Two teenage elf brothers, Ian and Barley Lightfoot,
go on an journey to discover if there is still a little magic left out there in
order to spend one last day with their father, who died when they were too
young to remember him.
Director: Dan Scanlon
Cast: Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Octavia Spencer
Release Date: February 29 2020
Genres: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Rated PG for action/peril and some mild thematic elements
Runtime: 1h 42min
Review:
Onward is a fine addition to the Pixar catalogue even if it’s not quite
a classic.Dan Scanlon does some solid
work with a fun bit of world building using all types of D&D
creatures.It makes for a fun journey
through this gentrified mystical world.Most scenes are full of gags and jokes making it a rich and vibrant
world.At its center are Tom Holland and
Chris Pratt who both are perfectly suited for their roles.They work well together and really give the
film its heart which drives the whole thing.Julie Louis-Dreyfus and Octavia Spencer have a fun buddy comedy side
story going which makes the film even more enjoyable.The story itself is fairly basic even though
there is a healthy bit of heart in it.While there is plenty to appreciate all around, the film is kind of
forgettable.Pixar films are usually so
memorable when one doesn’t quite leave a lasting impression you are left
wondering why it didn’t work as well as it should have.That’s not to say that Onward is a total
misfire, because it’s not, but just that it didn’t quite reach the level of
Pixar’s prestigious back catalogue.
Dearest Blog: A heavy slate of January releases and an unusually chaotic real life (ughhhhh...real life!) have conspired to set me behind at the cinema, so yesterday I burned an afternoon's PTO to head to Marquee Cinemas for a pair of films that didn't particularly excite me: The Commuter and The Shape of Water. If you thought one was markedly better than the other, you would be mistaken.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
First up: The Commuter.
Liam Neeson Liam-Neesons his way through the sort of crisis that seems to follow Liam Neeson, this time on a commuter train.
A moviegoer could be forgiven for assuming that The Commuter is merely Taken on a train...or Non-Stop on a train...or Run All Night on a train, but I'm sorry to tell you it's a whole lot worse than that. Sure, the Taken movies are getting samey, but I enjoyed all but the middle one. Non-Stop was pretty good fun, and I actually loved Run All Night. The Commuter's every turn is obvious, every character as easy to figure out as the ending of a Nicholas Sparks novel. The dialogue is pitiful, and the delivery just as bad. The fight scenes are ho-hum, and even the daring train stunts are so poorly executed as to be laughable. Sam Neill and Patrick Wilson, two pretty extraordinary actors, are wasted on small, easy-to-peg roles. If there's any good news, it's that the insufferable Vera Farmiga enjoys similarly little screen time. When I heard Liam Neeson planned to retire from action films, I felt a bit sad, but if this is what he's being offered, it's probably the right decision.
The Commuter clocks in at 105 minutes and is rated PG13 for "some intense action/violence, and language."
One of The Commuter's early scenes shows a poster for Paddington 2 hanging on a train station wall, almost as if the movie itself were pointing you towards a better use of your time. Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Commuter gets three.
Fangirl points: Shazad Latif! ("Yes I can hear you, Clem Fandango!) Kingsley Ben-Adir!
Next on the docket: awards darling The Shape of Water.
A laboratory cleaning lady forms a relationship with a captive creature.
I did not expect to love The Shape of Water. I did not expect it to be my top pick for Best Picture. I DID expect it to be a great movie that just isn't my cup of tea, but I was mistaken.
The Shape of Water is extraordinary on several fronts, the first and most obvious being its performances. This movie is an acting master class! Sally Hawkins is breathtaking in the lead role, expressive and sympathetic. Michael Shannon and Richard Jenkins, on opposite ends of the likability scale, turn in layered performances. Michael Stuhlbarg is incredible as usual, and I'm delighted he continues to get such high-profile work; however, it's Octavia Spencer who is the film's highlight, sometimes serving as the movie's comic relief, other times as its foot in reality. The Shape of Water also boasts glorious visuals, carrying through the water theme in lovely, unexpected, and sometimes uncomfortable ways. It takes itself seriously, but it's also very funny at times. Part love story, part monster movie, The Shape of Water is, at least, a pretty interesting idea.
'Til about the midway point, I was prepared to say I didn't hate The Shape of Water as much as I thought I would. Sadly, it hit a downhill skid that culminated in the most ill-fitting movie scene since the ending of La La Land, and at that point I gave up and called it a total loss. In the interest of avoiding spoilers, I make no comment on the scene itself being good or bad, happy or sad, only about how the scene felt IN the movie, which was so far off it took me out of the picture entirely, and I did nothing but check the clock from that point on. The creature doesn't appear much removed from 1954's Creature from the Black Lagoon, which I imagine is meant as a sort-of love letter to old school horror, but--in 2018--it makes taking the film seriously pretty difficult. Unsubtle parallels are drawn between prejudice against the creature and other prejudices that were prevalent just a few decades ago; this is a message movie trying to hide behind a fairy tale and failing miserably.
The Shape of Water runs an interminable 123 minutes and is rated R for "sexual content, graphic nudity, violence, and language."
The Shape of Water is lovely music with nonsensical lyrics, aesthetically pleasing but not good for much else. Of a possible nine Weasleys, The Shape of Water gets four.
Elisa is a mute, isolated woman who works as a cleaning lady in a
hidden, high-security government laboratory in 1962 Baltimore. Her life changes
forever when she discovers the lab's classified secret -- a mysterious, scaled
creature from South America that lives in a water tank. As Elisa develops a unique bond with her
new friend, she soon learns that its fate and very survival lies in the hands
of a hostile government agent and a marine biologist.
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Release Date: Dec 1, 2017 Cast: Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon,
Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg, Octavia Spencer
Rated R for sexual content, graphic nudity,
violence and language
Runtime: 2 hr. 3 min.
Genres: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Review:
The Shape of Water is a lovely modern day fable
brought to life by Guillermo
del Toro.It’s a fascinating and elegant
film that’s got a hopeful sensibility running throughout its runtime.Guillermo del Toro’s film is visually
striking to look at and engaging throughout.The story paints in broad strokes with most of the characters feeling
more like types than actual people but the cast delivers strong enough
performances to make it work.Sally
Hawkins is front and center throughout and she delivers a magnetic
performance.Hawkins displays an
impressive ability to transmit emotions through looks and mannerisms which
allows the audience to follow her characters emotional journey.It helps that she and Doug Jones, who plays
the creature, share some tangible screen chemistry, all displayed non verbally
making it even more impressive.The
supporting cast is equally impressive with each leaving their signature on the
film.Richard Jenkins and Octavia
Spencer make for a likeable pair of friends for Elisa even though both could
have used a bit more depth.Michael
Stuhlbarg’s character is an interesting mixture of grey area where you don’t
quite know where he stands until near the end of the film.Michael Shannon makes for an impressive
villain for the piece.The character is
a solid blend of all the negative aspects of white males in post WW2 American
and as portrayed by Shannon he one of the most interesting characters in the
piece.Del toro doesn’t quite reach the heights he in did in
Pan’s Labyrinth with The Shape of Water but he does deliver another vividly
impressive live action fable.
Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for a pair of unlikely bedfellows: Hidden Figures and Underworld: Blood Wars.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
First up: Hidden Figures.
A trio of female, African-American mathematicians helps put America's first man in orbit.
Things you've probably guessed about Hidden Figures: It boasts excellent performances from Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and a noteworthy supporting cast, and tells a compelling story about some unsung heroes of the early space race. Something you might not have guessed: Hidden Figures is actually a lot of fun, like, legitimate, ear-to-ear smiling fun. That's not to say the movie is without its disturbing and serious moments--the early sixties weren't a super-easy time for women or people of color in these United States--but overall I am shocked by how entertaining this picture is. Hidden Figures goes light on the math-ey details (thank goodness) and instead presents a lively tale of three determined ladies who changed the face of the nation for the better and forever. Cut with snippets of historical footage, the movie provides a timely and important message about the harmfulness of prejudice, the value of everyone's contributions, and, yes, even the importance of the right bathroom facilities.
Hidden Figures runs 127 minutes and is rated PG13 for "thematic elements and some language."
Hidden Figures sheds welcome light on a little-known bit of American history in uplifting fashion, kicking off 2017 in fine form. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Hidden Figures gets seven and a half.
Fangirl Points: Taraji (one of my best girl-crushes), and Aldis Hodge!
Next on the docket: Underworld: Blood Wars.
Betrayed by her own kind, a world-weary Selene is drawn back into the Vampire/Lycan war.
The most recent Underworld installment has a cheap television feel to it, right down to the "previously on..." segment that kicks it off. The story is unimaginative, with dialogue straight out of a 14-year-old's AO3 fanfic, BUT...you officially may file this movie under "so awful it's almost great." The rehash of previous installments is a waste of time--you wouldn't have trouble following this empty-headed nonsense even if you'd never seen an Underworld movie before--and the picture suffers a few dull spells where the lovely Kate Beckinsale is nowhere to be found. Theo James does the best he can with his silly, underwritten role, and Bradley James is a brooding highlight who appears poised to carry the franchise forward, should anyone feel that's really necessary. Blood Wars has a properly gloomy look and feel, with a melodramatic score and a good deal of stylized, slow-mo action, but it's always a bit disappointing when flippin' vampires and flippin' werewolves end up taking each other out with plain old handguns. Highlight/lowlight of Blood Wars: A Vampire Elder, in all his gravitas, sends off one of his warriors with a smirk and a smack on the ass, just like your garden-variety first-base coach.
Underworld: Blood Wars clocks in at 91 minutes and is rated R for "strong, bloody violence and some sexuality."
Blood Wars is dopey fun, as unnecessary a sequel as ever there was. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Underworld: Blood Wars gets five.
Fangirl Points: Theo James, ever since he had deadly relations with Lady Mary Crawley!
