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  • Matt’s New Release Breakdown: March Edition

    Matt’s New Release Breakdown: March Edition

    March is finally here! The weather is getting warmer, brighter days appear to be ahead regarding COVID-19, and there’s still a bevy of new releases hitting airwaves. To catch-up with some of the month’s overlooked titles, I am reviving this feature to discuss a few major streaming titles. Let’s get the ball rolling!

    HAPPILY – Directed by BenDavid Grabinski

    Synopsis: Tom and Janet’s friends are jealous of their lustful relationship. When a visit from a mysterious stranger leads to a dead body, they begin to question the loyalty of their so-called friends.

    Diving into marital strife through a subversive lens, BenDavid Grabinski’s writing/directorial debut Happily certainly goes for broke from a conceptual perspective. While his first feature may be an exercise in style over substance, Grabinski’s creative verve discovers several intriguing avenues for audiences to delve into.

    Grabinski deserves praise for his thoughtful blend of pitch-black comedy and high-concept storytelling. His trippy detours find adept ways to ruminate on commonplace bickering between couples, often analyzing how two supposed lovers become bitter rivals once frustrations ascend to the surface. Stars Joel McHale and Kerry Bishe strongly sell Tom and Janet’s glowing love, allowing the couple’s initial chemistry to evolve once unique problems arise.

    It also helps to have a versatile supporting cast, with sharp comedic players like Paul Scheer, Natalie Morales, and Stephen Root bringing a lively crackle to each frame. Happily always finds avenues to entertain, but I do wish Grabinski instilled a finer thesis. The film’s dive into marital complications lands on surface-level conclusion, relying too-heavily on wordy exchanges and a spelled-out obviousness to tackle interesting ideas (the third act is disappointingly predictable considering what proceeds it).

    While relatively simple from a thematic perspective, Happily finds enough purpose within its fusion of well-trudged ideas.

    Happily released in theaters and Video On Demand on March 19th.

    THE FATHER – Directed by Florian Zeller

    Synopsis: Anthony (Anthony Hopkins) is 80, mischievous, living defiantly alone and rejecting the carers that his daughter, Anne (Olivia Coleman), encouragingly introduces. Yet help is also becoming a necessity for Anne; she can’t make daily visits anymore and Anthony’s grip on reality is unraveling.

    Despite its superb awards acclaim, I was somewhat hesitant going into The Father. Plays are one of the toughest pieces of literature to adapt to the screen, with most landing with a staged aroma that doesn’t take advantage of the cinematic platform. Thankfully, writer/director Florian Zeller’s adaptation of his own play strikes a powerful chord with its depictions of dementia.

    Zeller’s big-screen transformation keeps intact the play’s minimalistic allures while encompassing a few thoughtful visual touches. Whether it’s a sudden pierce from Ludovico Einaudi’s score or the intimate framing of Anthony’s breakdown, Zeller finds enough clever ways to manifest the character’s mental degradation onto the screen. At the end of the day, this is Anthony Hopkins’s film and he steals every minute of it. Hopkins performance swerves on a swivel, ranging from joyous reflections to intimidating demands on the drop of a dime. It would have been easy for the tortured persona to become a caricature, but Hopkin’s poise and emotional authenticity consistently rings true.

    The Father certainly works for what it is, although I am admittedly less high on it than some of my peers. Similar to Still Alice, I do think the movie’s earnest intentions are somewhat limited. The screenplay gives the supporting players little agency outside of the obvious, while the use of clever techniques feels a bit too infrequent to fully re-invent the work’s stagey origins.

    That being said, The Father strikes genuine sentiments where it counts, and it should serve as another welcomed reminder of Anthony Hopkins’s storied talents.

    The Father released on VOD on March 26th

    YES DAY – Directed by Miguel Arteta

    Synopsis: Always feeling like they have to say NO to their kids and co-workers, Allison and Carlos decide to give their three kids a YES DAY — where for 24 hours the kids make the rules. Little did they know that they’d be going on a whirlwind adventure around Los Angeles, that would bring the family closer to each other than ever before.

    Going into the cartoonishly earnest Yes Day, I was expecting to be lulled to sleep by a queasy mixture of family film contrivances and over-saturated tendencies (let’s face it, most offerings in the genre stick close to a familiar formula). Surprisingly enough, my begrudging pessimism transformed into genuine enjoyment during director Miguel Arteta’s film. Arteta’s brisk effort embraces the genre’s colorful allures while avoiding any mawkish sentimentality.

    It helps that the talented cast radiate with charm. Jennifer Garner is tailor-made to portray the firm, yet fun-loving matriarch of the family, while Edgar Ramirez has a blast stepping out of his usually solemn comfort zone (Ramirez needs to do more comedies like this, he has such a bright presence onscreen). Their dynamite chemistry helps carry along the narrative even as it trudges through familiar ground. Arteta also deserves credit for his deft handling of the film’s sentimental frames, allowing messages about embracing fun and parental responsibilities to register without feeling overbaked.

    Yes Day doesn’t do anything particularly revelatory. The plotting steps in a myriad of familiar cliches and the film explore its feel-good messages with seldom detail. For what the movie achieves though, Yes Day charms within its own spirited energy.

    Yes Day released on Netflix on March 12th

    COMING 2 AMERICA – Directed by Craig Brewer

    Synopsis: Prince Akeem Joffer is set to become King of Zamunda when he discovers he has a son he never knew about in America – a street-savvy Queens native named Lavelle. Honoring his royal father’s dying wish to groom this son as the crown prince, Akeem and Semmi set off to America once again.

    Eddie Murphy made a revelatory comeback in 2019 with Dolemite is My Name, a razor-sharp comedy that affectionately conveyed Murphy’s lightning rod talents. Now re-teaming with Dolemite helmer Craig Brewer for Coming 2 America, I was excited to see how the duo revived one of Murphy’s iconic comedic roles. Instead of continuing his winning streak, Murphy sadly transports audiences back to his mid-2000s decline, an era where dreadful efforts like Norbit and The Adventure of Pluto Nash completely wasted the star’s distinct talents.

    Coming 2 America may be better than both of those films, but its positives don’t outstretch either title by much. Brewer’s haphazard film switches between nostalgia-baiting and a myriad of weak modern references (once Akeem said “on fleek”, I knew I was in trouble), with neither generating much in terms of genuine laughs. Everything here just feels tired. The observant jokes and grimey imagery from the original are swapped out for a bland studio flavor. There are no sparks of ingenuity or creativity to be found, with the star-studded cast showing up to collect their checks and get out of the way.

    Oddly enough, Coming 2 America uses several direct references from the 1988 original. Those seldom glimmers are honestly the best part of this passionate studio comedy. As a twenty-year-old sequel, Coming 2 America does little to justify its existence.

    Coming 2 America released on Amazon Prime on March 5th.

    You can also read my reviews for other marquee March titles, including Justice League: The Snyder Cut and Chaos Walking.

  • Drive All Night: Review

    Drive All Night: Review

    This film follows a cab driver named Dave (Yutaka Takeuchi). Dave is a quiet man who spends his nights taking fares and hanging out at a diner where he talks with Morgan (Sarah Dumont), the waitress who works the night shift. Dave and Morgan both seem to like each other but neither one is willing to truly pursue the other. Dave’s seemingly simple and peaceful life is disrupted when he picks up the mysterious Cara (Lexy Hammonds), a young woman who instructs Dave to simply “just drive” as she claims she does not know where she wants to go.

    The remainder of the film focuses on Dave and Cara as they get to know one another through various conversations as they drive around the city and make several stops during the night. It soon also becomes clear that Cara is not entirely directionless, but has an agenda that is not entirely clear. Complicating things is that a mysterious Boss (Von Scott Bair) has commissioned the stoic and intimidating Lenny (Johnny Gilligan) to find and stop Cara from accomplishing some unknown task. As if all this was not strange enough, there are indications that the world itself these characters inhabit is not what it appears to be.

    Writer and director Peter Hsieh weaves a tale that is wholly unique despite there being some memorable entries in the “drive all night” genre. Hsieh’s film stands out due to its carefully constructed ambiguity. While the film is beautifully designed on a visual and auditory level, and there are clear themes present such as the nature of fate as opposed to choice, sleep versus consciousness, and reality versus fantasy, Hsieh chooses for neither his script nor characters to give the audience any obvious or easy answers. This lack of a definitive interpretation of the story will likely deter and frustrate certain viewers, while other viewers may find the subjectivity and possibility of rewatches offering new meanings a huge positive. Due to all of these elements, this film has the potential of becoming a cult classic.

    As stated above, one of the most striking things about the film is how strong it is on every technical level. The cinematography by William Hellmuth contains a mix of wide and long shots. However, regardless of the depth of field, the focus is always on the main characters. This contrast of having elegantly composed frames but emphasis on character creates a paradoxical feeling that the setting is both incredibly defined but also confined.

    The coloring by Dan Edwards is also superb. Specifically, the film makes repeated use of the colors red and blue for different types of scenes throughout the film and it provides great contrast for character wardrobes and sets. Though, as with most things in the film, its exact meaning is unclear. Does it represent good vs evil? reality versus dreams? Regardless of the interpretation of its significance, the use of color in this film will most likely be one of the things viewers coming out of the film remember most.

    One of the most innovative ways the film informs viewers that what they are seeing is not as it seems is conspicuous editing by Guillermo Areizaga and Peter Hsieh. Throughout the film there are “glitches” where the film jumps to a different frame of something mid-action such as a character putting something in their pocket. Even when the film is streamed, it has an appearance of a film being played by projection, complete with reel changes. Is this a pure aesthetic choice? A nod by the filmmakers that the characters themselves know they are in a work of fiction? This another aspect of the jigsaw puzzle nature of the film.

    The synth heavy score by Robert Daniel Thomas is a perfect accompaniment to the visuals. At the start of the film the synth is used to set a general tone of mystery and tension. As the film enters into more surrealist territory in terms of story and visuals, the score in turn morphs into a more ethereal and psychedelic backdrop.

    In addition to the film’s subjective and daring use of image and sound, the performances are also unique in their own way. In a film marked by ambiguity, the characters are all enigmas themselves. In spite of this defining trait, all the performers do a great job in making sure there is emotion and depth present so that audiences will care about the characters till the very end, even if total understanding of the film and characters eludes them. This is especially true when it comes to Yutaka Takeuchi and Lexy Hammonds as Dave and Cara respectively.

    Takeuchi plays Dave as a man who likes to “play things close to his chest” this becomes especially apparent when viewers see Dave’s stoicness as Cara makes repeated attempts to get him to open up throughout the film. Despite this outward facade, Takeuchi imbues Dave with a genuine sense of heart and vulnerability, something that a supporting character in the film says directly at one point. For her part, Lexy Hammonds is a scene-stealer as Cara, playing a character who at various points is smart, sweet, vulnerable, sassy, confident, and scared. Yet, despite all these emotions, by the end of the film one gets the feeling they have barely scratched the surface when it comes to understanding who this person is. In a lot of ways, the breath of emotional range that Hammonds brings to the character of Cara serves as a perfect metaphor for the movie itself; multi-faceted direct and yet inevitably inaccessible.

    If you are looking for a film with great performances, stunning visuals and sound design, and an experience that will leave you thinking and asking questions, watch this film if given the chance.     

  • The Suicide Squad Trailer Hits

    The Suicide Squad Trailer Hits

    The Suicide Squad Trailer Hits. By Andres Guzman.

    It’s safe to say that the DCEU is moderately complicated, to say the least. Not only timeline and continuity-wise but also in terms of quality. Some are hits, some are not, and a few are full misses. One of the biggest misses has to be Suicide Squad. A star-studded cast, led by Will Smith and Margot Robbie. What could have gone wrong? Watching the film, a lot. 

    To be fair, a lot of what went wrong has more to say about Warners Bros, and less to say about David Ayer. With Ayer at the helm of these characters, we were expecting something gritty, mean and violent. Instead, we got “We some kind of… Suicide Squad?” The film was taken over after principal photography, and was re-cut and asked for reshoots to take Ayer’s film feel more comedic. Instead of getting Ayer’s interpretation of these characters, they were looking for one that was more akin to James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1. So much so, that when James Gunn was a free agent, they snatched him up to make The Suicide Squad, which seems to be more of an accurate representation of the comics and their characters. 

    At DC Fandome, we were given a behind-the-scenes look at the filmmaking process, showing us the massive scale that we’re excited to see. We were also given a look at the massive cast list – with bigger stars than its predecessor. Fans of comic books and these characters have been waiting for some time now for this film, and it’s coming out on August 6th, but now, we finally have a proper trailer for the film.

    “From the horribly beautiful weird mind of James Gunn” feels more appropriate than “visionary” director. The cast again is massive, filled with stars, character actors, people that we’re going to root for and probably hate to root for as well. The comedy feels way more genuine and nowhere as nearly forced. From the trailer, it seems clear that Gunn is going to truly understand these characters and dynamics. Also, the metal collar that reminded me (and probably others) too much of Battle Royale is gone as well too, which is a great change. 

    Most importantly, it doesn’t feel like Gunn is making this film into a Guardians rip-off, it feels like a sweet spot right in the middle. Which is more accurate and apt for this group of characters, which are some kind of suicide squad. Plus there’s a freaking kaiju in this.

  • Godzilla vs. Kong: The BRWC Review

    Godzilla vs. Kong: The BRWC Review

    Godzilla vs. Kong: The BRWC Review. By Alif Majeed.

    As I went in to watch Godzilla vs. Kong, the excitement level was obvious for the “big screen” movie that has come out after a while. It was amazing hearing people all around arguing about who will win in the epic showdown they are about to witness. It is strangely something I rarely witnessed before in a theatre, even for the big superheroes mash-ups. Must be something about giant iconic monsters having a go at it that rubs into the atmosphere.

    Godzilla vs. Kong was going to be a culmination the Monsterverse was building up to over the last three movies, or at least phase one of it. No matter how many monsters it introduced in Godzilla: King of Monsters, this is the movie that everyone was eagerly awaiting with bated excitement. For most parts, it assuages the anticipation you had for it. Even though the story that binds the movie almost comes off like a convoluted window dressing to get the two alphas together with a completely new villain in the form of Apex, the company that takes over as the big bad from Monarch.

    The movie begins with Godzilla emerging to destroy Apex’s headquarters, causing a tremendous amount of damage. The CEO of Apex, Walter Simmons (Demián Bichir), hires Dr. Nathan Lind (Alexander Skarsgård) to find the hidden portal from where the monsters emerge to harness the power from its source (for scientific purposes, as they always say). They recruit Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) and her war Jia (an adorable Kaylee Hottle) into the mission as they are the present guardians of Kong whom they need to find the pathway to the portal. In their way stands the king of monsters, Godzilla, as they somehow get attracted to each other to eliminate the other and become the King of Alphas (the movie only offers a vague explanation for that).

    Having already proved his mettle in the action genre with movies like You’re Next and The Guest, Adam Wingard has brought that sense of timing and action here, getting to play with a much bigger canvas. When the movie goes into action mode, you can feel and see each punch and blow. He also does not hide the titular monsters in shadows and dim lights for the sake of mystery. Right from the outset, you get to see not just Kong and Godzilla but also the other monsters in all their full glory. And when an unexpected character makes its appearance, quite a few jaws dropped in the audience, including mine.

    The problem arises when the movie focuses on the story and the human characters. Skarsgård and Hall are pretty charismatic actors, but here they are mostly following Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pine’s character dynamics in Jurassic World if both of them had the former’s personality in that movie.

    The secondary track involving the characters of Brian Tyree Henry, Millie Bobby Brown, and Julian Dennison infiltrating Apex’s headquarters to find out what they are really up to is also not that convincing. (Though I enjoyed the gag involving Julian trying to access the Apex system, an in-joke gently mocking the kids hacking into Jurassic Park’s computers out of nowhere).

    Before the movie started, I had a rough idea of how many times Kong and Godzilla would fight each other, and I got the count bang on target. It might come as a slight disappointment, but all that washes away because when the action happens, the movie roars and how.

    As the movie ended, the argument continued about who would win the epic showdown between the two characters and why. That doesn’t matter in the end. If a movie where giant monsters and giant apes beat the socks out of each other is what you want to watch, Godzilla vs. Kong is bang on the buck.

  • Retaliation: Review

    Retaliation: Review

    This drama follows Malky (Orlando Bloom) a 37 year old working a job tearing down his old local church. From the start of the film, it is clear that Malky is a quiet man who is shown to have a propensity for introversion, yet there seems to be an undercurrent of anger under the surface. Malky spends his free time going to the local bar with his friends and looking after his Mum (Anne Reid) with whom Malky shares a tense relationship. Malky is also in an on again/off again relationship with Emma (Janet Montgomery), the bartender at his usual hangout. One night, Malky happens to run into his childhood Priest (James Smillie). Though no words are exchanged, it is evident that the encounter leaves Malky shaken. It soon becomes clear that Malky endured sexual abuse at the hands of this priest and he has unresolved issues due to this trauma. The film follows Malky as the effects of his past not only feed his anger and sadness and wear on him, but those around him as he searches for some sense of catharsis.

    While there have been many stories centered on child sexual abuse within the church, many of these stores deal with individuals or institutions uncovering the truth about the abuse for the first time and their subsequent quest to raise awareness and bring justice. While these stories are certainly compelling and worth telling, they can sometimes lead to a feeling that the victim’s story itself is forgotten or sidelined. In this film however, writer Geoff Thompson and directors Ludwig and Paul Shammasian weave a story that unflinchingly looks at the consequences that arise when a victim of this trauma has been forced to live with it for many years and has never properly addressed it. How these internalized emotions can lead to destructive behaviors not only for the survivors themselves, but those closest to them and cause them in some ways to feel more punished than the abuser. This is Malky’s story and journey through and through and the film never forgets that. If there is one weakness in the film’s story structure it is that it places so much emphasis on Malky’s journey that the film is not able to spend adequate time on a few plot threads it sets up with side characters by the end.

     Another striking way this story is told is that the Shammasian brothers allow so much of the emotional impact of scenes to be conveyed visually through Felix Wiedemann’s cinematography. Wiedemann frequently keeps his camera focused on actors in the foreground with the background world kept out of focus. This helps evoke the notion that these characters, especially Malky, are often stuck inside their heads, emotions, and memories, with the outside world being kept at a distance. Early on in the film, the audience has a clear understanding of Malky’s rage, sadness, fear and isolation purely from the power of these tight frames focused on Bloom’s facial expressions and body language. There is one scene early on in the film where Malky is talking down a replication of Christ on the cross at the old church, we see him struggling under the weight of it as he carries it down a ladder and outside. The visuals and Bloom’s acting perfectly capture the burden that Malky’s trauma has done and continues to do to him, while also using a symbol of both hope yet also the institution that failed him.

    The performances are what serves as the true anchor of the narrative, particularly Orlando Bloom’s powerhouse performance as Malky. Bloom shows how versatile he truly is throughout, conveying the sense of guilt, fear, anger, sadness, and shame that Malky and tragically many survivors of abuse feel. This is accomplished both in subtle uses of facial and body language as mentioned above, as well as some genuinely moving monologues performed throughout the film. Each choice in any given scene and moment feels true to the story and character and Bloom gives full earnesty and respect to every beat.

    The supporting cast are also very strong here. Janet Montgomery gives a truly layered performance as Emma, a woman who clearly loves Malky and senses there is deep pain in him, but is growing tired and angry with him constantly pushing her away without her knowing why as he has not  revealed his past to her. Anne Reid gives a very nuanced performance as Malky’s mother, both seemingly wishing to understand her son better, but at the same time seemingly unwilling to truly look deeply at why he is filled with such anger and pain. Charlie Creed-Miles gives a standout performance as Paul, a fellow worker tearing down the old church who seeks to help Malky come to terms with his past.

    Retaliation is an honest, sometimes brutal study of how trauma, guilt, and shame can wear down a person, and in turn affect the people they care about. Featuring engrossing cinematography, powerful performances, and centered on an important subject, viewers should watch this film if given the chance.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zG1_g9AM07w