Never Mind Pop Film

Solo: A Star Wars Story

2018-06-01T10:10:00.001-07:00

Viewer: Han, bubbe, you don't have to explain every small detail of your backstory that was mentioned in the original trilogy.
Han: I was named Solo by an Imperial recruiter.
V: Wait, didn't you detail your father's entire career building Millenium Falcons? How do you not know your last name?
H: ...
V: ...
H: There's a prequel cameo in the third act.
V: Yeah, I'm just going to go ahead and leave, alright?
H: I have a good feeling about this.

Review: Jackie

2016-12-19T16:14:00.002-08:00

Unlike traditional biopics, 'Jackie' is structured like a fever dream where the highs and lows are her time as First Lady are stacked unevenly, spilling into each other in the blink of an eye. Natalie Portman embodies the traumatic experience of living through one of life's most unimaginable horrors but finds she must still perform for the American people and press, who are dissecting her every move, looking for a flaw. Pablo Larraín, writer Noah Oppenheim, and Portman take Jackie, known for her extraordinary dignity and poise, and break her down psychologically. Revealing the mother simultaneously trying to console her children and a nation in the days following Kennedy's assassination in Dallas, Texas.

She must also massage the egos of Lyndon B. Johnson (John Carroll Lynch), eager to start his own legacy, and Robert (Peter Sarsgaard), who frets over the legacy of his departed brother. Returning President Kennedy's body to the White House, Jackie knocks on the window to ask the driver a question. "Do you know who James Garfield was? Do you know who William McKinley was?" The driver responds no both times. "How about Abraham Lincoln?" He nods enthusiastically, "he won the Civil War."

Whatever the impression was of Jackie Kennedy as First Lady, she was not just arranging furniture in the White House, she was instrumental in preserving the memory of John F. Kennedy. She was much more than a widow; she became the gatekeeper to the legacy of not only what Kennedy did, but what he could've done. This sentiment is best articulated in a series of interviews with a writer (Billy Crudup), who presses the former First Lady, only to find she is not the frightened doe that so many make her out to be. Larrain's film would make a perfect bookend with Steven Spielberg's 'Lincoln'. Few films acknowledge that biopics only exist because of the aura we build around mere mortals. 'Jackie' is one of them.

Review: 13 Hours - The Secret Soldiers of Beghazi

2016-01-14T19:51:00.000-08:00

After the box-office success of Lone Survivor and American Sniper, the cottage industry of military themed January releases continues to go strong. Whereas those films came from Peter Berg and Clint Eastwood, directors known for taking a backseat to the material when it was called for, 2016's entry, 13 Hours: Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, comes from a director with the least tact ever observed over a career. Early speculation around the film had it that 13 Hours would be Michael Bay's most grown-up film, but those rumors were incorrect.

As the screen opens with the text "This is a true story," Michael Bay wants viewers to know right away that 13 Hours is the truest account of the story we have all heard so much about since 2012. Pointed blame isn't passed around openly, but Bay still wants audiences to know who he thinks is at the center of what went wrong. For the purposes of this film, the person to be blamed is C.I.A. station chief, Bob (David Costabile). Costabile really mugs it up as the distrustful supervisor, who makes it clear that any advice the security contractors have to offer will be met only with scorn. Inadequate safety measures at the diplomatic compound are questioned, but never addressed, and the difficulty in identifying which Libyans are friendlies or adversaries also doesn't concern the higher-ups.

Just after landing in Benghazi, Jack Silva (John Krasinski) and Tyrone Woods (James Badge Dale) engage a hostile gang on an ordinarily unremarkable trip back to the C.I.A. annex. Guns are pointed, threats are exchanged, but no shots are fired. The scene is justifiably tense, yet it also serves as a taste of the chaos to come later during the U.S. Ambassador's arrival. Ambassador Steven's visit to Benghazi was an effort to win over the Libyan people, but a few hundred armed militants saw it as an opportunity to strike. When the gunfire finally erupts, Jack, Tyrone and the rest of the contractors are left to watch the events helplessly from the roof of their base.

When Michael Bay is clicking on all cylinders, he can usually be forgiven for his errors in judgment, but he delivers a misfire in regards to the final act. During the long wait for permission to rescue the diplomat, Bay was eager to display his righteous indignation at the lack of value of human life, and that is never more clear than in one particular cut. During the assault on the compound, when all hell is breaking loose, Tyrone desperately calls for air assistance. The madness in Libya is contrasted with the dead quiet of fighter jets sitting on a runway in Italy. The requested air support never makes it to Benghazi. Bay isn't known for making statements in his films, so that cut is an excruciating indictment, but then curiously he undercuts his own message by turning an account of tragic loss into a slick actioner.

The film went to lengths to show that the contractors were a band of brothers with families at home that cared about their well-being. Later, in the middle of gunfire Jack is showed trying to call his wife (a clear tug to the heartstrings). Then, in a move that makes one question whether Bay even cares, he goes to a camera angle attached to an incoming projectile that kills one of the lead characters. A moment that should be treated with the gravity of a protagonist dying is replaced with "a cool shot." Making matters worse, the shot that followed a bomb down from the sky was a misguided reference to his own work from Pearl Harbor. The director is also not above portraying Ambassador Stevens, who died in the attacks, as a naive figurehead.

If 13 Hours is redeemed at all after the antics of its director, it comes purely as a result of the charm of the cast, headlined by John Krasinski and James Badge Dale. Krasinski proves that he is more than the affable guy everyone loved on The Office, and Dale continues to steal the show as a character actor is wont to due. It's a mystery why Dale isn't a star. He takes a total clunker of a line like “Payback’s a bitch, and her stripper name is karma.” Yes, that's a real line of dialogue from the film. So when I say that 13 Hours is Michael Bay at his Bay-est, you'll know it's no lie. And that it's not a compliment.

Review: Anomalisa

2016-01-07T21:24:00.000-08:00

Weird is rarely used as a good quality in film criticism, but few words so completely describe Charlie Kaufman’s work as weird does. All of his films are a window into his very particular worldview, and that p.o.v. is certainly unlike anything seen in pop culture. For that reason, Anomalisa became an entry on many most anticipated lists for 2015. That Kaufman chose stop-motion to tell this story made the picture an event. So it came as a disappointment when the film was one of the year’s more mundane efforts.

Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind have an energy and heart at the center that is not present here. Previous collaborators like Spike Jonze and Michel Gondry were able to temper the overwhelming negativity Charlie Kaufman occasionally falls prey to, but, this time, the writer doesn’t have a director to rein things in. In all of his efforts to create an experience that is both familiar and alienating, Kaufman may have accidentally created something hostile.

The story centers around author Michael Stone (David Thewlis) and his overnight stay in Cincinnati on a business trip. He is due to speak at a conference and read from his best-selling book, “How Can I Help You Help Them?” and should be happy with his success, but Michael is deep in exploring all of the regrets in his life. How Michael became an expert in customer service is anyone’s guess, but roll with it. Michael has never been able to connect with anyone on a deep, personal level and when he reaches out to an ex-girlfriend, the results are typically disastrous, but his stay at The Fregoli Hotel turns fortuitous when he meets customer service representative, Lisa (Jennifer Jason Leigh).

Lisa is star-struck by meeting the famous author, yet it’s her voice that intrigues Michael. All of the other people present (all voiced by Tom Noonan) are literally the same, but ironically only Lisa believes herself to be an indistinguishable face in the crowd. A beautiful moment in a world full of ugliness deserves to be cherished, but the encounter doesn’t last long after the love scene (is there a prerequisite for any movie featuring puppets to include a sex scene?). From here, Anomalisa appears to gain a little philanthropic hope for Michael, yet those hopes are dashed in the harsh light of the morning after. Just one more instance of a middle-aged man using a younger woman to feel important again. Abandoning Leigh’s Lisa with time to spare was a mistake.

Everything that was beautiful about watching Michael and Lisa connect is ripped to shreds as Michael’s feelings for Lisa are quickly turned into dissatisfaction. Whatever he found special about Lisa the night before simply doesn’t exist at the end of their breakfast, and they part ways. Self-destructive protagonists aren’t new, but few are as eager to dive into the abyss as Michael Stone. David Thewlis’ turn in Naked, while also abhorrent, offered more than just misery. The narcissism on display left this viewer weary.

Kaufman has tackled alienation to greater effect in his other scripts, and a majority of the film feels like he’s repeated himself. If there were more scenes like Michael’s encounter with the hotel receptionist, some of the other stagnant transitions would have been alleviated. Dialogue for its own sake has a place in cinema, but it has to move the story forward or be pleasurable. Too often the words shared in Kaufman’s screenplay do neither. Perhaps keeping Anomalisa to the originally conceived running time of 40 minutes would have been best.

However, the choice to animate the film with puppets was still a fantastic idea. A live-action version of the film could be ignored for being a chore to sit through, but these dolls invite viewers to look closer. Short of the lines across the puppets’ faces, one could be forgiven for thinking that actors were delivering those lines. Great care was taken into designing the look and feel of Anomalisa, it’s just a shame that a more energetic Kaufman couldn’t have delivered something new to say. One wouldn’t go as far to call this picture a misfire, but Charlie Kaufman’s latest is only for a very small audience of moviegoers. And, for that reason, it’s likely that nothing like Anomalisa will be seen again.

Review: Star Wars - The Force Awakens

2015-12-25T11:43:00.000-08:00

"Luke Skywalker has vanished." No mention of taxes or blockades to be found anywhere. While not a significant sentence, those four little words signal that the prequels are a thing of the past, and a wave of relief washes over the faces of spectators in the dark auditorium. It's been thirty years since the events of Return of the Jedi, but the Rebels haven't had much time to rest. While the Empire vanished with the death of the Emperor, power seeks a vacuum, and the void is filled by The First Order and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver).

The only whereabouts of Luke's location are inside a BB-8 droid that ends up in the possession of young Rey (Daisy Ridley). Rey yearns for more but is trapped living as a scavenger on the unforgiving desert landscape of Jakku. This droid tasked with finding a reclusive Jedi offers her new purpose. Sound familiar? References to the original trilogy are sprinkled heavily throughout the film, and while the consistent call-backs restrict The Force Awakens from breaking out in its own right, it fits in perfectly with what Star Wars serial structure. And, to be honest, after the plight of the prequel trilogy, some reminders of A New Hope can be forgiven.

The cyclical handoff from generation to generation has been an ever-present theme of Star Wars, The Force Awakens merely validates that the theme will be continued. The script, penned by Lawrence Kasdan and J.J. Abrams makes the events of the original trilogy a lived-in myth. A scene where Han tells Rey and Finn (John Boyega) that the force, Jedi, and the Rebellion were "all true" almost shouldn't have been in the trailer because letting that scene unfold for the first time in theatres would've been truly special. Harrison Ford, a man who clearly isn't the most reverential of Star Wars fans, gives perhaps his most energetic performance of the last decade.

Acting has never been a strong point of any Star Wars, yet this is only the second Star Wars film after Empire Strikes Back to be sold first and foremost on its acting. Audiences just met these new characters, but they already feel iconic. Oscar Isaac, Boyega and Ridley all have an absolute blast taking part in a global phenomenon, and that infectious energy just bleeds into every aspect of the picture. Yet Awakens isn't afraid to go to places that tug the heart either. As Rey extends a lightsaber to a hero reluctant to rejoin the battle, the pleading in her eyes almost breaks the audience. If that moment doesn't, then the look of fear and sorrow that follows definitely will.

Industrial Lights and Magic has been spread thin between the Marvel pictures and other work, but the ILM team spared no expense in creating the most photo-realistic CGI onscreen of the Star Wars saga. The thrilling aerial sequence where Rey and Finn pilot the Millennium Falcon to evade TIE fighters is maybe one of the best scenes 2015 has to offer. The camera follows the Falcon through every flip, dive and tight squeeze in a downed Imperial Destroyer. The escape doesn't drive the story, but it serves as a character building moment where Rey learns how to be a pilot and Finn hones his skills at the blaster.

For the first time in years, the mindset going in to the next Star Wars sequel isn't "Well, hopefully, the next one will be better." Viewers are actively anticipating the next chapter of the saga. The questions that lay unanswered at film's end are intriguing and watching where Rey, Ren and Finn will go next is an awesome prospect. 2017 might seem like it can't get here soon enough.

Review: Macbeth

2015-12-04T09:00:00.000-08:00

There have been countless adaptations of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet, but with the exception of Roman Polanski’s 1971 film, Macbeth has largely gone ignored by cinema. Justin Kurzel, fresh off the success of The Snowtown Murders, may have delivered the definitive take on the Scottish Thane. From the very beginning Kurzel marks that his vision will be different, as the film opens on the funeral of a small child, then transitions to bloody combat. Usually set on the stage, depictions of war in Macbeth are avoided because of budget constraints and available space–a shame considering how influential those scenes prove to be. The violence and trauma of the warring tribes and his child’s death sets the stage for Macbeth’s lust for power later in the film. Blood begets more blood.

In this beleaguered state of mind, a prophecy from three witches becomes the driving force behind his madness. Left with no heirs of his own and a fractured relationship with his own wife, the crown is the only possession that will give Macbeth solace. Murdering the king in cold blood in order to take the throne only makes sense for a man consumed by ambition. Most of the talk regarding Michael Fassbender has been about his excellent performance in Steve Jobs, and while that is a solid piece of acting, it pales in comparison to the mentally scarred Macbeth that Fassbender creates. The first half’s whispers of self-doubt turn into the paranoid ravings of a man who has lost his mind by the film’s end.

Not to be outdone by her co-star, Marion Cotillard’s Lady Macbeth is as conniving as her husband is unraveled. Left bitter about the death of her children, her cunning seduction of her husband to to end the bloodlines of his competitors is absolutely Machiavellian. Now, a Lady Macbeth that is only presently evil is uninteresting- however, Cotillard dabbles in the despair with just as much conviction. A lot of actresses might be exposed by an unbroken close-up, but Cotillard relishes the spotlight of the infamous “Out, damned spot!” scene.

If this sounds like it may be a tough watch, it is. Make no mistake, this is certainly the grimmest interpretation of the Scottish play, but a true artistic vision unencumbered by the need to make it for everyone is something to be celebrated in today’s film market. Justin Kurzel manages the difficult task of being having to be faithful to the source material, while also offering new insights into a character that’s been around for centuries. Too often directors adapting stage plays let the prestige of the material overwhelm them, and leave out any stylistic choices. While Kurzel does set the film in the Highlands (and goes as far to accurately research the tribal colors for the soldiers’ face paint and kilts) for authenticity, he resists that urge to go prim and proper in staging the story.

The director, along with cinematographer Adam Arkapaw, shoots the film in a deliberate horror style, utilizing yellows and grays to display the sickness inherent not only to the Lord and Lady Macbeth, but the hell present all around them. These are storytelling choices determined to set this Macbeth apart from the others, but none are as invigorating as the choice to paint the screen crimson for the finale.

Amidst a hugely talented ensemble (featuring David Thewlis, Paddy Considine, Sean Harris, and Elizabeth Debicki) Fassbender and Cotillard stand out for their lived-in performances. There is a long history of storied actors and actresses taking part in Shakespeare’s works, but the sheer intensity Fassbender and Cotillard deliver is unrivaled. Macbeth serves as a reminder that without all the frills of special effects and shared universes, great acting still mesmerizes audiences when given the chance. Don’t miss the chance to catch this in theatres.

Review: Black Mass

2015-09-18T11:16:00.002-07:00

Watching Jack Nicholson in The Departed it would be easy to think "Wow, this guy can't be real" but that would be incorrect. Frank Costello was based in part on James "Whitey" Bulger, maybe the most notorious gangster in U.S. history. What viewers will also learn is the FBI and Bulger worked together for years before he was placed on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List. John Connolly (Joel Edgerton) and Whitey Bulger (Johnny Depp) grew up together in South Boston, but years later Connolly, now a FBI Agent, makes a deal with the devil. More accurately, he tries to place a rabid dog on a leash.

Reporting to the FBI is a hard sell for Connolly because Bulger takes personal offense to playing informant. Bulger killed men for giving up much less, but Connolly manages to convince the crime boss a partnership would be mutually beneficial. Both men see this as an opportunity to rid Boston of the Italian mafia, but only one of them is honest about how this will all play out. Being an informant means giving up intel on occasion, yet it comes with no strings. Connolly--and by proxy the FBI--look the other way while Bulger deals and murders his way into mythic status. Meanwhile, Special Agent Charles McGuire (Kevin Bacon) can’t explain why crime is still flourishing in Boston.

Black Mass spent several years in production while Depp and Edgerton both left the project, and now it has the unfair responsibility of being the movie that brings Depp back to relevance. Luckily the film shoulders that weight with ease. Yes, Depp is wearing another wig, but this isn't like his other Disney work. Depp layers Bulger with nuance, playing a man who would violently murder members of his organization for being rats when he himself reported to the FBI. Those contradictions would trip up a lot of actors, but Depp handles himself magnificently.

It would be easy for Depp to crank out every scene on 11, but there is a reserve present that couldn't be said for Joe Pesci in Goodfellas. Take a dinner scene where Bulger needles a FBI agent for the secret family recipe. What seems like an innocuous slip on the part of the agent turns unbearably tense as Bulger questions just how easy he gives up information. Then Bulger punctuates the exchange with a chilling laugh. Too often films depicting criminals glorify the lifestyle, but if Black Mass is a testament to anything, it's what a sociopath Whitey Bulger was. That the FBI would team up with a maniac of that caliber to shut down the Mafia is an indictment not only of law enforcement, but the misguided native pride of Boston. A monster was unleashed on society only because Connolly was more comfortable with a crime syndicate run by white men.

The film presents a great deal of information, but everything is presented in a brisk fashion and aided by a stellar cast. Those who don't know anything about Whitey Bulger will be fine. Scott Cooper (Out of the Furnace) wisely surrounds Depp with the highly talented Rory Cochrane, Julianne Nicholson, W. Earl Brown and Kevin Bacon. As great as that cast is, sometimes Cooper focuses too much on his ensemble, leaving audiences wondering when Depp strikes next. A more present p.o.v. would definitely cement Black Mass as one of the defining crime films of the genre, but as it stands the film is a handsomely directed picture featuring a career resurgence for Johnny Depp.

Review: The Man in the Machine

2015-09-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

Real quick, does Alex Gibney ever take time off? Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief and Sinatra: All or Nothing At All both made their premieres this year, but Gibney still has one more documentary up his sleeve. The myth around Steve Jobs is known by everyone. He took a company that started out of his garage and turned it into a global powerhouse with products that people go into a frenzy over. No one would define themselves by their pager, so why does an iPod or iPhone so often serve as an extension of its users?

Steve Jobs' death in 2011 was met with a massive outpour of public grief, but the emotion on display didn't fit the man who passed. Jobs, for his outsized personality while he was promoting Apple, was fiercely private. Taking an approach inspired by Citizen Kane, Gibney starts his film at the mogul's passing, and works backwards through interviews and archival footage to get a sense of the man behind the smokescreen.

The film jumps around chronologically, tackling the early Apple years; NeXT; and the launches of the iPod, iPhone and iPad. It bears repeating that Jobs didn't personally design or engineer the famous items so closely associated with his name. The truth is that a lot of talented people surrounded Jobs, and he drove them to their limits. Apple is not represented in Gibney's film, but there is a good deal of interviews with those who worked with Jobs along with his friends and family, and the background information is revealing. The Steve Jobs who faced legal issues is certainly not the one we remember fondly.

Steve Jobs wasn't a perfect man, certainly, few are, but Gibney isn't interested in hagiography. At first The Man in the Machine gives the audience a lot of the personable Jobs that he presented himself as for years, then the darker side comes out. "Think different" was Jobs' method of creating a link between Apple and the noble ideals of icons like Martin Luther King Jr., and it worked really well. However, Apple didn't use "think different" to contribute to more moral business practices. The workers at Foxconn who make iPhones and iPods certainly don't have the luxury of using the products they spend all day building.

Gibney's documentary expands beyond Jobs--sometimes to its detriment--but the larger Silicon Valley scene that Jobs inspired, and the grime behind his technological benchmarks are integral to his legacy. Jobs was a master of branding: he created a narrative where customers bought not just a machine, but a reflection of themselves they could pour their identity into. The love story between Apple fanatics and their products is what Jobs is remembered for, but Gibney posits that we're all still buying into a myth. That Gibney himself can't explain why he owns an iPhone is cause for concern.

Gibney loses sight of Jobs in the wide scope of the documentary, but perhaps it is impossible to understand a man made up of so many contradictions. Steve Jobs: The Man in the Machine isn't a hit-job by any means, but it does encourage viewers to "think differently" about the man so widely revered.

Review: Southpaw

2015-07-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

All boxing films come down to three storylines, or all three wrapped in one—get beaten, get angry, get back to the top. Eighty years have passed since Wallace Beery made The Champ, and Southpaw doesn't try to rewrite the formula. It's not a surprise, Barton Fink broke himself that way. Billy Hope (Jake Gyllenhaal) is the light heavyweight champion of the world, but it wasn't always the high life. Billy was raised dumped from one foster home to the next because of his mother's incarceration, but he eventually met his wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) in a Hell’s Kitchen orphanage and turned it all around.

Jake Gyllenhaal doesn't look like your typical boxing star like say Robert DeNiro, Mark Wahlberg or Will Smith, but doubts about his ability to perform disappear immediately as the film opens. Madison Square Garden roars as Billy, bloodied and bruised, batters his opponent to the ground, winning the title. After the fight Maureen looks on as Billy's eye has to be saved by doctors. She reminds him of the always present risk of brain damage and he responds "Why you gotta lay the truth right now?" He's content to bask in the title he just won.

Acting as Billy's manager and wife, Maureen knows that without his career they wouldn't have their comfortable lifestyle, but at what cost does it come? Without Billy learning to defend himself better in the ring, the fear is that he will die there. For that reason Maureen keeps their daughter, Leila (Oona Laurence), at home for Billy's fights. She receives texts from her mother telling her if Daddy won or lost. Before Southpaw dives too far into the consequences of professional sports, the formula comes back into play in the form of arrogant challenger Miguel Escobar (Miguel Gomez). Escobar taunts Billy at a black-tie event and the proceeding violence results in tragedy.

In short time Billy loses everything as his rage turns self-destructive. Billy punishes himself in the ring taking blow after blow, playing the martyr for thousands of paying fans. Left with only his guilt, his pain-seeking ways become more exotic. Surprising no one, Billy is forcibly separated from Leila by the court. Billy's fall comes relatively early in the film, only about 30 minutes in, and while we all know that a title match between Billy and Escobar is imminent, Southpaw finds its soul in a gym headed by trainer Tick Willis (Forest Whitaker).

Cinematographer Mauro Fiore shoots Southpaw from outside the canvas, avoiding the in-the-ring combat of Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull, but his work in Tick's gym is superb. Fiore bathes the film in shadow during Billy's training in the early hours of the morning, lending a contemplative lens to the rehabbing of Billy's life and career. The machismo can get overwhelming, especially considering that the script is from Kurt Sutter, but Antoine Fuqua's interest in the rage that consumes Billy is worth following.

To discuss Southpaw is to discuss the lengths that Jake Gyllenhaal goes to authentically depict a pugilist. Gyllenhaal went through several weeks of training to bulk up for the part, and when it comes down to the fighting, Gyllenhaal is taking real punches instead of a stunt double. His choice would be easy to write off as an affectation for Oscar Gold®, but it's a necessity. If audiences don't believe he's capable, then the film won't work.

Southpaw certainly doesn't buck any of the conventions that have filled boxing films for several decades, but the cast makes the predictable elements worth watching. Tick is the type of role Forest Whitaker could play in his sleep, but he infuses the part with a great deal of heart. Rachel McAdams also leaves a lasting impression as Maureen. (Hollywood, take note, keep casting her in projects.) This is Jake Gyllenhaal's show though, and his effort to elevate the picture will likely see him rewarded come February.

Review: Trainwreck

2015-07-17T00:00:00.000-07:00

trAmy Schumer already cemented her place on my year's favorite entertainment list when she managed to loosely remake 12 Angry Men for the fourth episode of Inside Amy Schumer, but not satisfied wth owning television, Schumer decides to revive the romantic comedy for 2015. Lazy writing has cursed the genre for much of the last few decades and studios have responded in kind by not pursuing that market with the gusto they used to. A film this funny and engaging might change minds at some studios, because Trainwreck is a very good romantic comedy.

As soon as the film opens it's clear that the story will not be hitting the same beats that audiences are used to. Schumer eschews tradtional romantic comedy dynamics by opening with Gordon (Colin Quinn) trying to instill a paralytic fear against monogamy in his young daughters. Years later, it appears he was only half successful. Youngest daughter Kim (Brie Larson) is happily married, mother to a step-son, and expecting another child. Amy (Amy Schumer), however, took her father's words to heart and wasted no time indulging in a good deal of alcohol, pot and casual sex.

Quite a few comedies have featured the sexual exploits of their male leads, but the reverse has not been true. After one encounter she wakes up to find a Scarface poster on the wall and quietly pleads that she isn't in a dorm room. The revolving door of men she spends her evenings with is supposed to be a remedy for boring committment, but Amy is weary of this routine as well. Rather than continuing to sleep with her stable of guys, she gives dating a shot and the resulting aftermath with Steven (a very entertaining John Cena) at the movies is one of the film's more hilarious scenes.

When Amy isn't living it up she writes for S’Nuff, a men's magazine, headed by ruthless editor Dianna (Tilda Swinton). Amy's latest assignment is to shadow Aaron (Bill Hader), a surgeon to the stars of the sports world including LeBron James and Amare Stoudemire. Originally just a subject piece, Aaron blindsides Amy when their flirtation turns into something more. Amy has trained herself to bail at the first sign of trouble, but with Aaron she might consider hanging around. Bill Hader excels when given the chance to lead a film (The Skeleton Twins), hopefully he will be get more chances to do so again. Hader and Amy Schumer have great chemistry together and when they are on screen together, it's a blast. They constantly try to out-do each other and nearly every minute is filled with laughs. Surprisingly, the scenes that truly mark Trainwreck as a success are with Brie Larson and Colin Quinn.

Fleshing out strained family relationships should prove a challenge for an actress in her first outing on the bigscreen, but Ms. Schumer proves that the slide from stand-up comedian to actress won't be difficult. Amy Schumer shows off a very different side of herself from her show on Comedy Central. She doesn't refrain from going into sad material, in particular Colin Quinn as her father, who is in poor health and looking at assisted living. These moments work really well, but the running time is a little too stuffed with other subplots for them to stand out.

Trainwreck marks the first time Judd Apatow is directing a script he has not written, and while it's very much Schumer's show, the movie still lacks tightness. Apatow excels at putting together large groups of actors and then finding the characters that work best for them, but when the film gets to the editing bay, he can't bear to cut anything. Fortunately, Trainwreck has the best ensemble of any film in 2015. Any moviegoer would be hard-pressed to find a better cast. John Cena and LeBron James, plucked from the sports world, both possess terrific comedic timing on top of their athletic prowess and professional success. Life doesn't seem fair that way. And it isn't just these two athletes, Tilda Swinton would run away with the show if she were in the film more often. There is nothing that she can't do.

For all of the risks that Schumer and Apatow take with Trainwreck, it is still a rom-com, even with the leads gender-switched. Accordingly the final 20 minutes are spent dotting the Is and crossing the Ts. I certainly don't expect Amy Schumer to reinvent the wheel because when something works, it works. Comedy lovers anxiously await her next effort. A new star is born.

From Ahnuld to Actor: The Transition of a Former Action Star

2015-05-08T12:51:00.000-07:00

Maggie pits Arnold Schwarzenegger against zombies, but not in the way you’d expect. The titular character (Abigail Breslin) is infected, but Wade (Schwarzenegger) isn’t driving into the city to put down the zombie threat, he’s bringing his daughter home before the disease reaches its inhumane conclusion. Protocols are implemented to keep the virus contained to the small midwestern town, but doctors set aside regulations to let Wade spend time with his daughter before she is sent away to the quarantine zone.

The stage of Maggie’s infection is still in its infancy, but any sign of worsening symptoms will get her sent straight to a quarantine area. Wade’s second-wife (Joely Richardson) has sent her children to stay with family outside of town, so it’s just the three of them in a makeshift farmhouse as they wait for inevitable to come. Zombie films often rely on global catastrophe for stakes, but a family awaiting is the kind of tension that all viewers can relate to. Fans hoping to see Arnold buckle down with a shotgun and take on the entire zombie apocalypse might be disappointed, but this picture has ambitions beyond being another run-of-the-mill schlockfest, Maggie serves as an intimate two hour movie about a father losing his daughter amid the zombie apocalypse.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

'Noble' Trailer

2015-04-28T08:25:00.000-07:00

When Irish woman Christina Noble flies into Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) in 1989, 14 years after the end of the war, she leaves behind an extraordinary life story. But the best is yet to come. Christina lands in a country "that she wouldn't be able to show you on a map". With a few dollars, a dream and her own hard-won courage, she is about to make life better for thousands of people. Noble tells the inspirational true story of a woman who believes that it only takes one person to make a difference, and how she proved right.

Noble hits theatres May 8th

Jared Leto's Joker Has His Grand Debut

2015-04-24T14:53:00.000-07:00

Fan speculation about what Batman's archnemesis might look like can cease today because Suicide Squad director David Ayer has dropped the first official look at Jared Leto's interpretation of The Joker on Twitter. It's certainly unique, although tattooing "Damaged" on his forehead is a touch on the nose.

The famous feature are all present: the green hair, pale skin, and crazy eyes, but they are tweaked to look a little more unwholesome than in the past. The tattoos are a different touch, as are the replacement teeth that Batman (Ben Affleck) has likely knocked out in their interactions, so fans worrying that this next Joker would be a rehash of Heath Ledger's have little to worry about.

Well fans, you have finally seen Leto’s Joker. What do you think?

(Per David Ayer's Twitter)

Review: Cymbeline

2015-03-15T12:49:00.000-07:00

Cymbeline is director Michael Almereyda’s second Shakespeare adaptation set in modern day, his last being 2000’s Hamlet, also starring Ethan Hawke. The Bard’s late work tragedy, previously set in the Royal Court of Olde England, receives a face-lift, updated to a war between the Roman police force and the Briton Motorcycle Club ran by Cymbeline (Ed Harris). The King trades in a crown for an Uzi and a leather jacket as a drug kingpin troubled by familial strife. His second wife (the serpentine Milla Jovovich) despises Cymbeline’s daughter, Imogen (Dakota Johnson, proving she has acting chops not found in Fifty Shades of Grey), for not marrying her son, Cloten (Anton Yelchin).

In secret, Imogen has pledged herself to Posthumus (Penn Badgley), much to Cymbeline’s displeasure. Posthumus, like all men freshly betrothed, proceeds to make a bet that his friend Iachimo (Hawke) cannot steal his love’s chastity; Hawke is evidently having a ball with the part of a man of very little moral fiber, slithering through his scenes, abusing the trust of all those who place such faith in him.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

Review: The Salvation

2015-02-27T13:42:00.000-08:00

Westerns have never recovered from the oversaturation that killed off viewer interest decades ago, but every now and then a gem pops up. Recent successes like The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, 2007’s 3:10 to Yuma and the Coen brothers adaptation of True Grit all did well because they tweaked the genre slightly, but director Kristian Levring goes with an old school approach. A faithful recreation of those revenge Westerns made so popular in the 1970s, The Salvation envelopes many elements of previous Clint Eastwood classics and wraps it into a tidy package.

The Salvation starts in on the central dilemma, joining Jon (Hannibal‘s Mad Mikkelsen) at the train station where he awaits the arrival of his wife and son. Jon and his brother, Peter (Mikael Persbrandt), have lived in the United States long enough to build a hospitable life for their family back in Denmark. This homecoming should be a sweet moment to establish the family important to Jon, but fate plays out rather differently. A swap at the train station places two rowdy drunks in the same stagecoach as Jon and his family–and before audiences can really settle into their seats–his wife and son are killed.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

The Theory of the Tortured Genius

2015-02-17T13:11:00.000-08:00

There was a time when geniuses were professionals who were not only good at their jobs, but pleasant to others as well. The entrenched stereotype of geniuses once labeled them as shy outsiders or tongue-tied geeks, not arrogant narcissists. Somewhere down the line, Hollywood stopped telling stories of gifted individuals who were mild-mannered and jump-started the difficult genius routine.

Take television’s long-running tortured genius, Dr. Gregory House. House, starring Hugh Laurie as the highly critical medical genius, started a trend of anti-social geniuses and audiences ate it up. For all of the highly unusual medical cases and House’s wizardry in solving them, the reason viewers tuned in was to see what exactly the caustic doctor would say next. With all of his intellect and glee in exposing hypocrisy in others, House indulged his own demons early and often. A man so talented at saving others despite his own grand self-destruction made for unique television, the industry took notice, and more series about disgruntled intellectuals came along.

Read the rest at Movie Mezzanine!

When 'Star Wars' Changed

2015-02-16T14:25:00.000-08:00

I could barely contain my excitement. Star Wars, a film I had probably watched maybe 20 or 30 times was going to be re-released theatrically. My parents weren’t big movie fans, but my uncle had offered to take me and my best friend to see it. A fitting choice considering it had been my uncle who introduced me to the Star Wars universe. He gave me the trilogy box-set after I had watched his copy of Batman (1989) so many times that I could quote lines by heart. As much as I loved Batman, Star Wars completely overwhelmed my five year old self. I loved movies already at a young age, but this was a phenomenon that the entire world could tap into.

A New Hope was now dubbed the “The Special Edition” and the picture was rumored to have millions of dollars in special effects added following it’s 20th anniversary. The inspiration to re-release the trilogy came after George Lucas saw what Industrial Lights & Magic had done with computer-generated effects for Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park. Digital effects had finally caught up with the stories filmmakers wanted to make. Now was the right time, Lucas felt, to use ILM to create his original vision for Star Wars. What these changes could add to the film was a mystery in my mind, but I already loved A New Hope, so new digital effects could only be an improvement. Right?

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

Review: The Voices

2015-02-06T12:14:00.000-08:00

Jerry (Ryan Reynolds) spends his days working the nine-to-five shift at his new job at the Milton Bathtub Factory. Jerry is chipper to the point that he may turn some people off, but he never stops trying to make friends. Friends are something that Jerry could use because the only other conversation he has is with his dog Bosco and his cat Mr. Whiskers. Things are looking up though, Jerry has been tasked with planning the company picnic and he’s asked a girl (Gemma Arterton) out on a date. Jerry is so excited to share the news he rushes home to tell his pets about Fiona. Oddly enough, both Bosco and Mr. Whiskers start talking back.

No need to go back and re-read that last sentence, yes, Ryan Reynolds has pets who talk back to him. His dog, Bosco, is quite affable, however, his cat, Mr. Whiskers, would feel right at home curled in the lap of Blofeld. Unfortunately for everyone around him, it’s the advice of the evil cat that Jerry heeds more often than not. For all of Jerry’s pleasantries, he has some severe anger issues behind that warm smile. So much so that he has a court-appointed psychiatrist (Jacki Weaver) to help him deal with his issues. So when Fiona stands him up that evening, it’s not a huge surprise that blood is shed.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

The Obsessive World of Michael Mann

2015-01-16T12:35:00.000-08:00

Michael Mann is fascinated by obsessives who work on opposite sides of the law. In fact, when you go over his filmography, it’s filled with them: loners who are hardened by choice and keep others at a constant arm’s-length, indulging in their skills instead. Starting in 1981, Mann made his first feature, Thief, about a professional safe-cracker who finds his way under the thumb of the mob. Frank (James Caan) wants what everyone else has, but can’t have it because his profession effectively keeps him on the outskirts of society.

Mann’s works always tend to lend a sympathetic eye to those perceived as criminals. Sure they break the law, yet they possess a strong value system and always abide by their respective codes. These men don’t waver, circumstances merely fail them and they adapt. It’s what makes them consummate professionals. Sure there is a thrill in watching these protagonists hone their craft, but there is more compulsion than pleasure in these acts.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

Review: Vice

2015-01-15T12:12:00.000-08:00

At this point of his career, Bruce Willis’ choices in parts are a crap shoot. While 50% of the films he makes are legitimately great (Looper and Moonrise Kingdom), the other half go straight to video and die. This latest project is a reminder that along with half-baked horror, the death knell of January is filled to the brim with bad actioners seeking a home.

With a decent cast in Willis and Thomas Jane, Vice might have been able to salvage something worth watching out of this mess, but there is no effort on the screen at all. The blame lays entirely at the feet of writers Andre Fabrizio and Jeremy Passmore and director Brian A. Miller, who worked with Willis previously on The Prince and shouldn’t have been given the chance to work again. The premise is the only interesting prospect of the film, but even that is copy and pasted from other works. Vice is two parts Westworld, one part Blade Runner and all parts awful.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

'Edge of Tomorrow' Entertains Like a Video Game, but Doesn't Hesitate to Eviscerate the Genre

2015-01-13T12:53:00.000-08:00

The premise seems familiar enough: it’s the not-too-distant future and Earth is under attack by aliens. The “Mimics” arrived by an errant asteroid and now they have taken over half of continental Europe. To help combat these hyper-intelligent aliens, humans wear armored combat suits fitted with rocket launchers and side-guns. One might even confuse the whole thing for a video game, if it didn’t have Tom Cruise’s face slapped on the poster.

Edge of Tomorrow replicates the experience of jumping into a video game through the eyes of untested combatant Major William Cage (Tom Cruise). Like most video game rookies, Cage is unfamiliar with his weaponry and panicked by the rushing hordes of attackers, he dies within minutes. And when he dies next he wakes up to the shouts of master sergeants (Bill Paxton in R. Lee Ermey mode). With each new life, Cage, mirrors other trepidatious gamers gathering their bearings in a new level, testing weapons in hopes of getting a feel before close quarters combat.

Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

Review: Predestination

2015-01-10T12:07:00.000-08:00

Walking into Predestination clean is perhaps the best advice to offer any cinephile willing to hunt down this likely future cult classic. It would be easy to just describe Predestination as Looper tossed in a blender with Minority Report, but the Spierig Brothers are going in a very different direction here. A direction that may lose a few viewers along the way.

Ethan Hawke plays a temporal agent, a time-traveling arm of the law that travels all through the ages to prevent killers from committing crimes. His next assignment, should it prove successful, will be the agent’s last. Problem with that is the criminal he is tasked with chasing is the one who has eluded him time after time. In his last tangle with the Fizzle Bomber (yes, the name sounds absurd, but roll with it), the agent momentarily apprehended his man, but the resulting blast left the agent disfigured. Now tasked with recruiting some help (played by Sarah Snook), the agent will be sent to 1975 to prevent the deaths of thousands.
Read the rest at Sound on Sight!

Review: Selma

2015-01-09T07:00:00.000-08:00

It may surprise many that Martin Luther King Jr. never received the celluloid treatment prior to Selma. Sure he had been mentioned in other historical pieces, but short of documentary footage, King was never given center stage. Quite shocking given the man's legacy and the lingering effect of his efforts still felt today. Several years of production and a director change later, Selma arrives as the film worthy of the man.
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Review: White Bird in a Blizzard

2014-11-14T13:00:00.000-08:00

Seventeen is a sentence that most prisons couldn't beat in a Pepsi challenge. Hostility bubbles just under the surface with every interaction with parents. Relationships are developed on the fly with an acute awareness of the limited shelf-life. Kat Connors (Shailene Woodley) is similarly killing time until she graduates and can leave her home life behind.
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Review: Birdman

2014-11-08T12:07:00.000-08:00

Riggan Thompson (Michael Keaton) is in need of a hit. He turned down Birdman 4 years ago and now he is largely considered washed-up. Desperate for some sense of relevance in the decades since Birdman, and against the better judgment of his agent, Riggan mounts an adaptation of Raymond Carver's What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. There is no sooner way back to prestige than by adapting, directing and starring in an acclaimed play.
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