Despite cliched cover, Green is hardly just black and white.
With wit, compelling comedy and impressive empathy, simple story traverses
tricky territory, driving past race into territories of class, sexuality &
self-defeatism. Deftly spins savior setup so both broken heroes require
redemption and each ultimately achieve it without heavy-handed Help.
Thursday, February 28, 2019
Monday, February 25, 2019
Polar
Mikkelsen gets Mad when stylistically inferior superiors
force him from clean to clichéd and the Dominos start falling predictably.
Anti-hero’s chilly warmth and clever third act twist of Le Chiffre serve as
sole selling points while jaunty jumps from gratuitous gore to intensive
introspection make it hard to Buy Polar.
-->
Actors & Director:
Mads Mikkelsen,
Richard Dreyfuss,
Vanessa Hudgens
Thursday, February 21, 2019
Solo
Set longer than long time ago, this space spectacle
successfully stands alone. An appropriate amount of camp and coolness lend
further fuel to a film that doles up the right ratio of references to
revelations and, ‘trust’y tropes aside, manages to maintain tension despite
obvious direction and less obvious directors.
Actors & Director:
Donald Glover,
Emilia Clarke,
Jon Favreau,
Paul Bettany,
Ron Howard,
Thandie Newton,
Woody Harrelson
Thursday, February 14, 2019
Glass
Lacks both shine and clarity of origin’s origins. Fractured
characters are grafted together but rather than lending each other narrative
strength, they take turns bashing holes in panefully fragile premise.
Shyamalan’s characters fuse while he cracks open his neglected tank of tired
twists and dramatically drowns his franchise in frivolity.
Actors & Director:
Anya Taylor-Joy,
Bruce Willis,
James McAvoy,
M Night Shyamalan,
Samuel L. Jackson,
Sarah Paulson,
Spencer Treat Clark
Monday, February 11, 2019
BlackKklansman
Malcolm Y’s performance provides an interestingly stiff
backboard against which to bounce this insane true story while Driver rides
shotgun, Ren-dering an uncharacteristically complex character. Meanwhile I,
Topher revisits 70s with almost amusingly amorality. Lee spikes the story with his
typical stylization and political commentary, but both hit their
marksSspectacularly.
Actors & Director:
Adam Driver,
Alec Baldwin,
John David Washington,
Spike Lee,
Topher Grace
Thursday, February 7, 2019
A Star is Born
Cooper starts by showing off simultaneous directing, acting,
guitar-playing, and singing then miraculously maintains the momentum, with
incredible support from a Lady who disappears beautifully into her role. Bizarre
non-comedic roles for Dice and Dave don’t detract either and Elliot’s emotional
energy establishes the environment for film’s final sorrowful supernova.
Actors & Director:
Alec Baldwin,
Andrew Dice Clay,
Bradley Cooper,
Dave Chappelle,
Lady Gaga,
Sam Elliott
Monday, February 4, 2019
Creed II
Sequel sympathizes with star as it struggles to sustain
previous success. Impressively in-depth antagonist characterization creates
conundrum, as baby-Dolph becomes more empathetic than self-centric Creed.
Stallone stalls Two, and attempted emotional interludes feel tone deaf at best.
Spoiler: finale spoils the premise as a predictable victory further vindicates
‘hero’s vanity.
Actors & Director:
Dolph Lundgren,
Michael B Jordan,
Sylvester Stallone,
Tessa Thompson
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)