Rated PG-13 for terror and some bloody
images Runtime: 1h 30min
Review:
A Quiet Place is a well crafted horror film that uses tension and
sound as a tool with incredible precision.John Krasinski shows off some serious directorial chops setting up his
premise and scenes during this horror thriller.Nothing is terribly ground breaking, especially for seasoned horror
fans, but every sequence is executed so well that you can’t help but admire the
craftsmanship.Fede Álvarez 2016 film
Don’t Breathe recently mined a similar trope but Krasinski adds a splash of
Aliens into the mix, adding a layer of visceral terror to his film.The plot itself is paper thin, were given
little to no backstory, and if you think about the overall idea too much it’ll
fall apart.Strong performances from
Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds and Emily Blunt make it easier to overlook some
of the more glaring plot holes.While there
is a plenty to love about this film it does start to feel like it doesn’t know
where to go especially in the final act.The ultimate solution ends up echoing Mars Attack which is strange but
somehow appropriate.
From filmmaker Steven Spielberg comes the
science fiction action adventure “Ready Player One,” based on Ernest Cline’s
bestseller of the same name, which has become a worldwide phenomenon. The film
is set in 2045, with the world on the brink of chaos and collapse. But the
people have found salvation in the OASIS, an expansive virtual reality universe
created by the brilliant and eccentric James Halliday (Mark Rylance). When
Halliday dies, he leaves his immense fortune to the first person to find a
digital Easter egg he has hidden somewhere in the OASIS, sparking a contest
that grips the entire world. When an unlikely young hero named Wade Watts (Tye
Sheridan) decides to join the contest, he is hurled into a breakneck, reality-bending
treasure hunt through a fantastical universe of mystery, discovery and danger.
Spielberg directed the film from a screenplay by Zak Penn and Ernest Cline.
Director: Steven Spielberg
Cast: Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben
Mendelsohn, Lena Waithe, Simon Pegg, Mark Rylance
Release Date: March 29, 2018
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Rated PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi action
violence, bloody images, some suggestive material, partial nudity and language Runtime: 2h 20min
Review:
Ready Player One is an interesting bit of cinematic alchemy where 80s
pop culture becomes pop culture in a fun if hollow fable.Steven Spielberg’s film is a rapid fire
collection of gamer and 80’s references that hit you so quickly and
consistently that’s it’s easy to get overwhelmed.The plot isn’t much more than an updated take
on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the characters aren’t terribly dense
but it’s all fairly fun and energetic.Spielberg does some solid world building in and out of the Oasis with
both having a certain charm.That being
said it’s easy to be left with a ton more questions once you start thinking
about the worlds being presented.Tye
Sheridan leads the film ably even if he rates closer on the bland side than
anything.Olivia Cooke is equally
capable but provides a bit more spark than Sheridan.Lena Waithe and T.J. Miller are solid
supporting players that provide some of the films highlights even if we never
see Miller in the flesh.Mark Rylance is
a tad over the top as the socially awkward creator but he does parse out some
humanity and heart of him none the less.Ready Player One is a love letter to multiple things and it delivers
some truly engaging and frenetic set pieces, one in particular I won’t ruin,
but it does fall a little bit in love with itself especially towards the end
which starts to drag just a tad before it ends with one Spielberg’s more candy
coated finales.
Dearest Blog: Thanks to the long holiday weekend, yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for an early screening of Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
The deceased creator of a virtual reality world called "The Oasis" leaves his followers a challenge: Find the hidden Easter egg, rule the Oasis, and win the fortune that goes with it.
From my first encounter with a Ready Player One trailer, I had a feeling something was off, a feeling that carried all the way through the finished product. The movie is not without its positives, but they're far too few to make it less than a torturous couple hours.
Ready Player One kicks off with the god-awfulest song in history, Van Halen's Jump, so it doesn't give a person much hope right...well...right from the jump. The main cast of youngsters ranges from a little wooden to pretty awful, so grownups Simon Pegg, Mark Rylance, and even the extraordinary Ben Mendelsohn can't do much to help. The movie's production design is impressive, but scenes inside the Oasis are curiously less so than those in the real world. In fact, the Oasis--a place where people can be anyone or anything they choose--is actually a little creepy and dark, not at all fanciful, and the film's hundreds of pop-culture references wear thin in their ubiquitousness. I had hoped for a great 80s soundtrack, and there are some terrific songs, but they're so muted and cropped as to be nearly invisible. Sadly, Ready Player One did nothing to exceed my middling expectations.
Ready Player One clocks in at 140 minutes and is rated PG13 for "sequences of sci-fi action violence, bloody images, some suggestive material, partial nudity, and language."
A few years back, Sylvester Stallone and Robert DeNiro did a movie called Grudge Match, about a pair of aging boxers coaxed out of retirement for one final match. It wasn't on anyone's awards shortlist, but, if you were of a certain age, plenty of it was pretty damn funny. When a teenage friend mentioned she didn't enjoy it, I told her it probably wasn't "for" her. I'm not a gamer, and there are no other versions of me running around in any VR worlds, so it's entirely possible that Ready Player One just isn't "for" me, BUT...a really great movie is somehow for everyone, regardless of their investment, and this isn't that, either. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Ready Player One gets three.
Jake Pentecost is a once-promising Jaeger
pilot whose legendary father gave his life to secure humanity's victory against
the monstrous Kaiju. Jake has since abandoned his training only to become
caught up in a criminal underworld. But when an even more unstoppable threat is
unleashed to tear through cities and bring the world to its knees, Jake is
given one last chance by his estranged sister, Mako Mori, to live up to his
father's legacy.
Director: Steven S. DeKnight
Cast: John Boyega , Scott Eastwood, Cailee
Spaeny, Jing Tian, Adria Arjona, Zhang Jin, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Burn
Gorman
Release Date: March 23, 2018
Genres: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Rated PG-13 for sequences of sci-fi violence
and action, and some language Runtime: 1h 51min
Review:
Pacific Rum Uprising is one of those sequels
that feels like a lesser version of the original film.That’s not to say that Uprising doesn’t offer
some robot action because it does but it just doesn’t connect in the same way
the original did.Part of the reason is its
decision to jettison the majority of the cast of the original film.Idris Elba died at the end of the first film
so his omission is expected but Charlie Hunnam and Rinko Kikuchi should have
had some sort of role in the sequel.Hunnam couldn’t participate due to scheduling issues and Rinko Kikuchi
is given a token appearance before she’s taken off the board.It’s a shame when a sequel removes nearly
everything from the previous film in order to start with a clean slate and
present us with a new cast of character.John Boyega in the lead is good fun since he’s allowed to spread his
wings a bit more than he has in the recent Star Wars films.Boyega displays some of the energetic charm
he displayed years ago in Attack The Block.Sadly the supporting cast is a solid display of blandness across the
board.Scott Eastwood may look like his
father but he doesn’t have anywhere near the same kind of screen
magnetism.The rest of the supporting
players are made up by faceless 20 something where supposed to care about but
can’t since their about as one dimensional as they come.Charlie Day and Burn Gorman returned for this
entry but sadly the magic just isn’t there.Pacific Rim Uprising is a passable sequel but you can’t help but feel
like it should have been much better.
After a string of garden
gnome disappearances in London,
Gnomeo & Juliet look to legendary detective Sherlock Gnomes to solve the
case of their missing friends and family.
Director: John Stevenson
Cast: James McAvoy, Emily
Blunt, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mary J. Blige, Johnny Depp
Rated PG for some rude
and suggestive humor.
Genres: Animation,
Adventure, Comedy
Runtime: 1h 26min
Review:
Sherlock Gnomes is a fun
and lighthearted sequel that works more than it doesn’t even though it doesn’t
deliver a ton of surprises.Going
through the basic of Sherlock Holmes mythology in gnome form plays out in a fun
family friendly manner.Johnny Depp
provides the voice for Sherlock Gnomes and gives him a fun self centered
narcissistic voice.Depp and Emily Blunt
spend the better part of the film together and they have some fun
chemistry.McAvoy spends the better part
of the film on a separate storyline which means that he and Blunt don’t have a
lot of interplay which was the highlight of the original but it’s all in
service of the story.The film has a
solid message of not taking loved ones for granted which is a bit more
thoughtful than it really needed to be for this type of family film which is
refreshing.
Dearest Blog: Yesterday it was off to Marquee Cinemas for that rarest of treats: a triple feature. On the docket: Sherlock Gnomes, Peter Rabbit, and Pacific Rim: Uprising.
Spoiler level here will be mild, nothing you wouldn't know from the trailers.
First up: Sherlock Gnomes.
When all of London's garden gnomes go missing, it's up to the world's greatest detective to solve the case.
Like it's predecessor Gnomeo and Juliet, Sherlock Gnomes banks on good-nature and likability for its appeal. It's not a game-changer and and it won't be remembered by awards voters when that time rolls around again, but it's the most enjoyable movie I've seen in a good long while. The movie is blessed with a terrific cast, including newcomers Johnny Depp and Chiwetel Ejiofor, returning favorites James McAvoy and Emily Blunt, and...yes...Ozzy Osbourne, whom the filmmakers are wise enough to use in moderation. The art and animation are pretty, bright, and colorful, if not revolutionary, and the cute story bounces along to a cheerful score by Chris Bacon, peppered with familiar snippets of Elton John songs. Sherlock Gnomes expertly rides a fine line, working for kids of all ages while also entertaining adults. There is nothing here that will disturb or upset the young ones, but, in addition to the tunes, there are several adult gags that aim far enough over kids' heads that parents won't be left answering uncomfortable questions afterward. If the message is familiar, the movie delivers it in such charming fashion you won't even mind. Sadly, there's no Jason Statham gnome this time around (*sobs*), but I still loved Sherlock Gnomes exactly as much as I expected, and I expected a LOT.
Sherlock Gnomes runs a quick 86 minutes and is rated PG for "some rude and suggestive humor." (Though the more crass bits from the trailer are missing from the finished product.)
Sherlock Gnomes is great fun for all ages. Of a possible nine Weasleys, Sherlock Gnomes gets eight.
Next on my agenda: Peter Rabbit.
Rabbits and humans jockey for territory in a somewhat abrasive fairytale.
Well, dear reader(s), if there's one thing I want you to know right off the bat, it's that Peter Rabbit probably isn't as bad as you'd think from the trailers or from everything you've heard. Make no mistake, it has BIG problems, but it overcomes most of them for an enjoyable outing.
Getting the bad news out of the way first, we'll begin with the obvious: Those damn rabbits. They are utterly insufferable, like the brattiest, most annoying kids you've ever met. It makes rooting for them impossible, even when the film hits that "delivering the message" point where the relevant parties are supposed to become the best versions of themselves. While the physical comedy mostly works, and Domhnall Gleeson's expressions and timing are impeccable (more on that later), the film's "jokes" are painfully bad, especially a couple awkward attempts at social commentary. The movie struggles mightily to settle on a tone, doubling-down on unfunny attempts at humor and, especially towards the beginning, coming across rather nasty. Finally, though the parental guidelines don't mention it, there are a couple things in this movie that may be upsetting to younger kids. At one point when the rabbits' well being is threatened, there was a small boy in my screening screaming, "I don't like it! I DON'T LIKE IT!" so...um...take care with those little ones, will ya?
Now the good news, and there's more of it than I expected. Leads Domhnall Gleeson and Rose Byrne are ridiculously adorable and have great chemistry. Gleeson, who seems to be in every single movie these days and continues to prove he's pretty amazing at everything, shows off some solid comic chops, working mostly opposite a tennis ball on a stick that would later become the film's talking woodland creatures. An almost-unrecognizable Sam Neill is also great (as always) in too little screen time. The story never really goes anywhere you don't expect, but I'm not sure you'd want it to. Songs pop up awkwardly throughout the movie, but there are some great pop nuggets that are no less enjoyable for the weird placement. Ultimately, the charm of Gleeson and Byrne outweighs the negatives just enough to make Peter Rabbit worth your while.
Peter Rabbit clocks in at 95 minutes and is rated PG for "some rude humor and action."
I'd taken a pass on Peter Rabbit weeks ago, and only saw it this week by virtue of a cinema schedule that left a huge gap between Sherlock Gnomes and Pacific Rim. In the finest example of backhanded praise you're likely to find today, I can tell you it was certainly better than spending two hours sitting in the hallway.
Of a possible nine Weasleys, Peter Rabbit gets five.
Closing yesterday's triple-header was the sequel Pacific Rim: Uprising.
Hey guys...guys...we're cancelling the apocalypse again, 'kay?
Uprising is a big step down from the original Pacific Rim, and I can assure you with a reasonable amount of certainty, dear reader(s), that I didn't find it so only because it's missing Charlie Hunnam and Idris Elba. (Though that won't ever help in my eyes, obvs.) The film suffers from paper-doll characters and painfully bad dialogue, but is salvaged somewhat by its likable cast. Though the action is solid, the plot is weak and filled with predictable twists. Lorne Balfe's score is properly epic, and the effects are as massive as a movie-hugeness junkie like me could hope, but, ultimately, if you want brainless fun with big robots, Transformers is a better option.
Pacific Rim: Uprising is a witless good time that you'll forget almost as soon as you exit the cinema.
Of a possible nine Weasleys, Pacific Rim: Uprising gets six.
