Tag: Bradley Cooper

Movie Review – ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ – The Gang’s All Here

Directed by Anthony Russo & Joe Russo

Written by Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely (screenplay), based on the comic book story by Jim Starlin, George Pérez, & Ron Lim, based on characters created by Steve Ditko, Jack Kirby, Joe Simon, and Jim Starlin

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Benedict Cumberbatch, Don Cheadle, Tom Holland, Chadwick Boseman, Paul Bettany, Elizabeth Olsen, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Peter Dinklage, Benedict Wong, Pom Klementieff, Karen Gillan, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Gwyneth Paltrow, Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin, Chris Pratt, Danai Gurira, Letitia Wright, Winston Duke, Angela Bassett, Jacob Batalon, Isabella Amara, Florence Kasumba, William Hurt, Terry Notary, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Carrie Coon, Michael James Shaw

Soundtrack: Alan Silvestri

It all comes down to this.

(Until Ant-Man and the Wasp comes out in ten weeks, which I’m actually more hyped for, but whatever.)

Eighteen movies in ten years have all been building up to the conflict to end all conflicts (until the next one).

The Infinity War.

So, what do we got?

Well…that kind of depends on the question.

As far as its purpose, which is the joining together of multiple sub-franchises to form, more or less, a single, cohesive story, I think this film does an admirable job of hammering the puzzle pieces together, but it’s not seamless enough to transcend the limitations of adapting one medium to another.

To put it another way, there’s very little about Infinity War that’s bad on its own; pretty much every scene unto itself works just fine, but I don’t think it cuts together well.  Frankly, I found the whole thing rather overwhelming (perhaps a second look would be worthwhile, but I’m not sure).

One big problem is that the audience is expected to carry too much into the movie (metaphorically speaking).  I’ve seen every MCU film, I assume most people who are going opening weekend have as well, but most of the emotional payoffs in Infinity War rely on you to remember why they’re important, and, as good a memory as I have, I just don’t have that kind of RAM for this, and as such a lot of the emotion of the movie fell flat for me (not to mention there haven’t been many real consequences in the MCU to this point, so…yeah, I’ll just leave it there).

Second, and I know I’ll be in the minority here because it’s the point of all of this for a lot of people, but there’s too much mind-numbing action, which I don’t normally find myself saying about these films.  I like action fine, I can even enjoy nonstop action when it’s done right, but let me ask you this:

If two CG characters are fighting each other, why does the camera need to shake so much?

One positive I will mention, because I didn’t hate this movie and want to end on a good note, I actually liked Thanos as a character.  Sure, he’s a villain who must be stopped, but at least he has an ethos and isn’t just another bitter revenge dude.

Other than that, hardcore fans will probably eat this one up, but I’m not convinced it has that much staying power for general audiences.  Check it out if you want, especially if you’re pot committed to the MCU, but don’t feel bad about seeing it at a discount.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

P.S.
Shoutout to Alamo/Mondo for the swag.

Movie Review – ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ – But Wait, There’s More!

Written and Directed by James Gunn
Cast: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan, Sean Gunn, Tommy Flanagan
Soundtrack: Tyler Bates

On a personal note, I suppose I should have titled this ‘The People Talking 200th Review 3-Year Anniversary Special’, because it’s been three years since I started this blog, and this is the 200th movie I’m discussing and giving a rating to, but that would be a bit long-winded.

It’s also fitting that Guardians of the Galaxy was my favorite movie of 2014, and still my favorite movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  It was a surprise hit (certainly a surprise to the studio, who, based on the marketing, clearly had no idea what they had or what to do with it) that benefited from strong word of mouth (similar to another 2014 movie which just had a sequel).  In all honesty, it wasn’t until The Force Awakens that any other movie gave me the same vibes as watching the original Star Wars trilogy when I was a kid; Guardians was that magical.

Enter Vol. 2.  This one can’t sneak up on people.  They know what it is, the studio knows what it is, and with proper hype comes the weight of expectations, unfair or not.

Basically, what I’m saying is that if you’re going into this one expecting it to be “as good” as the first one, you shouldn’t do that, as you’ll likely not have your expectations fulfilled, though all of this is not to say that Vol. 2 isn’t a very good movie in its own right, because it is.  I’d say just don’t expect it to be the exact same movie, because it isn’t.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is eminently entertaining; filled with humor, action (though seemingly less so than other films of its ilk, which I’m okay with), emotional depth, and humor.  Did I say humor twice?  You bet I did.  It’s the funniest movie I’ve seen in a while (so funny that I have to see it again because we were laughing so much), though, again, that’s not to say everything is a joke; it tugs at your heartstrings plenty.

If I have one legitimate criticism in comparing it to the first movie, it’s that the pacing and structure feels a bit clunky at times, but there’s not much else I can complain about.  It still has tunes, the performances are still on point, the story is fine, it’s different and weird (which we know to be a good thing for Marvel), and it’s FUN (and it’s well-written enough that you can still understand it even if you’ve never seen a Marvel movie before, unlike another recent Disney product).  AND, it takes a page out of the Fast & Furious playbook with the whole #FAMILY thing (which is fine by me).

Vol. 2 is not a perfect film, and it doesn’t necessarily improve on anything, but it is very well crafted; top notch as far as sequels go.  It’s not likely to be my favorite movie of the year, given what’s come out already and what’s yet to be released, but it’s more than good enough to get a full theatrical recommendation.

Kudos to James Gunn for keeping the magic going.

Rating: ★★★★☆

P.S.
You won’t be leaving at all during the credits.

And thanks to Alamo and Mondo for the sweet glasses.

Movie Review – ‘War Dogs’ – Nothing is Coincidence

Directed by Todd Phillips
Written by Stephen Chin & Todd Phillips & Jason Smilovic (screenplay), based on the Rolling Stone article “Arms and the Dudes” by Guy Lawson
Cast: Miles Teller, Jonah Hill, Ana de Armas, Kevin Pollak, Bradley Cooper, Shaun Toub, JB Blanc, Gabriel Spahiu, Patrick St. Esprit, Wallace Langham, Eddie Jemison, Julian Sergi, Barry Livingston, David Packouz (cameo)
Soundtrack: Cliff Martinez

After a solid decade-and-a-half making generally successful funny-type movies (including Old School and The Hangover Trilogy), it seems that writer/director Todd Phillips is finally branching out the way he wants to.

It’s only fair, given that his comedic contemporary Adam McKay (Anchorman, Step Brothers) won an Oscar for last year’s The Big Short, but compared to that film, War Dogs is less comedic, less concise, and less explicit about what it’s commenting on, though that’s not to say it isn’t a good movie in its own right.

Based on the crazy true story, as outlined in a Rolling Stone article, War Dogs is about David Packouz and Efraim Diveroli (Miles Teller and Jonah Hill), a couple of twenty-something stoners who go from comparatively small-time arms dealers to being on the business end of a $300 million Department of Defense contract.

The premise alone is enough to keep you going for the runtime, but there are problems with the story structure and pacing.  The whole movie is essentially told in two extended acts and then a quick wrap up.  In other words, what should have been a full third act is breezed over in about five to ten minutes, which is frustrating.  Also, given that the movie is very much a going-into-business story, it might have been nice to see the machinations of our boys closing on more than just a couple of significant deals.

However, War Dogs does absolutely shine in the performance department, because everyone is believable.  Maybe Miles Teller doesn’t do anything special, but he puts in a good shift, and definitely works well as an audience surrogate type of protagonist.

As for Jonah Hill, I’m not afraid to say that this is the finest performance of his career so far (at least as far as I know).  The evolution of how you feel about his character as the movie progresses is rather incredible, and leads me to believe that he could pull off a dramatic lead role in the future if he so desires.  Perhaps if the movie was released a bit closer to awards season, he’d pick up a nomination or two, but I have a feeling he’ll be overshadowed by the time we get there.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t mention Bradley Cooper, who, despite only appearing in a few scenes, makes quite an impression.

On the whole, I’d say that War Dogs is worth seeing, just don’t expect another Wolf of Wall Street or Big Short; it’s a step down from either of those, but the story is interesting enough and the acting is strong enough to help get your money’s worth, not to mention some pretty solid laughs along the way.

Rating: ★★★½