La coniglietta di casa

Anna Faris makes this paper thin attempt at comedy overwhelmingly worthwhile. She is an original that reminded me of some other glories, from Carole Lombard to Goldie Hawn. Her innocence is so believable that we go with her wherever she decides to go. I wish the producers and responsible for this movie getting made had gone all the way and provided this extraordinary comic talent with a more substantial script and direction giving her the opportunity to shine even more than she shines here and here shine she does, big time. Just look at her listening, trying to make sense of what's happening around her. Deeply moving, very funny, kind of unique. I hope she soon finds her Garson Kanin and her George Cukor. I have the feeling we ain't seen nothing yet

Shelley (Anna Faris) was abandoned as a baby on someone's doorstep long ago. As she relates, no one was interested in getting her back although they did request that the basket be returned! Shuttled from one orphanage to another, Shelley eventually found a "family" when her womanish figure came into fruition. That's right, Shelley resided in the Playboy mansion and found happiness with Hef and the other gal pal housemates. However, one day Shelley receives word that Hef has given her two hours to move out of the mansion. A fellow worker at the residence suggests that, perhaps, she is getting too old to be a bunny. After all, didn't she just turn 27? And, isn't that like 59 in "bunny years"? So, off Shelley goes, hurt and scared. After a day on her own, she stumbles onto a nearby college campus and learns that she could possibly find a job, a home, and a salary by becoming a sorority "mother" to a group of misfit sisters. These gals, the Zetas, have seen their numbers shrink, mostly because they are all shy and a bit unconventional (among them, Katharine McPhee and Rumer Willis). The college has already told them that if they don't find new members, the Zeta house will be shut down. It is going to be Shelley's biggest challenge to turn the sorority into an attractive place for the new students. Can she do it? Perhaps, Shelly could ask for the help and advice of a nursing home director, Oliver (Colin Hanks), a nice man she met in a park? After a brief, blase beginning, this film packs a good punch of light comedy and romance. Part of the credit should go to the very nice cast. Faris is wonderful in her role as the dimwitted bunny who has more than enough smarts to learn a few new tricks and Hanks, in a smaller role, is quite nice as the love interest. The Zeta girls themselves, especially Rumer Willis and Emma Stone, are a delightful bunch of offbeat creatures that learn some lessons themselves. The rest of the cast, including Christopher McDonald and Beverly D'Angelo, is good, also. The costumes, naturally, are very fine, as this is a gal-dominated movie and clothes are especially important. But, the sunny sets, cinematography, screenplay, and direction are up to snuff as well. No, it's not Willie Shakespeare but the flick is definitely a good diversion from the everyday blues. It's a likely bet that you will find this "Bunny" to be quite funny indeed.

"The House Bunny" has a funny concept and what looks like a "Legally Blonde" form of execution. If Anna Faris, most commonly known as the one portraying/making fun of the Neve Campbell "Scream" role in the "Scary Movies" was ever going to become the next big female comedienne the time would be now. She showed she was willing to make fun of herself in those movies but I still wonder if she can play a sincere, actual human being rather than a character meant to be the punch line most of the time. "Bunny" was written by "Blonde" screenwriters Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith so that could be good news but a lot of the weight of this movie is going to rest on the shoulders of it star. Reese Witherspoon made that movie what it was and the big question here is, can Faris do the same?

She plays Shelley, a ditzy playboy bunny with big dreams of becoming the next centerfold who instead is tossed out on her ass by Hugh after her 27th birthday. Shelley went from the orphanage to the mansion so she never quite got the fill gist of the outside world. Now homeless and with very few survival skills, she has no idea what to do next. Just through happenstance, she encounters something that looks like a mini Playboy mansion but is in fact the best college sorority on campus. They decline her for house mother but she finds a home with the Zeta sorority, a group of misfit girls, led by Natalie (Emma Stone), who seriously need to improve their image and attract new members in order to stop the college from closing their house. Enter Shelley to give the girls make-overs.

This movie made me laugh out loud twice. One involved the manhole cover joke in the trailer, and the other was a really good jab at Bob Saget. The rest of the movie is likable and has a nice message but really can't seem to wring that many laughs out of a good premise. It's a parody against the bimbo ideology, first having Shelley turn the girls into mindless, skimpy-looking prostitutes only to realize later that you also have to have substance too. Sometimes it gets a few chuckles and other times it comes off looking embarrassingly sitcom-ish, like when Shelley tries to look brainy to impress a guy by wearing very thick glasses that make her dizzy, but overall the script isn't as smart or funny as "Legally Blonde" and that hurts its chances. The movie also treats some of the secondary characters in really bad taste, like a girl whose such a misfit she actually talks like Frankenstein and walks like Igor, and I was confused by some others, like a girl who supposedly is bad with boys and yet is pregnant.

I was also confused by the mental abilities of the main character. At times she seems dumber than dirt and at other times she seems almost profound. That she works regardless of this has less to do with the script and more to do with Anna Faris. I don't think this will be the star-making role I thought it would be for her but she gives Shelley a very sweet, genial nature and she is willing to throw herself into silly situations with an innocent and goofy charm. Emma Stone is also pretty funny in this movie, dialing up the dorky meter to about an 8. I feel bad for Colin Hanks though. This kid just doesn't seem to be getting many chances to shine, and here he's wasted as the romantic lead in a movie that's pretty low on the romance.

"The House Bunny" begins, middles, and ends like most college movies do, just unfortunately its not funny or clever enough to distract from the generic plotting. Most of the secondary characters are also wasted as well but maybe, it will put Anna Faris on some people's radars. She is a very funny comic actress and with the right script, its possible she could be the next big thing.

It's impressive how talented Anna Faris is, she manages to turn a tremendously idiotic movie like this one into something watchable. And this is very clear when she shares the screen with another great actress, who is Emma Stone in a role that is also comedic, and yet she steals the show.

The film itself is a feel good movie, it has some aspects that I thought were really cool, such as the appreciation of friendship and taking away taboo and prejudice with sex, in addition to having some funny moments, always in Anna's hands. On the other hand, the rest is silly beyond measure, even having grotesque and embarrassing moments, like some starring the character Carrie Mae, extremely forced. Not to mention Anna's final speech, which is ridiculously corny and unnecessary.

I rate it 5 out of 10 for Anna's talent and the heart warming spirit.

Let me just say that I'm 19, a guy, and straight, and DAMN was I having a great time watching The House Bunny. To sum it up, THB is basically an Adam Sandler movie for girls, with Anna Faris breathing life into an otherwise flat movie with her uncanny comic ability and unbeatable charm. In short, she makes the movie watchable, and in some moments, likable and entertaining.

I see this film as one that most will easily dismiss without a second look, and I really discourage you from doing that. Anna Faris alone deserves your attention in this movie, as she is brilliant. I even heard a few people in my theater say that she could get a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy. I honestly wouldn't be surprised. She's lovable, adorable, intelligently stupid, and of course, roll on the floor hilarious. She's the reason the Scary Movie series is so much 'better' than the other movies in that series (Date, Superhero, Epic Movies), and her charm and charisma carries over here.

In addition to Faris, the strength of the film is the supporting cast (except Hugh Hefner, who gets a pass for simply being Hugh Hefner). The funny thing is, most of the performers aren't even actors. I'm not going to lie and say Rumer Willis is brilliant, because she's not, but she's funny and is good looking enough to surprise us. Katharine McPhee doesn't get enough screen time, but she does do a great job with what she's given. The last of the 'non-actors' is the frontman for The All American Rejects, Tyson Ritter, who is tolerable in a bit part.

Now, unsurprisingly, the best supporters are Kat Dennings and the WONDERFUL Emma Stone (Jules from Superbad). Stone is so likable and adorable that she's the best character in the movie after Faris. Colin Hanks is...well, I for one was surprised that he did this movie, but he was an asset nonetheless.

I'll go ahead and get my complaints out now. First and foremost, whoever edited this movie is absolutely terrible. Whether it be changing hairstyles, continuity errors, or bad cuts, the editing is noticeably bad, especially towards the end. I also didn't like the direction the script took in the end, as it turned the film into a parody of itself (which was weird considering the entire film was a parody of stupid girls and stupid men), and displayed several out of character moments. The jokes were a tad lame and predictable outside of Faris's character (there was NOTHING bad about her), but it was okay. There were some smart jokes that actually took some time to get.

The final plus for this movie is that it is LOADED with cameos. Since you know who the production company is, you already know the group that will be appearing, plus a surprise appearance from 2 NFL quarterbacks (one retired QB, and one current) in the beginning. All in all, The House Bunny is surprisingly funny, all because of Anna Faris and Emma Stone, both of whom have very bright futures ahead of them. Faris is definitely one of the funniest ladies alive.