Review: The Wolverine

by. Joe Moss
★★★

The latest installment of the Marvel Comic Universe, The Wolverine, comes out as strongly as Iron Man 3 earlier this year--rocking, socking, and kicking ass.

Hugh Jackman delivers a far superior performance in this movie than in any of the years past--more proof that he is ever-evolving as an actor (and that he might have FINALLY embraced that he is the physical embodiment of the fans' expectations of Wolverine).

Logan (Hugh Jackman) has isolated himself into the northern Canadian wilderness residing among grizzlies...and trees...and grizzlies. He is still having the reoccurring nightmares about killing Jean Grey (Famke Janssen); however, this interplay shows that Logan does have access to his feelings and is actually still 'human' below the hard facade he tries to show the world.  He is not as carefree as he would like everyone to believe. In the midst of his self-pity in the wilderness (literal and mental), he is thrust back into present day activities when a young Japanese woman, Yukio (Rila Fukushima), requests his presence in Japan for her dying boss, Yashida (Hal Yamanouchi), who was saved by Logan during the bombing of Nagasaki in WWII.

Yashida hugely benefitted from his spared-life by rebuilding much of Japan in the wake of the WWII disaster and wants to properly thank Logan for saving him--and give him the present owed to him from that fateful day. As Logan is brought into the home of Yashida, he quickly realizes that there is more going on than a simple thank you and is immediately trust into a secretive and conspiring world of the extremely rich; the politically motivated; the Yakuza; and the bio-medically conniving. All of this revolving around who will inherit the company once Yashida dies--his son, Harada (Will Yun Lee) who strongly desires it, or his granddaughter, Mariko (Tao Okamoto), who wants nothing from it. In the maelstrom, is the sinister but beautiful Doctor (Svetlana Khodchenkova) later identified as Viper (mutant assassin biochemist).

Not to give to much away, but in the course of the script, Logan finally realizes what it feels like to be human--oh yes; and he finally realizes that there is more to live for than old memories of battles and love past. The screenplay, as written by Mark Bomback (Total Recall (2012), Live Free or Die Hard) and Scott Frank (Minority Report, Marley and Me) is beautifully written to show all aspects of the characters in the film. Their flaws, their strengths, and their personal fortitude are intricately woven through the action sequences. Character personification glorified. [The only acting I would like to single out (in a BAD way) is that of Svetlana Khodchenkova (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy). While everyone else rose to the occasion, her acting seemed diffident and contrived. Maybe she was told to emulate a cold snake--but it translated to cold, dead snake.]

Some credit must be given to the talent behind the camera was well. Directed by, James Mangold (Walk the Line; Girl, Interrupted), this movie is more focused--actually telling a complete story from start to finish ratehr than focusing on action sequences to fill the void of plot. Sure, there are a few flashback sequences, but the editing by Micheal McCusker (3:10 to Yuma, Walk the Line) was flawless. I could watch this movie again and again just for the joy of the bloody action.

GO!!  See The Wolverine...but stay through the credits for one of the best Easter Eggs of the 2013 summer movie season.

Review: The Way Way Back

by Trevor Kirkendall
★★★½

There’s a comedian I like who tells a joke about sitting in the back seat of a station wagon on a family vacation. Not the back seat but the way, way back seat; the one that faces in reverse. He says that the kids sitting in the back seat of the car tend to have a completely different vacation than everyone else in the car. The comedian wonders, “I wonder what all these signs say?” I think that this particular seat in the old station wagons is what writers/directors Nat Faxon and Jim Rash had in mind when they wrote their brilliant new film “The Way Way Back”. Their main character starts the film sitting in this seat and throughout the rest of the film has completely different vacation than anyone else. This one shot should be enough foreshadowing of the continued brilliance that will follow.

“The Way Way Back” follows 14 year old Duncan (Liam James) during his summer vacation with his mom Pam (Toni Collette), her boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell) and his daughter Stephanie (Zoe Levin). They’re spending a couple of months at Trent’s beach house. Next door lives the persistently intoxicated Betty (Allison Janney), who has no social filter, and her kids Susanna (AnnaSophia Robb) and Peter (River Alexander). We also meet Trent’s friends Kip (Rob Corddry) and Joan (Amanda Peet).

Duncan can’t stand Trent or any of his friends. He doesn’t understand what his mom sees in him. He begins to stay as far away from these people as possible, and begins taking long bike rides around the area. He discovers a nearby water park called Water Wizz and meets the park’s eccentric manager Owen (Sam Rockwell). Owen likes Duncan and all his awkward quirks so he hires him to be a part time help around the park. At Water Wizz, he becomes well liked by the parks frequent visitors and the park’s employees including Caitlin (Maya Rudolph) along with Roddy and Lewis (film’s directors Nat Faxon and Jim Rash).

Duncan’s attitude toward life in general begins to change as a result of his time with Owen working at Water Wizz. He even begins to attract the attention of the pretty girl living next door, Susanna. The two begin to form a friendship, something that might not have otherwise happened without his new life at the waterpark. He’s not even really afraid to share what’s on his mind with his mom and with Trent.

“The Way Way Back” is a brilliant display of what a coming-of-age movie should look like. The dynamic of every character in this film is written with such depth that you quickly lose yourself in the story. There are many moments where you could easily see yourself in Duncan’s shoes, even without the dysfunctional broken home element.

Oscar winning writers Nat Faxon and Jim Rash make their directorial debut with this film, and they’ve hit a home run. They’ve proven their screenwriting expertise on Alexander Payne’s “The Descendants” (which won them their Oscar) was no fluke. The amount of character development in their script vastly exceeds anything else we’ve seen this year. If this much characterization can be packed into such a short script, why can’t we get even a small portion of that in other films?

While the writing of “The Way Way Back” is fantastic, what really drives this film are the various performances from the whole cast. Liam James is on camera for the entire film, so its up to him to carry it. That’s no easy task for anyone, especially for someone his age. But James really takes command of his role. He should remind you of someone you knew when you were that age; if not a friend of yours, than maybe that quiet kid in the back of the class, or maybe even yourself.

The supporting roles, especially those of Toni Collette and Steve Carell, help to bring James’ character up to very a empathetic level. Collette is excellent as always. While she wants to look out for the best interests of her son, she’s also trying to find her happiness in this new life of hers. She’s torn and Collette really showcases it well. On the other hand, we’re used to seeing Carell in goofy and lightheaded rolls, but here he is downright mean. Every line and every glance toward James is that of sarcasm and disgust. He’s lovable in many films, but not here. Here, you have to hate him.

Sam Rockwell once again proves that he’s one of the most underrated and underappreciated actors working today. He turns in yet another unforgettable performance as Duncan’s best friend. He plays the role much like he’s done in the past; its a classic Rockwell performance. But he also brings out a little more depth that he hasn’t show in too many of his films (if you haven’t seen him in “Moon”, that’s one to find). In a film full of many bright spots, he shines the brightest.

“The Way Way Back” is a truly great film. Its a film with so much heart that’s delicately balanced between its scenes of emotion and its scenes of humor. There are so many memorable parts from the time it begins until the time it ends. The ending of the film may feel a little abrupt, but that’s the only thing I can find to complain about. In a summer full of movies that have underperformed expectations, “The Way Way Back” comes out of nowhere and surprises. 

Review: Pacific Rim

by Trevor Kirkendall
★★★½

There will not be a more adrenaline pumping motion picture to come out this summer than “Pacific Rim”. Its been a very long time since a movie has come out in the theaters during the summer months that’s been as much fun as this film. Despite minor flaws - that might actually be by design from the filmmakers – “Pacific Rim” is summer movie magic at its absolute best.

Not too far into the future, humanity is waging war with giant monsters that come from the sea known as the Kaiju. The Kaiju rise up from a portal from another world found deep in the sea and lay waste to the major cities on Pacific Ocean coastlines (San Francisco, Hong Kong, Sydney, etc.). To defeat these beasts, man has built giant robotic war machines called Jaegers. The Jaegers are piloted by two people joined together through a neurological bond; they think and act as one by sharing each other’s memories and experiences.

Our hero is Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) who is a Jaeger pilot along with his brother Yancy (Diego Klattenhoff). When battling a particularly vicious Kaiju, Yancy is tragically killed leaving Raleigh to pilot the Jaeger himself, but this will be his final mission. He’s too broken up about the loss of his brother to continue with the program.

Five years pass and Becket is no longer a Jaeger pilot. He’s working on a coastal wall that’s supposed to keep the Kaiju away. The Jaeger Program is being shut down. Its been reassigned to Hong Kong where it will keep up defenses until the wall is complete. Becket’s former commander, Marshall Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba), shows up and recruits Becket to come back for one final mission. They think they have a plan to stop the Kaiju once and for all and they’re running out of time to pull it off.

Once in Hong Kong, Becket meets Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi) who is tasked with helping him find his new co-pilot. She too has a tragic history involving the Kaiju, much like Beckett losing his brother. He also meets two doctors, Dr. Newton Geiszler (Charlie Day) and Dr. Gottlieb (Burn Gorman), who are researching the Kajiu and provide the bulk of the film’s comic relief.

There is much to pick apart in “Pacific Rim”, but I don’t really want to because this movie is so much fun. I can’t remember the last time I went to the theater and had as much fun watching a film as I did “Pacific Rim”. Its truly a reminder of what the summer movie season used to be.

Think back long ago to the big studio tent pole movies that opened in the summer. They were fun, enjoyable, humorous and exciting. Very rarely do we see such films like that now. Now they’re just dark and lack even the slightest bit of humor. Movies that fit this bill could be the recent “Man of Steel” or the “Dark Knight” Trilogy. I’m not saying these films are bad, but they don’t bring out the kid in you when you watch them.

“Pacific Rim” does! It reminds me of the summer movies when you were carried away by the spectacle of the film and not on creating something so dark and mysterious. I’m reminded of films like “Jurassic Park” or maybe even “Independence Day”. While neither are masterpieces by any stretch, both movies do give you that sense of wonder and amazement. This is what makes “Pacific Rim” so great. Its an amazing film that demands you never take your eyes off the screen. It also demands you see it on the biggest screen you possibly can.

Director Guillermo del Toro wanted to make a film that felt like the summer movies of old, and that is what he’s accomplished. Having previously done one of the greatest films of the last decade, “Pan’s Labyrinth”, de Toro has proven himself to be a visionary master. The scale of “Pacific Rim” is enormous and he has been extremely successful in pulling this off. Every frame of this film is amazing to see.

“Pacific Rim” isn’t without its faults. The story itself is solid with several decent subplots that tie everything together nicely. The screenplay itself, however, is littered with typical action film clichés. From the first minute all the way to the final frame, you can practically see every plot point coming before it arrives. Its predictability puts a damper on some of the epic battle sequences and tense moments because we know what’s coming before it happens. Not to mention, there are also numerous moments of coincidence that help get the plot out of a jam. It’s just lazy writing and it insults the intelligence of the audience.

It also suffers from poor dialogue. Its borderline “Star Wars”-prequel bad. There are many moments where you just have to shake you head at the disbelief that another human could ever say something so cheesy. Additionally, the heartfelt dialogue meant to pull on your emotions is overacted and far too melodramatic. Its laughable at times. There’s plenty of comic relief built in, but I don’t think these were supposed to be the comical parts.

But couldn’t all that cheesy dialogue and all the plot coincidences be by design? Del Toro has made a movie that pays a lot of homage to the old monster movies of his childhood. The old “Godzilla” movies are very cheesy in their own right, but they’re very fun to watch. If that’s the case, then it really doesn’t matter what faults “Pacific Rim” has. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a summer film show us how much fun can be had at the movies. Poor acting and bad dialogue aside, “Pacific Rim” is the blockbuster event of the summer. An original story that’s full of the same thrills and excitement we haven’t seen in a summer film in many years.

Review: Pacific Rim

By. Joe Moss
★★★

  Alien invaders [Kaiju; Japanese for “strange creatures”] coming from the “breach”—a portal from another dimension that manifested in the middle of the Pacific plate.

This is the premise for Guillermo del Toro’s (Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy) summer, big-budget action thrill-ride “Pacific Rim.” While the story-line is spectacularly original (given Hollywood’s recent panache for remakes and sequels/pre-quels) , it does evoke thoughts of classic Godzilla meets “Aliens” meets “Transformers.” But this movie works thanks to the dynamic writing duo of Travis Beacham (Dog Days of Summer, Clash of the Titans) and Guillermo del Toro! The cast, while not littered with an ensemble of big-name stars (with the exception of a few appearance by Ron Perlman), really work well together to fulfill del Toro’s vision.

  To fight the Kaiju, large, robotic, war-machines (Jaegars) are developed through world-wide collaboration. Two pilots are mind-melded together and “synced” with the machine to run it as a human-like combatant—only 500 feet taller. The plot focuses on Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam; “Sons of Anarchy,” Green Street Hooligans) and his ability to overcome the debilitating loss of his brother from a battle-gone-wrong with a Kaiju off the Alaskan coastline. He disappears from the lime-light (and the front line of battle) only to be pulled back into reality as the Jaegar program is threatened by budget cuts and mounting defeats by the ever-evolving Kaiju invaders.

  Raleigh is brought back into the fold of the remaining Jaegar pilots—only 7 remain—and is reunited with he and his brother’s former machine, the Gipsy Danger. The last remaining analog-programmed, nuclear powered Jaeger. The search begins for his new copilot. Not an easy process as they have to be able to be compatible in fighting ability and mind-flow processing. Raleigh easily bests all of the top candidates, but is drawn to a military analyst, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi), his commanding officer’s (Idris Elba) ward. Is it an attraction of lust, or of perfect compatibility? I… will leave that for you to discover…

  The plot continues much as expected in all alien-based thrillers. The humans are trying to vanquish the alien invaders only to be thwarted at each turn by an ever growing (and seemingly endless) array of Kaiju. They just keep getting bigger and more powerful.

  Enter the science research department headed by biologist Dr. Newton Geiszler (Charlie Day) and chaos mathematician Gottlieb (Burn Gorman). Gottlieb theorizes that the invasion is on the verge of exponential increase as the attacks keep getting closer and more precise; while Dr. Geiszler is attempting to understand the thought process behind the creatures invasion. Through his research, he “mind-melds” with a partial, living frontal lobe of one specimen and determines they are all mentally congruent—also sneaking a peak at their ultimate intentions and history in the process. Finally the military is able to develop a plan to destroy the “breach” and remove the invaders once and for all. IF everything can go according to plan.

  An amazing ride from the opening sequence to the final clip after the credits. I was drawn into the story through all of its twists and turns. Well acted and amazingly edited by the team of Peter Amundson (Star Wars episode 5, Hellboy) and John Gilroy (Warrior, Micheal Clayton), there was not a lot of downtime to allow your mind to wander. The sound effects were mind blowing and the visual effects are another great example of the efforts at ILM and Ghost VFX for combining green screen and animatronics into a seamless vision.

Review: Kon-Tiki

by Trevor Kirkendall
★★★★

“Kon-Tiki” is a masterfully told story about the triumph of the human spirit and the will to succeed at all costs. The film tells the story of Norwegian adventurer Thor Heyerdahl (Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen). He is out to prove, in the year 1946, that ancient Peruvians from the east settled the Polynesian islands rather than Asians from the west as originally thought. No one will publish his theory without any kind of definitive proof.

To prove his theory, he builds a balsawood raft using the same techniques that would have been used by the ancient peoples 1,500 years ago. He gathers a crew of five other men including Herman Watzinger (Anders Baasmo Christiansen), a struggling engineer from Norway living in New York City. With the help of the Peruvian government, the six set out on their raft called the Kon-Tiki, named after the Incan sun god. Tiki made this 5,000 mile journey, according to Heyerdahl, on a similar raft and discovered the islands first.

“Kon-Tiki” is brilliantly told and showcases many raw emotions from its performers. Hagen plays the part with such delicacy. He’s a man with great ambition that he puts all his faith and trust into his theory. More than anything, he wants his theory to be correct that he refuses to believe any of the doubt that is brought before him. He even tries to convince his doubting wife Liv (Agnes Kittelsen) but she won’t hear any of it; she’s concerned for his life. But Hagen never shows the doubt in his performance. He plays Heyerdahl to be a man of great confidence. When staring doubters in the face, he stands tall and confident the entire time.

Co-directors Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg have crafted a visually stunning film. They are a directing team that hasn’t done a whole lot of work before, but rest assured they’ve earned the right to direct anything else that comes their way (such as the fifth installment to the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise in 2015 which they’ve just agreed to direct).

Capturing the type of imagery that they’ve done in “Kon-Tiki” is no easy feat. There have been plenty of films set on the water that have been very flat and boring in appearance.  Watching this film is stunning. Every shot, even those before the action moves to the water, is beautifully constructed. The screen is constantly filled in rich, vibrant color.

The filmmakers have even been able to harness an enormous amount of tension at the appropriate times. They’re very aware of all the instances when the screenplay calls for moments of intensity. Written by Petter Skavlan, the script is full of breathtaking moments that call for prefect execution from the directors in order to make it come across the right way. You’ll find yourself holding your breath for long periods of time while the intense tension plays out on the screen. Not till its over will you remember your need to breathe.

“Kon-Tiki” is a film a great emotional depth, tension and triumph. There is little to dislike about this film. It is one of the most spectacular films I’ve ever seen that’s set on the seas. Many films can come to mind that were all set on the seas either by way of ship wreck or by adventure, but comparing “Kon-Tiki” to any of them would be doing an enormous disservice to “Kon-Tiki”. It is a truly original film that tells a story many of us don’t even realize actually happened. To sit there and watch this story unfold, you can’t help but wonder how on earth these men actually decided to do this. It’s almost unreal. But there’s nothing unreal about this story; it actually happened. And it’s a beautiful and breathtaking story to watch. 

Review: The Heat

by Trevor Kirkendall
★★★

Its been way too long since we’ve had a good buddy cop movie. The “Lethal Weapon” series was great, and I – for one – miss those movies. We need another one, but that is unlikely to happen. Several different movies have tried to follow this formula, and most have failed. When I first saw the trailers for “The Heat” back in January (when it was originally slated to be released in April), I rolled my eyes and thought I knew exactly how this movie was going to play out. Knowing the formula to buddy cop movies, I was correct that I knew how it begin and end. Where I was wrong was just how good “The Heat” would actually be.

Sandra Bullock plays FBI Special Agent Sarah Asburn, a by the book agent who none of her colleagues like. She’s arrogant and a showoff. Suddenly, there’s a supervisor position open in her office that she thinks is right for her. Her boss Agent Hale (Demian Bichir) isn’t so sure since people despise her so much. She assigns her a case in Boston. If she can solve it, they’ll talk about the promotion.

Asburn is off to Boston where she meets up with Agent Levy (Marlon Wayans) who refers her to the local police department to look into some additional information. There, she meets Detective Shannon Mullins (Melissa McCarthy). Mullins is quite the opposite of Asburn. Whereas Asburn is very by the books and follows all the teachings from the Academy, Mullins just wings it. She uses her brash personality to intimidate everyone she meets.

Asburn can’t work with Mullins; she’s the Oscar to her Felix. She tries to get Hale to force her out of the investigation, but Hale thinks Mullins can be a valued asset to the Bureau. She disagrees, but Hale insists that her willingness to work with a local cop will look really good when she tries to apply for the promotion.

The rest of “The Heat” follows that basic blueprint of a typical buddy-cop film like the “Lethal Weapon” movies. Even though it follows this formula, it doesn’t feel very generic; it feels like a true original, something that is completely lacking in the current studio system.

Director Paul Fieg is very familiar with getting great comedic performances out his talent. He’s a seasoned television director, having directed multiple episodes of “Arrested Development”, “Nurse Jackie” and “The Office” in addition to creating the cult-hit show “Freaks & Geeks”. He’s also responsible for one of the best all-around comedies in recent years, “Bridesmaids” (where he directed McCarthy to her first Oscar nomination).

With “The Heat”, Fieg continues to polish his skills as one of the finest comedic talents behind the camera. He’s able to bring out great performances by his two leading actresses. Both have come from different types of comedy backgrounds, and they’ve been molded to fit exactly what the script has required them to be. Bullock and McCarthy weren’t just cast because they’re box office draws; they were cast because they were the two best actresses out there that could have pulled these rolls off.

“The Heat” is the first screenplay by writer Katie Dippold, a former staff writer for “MADtv” and current writer for “Parks and Recreation”. Her first attempt at writing a feature film is a great success. It is full of joke after joke. I probably missed half of them because everyone was laughing so hard that the follow up lines were drowned out by laughter. And its not just slapstick humor. There are plenty of jokes related to the situation, and everything is derived right from the plot.

Her two main characters are two people we actually like because they’re real. Each comes with several layers of different back-story, which allows us to develop empathy toward them. Empathy is why Riggs and Murtaugh in “Lethal Weapon” are so easy to root for. Character depth is severely lacking in most Hollywood films these days (they sure don’t make ‘em like they used to), but Dippold has turned that problem right around. Asburn and Mullins are not only interesting characters, they’re exciting and easy to cheer for.

There are a few gaping plot holes present that I’m surprised got through to the finished product. A seasoned television writer like Dippold should have caught some of them. Giving them away would mean to give away some spoilers, so I won’t be doing that. The final act of the film felt rushed. The first and second acts were built so well, but they appear to have frantically raced to resolve the main plot points before the picture hit the two-hour mark. This leaves subplots unresolved, something I cannot stand.

But gripes aside, there won’t be a funnier movie this summer than “The Heat”. I was very skeptical going in to this film after seeing the trailer for several months. It looked like “Miss Congeniality” trying to solve crimes with the “Identify Thief”. I couldn’t have been more wrong. There is so much to like about this film. Its crude and vulgar with two hours of non-stop laughs. I really hope that this is the start of new, much needed series of buddy cop films.