Okay, so maybe it’s not exactly the perfect transition into my mother’s day weekend post I was hoping for, but what better actor to ring in the holiday with than Danny McBride? After Dazzling audiences with his stunning performance of Rico in Hot Rod, McBride stepped away from his independent roots (All the Real Girls; The Foot Fist Way) into more serious roles, working with such Hollywood royalty such as George Clooney and Julie Andrews. Now at the top of his game, you can expect to see McBride in future classics Despicable Me, Your Highness, and more. Looking to fill in the gaps in your McBridefest 2010? Well, grab your mother and get on down to Moviecycle to find one of these fine cinematic McBride rides! And hey, if it’s sold out, ask us about special ordering or getting on the reserve list!

1. Hot Rod. Truly a cinematic masterpiece. By far the best comedy of 2007. McBride shines in this break-out role of Rico, the mechanic to stunt-superstar-wannabe Rod (Andy Samberg). Will Rico help Rod achieve his dreams? “I’m freakin pumped! I’ve been drinking green tea all goddamn day!”, Rico shouts excitedly.

2. Pineapple Express. Another stunning performance, this time with McBride tackling the diverse role of Red. Will Red be a saving grace to on-the-run innocents Dale and Saul (Seth Rogen and James Franco)? Or is Red pumping some dangerous iron up his sleeves (not a drug reference)? “I’m like the nerd at the sleepover who fell asleep at nine,” Red blushes.

3. Tropic Thunder. Cast along comedy heavyweights Jack Black, Ben Stiller, and even Robert DJ, McBride shames his A-list counterparts with his portrayal of Cody, the special effects specialist for the fictional film the characters are shooting on location in Vietnam. “Damian, what’s the dealie dude? Are we gonna blow up this tree line or what?”, Cody inquires.

4. The Foot Fist Way. Back from McBride’s independent days, The Foot Fist Way is both a gripping and harrowing look into the industry of childrens’ karate instruction. McBride is explosive in his role as Fred Simmons, whose goal is to be the best karate teacher this side of America. “Dentistry? I can’t even believe that’s something that’s real,” Simmons defends.

5. Eastbound & Down. McBride collaborates again with frequent collaborator Jody Hill (The Foot Fist Way, Observe and Report) in this gripping look into fictional baseball star (and ex-Seattle Mariner) Kenny Powers, whose efforts to raise his career from the dead are both fascinating and lovely. Airing on HBO, the show’s first season can be found on DVD for the rest of us. “I honestly just feel that America is the best country and the other countries aren’t as good. That used to be called patriotism,” Kenny swoons.

Anyways…one of the best, and one that holds up really well to this day is HBO’s Mr. Show with Bob & David.  This mid-90’s late-night Cable laugh-fest was the brainchild of Bob Odenkirk & David Cross (Arrested Development) & ran for four seasons before being canceled in 1998.

Besides Bob & Dave, you get a soon-to-be-star-studded cast, including Tom Kenny (The voice of Sponge-bob), Jay Johnston & Brian Posehn (The Sarah Silverman show…she shows up too!),  Mary Lynn Rajskub (24) and appearances from folks like Ben Stiller & Jack Black.

The show follows a Monty-Pythonesque sequence, in that all the sketches flow together or are linked somehow.   It’s also pretty pop-culture heavy, so if you can’t “Ride The Reference Train” you might want to skip it.   Religion, Kid’s Shows, Brit-pop, Sid & Marty Kroftt,  Phone Sex, 80’s Films, Brian Wilson….yeah.  It’s good stuff.

The cast made a movie…”Run, Ronnie, Run” Which they hated and disowned. But it’s not that bad. Trust Me.

We have the second two seasons of “Mr. Show” in stock.  I’d rush in and get them, as they won’t last.

Peace…I’m out.

Geoffrey.

2. It’s Pat. Okay, I’m starting to realize why I didn’t come up with the Guilty Pleasures category. I mean no disrespect to Jessica, but I simply can’t feel guilty about these movies. So instead of racking my brain for something I may not even successfully accomplish, I’m going to talk about movies that the general population may dislike, or even hate, but that I found very enjoyable. So here we go, It’s Pat. This movie is the bee’s knees. SNL alum Julia Sweeney brings her most successful SNL character (which still wasn’t very successful) to the big screen in this gender-bender of a comedy about the androgynous Pat Riley (as I quote the theme song, “A lot of people say, ‘what’s that?’ It’s Pat!). A lot of people also think this movie is stupid, but I thoroughly enjoyed the silly humor and found it clever all the ways they had of disguising Pat’s real gender. Even Pat’s love interest Chris, played marvelously by Kid’s in the Hall’s Dave Foley, and a beautiful interaction with weirdo com-rock band Ween. Upon reflection, that last sentence didn’t make sense, but I think it’s fitting with the oddity that is this movie. To be honest, I have no idea why it’s #92 on the list of IMDb’s Bottom 100 movies. I thought it was a great comedy.

3. Heavy Weights. Another great flick that I have no shame in admitting I own. As much as I’d like to write about how marvelous this movie is, no film review could be as elegant as this one I’ve found on IMDb by user niftyjim:

An unparalleled cinematic masterpiece, 13 April 2006

Continuing in the tradition of classic films such as ‘The Godfather’ and ‘Apocalypse Now’, director Steven Brill has added his name to the short list of truly great directors with his sweeping masterpiece ‘Heavy Weights’. In arguably his finest performance to date, Aaron Schwartz plays Jerry Garner, a young man who is forced to attend a summer camp against his will. Upon arriving at the camp, Jerry is befriended by Roy (Kenan Thompson) and Josh (Shaun Weiss). Together they challenge the the tyrannic rule of manic camp counselor Tony Perkis (Ben Stiller) while overcoming their own personal insecurities to have the best summer of their lives. Thompson and Weiss both deliver Oscar-worthy performances, and Ben Stiller is at his best as the fitness-crazed camp counselor who must whip the campers into shape. Brill is truly at his best here, weaving an intricate tale full of mystery, suspense and deception, while capturing the essence of the human spirit and the hope and perseverance of children. This is a must have for any true fan of film.

4. Flyin’ Ryan. I don’t even know what to say about this movie. Did I enjoy it? Possibly. Was it quality? Absolutely not. Is it about a boy who buys Healys and discovers they allow him to fly? Certainly. Does it look like it was shot on a hand-held camera by the actor’s parents? Of course. Do we have it at MovieCycle so you can check it out to see how ridiculous it is? Correct. Will you purchase it, only to return it in a day or two for the rental return store credit less a dollar per day? Probably.

#5. The Brothers Solomon. This movie apparently didn’t hit it off too well with critics or audiences, but how am I to avoid a movie directed by Bob Odenkirk of the legendary Mr. Show? I can see why people wouldn’t want to check this movie out. It does appear to be a weird one, especially at face value, but this movie has a lot of funny people in it. Will Forte, the SNL cast member soon to take off in Hollywood (or fail horribly) with this summer’s upcoming MacGruber movie, and Will Arnett, who everyone knows as Gob from Arrested Development, play socially awkward brothers who try to produce a grandchild for their dying father. Also noteworthy is Chi McBride (you may know him as Detective Emerson Cod from Pushing Daisies), who possibly steals this movie in the role of James. What can I say? I really enjoyed the film, but keep in mind I also really enjoyed It’s Pat. I would at least check it out if you like silly humor though.