J.K. Simmons – People Talking

Twofer Review – ‘A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood’ and ‘21 Bridges’ – Imperfectly Average

Directed by Marielle Heller
Written by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster, based on the 1998 Esquire article “Can You Say… Hero?” by Tom Junod
Cast: Tom Hanks, Matthew Rhys, Chris Cooper, Susan Kelechi Watson, Maryann Plunkett, Enrico Colantoni, Wendy Makkena, Tammy Blanchard, Noah Harpster, Carmen Cusack, Kelley Davis, Christine Lahti, Maddie Corman, Daniel Krell, Jessica Hecht
Soundtrack: Nate Heller

The question on many people’s minds since they first found out about this film is, “How can you make this movie after last year’s documentary, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”

The short answer is: you really can’t.

If you haven’t seen the documentary yet, maybe go see this new movie first, and then the documentary will answer almost any other questions you might have.

This isn’t to say A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood doesn’t have any value. Tom Hanks does manage to somewhat capture Fred Rogers’ spirit, even if he doesn’t really look or sound like him, and there are some other solid performances (big ups to Welsh actor Matthew Rhys for continuing to pull off legitimate American accents), but there’s one element of the film that I simultaneously appreciated and was baffled by.

There’s no hint to it in any of the marketing, but the framing device of A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is that the movie itself is like an episode of Mister Rogers, so you have travel interludes where Pittsburgh and New York are done up like the miniature neighborhood from the show. While I enjoyed the artistry of this, the problem is that the device is applied inconsistently, and there’s one particular scene in the movie that gave me flashbacks to Welcome to Marwen (which is not a good thing).

The long and short of it is that if you’re looking for a feel-good movie, and you’re open to that experience, then A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood might work for you, I certainly wouldn’t talk you out of seeing it, but if you find it [more than] a little jarring, I’m right there with you.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Directed by Brian Kirk
Written by Adam Mervis (story and screenplay) and Matthew Michael Carnahan (screenplay)
Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Sienna Miller, J.K. Simmons, Stephan James, Taylor Kitsch, Keith David, Alexander Siddig, Louis Cancelmi, Victoria Cartagena, Gary Carr, Morocco Omari, Chris Ghaffari, Dale Pavinski, Christian Isaiah, Sarah Ellen Stephens, Jamie Neumann, Peter Patrikios, John Douglas Thompson, Obi Abili, Andy Truschinski, Darren Lipari, Adriane Lenox
Soundtrack: Henry Jackman & Alex Belcher

The first several [dozen] times I saw the trailer for 21 Bridges, I thought, “That sounds like a great premise for some sort of post-apocalyptic mood piece, but not necessarily a serious cop drama.”

To my surprise, the filmmakers actually made it work.

For much of its runtime, 21 Bridges is a solid, surprisingly grounded piece of entertainment (like a more realistic poliziotteschi).

The trouble comes in the third act, when the story becomes a little too pulpy for its own good (I’d level a similar criticism at The Good Liar, though that one has the excuse of being based on a novel).

Still, I think this might be the best performance I’ve seen from Chadwick Boseman (though I’m largely uninitiated, to be honest), which isn’t totally surprising as 21 Bridges seems to have been something of a passion project for him.

Unfortunately, Sienna Miller’s “New Yawk” accent is a bit of an albatross, and a great-on-paper supporting cast is largely wasted.

Even so, as with A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, I wouldn’t talk you out of seeing it, just don’t go in expecting Heat (or even Heat Jr).

Rating: ★★★☆☆

P.S.
I’m not criticizing anyone, I know movies are tough to make, but I do find it a little funny that the Mister Rogers movie got to shoot on the real NYC Subway whereas the New York crime thriller had to use Philadelphia’s.

Thanksgiving Smörgåsbord: ‘The Front Runner’ – ‘Creed II’ – ‘Ralph Breaks the Internet’ – ‘Robin Hood’ (2018)

One of these things is not like the other…

Let’s get it on.

Directed by Jason Reitman
Written by Matt Bai & Jay Carson & Jason Reitman, based on the book All The Truth Is Out by Matt Bai
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Vera Farmiga, J. K. Simmons, Alfred Molina, Sara Paxton, Mamoudou Athie, John Bedford Lloyd, Bill Burr, Kaitlyn Dever, Molly Ephraim, Josh Brener, Mike Judge, Kevin Pollak, Ari Graynor, Mark O’Brien, Alex Karpovsky, Toby Huss, Tommy Dewey, Spencer Garrett, Nyasha Hatendi, Steve Zissis, Chris Coy, Jennifer Landon, Oliver Cooper, Courtney Ford, Jonny Pasvolsky, Randy Havens, Steve Coulter, Jenna Kanell, Gabriel Manak, Evan Castelloe
Soundtrack: Rob Simonsen

The Front Runner has gotten mixed reviews, and I think I know why (Rorschach test-type situation), but ultimately I don’t understand why. Given that we live in the Golden Age of the Documentary, and based-on-true-story movies often fail to justify themselves, this one was a refreshing exception.

I’ll admit that I haven’t seen a Jason Reitman film since Thank You for Smoking, which I enjoyed and which The Front Runner compares favorably to, though they are distinct from each other, but to me you can’t really ask for more from a non-fantastical film-making perspective. It’s a period piece that takes itself very seriously in that regard (which I appreciated to no end), it’s slick, the performances are by-and-large very good if not excellent (a few questionable casting decisions, but nothing unforgivable), and, at least in my opinion, it lets you make up your own mind (which is perhaps why some people are down on it).

Truthfully though, this is the Hugh Jackman show. Not that he doesn’t have plenty of help (Vera Farmiga in particular is her usual wonderful self), but it’s certainly among the best performances I’ve ever seen from him, maybe the best so far. I don’t know if it’ll be “impressive” enough to earn him awards season love, but it would not shock me to see him earn some nods.

It may not be an entirely life-changing experience (although it is about not only a life-changing experience, but a societal-changing experience), but given how down this year has been for movies, I have no problem giving The Front Runner a quality recommendation.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Directed by Steven Caple Jr.
Written by Sylvester Stallone (story and screenplay), Juel Taylor (screenplay), Sascha Penn (story), and Cheo Hodari Coker (story)
Cast: Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson, Dolph Lundgren, Florian Munteanu, Wood Harris, Russell Hornsby, Andre Ward, Phylicia Rashad, Jacob “Stitch” Duran
Soundtrack: Ludwig Göransson

Alright, Rocky IV: Part 3-D. Let’s do this.

It’s crazy, because the main fulcrum of Creed II is like something a couple of kids would have thought up on a playground thirty years ago: “What if Apollo Creed had a son and Ivan Drago had a son and they fought each other?”

And yet, it works. As predictable as it may be at times, as a sequel to a sequel to a sequel will be, Creed II still has enough in its core to be satisfying.

Story-wise, it’s not as cohesive as I remember its predecessor being, but it brings out just as much emotion (cribbing good story elements from Rocky II, III, and IV helps with that), and, frankly, from a visual standpoint, I actually think it’s a better looking film (I can’t find any numbers, but I’m guessing this had a bigger budget than the $35 million for Creed, which would be one explanation why).

In terms of performances, not everybody gets a whole lot to do (even Stallone seems to have less screen-time than in the last one), but I can’t think of anyone who sticks out in a bad way (except maybe for Max “Where’s My Camera” Kellerman). Even Dolph Lundgren (who I like more than most other people seem to) brings his fair share to the table. And, he only gets about three scenes, but I really liked Russell Hornsby as the fight promoter.

I know I rag on Hollywood’s lack of originality these days quite a bit, but at the same time I try to judge every movie I see on it’s own merits, and I like what Creed II brings to the table, especially as a Rocky IV fan.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Directed by Phil Johnston & Rich Moore
Written by Phil Johnston (story and screenplay) & Pamela Ribon (story and screenplay), Rich Moore (story), Jim Reardon (story), Josie Trinidad (story)
Cast: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Gal Gadot, Taraji P. Henson, Bill Hader, Alfred Molina, Alan Tudyk, Ed O’Neill, Flula Borg, Hamish Blake, Ali Wong, GloZell Green, Timothy Simons, Ana Ortiz, Jason Mantzoukas
Soundtrack: Henry Jackman

On the one hand, I want to hate on Ralph Breaks the Internet for being a giant corporate self-pleasure session (which, to be fair, it is).

On the other hand, it’s a lot of fun and it tugged at my heartstrings.

Life is complicated sometimes.

I don’t remember why I didn’t see Wreck-It Ralph in theaters, I think I was just too skeptical to pull the trigger, but eventually I came around to it on DVD and was pleasantly surprised; and the sequel is an even more pleasant surprise because it might actually be better than the original.

Does it go too far sometimes with the references for references’ sake? Most certainly yes, but, strip all of that away (and, honestly, sometimes it is handled in clever and humorous ways, especially the princess elements), and you still have a solid story of friendship. Simple, but solid.

It might seem obvious, given that it’s an animated film, but beyond the voice performances, which are by-and-large on point, and the music, the movie’s biggest strength is it’s detailed visual creativity. Little things like how players in the not-Grand Theft Auto game move with a little lag as opposed to the free-flowing non-player characters, and just overall in how the Internet as a setting is portrayed, as I said, it’s a lot of fun.

Will Ralph Breaks the Internet hold up in ten to fifteen years? Maybe, maybe not, but somehow it feels more substantial than a lot of other “time-capsule” movies. I mean, it’s clearly geared towards Disney fanatics, of which I am not one, and I still give it a high recommendation, so, take that for what it’s worth.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Directed by Otto Bathurst
Written by Ben Chandler (screenplay and story) and David James Kelly (screenplay)
Cast: Taron Egerton, Jamie Foxx, Ben Mendelsohn, Eve Hewson, Tim Minchin, Jamie Dornan, Paul Anderson, Josh Herdman, Cornelius Booth, Björn Bengtsson
Soundtrack: Joseph Trapanese

Hey, remember Batman Begins? That was a good movie.

No, but seriously, as much as this version of Robin Hood wanted me to hate it, I can’t say I hated it. I wouldn’t say it’s good, but it’s not all bad either.

I don’t know that it entirely works or makes sense (in fact, it’s a bit jarring at times), but I don’t fault the filmmakers for trying to do something different in terms of visual style and fight choreography. After all, when you’re the fifty-seventh (numbers approximate) Robin Hood movie in film history, you’ve got to do something to distinguish yourself.

Honestly, even story-wise, I wouldn’t say things are entirely poor, but there are moments when the writing is so awful you can’t even believe it. Add to this a dose of ham-fisted social and political commentary (The War on Terror is the new Crusades! The Church is evil!), which is no surprise given that one of the producers is Leonardo DiCaprio, and some related tonal inconsistencies (much of the movie is played pretty straight, but then there are scenes, in order to paint people as cartoonishly evil, that are like The Hunger Games meets Mad Max), and you go from a pretty good movie to something you’d randomly find in a Redbox.

As I keep saying though, it’s not all bad, and most of the good comes down to Taron Egerton as Robin Hood. Occasionally there’s a line or two that not even Laurence Olivier could make good, but on the whole his performance is charming and enjoyable, yet deeply human.

Still though, as most remakes are, 2018’s Robin Hood isn’t really worth your time or money.

You might even say that it’s a Thanksgiving turkey.

Rating: ★★½ (out of five)

Movie Review – ‘Justice League’ – Avert Your Eyes

Directed by Zack Snyder
Written by Chris Terrio (story and screenplay), Joss Whedon (screenplay), and Zack Snyder (story)
Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, J.K. Simmons, Ciarán Hinds (voice), Amber Heard, Joe Morton, Lisa Loven Kongsli, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Doutzen Kroes, Brooke Ence, Ann Ogbomo, Samantha Jo, Holt McCallany, Marc McClure
Soundtrack: Danny Elfman

Alternate title for this piece (or the movie): Why Can’t We Be [Super]friends?

I really shouldn’t even dignify this movie with anything resembling a full-length review, so I’ll try not to.

At no point in time did I ever have high hopes for this film, and in its wake I definitely don’t have high hopes for the DCEU as a whole.

Justice League is as big of a mess as Rogue One (if not more so). The only difference for me personally is that I don’t have nearly as much emotional attachment to the property, so I’m not nearly as angry or disappointed, but I still have to call a turd a turd.

The biggest problem with Justice League is that it is approximately 4,657 movies in one (hyperbole intended).

It’s almost as if these characters should have starred in their own films before appearing all together.

You know? Maybe build it up a little bit?

Why DC didn’t bite the bullet on this and instead attempted to microwave everything in order to “catch up” to Marvel is entirely beyond me. I mean, despite being pilloried by the critics at nearly every turn, these movies are still somehow doing good business, couldn’t they have put in the effort to make them good, too?

Back to the subject at hand (though this is a franchise-wide issue), Justice League, in addition to having a myriad of elements (especially tones) that don’t quite fit together, has so many visuals that are just plain ugly to look at that I could hardly believe my eyes. I may not be a film-making expert, but I do know that this was a two-hour movie that cost $300 million. It should not look as bad as it does, and yet it does.

Now, I’ll admit, there were a few tiny bits and pieces here and there that I did find enjoyable about Justice League, but mostly I was either bored, or trying not to be sick. Even if you’re somehow a DCEU completionist, this movie still isn’t worth your money to see theatrically.

It’s a mess. An ugly, boring mess.

What more do I need to say?

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

P.S.
There are multiple stingers, because D.C. is now in full Marvel mode (they wish).

P.P.S.
Naturally, and as usual, thanks to Alamo Drafthouse for the cool glassware (which is better than the movie).

Twofer Movie Review – ‘Only The Brave’ and ‘The Snowman’ – Fire and Ice

Ordinarily I can find some kind of connection when reviewing two films at once, but I’m at a loss here, other than these two having the same release date.

Only The Brave

Directed by Joseph Kosinski
Written by Ken Nolan and Eric Warren Singer, based on the GQ article “No Exit” by Sean Flynn
Cast: Josh Brolin, Miles Teller, Jeff Bridges, James Badge Dale, Taylor Kitsch, Jennifer Connelly, Andie MacDowell, Geoff Stults, Alex Russell, Thad Luckinbill, Ben Hardy, Scott Haze, Jake Picking, Ryan Jason Cook
Soundtrack: Joseph Trapanese

A few weeks ago I woodshedded a pair of “based on a true story” films and I was not eager to do the same thing again this week.

Fortunately, I don’t have to.

I hesitate to call it great, but Only The Brave is very good. A bit uneven perhaps, but it’s a fitting and deeply heartfelt tribute to a group of men who battled not flesh and blood, but rather the fierceness of nature itself.

In a word: wildfires.

If you’re unfamiliar with the world of wildfire firefighting, don’t worry, the movie gives you a pretty clear picture, so much so that I won’t even bother to provide a primer, but suffice it to say it’s not the sort of work for the faint of heart, to say nothing of the physical demands.

It sounds like the most obvious thing in the world, but Only The Brave has realism on its side. I don’t know all the true life facts, I know for sure there’s some timeline shifting, but, on the whole, you don’t get the impression that there’s a lot of Hollywood-ing going on, which is nice for this sort of movie; and, outside of a few dream sequences for Josh Brolin’s character, nothing is even shot in a way that would seem unrealistic.

Speaking of Josh Brolin, this movie has a great cast (including Jennifer Connelly, who’s still as captivating as ever, and James Badge Dale, who’s probably my favorite actor who’s not yet a household name), and they all do solid work, though because it’s a feature film and not a miniseries, not a lot of people get much to do (there are twenty guys on the hotshot crew alone, let alone the other supporting characters, so screen time is at a premium for just about everybody). It’s hard for me to be critical because maybe everyone is portraying their real-life counterpart perfectly, but if there’s one performance I found puzzling at times, it’s from Taylor Kitsch, but, again, I don’t know.

Given that I didn’t know the story going in, I’ll assume most people won’t know the story going in either, so I’ll leave that to be discovered, but it’s most certainly a story worth telling, and I think Only The Brave tells it well.

It may feel a bit by the numbers at times (I mean, Peter Berg has had a near-monopoly on this kind of film the past few years), but I’d say it’s a movie absolutely worth seeing theatrically.

Just make sure you bring some tissues.

Rating: ★★★★☆

The Snowman

Directed by Tomas Alfredson
Written by Peter Straughan, Hossein Amini, and Søren Sveistrup, based on the novel Snømannen by Jo Nesbø
Cast: Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Ferguson, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Val Kilmer, J.K. Simmons, Ronan Vibert, Toby Jones, Genevieve O’Reilly, James D’Arcy, Adrian Dunbar, Chloë Sevigny, Anne Reid, Jamie Michie, Alec Newman, Jamie Clayton
Soundtrack: Marco Beltrami

Boy, was this a disappointment.

The Snowman has pretty much all of the elements you need for a pulpy crime thriller: based on a novel (one book in an expansive series; if they were planning on a movie series, that ship has now sailed), a drunkard detective, a murderer with a gimmick, intrigue, flashbacks, and, perhaps most importantly, an A-list cast devoting themselves to B-level material (somebody even plays twins).

This could have been so-good-it’s-good, so-bad-it’s-good, or, at the very least, just some trashy fun, but the execution was totally lacking (and, if recent rumors are to be believed, so was 10-15% of the script).

Right off the bat, there’s a lethargy to this film that it never quite shakes, and I don’t know that it could be fixed purely with editing. I was never so bored that I completely checked out, but, make no mistake, this was a bit of a chore to watch.

In contrast to Only The Brave, The Snowman thoroughly wastes its tremendous cast. Honestly, there’s not one standout performance in the whole bunch, at least not in a good way. Val Kilmer has a strange role that’s made doubly stranger by some truly awful dubbing, which I have zero explanation for, but that’s about it.

None of this really matters, however, because, in the end, this movie isn’t worth seeing or talking about any further.

I questioned whether it would be worth full price, but it’s not even worth a matinee.

Shame.

Rating: ★★☆☆☆