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The Ten (2007) DVD Review
The Ten (2007) DVD Credits:
The Ten (2007) Directed by:
David Wain
The Ten (2007) Written by:
David Wain, Ken Marino
The Ten (2007) Cast:
Paul Rudd, Amanda Peet, Jessica Alba, Justin Theroux, Adam Brody, Ken Marino, Winona Ryder, Famke Janssen, Gretchen Mol, Liev Schreiber, Rob Corddry, Ron Silver, Oliver Platt
The Ten (2007) Released by:
City Lights Pictures, MEGA Films
Region:
1
The Ten (2007) DVD Release Date:
15th January 2008
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The Ten (2007) Synopsis:

"The Ten" is comprised of ten blasphemous and hysterical stories inspired by the Biblical Commandments, each told in a different style, but with characters and themes that overlap. The film is held together by a narrator who, in turn, has his own moral problems.

The Ten (2007) DVD Review:

Many things in this world of ours are ripe for parody. And David Wain, Ken Marino, and Paul Rudd happen the think that the Ten Commandments are one of those things in Wain’s follow up to Wet Hot American Summer, the Sundance smash, The Ten. It is a funny film that has its moments but it doesn’t compare to his freshman effort.

Jeff Reigert (Rudd) is the “host” so to say and tells the audience that the two huge stone tablets behind him are the Ten Commandments and that he has ten stories to share that correlate with the Biblical laws. So, as Jeff introduces each story, he struggles with his own personal problems that later show up in one of the takes on a Commandment.

The first vignette is inspired by “Thou shall have no other gods before me.” Here, Stephen Montgomery (Adam Brody) goes skydiving and forgets a parachute. His fiancé, Kelly (Winona Ryder) races to the scene to find Stephen lodged into the ground. After a doctor analyzes the situation he concludes that moving Stephen at all could kill him. So, naturally, he stays there in the ground but ends up becoming an overnight sensation in the news, leading him to superstardom with everything from his own sitcom to women to drugs. Then the public turns their back on him due to some tabloid controversies, and so does Kelly. Adam Brody is surprisingly funny and does a decent job.

This is how the film gets rolling. It never stops and continues at “Thou shall not take the Lord’s name in vain,” where Gloria (Gretchen Mol) has an interesting, to say the least, encounter with the Lord and Savior, and continues on down the line to “Thou shall honor the Sabbath day and keep it holy,” which is one of the funnier vignettes that depicts Oliver Jennings (A.D. Miles) as a simple man who fakes being sick on Sundays so he can miss church and hangout with his friends, naked. It’s outlandish and very much so in the vein of Wet Hot American Summer as far as comedy goes (over-the-top jokes and characters, homosexuality, etc.) but still it’s not as complete as it could be.

Yes, the cast is sensational: Brody, Rudd, Ryder, Mol, Miles, Jessica Alba (not so much), Rob Corddry, Famke Janssen, Kerry Kenney, Ken Marino, Oliver Platt, Liev Schreiber, and Ron Silver, with special appearances by familiar faces such as Michael Ian Black, Thomas Lennon, and David Wain. But still, the structure doesn’t seem to come together as well as they might have hoped. For instance, the format of Rudd’s character juggling his wife and girlfriend in between the stories would have been better left as its own vignette. It would have used the same amount of time and had less of a cheesy green screen effect. The thread just doesn’t match up. Had David Wain stuck more to the structure of say, Coffee and Cigarettes, The Ten would have worked much better as a whole. In fact it might have worked better because some of The Ten’s vignettes actually tie into each other. Unfortunately, this is the largest issue throughout the film.

The comedy is quite ridiculous and hilarious at times. There is much self-reflexive humor that continuously pops up, better establishing the world that these events are taking place in. Wain definitely went for some surreal moments mixed with his classic tasteless humor and it worked most of the time. Some characters are better than others and some plotlines are worse than the rest and I think that is what gave this film its average feel. It’s not unbalanced but it doesn’t peak high enough to really grab you. It’s an average comedy and it will make some people laugh more than others.

The Special Features are good in the sense of the amount of additions. There is, of course, a commentary with David Wain, Ken Marino, and Paul Rudd (Plus soothing jazz and David’s parents), a whole host of alternate-takes; deleted/extended scenes, a Special Interview with Wain, Rudd, and Marino, an exclusive episode of Wainy Days, “The Making of The Ten” featurette, exclusive ringtones and wallpaper, and rated and unrated trailers. Some of the extended scenes and takes are hilarious and there is over 55 minutes of footage to choose from. The Special Interview is weak. The guys simply goof around with an interviewer at SXSW and offer nothing of real value. That and it’s not too funny. “The Making…” is also a disappointment because there is not as much substance as one would hope for. Overall though, the special features are a little above average.

The Ten is one of those films that received a great deal of hype at Sundance but wasn’t exceptional. It’s a funny movie but not near the caliber that I was expecting. Fans of Wain will enjoy it but they won’t be able to help but compare it to his predecessor film.

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The Ten (2007) DVD review written by: Bryce Carlson

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