Aloha
Comedy (?) where Bradley Cooper plays a military contractor and former soldier who returns to Hawaii for a secret new assignment, where he makes amends with his ex (Rachel McAdams) and finds new love. Cameron Crowe (Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky) was one of the most promising filmmakers of the late '90s... but his latest film is a disaster. Not a single main character resonates or is interesting to watch in any way; movie-star leads (though usually delightful in other movies) have zero chemistry with each other; plot is mostly gibberish with contrived relationships and a yawn-inducing conflict (something about sacred land and weaponizing the sky), culminating in a climactic unearned hero moment and a denouement that magically fixes everything. This is that offensive film you heard about where Emma Stone plays a character whose dad is half-Chinese and half-Hawaiian. John Krasinski the only stand-out in the cast, playing against type as a taciturn family man who struggles to express his feelings. Lovely cinematography by Eric Gautier, whose sweeping, kinetic camera helps make some scenes far more watchable than they otherwise would be.
Grade: D+
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Superhero sequel feels simultaneously overstuffed and underdeveloped. Welcome character development for Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner), with a detour into his home life. Not sure what to make, however, of the out-of-nowhere romance between Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). A strong villain for once (!), with Ultron — voiced by James Spader, whose calm and intelligent voice makes him all the more frightening — serving both theme (tapping into concerns about artificial intelligence turning on its human creators) and character (further exacerbating the existing tension between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers). Alas, more Infinity Stone nonsense, serving only to set up future movies. New characters played by Elizabeth Olsen and Aaron Taylor-Johnson are intriguing additions to the cast, though neither feels sufficiently developed at this point — I can't imagine either leading a Marvel franchise of his/her own outside of an Avengers film. Was this simply too much ground for returning writer/director Joss Whedon to cover? Something feels missing in this one, and not just the quippy Whedon dialogue that amused me so much in the previous film. Ultimately feels too unmemorable, too inconsequential. Also more CGI excess and destruction porn than there ought to be — veering dangerously into Man of Steel territory here.
Grade: C+
The D Train
Comedy-drama starring Jack Black as a supremely uncool suburban dad on his high school's 20-year reunion committee who becomes obsessed with convincing James Marsden's Oliver Lawless to attend, who was the most popular kid in their class and now lives in L.A. and stars in a nationwide TV commercial. So much going on here — never-resolved high school inferiority trauma and yearning for acceptance, hero worship of someone who represents everything you are not, latent homosexual desire. First-time filmmakers Andrew Mogel and Jarrad Paul have complex things to say here, though I'm not sure the film arrives at a coherent thesis. Still, mature and impressively non-judgmental handling of subject matter that in most studio films would be used to make gay panic jokes for dudebros — indicative that, despite opening in wide release, this was originally an indie that premiered at Sundance. Black channels deeper feeling than usual as he also turns the volume down on his typically manic energy, but Marsden is the one who wows here, in a career-best performance as a pansexual broken aimless self-absorbed charismatic sex-god.
Grade: B
Hot Pursuit
Comedy starring Sofía Vergara as a drug dealer's wife and Reese Witherspoon as the cop assigned to protect her as she's taken in to testify against a cartel lord. Latest style-free film from director-for-hire Anne Fletcher (The Proposal, 27 Dresses). Begins with casual transphobic "humour", clear sign of many more misguided ideas to come. For a film directed by, produced by, and starring women, shocking amount of sexism and men-find-lesbians-hot "comedy". Giving credit where it's due, however, both lead actresses work harder than a lazy script like this requires. Vergara riffs on her usual accent-and-boobs shtick, but takes it to a darker and more menacing place. Witherspoon gets occasionally inspired results from her uncool awkward intensity, tapping into a quality I haven't seen from her since Alexander Payne's great Election (though this performance is obviously nowhere as transcendent as Tracy Flick). Both actresses are exceptionally skilled at comedy and can do so much better than this. Witherspoon produced this one herself, though... that doesn't inspire much confidence in her future choices.
Grade: C-
Mad Max: Fury Road
How the hell is this a film that someone made? How is it possible to have shot and edited something so utterly insane and to have arrived at such a perfect end result? The filmmaking is so audacious, the visuals so colourful and immersive and jaw-dropping — a directorial achievement for the ages by George Miller. Charlize Theron, rocking a buzz cut, is the unlikely action hero that we didn't know the cinema needed. Nicholas Hoult otherworldly as a fanatical "war boy" who is as lost and vulnerable as he is deadly. John Seale's cinematography, Margaret Sixel's editing, Jenny Beaven's costumes, Colin Gibson's production design, plus make-up, sound, visual effects — all astonishing. Fascinating and most welcome to see feminist themes running through such a car-centric, "masculine" action movie. Surprising depth and emotion as well. Too soon to declare this a masterpiece?
Grade: A
Pitch Perfect 2
Like its predecessor, totally fun and enjoyable during the time that you're watching it — then totally forgettable and mediocre as soon as you get home. Suffers from filling its world with underdeveloped caricatures rather than human beings, its predictable and exhausted Glee-like plot structure. Very funny in the moment, though.
Grade: C
Poltergeist
Completely unnecessary remake that loses all of the classic original's creepiness and Spielbergian magic. Kyle Catlett is a great child actor, so the creative choice to focus on his older-brother character is understandable — but the result is a total non-character for sweet little Carol Anne (who isn't even named Carol Anne anymore). So, when she inevitably gets trapped in the closet (been there, sister — not fun)... well, who cares? The film is a rushed mess in general, desperately in a hurry to get to the juicy stuff, with no time for such things as character development or rising action. It's not terrible, but it's a waste of time.
Grade: C-
San Andreas
With the disclaimer that I have particular fondness for epic disaster movies, I must say that this film, where earthquakes destroy L.A. and San Francisco, was tons of fun and exceptionally rewarding. Dwayne Johnson a reliably strong action lead, but the wonderful surprise here is this film's feminist soul — Alexandra Daddario (the Percy Jackson franchise) gets to be as tough, intelligent, and resourceful an action hero as her on-screen dad, while mom Carla Gugino gets a heroic moment or two of her own as well. Wonderful supporting performances from Australian TV star Hugo Johnstone-Burt and Art Parkinson (HBO's Game of Thrones) as a pair of English brothers who are brought into the main storyline via the earthquake chaos. Parkinson, especially, is completely endearing, his every line reading and reaction shot pure delight. And even Kylie Minogue, of all people, gets an intense cameo. Terrific CGI depicting the complete destruction of well-known cities and buildings (my #1 favourite disaster-movie trope). Sure, there are some script problems, including a number of underwritten characters (Emmy-winner Archie Panjabi, of CBS's The Good Wife, is done no favours here), lack of thematic depth, and entirely predictable storytelling... but this is overwhelmingly a solidly directed film and an emotionally satisfying time at the movies.
Grade: B
Tomorrowland
Sci-fi adventure film from Disney about a teenage girl who must team up with a disillusioned inventor to find a way into a futuristic dimension so that they can save the world. Complex, unpredictable plot that makes this deliciously difficult to describe. So much fun — if I'd seen this when I was a kid, it would be my favourite movie of all time. George Clooney and Britt Robertson solid in lead roles, but the real story here is the discovery of the preternatural Raffey Cassidy, playing an android girl. Cassidy, only 11 at the time of filming, displays intelligence and maturity beyond her years, somehow capable of playing mystery and grown-up confidence and sadness and humour all at once. Villains needlessly extreme — storytelling never quite justifies why the bad guys are this murderous. Memorable live-action outing from director Brad Bird (The Incredibles, Ratatouille), who makes many inspired choices here, even if the hows and the whys of the major conflict and its resolution become pretty muddy. Message that the future of the human race (of the world) depends on the dreamers, on the power of imagination and hope, is cute, and about as Disney as it gets. Impressive sci-fi world-building, though visual effects have gotten so extraordinary that the CGI here is visibly less-convincing than in other films.
Grade: B-
