Anyone with more than a passing interest in Judd Apatow's career will note how there's a curious call-back to one of Apatow's earlier works in this most recent of his productions, with the credits for Step Brothers in the exact same scrawled, stretched-out font as his comedy Freaks and Geeks. Freaks and Geeks, though, featured teens who often spoke and acted like adults; Step Brothers features adults who constantly speak and act like children.

The credit-font's evocation of an earlier Apatow work is an omen for the rest of Step Brothers, in fact, with Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly recycling and amplifying their rivalry from Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (also directed by Step Brothers helmer Adam McKay) but without that film's plot structure, surreal wit or inspired mockery (and celebration) of NASCAR culture; instead, Step Brothers seems constructed -- or, rather, contrived -- solely to create a circumstance where Ferrell and Reilly can act like idiot man-children and riff to their great amusement. That, however, is not the same thing as riffing to the amusement of the audience. ...

It's finally time for Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly to bunk together in Step Brothers, which means it is time for another edition of Moviefone's Unscripted -- questions from the readers and questions off the top of their heads all mixed into one! Above you can check out an exclusive clip, which you won't see in the Moviefone segment, where Ferrell discusses Anchorman 2. After that, head over to Moviefone and spend a few minutes with the funny men. They chide Moviefone for the title of this series, and then they discuss focusing the hate, little baby ham hands, and one heck of an awesome shot-by-shot remake idea they had. When you hear what it is, remember the movie's shower scene and imagine the possible sexiness.

Step Brothers opens this Friday.

Last weekend, the box office exploded with The Dark Knight, which broke the opening weekend record, while Mamma Mia! did what it could in the shadow of bat wings and Space Chimps couldn't reach the top five with its $7.2 million. Matt was almost spot-on with his predictions last week, but I'll try to hold down the fort this week while he's away.

The top five totals:

1. The Dark Knight: $158,411,483 *
2. Mamma Mia!: $27,751,240
3. Hancock: $14,040,178
4. Journey to the Center of the Earth: $12,340,435
5. Hellboy II: The Golden Army: $10,117,815

There's two new wide releases this week -- one for laughs, and one for those who yearn to believe.

Step Brothers
What It's All About: It's the typical new-family scenario with a much older twist. Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly star as spoiled adults who live at home and are less than pleased when their parents meet and get married. Quickly, however, they become best friends who indulge in all the fun things kids do. You know, whispering after lights out, making things... But then their folks have had enough and want to kick them out, spoiling their fun.
Why It Might Do Well: It's Ferrell and Reilly acting like kids, the bunk beds scene is flipping hilarious, and the two actors have a solid following.
Why It Might Not Do Well: The duo's shtick could be getting old, and it still has to face the roaring-forward Dark Knight.
Number of Theaters: 2,800+
Prediction: $23 million

Welcome back to another edition of Insert Caption -- that popular online game the whole dysfunctional family can enjoy! Last week, of course, we traveled to Gotham City and asked you fine, dark captioners to give us your best stuff for a photo from this summer's biggest film, The Dark Knight. Needless to say, you certainly lived up to your end of the bargain -- we received a ginormous amount of entries, and it definitely took some time to pick our three winners. Congrats to you; Gotham is safe once again ... for now.


1. "Hmm ... no, the Joker hasn't accepted my friend request on Facebook either." Jeremy C.

2. Really, Lucious? You can build a car that can practically fly, but you have to call me to get your iTunes off shuffle? Justin B.

3. "Maybe placing an ad on Craigslist for a 'Boy Wonder' wasn't such a good idea." -- Robert L.

See full image and all captions


This week we're psyching ourselves up for what looks to be another hysterical comedy from the team behind Talladega Nights and Anchorman. Directed by Adam McKay, Step Brothers (which hits theaters on July 25) stars Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly as two competitive stepbrothers who must find a way to get along when their single parents get hitched. The three winners from this week will each receive one totally rad Step Brothers poster. Throw it up on the wall; make your stepbrothers and sisters jealous! "I won this! Not you!" Sound off below ...



Read the official rules for this contest

Twentieth Century Fox has changed the release date on the Rainn Wilson comedy The Rocker again, but I think this move might be for the best. Maybe. We'll see. What do I know?

The flick, in which Wilson plays a former rock drummer who gets a new chance at stardom when he joins his teenage nephew's band, was originally slated for Friday, Aug. 1. Then they decided a Wednesday was better, so it became July 30. But now Fox has announced that it's been pushed back three weeks to Wednesday, Aug. 20.

Why the shuffle? Fox didn't say, but I would guess it's to avoid the raucous comedies Step Brothers (due on July 25), Pineapple Express (Aug. 8), and Tropic Thunder (Aug. 13). A July 30 release would have put it in the middle of a comedy war zone, and The Rocker -- which got so-so reviews (including my own) when it played at CineVegas and doesn't have nearly as much star power as those three -- would have gotten trampled. It would have been a PG-13 David against three R-rated Goliaths.

By Aug. 20, Step Brothers and Pineapple Express will have already done most of their box office damage, leaving Tropic Thunder as the only big-name comedy competing with The Rocker. I think it's smart to stick with a Wednesday, too, as three more comedies -- The House Bunny, Hamlet 2, and The Longshots -- open on Friday, Aug. 22.

What do you think? Is there too much comedy competition between now and Labor Day? Or are the films different enough that they won't be stealing each other's audiences?

I'm not exactly sure how the act of delivering silly little video games translates into tickets bought at the multiplex, but I suppose it works like this: Sony created the tie-in games, and now I'm telling you about them. So ... I guess the method works.

Anyway, it's a slow holiday weekend, which means you might have some time to waste on clicky little browser-based video games that are based on a pair of upcoming comedies. Click here for the Donkey Kong-esque misadventures on The Pineapple Express, or click here for the "whack-a-mole" game starring Step Brothers Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly.

I'm definitely looking forward to both comedies ... but I'll just stick to my beloved Zuma, thanks. (Good luck making a movie out of that game.)

The first trailer for Step Brothers was pretty sweet, but if you want a healthy dose of unsuitable language with your trailer, you can check out the new red band version above. It contains many of the same scenes, plus a planet of bulls**t in a galaxy of ... well, you have to watch the trailer to find out. My only complaint: I think that this is the perfect example of why that disembodied voice is really overused, and not necessary. The regular trailer used some on-screen scribbling and was all sorts of great, but the voiceover in the red band really takes away from the whole thing.

Nevertheless, this is looking like a kickass movie. I wasn't sure when I first heard about it, but I've been convinced. The comedy follows Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly as two grown men who won't leave home, and become step brothers when their parents marry. After a rough start, they realize that they're a lot alike and become best friends in adult slackerdom. We've included the trailer after the jump since it's R-rated and full of foul language. Definitely NSFW, so watch at your own risk.

The film will hit theaters on July 25.

Intense drama, romance, horror, even documentaries are just fine. Right now, though, I'm in the mood for trailers that will make me laugh.

Pineapple Express
I've got to say I'm liking this Seth Rogen guy. 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Superbad, it's all good. I'm looking forward to Zack and Miri Make a Porno, and on a recent rewatching of Donnie Darko I realized for the first time that's Rogen playing scumbag Ricky Danforth. The red band trailer for Pineapple Express has Rogen smoking dope (big stretch, I know) and managing to be quite funny while doing so. Spider-man's James Franco is Rogen's stoner sidekick and the two find themselves on the run after witnessing a murder committed by Gary Cole. Rogen also serves as co-writer, so I've got high expectations. Erik Davis also posted some pretty good things about the trailer not long ago. By the way, if you have trouble connecting to the official SONY pictures link above like I was, you can see a grainier but more reliable version on YouTube.

Step Brothers
What is it about someone wearing a Pablo Cruise shirt that I find so damn funny? I haven't yet had the chance to see Semi-Pro, Will Ferrell's new flick that's opening this week, but this trailer has already got me looking forward to his next effort. Step Brothers stars Ferrell and Talladega Nights co-star John C. Reilly as a pair of forty-ish slackers who not only still live with their parents, but now find themselves to be step-brothers when Ferrell's mother marries Reilly's father. Animosity soon gives way to friendship, and these two man-children are faced with having to get jobs and move out. This looks funny as hell and that July 25 release date can't come soon enough.

Two new trailers for two films I was kinda looking forward to have arrived online, and I'm feeling a sense of discomfort. It's not terribly strong, because it's early, but there's definitely an uneasy vibe there. The first trailer, for Step Brothers, makes it look like the film has potential, but ultimately suffers because it's way too long. Directed by the reliable Adam McKay, and starring Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, this one tells of two unemployed, spoiled grown men who eventually become best friends after their single parents marry. It's Ferrell, so it's silly, but for a first trailer it's just so damn long. I know we sometimes gripe about teasers, and we itch for a longer look at something, but there's something to be said for leaving us itching for more. This first trailer for Step Brothers leaves me interested in seeing more (because I love all three of these guys), but I'm not scratching at anticipation hives. Watch it now at Yahoo and let us know.

Next up, we have Get Smart. Hmmm. Loved the TV show. I dig the idea. I dig this cast. I get it. But do I want to see it? I know the original was silly, but does this new film take it too far? I'm still on the fence -- though Anne Hathaway looks pretty damn good -- so I'll leave it up to you to decide what you think of this. And is it just me, or do you half expect Steve Martin to show up at some point wearing that ridiculous mustache. Watch the trailer over at Apple and let us know.

Cinematical has just received this exclusive poster for the upcoming comedy Step Brothers (click on the image for a larger version), and damn it if I'm not ridiculously excited about this film. Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly re-team with director Adam McKay (Talladega Nights) for a flick that just tugs at the heart strings inside all of us. I'd say it's inspiring -- almost earth shattering -- but then again, I don't want to get your hopes up too much. They should be up, though, but at a level where you can still reach them -- kinda like a cookie jar. Step Brothers tells the tale of pampered best friends whose single parents fall in love and decide to get married. Admit it, you know you secretly dreamt of that happening to you growing up -- except in my fantasy, my best friend was Alyssa Milano and, well, use your imagination.

Co-starring Adam Scott, Mary Steenburgen and Richard Jenkins, and produced by some dude named Judd Apatow, Step Brothers arrives in theaters on July 25.