The Brass Teapot

The idea of the movie is not new. Maybe the "catalyst" is sort of fresh (no pun intended), but overall you know where this is heading early on. Even more so if you read what the movie is about. I hadn't and the German title of the movie is a bit weird - injury award/compensation would be a translation. But it's not for the viewer of the movie (the movie isn't that bad anyway ;) ).

It's a pretty solid B-movie, with solid acting. The plot moves along nicely and even when it hurts and seems implausible it still kind of works. There's not too many highlights in this one, but rather a stream that can be entertaining.

Alice (Juno Temple) and John Macy (Michael Angarano) is a young couple that is facing economical difficulties. John is a loser that has been working as salesman in a lousy job in order that Alice concludes the college. However, the ambitious Alice aims a top position and cannot find a job. When John is fired from his job, he has a car accident with Alice on the road in front of an antique house. Alice sees a brass teapot and steals it. Soon she discovers that the teapot is magic and makes money whenever they hurt themselves. The couple is visited by Dr. Ling (Stephen Park) that tells that they should give up of the teapot; otherwise they will be destroyed by the evil power. But the greedy Alice does not want to stop and reaches a next level of meanness.

"The Brass Teapot" is a dark comedy of one joke, a young ordinary couple in love with each other that hurts each other to make money. The story has funny moments, the sexy Juno Tempo shows off most of the time but the plot could have a message against greed and how far a person would go for money. Anyway this movie entertains in a Sunday afternoon. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Loucos por Dinheiro" ("Crazy for Money")

How far would a person go to earn easy money?

The idea of being able to earn money from pain is not only a masochist's wet dream, but it provides the potential for a film with a lot of moral complexity and moral questioning. I was fine with the director trying to get a few laughs from it, but I don't quite understand why they didn't further explore the darker side of this concept, as it would have really set this film apart from the rest.

There was one point near the end of the film that made me cry, as it showed the vulnerability of humans and how easily they can be corrupted, but even that quickly subsided and turned out to be a red herring, the film continuing down its cliché and comedic path instead.

I'd love to see a different director attempt this film again, but take it more seriously. I honestly think it has potential. The film as it currently exists is worth a watch, but pretty forgettable and you won't be thinking much about it afterwards.

Whilst the Brass Teapot starts off promising, it then slumps into a typical melodramatic snore fest that you may find in a Disney kids film. Though I will admit, The Brass Teapot is a cool idea, the unfortunate part of this is the jealousy that follows. The whole time I was thinking what I could do with it rather than focusing on the narrative of the film. It's funny, but tragic at the same time. Dumb decisions are made which makes you cringe and the recycled material of the story leads nowhere exciting.

A good attempt to make a good film, but for the most part this film turns out so-so. It loses its charm quickly, which is unfortunate and its comedy factor gets weary. Definitely the film that could have been.

read a review on here about this 'losing steam'...?!?!

too bad that reviewer quit paying attention, because the thing that made this stand out to me, was the fact that it kept getting better, that it kept 'pushing the envelope' with the story.

"The Brass Teapot" is a low-budget comedy from 2012 that I neither noticed nor watched until last week when I was fiddling through Netflix to find something to pass the time.

The film, while not rocket-science nor packed with amazing performances or drama, actually backed-into my top 25 for 2012. Sitting at #18 one spot above "Jack Reacher" and one spot below that years blockbuster comedy "21 Jump Street".

It really does gain steam though... that's why I brought-up that other review.. because for me it's the opening credits which seem pretty hokey, and the films' opening 20-25 minutes(in which nothing significant happens) that is my biggest gripe with the film.

The moral of the story, and the extreme/building to a crescendo nature of the plot, really come together nicely at the end of the film. A really basic idea is done a great service by the writer, the director, and the cast.

This reminds me a bit of last years' "Cheap Thrills", and is similarly good given it also had little to work with.. This is actually a touch better because it builds and builds, and the moral hits home a bit truer here.

FANTASTIC date movie. Everything you'd look for. Light-hearted, but not too-light-hearted, well-written, entertaining, funny...

Smart, under-rated, worth seeking out as a nice sleeper date- nt/spouses-nt-in treat.

72/100

You might like this if you liked:Seeking A Friend For the End of the World(about even), Mr. Destiny(close, maybe a touch better), Mystery Date(even), Honeymoon in Vegas(not as good), and Let it Ride(a little better). All fine company though.

Solid recommendation. Instantly gets added to my "B-Movie-Marathon" lists.. and while I watch about 3-4 films a week, it seems like months between deserved additions to those lists.