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Ant-Man (2015)

July 31, 2015

Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas, Corey Stoll
Director: Peyton Reed (Yes Man, The Break-Up, Bring It On)

Bottom Line: When Edgar Wright (Shaun Of The Dead, Scott Pilgrim Vs The World dropped out of directing Ant-Man, I have to say my hopes for the film decreased drastically. I’m happy to report that Peyton Reed’s Ant-Man is a nice surprise and a great addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It probably didn’t hurt that Wright stayed on as a screenwriter and executive producer, thus having a say in keeping his original vision somewhat in tact.

Ant-Man stars Paul Rudd as Scott Lang, a convict fresh out of jail, looking to find work and live the straight life so he can be a good father to his daughter. Unable to hold a job due to his criminal past, Lang teams up with a dopey group of robbers for a heist that he hopes can provide him with enough financial security to keep up on his child support. Unfortunately for this group of “wombats,” they are being set up so that Scott can break into a safe and discover the Ant-Man suit, left behind by Hank Pym (Michael Douglas). Hank wants Scott to become the Ant-Man because his old company is now being run by Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), a sketchy guy close to unraveling the secret behind the Ant-Man technology and selling it off to questionable government officials, something Hank has long feared could happen.

Paul Rudd was perfect casting as our reluctant hero. A solid comic actor, Rudd seamlessly steps into the role of superhero while infusing Ant-Man with plenty of laughs. In fact, Ant-Man is even funnier than Gaurdians Of The Galaxy, which I thought was hilarious the first time I watched it. Michael Pena, in particular, really steals the show as one of Lang’s ex-convict/robber friends, providing plenty of the film’s funniest lines and moments. The rest of the supporting cast is decent in their roles.

Ant-Man was more fun than the last Avengers movie and it will be interesting to see how Scott Lang fits in with earth’s mightiest heroes when they inevitably cross paths. I will offer a minor spoiler in saying that an Avenger makes a cameo in Ant-Man and it’s quite easily the highlight of the film.

There is a lot that can go wrong with a superhero whose main abilities are shrinking in size and interacting with ants. Ant-Man balances the absurd with a perfect blend of seriousness and humor. It’s pretty funny to see the film cut away from micro-sized, but intense action sequences and pan out to see what the carnage looks like from a human’s POV – in other words, like a whole lot of nothing. The visuals in the film are well done as technology has come a long way since Honey, I Shrunk The Kids. I thought Ant-Man would be must see in 3D, and maybe it is, but watching it in 3D didn’t really add any wow factor.

Ant-Man is a great entry into the MCU, providing a fun story with plenty of good action and tons of comedy.

Replay Value: Definitely worth seeing again but it will be interesting to see how well the comedy holds up on repeat viewings.
Sequel Potential: Ant-Man will probably make multiple appearances in other Marvel movies before appearing in his own sequel.
Oscar Potential: Possibly some visual effects attention.

Grade: 7/10 (Must See)

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Predestination (2014)

July 22, 2015

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook, Noah Taylor
Director: The Spierig Brothers

Bottom Line: I’m not going to lie: this sci-fi, futuristic time traveler made my head spin… with joy. Predestination is chock full of wonderful twists, turns, and time travelling paradoxes. Ethan Hawke plays a time-jumping Temporal Agent whose job is to prevent future killers from ever getting a chance to commit their crimes. On his latest assignment, he’s posing as a bartender when he runs into a customer (Snook) that promises to tell him the best story he’s ever heard. “His” tragic story of abandonment, lost love, and gender reassignment sets the stage for a series of surprises and a mind-bending journey through time.

Predestination requires one’s full attention. It’s not the kind of movie where you can multitask and get the full experience. If you blink, you might miss a crucial plot development. The first couple twists are pretty surprising, but eventually it’s pretty easy to guess what is coming – although that doesn’t make it any less fun. This movie breaks pretty much every time travelling rule you can think of and it would be very easy for things to get hokey, but the filmmakers take the developments seriously and Predestination totally works despite it’s many potential pitfalls.

I thought Sarah Snook gave an incredible performance in this movie. She’s tasked with a role that is built for award season yet somehow Predestination has been overlooked by pretty much everybody. It’s one of the better performances in all of 2014 – a true can’t miss.

Predestination just might wind up a cult/genre classic. It’s a riveting story with a knockout performance from Snook and a far more entertaining 2014 Ethan Hawke film than the overrated Boyhood which somehow got showered with all the awards attention. It’s a must see for sci-fi fans and I’d strongly recommend it to everyone else too.

Replay Value: A second viewing is probably required.
Sequel Potential: This should be a one and done.
Oscar Potential: Sarah Snook was certainly robbed. Really makes me wonder if this will be considered a 2015 film.

Grade: 7/10 (Must See)

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Pitch Perfect 2 (2015)

July 20, 2015

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Hailee Steinfeld, Brittany Snow
Director: Elizabeth Banks

Bottom Line: Pitch Perfect 2 is a worthy follow-up to the surprisingly enjoyable original. This time the Barden Bellas enter an international competition after embarrassing themselves in a performance at the Lincoln Center. Elizabeth Banks’ directorial debut is a safe one: more of the same with characters and actresses she’s already familiar with. The girls are just as funny as they were the first time around and there are plenty of welcome additions. Hailee Steinfeld fits right in with the rest of the group and the German group the girls battle throughout the film make for a worthy, often hilarious foil. The best addition to the cast is Keegan-Michael Key who absolutely kills it as Anna Kendrick’s boss at the record company her character works for.

The weak parts of the film are the same as the first one. The two announcers, played by Banks and John Michael Higgins, are Dodgeball clones and they just aren’t that funny. In a movie where everyone else is naturally amusing it feels like these characters are trying way too hard – and not succeeding very often. Also, just like in the first film, the male leads are indistinguishable. Obviously this is a female driven film, but since that’s the case, why even have these pointless male characters? At least Adam Devine’s Thumper continues to steal some scenes.

Pitch Perfect 2 doesn’t switch up the formula of the first film, but if you liked the original, this is a fun, satisfying sequel with some nice additions to the cast, more quality mashups, and a pretty sweet finale.

Replay Value: I could sit through both movies again and I’d watch a third one.
Sequel Potential: Pitch Perfect 3 is due out in 2017 with Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson already aboard.
Oscar Potential: None.

Grade: 6/10 (Recommended)

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Terminator: Genisys (2015)

July 19, 2015

Starring: Emilia Clarke, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jai Courtney, Jason Clarke
Director: Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World, Game Of Thrones)

Bottom Line: I was pretty disappointed with Terminator: Genisys as it was up there with Jurassic World as one of my most anticipated movies of the summer. Granted, the Terminator franchise hasn’t been particularly riveting since James Cameron left it behind more than 20 years ago after T2: Judgement Day. But with Game Of Throne‘s Emilia Clarke taking over as Sarah Connor and what looked like a strong trailer, I was pretty stoked.

Terminator: Genisys starts off just before the first movie began, with John Connor (Jason Clarke) sending one of his soldiers back in time to protect his mother. This time, just before Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) time jumps, it looks like John Connor is taken by surprise and when Reese arrives back in 1984, Sarah Connor is ready for him – and so is a T-800 model she has affectionately named “Pops.” I thought this was a pretty unique twist and was looking forward to where the story would go from there. Unfortunately, the movie keeps twisting and turning until it twists so absurdly that I practically lost all interest in what I was watching.

Emilia Clarke was predictably awesome as Sarah Connor and it was fun to see Arnold Schwarzenegger back in his most iconic role, but the casting of Jai Courtney and Jason Clarke was just atrocious. Courtney gave an extremely limp performance as there was no believable chemistry between Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor and I don’t know what it is about Jason Clarke, but he has a face I just want to punch. I really felt like these two casting decisions brought the overall quality of the film way down.

Terminator: Genisys has some good action sequences and plenty of call backs to the first two films, but I suspect fans of the franchise will feel pretty mixed about this entry. The story is just a bit too hokey for me, personally, and the critics have ripped this movie to shreds. Proceed with caution.

Replay Value: This was slightly more appealing than the last two Terminator movies, both of which I only watched once.
Sequel Potential: The franchise is over 30 years old, but Arnold isn’t getting any younger. Still, Arnold’s retirement won’t stop Hollywood from making these movies.
Oscar Potential: Maybe some visual effects.

Grade: 5/10 (Watchable)

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Inside Out (2015)

June 29, 2015

Starring: Amy Poehler, Mindy Kaling, Phyllis Smith, Bill Hader, Lewis Black
Director: Pete Docter (Up, Monsters Inc.), Ronaldo Del Carmen

Bottom Line: Boy, I hate to say it, but Pixar’s Inside Out is one of the most overrated movies I’ve ever seen. It’s at 98% on Rotten Tomatoes and 8.8 on IMDB with a top 60 ranking in their top 250 of all-time. Those are extremely strong ratings and with Pixar’s nearly flawless track record (I’m looking at you Cars 1 and 2) the superlatives being tossed around concerning this movie seemed quite reasonable. When my wife turned to me about thirty minutes into it and asked “is it almost over?” I had a sad moment of realization that Pixar had dropped the ball on this one.

Now, I don’t want to say Inside Out was bad, but it was dangerously close to bad – and it certainly wasn’t the borderline classic critics have made it out to be. It’s the story of a young girl named Riley and the emotions in her head (Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust, and Fear) as her family moves from Minnesota to the busy city of San Francisco, leaving behind friends, memories, and the frozen lakes she used to play hockey on. It’s actually a pretty good concept, but the setting of a girl’s head is tough terrain and I really didn’t think the execution was all that great. Inside Out is at its best when all the emotions are together in “Headquarters” interacting with each other hilariously, but Joy and Sadness quickly get separated from the rest of the crew and things get… quite a bit messy and surprisingly boring. During their quest to save “Friendship Island,” “Hockey Island,” “Family Island,” etc. from collapsing and disappearing from Riley’s memory forever, the duo encounter Riley’s old imaginary friend Bing Bong, a cotton candy/elephant/dolphin hybrid that is about as pleasing as Jar Jar Binks was. Seriously. Once the conflict starts in Inside Out and Joy and Sadness take a tour through Riley’s head when the depressing reality of moving to San Francisco really kicks in, the movie’s momentum halts and the story feels like a drag. The best moments of the movie take place outside Riley’s head and that’s a problem.

As usual, Pixar does a good job in the animation department. It’s little wonder that the Bay Area-based company could bring San Francisco to life with such amazing detail. I particularly liked Riley’s encounter with broccoli pizza and SF’s ubiquitous dedication to organic foods – an especially funny touch considering I visited SF last week and the one restaurant I ate in offered only organic food. The voice talent is also well cast and does a good job. The concept and story here are pretty good, I just expected it to be better.

Overall, I found Inside Out to be funny at times and I liked Riley’s story, but I didn’t much care for what was going on with the emotions inside her head – those were the scenes where you just want it to be over already. The themes of growing up were somewhat touching, but they were so much more powerful and well done in Toy Story 3. I also felt like Inside Out was more tailored for kids only than almost any Pixar movie I’ve ever seen. Inside Out isn’t terrible – I would definitely recommend it to families – but it was a massive disappointment for me personally.

Replay Value: I don’t know if I can watch this movie again, but I feel like I might owe it another viewing.
Sequel Potential: Highly likely.
Oscar Potential: Basically a shoo-in for Best Animated movie based on the critic’s reviews.

Grade: 5.5/10 (Watchable/Recommended)

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Theory Of Everything (2014)

June 22, 2015

Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones
Director: James Marsh (Man On Wire)

Bottom Line: It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what didn’t sit right with me about The Theory Of Everything, but I just can’t say I loved it. It’s a biopic about the relationship between renowned scientist Stephen Hawking and his first wife Jane Wilde – and maybe that’s my problem. This is a movie about falling in and out of love, while Stephen’s remarkable achievements in science and his impossible fight to stay alive with ALS feel like background music. That’s not to say the story isn’t interesting or touching – the performances from Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones are nothing short of remarkable – I just wanted the movie to help me understand what makes Hawking so important to scientific theory, how he defied the odds of ALS, and how he was able to author what is arguably the most notable book of science in our history despite all his physical limitations. The Theory Of Everything skims over all this, at best. What we are left with is two great performances in a mildly moving romcom about a man that is noteworthy for so many other reasons. For 2014 biopics about historic scholars, The Imitation Game is much more my speed.

Replay Value: Feels like a one and done film to me.
Sequel Potential: Biopic, so no.
Oscar Potential: Eddie Redmayne won Best Actor and the film was nominated for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Score, as well as Felicity Jones for Best Actress.

Grade: 6/10 (Recommended)

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Jurassic World (2015)

June 13, 2015

Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Ty Simpkins, Vincent D’Onofrio
Director: Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed)

Bottom Line: I remember when rumblings of a Jurassic Park 4 first started and there were rumors of dinos with guns in the plot and I can’t say I was excited about the prospects for that film. I am happy to report that while some aspects of that concept made it into Jurassic World – in the form of trained raptors and Vincent D’Onofrio’s character wanting to use dinosaurs for military purposes – this movie is much more in the spirit of the first JP film.

From the moment I heard that Jurassic World would feature a functioning park, I couldn’t wait to see it on the big screen. As a huge fan of amusement parks, an operational version of John Hammond’s vision from the first film really intrigued me and the creators of this film bring Jurassic World to life in stunning detail – it looks and feels like a combination of Universal Studios, a high quality zoo, with a splash of SeaWorld. Indeed, the scene-stealing Mosasaur is set up very much like Shamu. The set designers do an incredible job and the park is set up exactly as it looks on the impressive Jurassic World website. We have a petting zoo with young dinosaurs, kayaking down a prehistoric river, and venturing into the fields with live dinos in the (not so) indestructible Gyrosphere. The dinosaurs also look great, but it’s an interesting testament to Steven Spielberg’s original visual effects team how little improvement there has been in that department since the 1993 film.

The plot is similar to past films – a couple of kids make the trip to the island to visit their aunt and tour the park before all hell breaks loose when the Indominus Rex escapes its paddock. The what? Ah yes. In this movie, the park has been open for ten years or so and attendance has dropped while watching a T-Rex feed has become as ho-hum as checking out a tiger at the local zoo. So much like our real world would, the powers-that-be ponder how to turn things around and come up with the idea of creating their own dinosaur: the Indominus Rex, a combination of the tyrannosaur and something else everyone will be able to guess before they even realize it’s supposed to be a surprise. Watching the I-Rex cause carnage is great summer blockbuster fun and seeing velociraptors respond to human training was far less lame than I was expecting.

Like all the Jurassic Park sequels and quite unlike the original, the cast plays second fiddle to the dinosaurs. Chris Pratt is always enjoyable, but as Owen Grady, the raptor whisperer, his usual welcome charm and sense of humor is far less prominent than it has been in most of his other roles. Bryce Dallas Howard is okay as the kids’ aunt and park operations manager; I can’t think of any role of hers that I’ve ever thought she’s been particularly good in and this one is no different. The best addition to the cast has to be Jake Johnson (of “New Girl”), who plays a control operator rocking a vintage Jurassic Park t-shirt he found on eBay and gets most of the films laughs.

Jurassic World was about as satisfying as I could have hoped for. It’s visually stunning, action packed, and plenty of fun. Michael Crichton and John Hammond would be proud.

Replay Value: I already want to see it again and I think it’s a minor travesty that I didn’t watch it in Imax 3D.
Sequel Potential: This franchise probably won’t die before I do.
Oscar Potential: Set design, visual effects, and sound all have strong chances through the first half of 2015.

Grade: 7/10 (Must See)

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Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

May 25, 2015

Starring: Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron
Director: George Miller (Mad Max, Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, Happy Feet)

Bottom Line: I felt it necessary to watch the original Mad Max and it’s sequel The Road Warrior to prime myself for George Miller’s 2015 update of his defining franchise. I can assure you, these films are not essential prerequisites. I liked them okay, particularly The Road Warrior, but they have little to do with Fury Road.

Actually, Fury Road is the Mad Max world on steroids – it’s Barry Bonds. George Miller waited thirty years to update this franchise and Fury Road wastes little time establishing itself as the new bar for cinematic action. We are briefly introduced to Tom Hardy’s version of Max Rockatansky before being plunged into a chaotic post-apocalyptic world and a heart-stopping vehicle chase. Miller leaves it up to us to figure out the who and the why as the story develops… and I’ll tell you, I can’t remember being so entertained by a movie where I have almost no idea what’s going on. Fortunately, there is time to fill in the blanks later as Fury Road adds a bit of character development in between its absurdly intense action sequences.

Fury Road is big time cinema at it’s finest. Miller’s world is meticulously crafted – from the costumes, to the set designs, to the vehicles, to the score – it’s all top notch and perfectly executed. It may be grimy, but Fury Road is a truly beautiful film. No dollar in this budget was wasted. Mad Max: Fury Road may be all George Miller, but his cast does great also. Tom Hardy is good enough in the Max role to make you forget about Mel Gibson and Charlize Theron’s Imperator Furiosa is the story’s true hero and Theron knocks it out of the park.

Calling this movie a sequel or a reboot is really doing it a disservice. It pays tribute to the concept of the original run of films while improving on them in every possible way. Perhaps it’s not so bad for Hollywood to constantly rehash old ideas if it’s capable of occasionally producing something as awesome as Mad Max: Fury Road. George Miller has quite possibly crafted a modern classic.

Replay Value: I’d watch this again in theaters and it feels like a must own for the blu-ray collection.
Sequel Potential: Mad Max: The Wasteland has already been announced with Tom Hardy attached to star and George Miller writing, but if Miller isn’t directing mark me as skeptical.
Oscar Potential: Fury Road should have no problems scooping up nominations for some of the technical aspects, particularly costume and set design, sound, editing, etc., and it may have an outside chance at Best Picture and Best Director.

Grade: 8.5/10 (Excellent/Blew My Mind)

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Pitch Perfect (2012)

May 25, 2015

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, Anna Camp, Rebel Wilson
Director: Jason Moore

Bottom Line: I’m not going to waste of bunch of time thinking about what I want to say about a movie that came out three years ago, so I’ll be quick: I liked Pitch Perfect. I’m a fan of well done musicals (think Moulin Rouge or Chicago) and I even enjoyed the first season of Glee. Pitch Perfect feels like a mashup of those two worlds along with the common cinematic theme of a group of ragtag wannabes overcoming their differences to achieve greatness. It’s funny, the musical numbers and singing are well done, the acting is… mostly decent and, by gosh, you actually want to root for these girls. Anna Kendrick has been mostly forgettable to me up to this point in her career, but Pitch Perfect propels her to star status as I loved her in this movie. Rebel Wilson is also great. Consider me a fan and sign me up for the sequel.

Replay Value: Fun movie that could be seen again.
Sequel Potential: In theaters now…
Oscar Potential: None.

Grade: 6/10 (Recommended)

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The Gambler (2014)

May 24, 2015

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Brie Larsen, John Goodman, Jessica Lange
Director: Rupert Wyatt (Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes)

Bottom Line: “One man, two lives.” More like no life. And there’s very little life in Rupert Wyatt’s remake of 1974’s The Gambler starring James Caan. Mark Wahlberg plays a college literature professor who not only seems to get off on gambling for high stakes, but also on belittling the people that deal the cards. He treats his mother like she’s another loan shark and makes sure his students know they are unimportant in the grand scope of the world. He borrows money liberally and paying it back is of little concern to him – he’d rather borrow more and take a shot with it. And his style of betting is pretty detrimental. If you bet everything you have and then double your bet every time you win, there’s only one possible outcome: eventually you will lose it all. Because of this, there is very little tension during the gambling scenes. You know what’s going to happen and, even worse, you want it to. Because this is a man that no one could possibly ever want to root for. You want a good, tense gambling scene? Watch In America and wait for the family to go the fair.

I find Mark Wahlberg’s acting to be pretty hit or miss and, for me, The Gambler was a miss. Perhaps it’s a function of a weak script, but I had a really hard time taking his character seriously in this movie. The performance pretty much amounts to strutting around with a smirk on his face and acting like he’s better than everyone else. This guy is at rock bottom and you’d never know it if you were an outsider. He asks someone in his class “do I look happy?” and even though the answer is supposed to be an implied no, he actually seems pretty content with his situation. As one character says to him: “you want to lose” and it sure seems true.

As someone that has had gambling and alcohol dominate their life to the point of bottoming out on multiple occasions, The Gambler just didn’t feel very authentic to me. I can relate to the compulsion of gambling my last dollar and I can even relate to borrowing money to gamble while worrying about how I’ll pay it back later. But what I can’t relate to is a man with no glimpse of humanity. There isn’t a second in this film where they show you even a morsel of someone with a soul. I just never got the feeling that he felt the true gravity of his situation or that he even cared. And if he doesn’t care, why should we?

Replay Value: I can’t imagine watching this again.
Sequel Potential: None.
Oscar Potential: Shut out at the Oscars.

Grade: 4.5/10 (Forgettable/Watchable)

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