How to Stop Being a Loser (2011) Reviews

• Don't believe the fake hype!

  Ooglebooglewoogle2012-03-07

  It's funny how there are so many apparently individual IMDb users who are rating this film as something that deserves to be up there with The Godfather and The Empire Strikes Back whereas users on other sites overwhelmingly rate it with the lowest numbers possible. Comedies should either make you laugh or at least be satisfyingly witty. Not this one.  The script was definitely a one-pass with no adult supervision, random scenes were thrown in for no reason, the "twist" was pointless, the resolution was unsatisfying as it had no prelude and none of the characters were consistent - only Craig Conway managed to be the same person from beginning to end. The cinematography was unimaginative, the sound was regularly at whisper level and the director and editor seemed to be working on two different projects. It's also important to highlight that the vast majority of celebrity appearances were so fleeting that it is PAINFULLY obvious that they are only there to slap on the poster in order to con an audience into picking up the DVD. Producers - if you're going to do that, at least give us a decent story to watch! I'm not a basher of independent film. I love decent low-budget stuff but it is important to balance out all these rave reviews with the truth. Oh, and whichever critic allowed themselves to be quoted on the poster as claiming this was "laugh out loud clever" needs a career change. There were two or three smile-worthy moments at best.

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• Embarrassing

  Jnoirnoir10322012-01-09

  Pretty rubbish. That's about the easiest way i can sum this up. James (a loser) hires Ampersand (a pick up artist) to help him snare the girl of his dreams, who then turns out to be selfish and mean. With that, he realises that his best friend (a hot girl) was there for him all along and liked him just the way he was. Not the most original story. Comparisons with the plot of Hitch and Crazy Stupid Love are obvious. But to put this film in the same category as those two would be a grave mistake indeed. I love Independent British films. I love finding hidden gems, or spotting new talent in smaller films, and then watching their careers grow. However, this is not a hidden gem. There are no new talents to be discovered here. The faces we recognise (Richard E. Grant, Martin Compston, Neil Maskell, Colin Salmon, Sheridan Smith, Jill Halfpenny, Craig Conway) can all chalk this one down to 'keeping busy.' They will all undoubtedly continue onwards in their careers and see this as a mere blip. Not sure anyone who was trying to make a name for themselves with this one will be as lucky. Gemma Atkinson, who would have seen this as a chance to put the lad mags behind her and get some credibility comes up short. Here she plays the object of the central character James' desires, but as said, she is revealed to be shallow and selfish. Atkinson doesn't really show any range or charisma, and on the evidence of this wont be working in anything of a higher quality anytime soon. Simon Phillips who plays the loser in the title, James, is quite honestly appalling. He seems to spend most of the film playing a severe caricature of what I assume he thinks is a geek. Every Cliché is present and accounted for. Fat, check, glasses, check etc, etc. He seems to have only two emotions, and both of them appear to involve an OTT gurning facial expression. Although Im sure everyone can relate to the difficulty of finding a partner - the real big problem was that I just didn't like James. Maybe it's because of the way he was written, but I think Phillips performance took me out of what was already a bad film and left me with very little to enjoy from watching it. He over played every scene. The Director, Dominic Burns must be commended for managing to attract the solid supporting cast mentioned earlier, but then immediately berated for wasting their talents with this guff. Any subtlety to be found in the jokes was wringed out of it and replaced with BIG bravado and hammy,contrived delivery. He cant seem to make up his mind as to what this film is? Is it a romantic comedy. (No. It's not romantic. Or very funny.) Is it a balls out gross sex comedy. (No. It's crass, but again, not funny.) Is it an office/Curb awkward embarrassing type chuckle? (No. It's embarrassing, but only because it's not funny.) I feel like I am being harsh, but it's just that I cant think of many positives in this film. It's utterly charmless and quite boring.

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• Enjoyable

  cB3912012-02-22

  This movie is well worth the watch. It has some entertaining moments, and does draw you into the story. You can connect with a variety of characters, regardless of your personal story. Just watch it and try to connect it to your life, and this movie will help illustrate what is wrong in the world in many ways, but also shows how some things that have been devalued by the media and society are the most important. Don't look past your friends, and seek solely money or personal fame. There are many funny scenes in this movie, though for the most part there aren't many known actors, shows how on a lower budget a good movie can be made. It takes the basic love-interest storyline a step further as well.

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• Predictable storyline, wooden acting, boring.

  shootyman2012-02-20

  Finally thought i'd give this a watch last night, despite the critics terrible reviews of his movie, and oh dear oh dear oh dear... How right they were. Simon's character James was far too 'done to death' with 'cameos' being very few and far between of Actors i'd actually heard of! The girl who played Patch in the movie (Stephanie Leondis) was quite sweet to watch, her chemistry with James on screen was believable, but that of her bumbling friends were most certainly not. Hannah (Gemma Atkinson from Hollyoaks 'fame') was uncharismatic, wooden and dull as James's lifelong crush, along with Simon himself sometimes falling into the same lower league. I felt throughout casting could have gone to an array of more talented, realistic actors out there, although Ampersands character had his moments of greatness. All that said the end has a very funny twist with a psychiatrist, which did make me laugh. One movie though, I'd never watch again or recommend, and want that 90 mins of my life back! 3/10

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• Laugh out loud brilliance

  gembo202012-02-07

  Just picked this up on DVD and was really pleasantly surprised by how imaginative and funny it was. I really liked all the characters and their relationships with each other and the way human story really shone through the humour. I especially loved how the large cast really melded well together and bounced off each other. This was aided by some hilarious cameos that I did not expect but really liked. As a lover of comedies in a similar vein i really thinks it stands up with films like Hitch and The Hangover. All in all i really enjoyed the film and felt it was one of my favourite comedies of 2011. i think it is a great example of tight streamlined filmmaking and i look forward to seeing more of the cast in the future. 9/10

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