Review: A Serious Man

The Coen brothers craft another unique and wonderful tale. Set in a Minnesota Jewish community, A Serious Man, is the story of Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg). Larry is a middle-aged Physics professor who is facing all sorts of life obstacles. The story follows Larry and his son Danny (Aaron Wolff) through their normal, everyday lives. But both characters are at an age where their lives are at a crossroads. Larry is waiting to see if he is going to be awarded tenure. Danny is preparing for his bar mitzvah.

While these major events worry Larry, there are many other things that get in the way. His wife wants a divorce, his family doesn’t respect him, and his life is starting to come to an important crossroads. Michael Stuhlbarg does an amazing job of unraveling throughout the movie. He slowly loses his grip as he is continually bombarded with the trials and tribulations of daily life. His acting genius is in his subtlety, and because Stuhlbarg is a relative unknown audiences will be more willing to buy into the character. Nearly all of the cast are relative unknowns, nothing the Coens’ can’t handle. They managed to get some great performances out of these actors. Most of the actors are very characterized and seem much like caricatures. Their appearances are a key part of their performances. The realistic environment they created feels so legitimate because all the characters are so authentic and genuine.

The story starts a little slowly. Larry and his situations take a little while to unravel and reveal. And once everything comes to fruition it moves rather quickly. Which is not a major flaw, but it feels like a bit of a shock after the slow beginning but that helps to add to the emotion. The events are very normal, they are very conceivable, and they happen to normal people. Watching a purely middle of the road, normal person go through these events can be riveting. Stuhlbarg does a fantastic job of navigating through these events. Sailing through unsteady seas and trying his best to hold himself together.

With a simple story, a wonderfully bland cast, and authentic retro-Americana settings, A Serious Man is another masterfully crafted Coen Brothers’ American epic.

4/5

Avatar and the Sequel Problem

Contains spoilers from Avatar.

Avatar is most assuredly headed for franchise status, but it's going to take some effort. James Cameron said he wanted to make it a trilogy if it did well, … it did well. We’ll have to see about the sequels. They are going to definitely sell, but are they going to be good is the real question.

Most sci-fi franchises do well because they have such a large scope. They have such a large setting that the possibilities are seemingly endless, and the creators are able to expand exponentially.

Star Wars is all about Luke breaking out and exploring what’s beyond his home planet. The series starts in space and throughout the first movie they mention and visit multiple planets. This makes for a very open universe, making for many possibilities. There are innumerable storylines in the Star Wars universe; book series, cartoon series, etc.

Star Trek is entirely based on a voyage of exploration. The very first words on the show are “Space, the final frontier”. The mission of any and every crew is to “explore strange, new worlds”. This left the original series very open ended, an essential for TV. This was a huge help to the franchise because it allowed them to make 6 TV series and 11 movies, with more movies on the way.

The problem is that Avatar is smaller, it focused just on the planet of Pandora. Not that they can’t expand (because they will), but the more room to roam the better.

One of my favorite parts about science fiction movies that Avatar did well was to not overly explain the situation. Children of Men did this well also. There is a lot of interesting future technology; machines, computers, vehicles. But they don’t spend any time to explain or dwell on these advancements. The audience is forced to piece everything together, make the connections and find their own explanations. I love this in movies. It moves everything along, doesn’t slow the movie down to explain fictional scientific processes.

Avatar still has plenty of options with the storyline they have set up now. They can make prequel movies about Jake as a Marine. Perhaps he was injured in a great battle on Earth, or even on another alien planet. They can explore Pandora more, but that could be too similar to the original and end up feeling too recycled.

If it were me, I would have filmed a scene or added some lines to potentially make room for a sequel. Give the Colonel a line about how what Jake is doing on Pandora doesn’t stop humans on other planets. Have Parker mutter something about being able to harvest other planets when he is being marched away. Even though those seem a little cliché and cheesy, they allow for an obvious sequel.

There is no doubt that James Cameron and his crew will be making more Avatar movies, but they will need to really work hard on a solid storyline to take it from a single movie sensation to a potential franchise.

Review: Up in the Air

Up in the Air is the story of Ryan Bingham (George Clooney), a middle-aged man whose job requires him to travel all across the country and fire people for their bosses. His company also helps to find new jobs for these people. Since he travels so much, he has very few ties to hold him down. He feels at ease when he’s traveling. When traveling he meets Alex (Vera Farmiga), another frequent traveler just like him, and they start a casual relationship. Then at work, Ryan gets called back to headquarters where he is introduced to Natalie Keener (Anna Kendrick) and her cost cutting plans for the company. She wants to make all the firings happen over video, meaning no need to travel. Ryan and Natalie argue and their boss decides to have Natalie follow Ryan on the road. Along the way Ryan begins to soften on his loner philosophies.

Jason Reitman as a director has a huge advantage. With such a famous father, but he is earning respect through his work. His first two films (Thank you for Smoking and Juno) were funny, poignant, and charming. Up in the Air makes it three in a row for Reitman. This movie was great. George Clooney is refined as always. He brings respectability and a charm to all of his roles. He seems so stoic through every changing situation his character faces. Considering his job is to fire people he has to remain calm and consoling even if people are devastated. He is in such a routine that his confidence is sky high and blaringly noticeable. But he is a very sympathetic character when his world and his views begin changing. He develops by unfolding only a little, visibly he remains the same, even though below the surface he is facing great changes. The only way to notice this inner-dilemma is through his eyes.

It’s hard to shine in a scene with George Clooney, but some of these actors manage to stand equal. Vera Farmiga (Orphan, The Departed) is elegant. She is a wonderful parallel to Clooney’s character. They play off each other so well. Their chemistry is nonchalant but still determinedly flirty. Then there are the scenes with Clooney and Anna Kendrick (Twilight series). They fight and bicker brilliantly. They take quick shots at each other, and at some points the dialogue is hilarious (my favorite bit is about men putting their names on buildings). Nearly all the minor characters shine. Jason Bateman is great at the sarcastic boss. Sam Elliott makes an appearance as a pilot; just having Sam Elliott dole out advice is enough to count as a good cameo (see: The Big Lebowski). J.K. Simmons and Zack Galifianakis make great cameos as victims of Clooney’s firing. I wish there was some more of Zach Galifianakis, his scene moves a little too quickly. Danny McBride does a great job as a future brother-in-law who gets cold feet. He is simple, sincere, and full of heart. Very much unlike his usual man-child persona.

The movie looks slick. The visuals are mostly great, there are a few camera moves that took away from the crispness of the look, but those were rare. As with his previous efforts, Reitman’s movies have soundtracks that match the quaint feeling of his movies. The opening credit song was, for the third time, a perfect start to the movie.

Up in the Air is another great movie from Reitman. Clooney shines, and the supporting cast holds their own. The music and the visuals mesh together to make this a pristine and shiny presentation. It’s won a lot of critical praise for a good reason. It’ll get some Oscar attention for the cast, but I don’t think anyone will win. It wouldn’t be shameful to wait and see this one on DVD, it’s worth a watch, but there are some better pure theater experiences right now.

Rating: 4/5

Review: Avatar

Avatar is the story of Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) who is a paraplegic ex-Marine whose twin brother was a scientist destined for the alien planet of Pandora to do research. Jake takes his place in the Avatar Program. The Avatar Program puts scientists and researchers in bodies of native creatures, the Na’vi, that have been created for the scientists so they can survive on the planet. Jake takes over his brother’s avatar and the head scientist Dr. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver) assigns him as security. While in the forest Jake gets lost and is assisted by Neytiri (Zoe Saldana). The humans are on Pandora to mine an energy source called unobtanium. Head of the mining program Parker Selfridge (Giovanni Ribisi) and military commander Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang) have sinister plans to move the Na’vi and destroy the landscape for mining.

Avatar has already grossed $1,137,846,909, according to Box Office Mojo, so my opinion on this movie will not change its commercial success. No matter what I have to say people will still stream into the theater and pay good money to watch it.

Let’s get some of my negatives out of the way first. I am not nearly as cynical and embittered towards big-budget movies as I used to be, but there are a lot of things about Avatar that don’t sit right with me. All the legal issues and questions surrounding the originality of the movie bothered me. The animated films Delgo and Battle for Terra both have threatened legal action. Neither really have much legal merit. However, the film Call me Joe might have a case. If you want to learn more about it Cinema Blend has the story. Plus, James Cameron is responsible for Titanic. So, with all of that I went into the theater very skeptical and guarded, but the movie surprised me.

The experience was amazing. I went to see Avatar in Digital 3-D at Regal Cinemas. The visuals are stupendous, and in 3-D there is another added level to the experience. The special effects take it to another level. James Cameron promised that this would revolutionize filmmaking and usher in a new era, and he may not be wrong. There are several examples of all digital filmmaking, Beowulf and The Polar Express among them, none of which have been overly successful. Even though Avatar isn’t entirely digital, its digital scenes stand head and shoulders above any of those movies. The experience is entirely new and wonderful. The landscapes are magical, the floating mountains are majestic, and the forests are beautiful and alive with unique plant life. It is clear that a lot of imagination went into creating this world. And these visuals prop up the rest of the movie. It is easy to get lost in how beautiful the world is.

The alien creatures are interesting, but they don’t seem entirely original. Most of the creatures seem very similar to creatures in other movies, they reminded me of creatures from Star Wars II and III. The Na’vi were very well made. They moved very fluidly. Zoe Saldana (Star Trek) did an amazing job. Her moves and mannerisms were consistent, which is very important. There was some good acting all around. Sigourney Weaver (Alien, Ghostbusters) is no stranger to Science Fiction. Sam Worthington (Terminator: Salvation) is shaping up to a promising action hero. Giovanni Ribisi (Saving Private Ryan) did a great job as a scheming executive and was surprisingly evil.

In the end, it's definitely a benchmark film. It will be remembered as a great movie for the way it advanced effects. Few movies can have a great script and a great look. It doesn’t break any new ground with its story. At any given point it can seem like (or look like) Pocahontas, Dances with Wolves, or Star Wars. But even Star Wars is a cowboy-samurai space movie at its core. It will get some obligatory Oscar attention. James Cameron, Zoe Saldana, and the visual effects crew will most likely get nomination. It's going to spark a lot of other filmmakers to be more adventurous and arduous with special effects. But it's probably going to be overshadowed in the movies that follow up. It is always a tougher road for the pioneers. It was enjoyable and really cool in 3D. It’s definitely worth a watch in theaters.

Rating: 3.5/5

Decade in Review: The Best of the Bad

Neither list, the good or the bad, was easy to compile. It was very difficult to cut movies from the final rankings. For the best of the bads it is very hard to ignore the body of work that Eddie Murphy has compiled this decade (The Adventures of Pluto Nash, Meet Dave). The rise and meteoric fall of Jon Heder (Napolean Dynamite, School for Scoundrels, Blades of Glory). Not to mention the massive budget disasters (Australia, 10,000 BC). And of course the comedians in terrible movies; Steve Martin in The Pink Panther, David Spade in Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, and Bill Murray’s one regret Garfield.

There are some movies I consider atrocious, but for some reason everyone loves them. So I left those off the list, and I will not mention them. Because they do not deserve any more attention… stupid robots and pansy vampires.

Ultimately, I picked most of the movies on this list because I have had misfortune of seeing most of them. If I ever see them again in my life it will because I am being tortured… or paid to do it.

So here it is, my ten best of the bad, in no particular order:

Vanilla Sky

Some foreign films just don’t translate in America. Cultural differences as a Spanish film, but as a Tom Cruise/Cameron Crowe driven American piece? It sucked. And blew. Some parts of the “film” were interesting. For one scene they managed to empty out Times Square. There are some interesting pop culture references that were added to this version, such as the main characters posing like the album cover for “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan”. Other than that I could not stand this movie, it was drab, dull, and dumb. The mystery is not at all mysterious, the love story seems too shallow. I admit that I am not a Tom Cruise fan, but he was especially painful in some parts of this movie. This version has too much of a shine on it, it doesn’t find a happy balance.

The worst part of it all is, I bought this DVD while on a private tour of Paramount Studios in the gift shop I saw DVDs, being a movie fan I had to buy. I decided to give this American version a shot because I heard very good things about Abre Los Ojos. Of a large and proud Paramount catalog I chose Vanilla Sky, I traded it in after one viewing.

Boat Trip

I think the saddest part of this movie is the fact that Cuba Gooding Jr. is in it. He has had some wonderful parts in Pearl Harbor (a bright spot in an otherwise terrible piece of crap), As Good as it Gets, and an Oscar winning performance in Jerry MacGuire. After those gave rise to his career it was mostly terrible comedies (Snow Dogs, Rat Race) the worst of which being Boat Trip. With the lovable (maybe when he was on SNL?) Horatio Sanz, I only saw this movie on TBS, and even they have standards. So they only ran it for a little bit.

Fat Albert

Bill Cosby’s bits about Fat Albert are funny. Especially in his first stand up featuring Fat Albert off of his comedy album “Revenge”. Kenan Thompson is not funny. Especially not as Fat Albert. Way to go Kenan, nice job.

Deuce Bigalo: European Gigalo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYsUSBG0BN4 - any Rob Schneider movie

The original South Park episode: http://www.southparkstudios.com/guide/615

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Dear Brad Pitt, you have had some amazing parts in some awesome movies. Your current movie star status has helped boost the selling power of some really great movies. Movies that would otherwise might have gotten lost in the shuffle. For example; Fight Club, Snatch, Twelve Monkeys. I understand that to maintain such a status you need to make bank, so I forgive you. I will probably watch your next movies. Especially if your team up with Sean Penn looks promising in The Tree of Life.

Herbie: Fully Loaded

Lindsay Lohan “acts” and “sings”. Reason enough? The very first movie was cutesy. One of the many live action Disney movies that were decent. Herbie was not the best out of that pack, but it was not terrible. This was, I only saw about three minutes on tv, and that was way too much.

The Squid & the Whale

I have owned this movie. I have returned this movie for money. It helped me buy MC Chris’ album “MC Chris is Dead.” Much more solid investment.

Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector

In the past decade, as in every decade in cinema, good comedians have made bad movies. But in this case, a bad comedian made a bad movie. Or three movies. Or three movies three years in a row. After Health Inspector, there was Delta Farce, and then Witness Protection. Health Inspector is the worst because it’s occasionally on comedy central. And I am mistakenly under the impression that comedy central is supposed to play funny movies and tv shows.

Indiana Jones & the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

The Indiana Jones series? Awesome. The Indiana Jones series plus an old Indy, a dead Indiana Jones Sr., and Shia LeBouf. Terrible. The one bright spot? Any hint of Shia LeBouf taking over as the new Indy was snarkily destroyed when Harrison Ford denied LeBouf the iconic hat at the end of the movie. That part was cool. I hate Shia LeBouf btw. (Plus this movies was the subject of an awesome South Park parody as well.)

The Cat in the Hat

Dr. Seuss movie adaptations have barely tread water this decade. How the Grinch Stole Christmas was tolerable. Horton Hears a Who! was hardly tolerable. The Cat in the Hat was atrocious. It seemed as if Mike Myers was just doing another Austin Powers movie in a cat costume. Most of the jokes were way too adult for any Seuss audience. It was just horrendous. My family went to see this. We would have walked out early, but a trip to the movies is expensive for a family these days. So we got our money’s worth by loudly criticizing it. Yay, precious family bonding moments. P.S. Why are there so many ball jokes in Seuss adaptations? It doesn't seem right.

I hope you enjoyed the list and hate the movies as much as I did. Coming soon my personal ten favorite movies of the past decade.

The First Avenger: Captain America

Marvel Studios was very wise in deciding to create a movie of The Avengers. A movie of the Avengers team could have the potential to be extremely successful financially and artistically. It will most likely end up an over-enhanced, CG mess. However, I can still dream of quality actors in a well-made movie portraying the best of the Marvel Universe.

The Avengers is officially verified for summer of 2012, the team is set up as Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, and Captain America. Other characters such as Black Widow, War Machine, and of course Nick Fury will be involved also. News is still coming in for this movie because there are movies that need to lead up. Iron Man 2, Thor, and Captain America, will all be made before the release of the Avengers. Iron Man 2 is set for a summer 2010 release, while the other two will be summer of 2011. There is also a possibility of a third Hulk movie, but Marvel does have their hands full here. While there is tons of casting news for Thor and Iron Man 2 has enough hype to spare, Captain America has had very little news.

This is very disheartening for me, because I am a big Captain America fan. He is my favorite superhero by far. There is some news to speak of. With the date set for the later part of summer 2011 there is pressure on the studio to produce. So far they have picked writers a director, Joe Johnston.

Most might not recognize his name, but they will certainly recognize his work. He was heavily involved in the visual effects department for the early Star Wars movies. Then he went on to direct Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Jumanji, October Sky, Jurassic Park III, Hidalgo, and the upcoming remake The Wolfman. This resume is pretty hit and miss, these are his most notable directorial efforts. October Sky is a great inspirational story, one of those hidden gem movies from the ‘90s. Most of his other works are effects oriented; Honey, I Shrunk the Kids is a great family film with good effects, Jumanji is as well. However, the true test for Johnston will be The Wolfman. This looks to be a great movie, the transformation effects look great and the film in general looks to have a great dark tone. That is the key though, it looks great, but that is not for certain. The movie has had some big troubles, but it looks like it will be released February 10, 2010 as scheduled.

Hopefully Johnston can lend some of that look to Captain America. The trend to make all superhero movies more dark and realistic is a very good thing for Captain America. His story needs a good grittiness to it. Reportedly, the minds at Marvel will not be wasting anytime trying to dream up some scenario for Cap, they’ll use his original story line, he will be able to fight Hitler once again! This story line will put the Captain at his origins as failed foot soldier Steve Rogers during World War II. He is deemed unfit for service in the army because he is too weak, and he subsequently volunteers for a government experiment to produce a super soldier.

There are very few details besides that. The rumor that Matthew McConaughey will be putting on the Cap’s suit is false, thank the lord, and there is no news besides that. It is very likely that this movie will be watchable, but not great. Unlike the Thor movie, which has a great potential to be epic, I have a lot of faith Kenneth Branagh. When this movie comes out I will probably watch it at midnight with my Captain America tee shirt and hat.

Review: Boondock Saint's II: All Saint's Day

This review is a little late in coming, I realize this, and I do not care that much. I went to New York City to see Boondock Saint's II: All Saint's Day. This was the first time that I had seen a movie in this large a setting, and this large a theater (Regal Cinemas in the Mall now has showings). It certainly enhanced the movie viewing experience, there was great applause for various parts of the movie. So with that in mind, here is my review.

Boondock Saints II: All Saint's Day was an enjoyable movie. I went in to the theater with lowered expectations, I told myself that it would probably not be as much fun as the original. I was pleasantly surprised. It was better, and more enjoyable than I expected.

The story begins with the MacManus family in their homeland of Ireland. The father Noah (Billy Connolly) and his two sons Connor (Sean Patrick Flanery) and Murphy (Norman Reedus) are in hiding, their rowdy past long behind them. They become called back to America after the murder of a priest was made to look like their work. On the boat ride over they meet a Mexican fighter by the name of Romeo (Clifton Collins Jr.) who joins the brothers in their cause. Meanwhile, Detectives Greenly, Duffy, and Dolly return to investigate the murder or the priest and the murders that follow. They are joined by Eunice Bloom (Julie Benz) who is the protege of Paul Smecker. The story unfolds revealing that someone is trying to lure the boys and their father out from hiding. The mystery of who is really behind this keeps everyone guessing. There are several surprises at the end. Fans will definitely love the ways it ends.

This movie behaves a lot like a typical sequel. It borrows more from the original, instead of building off of the original. The camera gimmicks and tricks are still really cool, but they're not very original anymore. The story had a very similar flow to the original. Side characters were introduced at similar points, certain events played out the same way. For all of that though this movie did some good things. The comedy was very good. It had some very funny moments; Clifton Collins Jr. was hilarious and the Detectives had some good scenes too. The action was good, but it didn't do anything different from the original. The movie feels new because of some new characters and a new situation. Overall, it could have been done better. The story was a little flimsy and the pacing felt slightly rushed.

With all that aside, I enjoyed it a lot. It was Boondock Saints. The action was there, with the investigators playing a part in the slow motion recap of a mini-massacre. Even if it's not original, it was still cool. The comedy was great, the dialogue was clever and quick. The brothers bicker, the detectives worry, the federal investigator outwits them all, and Billy Connolly is still awesome. The big twist at the end solidified it for me, as a fan of the original. I will definitely be buying it on DVD. Will I watch it as many times as I did the original? No, but I will still enjoy it.

As it's own movie, Boondock Saints II: All Saint's Day has very little, but as a sequel it does a pretty good job.

2.5/5