MOVIE REVIEW: PUSS IN BOOTS: THE LAST WISH

Puss in Boots discovers that his passion for adventure has taken its toll: he has burnt through eight of his nine lives. Puss sets out on an epic journey to find the mythical Last Wish and restore his nine lives.

Director: Joel Crawford

Cast:  Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Harvey Guillén, Florence Pugh, Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, Samson Kayo, John Mulaney, Wagner Moura, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, and Anthony Mendez

Release Date: December 21, 2022 

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance

Rated PG for action/violence, rude humor/language, and some scary moments.

Runtime: 1h 40m

It’s rare that a sequel, much less to a spinoff of another franchise, would still pulse with the energy of Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.  This newest entry into the Shrek spinoff is surprisingly vibrant onscreen which paired with a sharp script makes for a pleasant surprise of a family film.  Kids and adults will find plenty to enjoy here as the story tackles such heady issues like enjoying every moment of your life in the face of your own mortality.  If it sounds like a rather heavy topic for a kid’s movie it is but the script has the right balance of emotional resonance and fun to keep things enjoyable for the younger members of the audience.  Cleary, the film's biggest assets is its collection of stars voicing the collection of fantasy characters onscreen.  Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek's interplay drives the film with the kind of chemistry few couples have shared even behind animated characters.  They both bring so much fun and authenticity to their characters that the adults may forget they are watching fairy tale cats on an adventure.  Harvey Guillén joins the couple as an orphaned but kindhearted dog who looking for friendship.  Florence Pugh, Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone and Samson Kayo have just as much fun bring Goldilocks and Three Bears to life by giving their classic fairytale newfound resonance and meaning by the time the film ends.  John Mulaney is solid as the primary villain, but Wagner Moura's Big Bad Wolfe is impressively creepy, probably too much for very young children, as the embodiment of death.  Puss in Boots: The Las Wish could use a few trims here and there but overall, it’s the kind of family film that doesn't feel the need to pander to its audience while delivering and meaningful experience for children and adults alike.

A-

MOVIE REVIEW: BABYLON

 

Decadence, depravity, and outrageous excess lead to the rise and fall of several ambitious dreamers in 1920s Hollywood.

Director: Damien Chazelle

Cast:  Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Diego Calva, Jean Smart, Jovan Adepo, Li Jun Li, Tobey Maguire

Release Date: December 23, 2022

Genre: Comedy, Drama, History

Rated R for strong and crude sexual content, graphic nudity, bloody violence, drug use, and pervasive language.

Runtime: 3h 9m

Damien Chazelle's Babylon is a frenetic, overstuffed film that's engaging but terribly unfocused.  Chazelle opening sequence plays like Eyes Wide Shut through Baz Luhrmann's lens but with a lot more bodily fluids.  It’s a kinetic introduction to primary characters and setting overall.  The excess on display is indulgently, outrageous on multiple levels but there's a tangible sense of energy and melancholy pulsating through the screen.  The impressive thing is that Chazelle keep that energy going for the better part of the film even though you get the sense that it would have benefited from some selective editing.  A tighter film would have focused its characters, themes and story particularly in its uneven and off kilter final act.  Even though the film loses itself on multiple occasions the cast makes it an easier pill to swallow by delivering impressive turns across the board.  Brad Pitt is excellent as the fading silent film star who used to be the biggest name in Hollywood. Pitt easily carries the earlier portion of the film with his charisma which works perfectly for his character however his more nuanced and subtle work in the back half of the film is much more impressive. Margot Robbie is equally impressive as the overnight starlet who’s destined to flame out in short order.  Robbie's manic energy is perfectly suited for her character who can best be described as a squirrel on cocaine.  It’s hard to take your eyes off her when she's onscreen but we never get under her skin as she remains an enigma who's just out of reach.  Diego Calva's wide-eyed Manny exemplifies that as he serves as the film's beating heart.  Calva has a likable onscreen presence that plays well even when he's onscreen with his bigger name stars.  Jovan Adepo and Li Jun Li both deliver fascinating supporting turns, but their characters are underserved to the detriment of the overall film.  It’s a glaring misfire since the film has more than enough time to focus on their characters than it ultimately does even though their story threads are just as important as the others.  Ultimately, Babylon the kind of film that's trying to say too many things at once.  There are a few moments in its final act where the characters vocalize the themes Chazelle is trying to address but his lack of focus keeps them from landing the way they should.

B+

MOVIE REVIEW: AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER

 

Jake Sully and Ney'tiri have formed a family and are doing everything to stay together. However, they must leave their home and explore the regions of Pandora. When an ancient threat resurfaces, Jake must fight a difficult war against the humans.

Director: James Cameron

Cast: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Stephen Lang, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Giovanni Ribisi, Dileep Rao, Matt Gerald, Sigourney Weaver, Kate Winslet, Cliff Curtis, Edie Falco, Jemaine Clement, Brendan Cowell

Release Date: December 16, 2022 

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence and intense action, partial nudity and some strong language

Runtime: 3h 12m

The first Avatar was a huge film and leave it to James Cameron to deliver a larger more immersive experience with the sequel Avatar: The Way of Water.  Cameron's film delivers some truly awe-inspiring visuals which feel like another high point in technical achievement akin to Star Wars or Jurassic Park.  So much so that this is the first film since the original Avatar that'd I'd recommend be seen in 3D.  The massive world that is painted onscreen is so incredibly detailed and vibrant that it's almost overwhelming.  Cameron is fully aware of what he's achieved and reiterates the point with a handful of "wow" sequences which simply serve to show off the technical tenacity even if it doesn't do much for the actual story.  The story does tend to take a backseat to the overall experience almost to a detriment.  

This entry's plot focuses more on family/legacy drama with splashes of the overreaching conflict from the original.  It’s fairly straightforward with nearly everything playing out the way you'd expect with a scant amount of surprises.  It doesn't help matters that the story is so large and expansive that it lacks a defined focus even with a heavy emphasis on characters.  Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldaña's characters from the original still anchor the film but they play more of a secondary supporting role here with the film focusing more time on their children. 

Those characters are lead by Sigourney Weaver, Jamie Flatters and Britain Dalton and do their best with fairly clichéd roles.  Their characters are the film's focus, but they are never as engaging as they should be.  Stephen Lang fairs slightly better here as the resurrected Na'vi avatar of Colonel Miles Quaritch.  Lang, again, nails the gruff, laser focused solider with the script adding a subplot with his son who's gone native in his absence. His son, Miles "Spider" Socorro, played by Jack Champion is one of those characters that stands out for all the wrong reasons.  Champion isn't a strong enough of a performer to make the character work even though he serves an important role in the story.  It’s a shame because it does take you of the moment every time he pops up on screen.  

It’s one of the few glaring missteps overall but it's easy to overlook especially once the final act starts.  Cameron delivers a hodgepodge of his greatest hits by borrowing moments and beats from Aliens, The Abyss, Terminator and Titanic in a rousing finale which reminds you why he's one of the best big film directors in history.  Avatar: The Way of Water is a testament to his talent as a director and his ability to deliver the kind of memorable big screen experience which have been lacking in the current glut of superhero.

B+

MOVIE REVIEW: RESURRECTION

 

A woman's carefully constructed life gets up-ended when an unwelcome shadow from her past returns, forcing her to confront the monster she's evaded for two decades.

Director: Andrew Semans

Cast: Rebecca Hall, Grace Kaufman, Michael Esper, Tim Roth

Release Date: July 29, 2022

Genre: Crime, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Rated R for some violent content, sexual content, and for language

Runtime: 1h 43m

Resurrection is a lean, psychological potboiler that works mainly because of Rebecca Hall’s thoroughly committed performance.  Andrew Semans’ film is grounded for the most part but from the opening shot you get the sense that something’s off.  There are plenty of moments that feel familiar throughout as we follow Hall’s character steady decent into madness.  It’s a disorienting sensation even if she starts going off the rails quickly much like Jack Nicholson in The Shining.  Additionally, it’s obvious early on that Hall’s character isn’t the most reliable point of view as the film highlights a few blackouts and dissociative moments which will leave you wondering how much of what you are seeing is real or imagined.  There are few actresses around that can play internalized trauma like Rebecca Hall, see Christine or The Night House.  Hall is fully committed from the start, never letting up, making the audience feel every tinge of pain and intensity.  She carries the film by providing a multifaceted performance that is distinctively her own.  Tim Roth delivers a measured, subtly menacing turn that’s as unnerving as it’s understated.  His scenes with Hall pop off the screen especially as the film turns into its final act where it’s likely to lose or confuse a portion of the audience.  Whether the ending works or not is entirely up to everyone’s personal taste, but Resurrection is the kind of film that will linger in your memory.

B+

MOVIE REVIEW: THE FABELMANS

 

Young Sammy Fabelman falls in love with movies after his parents take him to see "The Greatest Show on Earth." Armed with a camera, Sammy starts to make his own films at home, much to the delight of his supportive mother.

Director: Steven Spielberg

Cast: Gabriel LaBelle, Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Judd Hirsch, David Lynch

Release Date: November 11, 2022

Genre: Drama

Rated PG-13 for some strong language, thematic elements, brief violence and drug use.

Runtime: 2h 31m

Steven Spielberg's The Fablemans is a tender, thematically dense quasi-autobiography that shows the power of film and its effect on people.  Initially, his film is a light bit of idyllic nostalgia as he discovers cinema and his nascent filmmaking as a child.  Slowly, he reveals small fractures in his home life as he continues to explore his love of filmmaking.  Gabriel LaBelle delivers an excellent central performance as Sammy Fableman.  LaBelle gives the character a likable authenticity that makes his coming of age journey engaging and relatable as his family moves from New Jersey to Arizona and finally California.  It’s a subtle performance as his character traverses  a wide range of emotions and experiences since the film covers a large swath of time.  Michelle Williams gets the showier role and delivers a textured heartfelt turn as his loving mother.  Williams' performance reveals itself as the story moves along with her free spirted, artistic soul collapsing under itself as she's increasingly feeling trapped in a life she never wanted.  There's a palatable sense of yearning for her unrealized dreams that drives the film and Sammy throughout.  Paul Dano does yeoman's work as the loving and kind but decidedly analytical patriarch of the family.  It’s a reserved, measured turn that only gives you glimpses his heartbreak.  Seth Rogen and Judd Hirsch have small but important supporting roles with each actor making the most of their screen time.  The film's unhurried pace might turn off for some since it moves at a decidedly methodical pace.  That pace, though, does allow you to digest more of the underlying themes about film and its ability to refocus perceptions and truth, something explicitly addressed in a telling scene between Sammy and a high school bully in the final act.  It’s a testament to Spielberg that he knowingly acknowledges that this sanitized, glossy retelling of his upbringing veers somewhere between truth and tale.

A-

MOVIE REVIEW: VIOLENT NIGHT

 

An elite team of mercenaries breaks into a family compound on Christmas Eve, taking everyone hostage inside. However, they aren't prepared for a surprise combatant: Santa Claus is on the grounds, and he's about to show why this Nick is no saint.

Director: Tommy Wirkola

Cast:  David Harbour, John Leguizamo, Alex Hassell, Alexis Louder, Edi Patterson, Cam Gigandet, Leah Brady, Beverly D'Angelo

Release Date: December 2, 2022

Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Thriller

Rated R for strong bloody violence, language throughout and some sexual references

Runtime: 1h 52m

Violent Night is a bloody bit of Christmas camp that answers the question, what would happen if you threw Die Hard, Miracle on 34th Street and Home Alone into a blender.  Tommy Wirkola's film tries to balance over the top bloody action with some Christmas magic, only partially succeeding in frenzied spots before hitting noticeable lulls.  The film embraces it’s over the top violence which are what most people are coming for but it also takes long periods of time to try and set up a Christmas magic type subplot which just kills it's forward momentum.  The film would have been better served if those sequences were trimmed down allowing it to lean into the goofy Christmas mayhem.  David Harbour deserves a lion share of the credit for making this film work with an incredibly fun performance as an apathetic, disillusioned Kris Kringle.  Harbour is a generally likable performer which works well for him here as the Viking berserker turned Santa Claus, seriously, and child confidant.  His ability to switch between ferocity and heartfelt sincerity is rather impressive.  John Leguizamo serves as the film's villain, a role he's clearly having a ball playing.  It’s an over the top performance but it works perfectly with the film overall.  Beverly D'Angelo and Edi Patterson make the most of their limited screen time, it’s a shame the film didn't make better use of their talents.  Violent Night is a choppy affair but when it embraces its violent B-movie camp it’s a lot of fun.

C+