Guardians of the Galaxy review

                  Marvel studios (ever heard of them?) gambled the entire summer on “Guardians of the Galaxy,” a movie based on one of their C-list comic book titles. Not only is this property obscure by fanboy standards, but the film’s two biggest stars, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel, are used only to voice a CGI raccoon and a talking tree, while the physically present lead characters are cast from sit-coms and televised wrestling. But it’s the against-all-odds weirdness of this concoction and the risk the studio was willing take on it that kind of gives the entire movie its anarchistic charge and underdog illusion. I say illusion of course because what the success of Guardians really proves is the apparent indestructibility of Marvel’s box-office brand and the strength of their classic studio approach.

                What writer/director James Gunn understands about this material is that the plot can be as simple and as unambitious as it is here, so long as we are on board with the characters and their journey.  Having come from the world of cult-horror and exploitation cinema, such as “Tromeo and Juliet” and “Slither,” as well as low-budget superhero parodies such as “Super” and “The Specials,” he knows exactly where to pitch the difficult tone of this idiosyncratic genre-meld.  As a fan, Gunn celebrates all of the movie’s disparate components—space-opera, buddy-comedy, superhero blockbuster—and weaves them together seamlessly, keeping everything anchored by his love for the characters and the individual comedic textures brought by the movie’s diverse cast.

                Chris Pratt plays Peter Quill/Starlord, a human abducted from earth at the age of nine and raised in space by a group of criminals. While attempting to steal a magic crystal to sell on the intergalactic black market he inadvertently gets thrown into the middle of a political war between the space military and an evil zealot named Ronan (Lee Pace), working for a purple giant called Thanos. Defiant daughter of Thanos, Gamora (Zoe Saldana), a vengeance-seeking warrior named Drax (Dave Batista) and the aforementioned tree Groot (Deisel) and his partner Rocket Raccoon (Cooper) also come along on the adventure to capture the powerful stone, with the hopes to find closure, make some money, and maybe save the galaxy from the god-like tyrant. 

                 Though ripped and 60 pounds lighter, “Parks and Recreation” actor Chris Pratt uses his familiar loveable bone-head shtick and applies it to a type of Han Solo charisma, with very appealing results. Likewise, Batista juxtaposes his stone-faced wrestler physicality with the script’s brilliant dry humor and the kids will no doubt respond to Cooper’s loud-mouth Rocket Raccoon and his amorphous bodyguard Groot who is only able to say the words “I AM GROOT,” while Rocket translates his limited language to the rest of the misfits.  Every actor has a scene or two to steal and the movie breaths enough between the set-pieces to build on their relationships. Unfortunately, Zoe Saldana as the green-painted, super-assassin Gamora doesn’t get  as much of a chance to fool-around as the other boys, and having seen her in space more than we haven’t her inclusion feels considerably less inspired. But by no means does this slow the momentum of this wildly imaginative comedy. 

       The plot of “Guardians of the Galaxy” is elementary, the climax is too big and overly drawn-out for its own good, losing some focus in its overreaching for epic-ness, but the majority of this multi-million dollar oddity is overwhelmingly entertaining; the take away being the ensemble, their interactions and the humor that comes from their uncanny chemistry. Like any competent summer movie, the special effects do their job and most of the action is character-driven, but it’s the movie’s ‘70s soft-rock soundtrack and brightly colored look that perfectly mirrors the enthusiastic energy exhibited by the wickedly talented James Gunn and his weirdo cast.

Grade: B+

Originally published in the Idaho State Journal/Aug-2014

The Purge: Anarchy review

               It’s difficult to enjoy a genre movie about government-sanctioned annual murder sprees when every three weeks or so our news is treated to another mass shooting or a real-life tragedy, but horror films and thrillers have occasionally been able to make poetic sense from of a senseless time.  In this regard, writer/director James DeMonaco’s  “The Purge: Anarchy”  at least tries to contextualize his brand of schlock alongside easy metaphors and well-worn, occupy-era allegory.

                While last summer’s surprise horror-hit “The Purge” only hinted at its dystopian sci-fi conceits, settling closer within the intimate, home-invader sub-genre, this sequel opens up DeMonaco’s futuristic setting. Rather than being locked into one location, we travel through the murderous streets, following a handful of frightened survivors as they look for temporary refuge from the bloody holiday. Pair number one consists of an inner-city mother and teenage daughter (Eva Sanchez and Zoe Soul) whose apartment door is kicked in by their sexually frustrated slumlord. After barely escaping his attack, they run into pair number two, a young disgruntled couple (Zach Gilford and Kiele Sanchez) whose car dies in the wrong side of town just before a city-wide alarm sets off the lawless free-for-all. The only thing keeping these four alive is a stoic police Sergeant (Frank Grillo) who’s on a path of vengeance, as he stalks the roads in his armored car.

                It’s clear that DeMonaco grew up on movies like John Carpenter’s “Escape from New York” and Walter Hill’s “The Warriors” and tries to bring the same sense of unflinching bleakness alongside a broad satire of our current social landscape. But like other throwbacky horror directors such as Eli Roth and Rob Zombie, DeMonaco’s films live and die within the borders of their pastiche. As a fan, he can come up with an exploitation premise that sounds great as a one paragraph synopsis on the back of a DVD. As a director, he seems to struggle when it comes to telling an engaging story with characters you might care about.

                Neither Purge is particular memorable or entertaining, given their anarchic concepts, and unlike the Carpenter film’s they endlessly reference, their dower tone makes it uncomfortable to revel in the mindless popcorn violence. Likewise, the ripped-from-the-headlines soapboxing about class wars and wealth disparity lacks the depth or insight for the film to really work as a think-piece. Instead, we are treated to a competent TV-level cast wandering around an aimless plot as they jump from one scenario to another—some of which are mildly rousing, most of which are poorly staged and severely devoid of the necessary filmic discipline to garner adequate thrills.

                At best, “The Purge:  Anarchy” is a fanboy wish fulfillment that will make you nostalgic for Regan-era paranoia, at worst, it’s a philosophically muddy piece of trash-cinema that juxtaposes awkwardly and flippantly against the kinds of real-world terror and random acts of violence reported nightly on CNN. Perhaps only time and distance can illuminate the appropriate perspective to really understand what these movies are trying to say and what they might be doing effectively. Regardless, in a contextual vacuum, they tease more than they satisfy.

Grade: C-

Originally published in the Idaho State Journal/July-2014

Edge of Tomorrow review

               Historically there has never been a great videogame film adaptation. Sure, some might argue that movies like “Mortal Kombat” or “Prince of Persia” are watchable, but given their competition within the genre that simply isn’t saying anything. Regardless, videogame aesthetics in production design, special effects and level-boss-level-boss plot structuring have definitely infiltrated the action movie genre, especially in the last 10-15 years.  “Edge of Tomorrow”—not based on a game property—is an action sci-fi that not only understands the appeal of videogame logic, but, more importantly, it understands how to integrate it into a compelling narrative without having to shoehorn fan-bits from a known franchise.

                Tom Cruise plays Cage, a propagandist for the new world military after a meteor landing sets loose a full-on alien takeover.  After paying his dues around the edges of the war he is drafted in by his superiors and thrown into battle, only to quickly die on the beaches of an ambush, finding himself returning to the same day and the same battle over and over again until he can learn from his mistakes well enough to find the source of the Alien hive-mind. In discovering the best ways to avoid his demise he meets Rita (Emily Blunt), a war hero who once shared the same deja-vu experience and who can best help Cage accomplish his existential mission.

                “Edge of Tomorrow” is an exciting, well-constructed action movie that doesn’t assume the worst of its audience. While I would hardly call it an intellectual experience, it’s at least formally interested in breaking down the genre in terms of its use of temporal space within its stop and start-over conceit. In creating a ‘game’ like narrative with something similar to a save points and boss-battles, the movie subtly challenges the notion of action movie death and the meaningfulness of second chances. Walk of characters such as Bill Paxton as the barking drill Sargent is afforded the choice to change his reactions and his line delivery a little bit every time the story rewinds, as well as other characters whose parts, had they only been on screen the one time, would have registered as incidental at best.  Impressively, by the very nature of its mechanics the movie forces us to get to know background characters, see things from multiple perspectives, and analyze the structure of the plot, and, to its credit, it does so without ever feeling fussy or overtly experimental.

                Cruise and Blunt have just enough screen chemistry to keep the ball rolling and the special effects and the world building are adequately high-tech and cleanly presented, if not somewhat underwhelming in terms creating a visual experience original enough to comfortably call this movie a modern classic. But while “Edge of Tomorrow” may not break the mold visually, its tight script, its considerate storytelling and its light comedic touch elevates this film from summer movie CGI-pulp to something at-least worth giving a second look.

Grade: B+

Originally published on the Idaho State Journal/June-2014

A Million Ways to Die in the West review

                 Seth McFarlane has created a brand of comedy full of endless in-jokes, references, and absurdist asides that have cemented his popular animated sitcoms like” Family Guy” and “American Dad” as the “Simpsons” for the ADHD generation.  Last year his first feature “Ted”, about a foul-mouthed magic teddy bear voiced by McFarlane himself, proved for many that his raunchy non-sequitur style of humor could play just as well in a long-form three act structure. But underneath all his frat-bro bravado and his edgy envelope pushing, McFarlane is a traditional genre enthusiast. Like Matt Stone and Trey Parker of “South Park”, he writes a lot of his own music, he’s a Broadway song-and-dance geek, and the majority of his best jokes owe everything to the classic Hollywood references he liberally pulls from.

                Unlike “Ted”, which I found to be mildly funny when it wasn’t being obnoxiously sexist and homophobic,  “A Million Ways to Die in the West” has a slightly better sense of consistency and engaging storytelling, without having to sell out the dignity of his characters for a joke.  Moreover, it seems to celebrate its comedic influences—specifically the western parodies of the ‘70s such as “Three Amigos”,and even more specifically “Blazing Saddles”—in a way that projects a fanboy-ish glee built from feely-good memories of McFarlane’s youth.  And like an excited fanboy, Seth occasionally puts the minutia cart in front of his comedic horse and struggles to find the balance between his usual bawdy humor and the innocent joy for the genres he’s sending up.

                McFarlane plays Albert, an awkward sheep farmer who feels alienated from the dangerous lifestyle led by the other cowboys during the 1860s wild wild west. His girlfriend Louise (Amanda Seyfried) has just left him for a mustachioed dandy named Foy (Neil Patrick Harris), leading Albert to stupidly schedule a duel with his enemy without having any knowledge of how to shoot a gun. Luckily, his new mysterious friend Anna (Charlize Theron), the secret wife of a traveling Bandit played by Liam Neeson, helps prepare him for the worst by teaching him the basics of gunplay while at the same time unpacking his guarded masculinity.

                From the opening credits, accompanied by an original song by the director himself, it becomes obvious that this film is meant to be a throwback to a simpler style of spoof comedy, and for the most part, as a story, the movie moves easily and without much narrative fuss. Unlike his cartoons, McFarlane tempers his urge to jump to asides and tangents and admirably keeps the story about his characters and their—admittedly cliché—motivations.  Uncharacteristically, rather than trying to build a story around a pile of pre-written jokes, as is usually the Seth McFarlane way, it’s the comedy in the film that’s often forced and, at times, poorly integrated. What results is about a 40% laugh to joke ratio.  Neil Patrick Harris steals every scene he’s in and there are a handful of visual gags that inspire a decent chuckle—that is if the movie’s trailer didn’t already spoil them for you—but just as many gags fall flat and sometimes Seth’s pandering to the  lowest common denominator peeks through, especially in a series sorely unfunny sequences featuring Giovanni Rabisi as Albert’s virginal best friend and his prostitute girlfriend played by a wasted Sarah Silverman, whose making him wait for their wedding night.   

                Though this film will eventually find a life in mid-afternoon cable programming, “A Million Ways to Die in the West” is a well-intended mixed bag. McFarlane’s natural confidence and good looks slightly miscasts him as a believable nebbish, but he has genuine on- screen chemistry with Theron and I would love to watch these two in a classical Hollywood musical parody someday (come on Seth, you know you want to). Ultimately, this comedy is more fun than it is funny. 

Grade: C+

Originally published in the Idaho State Journal/June-2014

Captain America: The Winter Soldier review

                  Captain America is a tricky Marvel character to sell to global movie market, despite his recognizable brand and the backing of a powerhouse film production conglomerate. These days people are a little jaded when it comes to national pride and a character that fights for truth, justice and the American way is an increasingly harder pill to swallow, especially when party divisions have dramatically split the country on the specific interpretation of what the “American Way” is even supposed to be. Even when conflict is injected into the character to please those on the homeland, the blatantly patriotic imagery of Cap-Am risks appearing like propaganda to those abroad.

                Though Disney/Marvel Studio’s first attempt to introduce this character in 2011 wasn’t an altogether failure, it really only managed to work as a placeholder for the anticipated Avengers movie being hyped at time.  Now, with the overwhelming success of “The Avengers” in 2012, “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” is afforded the benefit of doubt by those who may have been skeptical before. Surprisingly, in changing time-period, style, tone and directors, this movie cleverly takes advantage of its second chance and manages to exceed expectations by simultaneously defying and celebrating its genre-conventions.

                Having grown up in the ‘30s and ‘40s, only to be preserved in ice and unfrozen to become a superhero soldier, fighting alongside sci-fi anomalies like Bruce Banner’s Hulk and Tony Stark’s Iron-Man, Steve Rodgers (Chris Evans) is now suffering from state of mild temporal dysphoria, with only his work as a SHIELD super-spy to keep him focused and grounded. However, when his boss and mentor, SHIELD’s leader Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) is targeted and hunted by his colleagues, Captain America is then forced to go rogue and figure out how high the governmental corruption infiltrates. Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) and military veteran Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) help Rodgers with his impossible mission, while keeping guard from a mysteriously lethal mercenary known as the Winter Soldier.

                It’s actually difficult to be prepared for just how exceptional this pop-corn thriller is. Not since Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” has a sequel so magnificently improved upon its predecessor in a way that actually fixes some of the problems of the previous film. Rather than the cartoony, gee-golly pulp aesthetic of Joe Johnston’s “Captain America: The First Avenger”, Joe and Anthony Russo’s steely, post-Bourn, politically-minded sequel resembles the kind of cool immediacy of Michael Mann’s “Heat”, as well as ‘70s paranoid dramas like “The French Connection" and "All the President's Men."  The tensely-blocked, handheld bursts of action-violence is impactful, the performances are confident--particularly Evans who'd previously appeared a little stiff within the do-gooder limitations of his characters--and unlike even the best films from Marvel’s amoeba-vers, this world feels lived-in and dangerous with a semi-realistic sense of scale and threat. 

                With that said, this is still a comic-book action movie aimed at a young teenage audience, and we're reminded of that whenever the plot makes an illogical leap or when there's an occasional tonal hiccup. This includes some high-concept sci-fi tech that feels out of place compared to the movie's more sober interpretation of the Marvel world, as well as, a sporadic line of Saturday-morning dialogue.  In the third act, as is the demand for any film that costs more than 100 million dollars, the movie eventually devolves into an extended effect-driven sequence, slowly drifting the whole thing away from the refreshing tactility and level-headed sophistication it had built up to that point.

                Flaws and nitpicks aside—though not excused—“Captain America-The Winter Soldier” is still an exciting and daring move forward for the superhero genre, and it at least hints towards a maturity that Marvel Studios hasn’t been as interested in exploring since the Iraq war metaphors of the first “Iron Man."  Here, themes of political unrest and social distrust regarding NSA monitoring and military drone technologies make this sequel not only satisfying as a genre picture, but timely and relevant as well.

Grade: B+

Originally Published in the Idaho State Journal/April-2014