My 2017 In Movies, Part 1

Posted: December 1, 2017 | Author: | Filed under: Brian A. Costello, Movie, Review | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Hi.  I saw some movies.

Split:  M. Night (don’t squeeze the)Shyamalan verrrry sneakily goes back to the well and successfully brings about his own career resurgence.  You probably know why by now, but in case you don’t, I’ll spoil it for you- turns out this movie is a sequel-of-sorts to Unbreakable (his best movie to date, if you asked me my opinion, which you didn’t.  Then again, you’re here, so you kinda did…).  But it’s not really a sequel until literally the absolute last shot of the movie, so let’s not dwell.  Especially since the movie we get before that reveal is really great on its own.

So, James McAvoy is a man with multiple personalities that abducts three young women.  The strongest… four (?) of these personalities manifest themselves at different times during the film, adding to the mental trauma of our captives, who, in turn, have their own strong personality differences that keep them from figuring out just what to do.  But survivor-girl has a traumatic past that may just give her an edge over McAvoy and the threat of a yet-unseen, murderous, monstrous personality that is on its way.  Also, Betty Buckley plays his shrink.

McAvoy is absolutely fantastic.  He’s usually great when playing just one role, and in this he gets to play several.  And they’re all so completely specific.  Split is proof that this guy is an actor’s actor, and while he’s been working pretty steadily for the past decade or so, I really hope he can leave the mediocre X-Men movies behind and get back to more substantial stuff like this.

Anyway, Split is great.  See it.

John Wick: Chapter 2: Hey, more highly stylized, supercrazy merc action featuring many, many fatal head wounds!  Yeah, I’m down with this whole John Wick thing and I hope they make it a trilogy.  That said, this one was slightly less fun than its predecessor… maybe because since it was a sequel it wasn’t as fresh and original?  Whatever.  Doesn’t matter.  It’s still about an underground-yet-in-plain-sight society of people killing other people quickly and brutally.  Keanu is clearly still having a blast, and that’s really all I need.  If you haven’t seen John Wick (the first one), do so, posthaste.  If you have but you skipped this one… well, you’re probably OK, if I’m being honest… but why wouldn’t you give this one a go?  It’s not like it’s asking you to postulate on the interspatial implications of thermodynamic equilibrium.  It’s just guns and punching and cars and stuff.

(uh… are the interspatial implications of thermodynamic equilibrium something one can postulate on?  Because, clearly, I pulled that one out of my butt.)

(Why, yes, my butt is where I store big words.  SO?)

The Great Wall:  Uh…lots of controversy surrounding this one, mostly of the “another movie where a white guy saves a non-white country” variety.  Turns out that’s not at all what happens.  I know this because I actually saw the movie.  And while it is told through Matt Damon’s character’s point of view, it’s so much more about the far-superior heroism of these Chinese warriors at the wall.

But none of that matters, really, because this movie is fucking dumb.

Uhhh… The end.

No, seriously, The Great Wall exists so that you can see color-specific costumed warriors going about their color-specific battle duties on top of a CGI recreation of the Great Wall of China.  Example: the blue warriors attach their feet to bungie cords and jump down into the fray so they can maybe spear an enemy or two before they get horribly mauled to death by five more baddies.  Which is completely counterintuitive- throw the damned spear from the top of the wall and maybe save a life or two instead of using a seriously convoluted method where your blue-clad ladies awkwardly bounce twenty feet below in the middle of a raging sea of razor-clawed dragon lizards.  I mean, hell- you’ve got the red-clad archers firing away already, so… oh.  Sorry.  I forgot to mention something important…

They’re not fighting Mongols.  They’re fighting giant, dragon-esque lizard creatures.  You see, these lizard creatures are sort of like locusts in that every sixty years, hordes of them come running towards the wall because there needed to be some kind of simplistic fantasy plot for this movie because I guess someone thought dragon lizards were supercool and wouldn’t it be neat if humans clad in basic vibrant colors so everyone remembers their job I guess were to fight the monsters because fantasy is so hot right now and why am I even still typing I need a drink oh god what is reality anymore and does anyone else hear the screaming or is it just in my head oh god please someone stop the screaming STOP THE SCREAMING.

Get Out:  Jordan Peele delivers a 100-minute, completely original, racially charged, reality-bending thriller that would make Rod Serling blush.  I don’t really want to say any more, in case anyone reading this hasn’t seen it (and hasn’t heard any specifics) yet.  Just know that I can’t imagine a world in which anyone watching this would be disappointed.  I’ll have to think about it a bit (and there’s still more flicks to see), but it may just be the best movie of the year.

Logan:  FINALLY.  Finally, someone let Wolverine off his leash.  I thought The Wolverine was pretty great, but it still had that “20th Century FOX superhero” sheen to it (I wrote abut it a few years back somewhere in THIS post).  This movie, though… this movie pulls out the stopper.  Opens the floodgates.  Takes off the training wheels?  No, wait… goes into berserker mode.  Whatever.  I’m off track.

I guess the future setting allowed them to do whatever they wanted, since nothing that happens in this movie could have an effect on their precious X-Man continu… it… y.  Pfff.  Too late to think about such things, FOX.  We’ve seen all those movies.  Where was I?  Right- the future.  It’s the future and old man Wolverine is living a boring life as a caretaker to the only guy who ever truly believed in him- Professor Jean-Luc Picard Xavier.  The Professor is going senile and needs medication to keep his seizures in check so he doesn’t kill everyone around him with his brain.  But Logan, who, incidentally, doesn’t quite insta-heal like he used to, crosses paths with a new mutant, smuggled out of the facility where she was created (mutants aren’t born anymore and are basically going extinct), and she, Wolvie, and Jean-Luc flee towards a (possibly fictional) mutant safe-zone while being hunted by some baddies as they trek (heh) across the country.

And what we get is an uncomfortable, brutal, and at times profound movie about generations, age, aging, fatherhood, sonhood (?), responsibility, and redemption, that, in its storytelling, isn’t afraid to get its hands dirty.  And bloody.  At times it’s similar to Unforgiven.  Other times, it reminded me of something like A Perfect World.  Part road-movie, part western, I guess.  But all great.  And in the end, it’s a perfect send-off to the role that made Hugh Jackman’s career (and, arguably, shackled him ever-so-slightly).  As far as I know he’s now done playing Wolverine, and as much as he totally owned it over the past 17 years (ho. ly. SHIT.), I’m glad he’s gone out on a film where they finally found the perfect balance between sarcasm, anger, kindness, and pathos that this character has always been about.

And, bonus!- if you only have a cursory knowledge of Wolverine (et al.) and/or have only seen a few (or none) of the other X-Movies, this one is self-contained enough for you to still enjoy.  So, enjoy!

Kong: Skull Island: “It’s OK.  Good monster fights.  Mostly lame characters.  Bad music cue decisions.  Gorgeous visuals.  Really great title character.”

(Click HERE for more.)

T2 Trainspotting: Pleasantly surprised by this movie.  And I shouldn’t have been- I should have just trusted Danny Boyle to not just lazily rehash what we’d seen before, but hey, like the characters in T2, I’m in my 40s and am naturally cynical due to the ever-creeping specter of anxiety/depression and an obligatory sense of my own mortality.

And I think maybe that’s the best way to describe T2 Trainspotting.  Those optimistic, fearless, piss-and-vinegar twentysomethings have grown up and are each dealing with their own mid-life crises.  When they get back together, all of their shared unfinished business comes out and nostalgia (for lack of a better term) gives them a quick jolt of youth, but it’s fleeting.  They still need to come to terms with who they are now.

And this is masterfully represented in the film’s direction, pacing, story, cinematography, soundtrack… literally every aspect that made the original Trainspotting such a product of mid-90s twentysomething optimism has been tweaked for mid-10s fortysomething decline.  It’s uncomfortable and it’s off-putting.  It’s pretty great.

Side note- I’m writing this brief T2 thing upon returning from a specialist who has diagnosed my sudden, intense phantom throat pain as a combination of years of reflux damage, unchecked TMJ, and horrible, horrible snoring.  BECAUSE, AGING.  Yeah, this movie hits home, hard.  All you twentysomethings out there- be afraid.  Be very afraid.

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: Yeah… couldn’t leave you with that last sentence, so let’s end this first part on a positive.  Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 is wonderful.  Funny, irreverent, cute as hell, full of heart, packed to the gills with great music… it’s a grand old time.  Don’t listen to the people calling this movie “derivative”- just because they saved the day in GOTG doesn’t mean they’re all suddenly new characters that don’t fall back on their bad habits and personalities.  Don’t listen to the people who call this movie “hollow”- those same people complain that the Marvel movies have become “too serious.”  Don’t listen to the people calling this movie “obvious”- guaranteed, they’re complaining about the convoluted plots of other comic book flicks.  Some people are just too cool for school.

But I’m not.  A sentient baby tree that dances around to ELO while a violent monster battle rages, out of focus, in the background?  I’ll take it.  A wisecracking, humanesque weaponsmith raccoon bonding with an angry blue-skinned outcast mercenary with a heart of gold?  Yeah, I’m down.  A tattooed hunk of man-meat repeatedly insulting a lovable bug-woman through an utter lack of self-awareness?  More, please.  Is the plot a little thin?  Yeah, sure.  Is the father(s)-son conflict a little muddy right up until the moment they smack you in the face with it?  Yup.  Is the general concept of family one step over the conspicuous line?  Two steps, and yes.  Does that mean the movie isn’t a joy to watch?  Fuck no.  I am Groot.

152d7f2dfe5f971c40d5b33da3a8422c06ea21cf

Stay tuned…

(Part 2 HERE, Part 3 HERE, Part 4 HERE.)

Monkey In The Middle

Posted: March 10, 2017 | Author: | Filed under: Brian A. Costello, Movie, Review | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Kong: Skull Island: Let’s talk about Kong (,baby/Let’s talk about you and me/Let’s talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be/Let’s talk about…Kong).

Oh, good.  The first thing I decide to write about in like 3 years and I’m already off track.  Abandon all hope, ye.

Kong: Skull Island is… OK.  It’s OK.  Good monster fights.  Mostly lame characters.  Bad music cue decisions.  Gorgeous visuals.  Really great title character.

OK, so, let’s talk about the bad.  Actually, “bad” isn’t accurate.  Let’s talk about the questionable.  First up, the characters: a group of soldiers, scientists, a “tracker,” a photographer, and a shot-down WWII fighter pilot.  The soldiers are almost completely forgettable.  More than half of them die upon arriving at the island, and the only reason I know I’m supposed to care is because… wait, I don’t think I know why I’m supposed to care.  Oh!  I remember- one of them was writing a letter to his child before they all set out on their mission, and he and his friend had a conversation about it, so… well, you can go ahead and finish that thought.

Sam Jackson plays Angry Military Man.  Angry because we, as a nation, abandoned his favorite war (Vietnam), and angry because a giant ape added insult to injury by showing him who’s boss on Skull Island.  So Kong becomes a symbol for Sammy’s frustration.  If he couldn’t win against the guys in ‘Nam, surely he can defeat Kong- his very own great white whale.  I did like SamJack in this.  He could have just walked through it like he is wont to do with half of his movies these days (which still works for him), but he mostly doesn’t.  He definitely stands out among his ragtag band of forgettable redshirts, but I think that’s 100% Sam, as director Jordan Vogt-Roberts seems to have abandoned his duties when it comes to his actors.  It’s like they all showed up to the game, but he was too busy fussing over the Jumbotron to call any plays.

Huh?

Shut up.

Tom Lokiddleston is… there.  He plays a “tracker” (because it takes an expert to find GIANT APE FOOTPRINTS), but really, he’s just a pretty face in a tight t-shirt.  Really not much else to say on that one.  John Goodman is… there.  He’s awkward and a little sleepy. ‘Nuff said. Corey Hawkins is pretty good, considering he’s sort of an afterthought.  Toby Kebbell is… there.  He stands out because he’s a really good Brit actor affecting a really not good southern accent.  Shea Whigham is fun.  Brie Larson is… uh…

Brie Larson plays a photographer that doesn’t take photos.  I mean, I’m sure that’s not the character as-written, but it’s the one we get.  Seriously, she survives a helicopter crash on an uncharted island with gorgeous vistas, post-war military men, and giant apes and spiders and lizards, and I’m pretty sure I saw her only take two pictures.  Of the natives. She holds the camera a lot, but really doesn’t use it.  There’s one scene where Kong is fighting a monster and we see a good 10 seconds of it through the lens of her camera.  And, yeah, it looks pretty cool.  But she never once snaps a shot of the action.  The hell?  Oh, also… she’s terrible.

John C. Reilly is the only other person worth mentioning, and he is really, really great.  I’d call him a revelation, except that implies his performance serves the narrative.  But when all is said and done it really seems more like he was borrowed from another movie.

So, the music.  Oh, man, the music.  Skull Island goes ahead and pulls a Suicide Squad on us, almost right away.  By that I mean every other scene starts with a 20-second intro featuring pop rock from the early 70s, just in case we didn’t realize that the movie takes place then (and wait… WHY did it take place in ’73?).  I mean, look, I’m all for music used to establish time period and mood, but you really can do that with ONE song.  And while it doesn’t quite reach Suicide Squad levels of glut, its overuse of Sabbath, Airplane, Bowie, Creedence, etc., is noticeable, and therefore distracting.  They even blast some tunes from their choppers during their island approach à la Apocalypse Now, but, of course, obnoxious-and-loud doesn’t sit well with big-and-hairy, so that’s gets shut down pretty quickly.  It was at this point that I thought, “hey, maybe the overuse of music in the first act is going to be offset by an utter lack of it once shit hits the fan, making the comforts of home seem even farther away for the grunts on this puff mission gone awry,” which would have worked like gangbusters.  Buuuuut no.  It returned.  Hell, they even get their speakers back up and running for the slowest river escape ever and blast more tunes, regardless of the fact that they lost most of their men to nightmare creatures THAT WILL PROBABLY HEAR ALL THAT CREEDENCE, YOU GUYS.  Sigh.  These are all great songs, too, which is awkward, because I’m basically saying, “this thing could really use LESS Creedence,” which I’m pretty sure is a crime punishable by mutilation, but… well, I’m saying it anyway.  On the plus side- it’s a great soundtrack purchase.  Which, I’m sure, was the main decision behind the whole thing.  Well, that and something along the lines of a studio number-cruncher saying, “Guardians Of The Galaxy hit a homer with its integration of music, and its sequel this year looks like it’s going to do the same, so give me more Creedence!!!”  Then he sits back and relaxes with a glass of Château Latour, unafraid of the horrors of mutilation brought on by a dearth of pop music (see above).

So… what’s good?  Well, everything else.

Boom.  The end.  Thanks for reading.

Seriously, though, the title character is GREAT.  They really did a fantastic job here with his design and animation.  They didn’t go full-on giant gorilla like Peter Jackson’s Kong. Instead they went more with the original King Kong design- a fully upright beast that almost resembles a man-ape hybrid.  Much like they did with Godzilla 2014- a total homage to the classic ‘Zilla- a lizard-like creature rather than an actual giant lizard.  This, of course, makes sense in the context of Universal Studios’ concept of a Kong/Godzilla crossover in an overreaching Monsterverse.*  These are ancient beasts that seemingly live outside of the realm of evolution, or are at least somehow the origins of each species. Much like dinosaurs in that respect.  Hey, they should make a movie where they clone these things and open a zoo-like amusement park based on the concept!  But I digress.

The other creatures are also triumphs of design.  A Giant Daddy Long Legs-like creature, giant oxen-ish beasts, an octopus-like sea creature, a supercool giant stick-bug… lizard… thing that, since it’s so big, disguises itself as a fallen tree.  Smaller, but completely deadly birds of prey (that have their way with one of the redshirts in a pretty gruesome fashion).  Really, just great, intuitively designed prehistoric creatures representing how it might be if they were allowed to live for centuries in a closed ecosystem.  Exciting stuff.  And, of course, the main antagonists, the “skullcrawlers,” are appropriately frightening as the island’s lizard apex predators.  And while I do think Vogt-Roberts may have been a little light on his character duties, he certainly has an eye for action and fight scenes.  There’s one awesome image in particular that’s stuck in my mind- Kong fighting the alpha skullcrawler, the two of them centered on screen, Kong with this hand wrapped around the crawler’s throat, the crawler’s tail wrapped around Kong, the two roaring at each other.  Sort of like a supercool 1950s monster movie poster come to “life.”

THAT’s really the stuff we came here to see.  And on that front, K:SI delivers, big time.  Now, I know I bagged on the characters a bit, but I’d be hard-pressed to figure out how to fix that stuff without having it steal screen time and momentum from big creatures fighting each other.  It’s a fine line.  In this movie’s case, less wasn’t more. Guillermo Del Toro went full-on cartoon with his humans in Pacific Rim, which bugged me to no end.  Peter Jackson went weird 1920s Hollywood-style with a some of his characters in his King Kong, which was awkward (although I think I’m down with his version of Skull Island more than this one*).  Gareth Edwards did a fine job with Godzilla’s human characters, but not quite enough with the title one.  In the long run, I get the need for actual human characters- if it’s just two hours of big monkeys grunting and punching big dinosaurs, without any relatable people, it probably wouldn’t turn out well, as cool as that sounds.  Really, what I’m trying to say here is I don’t think they’ve figured out yet how to handle the ratio between important Homo sapiens and big-assed awesome monster hijinks.

But, ultimately, I’m calling this one a win.  I didn’t really let it sink in enough before I posted an initial reaction on BookFace, in which I said it’s OK to wait for a home release.  This was an error on my part.  This movie needs your love (and your $$) so they can keep making and improving on them.  Also, while I stand by my Godzilla review from a few years back, I have come to appreciate that movie SO much more.  Seriously, each time I watch it I find more to dig.  Will that happen with Kong: Skull Island?  Dunno.  But I’m hoping so.  Hey, worst-case scenario is it’s a skip-to-the-monster-bits movie.  I can live with that.

Mollusk

*Stay through the credits.

**Kong 2008 is way too long, but if you skip the first act, start it at the island arrival, and watch to the end, you’re golden.  Also, Extended Cut is better.