MOVIE REVIEW: AFRAID

 

Curtis and his family are selected to test a revolutionary new device, a digital assistant called AIA, that takes smart homes to the next level. As AIA begins to learn everyone's behavior and anticipate their needs, it soon makes sure nothing and no one gets in the family's way.

Director: Chris Weitz

Cast: John Cho, Katherine Waterston, Havana Rose Liu, Lukita Maxwell, David Dastmalchian, Keith Carradine, Lukita Maxwell, Wyatt Lindner Isaac Bae

Release Date: August 30, 2024

Genre: Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller

Rated PG-13 for sexual material, some strong violence, some strong language, and thematic material.

Runtime: 1h 25m

Review:

AfrAId has a capable director and solid cast but it’s so incredibly generic, predictable and silly that you might wonder if this movie about AI was actually written by AI.  Chris Weitz's film has a breezy pace that takes very little time establishing the premise and characters before moving to the main plot.  The pacing benefits the film since it moves at such a breakneck speed you barely have time to register how increasingly silly the whole thing is.  Every hot topic headline story seems to be integrated into the plot from the dangers of AI, deep fake porn and swatting.  There's plenty of room for discussion on all these topics but here they are all treated in the most ham-fisted, generic manner that the dialogue becomes unintentionally funny as the film goes on.  The cast is earnest enough to keep the whole thing from going entirely off the rails.  John Cho and Katherine Waterston play straight from start to finish and you have to appreciate their dedication because they clearly think they are in a much better movie.  Cho is steady and believably leery of the whole set up while Waterson does her best with the underappreciated wife/mother role.  They both display some real talent to keep these thinly written characters even mildly interesting.  Their characters’ kids don't fare quiet as well with Lukita Maxwell, Wyatt Lindner and Isaac Bae doing what they can with equally underwritten roles.  David Dastmalchian and Keith Carradine have small supporting roles which honestly could have been played by anyone as the film never utilizes their talents at all.  Making matters worse is the fact that AfrAId is supposed to be a horror film but there's very little to be found throughout with the unintentionally comedy serving as the most memorable part of the whole thing.

D+

MOVIE REVIEW: FANTASTIC BEAST: THE CRIMES OF GRINDELWALD

In an effort to thwart Grindelwald's plans of raising pure-blood wizards to rule over all non-magical beings, Albus Dumbledore enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.

Director: David Yates

Cast: Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Zoë Kravitz, Callum Turner, Claudia Kim, William Nadylam, Kevin Guthrie, Jude Law, Johnny Depp

Release Date: November 16, 2018

Genres: Adventure , Family , Fantasy

Rated PG-13 for some sequences of fantasy action

Runtime: 2h 14 min

Review:

I’ll start with a disclaimer; I’ve never been a die hard Harry Potter fan.  It’s a series that I warmed up too as the stories got more mature but I’d be lying if I said I loved them.  I appreciate them on multiple levels but if I never saw another film in the universe I’d be ok.  I enjoyed the first Fantastic Beast film because it was an enjoyable jaunt with some likeable characters starting with Eddie Redmayne’s Newt Scamander.  In this entry, Redmayne has clearly nailed the character and he’s even more likeable this go around even though he’s not the primary focus.  A large cast of returning faces and new faces, like Johnny Depp’s titular Grindelwald and Jude Law’s Albus Dumbledore, make this film feel much larger and busier than the first entry.  The movie is never uninteresting but it does feel like there are multiple story lines jammed into this entry with a hefty amount of exposition setting up future entries.  David Yates film clearly suffers from being a middle entry in a much larger story which leaves this feeling incomplete by design.  Still there is a lot to like and fans of the series will find plenty to like.

B-

MOVIE REVIEW: ALIEN: COVENANT

Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, members (Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup) of the colony ship Covenant discover what they think to be an uncharted paradise. While there, they meet David (Michael Fassbender), the synthetic survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition. The mysterious world soon turns dark and dangerous when a hostile alien life-form forces the crew into a deadly fight for survival.

Director: Ridley Scott

Cast: Michael Fassbender, Katherine Waterston, Billy Crudup, Danny McBride, Demián Bichir

Release Date: May 19, 2017

Rated R for sci-fi violence, bloody images, language and some sexuality/nudity

Runtime: 2 hr. 2 min.

Genres: Action, Adventure, Drama

Review:

Alien: Covenant is best described as Ridley Scott plays all the hits.  On Prometheus, Scott tried for some headier sci-fi, even if the human decision weren’t, but fans complained about its lack of outright Alien connections.  Publicly, Scott’s been on record as saying he’s heard these complaints and delivered Alien: Covenant.  Fans of the series will find plenty of call back to the original film all the while Scott continues threads from Prometheus.   The film itself looks beautiful, even if the scares never really come since the beats are so familiar.  Katherine Waterston is primed to be the heroine in this entry but she’s never magnetic enough to completely captivate your attention.  Michael Fassbender more than makes up for the slack while playing duel roles.  Fassbender is clearly having a ball throughout and its audience benefit as he’s the most interesting thing on screen during the entire film.  The supporting cast is made up of familiar faces but their clearly just cattle being lead to the slaughter with only Danny McBride leaving an actual impression.  Alien: Covenant is a solid entry into the prequel series that sure to leave plenty of fans happy while others will complain about certain story decision. 

B

Cindy Prascik's Review of Alien: Covenant

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for the latest installment in the Alien franchise, Alien: Covenant.

 

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

 

Alien life forms are sometimes very dangerous. Who'da guessed??

 

Dear reader(s), in the interest of full and fair disclosure, I'll confide that I don't like the Alien movies...ANY of them. I keep giving them chances because people who like the things that I do seem to love and even revere at least some of them but...welp...let's just say this latest installment finally may have cured me of my need to figure out what I'm missing.

 

If I heeded that old adage, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all," this review would be a blank page; however, since I paid the cost of admission expressly for the privilege of writing about the movie, I shall briefly disregard that sage advice to tell you Alien: Covenant sucks so hard. I might say it was worse than Prometheus, except I didn't fall asleep in this one. Maybe I just wasn't tired yesterday, but I'm gonna be generous and concede that point. Katherine Waterston is terrible, all teary eyes and quavering voice; in fact, for a team of scientists and explorers, the minute something goes a little sideways these people lose their s**t faster than the slutty girl in those teen horror flicks. Many of the choices they make are about as stupid, too. Cardinal rules: When in doubt, don't split up and don't have sex. Pretty simple, right? This crew is so dumb it's hard to invest in any of them...more fun to try guessing in what order they'll (deservedly) be picked off. The writing is so predictable I was finishing lines in my head like a movie I'd seen a hundred times. Covenant features some lovely locations and decent effects, but the "horror" is limited to gore and cheap jump scares that you'll see coming a mile out. There's a minor, but weird and unnecessary, reference to a character thinking he's considered untrustworthy for being "a person of faith." That probably got under my skin more than it should have, but it stuck out as one of the most offensively pointless spots on an almost-entirely pointless movie landscape.

 

Alien: Covenant clocks in at 122 minutes and is rated R for "sci-fi violence, bloody images, language, and some sexuality/nudity."

 

With a top-notch cast, mammoth effects, and spectacular sets, it's clear the makers of Alien: Covenant weren't shy about throwing money at the screen; however, in the immortal words of Butthead: "You can't polish a turd, Beavis." Or, as the lady behind me stage-whispered about the halfway point: "This movie stinks." Of a possible nine Weasleys, Alien: Covenant gets one.

 

Fangirl points: Billy Crudup! Country Roads! Dariusz Wolski!

 

Until next time...

MOVIE REVIEW: FANTASTIC BEAST AND WHERE TO FIND THEM

This spin-off of the Harry Potter franchise jumps back in time to explore the wizarding world of 1926 New York, which is being threatened by both mystical acts of destruction and a group of extremist No-Majs (the American term for Muggles, i.e. those unable to use magic). Author Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) arrives in the city as part of a global study of fantastic beasts, but he gets caught up in this conflict when some of the magical creatures in his care are accidentally released. Katherine Waterston, Alison Sudol, Dan Fogler, Colin Farrell, Ezra Miller, and Johnny Depp co-star in this fantasy adventure, which was directed by David Yates (who helmed four of the Harry Potter films) and adapted for the screen by J.K. Rowling from her own book. ~ Jack Rodgers, Rovi

Director: David Yates     

Cast: Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton.

Release Date: Nov 18, 2016     

Rated PG-13 for Some Fantasy/Action Violence 

    

Runtime: 2 hr. 13 min.     

Genres: Action/Adventure, Family, Sci-Fi/Fantasy    

Review:

Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them is charming entry into Potterverse.  Kicking off a series of prequel films can be a difficult task but director David Yates pulls it off with ease thanks to some strong turns from his cast.  Eddie Redmayne leads the cast with his Newt Scamander.  It’s an understated performance but engaging enough to keep you invested throughout even if some of the plot seems scattered and unfocused.  The film is at best when Redmayne is paired with Dan Fogler, Katherine Waterston and Alison Sudol.  You can feel the energy in the film pick up with the quartet is assembled.  As for the story itself, it’s a tad busy which can make it feel like it’s hitting multiple stops with no clear destination in mind.  It’s a shame the film didn’t make better use of Colin Farrell.  Instead he’s given a generic villain who’s not nearly as interesting as he could be.  Ezra Miller suffers from a similar situation but he does manage to elevate it a bit with some nifty acting.  That being said it’s a hard film not to like, there’s an inherit charm built into the story which makes it a good start for the series.

B+

Cindy Prascik's Reviews of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them & Bleed for This

Dearest Blog: With Potter prequel Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Oscar hopeful Bleed for This, the pre-Thanksgiving weekend provides a treat that's been all too rare in 2016: a genuinely exciting cinema double-bill. So, with high hopes, I set off once again for Marquee Cinemas. 

 

Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers. First on my agenda, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Chaos ensues when a rogue English wizard arrives in New York City with a case full of magical creatures. 

 

While Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is named after a very short Hogwarts textbook, it is not technically "based on" the publication that shares its title; rather, it is an original story written by Potter author J.K. Rowling about her characters, both new and old. Genre fans still smarting from Peter Jackson's ill-advised attempt to stretch a pretty short book into three pretty long movies needn't be concerned; this isn't that. 

 

Admittedly, the film still runs a bit long, and the occasionally-awkward script--on which Rowling has the sole writing credit--might have done with a brush-up from Potter screenwriter Steve Kloves, but the picture's only other real weakness is that the titular "fantastic" beasts are its least-interesting feature. 

 

The good news is Rowling's trademark kind-heartedness and magical imagination are in full effect with Fantastic Beasts. Eddie Redmayne's skittish acting style can be annoying sometimes, but he's perfect as Newt Scamander. 

Redmayne nails traits common in those of us who are more comfortable with four-legged beasts than with two-legged ones; he shuffles and looks at the ground when speaking with another human, but is entirely at ease with even the most intimidating other creatures. Redmayne also gets full marks for some extraordinary physical acting that had to be uncomfortable-to-downright-embarrassing to play off only a green screen. 

 

The solid supporting cast includes Colin Farrell in a menacing turn, and scene-stealer Dan Fogler. Fantastic Beasts boasts glorious effects, good-natured humor, and a charming score by the masterful James Newton Howard. 

 

It's been five years since Harry Potter's final big-screen foray, and if you'd forgotten just how magical it is when that giant "WB" logo appears to the twinkling accompaniment of Hedwig's Theme, Fantastic Beasts will bring it all right back to you. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them clocks in at 133 minutes and is rated PG13 for "some fantasy action violence." 

 

Nostalgic yet standing firmly on its own merits, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is great fun and a perfectly-worthy addition to the Harry Potter film franchise. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them gets seven and a half. 

 

Next up: Bleed for This. A boxing champion faces a long road to recovery after a devastating automobile accident. 

 

Well, dear reader(s), I was going to start by pondering how a sport I dislike as intensely as boxing could spawn movies I love so much, but then I remembered Talladega Nights and figured the question kinda answered itself. 

 

At any rate, boxing movies always seem to be favorites of mine, and I'm pleased to report Bleed for This is no exception. 

 

Miles Teller is simply amazing as boxer Vinny Pazienza. He's had good roles in good movies before, but this is a real star turn. The normally-dashing Aaron Eckhart underwent an astounding transformation to portray Pazienza's balding, paunchy, middle-aged trainer, the kind of physical effort that normally earns guys Oscars as long as they aren't named Johnny Depp or Gary Oldman. 

Eckhart's earnest turn is the movie's backbone, but it's Ciaran Hinds who really steals the show with his emotional portrayal of Pazienza's father. For my money, any or all of the three are awards-worthy, and reason enough to see a movie that has plenty more going for it. 

 

While the boxing scenes aren't quite as authentic as Southpaw or Creed, the matches will leave you holding your breath even when you think you know the outcome. 

 

At a smart two hours, Bleed for This is wise enough not to wear out its welcome, and--between Pazienza's constant underdog status and his touch-and-go recovery--it's a pretty tense ride. Meticulous attention to the fighter's recovery and training might have bogged down in less capable hands, but here it is mesmerizing. 

 

Some solid 80s arena rock combines with the soulful sounds of Willis Earl Beal to flesh out the picture's struggling-but-hopeful tone. Bleed for This runs 116 minutes and is rated R for "language, sexuality/nudity, and some accident images." 

 

It's not quite the Best Picture contender it may have seemed, but Bleed for This is a solid drama bouyed by award-worthy performances. 

 

Of a possible nine Weasleys, Bleed for This gets seven. 

 

Until next time...

 

 

MOVIE REVIEW: STEVE JOBS

Set backstage at three iconic product launches and ending in 1998 with the unveiling of the iMac, Steve Jobs takes us behind the scenes of the digital revolution to paint an intimate portrait of the brilliant man at its epicenter.

Director: Danny Boyle

Cast: Michael Fassbender, Seth Rogen, Katherine Waterston, Kate Winslet, Jeff Daniels

Release Date: Oct 09, 2015

Rated R for Language

Runtime: 2 hr. 1 min.

Genres: Drama

Review:

Danny Boyle’s electric biopic of Apple’s cofounder and CEO crackles at a steady pace throughout.  Aaron Sorkin’s script is excellent as expected with Michael Fassbender and Kate Winslet excelling at the requisite walk and talk throughout the film.  Boyle’s direction and his filming techniques, he uses 3 different film stocks for each section, keeps the dialogue heavy film moving at an impressive pace.  It rarely lags, an impressive feat for a 2 hour film that doesn’t have much going on outside of a series of conversations.  Fassbender disappears into his role especially as the film moves into the final act.  He’s magnetic for the entire run time.  Kate Winslet delivers equally impressive work in a supporting role with Jeff Daniels and Seth Rogen making the most of their limited screen time.  Daniels and Rogen both get excellent exchanges with Fassbender that you just have to sit back and appreciate the level of talent on display.  Steve Jobs is sure to litter the awards docket with Fassbender leading the charge with a best actor nomination.

A