Category Archives: Action

2010s, Action, Adventure, Awards, Suspense, Theology, True Story, War

The Wayfaring Stranger and Wartime Mentality in 1917

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Director Sam Mendes crafted an immersive World War I drama in 1917 through the clever use of practical camera tricks and special effects so we as the audience never leave the sides of our heroes. In fact, it is as if we don’t even blink. Roger Deakins starkly beautiful cinematography and an extremely talented editing team made it so that we never wanted to either.

The camera fixes its gaze on Lance Corporals Schofield and Blake through their rescue mission. It doesn’t cut from the action. It never leaves their side to show us an establishing shot or to tell us what is happening somewhere else. The entire film is one long and winding road through treacherous terrain.

If you’ve seen the trailer, you understand their mission. One of the soldiers’ brother is in a battalion miles away with another unit and they are going to charge into an ambush if they don’t hear from command. Armed with their message, they march off as a company of two bravely preparing to cross no man’s land and enemy lines in order to save 1,600 men including his brother.

From a Christian worldview, this mission rings of familiarity. We are called onto a mission that may cost us our lives. We are marching into enemy territory with a message that can rescue our brothers and sisters from the fire. The urgency and energy with which these soldiers carry out their mission should serve as a reminder to believers that the great commission is not completed. We must advance on our mission to bring this message of salvation to a world marked for destruction. They have been deceived and believe that victory is in their grasp.

Of course, in the film, the message is only good news because it means that this particular advance has been canceled. It would have been an even more powerful picture if the war was over and peace had been won. Then it would have truly been good news similar to the message that we as Christians proclaim. The enmity we have with God because of our sin ended through the sacrifice of the sinless Son of God, Jesus Christ.

Favorite Scene

There are a few short reprieves from all of the action. One of them comes after a particularly harrowing scene in which we follow George MacKay’s Lance Corporal Schofield through a terrifying ordeal only to see him emerge on the other side physically whole but mentally broken. He begins stumbling through a forest towards an ethereal voice. We’re not sure if this is part of the soundtrack or if he actually hears this angelic singing, until he stumbles into a camp of his fellow soldiers seated in the forest listening to an unnamed soldier sing…

I’m just a poor wayfaring stranger
Traveling through this world of woe,
There is no sickness, toil, or danger
In that bright land to which I go.

I’m going there to see my Father.
I’m going there no more to roam.
I’m only going over Jordan,
I’m only going over home.

I had never had the pleasure of hearing Wayfaring Stranger in its heyday, but I’ve enjoyed listening to many different renditions since seeing the film. Its history stretches back to at least the time of the American Civil War when it was called Libby Prison Hymn, named for the Confederate prison that was in Richmond, Virginia.

Since its creation, it has a rich history both religious and secular. It appeared in the Broadman Baptist Hymnal in 1940 before Burl Ives popularized it in 1944. Later versions include Emmylou Harris in 1980, Johnny Cash in 2000, and, most recently, Jack White on the soundtrack of Cold Mountain in 2003.

This rendition is the most stylistically bare of all of those with no accompaniment, and just a solitary soloist, Jos Slovick, upon whom the cameras focus never rests. It could have been a throwaway scene transitioning from one massive set-piece to the next, but the camera methodically slows down and leaves our protagonist to show some of the other young men who are mentally preparing to face the horrors of war is profound. In that moment, the immersion into the setting has been completed. We are not just with them, we are one of them. Not soldiers, but just men, mortal men. Looking out across the river of our own mortality.

As believers, we are reminded by Paul in Philippians 4:13 that he “can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” This is not a promise that all of our business ventures will succeed and that our sports teams will win. This is the Apostle Paul speaking as a man in prison nearing the end of his earthly life. He is getting ready to face death for the sake of Christ and he confesses that no matter whether he is hungry or full, sick or well, in bondage or free, he has learned the secret to contentment in all circumstances. It is not his best life now, it is Christ in him, the hope of glory.

This life is hard and we are not promised a delightful rose garden of a life. It is a war. We are called to live streamlined gospel-centered lives and when we reach our final moments we do not rest in the abundance of our possessions or the joy in the faces of our loved ones but in the hope of glory as we remember that to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Have you seen 1917? What did you think? Is it the best war film since Saving Private Ryan? If you haven’t seen it, it is extremely intimate and passionately created. It’s still in theaters and begs to be seen on the largest screen you can find.

2010s, Action, Animation, Awards, Best Movie Bracket, Comedy, Crime, Documentary, Family, Lists, Reviews, Science Fiction, Top 3, Uncategorized

2018 Best Movie Bracket

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From my best count, there were about 266 major films released in 2018. That includes all the tentpole blockbusters and the independent festival darlings. It also includes the most prominent foreign films which received a US release and major original releases from streaming platforms. Of those 266, I have seen 111. I’ve still got about 50 for 2018 on my watchlist, but I will probably never see the vast majority of those unless I get a government grant that allows me to stop working and do nothing but watch movies all day every day.

I track and rate all of the movies I watch at Letterboxd.com. Since I usually do this list as a top 3, it is convenient that I have exactly 3 movies from 2018 that I would classify as five-star films. That number may increase because I have a rule that no film can be rated as 5 stars based upon a single viewing. The highest I can go on one viewing is 4 1/2 stars.

Honorable Mentions

It was a very good year for film. I could just list off 20 films that were easily in the running for my top film of the year, but in addition to my top three, I want to highlight a few special films that were unique or extraordinary in some way.

A Quiet Place surprised me because I didn’t expect such an immersive story from Jim from the Office. Upgrade was the best Science-Fiction action film with its locked camera Logan Marshall-Green’s face/body acting split. Mission-Impossible: Fallout was easily the most entertaining film I saw all year, I could watch it a dozen times and still be ready for another go around. 

Leave No Trace is Debra Granik’s long-awaited follow-up to Winter’s Bone (2019) and it was heartbreaking and uplifting and hopeful and brutally honest. BlackkKlansman is Spike Lee’s best since Malcolm X. It caught you laughing about systemic racism and how dumb those Klan members could be then flipped the script and left me with my mouth hanging open and tears in my eyes. Shoplifters left me wanting to be kidnapped and loved so purely whether it is technically a family or not. Finally, I’m so sad to leave First Reformed out of my top three, Paul Schrader had my rapt attention with an arresting meditation on faith’s place in the modern world.

Top Three

3. Blindspotting

The year was filled with amazing films focused on the theme of race relations. We’ve already mentioned BlackkKlansman, but there was also If Beale Street Could Talk, The Hate U Give, and Sorry to Bother You. However, the best, in my opinion, was the one that was criminally overlooked, Blindspotting.

The story is pretty simple. Collin, played masterfully by Daveed Diggs (whom you might know as Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in Hamilton), must make it through his final three days of probation for a chance at a new beginning. Despite his childhood best friend Miles (a solid introduction from newcomer and co-writer Raphael Casal) not being the best influence, Collin is loyal. That countdown clock comes under pressure when Collin witnesses a police shooting and the two men’s friendship is tested as they wrestle with their identity in their rapidly-gentrifying Oakland neighborhood.

I don’t understand why Lionsgate released this unbelievably prescient masterpiece in mid-July rather than holding it a little later for Awards season. It was electrifying while also remaining accessible. However, Blindspotting was released in the same summer as Childish Gambino’s firebrand This is America and it is a perfect companion piece. 

2. Won’t You Be My Neighbor

I wouldn’t usually even think of putting a documentary on my best films of the year, but I was so incredibly floored by Morgan Neville’s documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor. I grew up watching Mister Rogers every afternoon as a little kid and I even remember watching often into my teenage years. At some point, I probably kind of outgrew it and thought that he was uncool. But now looking back as an adult I see that Fred Rogers was the coolest guy in the neighborhood.

If there were one film in 2018 that I would force every person to watch it would be this. The faith, hope, and love that Fred Rogers exhibited in every show is a salve that I believe our culture needs now more than ever. Fred Rogers wasn’t seeking to entertain kids with his show and he wasn’t trying to rush them through growing up like so many try to. Instead, the yellow caution light flashes outside the building even before the familiar song begins as if to signal that it is time to slow down and learn what it means to be a human and how to live as a human with other humans. 

It didn’t fall into the trap of fawning over Mister Rogers. That’s good, because he would push back on being idolized in any way. Instead, he would call us to action, encouraging us to be better neighbors to all in hopes that this love and kindness might spread. Morgan Neville struck gold with this film and I only hope that it stays on constant rotation and that Fred Rogers is allowed to touch the hearts and minds of another generation and that my generation might be reminded of his gentle example.

1. Spider-Man Into The Spider-verse

I was not on the early bandwagon for Spider-Man Into the Spiderverse. I felt like it was too soon to do anything with Spider-Man much less introduce eight new ones. It wasn’t until I saw the sneak preview after Venom that I was even interested. I thought the animation looked great and I was intrigued by the concept and thought that it would be a good movie to take my kids to. However, about 15 minutes into the film, I knew I was watching something special. 

Let’s count the Spider-Men. First, we have Chris Pine’s stellar Peter Parker prime. He’s better than our Peter Parker and Spider-Man in every way except for the turn of events of this film. Second, we have Miles Morales, also from the home dimension of this film. Miles is played by Shameik Moore with bright-eyed energy. Then things get crazy with a whole slew of Spider-people.

Third, the road-weary veteran Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson), complete with sweatpants, who is a sadder more tired version of the uber Spider-man. Fourth, Spider-Gwen, which I can easily see getting her own stand alone. Hailee Steinfeld brought some youthful confidence to the powerful girl’s role that will be seen over and over at Comic-con. Fifth, Spider-Man Noir, voiced in an amazing casting choice by Nicholas Cage. It’s seriously the best thing he’s done in years except destroying that pool table while singing the hokey pokey in Mom and Dad.

Sixth, Peni Parker, who shares a psychic connection to a radioactive spider that lives in her deceased father’s robot. I’m not making this up and she’s not even the weirdest. That award easily goes to seventh, Peter Porker (a.k.a Spider-Ham) a Looney Tunes type animated pig who actually started out as a spider but was bitten by a radioactive pig. In case you think I’m making this up, this is a comic you can actually read. Finally, eighth, featured just briefly in the post-credit scene is Oscar Isaac playing Miguel O’Hara as Spider-Man 2099. 

Somehow, all of this works and is magically told with no confusion and incredible balance and confidence. I haven’t even mentioned the supporting cast in Lily Tomlin, Katherine O’Hara, Mahershala Ali, and Liev Schriber among others. It is a truly star-studded cast and with all the right stuff.

So what do you think? Agree or disagree? Did I miss one of your favorites? Let me know in the comments below or on social media.

Action, Comedy, Drama, Genre, Horror, Longform, Romance, Video

Is Action really a Genre?

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Watch this original trailer for Drive (2011)

If you watched the above trailer for Nicholas Winding Refn’s Drive (2011) and then went into the theater expecting a balls-to-the-wall action-filled crime drama you would not be alone. Many people did exactly this and were very disappointed in Drive even though it is one of the best movies of that year and even this decade. The problem here was genre marketing.

Filmmakers, marketers, and audiences usually have a good relationship and that trust is built based upon certain expectations which have been developed over the years. That is what a genre is, a set of conventional storytelling patterns and expectations which filmmakers purposefully use and exploit to communicate within the medium of film.

This is what most of the film was actually like. Notice the difference?

I don’t think they knew how, or took the time to try, to sell a character-driven art-house neo-noir drama which has very little dialog and extensive sections of long takes broken up with scenes of intense, disturbing violence. Instead, they included nearly all of the dialogue from the film in the trailer and cut it as a standard action flick. The studio even had at least one lawsuit over this discrepancy. This is one example of the importance of genre. As the medium of film has developed, many different genres have emerged and risen to popularity as culture changes and as storytellers mold life into art.

Four Master Tools

With that in mind, you shouldn’t mistake genre for one of the four main storytelling tools. You’ll often see a list of movie genres and right at the top of the list will be action. However, Action is not a genre. You say, “Of course it is! It’s on IMDb.” It’s even on the sidebar list of categories on this site. But I think this is because the field of genre theory has not been able to formalize the popular nomenclature. When people ask, “What kind of movie is it?” They are looking for a simple definition and often the easiest definition is the primary tool that is used. This doesn’t really work though so inevitably the film just gets compared to other films.

It’s easy to call a movie an It is a tool that has been used in all films since audiences were frightened by a train rolling into the station. Action is what differentiates a motion picture from still photography.

Poster for the movie "Pulp Fiction"
© 1994 Miramax − All right reserved.

The four master tools are:

  • Action
  • Comedy
  • Drama
  • Romance

Most films will use one of these tools primarily, but that does not make it a genre. These tools are employed and blended by master storytellers to create. Consider Quentin Tarantino’s modern-classic Pulp Fiction as an example, you can see bits of all four master tools blended together in a way that defied any kind of conventional genre. That is why it was and is called cutting edge. Tarantino created something new and I think he sparked a genre of films that have lazily been called Tarantino-esque.

Using Master Tools in a Genre

So then what is a genre, you ask? As I said before, a genre is a set of conventional storytelling patterns and expectations which filmmakers purposefully use and exploit to communicate within the medium of film. The list of genres is long and it will continue to get longer as time goes on and stories continue to be told in new and exciting ways.

Let’s take another example and flesh this out. Horror is a well-established master genre and several movies like Scream and Cabin in the Woods have outlined those genre expectations and conventions while still living within the genre itself, but let’s dive even deeper down into one of its sub-genres, the zombie film.

Victor Halperin’s White Zombie starring Bela Lugosi is widely considered to be the first zombie movie and it plays heavily on the horror genre tropes. Bela Lugosi was well known for his famous turn as Dracula in 1931. The marketers used this star power and genre recognition and actually refer to Lugosi as Dracula in the trailer.

Zombies became a feature of religion, folklore, and storytelling in Haiti during the inhumane conditions of slavery. Plucked from their home and forced into terrible conditions, the slaves saw themselves as zombies; Dead inside, forced to do the will of their master. We didn’t see the first Zombie film until 1932 with the Bela Lugosi film White Zombie. It plays on the Haitian folklore much more than modern zombie stories which were solidified by the popularity of George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead in 1968 where the term zombies isn’t even used and his follow-up in 1978’s Dawn of the Dead, where the zombies have now come to represent mindless consumerism. This is appropriate because it was the unfettered desire for consumer goods like sugar and tobacco that led to the rise of slavery in the Caribbean.

Today, zombie movies come in all different shapes and sizes and they use the four master tools to shape the story. We can take each of the tools and apply them to the genre to create very different movies. Most zombie films tend towards the action tool more heavily because of the subject matter of aggressive flesh-eating creatures. So, it’s easy to think of zombie action film like World War Z (2013).

However, you can look at the other tools and find examples where those have risen to the surface within the Zombie genre framework. If we look at drama, we have encountered another word whose definition is amorphous at best. Drama has become a junk-drawer term that catches any kind of film that doesn’t neatly fall into other genres. I don’t think the word is bad, but doesn’t every film have drama? Drama is the development of characters in a realistic setting. It involves emotion and relationships and tells a humanistic story.

With this definition, we can see that movies as varied as The Shawshank Redemption, 12 Angry Men, and The Social Network can all be defined as drama, but that does little to help anyone get a sense of what to expect when they sit down to watch. I would postulate that these films are prison-escape, courtroom-legal, and biopic respectively.

So let’s take this tool of drama and elevate it above action in a zombie movie? Rather than blood and gore and chase scenes, you will get the emotional weight of a father losing his daughter to a disease he doesn’t fully understand. In other words, you get a movie like the overlooked Arnold Schwarzenegger film Maggie (2015).

If you really wanted to be a nit-picker you could roll the tool of romance into drama because they are very similar. However, there is enough material and difference to separate them in my opinion. So if you turn the drama in a zombie movie to the specific romantic emotion you would get a very odd juxtaposition, but it’s been done to good effect in the 2013 zombie romance Warm Bodies.

And finally, when you ramp up the comedy in a zombie movie and explore some of the absurd or humorous parts of a zombie apocalypse you get a movie like Zombieland, or better yet Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Dead (2004).

These are four very different films but they all share the same subject matter and storytelling conventions. The zombies may have risen in different ways and the fight against their spread might be shown more or less prominently but the heart of the story is the same. People have become mindless killing creatures and those who remain are trying to protect themselves while seeking a cure or safety.

I hope this helps you see the depth of variety that exists in the world of film. I’m working on a guide to genre that will breakdown all the major tropes that we see in film and give some names to everything from the absurdest of French new wave cinema to the most realistic of documentary.

1990s, Action, Alien/Monster, Best Movie Bracket, Comedy, Detective, Disaster, Drugs, Holiday, Lists, Science Fiction, Top 3

1996 Best Movie Bracket

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If you stumbled across this and have no idea what’s going on, you can visit my Best Movie Bracket Page and see what I’m doing here to whittle down a century of film into a bracket so I can determine once and for all which film will reign supreme as the best of all time.

Best Film of 1996

Bill Clinton began his second term after defeating Bob Dole and Ross Perot and DVD’s became a thing. Nintendo released the mostly forgettable N64, and the fear of Mad Cow Disease entered the global consciousness. 1996 was an interesting year. It was a year filled with lots of changes for me personally. I was becoming a teenager and my year started with Pauly Shore in Bio-Dome and along the way, I realized that I liked William Shakespeare through Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo+Juliet and I recognized that I would rather watch a movie like Sling Blade than the live-action 101 Dalmations.

However, after 22 years of watching films and a significant amount of cramming in the last month, I think I have come to a determination of the best films of the year. Obviously, best is a subjective term and if you ask me next week I could give you a different list altogether.

1. Fargo

Fargo would probably be my gut instinct pick for best film of the 90s and the Coen brothers are probably my favorite living directors (definitely my favorite directorial sibling team). So, it should be no surprise that this film is on the top of my list. I don’t think I will get a lot of argument about its inclusion either. Frances McDormand won Oscar gold for her performance as Marge Gunderson, and the Coens won for best original screenplay, but in one of the biggest mistakes in Oscar history, they somehow picked The English Patient as the top of the year and overlooked Fargo for 4 other categories.

I probably enjoy this film so much because of Marge Gunderson. Cathleen Falsani in her book The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Coen Brothers, says:

Marge is a Christ figure, a mouthpiece for God, willingly risking (with unfailing good cheer) her own safety in order to vanquish evil and restore moral order. In the face of death, she is, quite literally, a fecund life-giver, poised to deliver a child – and a new beginning – into the world. She could also be viewed as the Madonna, the gentle, willing vessel of the Lord. Perhaps her initials, M. G., even indicate this interpretation as Mother of God.

The Rev. Bob Barron, my friend and a catholic priest, suspects the film’s title, Fargo, describes Marge’s mission in life – to go far out to the margins in order to bring wayward sinners back to grace. “She represents Christ; she represents the church at its best,” Barron says. “She’s able to go out to the margins but she is not compromised by it. She’s not drawn into that world. She’s able to go into it in a very intense way; she’s not afraid of it…yet she’s not attracted to it, she’s not drawn into its power. And that’s what the church at its best ought to do.”

I’ve heard that the recent television version of the story is good, but I haven’t caught it yet. Let me know if it’s worth my time.

2. Trainspotting

Director Danny Boyle is exciting to watch. Some auteurs have a particular gimmick, style, genre, or theme, but Boyle is always keeping us guessing. He might give us a dark comedy about heroin use in Scotland, or he could tell us a true story about a hiker who gets trapped and is forced to cut his own arm off to survive, or any number of others like Slumdog Millionaire, 28 Days Later, Steve Jobs, Sunshine, or The Beach. Whatever the film, he does it with excellence as if he has always produced that type of film and he brings a visual style and a storytelling flair that is unmatched.

In Trainspotting, the story goes much deeper than heroin as it becomes a stand in for any number of vices and addictions, like sex, violence, or the mindless consumerism that fills much of our days. This is on full display in Renton’s opening/closing “choose life” monologue. Warning Strong Language!

Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television, Choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players, and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol and dental insurance. Choose fixed-interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisure wear and matching luggage. Choose a three piece suite on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who the fuck you are on a Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing fucking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pissing your last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked-up brats you have spawned to replace yourself. Choose your future. Choose life.

3. Independence Day

The other two were easy choices, but this one took a bit of reasoning. It might help that I sit writing this on the evening of July 4th as I listen to dozens of fireworks boom throughout the neighborhood outside. This film captured my attention for an entire summer and left me wanting more. It did for aliens what Jurassic Park did for dinosaurs. 

As I’ve said before, this Best Movie Bracket list isn’t always about the most critically acclaimed film. There are many different ways to measure the best. Financially and culturally, Independence Day won for 1996 and it left a mark that still resonates today. Alyssa Wilkinson writing for Vox gets to the heart of why I chose Independence Day over a half a dozen others vying for this bronze pedestal.

Independence Day is more product than movie, which isn’t really a strike against it: Like an amusement park thrill ride or a skydiving expedition, the experience of watching it is more about adrenaline and excitement than the artistic qualities of the movie itself. The catharsis of seeing the world destroyed (and then seeing the American president save it) was just right for its moment — when just enough optimism still reigned and computer animation was new enough that the images felt new and invigorating rather than dark and foreboding — and people loved it.

Movies like Independence Day partly succeeded because people could see the movie with their friends or family in the theater and talk about it at work, or over the backyard grill. It was cool and awesome and fun, and that’s all it needed to be.

And, like any good product, the success of Independence Day was a function of its then-pioneering marketing push, which set a template for future big-budget films. Today, selling your film to audiences isn’t just about cutting a good trailer and running it on TV during NFL games, and maybe getting a toy into Happy Meals. It’s about teaser campaigns and cross-promotion and stealth marketing and post-credits scenes that make people want to see the sequel that hasn’t even been shot yet.

All that money, all that marketing, all that big-budget spectacle: It’s quintessentially American, and quintessentially Hollywood. Love it or hate it, that’s the world that Jaws built and Independence Day made inescapable.

Honorable Mentions

So, where were you in 1996? What fond (or not so fond) memories do you have? Did I leave out one of your favorites? let me know in the comments below. You can also share what you enjoy about these or other top films on social media using the #BestMovieBracket. Thanks for joining me!

2010s, Action, Adventure, Alien/Monster, Article, Comedy, Computer, Drama, Family, Longform, Reviews, Space, Superhero, War

Avengers: Infinity War and Trading Lives

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!!Obligatory Spoiler Warning!!

As if you thought I could have an in depth discussion of Infinity War without revealing plot information. Obviously, if you haven’t seen this film you either don’t want to or haven’t found the time. In either case, you need to sort out your priorities. Just kidding, don’t get so bent out of shape!

While we wait for the uninitiated to click elsewhere (Perhaps to this list of my other highly anticipated Summer movies) let me set the stage on the magnitude of this epic film. The now expansive Marvel Cinematic Universe had an auspicious beginning with a 2nd rate hero that hardly anyone knew and a team with a lot of faith. Kevin Feige (now the President of Marvel Studios) said in a 2017 interview with Vanity Fair, “Marvel didn’t have money on the line. They would have lost the film rights to some of the characters, but it was sort of a great experiment. People forget Iron Man was an independent movie.”

An Ambitious Undertaking

It was an ambitious beginning for this brand new production company with zero credits under their belt. They brought on the teams and the talent they needed to make the two superhero movies that they envisioned, Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk. At that point there was no plan for a 22 movie story arc and an expanded cinematic and television universe. They didn’t even have a follow-up in the works for 2009.

Someone asked at the 2007 Comic-Con, when the fans got their first look at Iron Man, if Avengers was possible and I think they got a chuckle and said that they were focused on making the best Iron Man movie and if they succeeded in that goal then it could open doors for them to make other films. They were blown away by the response of the fans and immediately began actively working towards this unification of all things Marvel and 4 years later we saw the Avengers take stage.

So now, 10 years later as we have seen 3 Iron Man movies, 3 Thor movies, 3 Captain America movies, 2 Avengers movies, 2 Guardians of the Galaxy movies (who could have predicted that), and stand alone films for the likes of The Incredible Hulk, Ant-Man, Black Panther, Doctor Strange, and a deal with Sony that gave us Spider-Man in this universe as well. This is an historic film-making achievement. Never in my wildest dreams as a kid did I imagine that my 35 year old self would get to geek out at the movies at least twice a year thanks to these good people.

What Happens in Infinity War?

With all of this time and dedication over 10 years, the Russo brothers were able to step immediately into the story with over 25 established characters, histories, and motivations. I honestly can’t imagine watching this film without the knowledge that I currently possess. I’m sure that there is someone out there for whom this is their Marvel initiation. If so, I’d love to hear from you to see how confused you were and if you were still able to enjoy the movie.

Alright, last warning! Shove off if you haven’t seen it. It’s time for the adults to talk now. 

In a nutshell, Thanos is collecting the 6 Infinity Stones from across the cosmos with the ultimate goal of snapping his fingers and wiping out half of all sentient life everywhere. All of our heroes (except Ant-Man and Hawkeye) team up to attempt to stop to his plan. This means that our intergalactic band of miscreants meets the God of Thunder, Tony Stark’s mind is opened to a world of mystical arts that he had never experienced, and the scrawny patriot from Brooklyn gets to fight alongside a talking tree. It is truly a thing to behold.

I think the best way to break down everything that we saw would be character by character, seeing how things unfold through their eyes and with their motivations. That way you can see that there are very few plot holes and that everything flows in an incredibly natural way. I’m not going to do that here. But I recently posted this kind of walk through from Thanos’ perspective.

Instead, I want to look at the big themes of the film and some key lines of dialogue and draw them out into some biblical lessons and parallels.

We Don’t Trade Lives

Throughout the film we get several examples of characters who make sacrifices for the accomplishment of their goal. When Vision learns that Thanos is coming for the Mind Stone embedded in his forehead, he explains to Cap and the others the idea that Scarlet Witch may be able to use her powers to destroy it.

In true Android/Vulcan fashion he believes that it would be the most logical action to prevent Thanos from capturing all 6 Infinity Stones. They immediately dismiss that plan because it would mean that Vision would most likely have to sacrifice himself, since his life force is so intrinsically tied to the stone. The Captain tells Vision, “We don’t trade lives,” to which Vision counters by referring to Cap’s own story of sacrifice to protect millions.

We see Captain’s own words come back to him in the final fight in Wakanda. Captain America tells Vision to run away to safety as he battles Cull Obsidian. Ignoring his advice, Vision instead saves him. When Cap says, “I told you to get out of here,” Vision replies “We don’t trade lives, Captain.” This stood out to me because the idea of trading lives, or at least offering to make that sacrifice is the stuff that real heroes are made of.

As Christians, we know that the only true way to salvation is through the trading of lives. That is what Jesus did for us on the cross. When we see a superhero who is willing to lay down his life to save countless others we see them as an example of Christ.

Thanos the Anti-Christ

The idea of sacrifice is not limited to the heroes. Even Thanos, when seeking to gain possession of the Soul Stone, learns that the price of the stone is the soul of a loved one. With this choice, Thanos becomes an Anti-Christ. He is willing to save the world, but only through the sacrifice of others, while Jesus is willing to lay down his own life.

Thanos tells young Gamora after his snap that it cost him everything to accomplish his sick plan of “saving the world”. However, Thanos’ sacrifice led him to seek ultimate power by assuming the form of a God while Christ, who is God, emptied himself and took the form of a servant.

The reason that Logan probably resonated with me so much is because his sacrifice seems so Christlike. In Todd Miles’s book on heresy, Superheroes Can’t Save You, he says:

“Superheroes represent mankind’s best efforts to create saviors, demigods made in our own image, beings who are able to rescue us from the horrors the face us all as humans. The thing is, our best attempts to create such heroes fall desperately short for what we actually need… Superman would not be able to rescue us from our greatest problems, and he certainly would not be able to rescue us from the wrath of God. He is not super enough, not human enough, not compassionate enough, and not divine in any way. He just does not measure up to the one who is more than enough of all those things, Jesus. Superman is not Jesus, and he never will be.”

Death is Real

Some people have complained about the ending because they feel like they know that the snap is going to be undone in the next movie. However, any postulating about the next film shouldn’t take away from the real consequences and trauma that we see in this film. Obviously, my mind was reeling with possibilities as the credits rolled, but that doesn’t take way from the fact that I was wrecked just minutes earlier.

I’ve heard of people sobbing and upset for days if they have a particularly strong connection to a particular character. Especially with some of the most shocking deaths being from two of the newest heroes. Usually, when you walk into a “superhero” movie, you often expect to come away feeling unscathed. We like our heroes to be bulletproof, but with this and other recent movies like Logan we see the fragile humanity of our heroes.

I’m of the belief that mourning and weeping is actually a very healthy place to be. Ecclesiastes 7:2 says, “It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, since that is the end of all mankind, and the living should take it to heart.” Although Infinity War is very funny, that only makes you fall harder when it comes time to mourn.

Flippancy over death is one of my biggest pet peeves with action films and video games. When an office building full of people crumbles during an alien attack and instead of somber reflection we are presented with a joke, it cheapens death. On the other hand, Infinity War portrays death as a real problem. In this sense, the film can be helpful in raising discussions about our very real mortality and the need for a Savior (a Hero, if you will) who can defeat death once and for all.

The End is Coming

The Russo brothers were brave to end Infinity War the way they did. It doesn’t end with all of the story lines neatly tied up in a satisfactory conclusion. Instead, it leaves us wanting more, wondering what happens next. Things are not right with the world and we know from a sense of innate justice and years of conditioning that the wrongs must be righted.

Any kind of real Marvel fan will know that there will be a next installment. We already have dates on the calendar for Ant-Man and the Wasp, Captain Marvel and even the conclusion to Infinity War in what we now know as just Avengers 4. It looks like it will be the Return of the Jedi to this The Empire Strikes Back. This puts fans in an interesting place. We are forced to accept the shattered landscape of this superhero world all while holding onto the hope that there is a day coming when all wrongs will be made right.

Christians know this feeling all to well. We live in the wilderness awaiting the culmination of the promise of the gospel. All around us, it can seem like evil is winning and Satan is laughing. But there is great hope even in the midst of the darkness because the Bible says that just as Christ ascended into heaven, he will come again in glory and all of creation will breathe a sigh of relief as our longings are satisfied. It’s vastly different in terms of magnitude, but this tension can be felt in stories like Infinity War which leaves the audience looking for consolation in a future hope.

What about you? Did you pull any nuggets of wisdom from Avengers: Infinity War? What do you think about my ideas? How did you like the movie? Do you want me to stop asking questions? Then leave me a comment below or hit me up on social media. As always, I’ll see you at the movies.

 

 

2010s, Action, Article, Best Movie Bracket, Biopic, Comedy, Drama, Heist, Lists, Musical, Prison, Reviews, Romance, Sports, True Story

Best of 2017: Insiders 6-10

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After getting a bit sidetracked with Oscar predictions, let’s get back to the Best of 2017. You can see my 11-15 and 16-20 as well, but as we enter the coveted top 10, we find some truly remarkable films that resonated with me personally. I am proud of the diversity of films from drama to action to biopic. Let’s go!

10. Logan Lucky

Steven Soderbergh comes out of retirement to make his best since the original Ocean’s Eleven remake. He shows off his flair for visual storytelling and gives us a hillbilly fairy tale wrapped up in a heist movie. The cast of characters is outrageous, the premise is outlandish, and the film is outstanding.

The film centers around the Logan brothers played by Adam Driver and Channing Tatum and their plan to rob Charlotte Motor Speedway in efforts to break the 100 year old Logan family curse. Other cast members include Riley Keough, Daniel Craig, Seth MacFarlane, Sebastian Stan, Hillary Swank, Katie Holmes, Dwight Yoakam, and so many more deliciously funny characters.

I know many people who might not be as stereotypically country as these characters are but who suffer from a curse nonetheless. This curse of living paycheck to paycheck and being overlooked and derided is turned on its head as they mastermind a heist that would make Danny Ocean jealous. It is a hilariously wild ride, with a strong focus on family and a message about changing your station in life that might surprise you.

9. Phantom Thread

In opposition to the previous entry, Phantom Thread is set in the alluring world of 1950s British couture. Paul Thomas Anderson helms what is supposed to be Daniel Day-Lewis’ final performance. The previous collaboration of these two produced one of my favorite movies of all time, There Will Be Blood. I hope this isn’t the last we see from Daniel Day-Lewis because he is one of the greatest actors of our time and he has much more to give. However, if he did choose to make this film his last it would be a fitting close to an amazing career.

Hey plays Reynolds Woodcock who is a fictional mashup of several real designers from this time-frame. He is an exacting personality, he is brilliant but petulant and spoiled. The best thing about this film was the surprising humor. It arises from places you would not expect and the whole story goes in a direction that subverts the viewers expectations. It is a twisted picture of love, relationships, and power.

8. I, Tonya

Much like Phantom Thread, in I, Tonya we have a unique character study with dark humor that springs from odd places. People my age and older may think they know this story. We watched much of it play out on television. It happened right at the beginning of this new trend of 24/7 news coverage. So for weeks, you could not escape the saga of Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding.

The story is so strange because of the varied and conflicting versions of the story that come from all sides. Instead of trying to present the truth, it seemed to leave us in an ambiguous place where we are rooting for the good in Tonya while still seeing he faults and part to play in the whole fiasco. Violence was the language that these people spoke and while that does not excuse any actions, it does provide a picture of the twisted mindset that could commit this crime.

Part of me wonders how much coverage this story would have received without the media coverage that it received. Did our thirst of “news” as entertainment feed into this? Because just as soon as a bigger story came along we were off on our next witch hunt. Today, this thirst has grown exponentially to the point that this story would have been nothing more than a blip on our Twitter feeds that would disappear within a few moments as soon as the next viral video appeared.

Margot Robbie and Sebastian Stan were very good, and the visuals could almost fool me to think that Margot Robbie trained to actually complete a triple Axel just for this film. The way that they filmed the skating sequences was captivating as well with the camera moving fluidly around the skater as the perform on the ice. However, the real star and one of the best overall performances of the year was from Allison Janney who played the cartoonishly evil mother of Tonya. She was wickedly delightful.

7. Baby Driver

The more I think about this movie the higher I want to put it on my list. Looking back in a couple of years after I own this Blu-Ray and watch it 5-6 dozen times it will probably find its way well into the top five. I love that it came in with a modest budget and blew it out of the water showing that you can make original and artful cinema and still make loads of money.

When I mention Edgar Wright, you might recognize the name from Shaun of the Dead, or Hot Fuzz. Here Edgar wright uses more of his distinct visual style and uses it to craft a musically choreographed heist film. Do yourself a favor and watch the first 6 minutes of the film. If it strikes your fancy then you will love the whole film. If it doesn’t then you may be doing something wrong.

My one issue with the film is that the whole thing isn’t presented as a musical. There are certainly musical elements and complete scenes that are linked directly to the music we hear, but I would have loved to see a full blown action centered La La Land type film.

6. Lady Bird

I have to admit that I jumped pretty hard on the Lady Bird bandwagon, and it’s hard not to. It is delightful. Its simplicity is part of its charm. However, I think that the simplicity might keep it from taking home any of the 5 Oscars it is nominated for on Sunday. But that is okay. It doesn’t need to be controversial or flashy to draw attention.

I feel like Lady Bird was so well loved because the characters albeit quirky are so accessible. Have you ever wanted to spread your wings and escape from your town or your school or your family? Everyone has! So much of this comes from the performances of Soairse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf. Ronan manages to capture that odd teenage limbo between the confidence in their own abilities and the realization that they are clueless as they prepare to leave.

Did anyone else feel like Metcalf appeared out of nowhere like someone had her locked in a time capsule since Roseanne. She was so good. She was warm and motherly and cold and calculated all in the same scenes. I have to give a small shout out to Tracy Letts as well as the dad. With three teenagers or nearly teenagers of my own I always look out for great father figures and he is now up there with the likes of Stanley Tucci from Easy A.

Did you hate any of these movies? Am I out of touch because I chose an Oscar bait movie like Phantom Thread or do I need to give up my Movie cred because I liked a trailer trash movie like Logan Lucky? I want to see your top 10 lists, leave me a comment here or shoot me a message on social media!

2010s, Action, Alien/Monster, Awards, Biopic, Detective, Drama, Epic, Great Movies, Horror, Lists, Mystery, Political, Science Fiction, Suspense, Thriller, True Story, War

Best of 2017: Outsiders 11-15

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Let’s continue to look at those just outside of my top ten of 2017. You can also read my #16-20. I’ve seen most of these on other people’s top ten lists and I think that they could all be up there if I was in a different mood. You’ll notice that on most of these mini reviews, I’m not focusing on technical merit or acting unless it was hands down better than anything else I’ve seen this year. Instead, I’m choosing my top films by selecting the ones that resonated the most with me. I hope that you will read my thoughts on these five and give me your thoughts. Link me to your top 10s, Tell me why I’m wrong or what I got right. Continue reading Best of 2017: Outsiders 11-15 →

2000s, Action, Anime, Art-house, Best Movie Bracket, Crime, Drama, Foreign, Mystery, Supernatural, Surreal, Top 3, Weird

2001 Best Movie Bracket

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When you mention the year 2001, one event comes to most Americans’ minds. The events of September 11, 2001 changed the course of history and things have never been the same. It was also the year that I graduated from high school and left for college. When 9/11 happened, I was in my first semester of college and was over 200 miles from the only home I had ever known.

Little did we know that our little college campus would be rocked with a tragedy less than two week afterwards that felt more significant than towers falling. There was a van accident which killed three of my peers as they were returning from a ministry event. It was a very sad time, but it drew me closer to the beautiful woman that would become my wife. We grieved together and drew strength from each other’s faith.

Film was one of the last thing on my mind during that time, but it seemed that just a few months after this tragedy many Americans were finding refuge from the pain of reality through the imagination of a handful of master storytellers. Two film franchises were born during this year and they would persist for many years following. I’m speaking of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

While both of these were good films and left a lasting impression on film, they are merely footnotes or honorable mentions in this competition for the best film of the year. Before I get to my top 3 films of the year, you should know that the Academy Award for Best Picture went to my 4th best movie of the year, A Beautiful Mind. Other honorable mentions are: Amelie, The Others, Donnie Darko, Training Day, The Royal Tenenbaums, and Ocean’s Eleven. All of my Top 3 are at least a bit surreal and dive into and out of the deepest and most intimate place in all of us, our memory. That is appropriate since I have such deep memories of this year.

#1 – Spirited Away

The first time you watch Spirited Away you are blown away by the visuals. Hayao Mizayaki’s decadent hand drawn animation is always moving and is totally beautiful. You are left thinking about the meaning and the symbolism that is deep under the surface of this story of a young girl who gets lost in a spirit world and has to find her way back. Every time after that, you will be sucked deeper into the symbolism until you realize that this is a commentary on growing up in a Capitalist culture but not losing the innocent wonder of childhood.

Chihiro means “thousand questions.” It means that she is inquisitive and takes nothing for granted. We see this wide eyed girl lose her parents to greed and consumerism. She gets a job at a bath house and trades away part of her name. The name is a symbol of a person’s character and she becomes Sen which means “thousand.” Literally, the questions have been removed. She is warned not to forget her name because that is the secret for her escape. I won’t go any deeper than that in case you haven’t seen it, but I just might do a full spoiler laden breakdown at some point.

#2 – Memento

Technically, Memento was released in 2000 but it wasn’t seen on US soil until 2001, so I had to put it in this year. Long before Christoper Nolan started diving into the brains of his characters and viewers in Inception, he was beginning at the end with Memento. Simply put, it is the non-simple, non-linear story of Leonard who suffers from a Dory-like version of short-term memory loss. He retains memories from before his accident but cannot create any new memories. Instead, he litters his jacket pockets with Polaroid pictures and scraps of note paper, and covers the canvas of his body with tattoos to remind him of his overall purpose.

We learn through 22 vignettes that Leonard is hunting a man called John G. who is behind the rape and murder of his wife. I don’t want to spoil too much because it is such a fun puzzle to put together, but let me just say that you will be engaged and guessing with the story until the very end. This is one of the films that made Christopher Nolan the brand name that he is today.

#3 – Mulholland Drive

Have you ever had a dream that freaked you out and left you gasping for breath as you rushed back to consciousness? When your loved ones come in the room to check if you are okay all you can say is I had a bad dream. Invariably, they will ask what it was about, but we can’t say because the dream is quickly retreating into our sub conscience, and because no matter how well you explain what happened in the dream you sound psychotic. Mulholland Dr. is that creepy dream.

More people have become familiar with David Lynch since the new Twin Peaks was released. I would recommend this movie as a good starting place, but I would encourage you not to analyze too much. To truly enjoy it, you must surrender yourself to it. As Roger Ebert said, “If you require logic, see something else.” David Lynch loves to make films which defy logic, but Mulholland Dr. follows no conventional plot structure, it simply ebbs and flows like a dream.

Did I get something wrong? What would you change? Have you seen any of these three? Let me know in the comments or on social media.

2010s, Action, Adventure, Article, Coming Soon, Lists

Fall 2017 Movie Preview: Action/Adventure

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It’s that time of the year again when the leaves start to change color. Well, not for me. I live in Florida. For me, fall means that most of those big summer tent-pole blockbusters are reaching the end of their runs and we are getting closer to the crop of movies that traditionally fares better in the awards. This is my favorite season for movies. We generally get more dramas with impressive acting and striking cinematography. Not saying we don’t get awards movies during the rest of the year (Wind River is out right now and I think it is going to make a run). But, with so many movies preparing to hit theaters it can be overwhelming and I don’t want you to miss anything.

I’ve taken a look at all of the films coming before the end of the year and have divided them into 4 major categories: Action/Adventure, Drama, Comedy/Family, and Horror/Thriller. Not everything fits perfectly into these categories but it works to try to divide this up into manageable chunks.

First, I want to look at the larger releases which tend to be more action/adventure and sci-fi films. I’ll pick one or two from each month between now and 2018. Please let me know which film will have your butt in the theater with a bucket of popcorn in hand? I’ll tackle the other three categories in my next posts.

September

Kingsmen: Golden Circle – September 22nd

When their headquarters are destroyed and the world is held hostage, the Kingsman’s journey leads them to the discovery of an allied spy organization in the US. These two elite secret organizations must band together to defeat a common enemy.

So, if you liked the first one from 2014, you will probably like this one. The same cast returns (Taron Edgerton, Mark Strong, and even Colin Firth) plus they’re adding some new American blood in the form of Jeff Bridges and Channing Tatum. It looks to be a lot of fun. Director Matthew Vaughn is back for this sequel and I think it could be the highest grossing film of the month if the reviews are favorable.

October

Blade Runner 2049 – October 6th

Thirty years after the events of the first film, a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K (Ryan Gosling), unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what’s left of society into chaos. K’s discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former LAPD blade runner who has been missing for 30 years.

I’m super excited for this one! I love the first Blade Runner from Ridley Scott. I’m frankly happy that Scott is not returning to direct the sequel because his track record has not been the greatest lately and I’m stoked that Denis Villeneuve is at the helm. His previous films Sicario and Arrival were some of my favorites of their respective years and with Ryan Gosling in the lead and Harrison Ford returning to reboot yet another of his franchises I will be in the front row to see what gorgeous sci-fi adventure they have in store.

 

November

Thor: Ragnarok – November 3rd

Thor is imprisoned on the other side of the universe without his mighty hammer and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok — the destruction of his homeworld and the end of Asgardian civilization — at the hands of an all-powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela. But first he must survive a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him against his former ally and fellow Avenger — the Incredible Hulk!

If you don’t know about this one, I think you’ve been hiding under a rock. I’m very excited to essentially see a buddy cop movie with two of the most powerful creatures in we universe, Thor and Hulk. They were curiously absent from Captain America: Civil War and now we get to find out what they’ve been up to. It’s being helmed by Taika Waititi (What We do in the Shadows and Hunt for the Wilderpeople). I’m excited to see how he brings his own brand of awkward comedy to play. But, that first trailer with Led Zeppelin’s Immigrant Song still has me pumped. This this my most anticipated personally.

Justice League – November 17th

Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.

I was so happy to see D.C. have some success with Wonder Woman. I really hope that we get more of that quality of film and that we stay clear of Suicide Squad or Batman vs. Superman style that audiences are tired of seeing from D.C. I’m excited to see Ezra Miller’s take on the Flash and we can’t forget Jason Momoa’s Fish Whisperer. It will be interesting to see the team dynamics. This one will certainly make the most at the box office for the month as die hard D.C. fans have been panting for this movie that way that I was for the Avengers. It should be very exciting and I hope it does well. Which are you more excited about Thor: Ragnarok or Justice League?

December

Star Wars: The Last Jedi – December 15th

Having taken her first steps into a larger world in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), Rey continues her epic journey with Finn, Poe and Luke Skywalker in the next chapter of the saga.

For Star Wars fans there is nothing better to find underneath the Christmas tree than a great new installment in the ever expanding Star Wars Universe. We keep getting little hints from the promotional information, but I’m actively trying to avoid most of it. I hope that we rejoin Luke and Rey on that island immediately after the opening crawl and we get the answers to some of the questions we’ve all been asking. Who is the last Jedi? Who are Rey’s parents? Why has Luke been in hiding? I don’t think this will have quite as large of an opening as the Force Awakens just because that was the first after 30 years of silence, but regardless, there will be piles of geeks lining up for this one and I will be one of them. How about you?

Others to watch for:

American Assassin coming September 15. Twenty three-year-old Mitch (Dylan O’Brien) lost his parents to a tragic car accident at the age of fourteen, and his girlfriend to a terrorist attack just as they were engaged. Seeking revenge, he is enlisted by CIA Deputy Director Irene Kennedy as a black ops recruit. Kennedy then assigns Cold War veteran Stan Hurley (Michael Keaton) to train Mitch. Together they investigate a wave of apparently random attacks on military and civilian targets. The discovery of a pattern in the violence leads them to a joint mission to stop a mysterious operative intent on starting a world war in the Middle East.

American Made coming September 29. Doug Liman (Bourne Trilogy and Edge of Tomorrow) directs Tom Cruise who stars as a pilot who lands work for the CIA and becomes a drug runner in the south during the 1980s.

The Foreigner coming on October 13th. Director Martin Campbell (Casino Royale and Mask of Zorro) presents the story of humble London businessman Quan (Jackie Chan), whose long-buried past erupts in a revenge-fueled vendetta when the only person left for him to love – his teenage daughter – is taken from him in a senseless act of politically-motivated terrorism. In his relentless search for the identity of the terrorists, Quan is forced into a cat- and-mouse conflict with a British government official (Pierce Brosnan), whose own past may hold clues to the identities of the elusive killers.

Geostorm coming on October 20th. I’m really not sure what to make of this… It looks like it could be similar to 2012 or The Day After Tomorrow. We’re all in deep trouble after our weather tech starts malfunctioning and we need Gerard Butler to save the day. Ed Harris is in it so I’m going to guess right now that he’s the bad guy kind of like in The Rock. It will most likely fade into obscurity, but you never know with this kind of movie.

Thank You for Your Service coming on October 27th (Just in time for Veterans Day). This film follows a group of U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq who struggle to integrate back into family and civilian life, while living with the memory of a war that threatens to destroy them long after they’ve left the battlefield. Starring an ensemble cast led by Miles Teller, the drama is based on the bestselling book by Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and author David Finkel. Jason Hall, who wrote the screenplay of American Sniper, makes his directorial debut and also serves as its screenwriter.

Death Wish coming on November 22nd. A remake of the original Taken franchise. We see a mild-mannered father (Bruce Willis) transformed into a killing machine after his family is torn apart by a violent act. I’m afraid we are all a bit too tired of this type of film where the washed up old guy goes out and kicks butt. However, you should never count out Bruce Willis. I’m afraid it will be lost in theaters since it is coming out the week after Justice League.

So, what’s on your radar? Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments below. Check out the other sections of this preview below:

2010s, Action, Adventure, Alien/Monster, Comedy, Coming Soon, Musical, Science Fiction, Space, Superhero, Weekend Outlook, white-collar

Weekend Outlook – Pirates of the Baywatch: Guardians of the Covenant

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Happy Memorial Day weekend everybody! So after you get done with your barbecue (which is really just burgers and hotdogs, or maybe brats if you’re fancy), then what are you going to do?

Maybe you’ll go shopping. I hear there are some good deals meant to lure you away from the simplicity of always paying less for things by shopping online. Perhaps you are thinking about visiting a theme park, but that’s expensive and you run the risk of dehydration. I guess you could watch any of the mediocre sporting events which will be on all weekend, you’ve got the Indy 500, the NBA conference finals, a whole bunch of baseball, or the carbonated poison water 600. But those all sound long, boring, and better watched in short clips on YouTube as a last resort of entertainment.

Why not hang out at the multiplex and catch up on those early Summer blockbusters that you have missed because you have been so busy catching up on your assignments from procrastination class or cramming for that test that you no longer remember because of sleep deprivation? It has been a relatively slow start to the summer movie season, but this long weekend should be the perfect time to catch that movie that has been calling you. We’ve got 3 sequels and an R-rated comedy TV adaptation to examine so buckle up!

If you haven’t already seen Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, you might be a Mennonite (Note to self: find Mennonite comedian and pitch the idea of stealing Jeff Foxworthy’s signature bit). It has only been out since Cinco de Mayo and it has already made close to 3 quarters of a billion dollars worldwide! Guardians is a ton of fun and it is fairly kid friendly, so as long as your kid can dress themselves and no longer needs a high chair, they should be up for this adventure.

The premise is simple. We rejoin our lovable gang of space anti-heroes a little while after the first film ends (If you haven’t first Guardians of the Galaxy, then you should probably buy it on iTunes and catch up with the rest of civilization). Star Lord has daddy issues that he needs to work out and they do it in hilarious fashion. This is has more laughs per minute than the first film with more of the same character driven drama and amazing 80’s soundtrack. (I’m serious about the soundtrack! I literally just Googled “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl) by Looking Glass. It will be stuck in your head for the rest of the week, just be prepared.) I’ll be honest, if you haven’t seen this one, and maybe even if you have, it is your best bet. The rest are likely going to be hit or miss.

I just saw Alien: Covenant last night and it was very good, but it kind of felt like it was struggling with what kind of movie it wanted to be. But what should we expect from the 3rd film from Ridley Scott in this franchise which he helped reboot back in 2012 with the prequel Prometheus. Covenant rides the line between the heady philosophical ramblings of Prometheus and the crap your pants scariness of Alien.

If Guardians was safe for kids that can ride a roller coaster then this one is only safe if you can drive a car (manual transmissions only, none of that wussy automatic garbage). I’m serious, there is blood everywhere in this, aliens bursting out of all kinds of cavities and orifices, not to mention the synthetic on synthetic porn that almost happens. I could hear the Fassboners rising in the theater. If you’re a fan of Ridley Scott and the franchise you won’t be disappointed, but it’s not his best work. I’m seriously hoping that Blade Runner 2049 is better.

I’ll be quite honest, the only thing that get’s me excited about Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (Longest movie name since Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood) is the inclusion of Javier Bardem as the baddie. If you’ve seen Skyfall or No Country for Old Men you know that he can be extremely creepy and intimidating, and that’s before he’s been all zombified. Even though it looks creepy, this is Disney we are talking about and I’m sure if your emo kids are into pirates then they would be okay going to this one too.

I know that this is a total cash grab on Disney’s part. They want to revive the franchise that has brought in $3.7 billion since 2003. I get it, but even Orlando Bloom and Kiera Knightley were smart enough to get out after three films and here Johnny Depp is riding into his fifth. He is simply the worst pirate that I’ve ever heard of, but I have heard of him so I’ll be checking this one out on Saturday, so stay tuned for my thoughts.

Finally, we have the R-rated 90’s TV adaptation that literally no one has ever been clamoring for. Baywatch hits theaters this weekend and I can only hope that they at least got Hasselhoff for a cameo, I mean he’s in Guardians so it’s not like he wasn’t available for filming. If they missed out on the Hoff, at least they have the ghost of Pam Anderson’s boobs, a.k.a. Alexandra Daddario. It looks like they are trying to go down the comedy parody road with this one and that would be great. But they have had me worried in a couple of trailers that they might try and take this straight, and if it takes itself too seriously it will be garbage.

The critical consensus is already that it is garbage (18% on Rotten Tomatoes), but I’m hoping that this could at least be as good as Central Intelligence. I’ve never been much of a fan of Zac Ephron, but I’m willing to give him a shot. This one is for adults only, the red band trailers have been bad enough that I had to watch them after my kids went to bed. I’ll be seeing this one next Wednesday so you’ll have to wait a little bit longer for my full review.

The most important thing is for you to enjoy this weekend and remember those brave men and women who died so we can eat lots of expensive buttery popcorn and be entertained by the beautiful monkeys we pay to entertain us. Have a great weekend!