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POKÉMON Detective Pikachu - Reviewed

Pikachu is the star of this movie. Everything before his appearance gives you a reason to worry. You’re introduced to a bland, uncharismatic lead and an eccentric reporter who is admittedly more interesting but is also one half of a romantic plot that is just as bland. “Where are the CHARACTERS?”, you ask. Enter Pikachu. An adorable, caffeine-charged ball of infectious energy that resembles the spirit of a giddy five-year-old trapped inside the spirit of a giddy forty-year-old. He’s fun, he’s funny, he transforms the movie. The movie does awkwardly slap in the face of all of that eventually, but you’ll have enjoyed the ride while it lasts.

Just how well did Pokemon’s live-action jump onto the big-screen go? Financially, it’s too early to tell. Critically, the movie could have and maybe should have done worse. In the end, the humans in the story don’t come close to being as fun to watch as their CGI counterparts. One might even wonder if Ryme city needed humans, to begin with. Would the writers have done better handing the movie over to Pikachu, free to run around the city like this?

The franchise and its setting have the potential to tell far better stories than this one but following up with a sequel would be a mistake. Neither the characters nor this story deserves to be elaborated on any further and it would be hard to imagine anyone clamoring to find out what’s next for Goodman Jr.

Verdict: ★★★ - Decent

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Annihilation - Reviewed

Lena is a biologist and former soldier whose husband, Sgt. Kane has been missing and presumed dead for a year after going on a secret mission. When Sgt. Kane returns and immediately falls ill, having little recollection of where he’s been for the past twelve months, Lena joins an expedition into The Shimmer, the area her husband went missing in. Using her skills as a soldier-scientist, Lena is determined to find a way to save her husband, leading the all-women crew of five into a hostile and unpredictable environment to try to find answers.

Annihilation is a film not too eager to answer all questions the audience may have. It's good that we get movies that don't spell things out and instead force audiences to search for answers on their own time-- but in a movie like Annihilation that not only doesn't seem concerned with answering questions but doesn't seem to care what the answers are all together, there is little joy or closure in coming to any conclusion on your own.

The overall plot of Annihilation is not too difficult to understand. Spoilers ahead. The Shimmer is an alien construct that acts as a melting pot that reflects and refracts anything in it, from DNA to radio waves. As a result of this, we get bears that can mimic the cries of humans, alligators with shark teeth, and wildly different flowers growing from the same branch and even taking on the shape of a human body. What we don't get is just why any of this is happening or what it implies. The film is not as interested in making its science fiction premise feel important as it is in using it to tie down its themes.

And anyone not interested to delve into the theme of self-destruction will have a hard time enjoying this movie, as it so heavily leans on it. Going out of its way to strengthen its theme, it sometimes sacrifices a more cohesive plot in the process. Just as we wonder why Lena jeopardizes a seemingly loving relationship, we also wonder why a team meant to gather research in an area from which nothing comes back is purposefully made up of individuals who likely won't want to come back.

The pacing and slow-burn tension make it feel almost uncannily like 2016's Arrival. It's a similarity that will no doubt be spotted by most viewers and it is one that ultimately hurts this movie. Comparing two movies in a review is often a pointless endeavor-- after all, we don't want to keep getting the same movie over and over again, but we do want movies that make us feel like others did. In this department, Annihilation is sorely lacking.

The emotional core of the movie is in the relationship between Lena (Natalie Portman) and her husband Sgt. Kane, played by Oscar Isaac. In this, we're never any more than mere observers. We're unable to become invested in any of this and one particular subplot between Lena and a co-worker only manages to mystify the nature of the relationship in the process of adding just a little more thematic resonance.

Also detrimental to the viewing experience is the way the story is structured. The events happening inside The Shimmer are undoubtedly where the story is at and cutting away from that to anything else, even if it is to fill us in on some minor information that helps us piece things together, is a strange and unwelcomed change of pace that can make it feel like the movie is dragging. A neat trick used during these cutaways, however, is the similarity in some of the locations in and out of the shimmer-- briefly making us unsure or unaware that we've cut to the past.

Visually, this is an interesting movie. It puts together a look that is out-of-this-world and, though it's not always convincing (the environment often looks "overdone" with CGI), it always looks like it has a style of its own-- having a dream-like effect on the world. Add to this the amazing sound design (and a score that sadly doesn't really have a strong presence outside of the closing minutes) and you have yourself a full audio-visual treat that showcases what director Alex Garland meant when saying they made it for cinemas.

Judging a movie like Annihilation one way or the other after just one viewing is probably a mistake. This is a movie you'll likely want to keep in mind and think about before ultimately giving it a second shot to see what clicks. But ignoring that thought for a second; Annihilation is incredibly smart but also incredibly dense. It doesn't help that the filmmakers were dead set on not spoon-feeding the audience any information, even if a few extra breadcrumbs is what we really wanted. With no real emotional pull, it's hard to enjoy Annihilation as a whole.

Verdict: ★★★ - Decent

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Mute - Reviewed: A Cult Classic in the Making

This movie is exactly what cult classics are made of. It has an amazing score and set design, even if when it comes to the computer-generated VFX it can tend to look unpolished or even unfinished. The world-building in this movie is also something to appreciate-- in the middle of all the vague talk of war, hi-tech gadgets and services, and an expertly placed reference to "Moon", it feels like there's a real universe pulsating around these characters.

Alexander Skarsgard as the blank canvass mute is one of the best examples of the main character as a vessel for the audience. He was born to play this type of role and his performance is not one many might find impressive, most will likely see it as bland, but there is merit in the way Skarsgard can sell as much emotion as he can on his look and mannerisms alone-- even if his character is mainly one dimensional.

Contrast that with the rest of the cast who all seem to be staking their claims as character actors and you begin to feel glad Skarsgard's character is as low-key as he is.  Not to say any other performance is particularly bad, but among the wide range of characters, it's difficult to identify any logical motivation. Justin Theroux's Duck is the worst offender, pulling an almost impressive amount of WTF moves at the ending of the film that make it impossible to understand what side he's on or what he's working towards. The last ten minutes of the movie are pointless and confusing.

On the other hand of a toxic duo of characters, we have Paul Rudd's Cactus Bill, who was given entirely too much focus for how unlikeable a character he kept being. The worst part is that there is a clear intention to give him the redeeming quality of being a parent, but all of that is soo hopelessly lost beyond the fact that that he's got the right idea about sugary snacks.

Hands down, one of the weirdest and most jarring scenes in the movie is when Bill confronts Duck about his perversion. Not only is it wildly out of character for a psychopath like Bill (who we've established is suppose to possess the singular redeeming quality of being a parent) to let someone like Duck out of that conversation unharmed, but to then invite him out for beers and keep him around is so puzzling, it creates a problem when trying to understand his character’s motivation. This might have made more sense if Bill and Duck were actual brothers and not just army buddies-- in that case not only would we understand Bill's surprisingly cool reaction on the matter but it would also serve to emphasize Bill's dedication to his family as a weakness to his character.

The pleasure of watching Mute doesn’t stem from its storytelling. The world it’s set in is much more interesting than the story itself and watching it unravel isn’t as satisfying as the film’s slower first half. The slow start might have the adverse effect on most viewers but when held up against the rest of the film, we’d much rather watch two hours of Leo and Naadirah walk around town. The direction is incredibly sound, it’s the execution of its narrative where Mute suffers the most. Having two vastly different characters like Leo and Bill vying for screen time, to the point where we are unsure which one the movie wants as its main character, feels weird. The mystery also carries little weight and doesn’t feel as vital as it should-- there are little surprises in the way the story is told.

Mute has its fair share of flaws. A meandering structure and a bevy of character with no clear, and often confusing, motivations pay the film no favors. It is (perhaps rightfully) being torn apart by critics and yet it doesn't feel like Mute is deserving of being a film that just gets forgotten about. There is too much ambition and passion in this to deny that it will find its niche among a few sci-fi fans. Its ambition might not have paid off as well as expected or even as well as some of the sci-fi hits of last year but Mute is the kind of sci-fi we want. It's not perfect but cult classics seldom are.

Verdict: ★★★½ - Subjectively Good

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The Florida Project - Reviewed

Rambunctious but sweet 6-year-old, Moone (Brooklyn Prince) lives with her mother, Halley (Bria Vinaite) in a cheap Florida motel just outside Disneyland, where most tenants, if not all, live on a week to week residence to stay off the streets. Moone is the ring-leader of a group of local kids including Jancey (Valeria Cotto) and Scooty (Christopher Rivera) who go on a string of adventures, from trekking into town for “free ice cream” to burning down abandoned condos; they do what they can to stay entertained throughout the summer while their parents struggle making ends and being responsible.

Director Sean Baker does well not to shy away from improvisation in working with his younger cast, though it might surprise you to know that most of their dialogue stuck to the script; it’s no easy feat to feed child actors scripted lines and have them delivered with such true-to-life realism as Brooklyn Prince and company do.  

Moonee and her gang’s never-ending enthusiasm is infectious. Kids will be kids, and in The Florida Project, they live up to that mantra any way they can. Whether it’s spitting on a tenant’s windshields or cleaning it up, the gang never fails to turn the situation to their enjoyment. That’s the purity and innocence of childhood that the film captures so beautifully, making it all the more heartbreaking to see that spirit laid low by the end.

That brings us to the biggest mistake the film makes, robbing us of a properly cathartic ending. It feels downright insulting to have Moone’s final moment (possibly the most moving of 2017) undercut by a cheap and purposefully unrealistic turn of events. The film feels too afraid to be too much of a “downer” and as a result, we are robbed of any real closure.

The Florida Project is a beautifully shot film that boasts refreshingly down-to-earth performances. With no shortage of moments that warm the heart or ones that make you angry for the characters’ lack of good choices, the filmmakers have caught something precious on film. This is a movie that doesn’t force you to think, but sure as hell makes you feel. It’s just a shame that the movie itself feels the need to save us from its own ending.

Verdict: ★★★★½ - Amazing

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Call Me By Your Name - Reviewed

Call Me By Your Name centers around Elio (Timothée Chalamet ) and Oliver's (Armie Hammer) sexual awakening in the summer of '83 Italy. Upon Oliver's arrival as his father's (Michael Stuhlbarg) assistant, Elio doesn't take as kindly to him as his parents do. He perceives him to be arrogant and brash, but over the course of the summer, both Elio and Oliver find themselves increasingly more comfortable with each other in an environment seemingly ripe for the relationship they are about to embark on.

Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer give the strongest performances of their careers, no doubt helped by their seemingly effortless chemistry. Not only does Chalamet show he can smoke a cigarette like the best of them, both he and Hammer have on display what can quite possibly be the best dance moves the Italian Countryside has ever seen.

In Elio, however, the film gives us a difficult character to empathize with. Elio has had the upbringing most could only dream of giving their children. Raised by learned and open-minded parents who bring him on summer vacations to Italy every year, Elio lives in a bubble. The quiet Italian town feels like a construct of Elio's sweetest dreams, a place where he's free to roam, romance, and lounge. The world is but a peach tree, free for Elio to pick as he pleases. Even arriving at the film's bitter conclusion, we can't help but feel Elio will be just fine. Afterall, he has parents who support him, which cannot be said for Oliver's whose he says would "cart me off to a correctional facility".

The film boasts picturesque scenery of the countryside thanks to its cinematography. An achievement that simultaneously helps and hurt the film. Through Guadagnino's eyes, this world looks almost too forgiving. Down to the way the characters dress, rather than feel like we've gone to a time where Elio and Oliver's tryst came at a risk, we can hardly believe we've taken a step away from our own much more left-leaning present day. Elio and Oliver's romance comes without conflict, no one and nothing is standing in their way; not Elio's uncharacteristically-progressive-for-the-time parents and not even Elio's hopelessly smitten but admirably sympathetic girlfriend, Marzia (Esther Garrel). In short, it's just too easy.

All this is surely by design, Guadagnino didn't set out to make an us-against-the-world romance, he made a pure love story. And that is exactly what we get through Elio and Oliver's Summer of Love. It may not be what we want, or even what makes the best movie (as it so clearly doesn't) but it is what was intended, take it or leave it.

Verdict: ★★★½ - Subjectively Good

Personal Note:

Call Me By Your Name is yet another in a series of LGBT movies I have failed to connect with. I like to think of myself as a very open-minded person and I think it is a beautiful sentiment that anyone of us can fall in love with absolutely anyone regardless of sex or perceived orientation given the right time and place, it is a sentiment I wholeheartedly agree with.

That being said, I can't for the life of me, bring myself to feel anything anytime these relationships are portrayed on screen. Surely there are people out there who are straight and are completely taken away by these movies, so why it fails to do the same for me I don’t know. It is possible that I just haven’t found the right movie. I trust that if I were a gay man, Call Me By Your Name would not have any more powerful an effect on me due to my criticisms above, but I could be wrong. That being said there is no taking away from the film’s accomplishments, it is a superbly well-made film and has clearly had a deeper effect on many people. Still, I cannot fool myself into thinking it did the same for me, it didn’t. 

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Phantom Thread - Reviewed: Match Made in Heaven or Bad Romance?

Paul Thomas Anderson's Phantom Thread gives us the impossibly dimensionalized character of Reynolds Woodcock (Day-Lewis) who is, from the opening scenes, shown to be as brilliant as he is "fuzzy", as put by Alma (Vicky Krieps), his latest muse, come into his life just after the unceremonious discarding of his last.

Up until now, the House of Woodcock has run on a strict schedule, a schedule revolving around and tailored to Reynolds' needs. Each breakfast, each walk, everything carefully orchestrated to get the best out of his day. It seems like every single item on the docket is cautiously hinged to the next, like the inner workings of a clock; any small misstep, from unpleasant surprises to "entirely too much noise" at the breakfast table can throw off Reynolds' day, too much to be able to recover. In the House of Woodcock, you conform to this routine or you get out, but Alma is of greater resolve and not being afraid to challenge Reynolds at his "games", decides to make herself a permanent fixture of the house.

With an ending that is certain to get varied reactions from different viewers, from unsettling to heartwarming, it's hard to say whether Alma and Reynolds’ relationship is more ‘match made in heaven” or “bad-romance”. One thing the movie does unambiguously show, the dark side of the sheltered artistic genius. Reynolds' "fuzziness" is not all too different from the rest of us; we each have that one thing that we swear could throw off our day if not done right, whether it be a morning run or a cup of coffee, the difference is Reynolds' life revolves around them and the larger-than-life status afforded to him by his talent prevent him from growing out of it. These minor annoyances and the belief that anything so small can ruin someone's day seem not any more real than the "endless superstitions" about wedding dresses Reynolds' mother believed in. But when you're given the sheltered life Reynolds’ mother is assumed to have perpetuated, you tend to not turn out so great, it seems. 

Of the few loose threads in the story (no pun intended), the biggest has to be Alma and her overall motivation. Unlike Reynolds, we get to know next to nothing about her other than her being from the country. Precisely why she endures so much from Reynolds’ and a relationship that cannot, under practical circumstances, work is unclear.

The Jonny Greenwood soundtrack, as beautiful and effective as it is (and it mostly is) can be overbearing in some scenes. Scenes shown in trailers without accompanied music seem better off than they do in the final cut of the movie, where virtually every scene comes with musical attachment. While Jonny Greenwood's score is hardly anything to complain about (arguably his best yet) certain scenes feel like they could do with the space of a few silent beats.

Daniel Day-Lewis is fantastic as the meticulous and, at times, petulant prestige dressmaker, but we all knew he was capable and ready to turn in that performance. The real standout here is Vicky Krieps, who turns in the best performance of her career, no doubt; and though she may have been overlooked this awards season, it is clear that her performance is anything but underrated. One might even say that performing opposite to the "World's Greatest Actor" in what is to be his last performance and still managing to steal some of the spotlight is cause for greater acclaim than any gold statuette can give.

It is hard to come out of a film like Phantom Thread and have it all figured out; your thoughts, feelings, and anything you've taken away from the film. It’s like being hit with something you don’t fully understand yet. Not until you spend hours with it in your head-- the haunting soundtrack and cutting words spoken by the actors ringing around in your head. Now perhaps you’ve tricked yourself into thinking you’ve enjoyed it more than you actually did, maybe it was Jonny Greenwood’s ethereal tracks you’ve been listening to non-stop, you don’t know but you want to watch it again to find out. Whatever the case, you know you have watched something special. 

Verdict: ★★★★½ - Amazing

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Wind River - Reviewed

Jeremy Renner kills it in this with his on-screen presence and might as well be the reason for anyone to watch this movie. The rest of the cast pales in comparison, particularly Elizabeth Olsen who is given the role of a frustratingly incompetent FBI agent. Rarely does her character feel believable for her occupation and instead, mainly serves as a pedestal on which to put Renner's (too perfectly equipped for the situation) Man's Man. I hate to make comparisons but Olsen's character feels more like a botched version of Emily Blunt's in Sicario, whether it be because Olsen herself wasn't up to the task or Sheridan just wasn't experienced enough as a first-time director to get what he needed out of her, who knows.

Sheridan said he wanted to make a film that would accurately depict life on an Indian Reservation and the people in it. Wind River, however, is more your run-of-the-mill mystery thriller and no amount of Native-American Women Jeremy Renner marries can change that. While his performance is really what elevates the movie, through Renner's character we can never really get the perspective we need. Furthermore, it doesn’t work super well as a mystery either. Not only does the film not care about the victim, it barely cares about the people responsible. The revelation, although seen through a neat editing trick, feels anti-climatic and sudden. The movie never cared about its mystery, only about how it related to Renner’s character. 

Sheridan's other produced scripts have had nuance when it comes to morality, a theme his movies have never painted in broad strokes. But there is no 'grey area' here, Wind River gives us the ugliest, most heinous characters you could imagine as villains. On the other hand, it makes the bloody, revenge-fueled resolution all the more satisfying, even if we cannot ourselves of the feeling that we've been manipulated.

Wind River is an underwhelming, but not entirely disappointing directorial debut from the proven screenwriter, Taylor Sheridan. It doesn’t quite accomplish what it wants to (that much is clear from the closing texts that make you wonder if they belonged to another movie), but there’s the feeling that with Sheridan behind the camera, there’s nowhere to go but up. 

Verdict:  ★★★- Decent