There Goes The Neighborhood..."High-Rise"

High-Rise (2015)

Rated R

Starring Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans, Elisabeth Moss, James Purefoy

Directed by Ben Wheatley

The Story:

Dr. Laing (Hiddleston) moves into a futuristic high-rise designed by The Architect (Irons). It has all the amenties that you could ever want, and the residents leave only to go to work...if at all. However, as the building continues to have power and other issues, a class-war between floors seems inevitable, and the whole building plunges into chaos.

Well, that was something alright.

Based on a novel by the same name, this freaky look back at a possible future in the swinging 70s is all style, and either no substance, or too much substance.

That the entire citizenry of a building would devolve into total anarchy instead of, oh, I don't know...

MOVING OUT!!!!

Seems ludicrous to me.

As a book, or a movie.

But okay, I get it, you're trying to tell a story, so sometimes you have to suspend reality a bit.

However, in the end, much like the tenants of the building, I watched myself descend into an uncaring state of what happened to these characters.

That's never a good thing in the movies.

Especially one filled with so many talented actors.

Bright side, the recreation to capture the look and feel of the 70s was pretty amazing.

That said, it's now available to stream on Netflix if you'd like to check it out for yourself.

Final Grade: D+

There Must Be Something Better On The Food Network..."Burnt"

Burnt (2015)

Rated R

Starring Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Daniel Bruhl, Omar Sy, Emma Thompson, Uma Thurman,

Directed by John Wells

The Story:

Adam Jones (Cooper) was an amazing American chef who was the toast of Paris and had it all, then lost it by his behavior and addictions. Now clean and sober, he's been saving up money to get back into the game and earn the third Michelin star. He gathers an assortment of top-notch London chefs to back him in his quest, including Helene (Miller) who can't stand the idea of working for him. Can he pull off the impossible?

For starters, this movie isn't 2 hours long.

Felt like it in some stretches, but it isn't that long.

But take that plot synopsis and I bet you've figured out exactly where this road is heading.

For some reason, Hollywood thinks that movies about chefs are great and they feel the need to keep making them.

This is not Ratatouille.

I think it's time for Hollywood to find another glamorous job to portray on the silver screen.

The 15 minutes for the restaurant chef are really over.

Otherwise, no real complaints for the movie.

Everyone does what they are supposed to do, and every plot device you can check off in your head is going to unfold onscreen.

No surprises.

No real substance though, either.

Final Grade: C

"Unfinished Business" Is An 'Uneven Movie'

Unfinished Business (2015)

Rated R

Starring Vince Vaughn, Tom Wilkinson, Dave Franco, Sienna Miller, Nick Frost, James Marsden

Directed by Ken Scott

The Story:

Dan (Vaughn) has had it with his current company. He quits and tries a Jerry Maguire speech to bring his co-workers with him. Tim (Wilkinson) and Mike (Franco) are the only two that jump in with him. Time passes, and they have one final "Hail Mary" to save their business from going under, but involves a business trip to Europe to land a deal with Mr. Spinch (Marsden). They assume it's a lock, until they realize their old employer is there to close the same deal.

Tucked in this movie was a good story with some funny characters.

They emerge every so often as the film moves along.

They also get buried in a lot of "throw it at the wall and see if it sticks" moments that really do nothing except padding the runtime of the film.

It loses focus often for the sake of the gag, and the gags rarely help the overall momentum of the film. Instead it seems like a lot of pieces that are cobbled together to frame a story from beginning to end, but it's a bumpy, jarring ride to get there.

Are there funny moments? Absolutely, but they often are isolated and alone and rarely strung together.

Vaughn's attempt to help his daughter's homework project seems like a weird narrative device to shoehorn his home life into the work story.

That said, the final product that she turns in is very heartwarming and something most dads should relate to.

It's got some genuine amusement, and a fantastic cast, but just too scattershot to be worth ever revisiting.

Final Grade: C