I had just watched Cube too last week. I like well made, low budget, high concept, "written & directed by..." movies like this. One set, a couple of actors and a story. Cube's director made Splice last year, which was a cool one too.
And thankfully there is an audience for Macgruber. As a Saturday Night Live fan I really wanted to like it but, considering the source material, I found it to be simply not
that funny. It had it's moments, but overall it was that typical SNL-skit-stretched-out-faaaaar-too-long-misstep they made a lot in the 80's and 90's. But since it's a parody of a show from that era maybe it's intentional.
Hot Rod did a far better job, imo.
But, to stay on-topic:
Ôdishon/Audition [1999]
I'm a big fan of Japanese director Takashi Miike (Ichi The Killer, Shinjuku Triad Society, etc.) but I had never watched this 90's classic before. Had it in my collection for years but heard it was one of those "uncomfortable viewings" so I kept postponing it. Apparently for no reason because when I finally sat down to watch it a couple of days ago I loved it.
Without giving away too much plot, it's about a timid middle aged man who decides to get remarried, seven years after his wife died. He and his friend decide to organize an actress audition for a part in a movie (they both work in the film industry) so that he can meet classy women while avoiding the tiresome bar-scene. He manages to hook up with one of the actresses, the shy and stately Asami (Tokyo Gore Police's Eihi Shiina) and they start to date. But, being that it is a Takashi Miike film, it's also the start of a surreel powergame between man and woman, with a surprising outcome.
This movie is a textbook case of how to build tension. The director knows what he's doing: the viewer gets lulled into a certain comfort level watching what apears to be an endearing rom-com, when halfway through the tone shifts. Besides that the movie looks beautiful and the 2 leads both deliver strong performances, with Shiina stealing the show and easily becoming a genre icon. Really well done. ****