Solid acting and a good script can make a movie with few comedians' hilarious. The reality that was portrayed in this film kept me watching and the slick jokes kept me laughing. The four main stories are brought together beautifully and the characters are impressive to the mind and spirit. Zenobia (Nicole Ari Parker), Victoria (Tamala Jones), Cleavon (Kevin Hart), and Phil (Keith Robinson) are four child hood friends who are at a crossroads in their lives. As the hands of time cannot be turned back, the 30+ year old friends try to settle into their desired positions in life. Marriage, dating, and love are all placed in a comedic light in this upbeat comedy. This film is definitely worth a visit to your local red box. Kevin Hart, and Mike Epps at times, will give you a reason to keep grabbing at your guy. The rest of the cast will give your characters to be angry with, laugh with and smile with throughout the movie. This move is a diamond in the rough.
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d_harvell16 September 2011
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travis-d-gideon2 August 2011The only reason I decided to watch the movie is because it had a cast of credible actors. It had a pretty good story line and I laughed more than I expected during the movie. Kevin Hart is hilarious always and Epps was funny too. The only disappointing part is that I think the movie could of been so much better if it had a bigger budget for production. Storyline was OK but the comedy made it not a big issue for me. This was by far a better movie than Jumping The Broom with less than half the budget. The wife and I enjoyed this movie and would recommend to folks looking to stay in and watch a movie on a Friday or Saturday night.
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Mystikal10429 September 2011Having just watched a slew of African-American films such as Jumping The Broom, This Christmas, Soul Food, Breakin' All The Rules, Two Can Play That Game, & it's counterpart Three Can Play That Game, I thought I would add this film on my list to watch...my other reason being my interest in watching the careers of some of my favorite black actors like Meagan Good and Mike Epps.
The film itself was enjoyable...a bit unrealistic, but enjoyable. The film was well casted with some of the most humorous black actors we have in this industry today...I can't say I am too familiar with Nicole Ari Parker's work, but she did a very decent job on this film, bringing lovable, relatable warmth and humor to her character Zenobia. The amazing gorgeous Tamala Jones was a delight to watch (if I had a wife her age with a beauty and a killer bod like hers, I'd consider myself the luckiest bastard on earth). Kevin Hart is quite humorous, at times. Mike Epps is funny as ever...maybe even steals the show. The simply stunning Meagan Good was a refreshing sight for sore eyes, having just seen her in JTB.
I can't say much about the writing. I admire Russ for coming up with a storyline about four best friends in their mid to late 30's still trying to make sense of their love lives, especially with 40 creeping up on them pretty quick. I bought some of the situations that some of the characters went through, yet others seemed highly unrealistic, or if it was, the subject was approached in a very harsh, careless manner in an effort to generate sympathy for the characters. The ending of the movie kinda threw me off...way off (won't spoil it for anyone)...it just seemed thrown in there as a last minute ditch effort to complete the script and bring closure to the characters' arc. If anything, it didn't seem like quite the happy ending that they had hoped for...they just seemed to...settle with what they could get.
On the Technical side, things were even more awry. One could possibly make the assumption that to save on the budget for this film, a group of film school students were whisked away right after graduation to work on this project. Much more notable than others was the sound editing...in some parts of the movie it was fine...maybe probably easier for the sound people when working indoors, but when filming outside, a complete disaster. The ADR, if any, was abysmal...the background noises didn't quite match as they were edited (yes, I know, very picky...but believe me, quite noticeable)...in a seemingly simple scene of four characters having a conversation, in one shot, the sound seems fine, but when it cuts to another shot, the sound is way off, as though someone or something in the background was blasting tunes next door when that shot was being filmed. No effort made to edit out the clearly mismatching background noises. The cinematography wasn't horrible, but it could've been much much better. In some of the indoor locations, it seemed as though not much effort was used to make full use of the location...the actors always seemed confined/compressed to one spot...maybe to make room for all the lighting and crew in the room with them...not much movement. The editing...no comment. I just re-iterate that maybe film students were used on this one...maybe.
The casting, I had no problem with it, although I am now noticing a trend in over-using the same actors over and over again...Meagan is in practically every African-American film that has recently come out...but I guess it must be a good thing if she's trying to get some more exposure as an actress...Mike Epps as well. As well, very noticeable, the film only seemed confined to use a certain number of actors, maybe due to budgetary constraints...(this could be a spoiler, or not), but some of the secondary characters 'conveniently' kept popping up at the utmost opportune moment....maybe to help serve the story's purpose, I don't know...you'd have to see the film to know what I am talking about.
Overall, despite it's noticeable flaws, 35 and Ticking was an enjoyable film to watch. It had a few punches here and there, but it did it's job. Not quite up to par, but enjoyable nonetheless... -
abien_aime12 October 2011Granted this movie is not a smash hit, but if your home with your loved one, its great to watch on a "movie night". I found the story line to be a bit predictable and somewhat slow at time but, I found there was enough to still enjoy this comedy. The cast is rich with funny people like Mike Epps, and Kevin Hart and talented actresses like Nicole Parker. Its hard to go wrong with such talent (Megan Good comes to mind). I think this level of talent really picks up a story line that might be a little dry. Watching the development of this movie is a little slow but as time goes on it starts to pick up and do just fine. I think it helps if you sit down with your girlfriend or boyfriend husband or wife and grab some popcorn and enjoy this movie. You wont be disappointed
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mimiybyazphil7 June 2022What do you get when you throw a bunch of PERMANENT "C" list actors and a horrible script,along with poor quality camera work together? You get this DUMPSTER fire of a movie! Any movie with Darius McCrary and the ubiquitous Clifton Powell in it is guaranteed to be a A MESS! This was an embarrassment to black people nah, ALL intelligent people everywhere!!
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StephanieGBU18 August 2021I liked the fact that it was an interesting drama leaning on real life dilemmas to work through. There was predictability, and some unexpected outcomes. Overall the character depth and development carried it. Iit was a little long, but that made it possible for the characters to have conversations and flashbacks about who they were and their potential.
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george_me_116 May 2020Great actors but poorly written. What a waste of time. Looks like all of the budget was spent on the actors...
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deaverb-17 July 2011I came across this film at the Washington DC Independent Film Festival and knew nothing of the director. I was expecting a typical urban comedy in the style of "Soul Plane" or "Booty Call", and was happily surprised that it was more intelligent and well crafted. It that respect, it reminded me more of "Soul Food". The main characters in "35 and Ticking" are well developed and believable. The humor kept me laughing for most of the film. It avoids the raunchy quality of other recent comedies.
On the downside, the ending wraps up a little too neatly for my tastes. Director Russ Parr could have left some details for the audience to fill in, rather than fixing every loose end. -
t-glynn-970-98046824 February 2013I hate to have to review this simply because of injustice but I do.
I don't think I've reviewed any other films but this trend of how amazing black films get low ratings is truly unfortunate.
This is a smart funny film. The low budget made more of the focus on the each cast member and had a nice vibe.
I am white and often see really solid black movies with low scores on IMDb, and it's too bad because I feel if the rating were better and more people watched these movies then more of them would be made.
Kevin Hart is always hilarious and several of the actresses here were great as well. The story was touching. At times things were over the top but they didn't linger, so it's fine and light. -
eonaxes15 November 2012This is kinda like a low budget version of Think Like a Man. Maybe not as funny or polished but this is one of the better executed low budget black films I have seen to date. While most Black straight to DVD/TV movies suffer from poor production quality and bad acting, this one was surprisingly well made. Kevin Hart was not as over the top as he was in Think Like a Man but he still was very funny. All round good acting but I'd say my biggest problem is the chemistry of the "four friends". I can't put my finger on it but it just didn't feel believable that these four were best buddies. I'm shocked nobody tried to market this one better as a theatrical release. I never even heard of this movie until I was digging through IMDb for movies I haven't seen. If you are a fan of the genre is should definitely be on your to see list.
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I'm sure I ended up with this in my NetFlix queue because of a NetFlix "Because you watched..." recommendation. It took me months to finally watch it, and I wish I had watched it sooner. I liked it way more than I thought I would. It was way better than I thought it would be, in fact. The script was solid. The characters were well cast and well played. The content was relevant and relatable. There was something about everyone's story that I could relate to - wanting something that you're ready for, but can't attract into your life; meeting men who represent as less than suitable mates; a marriage where partners are not well matched and have differing goals...I could go on. A few honorable mentions - Jill Marie Scott's character was sooo believable that I no longer saw her as Toni from Girlfriends. I also didn't like her very much :). Her long suffering husband, Keith Robinson, made my heart ache. Usually that story line is reversed, and it's the wife who is long suffering. But he was totally believable as well. I loved Darius' obnoxious, gum smacking, loud suit wearing Nick. Luenell (sp) was great. She made me laugh each time she came on screen. This is definitely a movie I would see again. In fact, it's because it's currently on that I decided to write a review. Do yourself a favor and watch it. You won't be disappointed.
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wudy-3726412 February 2020Normally don't watch rom com but this one was funny and pretty good to watch
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floridacinemaster29 August 2011I really liked this movie. It was a refreshing surprise. Funny and heart wrenching. There was one problem. The movie begins in 1983. The characters look to be between 10 and 12. If they are 35-37 in 2011, then their childhood characters were too old. They would have only been about 7 or 8 in 1983 (how I was). Aside from that, I thought it was a funny and refreshing film that didn't treat any gender like they were the bad guys. I liked that the characters were also likable and caring people and the comedy was great. I would've given it a 10 out of 10, it it had had a better ending. There was also one scene that was COMPLETELY unbelievable (I won't spoil it for those who haven't seen it, but it involves two characters and the reproductive center). I enjoyed the comedy and it was heart wrenching to see how one character had been hurt. Still a nice movie. My hubby loved it - and he doesn't go for those kinds of movies.