Review – Page 212 – We Are Movie Geeks

MAGIC MIKE XXL – The Review

If it’s Summertime at the cinema, then it’s sequel time once again! Hey, it was just a couple of days ago when that foul-mouthed toy returned in TED 2. A few weeks ago another entry in the scare series arrived with INSIDIOUS 3. And this all really began on the first of May when those mighty Marvel movie heroes reunited to take down Ultron, while another team, the singin’ Bellas, headed back to the multiplex a couple of weeks later in PITCH PERFECT 2. And now movie fans are treated to another epic return gathering of several big screen icons. But this titanic team appeals to a slightly more mature demographic, hence the truly earned “R” rating. Unlike Tony Stark’s crew, these bigger-than-life beef cakes aren’t using their talents against lethal robots. The power of pleasure provides the energy, and propels the plot, in MAGIC MIKE XXL.

So, it’s been three years since we last saw Mike Lane (Channing Tatum) excite the ladies on stage. But, he’s given up his g-string for a tool belt as he devotes his time and energy into a fledgling interior design business in Tampa, Florida. But a phone call from one of his old dancing pals tricks him into a reunion with the other club vets: Ken (Matt Bomer), Tito (Adam Rodriguez), “Tarzan” (Kevin Nash), Tobias (Gabriel Inglesias), and “big” Dick Richie (Joe Manganiello). After the owner of that venue skipped the country, the fellas split with several leaving the adult entertainment biz (Tito’s got a food truck that sells his “all natural” frozen yogurt). But, now the guys have a plan to compete as a group at the big stripper convention happening in Myrtle Beach in only a few weeks. Mike takes a pass, but later that night, as he toils in his workshop, the booming hip-hop beats from his radio act as a siren’s song. That next morning he joins the guys at Tito’s yogurt truck for one last glorious gig. During the long trek, they stop off in Jacksonville where Mike meets the flirtatious photog Zoey (Amber Heard). Hey, with old club owner Dallas AWOL, the gang needs a new master of ceremonies, so they stop again at a very exclusive ladies’ club in Savannah where Mike attempts to recruit former flame Rome (Jada Pinkett Smith) along with two of her prized performers, Malik (Stephan Boss) and Andre (Donald Glover). As the group nears the big event, Mike convinces the crew to ditch their old act. But can they come up with a sensational new routine in the scant hours before they take the stage, one that will literally knock the attendees socks (and stockings) off?

Tatum effortlessly slips back into the role of leader to this motley crew, shaking off the sawdust as those old moves return to him (like riding a bike!). We get a good dose of the comedic skills he’s sharpened in the JUMP STREET franchise (especially in his banter with Zoe over pastry preferences-he’s a “cookie man”) and even a taste of his dramatic range from flicks like FOXCATCHER. But best of all is his impeccable physicality as he seems to defy gravity in his early workshop dance, which plays as a thumping tribute to the barn-raising number SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS and Donald O’Connor’s wild “Make ’em Laugh” from SINGING IN THE RAIN. Here’s a movie star with really great moves. The most entertaining of the troupe may be Manganiello who has terrific comic timing whether he’s bemoaning the lack of a lover (they just can’t accommodate his…er…gift) or treating the convention as the Super Bowl (he’s got that endearing goofball “jock” quality). And he’s gives us some smooth moves, too, in that big show doing a riff on 50 SHADES OF GREY that out steams the original. And especially during the film’s best sequence, as he performs (fueled by the club drug Molly) only for a bored convenance store clerk. Plus he really knows his “boy bands”. Bomer also grabs some laughs as his Ken spouts endless “new age-y” babble and “self-help” speak (he’s a “third level healer”). In addition to his dance skills, he’s got quite a set of pipes as he croons sweetly to his clients (who, in turn, swoon). Rodriguez is all boundless youthful enthusiasm as he rattles off his love of fresh, organic ingredients in his home made frozen treats. And he’s a great comedic partner with Inglesais, who does a killer McConaughey impression. Oh, and he’s a roly-poly Carman Miranda, too. Nash is still stoic and somber as the world-weary, somewhat battered “Tarzan” (he poses more than he dances on stage), but we get an insight into his dark past and see him utilize his artistic talents in the big finale.

Hope that I’m not giving the impression that this film is a complete, what’s the phrase the youngsters are using, “sausage fest”. There are several ladies in prominent roles. The alpha female is definitely Pinkett-Smith as the formidable Rome (hey, her club is named “Domina”), who seems to be a mix of Eartha Kitt, TV’s “Claire Huxtable”, and Tina Turner in MAD MAX: BEYOND THUNDERDOME (and seems a bit too much like her role as crime boss “Fish” Mooney on the current Batman prequel TV series “Gotham”). While Dallas revved up the club audience with his smooth Southern drawl, Rome preaches at the pulpit of empowerment (“We are all…queens!!”). Heard gives off a sexy “tough girl” vibe as the somewhat cynical photog and possible paramour for Mike (his gal from the first flick turned down his proposal…yes, really!). Also making an impression is the still radiant Andie MacDowell as a true “cougar” queen who never stops undressing the guys with her half-mast eyes. Hey, and there’s this Summer’s busiest lady, Elizabeth Banks, co-star of LOVE AND MERCY and PITCH PERFECT 2 which she also directed, grabbing some chuckles as the big convention’s prissy and slightly frazzled organizer. Now, I don’t want to leave out an impressive trio of men from Rome’s staple. Glover (AKA “Childish Gambino” and Troy on TV’s “Community”) charms as the rap improviser Andre, Boss lives up to his name as the impeccable Malik (he even goes toe to toe with Mike), and “Mr. morning TV” himself, ex pro-footballer Michael Strahan serves up a superb high-spirited dance (using a massage table) as club fave Augustus.

The director of the original, Steven Soderbergh, has relinquished those duties this time out to his longtime assistant Gregory Jacobs, but is literally still behind the camera as the film’s cinematographer (and producer/editor). Jacobs is able to capture that film’s original rhythms, and, unfortunately, its weaknesses. While much of the first outing was an introduction to the “club life” told through the eyes of a new addition (“the Kid”), this is mainly a “road picture” with their adventures on the way to “Oz” (the big SC event). Reid Carolin once again provides the screenplay, but many of the scenes (as in the first flick) have a meandering “improv” feel. This works a few times with the crew busting b*#ls on the bus, but often it feels as though the actors are flailing about without a map (most apparent in Mike and Zoey’s awkward first meeting). And another old problem occurs here, too. The film never really comes alive until the guys perform (and boy, they whip the ladies around like rag dolls and position them like “Barbies”), be it on stage or in the “mini-mart” aisle. And McConaughey’s not around as the shot of adrenaline needed to energize the slow stretches. Yes, those folks looking to gaze at taut eight and ten-packs will be most rewarded (the mostly female attendees are in a constant state of frenzy during the big finale, so maybe Jackie Gleason was mistaken about Miami audiences), but movie lovers looking for a compelling story will feel as though they never got past the “bouncers” at the door with MAGIC MIKE XXL.

3 Out of 5 Stars

TERMINATOR GENISYS – The Review

TERMINATOR GENISYS is an ambitious attempt at revitalizing a series that many critics say has gone steadily downhill since the third film. Now five films and two television seasons deep, an argument could be made to whether there is enough story to carry a series of films. But buried within the fifth film is a clever concept of looking at the original two films in a new light while planting the seed for future sequels. How that initial idea evolved into this overworked and stupidly complex story shows that writers Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier either got in way over their heads or have not a clue as to why the first two films work so well in the way that they do. Sure, the film is about humans fighting robots and that alone should be “cool,” but TERMINATOR was once more than that. GENISYS can’t understand that, but even at a pure summer movie level, it can’t make an entertaining human vs. robot popcorn flick.

Even though the series technically exists in the science fiction genre, I’d argue that what these films are really about is anything but. Time travel and Judgment Day have always been background noise to universal themes, but given the direction of the fifth film and what I can assume of the already announced upcoming sequels, is now clearly the driving force for the series. The first TERMINATOR film is a stalk-and-slash horror film with a genuine love story that proves love is so strong that it can travel across time. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY shows a lost and out of control boy looking for direction and ends up finding it in the form of a machine that becomes a father figure – it’s a father and son bonding film. Considering director Alan Taylor and the studios behind GENISYS are ignoring TERMINATOR 3: RISE OF THE MACHINE and TERMINATOR SALVATION, I’m not even going to address those films. The fifth film struggles to find a reason to exist compared to previous entries other than just to keep the franchise alive so that studio executives can make money off fan nostalgia.

GENISYS rides the coattails of famous scenes from the series for most of the beginning. After an initial voice-over by Kyle Reese (Jai Courtney) bringing new viewers up to speed abut how a renegade computer program turned against the humans, we flash forward to the year 2029 and see Reese serve as a soldier under the guidance of John Connor (Jason Clarke). The humans successfully take down Skynet, but not before the machines send a killing machine into the past through the use of a time machine to kill the mother of resistance leader John Connor. Reese voluntaries to go back to 1984 to stop the T-800 (yes, this should sound familiar), but when he encounters Sarah Connor (Emilia Clarke) she isn’t what he expected. In fact, all of the events of the “original” timeline are disrupted due to some sort of loose particles or some reason or another that is casually thrown out in a quick manner that is just as quickly forgotten.

In the new timeline Sarah is not alone. She’s accompanied by a guardian T-800 that she nicknames “Pops” (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Just as what happened in T-2: JUDGEMENT DAY, a T-1000 attempts to stop Reese from keeping Connor alive but new changes rear their head. The trio soon realizes that due to the changes in the timeline that they now have to travel to 2017 to stop an Apple-esque computer program called Genisys from being uploaded to a Cloud-like system over the world – a program that will eventually trigger Judgment Day.

Once you get past all of the fan service that is piled on at the onset of GENISYS, what’s left is a couple of miscast actors struggling to work with an overly dense screenplay. Jai Courtney and Emilia Clarke pale in comparison to their character’s original cinematic counterpoints. Emilia Clarke tends to exaggerate her macho persona in a way that becomes quickly aggravating. Her attempt at capturing the rebel spirit of Linda Hamilton in T-2 feels completely forced. Courtney on the other hand lacks any hint of charisma. How he has infiltrated Hollywood as a leading man is beyond me given how robotic and emotionless he comes across.

The only actor that seems right at home is Ahhnold! Sure, some of his jokes don’t entirely work, but he’s clearly having fun in the role that recalls his robot with a heart of gold turn in T-2. Even Arnold’s overly cheeky lines that many of the trailers have advertised work much better in the context of the film. GENISYS proves that Arnold still has it. As the one recurring joke reminds us, “He’s old, but not obsolete.”

TERMINATOR 2 ushered in a new era of technological achievement seen on film. It was the first film to use an actor to motion capture a computer generated character – the results continue to inspire film special effects to this day. Seeing the T-1000 get shot by bullet after bullet and revitalize himself right in front of your eyes is something we hadn’t seen before. TERMINATOR GENISYS takes that iconic special effect and replays it over and over again through cheap CGI with not just a new version of the T-1000 but with a new Terminator hybrid as well (whose powers and technology are never fully explained but look like the material used in the kid’s toy where you add magnetic mustaches to faces). The idea of him being an unstoppable killing machine is still the motivating factor here, but its presence is overstated which causes the threatening aspect to dissipate. Instead it just adds to the overuse of cheap CGI effects that director Alan Taylor relies on way too often (including a horribly ugly and preposterous helicopter chase that leads up to the finale). One could play a drinking game to how many times you see a bullet hole slowly heal itself in slow-motion on the new machines and will most likely cry “Judgment Day!” and give-up before the film even ends.

Critics and fans will be quick to point out that the trailers and poster ruin a critical plot point that happens about two-thirds the way through the film. Yes, it’s a shame that that reveal has to be ruined by marketing in order to get people excited about a cool new twist in the TERMINATOR mythology. This is especially true because some of the earlier scenes lose some of their meaningful impact due to the knowledge of this reveal, but that’s hardly the main issue with the film. Even if we could travel through time and change the studio’s decision to market this major spoiler, fixing that won’t help the fact that the main problem lies within the very point of the film.

Going back into time and looking at existing events or in this case existing films isn’t enough to get by these days. Nostalgia can carry a film only so far before it becomes too weak to stand on its own. GENISYS has no strong Endoskeleton at its core. Hearing familiar names like John Connor, Sarah Connor, and Kyle Reese, but seeing them with new faces isn’t enough to hold my interest. Convoluting an already ridiculous time travel plot point from the original film is exactly what the film builds its entire foundation on. Then, in ways I didn’t even think was possible, they convolute and lay even more cinematic paradoxes upon it to the point that you have to just throw your hands in the air and give up. The problem is though, once you stop trying to connect the dots and the different timelines, there isn’t much left to care about. You’re stuck with two severely miscast actors running through time, trying to stop the future from killer robots. What bizarre future-world do we live in that a seemingly cool premise like this should be so tedious? Sadly it’s not the future… it’s the present.

Overall rating: 1.5 out of 5

TERMINATOR GENISYS is now playing in theaters everywhere.

ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL – The Review

What does it take to get to know someone? Like truly, to know someone. Greg (Thomas Mann) drifts through his high-school days by casually interacting with all of the social circles. He’s perfectly content with his surface level “friendships” he has with the jocks, the techno-geeks, the white-guy hip-hop kid – never taking the time to go too far out of his way to get to know any of them and always hiding his own life in the process. Even Earl (R.J. Cyler) is never described as a friend by Greg, instead he’s called a co-worker due to the film spoofs they make together. All of this changes though when Greg’s mom (Connie Britton) forces him to go visit the girl from school that was diagnosed with cancer. What soon develops though between Greg and the dying Rachel (Olivia Cook) calls into question Greg’s impersonal way of getting through life.

In fairness, ME AND EARL… rubbed me the wrong way at the onset. The way Greg is portrayed and acts made me question whether I wanted to endure an entire film around this smug and self-centered teen. But in many ways that’s sort of what makes the film endearing. There’s a self-knowing attitude about the film as it presents itself as a standard indie while also making jokes at its own expense. Greg may not be the ideal lead you would expect, but that’s just one of the ways this film might surprise you.

Between the occasional voiceover, Greg’s hippy-dippy parents (Nick Offerman as a zen world traveler crossed with the “Dude”), Rachel’s day drinking flirty mother (a role Molly Shannon seems born to play), cutesy stop-motion sequences interspersed throughout, and some stylish camerawork, you would think that the film would reek of indie pretension. Most of the time this stuff works. Sure, you get the feeling that The Criterion Collection was a sponsor given how often their products are shown, and yes, the camerawork feels too forced at times becoming more of a distraction to the story than enhancing. Yet, the majority of these quirky stereotypes we’ve become accustomed to seeing every year from “the next great Sundance indie film” actually don’t feel tired or obnoxious. All of these elements that are fairly contrived on paper feel fresh in the hands of director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon. It’s his exuberance for the characters that invigorates these clichés; if only he would have let these characters be the main focus and not get caught up in capturing them in long camera shots, some off center cropping, or other aesthetic decisions that call too much attention to themselves.

As I mentioned earlier, Greg’s life carries a running theme of what exists on the surface versus what’s going on underneath. This theme even extends to the short films Greg and Earl make and hide from others. Yes, they are creating clever spoofs of famous films (2:48 PM COWBOY instead of MIDNIGHT COWBOY, A SOCKWORK ORANGE instead of A CLOCKWORK WORK, and SEVEN SEALS instead of THE SEVENTH SEAL, just to name a few), but they are simply recreating the images without giving much thought to what the original images really meant. Greg is a film geek with an extensive knowledge of classic cinema, but just like the image he presents to everyone around him, he’s more interested in presenting a funny façade than anything “real.”

As his relationship with Rachel blossoms his outer shell begins to break down. The genuine charm he lets the audience in on through his narration becomes more apparent. Rachel makes him feel more alive even as her weeks begin to number. There’s a natural chemistry between Cook and Mann. Cook especially comes across as just a normal teenager frustrated with the cards she’s been dealt. There aren’t grand gestures of love and whimsy, instead we are shown the small, quiet moments that exist between a boy that feels helpless and a girl that feels even more so. As the comedy takes a backseat in the second half of the film, what keeps the film from feeling so dour is the loving friendship between the couple. The two strong leads create such genuine characters that it is hard not to get swept up in the emotions.

Alfonso Gomez-Rejon lovingly includes many nods to classic films throughout the film. However the most important nod is probably the subtlest one. Without getting into details for risk of spoilers, there’s a sequence showing Rachel watching a film in bed where the camera holds for long periods of time on her face. We (the audience) watch her as she watches a film. The colored lights that dance across her face are reminiscent of when Bowman in 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY encounters the monolith in space which causes him to drift through galaxies of space and light – his eyes and face dazzled by the neon lights in front of him. This moment is a magical and powerful moment in ME AND EARL… for many reasons and is easily one of the best cinematic moments I’ve witnessed this year, but it also speaks to the power of film. It shows how a single film, whether it’s made by a master like Stanley Kubrick or by an amateur filmmaker, has the power to spark love and life in all of us.

ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL deftly combines pieces of several film genres into one satisfying whole. Equal parts satirical comedy, coming-of-age high-school tale, moving cancer drama, and touching love-letter to film appreciation, Alfonso Gomez-Rejon has crafted one of the standout indie films of the year – one that’s not afraid to wear its heart and its influences proudly on its sleeve.

Overall rating: 4 out of 5

ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL opens in St. Louis this Friday, June 26.

MAX – The Review

MAX is an Afghanistan War-set battlefield adventure and a look at the unbreakable bond between a Marine and his military working dog ……. for about the first ten minutes! What’s left for another long hour and a half, despite some moments of bravura and lazy tugs at the heart-strings, is a poorly-written, Texas-set melodrama that I can’t recommend. The end credits for MAX play over vintage photos of dogs in combat, from the Civil War to WWI and WWII to Iraq. Dogs have been trained by the military as scouts, sentries and trackers for centuries and I wish that was the story that the producers of MAX had tackled. A kind of canine WAR HORSE might have made for a stirring adventure. On the surface, MAX is an old fashioned throwback to more innocent family fare which may seem like a good antidote to the violent and defeatist thrillers a lot of younger moviegoers seem to be hooked on, but it’s crippled by a weak script, poor performances, and a half-hearted sheen of sentimentality that all but masks the more serious undertones of the story. I wanted to bond with MAX, but I could not.

As MAX opens, Max is serving on the frontlines in Afghanistan alongside his handler, U.S. Marine Kyle Wincott (Robbie Amell). In a confusingly-directed scene, things go wrong on maneuvers and Kyle is killed. Max, traumatized by the loss of his buddy, is unable to remain in service, so he’s shipped stateside and, after causing a scene at Kyle’s funeral, is scheduled to be destroyed. The only human Max seems willing to connect with is Kyle’s younger brother Justin (Josh Wiggins), so Kyle’s parents (Lauren Graham and Thomas Haden Church) step in and adopt the sad hound. But Kyle’s shady marine buddy Tyler (Luke Kleintank – who we know we can’t trust because Max snarls at him) moves in as well and is soon selling cases of weapons he brought back from the war over the border to the Mexican cartel (how he snuck so much firepower back home is never explained). Justin is wise to Tyler’s crimes but the local sheriff (Owen Harn) is in on the misconduct so no one believes him. It’s soon up to Justin and Max to save the day as the film meanders towards an action-packed resolution involving kidnapping, shoot-outs, and an exploding car full of military-grade firearms.

Boaz Yakin’s direction is uninspired while his screenplay (with Sheldon Yettich), apparently afraid of children’s attention spans, jumps so quickly from scene to scene that no character is allowed to develop. Besides Tyler and that corrupt sheriff, the villains here include Mexican gun-runners and a pair of slobbering evil Rottweilers who are all too cartoonish take seriously. I hate to say it, but even Max himself lacks charisma. The breed the military mostly trains is these Belgian Sheppards, which are smaller and darker than the more cinematic German Sheppard. They’re obviously intelligent animals, but they lack the personality and expressive eyes of a Rin Tin Tin. But Max (played by Carlos!) isn’t the only star turning in a sub-par performance. Josh Wiggins as Justin has an irritatingly surly screen presence, which is perfect at the beginning of the film where he’s a spoiled brat playing pirated video games while wearing his stupid ‘Murica’ shirt. But by the film’s end, he hasn’t grown much – though at least he gets a girlfriend. Justin never really seems comfortable with Max and this has to be the first time in movie history that a boy-and-his-dog love story was marred by a lack of chemistry between the human/canine leads. But the worst is Lauren Graham as his mom, who painfully recites lines like “We already lost one son. If it’s alright with you, I’d like to hold on to the other.” It may be a poor script, but this woman’s deer-in-the-headlights delivery is embarrassing. There’s more awkward/bad TV-style teen acting from Dejon LaQuake as Justin’s Mexican pal Chuy and tough-talking Mia Xitlati as his Mexican dog expert human love interest. Only jug-eared Thomas Haden Church escapes MAX with his dignity intact, delivering an earnest performance, changing from gruff to sweet and back as a father wounded in more ways than one. Church transcends the bad writing in several scenes, especially a nice speech recounting his own tragic war experience.

I’m not sure why I had such high hopes for MAX. I haven’t seen a god dog movie in a while and perhaps I didn’t expect such a lame and cheap-looking film to be released in the height of summer against stuff like JURASSIC WORLD and INSIDE OUT, films which just magnify its many flaws by contrast. MAX plays more like something you expect to be dumped in the fall or in February. Skip it now and fetch it at Redbox in a couple of months.

1 1/2 of 5 Stars

TED 2 – The Review

Review by Dane Marti

I realize that all of us—even toy bears— at one time or another experience terrible problems in our lives, ugly demons that affect us or someone we love; they often seem hideously overwhelming: Obviously, this definitely sucks elephantine donkey testicles. Still, I believe that we’ve all got the inner strength to face these bastards and happily rip ‘um to shreds, even if the sob happens to be an evil minion who works at a famous toy company. And if you’re a bear, if you lose your job and find yourself racing around, trying to achieve freedom: tough times lie ahead! And laughter as well.

The funny film TED 2 is more than the sum of its parts. The evening that I viewed the film, I was dealing with a personal issue that made it slightly difficult to view and enjoy a comedy—Not laughing inside. Ordinarily I can easily get lost in a film, happily munching popcorn and enjoying a visual story. In a tribute to this zany movie, I found myself laughing with abandon and maniacal glee. On a few occasions, I was almost vomited with laughter. The opening credits start with a slick and obligatory Busby Berkeley style pizzazz!

The Story:

A year after their marriage, Ted (voiced by Seth Macfarlane) and his wife, Tami-Lynn (Jessica Barth, a great comedienne) scream at each other in frustration: Ted realizes that only one possible thing can save their marriage: They must have a baby. Obviously, this will not be easy: Ted does not have a bear penis. Of course, I’m not inferring that Ted is definitely is not a male. He most definitely IS. Here is the challenge: Ted will have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he qualifies as a ‘person’ in a court of law, in front of a disapproving jury. Helping him along the way is his Thunder buddy Mark Wahlberg and a lovely, stoned lawyer played by Amanda Seyfried. She’s first rate. Over the years, I’ve slowly become a fan of Mr. Wahlberg. He captured the right level of seriousness and humor that’s inherent in someone who has a friend that’s a toy bear.

Originally, I was going to describe some of my favorite scenes, but why? Just go see the movie. I will mention that one of my favorite scenes is a takeoff on Jurassic Park, including its iconic music. Oh—topical events of recent history are referenced as well, including Ferguson Missouri. I particularly enjoyed the Comic Con scenes, with a plethora of hip references to pop culture.

Although this is a wildly insane film, dealing with characters interacting with a Teddy Bear (Thank you C.G. and Teddy Roosevelt!), and although the film would have insulted my father with its scatological and politically incorrect scenes (Then again, this super crazy explosion of hilarity wasn’t made for my pop.), there is also some truly fine thematic moments in the film on freedom and what it means to be alive in the 21^st century. So pay attention!

The audience for the film already loved the original movie. Sometimes the movie did remind me a bit too much of MacFarlane’s beloved television programs. They went with the cinematic insanity in the tale and had a damn good time. Whether or not they appreciated the underlying ideas is something that an undernourished reviewer can fathom.

The overall direction (by Seth Macfarlane) is tight and skillful, but it still had the feel of, say, OH GOD, directed by The Great Carl Reiner. The direction is professional, but the film isn’t trying for cinematic brilliance. The C.G. blending of the bear with more typical humans is outstandingly accomplished.So much of the film might be better seen through a haze of pot smoke. Actually, most of the characters in the film seemed to enjoy a good toke as well.

3 of 5 Stars

THE WOLFPACK – The Review

Review by Stephen Jones

“Hey, did you hear about this family that kept all the kids inside? Apparently they only related to the outside world through movies.”

“Oh? That sounds weird, what else about them?”

“…nothing, really, just thought it was interesting.”

This is the vibe I got watching Crystal Moselle’s THE WOLFPACK. To be fair, the subject IS really interesting. The Angulo brothers were kept in an apartment on New York’s lower east side, forbidden to leave. Everything they know of the world outside is through movies they watch. For her directorial debut, Moselle immediately shows a good eye for subject matter. I just don’t know that she quite has the hang of saying anything about the subject matter.

There are aspects of the story that could’ve been fascinating. Their father, the driving force behind the family’s isolation, is seen only in archival footage for a while. The way he’s spoken of creates an ominous feel to him. When he does start participating in the documentary… there’s not much to him. At least not much shown.

It’s something that persists through the entire documentary. The one big development in the real-life “Dogtooth” is the eldest son leaving the apartment for the first time, and that’s obviously already happened before the documentary even starts. Other developments that could also provide some drama (or at least any sort of narrative) are treated with almost nonchalance. I couldn’t tell if it was a symptom of a first-time director or if Moselle deliberately avoided any sort of narrative structure in favor of simply displaying the family.

If it’s a deliberate choice, it’s not for the better. The movie’s best moment is a montage near the end of the change the family has and is undergoing. There are some genuinely effective moments, and there are seeds of a really great documentary in these moments. These, and the scene in which the brothers venture out to see their first film at the theater. That scene brought a nice big smile to my face.

There are subjects and documentaries that work just fine without any sort of narrative structure. But there’s a story to be found in THE WOLFPACK. Beats are danced around, alluded to, hinted at, but never told. As interesting as the family is, and they are plenty interesting, this documentary as it is could have easily been trimmed and been a stellar short documentary. At feature length, it’s still very good, but the story expands just enough to make me wish there were more.

3 3/4 of 5 Stars

THE WOLFPACK opens in St. Louis June 26th exclusively at Landmark’s The Tivoli Theater

THE MIDNIGHT SWIM – The Review

THE MIDNIGHT SWIM is a hauntingly beautiful character study about three half-sisters who return to their mother’s lake house to handle her affairs after she was deemed drowned in the mysterious Spirit Lake. Technically classified as horror, the film can be psychically disturbing at times, but this does misrepresent the film’s true nature.

Writer and director Sarah Adina Smith presents her film in a semi-faux-documentary style, allowing the viewer to get close and personal with the characters as we learn about them and feel how they’re coping with the relationship flaws and loss of their mother. THE MIDNIGHT SWIM feels like a deeply personal film, but with an edge of having experienced something with which we never should have been given access.

Dr. Amelia Brooks, played in retrospect by Beth Grant, was a researcher and activist in support of saving the lake. She frequently dove to take samples and explore, as no one has ever reached the bottom of the endlessly deep body of water. On her last dive, she never returned and was not seen again. Officially pronounced dead, her three daughters spend time in the house together, coming to terms with each other and their mother.

Annie, played by Jennifer Lafleur, is the eldest daughter and a mother. Isa, played by Aleksa Palladino, seems to be the youngest, free-spirited and fun-loving, new age hippie out of her time. She rekindles an old flame with Josh, played by Ross Partridge, with whom she spends time when not with her sisters. Isa is also the most interesting character in the film. June, played by Lindsay Burdge, is a photographer and is shooting a documentary on their experience. We see and hear the least from June, given she is in part telling the very story we’re watching on screen, but she also has reflective and revealing moments on screen, some of which are entirely silent but equally unnerving.

THE MIDNIGHT SWIM is not a traditional horror film. Instead, the three sisters find themselves exploring their own states of mind and each others’ as they talk, argue and reminisce about their late mother. Occasionally, their is a slight, thinly-veiled breach of the fourth wall as if the characters are interacting directly with the audience, due to the faux-documentary style, but because this is not maintained consistently throughout the film, we’re caught off guard. As the story develops, strange occurrences do begin to raise concerns amongst the sisters, at first assuming pranks being played in poor taste, later seen as signs of something more paranormal in nature.

Sonically, THE MIDNIGHT SWIM almost seems to occur in a vacuum, with little music and laid over mere natural sound and white noise. Occasionally, and usually when cutting to or featuring the lake itself, we are given hauntingly, unearthly soundscapes as an ethereal audio pathway leading us into the unknown. Tempting us to take a swim. Equally alluring is the picturesque quality given the lake, especially at night, dark and enchanting, calling for us to submerge within in abyss.

THE MIDNIGHT SWIM contains several small, easily missed moments of finely crafted detail, much of which suggests theories and clues as to the events being portrayed on film. From microscopic views of their mother’s lake samples, revealing creepy natural beasts invisible to the naked eye to hand-written research notes indicating strange anomalies within the lake as she ventured deeper with each dive. Carefully placed bits of dialogue are also integrated to suggest connections to things larger and beyond our normal comprehension. These are the textures that help create layers of curiosity, avoiding the pitfall of being just a film about three sisters and their drama. This helps create the mystery.

Roughly 45 minutes into the film, the experience whiplashes the viewer out of the pleasantly coma-inducing family drama into a surreal, music-video like scene that injects a surge of joyous adrenaline into the previously sedated mind. This excursion from the tone of the film is never truly explained, in any conceivable way, but aside from this moment, all makes sense in the end. For viewers of THE MIDNIGHT SWIM that enter into the experience without preconceived notions or misguided expectations, this may prove an enlightening, even oddly uplifting film.

THE MIDNIGHT SWIM is slow at times, can be disorienting or slightly confusing, but is best described as an uncomfortable, intimately personal invitation to invade the emotional psyche of these three women at their most vulnerable. Its equally off-putting and tantalizing, philosophically and spiritually suggestive, making for a film that is not perfect, but far from boring.

THE MIDNIGHT SWIM Dives Into Cinemas and VOD Nationwide on Friday, June 26th, 2015.

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

THE STRONGEST MAN – The Review

THE STRONGEST MAN is a dry, dead-pan comedy about a Cuban man in Miami called Beef, played by Robert Lorie. Beef works in construction, but is known by friends and coworkers for being exceptionally strong. Beef is a good-sized man, but his natural strength goes far beyond the limits of any man I’ve ever met. Ultimately, this is a relatively insignificant fact about Beef, as his one love and passion in life is his gold-painted BMX bike, which he rides proudly like a child when not working construction or hanging art for a local rich white woman named Mrs. Rosen, played by Lisa Banes.

Beef’s best friend and coworker is the son of Korean immigrants and a seemingly talented yet underachieving man called Conan, played by Paul Chamberlain. The two spend most of their time together, often having peculiarly philosophical conversations in English, while Beef’s thoughts narrate the film in Spanish. At the request of friend Illi, played by Ashly Burch, Beef and Conan attend a yoga session on a whim and through the guidance of Guru Fred (played by Patrick Fugit) finds his spirit animal. As it turns out, his spirit animal proves to be problematic and after making the mistake of killing his spirit animal, Beef’s treasured BMX bike is stolen, sending him on a journey to find more than just a prized possession.

There are no big laugh-out loud moments in THE STRONGEST MAN, but the film is charmingly humorous in a subtle, introspective way that allows the viewer to empathize with this often quite man who seems simple-minded while conveying a sort of street wisdom and charisma combining the persona of Charles Bronson and Lennie from Of Mice and Men. This is an existentialist comedy that plays drier than the average British fare, but maintains a quirkiness developed by the characters, a testament to the curious writing and direction of Kenny Riches. THE STRONGEST MAN is Riches’ sophomore follow-up to MUST COME DOWN (2012) which boasts much of the same cast.

Robert Lorie is intriguing in the role of Beef, capable of filling out the slightly hulkish character through his physical type, posture and body language. Lorie also really captures the internal struggle of Beef, showing an avid understanding not just of the crucially well-written, oft off-beat dialogue, but nailing those crucial pauses and awkward even elongated silent moments that feed so much into developing Beef’s character. He’s a big guy, strong, but far from graceful, except when on his BMX. This is especially true near the end of the film when, upon reaching a breaking point, he cuts loose and dances freely, albeit terribly and at an inappropriate time.

THE STRONGEST MAN, at its core, is a story of finding what’s important to Beef. This is about Beef finding his true self and his true love. What begins as a search for his stolen bike becomes a search first for himself and then for the proverbial perfect girl. Riches shot the film with what feels like a docudrama influence, revealing Beef’s journey with on the fly, handheld cinematography that often feels spur of the moment. Doing this without feeling forced or contrived is not an easy task, but Riches manages to pull it off beautifully. While the toe and style are drastically different, consider films like THE WACKNESS (2008) or DONNIE DARKO (2001) as generally similar journey of self-discovery films and if you enjoyed those films, and are open the different styles and genres, be sure to give THE STRONGEST MAN a chance.

THE STRONGEST MAN opens in theaters on Friday, June 26th, 2015.

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

7 MINUTES – The Review

The criminal caper that goes wrong is always good for a suspenseful, absorbing thriller movie. Just from memory there is The Asphalt Jungle, The Killing, (almost any classic film noir dealing with a criminal undertaking, if it didn’t go wrong it wouldn’t be noir now would it?) Odds Against tomorrow, Reservoir Dogs, Bob Le Flambeur, Rififi, and Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead.

The list is just about endless, in fact, precious few movies about criminals show the heist going off without a hitch. Add to that list 7 MINUTES, a tough, unblinking look at a caper done by amateurs so desperate they are willing to risk everything to try and pull it off.

Sam (Luke Mitchell), Mike, (Jason Ritter, son of John and showing some good acting chops) and Owen (Zane Holtz) lead small town lives of quiet desperation. They try and make some money through drug dealing and in a stomach churning scene that references Train Spotting, lose a great quantity of MDA fronted to them on credit from a career criminal. (Do drug dealers really do that?)

They decide to rob a real estate office; word gets out, as it will, to a local cop, Jerome, (Brandon Hardesty), one of the saddest characters I have ever seen in any movie. Jerome has no friends, lives with his Mother in a small attic apartment and dreams of love with a bar hopping floozy named Brandi (Mariel Neto). Word also gets out to Tucky, a friend of Owen’s family, played by Kevin Gage and he is one bad, mean son of a bitch, the usual character Kevin Gage always plays in other words.

Once all the characters are established and meet at that real estate office, as it must, all hell breaks loose. From the moment the three amateur crooks come busting through the door wearing blank, white Halloween masks (which may or may not be a nod to Eyes Without a Face) waving guns they have no intention of using to the final showdown, 7 MINUTES is a remarkable piece of work.

At key points in the film, these characters and others are introduced with screen filling letters telling us their name. The introductions also come at key points during the 7 Minutes the caper is supposed to take to pull off. 7 MINUTES is practically an experimental film, the title refers to the 7 Minutes the criminals think it will take to rob the real estate office, which has a safe with money not legally obtained in the first place. The film stops, doubles back on itself, and starts again after introducing each character and their back story. The 7 Minutes are stretched to the breaking point, rewound and started again from different viewpoints. Trust me, it works.

Written and directed by Jay Martin, 7 MINUTES runs a tight hour and 27 minutes and the tension never lets up. You know these guys are not going to pull off their heist, seeing their reaction as things get worse and worse makes it all the more horrifying. All the actors are excellent and function with Swiss watch timing.

The feeling of desperation, of characters living a hopeless life in a small town with no future is overwhelming. 7 MINUTES is in the same league with Small Town Murder Songs, Texas Killing Fields and A Simple Plan.

It also seems like a period piece, several 70s vintage cars are used throughout; although we do see cell phones and flat screen tvs. The only jarring note, the movie takes place in a small town, when the cops show up at the crime scene they are equipped with the kind of items you would expect from big city law enforcement. And, in a key mistake, they do not send officers to cover the back of the building. This leads me to wonder if the ending really works, I don’t like to give spoilers, let’s just say you don’t expect anything like a happy ending from a project like 7 MINUTES.

Nevertheless, I am impressed; I have to give 7 MINUTES at least 4 stars out of 5.

In Theaters, VOD and iTunes Friday June 26
GoWatchIt.com/7MinutesMovie
NYC Theater: Cinema Village

RESULTS – The Review

We would all like to be in better shape, I’m thinking. Even people who work out every day always seem to want to do more to be healthier, to get into better physical condition. And goodness knows obesity and sedentary lifestyles seem to be the norm for a great many people in this country. I have to count myself among the out of shape but wanting to do something about it. I have gained and lost the same 40 or 50 pounds so many times in my life it’s now difficult to lose that weight and keep it off. I have a gym membership but rarely use it and can’t seem to find the time to get back to the gym on a regular basis.

Maybe I should get a personal trainer? Which leads me to RESULTS, a remarkable and good hearted movie about personal trainers, a new client and the mine field of dating in the 21^st Century. Especially for people who are into physical training and may not know how to talk about their emotional life. Well really, does anybody know how to talk about their emotional life?

Results has the off kilter feel and unpredictability of a Coen Brothers movie, and for me that is a good thing. What we get is Kevin Corrigan,(Goodfellas, Superbad, Pineapple Express) as Danny, being told to get lost by a woman, his wife? girlfriend? It takes a while to find out but Results is the kind of movie that is not in any hurry to let us know what is going on. And it keeps us guessing as to what will happen next, to me that is a very good thing.

We next see Corrigan in a new home, a mansion really, spending money with no thought as to cost. He gets a membership at the gym run by Guy Pearce, as Trevor, (using his own Australian accent for the first time, that I’m aware of, since THE PROPOSITION in 2005). Corrigan is playing a barely articulate, highly dysfunctional New Yorker, a fish out of water in Austin, Texas (we eventually find out the location.) We also eventually find out that he inherited a sizable sum of money, in a manner I still don’t quite understand.

He has few social skills and seems more than a little weird and creepy, but because he has money he signs up for a personal trainer from Pearce’s gym. Enter Coby Smulders, as Kat, the trainer (how nice to see her in something other than a Marvel franchise movie, not that there’s anything wrong with the Marvel universe.) And how nice to see that Ms Smulders can carry the lead female role in a movie, and still look drop dead gorgeous without any makeup.

Danny tries to get in shape by following Kat’s personal training regimen. He tells Trevor that he wants to “get tough, be able to take a hit and not get hurt!” We have our doubts that Danny, with his paunch, pasty white skin, poor eating habits, drinking, pot smoking and badly thinning hair will ever get into the kind of shape exhibited by Trevor and Kat. Kat tells him as much, and like a Shakespeare romantic comedy everybody gets the wrong ideas about everybody else. Danny tries to romance Kat with hired musicians and catered dinners in his rented mansion, much to her horror. We the audience and every other character in the movie know that Trevor and Kat are perfect for each other, but they argue, get together, fight, break up and get back together and, well… I hate to give spoilers but everything comes right in the end. And yes, it is quite subtle but the old message that “money can’t buy happiness” is there, but lots more is going on in Results, this is not a typical romantic comedy, by no means.

Results is that rarity among modern movies, a feel good, truly funny and romantic comedy with, and this is important, characters we come to know and care about, very deeply. Set in and filmed mostly in Austin, Texas, the independent film capital of the western world, Results is a wonderful movie.

Pearce has never been better and quite frankly Smulders is astonishing. I sincerely hope she gets more parts, written as well as Kat, she has serious acting chops and she ought to be allowed to show them. And Corrigan, well he IS Kevin Corrigan, the slightly lopsided New Yorker that cannot help but be lovable, no matter if he even plays the bad guy. Giovanni Ribisi shines, but then he always does, as a contract lawyer who, more or less befriends Danny. And Anthony Michael Hall, of all people, is hysterical as a Russian cable tv fitness guru with his own special, but very basic equipment. A whole other movie could be created around his character of Grigory, and probably will be some day.

And finally it is somewhat exhausting to see a movie with so much working out, Pearce and Smulders both are playing characters who work out every single day, and their stamina shows it. But Results is also inspiring. It has inspired me to start using my gym membership more often, maybe even…get a personal trainer? And that is another good thing, very good.

We’ll see what happens, in the meantime I do have to get to the gym and get on the stair master for a while. Be seeing you!

4 1/2 of 5 Stars

RESULTS is currently playing in St. Louis at Landmark’s Tivoli Theater

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Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

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Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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