Zeta sorority girls:

Natalie (played by "Superbad" actress Emma Stone), the leader of Zeta Alpha Zeta who is pretty much the brainiac.

Mona (played by the "40-Year Old Virgin" and "Nick and Norah's Infinity Playlist" Kat Denning), the punk girl who is anti-popular and has piercings all over her face.

Harmony (played by "American Idol" finalist Katharine McPhee), the pregnant sorority member.

Joanne (played by "From Within" actress Rumer Willis), the sorority member who wears a body brace.

Lilly (played by Cheetah Girls member Kiely Williams), the sorority member who is afraid to talk to people.

Carrie Mae (played by Deuce Bigalow: The European Gigalow" actress Dana Goodman), as a scary sorority member who walks with a hunchback.

Tanya (played by Kimberly Makkouk), as the very small member of the group.

And also starring Colin Hanks as Oliver, a normal guy who works at a convalescent home. Shelley happens to be attracted to him but her Playboy way of attracting men by flaunting her body, doesn't seem to work on him, thus with the help of the Zeta Alpha Zeta girls, they teach her how to be smart.

The film also features a pretty strong soundtrack as a lot of the songs are well-known such as "When I Grow Up" by the Pussycat Dolls and "Shut Up and Let Me Go" by the Ting Tings.

VIDEO:

The video is featured in 1080p high definition and aspect ratio is 2:40:1. Picture quality was quite vibrant during the outdoor scenes and during dark scenes, I really don't recall seeing much noise during the blacks.

AUDIO:

The film is featured in TrueHD 5.1. Although the film is primarily a dialogue film, where the film really gets pumped up audio-wise is during the moments that feature a lot of music.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The Blu-ray edition of "The House Bunny" definitely has a good number of featurettes included.

* House Bunny Style: Make-up/hair/wardrobe documentary on making over the Zeta girls into "Bunnies"
* The Girls of Zeta: A look into the actresses who make up the sorority girls of Zeta and how they bonded on-set
* Calendar Girls: A fun look into the photo shoot for the calendar
* Anna Faris: House Mom: A look at Anna Faris and her character of "Shelley", her infectious smile, fun personality and interactions with others
* Colin Hanks: Mr. Nice Guy
* From Song to Set: Katherine McPhee: A look at the on-set experiences of first-time actress Katharine McPhee
* From Tour Bus to Trailer: Tyson Ritter: A look at the on-set experiences of first-time actor Tyson Ritter
* Look Who Dropped By: Checkout the stars who showed up on-set!
* The Girls Upstairs: Behind the scenes with the real "Girls Next Door"
* Zetas Transformed
* Getting Ready for a Party
* House Bunny Memories
* I Know What Boys Like Music Video by Katharine McPhee
* INTRODUCTION TO "I KNOW WHAT BOYS LIKE"
* Deleted Scenes

For me, the featurette with Anna Faris was interesting to watch. Especially to get her take on having to do the dual roles as an executive producer and being the lead actress. Also, learning how she had to really workout for the role and her thoughts of wearing the skimpy outfits. Really good insight into the actual film.

Also, it was great to see the camaraderie of the ladies in the film and how much fun they had shooting the film. There literally are a good number of featurettes that last around five minutes or more on this Blu-ray.

In "Looked Who Dropped By", you get to see the number of talent who had cameos in the film from Shaq, Matt Leinart, former ESPN analyst Sean Sallisbury, sportscaster Dan Patrick and many more. "The Girls Upstairs" features Hugh Heffner and the three Playmates from "Girls Next Door" on set.

As for the deleted scenes, no commentary but there were quite a number of deleted scenes which I agree with the director for cutting out those scenes.

I wish there was a commentary segment featuring Faris but unfortunately there wasn't one. But overall, you do get a good number of special features on the Blu-ray disc and it is BD-Live enabled.

Typically, when I watch a "Happy Madison" produced film, I expect to watch a comedy and just sit back and see how crazy and at times, how moronic some films can be. But with "THE HOUSE BUNNY", I have to admit that I was amazed to see Anna Faris in this role and how she brought this character to life.

Personally, I don't think I can picture any actress making this role happen and so I was very pleased with her performance. As for the overall film, I would call it "Legally Blonde" meets "The Revenge of the Nerds" and to see how the women literally transform themselves to the women no one wants to be around, to the women than the frat boys want to party with.

But with that being said, that scenario can be seen quite negatively to people who do not believe a woman should have to go through a makeover, wear slinky outfits to make things happen for them in college.

For me, many Happy Gilmore produced films are never meant to be taken seriously and for those who approach these comedy films with a lot of seriousness, are probably going to get disappointed. You need to really sit back and just enjoy how far the characters can make you laugh or make you feel embarrassed. It's all fun!

Again, Anna Faris does a great job on this film and really demonstrating her versatility as an actress. Without her, I really don't think this film could have worked. She brought life into the character of Shelley and watching the featurette, she definitely made it fun for the other actresses and they fed off that enthusiasm, The chemistry with Faris and the other actresses worked quite well.

Overall, "THE HOUSE BUNNY" is a fun and enjoyable comedy that is sure to make you laugh and also looks great on Blu-ray.

The House Bunny is a fun show. Ann Faris is a doll. The video quality is excellent. I think I bought it used so I didn't spend a lot of money on the video. I hope to see her in more productions in the future. It is probably not that easy to act like you are the stereotypical dumb blonde and pull it off like she did.

I bought this film for my wife, as it seemed to position itself as a chick flick (I assumed there would be enough content to keep my interest as we watched it). As it was, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is smart, funny, and a little deeper than its title might suggest. The blu-ray image was superb - as good as any I have seen. The premise of the film revolves around a Playboy bunny leaving the mansion and becoming the House Mother to a small group of apparently helpless and unpopular girls. If they don't get more pledges to their house soon, then their house is history. Enter the House Bunny, who gives them a makeover. So far, so predictable. However, this is where the film turns into something more interesting, as the house girls turn increasingly bitchy and our heroine is summoned back to the mansion to fulfil her dream of being a Playmate. Will she leave her house to follow her own dreams and, if she does, will they get the pledges they need? Watch it and find out. Oh, and my wife would never forgive me if I didn't mention the love story that is also integral to the film - the will she or won't she routine. The film left me with the intended feel good factor and a deeper appreciation of all things Playboy - Heff is a lucky guy - but this is a chick flick so I probably can't say that.

Anna Faris, who proved her incredible comedy talents as the star of the "Scary Movie" franchise, once again shines in the affable teen comedy, THE HOUSE BUNNY.

When sweet Playboy model Shelley Darlingson (Anna Faris) is booted out of the Mansion for committing the cardinal sin of turning twenty-seven ("that's 59 in Bunny Years!"), she must find a way to reinvent her life. But what's a girl to do when she only has a killer rack and a sunny personality? Of course...become the house mother to a struggling college sorority of misfit teen girls whose social skills could do with a bedazzling makeover!

It doesn't offer anything new to the teen comedy genre, but THE HOUSE BUNNY is likeable enough to please those who approach it in the right spirit. Anna Faris is charming and delightful as Shelley, providing a sweet performance undeserving of the limited material. Colin Hanks, Beverly d'Angelo, Christopher McDonald and the girls of Alpha Zeta (in particular Emma Stone, Kat Dennings, Rumer Willis and Kiely Williams) are all solid in their support. Hugh Hefner's cameo with the real Playboy gals adds an extra touch of authenticity to Shelley's life at the Mansion.

The Blu-ray release includes behind-the-scenes featurettes, deleted scenes, Katharine McPhee's "I Know What Boys Like" music video; and trailers.

THE HOUSE BUNNY

** ½ Out of 5

Release Date- August 22nd, 2008

Running Time- 97-Minutes

Rating- PG-13

Screenplay- Karen McCullah Lutz & Kirsten Smith

Director- Fred Wolf

Starring- Anna Faris, Colin Hanks, Emma Stone, Kat Dennings, Rumer Willis, Katharine McPhee with Christopher McDonald and Beverly D'Angelo

Going into The House Bunny I really wasn't expecting much of anything and I pretty much got just that; thankfully I didn't buy the movie, but borrowed it from my cousin. The House Bunny is a movie we've seen done millions of times. We have a group of social misfits who are the outcasts and meet someone who helps them open up and break out of their shells. Despite the clichéd nature of the movie it doesn't hurt it though. Even with clichés you can still make it work if done right and The House Bunny is by the books and while it wasn't very good it was watchable I suppose as long as you keep your expectations low.

The screenplay by Karen McCullah Lutz & Kirsten Smith is your typical Hollywood script with very little in originality and it doesn't have enough going for it to make up for that. The characters are stale and never really interesting or too interesting. The comedy mostly falls flat with every so often a decent laugh and most of the laughs are due to how lame a lot of the jokes are.

Director Fred Wolf never manages to bring much to the table; the set up on the comedy is weak and there the pacing at times can lag. In fairness the script was quite weak and therefore not all the blame can be put on Fred Wolf, but the little he's given to work with he never makes much out of it. As I stated the concept for The House Bunny is very clichéd and Fred Wolf delivers your standard social misfit comedy and never attempts to mix things up.

About the only positive thing I can really say is the performances weren't bad. Anna Faris plays the slightly offbeat and a bit of an airhead character she's known for and I suppose if you like Anna Faris you'll probably enjoy the movie on some level. I think she's a decent actress and all, but I'm not really into her movies outside of the cult classic May. But overall Faris does well and Emma Stone and Kat Dennings manage to make a little more of their characters than what they were given, but the 2nd half of the movie Dennings barley does anything. Colin Hanks also does well in a wasted role. The real bright spots in the cast were Christopher McDonald who's an excellent character actor and while a lot of people may not know his name he's an actor that you will recognize right away and Beverly D'Angelo as the snooty House Mother is solid in an underwritten role. The man himself Hugh Hefner appears in a small role as does Tyson Ritter lead singer of the All-American Rejects

Overall The House Bunny is an average at best movie; while there's no real stand out scenes it's watchable, but very forgettable. This might play well with its target audience, but I'd advise the rest to skip and just wait for it to air on cable. The House Bunny I suppose works well on a rainy day with nothing better to do, but while watchable it's very forgettable.

Thge Blu-ray looks quite sharp with the picture quality and the sound is also solid. I didn't get a chance to go through much of the features since I didn't like the movie enough to check them out, but there are some behind the scenes features and a music video by Katharine McPhee

saw it when it was in Theaters,amazon had a good sale so i picked it up. has some really funny parts

3 of 5 stars for the comedy movie House Bunny. A cute story about a girl living at the Playboy Mansion in LA hoping for her big break in the magazine. Another girl tricks her into leaving the Mansion by sending a forged letter from Hef. Ultimately she finds her way to a college and a sorority of the down-and-out girls on campus. With alot of remakes, our Bunny turns the sorority into the cool-place-to-be.Of course a rival sorority attempts to compete. Eventually, Hef figures out what happened and invites her to return. Of course, her heart is now with the sorority.

So, why three stars for this comedy. Two stars for the movie and one extra star for the short, sexy outfits and hot girls. Oh, should mention that American Idol near-winner Katharine McPhee has a part in the movie as a very pregnant college girl. OK, it is easy on the brain, great for the eyes and is generally entertaining. Yes, watch it.

Basically, this is a barely-updated re-telling of 'Revenge of the Nerds'. And if you liked that one, then you'll probably enjoy this movie as well. Same recycled characters as 20 years ago. The "loser" sorority sisters who are actually hotties-in-waiting? Check! The preppy/nasty/stuck-up competing sorority? Check! The clueless college administrators? Check!

Despite all this, I actually found myself very entertained. It had the same innocence and good nature as its predecessor. And a good part of the credit goes to Anna Farris as the homeless Playboy Bunny (kicked out of the Mansion for being too old at 27). She just throws herself so fully into the role, with no self-conciousness at all, that I totally bought into it. She was just too fresh and earnest to hate. And let's face it, it doesn't hurt that she looks so good in the little schoolgirl outfit.

I'm not so sure I need to own this on Blu-Ray or anything, it's probably not the kind of comedy you'd watch over and over again. But if you're looking for something that you can just sit back and relax with for 100 minutes, this would do just fine.

Watched on 42" Plasma, with BD35 Player. The film has a crisp transfer, and is definitely a worthwhile BD purchase, if you like the movie.

I rented it, and although it is not the typical movie I like, it did make me laugh and the actresses in it, had some great comedic timing. The story imparts all kinds of "messages", and is a fun time, with goofy dialogue. It has a cool soundtrack,with contemporary music, and is a fun "chick" flick. Watch it for what it is, and you'll have a good time!

If you've seen the previews, you've seen the best parts of the movie. Typical dumb blonde movie; good for a few laughs