The War To End Absolutely Nothing..."War Machine"

War Machine (2017)

TV-MA

Starring Brad Pitt, Anthony Hayes, John Magaro, Anthony Michael Hall, Emory Cohen, Topher Grace, Aymen Hamdouchi, Alan Ruck, Nicholas Jones,

Written and Directed by David Michod

The Story:

General McMahon (Pitt) is brought in by politicians to help clean up the mess that is the war in Afghanistan. Except McMahon isn't used to tidying up anything, if there's a war, he's there to win it. Which is exactly what nobody apparently wants, except McMahon.

Welcome to one of the latest Netflix originals to roll out this year.

It's based on a true story.

It's also a satirical look at the war effort in Afghanistan.

Your mileage will vary on how well either of those work as an overlong film written and directed by Michod.

In a nutshell, McMahon and his staff are seemingly doing very well, but through an article written by Rolling Stone, it undermines McMahon's credibility and leads to his ouster.

Pitt plays McMahon as a caricature of an actual person.

Normally, this works to some extent, but Pitt dials the caricature of McMahon to 11; some of the mannerisms given to McMahon such as the facial expressions, the voice, you can't quite tell if they were going for outright parody or not in the film.

They become almost a distraction throughout the film.

So with an uneven tone, a leading man who is all over the map on whether or not you need to take what he's doing at face value, or to laugh at what he's saying or doing, it makes this a mess.

Just like the war in Afghanistan.

In that regard, mission accomplished.

Final Grade:  C

Wait, This Doesn't Star Jackie Chan? "Shanghai Calling"

I don't even speak Chinese...

The Story:

Sam (Daniel Henney) is a lawyer who just closed a multi-million dollar case for his law firm.  Expecting to be made partner, imagine his surprise when the firm wants him to relocate to Shanghai to make some other prominent clients very happy.  Why?  Well, it seems Sam is of Chinese descent, though he can't speak or read a lick of Chinese.  When he arrives, naturally his case goes to pieces immediately and his career is in jeopardy.  With the help of a few friends he's made, can Sam save his career, all while he's also falling in love?

Yes, another unconventional romantic comedy, or at least that's how it's listed in Netflix.  It's not really, it's mostly a comedy.

The romantic subplot takes the backseat to Sam trying to solve a business deal that has gone sour quickly and threatens his shot at making partner.

In the end, Sam must decide what is best for him, and that may not be the same as what is best for his company.

It's a cute, quirky little comedy, written and directed by Daniel Hsia.  Looking at his credits, he's done some writing for tv, most notably my favorite show...Psych!  This is his first big-screen credit and also his first spin behind the director's chair on a big-budget film.

I give the man a big thumbs up and look forward to what he's got in store for us in the future.

Not really familiar with any of the stars of the movie.  Henney is one of the stars of Hawaii Five O.  Really the only actors I recognized were Bill Paxton and Alan Ruck (Ferris Bueller's best friend).

While I had never heard of the movie, actor or director before, I can honestly say that I was never bored and the movie held my interest from start to finish. 

Can't ask for much more than that.

Final Grade: B

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I could easily watch it again.  I don't know that I would run out and buy it, but with Blockbuster going out of business, we'll see if there's still a copy on the shelves!