Archives For Film

Isn’t There a Better Day to Die Hard?

February 18, 2013 — 3 Comments

You need to know that I really wanted to love A Good Day to Die Hard.

Die Hard Poster

John McClane is my hero. I saw the original Die Hard way to young (though it was on USA). And I loved all the sequels. Yes, even number 2. I saw a midnight showing of 2007′s Live Free or Die Hard and love it.

So when I heard Die Hard 5 was in the works, I was ready. Ready to be blown away. Ready to follow an unwilling John McClane on another seat-of-his-pants adventure to save the world and stop some bad guys from stealing some money (it’s always about the money) while doing his best to be a family man.

So why did A Good Day to Die Hard fall so flat?

At first glance, Good Day has all the quintessential Die Hard elements. McClane is a family man – this time he’s trying to reconnect with his estranged son. Featuring McClane’s kids in the two most recent installments didn’t bother me like it does a lot of people. We met the kids in the first film, and I like to see how their relationship with John has grown up. It’s a nice way to preserve the heart his wife Holly provided the first two films without rehashing the on-again, off-again relationship they had.

As for action, Good Day had tons, and it was mostly really good. The direction was mostly good, and surprisingly easily to follow in the era of frenetic shaky-cams. The sets were big, the one-liners (uttered of course by McClane and Son) were plentiful and of course there was a con.

And yet… A Good Day to Die Hard was just missing something. Continue Reading…

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Top 10 Films of 2012

January 1, 2013 — 5 Comments
This entry is part 2 of 2 in the series Best of 2012

The Dark Knight Rises

It’s no surprise, so I’ll list it first. I wrote eight separate pieces discussing themes in The Dark Knight Rises, and for good reason. This film is in my top 10 not just because I’m obsessed with Batman, but because it’s easily the most ambitious film of the year. It’s a huge, sprawling epic and a worth conclusion to the trilogy that redefined what’s possible in a Superhero flick.

Argo

It shouldn’t be possible for a movie that we already know the ending of to be so suspenseful. Yet here is Argo, Ben Affleck’s third directorial outing (his first, Gone Baby, Gone, is one of my favorite films of all time). Well-paced, well-told and it doesn’t needlessly vilify the Iranians or glorify America. A must see.

The Grey

One of the most courageous films of the year. The Grey turns an abstract philosophical concept – Nietzsche’s Void – into a taut horror-thriller, complete with monstrous wolves. It takes a lot of confidence in the story you’re telling to end it the way Joe Carnahan chooses to. Awesome. Continue Reading…

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"Django Unchained" asks if America has Grown Up

December 31, 2012 — 6 Comments
Terrifying and Awesome.

Django Stephen and Broomhilde

Who’s that there stumbling around in the dark?

The question, from a slaver’s lips, opens Quinten Tarantion’s newest and most audacious film to date, Django Unchained. The film is shocking and divisive, mostly because of how starkly it portrays the evils of slavery, complete with liberal use of the “n-word” and Samuel L. Jackson’s controversial turn as head house-slave Stephen.

By showcasing the evils of slavery, Tarantino is forcing America to face our ugly past, to ask if we know who we really are.

Back in 2007, when discussing his previous film Inglorious Basterds, Tarantino said,

Django Poster 2I want to do movies that deal with America’s horrible past with slavery and stuff but do them like spaghetti westerns, not like big issue movies. I want to do them like they’re genre films, but they deal with everything that America has never dealt with because it’s ashamed of it, and other countries don’t really deal with because they don’t feel they have the right to.

As films go, Django is a well-constructed, straightforward western, with no real surprises. Django’s Hero’s Journey is clear and enjoyable. The dialogue is sharp, hilarious and fast-paced. It’s Django‘s simplicity that allows Tarantino’s larger point to shine through so clearly.

From the beginning, Django Unchained is clearly not historical. Tarantino is giving us a revisionist history lesson. Continue Reading…

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Top Posts of 2012

December 24, 2012 — Leave a comment
This entry is part 1 of 2 in the series Best of 2012

2012 is coming to a close, and as usual looking back over my to 10 posts is mostly an exercise in film reviews. But the few surprises are interesting indeed. Without further ado, here are my 10 most popular posts from the past year:

10. Good News: The Avengers Just Ruined Super Hero Movies

The most successful superhero film of all time was a huge treat. Fun, funny and intense. I argued that it’s bad news for single-hero films. And it looks like I may have been right, since Warner Brothers is launching their franchise with Justice League…

9. Snow White and the Huntsman: How Not to Tell a Good Fairy Tale

Though Kristen Stewart was predictably bad, that wasn’t the film’s biggest problem. That said, it’s still worth seeing for Charlize Theron’s performance.

8. Jesus Got a Sex Change (Sort Of) Continue Reading…

In Blog, Book Reviews, Film & TV, Influence , , , , ,
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What is Cloud Atlas About?

November 5, 2012 — 4 Comments

To be is to be perceived. The only way to know thyself is in the eyes of the Other.
– Sonmi-451

Cloud Atlas PosterCloud Atlas is the ambitious new film from the Wachowski Siblings (The Matrix Trilogy) and Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run). Based on the novel by David Mitchell, it features six stories set from an 1849 slaving ship to far-future, post-apocalyptic Hawaii. The star-studded cast all played roles in each of the storylines, sometimes in such good makeup they were unrecognizable.

The film’s so huge, it’s hard to condense into a review (It was hard to condense into a film!). Suffice to say it’s worth seeing, and you’ll want to see it more than once. After the jump, we’ll dive into the film’s key themes.

Continue Reading…

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The Monster Squad Suggests

October 31, 2012 — 1 Comment
This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series The Monster Squad

Part III of my conversation with Clay Morgan and Matt Mikalatos. We weigh in on some classic horror match-ups and offer movie and book recommendations that will make you:

  1. Marinate in laughter
  2. Marinate in a nervous sweat
  3. Marinate in your own shame

Matt Mikalatos on the Internet:

Check out Matt’s blog here.

Follow Matt on Twitter.

Buy Matt’s books: My Imaginary Jesus, Night of the Living Dead Christian, Sword of Six Worlds (Brand new!)

Clay Morgan on the Internet:

Clay’s blog is here.

Follow Clay on Twitter.

And read Undead!

What are your three book or movie recommendations?

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Argo: Only a Better Story Can Save Us.

October 15, 2012 — Leave a comment
Go. See. This. Movie.

Go. See. This. Movie.

Ben Affleck’s third film Argo should cement his status as a director to watch. Gone Baby Gone is still one of my favorite films of all time, and The Town was great. Now he’s given us Argo, a truly incredible piece of storytelling that’s a love letter to cinema, a reflection on how much of the current Middle East Crisis is a mess we made for ourselves and a gripping story. That’s all the more impressive given that we already know the ending.

Argo is “based on a true story” (click here for the truer account of the “Canadian Caper”), but Affleck’s changes are cosmetic, not essential. They enhance the drama, suspense and tension without altering the basic storyline.

Given the state of our current relationship with Iran, I was worried about how Iranians would be portrayed. But Affleck captured the terror of Ayatollah Khomeini’s regime while also pointing out that American foreign policy had created the culture that welcomed his rise to power. Most of the Iranians we see are either students who took over the embassy or regime soldiers, but we do get to know Sahar, a Muslim, Iranian woman without whom the plan would’ve fallen apart.

Most important, at no point does the film blame Islam for the violence of the Ayatollah’s regime. Affleck frames the conflict in terms of political oppression and revolution.

Go see this film. The acting is amazing. The script weaves comedy and tension together effortlessly. It’s gorgeous to watch. The story is awesome and inspiring.

Bottom Line: this is one of those movies that makes you want to be a better person.

But I can’t really talk about why without moving into spoilers, which are after the jump.

Continue Reading…

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Act III – The Resolution – The Dark Knight Rises

August 15, 2012 — Leave a comment
This entry is part 7 of 8 in the series The Dark Knight Rises

Maybe it’s time we all quit trying to outsmart the truth and let it have it’s day. — Alfred

Each villain is an incarnation of fear. Batman must become more than a symbol of fear to overcome them.

Each villain is an incarnation of fear. Batman must become more than a symbol of fear to overcome them.

In Act I (Batman Begins), we meet a Gotham overcome by corruption. The city rots, and crime runs rampant. The few good Gothamites are to afraid of organized crime to make a stand. This fear takes Bruce Wayne’s parents, so Bruce resolves to take back his city.

Bruce becomes a symbol of fear. His goal is to out-terrorize fear.

Bruce’s plan seems to be working – he saves the city from Ras al Guhl and the League of Shadows, and inspires men like Jim Gordon to stand tall against crime.

But as Act II (The Dark Knight) begins, we learn that the fight is just beginning. A new villain – the Joker – arises against Bruce. The Joker wants to prove that Gotham is irredeemable, that people are basically selfish and fearful.

The Joker torments Harvey Dent, Gotham’s new DA who represents everything Bruce had hoped to inspire using the Batman persona. Harvey succumbs to the Joker’s plans, going on a murderous rampage of vengeance before falling to his death. To protect his reputation and the city’s improvement, Gordon and the Batman lie, blaming Batman for Harvey’s crimes.

Act II ends with Batman failing to inspire Gotham to hope instead of fear. His tenuous victory rests on a lie. The scene is set for the final act, The Dark Knight Rises.

Act III resolves the conflict. The main character – through their Hero’s Journey – acquires the skills necessary to achieve victory and a renewed sense of person and purpose. Continue Reading…

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Act II – The Confrontation – The Dark Knight

August 13, 2012 — 1 Comment
This entry is part 6 of 8 in the series The Dark Knight Rises

This town deserves a better class of criminal. — The Joker

Trilogy - Logo

The Dark Knight is Nolan’s second act in a masterful classic three-act story structure.

Building on what Act I established, Act II brings the conflict into the open. The main character tries to solve the problem, only to find his situation worsening. He learns that he lacks something that keeps him from his goal. Continue Reading…

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Act I – The Setup: Batman Begins

August 8, 2012 — Leave a comment
This entry is part 5 of 8 in the series The Dark Knight Rises

If you make yourself more than just a man, if you devote yourself to an ideal, and if they can’t stop you, then you become something else entirely… A legend, Mr. Wayne. — Ras al Guhl

Whoever did this deserves a medal.

Whoever did this deserves a medal.

By now it’s undeniable that Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy joins the elite ranks of masterpiece cinematic trilogies. Why? What sets these films – and other great trilogies like Star Wars, Indiana Jones and The Godfather – apart from the almost-greats like Rami’s Spiderman, the X-Men films or the Matrix movies?

Nolan’s Batman films tell one big story, building around a core theme and using fictive Gotham to tell mythic stories about contemporary society.

Through Batman, Nolan meditates on the nature of fear, good and evil and hope and despair. So far from being a film tacked on to make another buck, The Dark Knight Rises gives us a story that needs to be told. Without it, the story just isn’t finished.

While each film in Nolan’s trilogy follows a classic three-act structure, the whole trilogy also follows this pattern, which means the final film has the biggest payoff. Continue Reading…
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