MOVIE REVIEW: MOONFALL

 

The world stands on the brink of annihilation when a mysterious force knocks the moon from its orbit and sends it hurtling toward a collision course with Earth. With only weeks before impact, NASA executive Jocinda "Jo" Fowler teams up with a man from her past and a conspiracy theorist for an impossible mission into space to save humanity.

Director: Roland Emmerich

Cast: Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson, John Bradley, Michael Peña, Charlie Plummer, Kelly Yu, Donald Sutherland

Release Date: 2h 10m

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Rated PG-13 for violence, disaster action, strong language, and some drug use

Runtime: 2h 10m

Review:

Roland Emmerich's latest sci-fi disaster film is a campy busy mess of a film that never embraces it's overall absurdity and just have fun with it.  Emmerich's film feels more like a relic from the early 2000s with it's tired redemption arches and shoehorned product placement. Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson and John Bradley do the majority of the heavy lifting with the main story thread.  Patrick Wilson does the best he can with the material but at least he doesn't phone it in like Halle Berry who looks like she's just a collecting a paycheck here.  John Bradley is likeable as the conspiracy nerd and he seems to be the only one who's having a good time.  A secondary story thread drags the entire film down with a pointless earthbound subplot dealing with the leads kids and some overly persistent thieves.  That subplot is as ludicrous as it is boring and could probably have been excised from the film altogether and streamlined the story.  A third act reveal is a goofy fun but thematically interesting even if the movie doesn't explore it in any sort of depth.  Moonfall is the type of film that will run on cable endlessly which will make for perfect background noise.  

C-

MOVIE REVIEW: BOOKSMART

Academic overachievers Amy and Molly thought keeping their noses to the grindstone gave them a leg up on their high school peers. But on the eve of graduation, the best friends suddenly realize that they may have missed out on the special moments of their teenage years. Determined to make up for lost time, the girls decide to cram four years of not-to-be missed fun into one night -- a chaotic adventure that no amount of book smarts could prepare them for.

Director: Olivia Wilde

Cast: Kaitlyn Dever, Beanie Feldstein, Jessica Williams, Will Forte, Lisa Kudrow, Jason Sudeikis

Release Date: May 24, 2019

Genres: Comedy

Rated R for strong sexual content and language throughout, drug use and drinking - all involving teens

Runtime: 1h 42min

Review:

Booksmart can easily be written off as a female version of Superbad but it’s actually much more than just that.  Oliva Wilde directorial debut is a smart and funny even if feels familiar.  The coming of age story is well worn and it can be difficult to bring something new to the table.  Wilde brings a nice bit of visual flair along with likable characters.  The central duo of Kaitlyn Dever & Beanie Feldstein share great chemistry and strong comedic timing.  The supporting cast is made up of a steady stream of familiar faces who all make the film better though I do wish we’d gotten a bit more of Jason Sudeikis.  Billie Lourde does stand out as a recurring character that’s constantly everywhere.  Overall, the story has a strong sense of inclusiveness and heart at its center adding depth to the raunchy romp.  It’s likely to join the list of the great coming of age movies much like Superbad.

A-

MOVIE REVIEW: JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 3 - PARABELLUM

After gunning down a member of the High Table -- the shadowy international assassin's guild -- legendary hit man John Wick finds himself stripped of the organization's protective services. Now stuck with a $14 million bounty on his head, Wick must fight his way through the streets of New York as he becomes the target of the world's most ruthless killers.

Director: Chad Stahelski

Cast: Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Mark Dacascos, Asia Kate Dillon, Lance Reddick, Anjelica Huston, Ian McShane

Release Date: May 17, 2019

Genres: Action, Crime, Thriller

Rated R for pervasive strong violence, and some language

Runtime: 2 h 10min

Review:

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum somehow finds a way to up the ante on the action franchise.  It’s dance like choreography of the action sequences are truly something to behold.  Here director Chad Stahelski delivers a bevy of action set pieces that are just as jaw dropping and as they are audacious.  It’s a cornucopia of variety as well which keeps the sequences from becoming stale or repetitive.  Keanu Reeves is at the center of the whole thing of course and in his usual Reeves way he moves the film along even with the barebones plot.  The plot itself is strangely complicated and simplistic at the same time.  The story does open up the world and mythology but rarely gets bogged down too much keeping the focus on the action that everyone has come to expect from the franchise.  If there is a slight issue, it’s that this entry seems slightly more tongue in cheek than the previous entries.  The villain is an interesting take which may or may not work depending on how serious you prefer your big bad.  Ultimately, it’s not a major miscalculation because the film as a whole is just a load of mindless fun.  The visuals and choreography are the stuff of popcorn fueled dreams.  The door is left open for another sequel which would have a high mile marker to surpass.    

A-

Cindy Prascik's Reviews of We Have Always Lived in the Castle & John Wick, Chapter 3: Parabellum

This weekend offered a home/cinema split double-bill of We Have Always Lived in the Castle and John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum.

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.

First on my agenda, a Friday-night home screening of We Have Always Lived in the Castle.

The reclusive life of two sisters and their uncle is disrupted when a mysterious cousin turns up on their doorstep.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle is an atmospheric thriller that should be properly creepy but, sadly, it's just rather dull. The story crawls along at a snail's pace, sabotaging any hope of achieving a menacing tone, and dropping its big reveal like an Acme anvil on Wile E. Coyote's head. There are some nice performances from Taissa Farmiga, Alexandra Daddario, Crispin Glover, and especially Sebastian Stan, and the film looks absolutely stunning, but that can't save it from being a bore.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle runs 90 minutes and is unrated. (The movie features adult themes and some violence.)

We Have Always Lived in the Castle is a thriller that's just not very thrilling. Of a possible nine Weasleys, We Have Always Lived in the Castle gets three.

Fangirl points: Sebastian, darling, please stop making crap movies.

Next up, John Wick Chapter 3: Parabellum. Having been "excommunicated" for violating the sanctity of the Continental, John Wick finds himself on the run for his life, minus his support network.

When it comes to entertainment, a project being self-aware and being more than it has to be can be mutually-exclusive. Under normal circumstances, the best you can hope for is one or the other, but the John Wick franchise somehow manages to be both.

On the surface, John Wick is your garden-variety action series with a one-note lead, and you know what? It absolutely knows it's that. It is not pretentious in any way. It lets Keanu Reeves be Keanu Reeves. More than that, it absolutely *needs* Keanu Reeves to be Keanu Reeves. BUT...these films also boast some of the most exquisite production values you'll see on a big screen, masterful fight choreography, and crafty turns that almost never fail to surprise.

After taking out an enemy on the sacred ground of the Continental in Chapter 2, Chapter 3 finds John Wick in mortal peril and minus the network that, in the past, has provided his weapons, gadgets, intel, and safe haven. Amidst almost non-stop action, he finds exotic locales and new allies and adversaries in familiar faces such as Halle Berry and Jerome Flynn. Reeves is genuinely fantastic in the lead, perhaps not the best actor in the world, but the ONLY actor for this role. The movie finds its dry wit mostly in his deadpan reactions to extraordinary circumstances, and it always fits like a key in a lock, never forced or out of place. Parabellum maintains a terrific air of tension from beginning to end, though, if I have one small quibble this time around it's that some of the fight scenes do drag on a bit. They are beautifully and uniquely choreographed, but, with the movie running well clear of two hours, a trim here and there might have done it a favor. However, it's a very small complaint with a picture that otherwise is clever, engaging, and utterly glorious to behold.

John Wick, Chapter 3: Parabellum clocks in at 130 minutes and is rated R for "pervasive strong violence and some language."

Parabellum is another strong installment in a series that I truly hope goes on forever.

Of a possible nine Weasleys, John Wick, Chapter 3: Parabellum gets all nine.

Fangirl points: Ian McShane! Until next time...

MOVIE REVIEW: CLOUD ATLAS

IN THEATERS

CLOUD ATLAS



Directors Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, and Lana Wachowski team up to helm this adaptation of David Mitchell's popular novel Cloud Atlas. The trio have put together an all-star cast, including Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, and Hugh Grant, to play various characters over the course of several different historical time periods. The various narrative threads weave in and out of each other, painting a portrait of mankind's quest for tolerance and peace throughout the ages. ~ Perry Seibert, Rovi

Director: Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer

Cast: Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Doona Bae, Ben Whishaw, Huge Grant, Keith David

Release Date: Oct 26, 2012

Rated R for violence, Language, Some Drug Use and Sexuality/Nudity

Runtime: 2 hr. 52 min.

Genres: Drama, Suspense/Thriller

Review:

The Wachowski’s and Tom Tykwer’s Cloud Atlas is truly an accomplishment. The film is a blending and mixing of genres and stories across space and time done with incredible ease. The experience is jarring at first but utterly engrossing after it settles in your mind. Various themes are interwoven into the multiple story threads display the level of intricacy at work. The assembled cast made up of A-listers and character actors attack their multiple roles with a noticeable vigor and range. Each actor or actress is given plenty time to shine in one interaction or another with Doona Bae being the biggest surprise overall, simply because she’s the least known. There are some characters that play actors incredibly against type and other that layer them in drag or heavy prosthetics to change their appearance. Cloud Atlas’s biggest positive is it’s boldness of sprit, even with the various genres at play it achieves a strong emotion link with the audience which will be readily apparent by the film’s end. At nearly 3 hours, the film moves at a steady pace but rarely feels overlong which is a good thing since it’s the type of film that will require multiple viewings to catch every nuance.

A