Acquire, hire or fire? (Emma Stone)

By Adam Ray Palmer
 
The golden oldie feature continues on Cineroom! Yes, it’s the revisit of the classic ‘Acquire, Hire of Fire’ feature – but this time with me!
 
How does it work I hear you ask? Well, if you Acquire a film, it means you love it. If you ‘Hire’ a film, it makes you like and would rent again; and of course, if you ‘Fire’ a film, you probably hate it.
 
I decided to choose the topic this time, so here is the ‘Emma Stone’ edition…

In this edition, to celebrate everything that is the perfect actress Emma Stone, I decided that she would be the focus of this edition (and to swoon over her performances too). Now, it is no secret that La La Land is one of my favourite films so… I am not allowing it to enter this contest! There, I have spoken! Plus, she has to be in a starring role and not ‘bit part’ (sorry Superbad). Just to be clear, this is a pure Emma Stone loving. Anyway, let’s get into it!
 
HIRE: 
This decision was actually the hardest of the three. I had three films in mind, and depending on the day, this could easily change. The choice was made though by asking myself, out of the three films, which one could I watch for a second time before the other two… and that movie is… Crazy Stupid Love! Commiserations to The Help and The Favourite!
 
Crazy Stupid Love focuses on a middle-aged husband's (Steve Carell) life changes dramatically when his wife (Julianne Moore) asks him for a divorce. He seeks to rediscover his manhood with the help of a newfound friend, Jacob (Ryan Gosling), learning to pick up girls at bars. This film is simply a beauty, and Emma Stone’s performance is hilarious whenever she is on screen. The famous sequence between Stone and Gosling when he takes his top off will live long in meme history. Crazy Stupid Love is comical, witty, charming and packs a punch when you least expect it. This kinda feels harsh to just ‘hire’ it.

FIRE:
My ‘fire’ choice was certainly a lot easier than the previous. On the whole though, I don’t think Emma Stone makes bad films. She’s either blessed with talent and every time someone yells “action” she is on it, or her agent needs a pay rise. Anyway, I digress, the fire film (where Emma Stone didn’t do any wrong) has to be the mishit from Cameron Crowe, Aloha. Aloha follows a celebrated military contractor who returns to the site of his greatest career triumphs and reconnects with a long-ago love while unexpectedly falling for the hard-charging Air Force watch-dog assigned to him.
 
From the writer/director of Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous (Oscar for Original Screenplay) and Vanilla Sky; you would expect at least something half decent. Once you add the starring trio of Bradley Cooper, Rachel McAdams and Emma Stone – you’re surely onto a winner… wrong. This is by far Crowe’s most sentimental film but sadly also the least compelling. Aloha is such a wet lettuce and has such little substance that it just doesn’t go anywhere. To be honest, audiences agree with me. From a budget of around $45 million and returning only $26 million at the gates – an ultimate box office dive.

ACQUIRE:
In at number one, and one of my favourite films ever, has to be the gem that is Easy A. This movie is just about flawless. From the directing to the acting – Easy A is a class above. On top of that though, the slick, relatable script from Bert V. Royal is where the masterpiece shines. There are not enough superlatives for this script. Easy A revolves around a clean-cut high school student (Emma Stone) who relies on the school's rumour mill to advance her social and financial standing.
 
This, for me, is where Emma’s career really took off. She had been in Zombieland and Superbad prior to this but in 2010’s Easy A is where she placed herself well and truly on the map. Stone is just about in every scene of this movie, and each of them are quite demanding. She has to put herself out there for the humour and it really lands so genuinely. Her performance is so authentic and because so many people can relate to her during their school days, this ensured that Easy A would be a cult hit. This film is some pure masterwork and a must-own for any movie lover.

If you want to take part in an ‘Acquire, Hire of Fire’ in the future, let us know! It’s Cineroom’s most popular unpopular opinion feature! Drop a message to us on our socials or comment below!