A Who Dunnit For the Ages... "Knives Out"

Knives Out (2019)

Rated PG-13

Starring Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas, Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Michael Shannon, Toni Collette, Christopher Plummer

Written and Directed by Rian Johnson

On the night of his 85th birthday, Harley Thrombey (Plummer) gathers his family at his home to celebrate. However before the night is over, Harley is dead and everyone in his family is a suspect!


You can start with the old standbys when discussing Hollywood:

They're out of new ideas.
They don't make them like they used to.

Then Rian Johnson effectively says, "hold my beer" and dusts off the all-star murder mystery of days gone by and sends you on a twisty turvy ride that grabs your attention and doesn't let go.

Will you solve the whodunnit before the reveal?

Quite likely.

Will you still remain engaged throughout?

Absolutely.

I would almost dare to defy a movie lover to not enjoy this film.

I've bemoaned bloated running times and how many movies could/would have been much better if they had left 30 minutes (or more!) on the cutting room floor.

This film is precisely the opposite.

So well paced, it never feels like it stretches over the 2 hour mark, and I don't think I would have been bothered if there had been more scenes left in or extended.

It's a testament to Johnson's script and the assembled cast that they flesh out every character from the leads to the bit players and give everyone on a screen a fully realized three dimensional person.

The movie never cheats the audience or itself in the slow reveal of the entire story, and that in itself is worthy of praise.

A sequel is reportedly in the works, most likely centering on Benoit Blanc (Craig). If it's half as good as this first adventure, it will be a rollicking good time.

Unimpressed Sums It Up..."Nocturnal Animals"

Nocturnal Animals (2016)

Rated R

Starring Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Shannon, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Isla Fisher, Armie Hammer,

Directed by Tom Ford

The Story:

Susan Morrow (Adams) is a wealthy art gallery owner. She is married to Hutton (Hammer), but was previously married to Tony (Gyllenhaal). Well, Tony has sent his ex-wife a manuscript for his upcoming novel to read. It's called Nocturnal Animals. As Susan reads it, it's a very intense work that may also be an allegory to his time being married to Susan.

Cue the intrigue.

Ah yes, the old "story within a story" effect.

This time, instead of a movie or tv show taking place, it's a novel being read.

Gyllenhaal gets double duty as both flashbacks to the time with his wife, and also as the main character of the book.

Except I was bored by all of the characters within the first 10 minutes.

I was actually ready to turn it off during the opening credits.

Watching obese naked women dance on platforms is actually not my idea of a good time.

But that's art! As presented at Susan's gallery, I was already put off before the movie even begins.

Then as each new character is introduced, I really didn't see any reason to care for them, or want to see where the story was going.

Great actors, don't get me wrong.

Just put into a storyline I really had no ambition to soldier through to the end.

Then as I'm doing research on the film, it's one of those arthouse "best of the year...accolade after accolade" films.

So apparently, maybe I'm just not highbrow enough of a movie snob to appreciate what's sitting in front of me, and I would be happier watching an Adam Sandler movie.

Well, I did watch the Waterboy again a few days later, so yeah, maybe.

: )

Your mileage may vary, but this one was ejected and tossed on the scrap heap for worst of the year consideration.

Final Grade: D

The Truth Is Always Stranger Than Fiction..."Elvis & Nixon"

Elvis & Nixon (2016)

Rated R

Starring Michael Shannon, Kevin Spacey, Alex Pettyfer, Johnny Knoxville, Colin Hanks, Evan Peters

Directed by Liza Johnson

The Story:

December, 1970... That morning, Elvis (Shannon) came up to the White House gates hoping to meet President Nixon (Spacey).  The picture taken at the end of their encounter is the most requested photograph in the National Archives.

This is a story of the meeting that almost didn't happen.

It all begins when Elvis decides he wants to be an undercover Federal Agent.

His idea, see the President, get the credentials, and begin working for the government.

Nixon, on the other hand, was scheduled for his afternoon nap at the time Elvis was to be cleared to see him.

Surreal, of that there is no doubt.

While Shannon doesn't attempt to go full-on Elvis, he gets enough of the speech and mannerisms down that you buy the performance.

Then there is Spacey, possibly the best chameleon actor of this (or any) generation, and again, he becomes Nixon right before your eyes.

While everything you see on screen may not have actually happened, they have enough evidence of the main points to wrap the story together nicely, filling in the dialogue that could have happened to get to that point.

It's fascinating. It's fun.

And in today's political climate, it almost makes you miss the good old days of Nixon.

: )

I watched it on DVD from Netflix, but it is now currently streaming on Amazon Prime as of this writing.

Final Grade: B

Tis The Season... "The Night Before"

The Night Before (2015)

Rated R

Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anthony Mackie, Michael Shannon, Tracy Morgan, Jillian Bell, Lizzy Caplan, Miley Cyrus,

Directed by Jonathan Levine

The Story:

Ethan (Gordon-Levitt) lost his parents in a tragic accident at Christmas. 2 friends, Isaac (Rogen) and Chris (Mackie) supported him and spent those Christmas Eves with him trying to make him happy and move past the pain. As the boys grew older, their nightly excursions got wilder as they attempted to find the greatest Christmas party, ever! Always close, but never finding it, the guys are getting ready to call it quits because they're older now and need to move on. So it's one last night on the town, and things are about to get really crazy.

To explain this movie in any greater detail takes away some of the charm, or weirdness, that it has going for it.

There will be sex, drugs and rock and roll.

There's magic drugs.

Angels.

Tracy Morgan as Santa Claus.

Seth Rogen and James Franco sexting one another.

Miley Cyrus even shows up to attempt to save the day!

Yes, this film pretty much has it all, and then some.

They literally throw everything at the wall to see what sticks.

And there are enough genuinely funny moments to make this one worth a viewing.

Especially Rogen's drug-induced visit to a Catholic Midnight Mass where he realizes that the guy in the big Jewish sweater is to blame for the crucifixion. His freak out is worth the rental.

:)

Also, there's just enough heart under all the crudeness as Ethan realizes it's time to grow up, and that sometimes the best families aren't the families you're born into, but the family that you choose to build because you want them in your life and they want to be there with you.

Final Grade: C+

It's A Super Weekend...Part One... "Man of Steel"

Man of  Steel  (2013)
PG-13 Violence

Starring Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shanon, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane

Directed by Zack Snyder


Man, I really miss John Williams' score.

The Story:

On the doomed planet Krypton, Jor-El (Crowe) sends his son on a rocket towards Earth hoping that his son will grow to become a great man.  On Earth, the infant is found and raised by Johnathan and Martha Kent (Costner & Lane) on a farm in Smallville, Kansas.  Johnathan warns their son Clark ( Cavill) that the world isn't ready for a man with his powers, yet Clark is compelled to do good things to help his fellow man.  When plucky reporter Lois Lane (Adams) stumbles upon the story of a lifetime, will she reveal to the world what she knows about this super man ?  When General Zod (Shannon) comes from the Phantom Zone to find young Kal-El, will the Earth survive a Kryptonian invasion?

So many questions...

Let's get to the answers!

When it comes to expectations for this movie, it helps to set the bar low.

No, lower than that.

:)

Forget what you've seen on the screen from Marvel, this is DC.

"There is No Fun Allowed In This, Or Any DC Universe Movie!!"

They are not going for the sheer fun and popcorn atmosphere.

No, DC wants to be grim and moody.

They want atmosphere for their universe.  If you loved the Dark Knight trilogy of films from Christopher Nolan, has DC got the film for you.

Because basically, Nolan and David S. Goyer have taken the big blue boyscout and sprinkled a great heaping of bat-grit to the world of Superman.

Hey, it worked for Gotham, why not Metropolis, right?

And it does work, don't get me wrong.

I'm just saying, if you're thinking that this movie is going to resemble any Marvel franchise, whether Disney, Sony or Fox, you couldn't be further from the truth.

The same was always said about the comics.  Marvel was fun, and it felt like it could happen in your own backyard.  DC always had that feeling of fake-ness to it.  Whether it was the writers or the settings, things are more real in New York or Chicago than they are in Metropolis or Gotham.

The movies are going to do much the same.

You're not getting the movie franchises you want from DC.

You're getting the franchises you deserve!

;)

"New York?  Compared to Metropolis, New  York Got Off Easy"

For the most part, this movie gets way more right than it gets wrong, whether that wrong is personal opinion/choice or straying drastically from the source... it's a bit of both.

Perry White (Laurence Fishburne) is black, not a problem with that.  He does a great job with the limited screen time that he has.

Jimmy Olson is non-existent, apparently changed to Jenny (Rebecca Buller) for reasons I still don't fathom.  Apparently they needed a damsel in distress for that one pivotal scene.  However, in the comics, Jimmy Olson was that damsel. ;)


It's things like that that puzzle me the most with many comic adaptations.

I'm more critical of DC because I don't have the same passion for the characters and simply revel in the fact that they are onscreen anymore.  Remember, seeing Superman on the silver screen is old hat at this point.  Now I want to see it done correctly.

However it seems like everytime they do something right, or something not-so-stupid, then something odd pops up that just made me wonder..."why" ?

"I am so Tired of Diapers..."

For example, I think Jor-El was used effectively throughout the movie.  Wasn't a fan of the way Krypton was portrayed with flying dragons, but whatever.  His coming back to help Clark (and Lois) was interesting and amusing.  I say, yay, they did a great job with Father # 1.

But...

I think it was pointless what they did with Johnathan Kent.

"Stop, I Want To Die Needlessly..."

I'm not just talking about the scene pictured above.
Though in the grand scheme of things, that may just be the stupidest death in the history of cinema.
For those not familiar with the source of the stories behind the movie, when John Byrne took over Superman in the 80s and DC "started fresh", one of the many things he did right in this reader's eyes: He let Johnathan Kent LIVE!!

Why should Clark Kent come from two broken homes, wasn't one enough?

But no...

To layer extra angst on Superman, you kill his second father.  I didn't agree with that decision in the 70s when they did it, I still disagree with it now.

Perhaps it was for the best though, as the portrayal of Kent in this film is someone who keeps telling his son that the world isn't ready for the power you possess...they will hate and fear you...

Oh. My. Goodness.

This is not the X-Men!

All of these complaints aside for a moment, this was leaps and bounds ahead of Superman Returns... ugh... that movie makes me throw up a bit inside my mouth just thinking of it.

: )

Henry Cavill made a great Superman for me.  Having not seen a majority of his film/television work, he is a "new face" to these eyes, and find him to be a worthy successor to the long line of caped Supermen that have come before him.

He's a little angrier than he probably should be, but again, I'll lay that at the feet of Nolan and David Goyer who wrote the script.

It was becoming a bit of a running joke at the end though, that the angrier Superman got, the stronger he got.  What, he's the Hulk now?

"Superman...Smash!"

Considering that the "S" supposedly stands for "Hope" on Krypton, much of the hope that Superman should inspire to the general populace is muted in this new screen version.

A darker suit.  Less humor.

We'll see where it goes from here.

I've heard much criticism about the climactic fight scene and how destructive it is.

It is definitely all of that, and then some. 

Oooh, look at what we can do to Smallville and Metropolis!!

Yes, after about 10-15 minutes into the fight it starts to feel like severe overkill.  I don't even want to think about what the real death count would be if Superman and Zod really went toe to toe like that.

I get it, and really, I shrugged my shoulders and can live with it.

But there is a buzz among some criticisms that I've read/heard that the destruction is Superman's fault and he's not a hero...

What the heck?

Apparently at that point, I watched a different movie than others.

The fighting was due to Superman trying to save the Earth, and the blame falls squarely at the feet of the bad guy.

Or the military for opening fire over a civilian population.

: /

Heck, the big fight scenes were the best part of Superman II, so it was inevitable that the nearly 40 years later, the stakes are going to increase.

Granted, Superman should have whisked the fight out to the desert, but I get it. 

This is the Nolan Superman, we have to have grim and gritty.


Finally, I have zero problems with how the fight ended.

Faithful to the source material, as written by Byrne decades ago.

That's Superman's greatest strength, he has that power but chooses not to use it.

This was a lose/lose situation, and I thought it was handled correctly.  This sets up the fact that he knows what he is capable of, and must ensure he never does it again.

Final Grade: C+

Kill Someone and Your Name is "Mud"

Ah, the life of a hobo...

The Story:

Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) are two 14 year olds living near the Mississippi River in Arkansas.  They discover a boat suspended in the trees on an island and are going to make it their boat.  Until it turns out it's already been claimed by a drifter named Mud (Matthew McConaughey) who enlists the duo in helping him fix the boat so he can escape some bounty hunters with the love of his life (Reese Witherspoon).

Hmm.

I'm not sure what to think about this one.

It's not bad, per se.

It's also not great.

I've heard critics rave that it was the best Matthew McConaughey performance in years, until his next one comes out.  The problem with that theory, is that I've almost always enjoyed his movies, so he's always had a good performance.  Sometimes he's the best part of some movies.

I'm not sure if that's the case here, he certainly does a good job, but so does the entire cast.

The problem, it is a slow paced movie that builds towards the end.

And when movies clock in over 2 hours... most people don't want to invest that much time in them.

This one, I did watch through the whole film, and while tempted to speed it up, I let it run.  I did tinker with a  few things while watching, but this is a movie you don't have to have your eyes on the screen at all times to know what's going on.

Written and directed by Jeff Nichols, I don't know if this, or Take Shelter would be considered his "big breakthrough" film.  Certainly I heard more about that one, but having watched the last half of that movie...

I absolutely hated it.  Terrible ending.

So naturally, I wasn't in any hurry to jump into this one.

Thankfully, this was much better.

I'll give Nichols credit, he can assemble a great cast from top to bottom.

The main problem, he's got a lot of great actors, all with 5 minutes of screen time.

Reese Witherspoon?  Ladies, if you were hoping for a romantic entanglement between the two, you're going to be disappointed.  The part could have, and likely should have, been played by any female actress.  Give an unknown or lesser-known a shot.

Michael Shannon, Nichols' go to guy... if he had more than 5 minutes on-screen, that's being generous.

Thankfully, Sam Shepard fares better as the mysterious stranger who loves Mud like a son, and has to make some tough love decisions.

Really, the movie is a tour-de-force for the 2 kids who do a great job being at the center of the movie.  This is their "Stand by Me" moment, and if they want to stick around in Hollywood, their feet are firmly in the door at this point.

So there you go.

It's a drama, and unless you're a Drama named "Shawshank Redemption" you'll likely only get so much praise around these parts. ;)

I will give kudos for the 3rd Act creating a genuine "Jump Moment" normally reserved for horror movies. 

Wasn't expecting it, well done.

Final Grade: C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Nope, not a high demand for dramas, especially really long ones.

Trying too Hard to Deliver a "Premium Rush"!

When it absolutely positively has to be there within the same day...


The Story:

The Bike Messengers of New York City live a dangerous life.  Weaving in and out of traffic and pedestrians to deliver those packages that need to be somewhere within the city within the same day (or sometimes within the hour...).  If that isn't dangerous enough for these guys, imagine when Wilee (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) picks up a package that suddenly makes him the most wanted man in the city?  It seems that a very interested party is going to kill him if he has to, to get his hands on what he's carrying.

Oh my!

I'll give them credit, for the most part they stretch out this film over the duration of 90 minutes with some exciting chases through New York City and attempt to keep the viewer glued as we wonder if Wilee will deliver the package in time, or if he'll be caught by the psycho or killed in the process.

The movie successfully maneuvers through flashbacks that fills in the backstory of who's doing what, and why.

The bad guy (Michael Shannon) is indeed a certifiable creep and scumbag.  His quest to retrieve the package is borderline certifiable.

The main flaw I had with the movie was Wilee's ability to "see the future".  In this fast paced movie, it's a bit hard to swallow that at the last possible second, he's able to see what's going to happen in so many choices, and then executes the safest one he can see.

Yes, I know what they're trying to show, my thought was it seemed like a bit of a stretch that 2 seconds before execution, he's able to spend 15 seconds processing which direction to ride.

Minor quibble really, just a bit distracting after the first few times.


Final Grade:  Flipping a coin, going with a C+ over a B-.  Worth a spin more than worth avoiding.

Would I Add it to the Collection: Meh.. if it's on sale for 2 bucks in the future... : )