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Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Let's Go Out To The Movies: The Best of Me (No MPAA Rating As Of Publication Date - Relativity Media - 2 hrs, 26 mins)

The Best of Me (2014) Poster
Directed by Micheal Hoffman
Written by J. Mills Goods, Will Fetters,
and Micheal Hoffman
Alo Party Peoples.

The Best of Me is one of those movies where there isn't much to talk about. It's a sad, somewhat tragic romance story laser-focused on the wallets of older, middle class married couples on their night out. While it's a perfectly good version of exactly what it aims to be, there isn't much to make it stand out among a plenitude of similar movies.

Adapted from a novel of the same name by one Nichols Sparks, our story concerns one Dawson Cole, a high school senior with an interest in physics that has the misfortune of coming from a backwoods, redneck family in the middle of the Louisiana back country. He's also a mechanic, which helps him when he helps a well to do young woman by the name of Amanda Collier with car trouble, and falls in love at first sight. Unfortunately for them, Dawson's father doesn't want his son putting on airs of being better/smarter than his pap, and Amanda's father doesn't want her associating with apparent white-trash (that's not me, the boy's family calls themselves that) and they must stay apart...

...until Dawson's father gets abusive one night, and runs away to break into his uncle Ted's house to live with him. He's alright with him seeing Amanda, but Dawson's pap definitely isn't and pays him a visit in the one scene where The Best of Me comes to life. As the elder Coles show up to repossess their son, Ted comes out with a shotgun and tells them to back off. When they refuse, he fires at the windshield of their pickup truck and informs them that it will cost around a thousand dollars in repairs. He does this again with the floodlights, five hundred dollars each. Nearly the entire audience at my press screening cracked up at this, myself included.

They have a relationship, and twenty years later they've moved on. Dawson has become an oil driller, and Amanda works for a non-profit legal firm defending child's rights. They are reunited when they learn that their benefactor Ted has passed away, and left their old cabin to them. Will they decide that they are content with their current lives, or that their childhood fling really was destiny?

There really isn't much for me to say. It's well shot, acted well, there aren't any plot holes to discuss, but there isn't any there there, if you know what I mean. There are some other films that came out this year that I was reminded of, in particular The Fault In Our Stars and If I Stay, but The Best of Me lacks the former's genuine indie charm and the latter's cinematographic flare.

The Best of Me comes out in the US on October 17th, and while I'm told that many women are looking forward to it, I can't think of a reason why this needs to be seen in a theatre. It's more or less a really good Lifetime original movie, and when it ends up in syndication on that channel, it will be worth leaving on in the background.

Have a nice day.

Greg.B

Saturday, September 20, 2014

Let's Go Out To The Movies: The Maze Runner (PG-13 - 20th Century Fox - 1 hr, 43 mins)

Alo Party Peoples.

Directed by Wes Ball
Written by Noah Oppenheim,
Grant Pierce Myers and T.S. Nowlin
The Maze Runner is another situation like Divergent in that it is a movie based on the first installment of a YA book series that I probably would not be aware of if not for two things. 1) it's the only thing coming out this week, and 2) my younger sister really wanted to see it. It's no secret by now that I have a certain bit of disdain for the YA genre. It isn't even a genre, its a marketing term, and quite a few of the films coming out under that marketing term are terrible, cheap cash-ins on the current phenomenon of vaguely dystopic SF in the wake of The Hunger Games' runaway success.

Considering that pedigree, my expectations for Maze Runner were that it would be "Hunger Games for boys with all the socioeconomic metaphors stripped out", and it is essentially that, but it also turns out to be a mediocre if serviceable genre entry, that completely falls apart by the end. Darn.

Our story concerns a group of seemingly abducted boys with no memory of their past lives besides their names, living in a forest Glade surrounded on all sides by a gigantic maze filled with cyborg slug monsters called "Grievers" that keep them inside said maze. Every day, the boys send Runners into the maze to search for a way out, a task made difficult by the fact that the walls of the maze rearrange themselves every night, when the maze closes and the cyborg slugs come out to play. When our nominal hero Thomas shows up, things start to change. Supply lines from the maze's unseen creators start to dry up, and the first girl shows up in the Glade, something that seemingly angers the Grievers enough for them to abandon their nocturnal habits and start attacking the camp. This eventually incites Lord of the Flies style shenanigans that threaten to destroy the tenuous community of the Glade.

I couldn't find any good pictures of the
Grievers online, so here's my rendition.
If there is anything to say about The Maze Runner, it's that it does feel like Hunger Games for boys with all the socioeconomic allegory stripped out in favor of setting up and solving various puzzles. It also looks pretty good, not terribly inventive, but well executed and it has it's own identity. If shown clips from Maze Runner along side Divergent or Hunger Games, one could tell them apart. The maze itself looks gorgeous, and the Grievers are interestingly designed, unfortunately, we barely get to see them amid the handheld cinematography and a couple of baffling editing decisions.

In particular, Thomas just ran into the maze at night to help an injured Runner, and they come across a Griever. They start running for the nearest corridor, which is slowly becoming more narrow. The Runner hopes that they can get through in time and seal themselves off from the slug. Thomas has other ideas, and lures it towards the narrowing walls, but instead of us seeing the result of our hero's ingenuity and quick thinking, we just cut to the injured one screaming and then to the next morning as they exit the maze.

It is actually marginally interesting to see the relations between the boys play out, but the more that gets revealed about the nature of the maze and why it exists, the less interesting things get, culminating in a "twist", that instead of having been built up by the preceding film, feels tacked on in order to get potential sequels. In fact, I had to check to be sure that it wasn't a Shyalaman gig.

The Maze Runner, isn't terribly compelling stuff, but it at least has it's own identity, and when held against it's contemporaries it's a piece of fried gold, but that isn't saying much. There's a reason this was dumped in September.

Have a nice day.

Greg.B

Saturday, September 13, 2014

Let's (Not) Go Out To The Movies: The Zero Theorem (R - Amplify - 1 hr,46 mins)

Directed by Terry Gilliam
Written by Pat Rushin
Alo Party Peoples.

Sweet buttery Jesus, are we still in the annual dead zone? Is the only big release this weekend a kids movie about a dolphin with a prosthetic tail fin? Has my Doctor Who column failed to attract any real readership, and in fact has less readers with each post? The answer to all of those questions is yes, so it's time to do another on demand release.

The Zero Theorem is like Lucy in the sense that it is a bizarre, frequently beautiful, stylistically director driven, arthouse sci-fi movie, but unlike Lucy, it might have an actual point to make, or at least a comprehensible point. Namely, one about the big advance of the 21st Century so far.

Our story concerns Christoph Waltz as one Qohen Leth, a computer programmer in a dystopic future where nearly all human interaction has been confined to cyberspace, to the extent that the physical world seems to be crumbling around him. He's trying to get a disability charge so he can do his coding from home. This is for two reasons. 1) He never interacts with his coworkers anyway, so he feels there is no reason for him to bother with the formality of an office, and 2) so he doesn't miss a phone call that he thinks will tell him the meaning of his life. Since the film portrays him as an interchangeable part of the corporate machine, he is even referred to as a "tool" on multiple occasions, I can see why he would want such a call.

One day, management informs him that he gets his wish, but on the condition that he takes on a certain project for them. Providing a proof of the titular "zero theorem", a theoretical math equation in which zero equals one hundred percent, proving that all is for nothing, and that life has no meaning. Into the mix come Lucas Hedges as Bob, management's computer whiz teenage son who is also looking for a meaning in life, and Mélanie Thierry as Bainsley, a woman hired to arouse Qohen out of his delusions.

The Zero Theorem is a tragedy concerned with the way that our modern digital world can make one feel quite small. The way it can seem that people are little more than integers in one great machine, and that we are insignificant amid the torrent of data we are constantly surrounded by. Like all is for nothing. I'm not sure it quite articulates that point, but it at least knows what it's trying to say.

The assembled cast is terrific, Christoph Waltz perfectly sells the mannerisms of a man that has locked himself up surrounded by screens waiting for someone to hand him a purpose for existence. Mélanie Thierry is a scarily compelling onscreen presence, although at times it feels like the only reasons she's here is because that makes it easy for certain scenes to feel like they're about to turn into a pornographic film at any moment.

The whole film takes place on intricately detailed and elaborate sets, portraying a sort of dystopic neon-cyberpunk urban decay, and Terry Gilliam's direction takes full advantage of them, it's something that has to be seen to be believed. The way it depicts programming is a strange and strangely plausible new interface composed of vertically oriented screens, tablet/game controller hybrids in place of keyboards, and an operating system that resembles a mix between Tetris and a flight simulator. Anyone else headed to the Oscars for Production Design should just stay home.

The Zero Theorem is a movie that has big game to talk, but doesn't hit it out of the park. It is an ambitious work, but parts of it feel like it is too constrained by budget for it's own ambitions, and it doesn't quite make sense by the end. It already got a theatrical run in various parts of the world, but just came out on demand in the United States before a limited theatrical release next weekend. What's my verdict? It is a spectacularly assembled movie, and you should give it a chance, if for no other reason than you probably won't find anything else like it.

Have a nice day.

Greg.B

Sunday, September 7, 2014

TV Time: Doctor Who Recaps: Series 8 Episode 3, Robot of Sherwood. (TVPG - BBCAmerica - 45 mins)

Alo Party Peoples.

Note- Sorry about the delay on this one. You see, American football season just started up, and my parents had the TV last night. Fortunately, due to time shifting technologies, this is much less of an issue. Alright, now let's talk about Robot of Sherwood.- End Note.
Robot of Sherwood (2014) Poster
Written by Mark Gattis
Directed by Paul Murphy

Finally, an episode this season that is genuinely good, and one where the Twelfth Doctor doesn't come off as a complete jerk. Would you look at that, it's also the first one this season that wasn't written by Steven Moffat. Personally, I don't think that's a coincidence.

Anyways, our story involves Clara and the Doctor arriving in twelfth century England since she really wanted to see Robin Hood. The Doctor was resistant to this idea, mostly because Robin Hood never existed, but he heads there anyways. As he exits the TARDIS, an arrow fired by an impossibly charismatic man in green impales the door. Much to the Doctor's shock, and Clara's delight, this seems to indeed be Robin Hood. After some banter, he introduces our heroes to his band of Merry Men, and head off to an archery contest.

Where it is discovered that the Sheriff of Nottingham has aligned himself with some visiting aliens and has been pillaging the local's gold to repair their ship. Now the Doctor must work with the legend to save the land, and discover why someone that doesn't exist seems to be here.

I would head into the usual recap, but this episode isn't quite suited for that. This is a comedy episode, and a good one. In spots, I was reminded of the wordy skit type humor of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, or alternatively, it's more focused cousin The Princess Bride.

The cast is terrific. Jenna Coleman and Peter Capaldi come off as an old married couple, in a good way this time, and they picked a fantastic Robin Hood in one Tom Riley. He plays off of Capaldi's Doctor fantastically, and writer Mark Gattis has some fantastic banter for them to exchange.

That's all I can say about this one. It's a solid comedy, some good performances, and it is the first good episode this season. Next time, it looks like we're getting a horror episode written by Steven Moffat. I, have mixed feelings about his. On the one hand, Moffat hasn't been that good since Let's Kill Hitler and the midpoint of series 6. On the other hand, his horror episodes during the Davies era were some of the show's best episodes. This next episode will get the benefit of the doubt.

Have a nice day.

Greg.B

Thursday, September 4, 2014

Let's Talk About Movies: Why I Love Them

Alo Party Peoples.

Well, it's September, and the only thing of note that came out this week was the 20th anniversary re-release of Forrest Gump. So I guess it's as good a time as any to say some things about why I love the movies. This was inspired by an article written by Film Critic Hulk in which he listed a bunch of reasons why he loves movies. This guy writes really long, really well thought out analysis of films, film making, and the film industry, while speaking in the voice of The Incredible Hulk, i.e. in the third person and in all caps. Anyways, let's get to the reasons, typed them in the order that they came to my mind.

Mr. Byrne, why do you love movies?

Well....

  • Because a small suburban town can become a metaphorical Eden through the magic of Photoshop.
  • Because of the joy of a well composed and put together musical score.
  • Because of Andrew Niccol's ability to write real human drama in fantastical settings.
  • Because visual effects have progressed to the point that they can depict the impossible in a way that feels possible.
  • Because they have progressed to the point where the uncanny valley can be evoked unintentionally.
  • Because Jim Carrey can do more than just be crazy.
  • Because of Christopher Nolan's skill in blending sophisticated writing with exciting onscreen spectacle.
  • Because we are Groot.
  • Because of good times watching them with my father at the Studio Movie Grills on Royal and Spring Valley.
  • Because Phil Lord and Chris Miller can make something as stupid sounding as a feature length Lego movie into something worthwhile.
  • Because The Fault In Our Stars can come out of the same year as Divergent, The Giver, and If I Stay.
  • Because this shot from Pleasantville stood out in child me's mind, and inspired me to come back to the film years later, and I learned to see subtext and allegory.
  • Because a talented enough assembly of people can make you care about the fates of a space raccoon and a tree man.
  • Because of Joss Whedon's skill at managing ensemble casts and writing entertaining banter.
  • Because of Andy Serkis' skill at filling digital makeup.
  • Because a premise like "let's put Tom Cruise in a cross between Aliens and Groundhog Day that looks and sounds like Mass Effect" can actually result in a solid and entertaining movie.
  • Because they can use the medium of video to do amazing and medium-specific things.
  • Because of the visceral excitement of seeing Gravity on the big screen.
  • Because of Scarlet Johansson's looks being just a fortunate bonus to her skill as an actress.
  • Because of general movie magic.
  • Because a studio was willing to take a risk on something as bat s*** insane as Lucy, even if it didn't quite work.
  • Because they can entertain.
  • Because they can educate.
  • Because they can convey a message.
  • Because all of that means they have great and influential power.
That's why. What sorts of reasons do you love movies? I'd love to know.