The Backend
My Reviews
I laughed. I cried. I was fully satisfied. Pretty fu*king great movie! (With a tiny, minor issue I can’t mention right now.)
Full disclosure: I hold some shares of Disney stock: So do the sensible thing: Go see «Rogue One» and your money me you give!
Meanwhile, you might want to check out my interactive visualization of the Star Wars Universe.
My very good friend and co-watcher (let’s call him «Valser-Boy») and I agreed even before the iTunes trailer ended: «High Rise» would be the chosen film of the evening. I think we both hoped it would be something in the likes of «Fight Club»*: Stylish, somewhat eery, visual stunning, hyperrealistic, violent and… good, maybe even outstanding.
Which it pretty much was,… until it wasn’t and became an awful, shallow but convuluted, and most important, boring comment on class war, with one hour runtime still to suffer through.
It felt as if its makers tried too hard to begin with, even succeeded, but then lost interest and just let it slide once they realized how thin their material was. (I guess – I haven’t read the book beforehand and I sure won’t do it now.)
If you should choose to watch «High Rise», do yourself a favour and quit in the middle, before you know what the whole thing really might be about. Because once you do, you’ll probably won’t care anymore and you’ll be just counting the minutes until this torture ends.
I guess «Valser-Boy» and I should’ve gone with the first movie we watched the (very uninspired) trailer of: «The Neon Demon».
I’ll keep you informed. Don’t call me, we’ll call you…
*) So you haven’t seen «Fight Club»? Oh, it’s nothing special, just one of the best f*cking movies ever made.
I’m not even mad…
…not even mad that «Doctor Strange’s» script is a bit shallow and the characters are not as rich as I’d hoped them to be.
I’m not even disappointed that this time, Marvel can’t quite pull it off: At least not as masterfully as they’ve done before in «Thor» and «Guardians of the Galaxy», when they obliterated any doubt that without any question, a norse god or a talking, dancing tree weren’t just a good idea, but just belonged on that screen, in that movie, in that story, at that time.
So yes, compared to other movies in the MCU, «Doctor Strange» might be on the weaker side, but it sure looks pretty. And sometimes, (given a solid, but not great structure) that’s enough. Yeah, I know, form follows function, blablabla… but just look at it, it’s so shiny!
This is the moment where I have to admit that my brain’s probably still numbed by the film’s orgasmic kaleidoscopic visual bombardment:
While I may have gotten used to Marvel’s almost perfect, nearly unperceivable visual effects (e.g. «Civil War’s» airport battle), in «Doctor Strange» you really SEE the visuals at work, doing the heavy lifting – in a good way, even artful. There were hints of this kind of imagery in «Ant-Man» but never before where they used to create such an abstract, rich and layered world as in «Doctor Strange».
We were promised a psychedelic trip – the Doctor’s universe sure delivers. The magic realm just looks fantastic, and for once, even the 3D almost seems justified.
Although the movie is by far neither as funny nor as clever as «Civil War» and kinda feels like the introvert cousin of «Iron Man», it’s still a most entertaining, highly recommendable and enjoyable ride.
And not to forget: The Cumberbatch is strong in this one! He’s all the Doctor Strange I could wish for… and more: As I remember reading the comics back in the day, Strange was quite the earnest, even stiff dandy. But Cumberbatch does his magic and nails it: He makes the character his own while staying true to the source material. Grounded, but surreal. Tragic (a bit), but funny (very).
Seeing the glass half full, maybe I’m even grateful that this time, Marvel did themselves a favour by lowering their own high bar a tiny little bit, bringing the audience’s expectations back to a reasonable level for the coming last bits of Marvel’s phase three, especially the unfathomable «Infinity War».
And yes, there are TWO post-credit scenes.
How can a movie feel so classic (almost basic) as this one, and at the same time, get to be so ingenious, clever and funny?
I don’t know, but with «The Nice Guys» Shane Black surely gets the job done. After «Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang» and «Iron Man 3» he proofs that his witty but concise no-bullshit writing (and directing) still works and is more than welcome in a cinematic «climate» defined by prequels, sequels and paint-by-numbers productions.
Russel Crowe’s and Ryan Gosling’s superb portrayal of their hilarious bromance completes this blissful watching experience and makes «The Nice Guys» feel like an instant must-see classic.
Here’s a puzzle Professor Langdon might be able to solve: 🖕
Is it just me or are the Netflix-Marvel series getting slower and slower? I haven’t completely finished «Luke Cage» yet, but after experiencing the rather unmotivated and quite disappointing twist in one of the last episodes, I kind of wish the producers wouldn’t be as comfortable with their current modus operandi as they seemingly are (e.g. slow-paced drama instead of, well, a little bit of something else, too. A tiny little bit more trust in the viewer’s suspension of disbelief, maybe?)
Granted, as a white male living outside of the USA, I’m obviously not in the immediate focus group of «Luke Cage», and I must say, as far as I’m able to judge, they did a pretty solid job not to alienate folks like me completely. But while watching the episodes I always felt reminded of how little a clue I have of what it must be like to live in country still disrupted by racial tensions. (Not unlike watching «The Shield» or «The Wire», where I felt like I just crashed a party where I maybe, definitely didn’t belong.) Even listening to the wonderful soundtrack, I kept myself asking: Am I allowed to enjoy this music or do I not get to like it because I wouldn’t understand it anyway?
I guess it’s more than fair to give a black male his own show, hell, even the skinny dark haired chick got one, but it feels a little bit like… going through a checklist. Maybe not unsimilar to the creation of «Power Man» when he first was conceived in the comics in the midst of the blaxploitation-thingy of the 1970s. (Nothing wrong with that, I hope they’ll do that in the current presidential election.)
And of course, as always the characters and performances are superb (except the character in the above mentioned twist that felt really out of place) and the soundtrack and photography are well above average… But somehow I didn’t really feel that involved this time. It’s more like the next 007 movie: There is one available,… I’ve been waiting for it, so I’ll watch it. But that’s pretty much it, which is somewhat disappointing, as solid as «Luke Cage» as a whole may be.
I guess I’ll wait for the next caucasian, pale sorcerer to win me back. And not to forget: The references to some comics-related visuals alone make «Luke Cage» a must see for all comic book fans.
So let’s do this. I’m writing kinda «live» from the rooftop bar @ the Blue Balls Festival Lucerne. This is the place where I’m trying to find out whether I liked «Star Trek Beyond» or not or if I will just refer to the much recitet «rule» that every odd-numbered installation of the franchise is one of the bad ones and call it a day – or in this case – a review.
Well, I wrote too much about «Independence Day: Resurgence» (what an awful word to write on those tiny phone keys, gonna try to activate auto-correction now. Just give me a sec… Well that didn’t help much.)
Where were we? Right. I had just written too much about the mediocre but somehow likeable second part of ID4 to let «Beyond» just slip through. Mostly because the newest Star Trek is quite mediocre itself, I’m sad to say. I figure that Simon Pegg’s wonderful writing that I loved in the «Cornetto Trilogy» works much better when it’s brought to live on a smaller scale, taking advantage of the limitations given by a smaller budget. On the other hand: «Star Trek Beyond» sure looks better than «Independence Day: Retelling The Same Story» (as far as I could tell through those godawful 3D glasses), it sounds better, and it even has a tighter story, which doesn’t mean much. But it all remains another by-the-numbers Sci-Fi action adventure that happens to have «Star Trek» in the title. I really missed the almost perfectly written and cleverly re-introduced characters from the first one.
After the creators pulled off the seemingly impossible and rebootet one of the most iconic franchises in the known universe, they got lazy and went back to the standard handbook of cashing in on a blockbuster with «Into Darkness». (Not that «Star Trek» 2009 was especially original, but it sure as hell worked for me.)
«Beyond» is not much better. The tighter story makes more sense in a way for sure, but the characters didn’t really seem to care too much about the arcs they’re shoehorned into. With the exception of Scotty maybe, but it didn’t help that I keept thinking: «of course he would do that, he (Pegg) wrote the damn thing!». And as soon as I realized that Idris Elba was in this one (that wonderful, wonderful voice) I wanted to see more of him – sans the make up. But be careful what you wish for…
Which somehow brings us to the end of the second act of the movie: That’s some really impressive filmmaking right there and one of the most interesting sci-fi action sequences I’ve seen in a long time. And most importantly: it’s very funny. That sequence alone saves the movie from being just «the next one», highly forgettable instance of its franchise.
In the end, it sadly falls flat again and steps back onto the path which much too many movies have, not so boldly, gone before.
So let me do that, too: After writing a mediocre, hopefully tight review with the best ending possible, quoting some Star Trek, let me just keep writing on, just for the sake of a last paragraph:
No, «Star Trek» with the number 13 on its cover (or 3, depending on how you count) isn’t one of the bad ones. But it is, and always shall be, one of the not too great ones.
(Nailed it!)
Well, that was silly! But to be honest, not much sillier than the first part, more than twenty years ago. And surely not sillier than let’s say «X-Men: Apocalypse».
I must say I really enjoyed «Independence Day: Resurgence».
And why shouldn’t I? In a sense it’s mostly an almost shot for shot remake of the original. With a lot less charm because of the lack of the impressive practical effects from back then which where replaced by state of the art, but still kinda copy and paste CGI (which isn’t improved by the green screen and compositing quality that somehow seemed to be stuck back in the nineties).
I admit I give the movie a lot of slack because its predecessor was one of the first high concept «let’s just blow some shit up» movies I loved as a child, which I think has to be given credit.
And I liked the characters: There’s of course Goldblum, Pullman and Spiner who I just loved the shit out of (minus one really too silly moment that I loathed). The second Hemsworth and the one and only William Fichtner who really wears those kind of characters like a glove. And I reeaally loved what they did to poor Will Smith (which is kinda mean, but I guess the second part of the movie that really put him on the map has somehow the right to make fun of his arrogance, in a way.) And somehow they also dragged Charlotte Gainsbourg into this which surprisingly didn’t hurt the movie any more than some other side characters I think they could’ve skipped.
Though for today’s standards the whole movie is kind of «been there, done that», I really liked this one, mostly because it doesn’t take itself serious at all, serves the fans with a big plate of references to the original, the one movie that startet it all back then as one of the first of its kind of that era.
As a fun action movie, it never reaches the quality of «Captain America 3 – Civil War» or to be honest, any of the Marvel Movies, but «ID4» 2 never annoyed me, because it doesn’t try to be anything that it isn’t. It knows that it’s silly and just goes with it; takes all its stupidity, ludicrous one-liners, over-the-top patriotism and heroism and shoves it up my ass right up to my pleasure center (which normally is not my preferred path of delivery).
If you’re old enough to have enjoyed the first one, I think you’ll like this one. If not, I’m not so sure, because there where a lot better films in the meantime that have done the same thing, much better (e.g. «Pacific Rim»).
And correct me if I’m wrong. But didn’t I spot a reference to «Citizen Kane» in the last act?! I sure loved the boldness in doing that.
This is neat, too: http://www.independencedaymystreet.com
And of course: Aurora.
Here’s some thought about one of my favourite movies of the last few years: «Drive» (which I am enjoying as I write).
I’ve always loved the movie, maybe even more every time I rewatch it. But I never really thought about the reasons why.
The things I registered up to now where that the overall mood of the film is somehow bright and dark at the same time, but in any case, very intriguing; The world of LA that is built seems sureal but inviting; the captivating pseudo-eighties soundtrack is great; and the colorful characters are interestingly written and even better executed by Cranston, Mulligan, Brooks, Hendricks, Perlman and Isaac (which I didn’t even remember was in that one).
But wait,… all the characters? …Of course not.
The main character, the nameless driver played by Ryan Gosling remains stoic, unapproachable even, unmoved by the occurances around him, may it be a heist, a car-stunt or some good ol’ boot heel kicking the shit out of a man’s skull.
Of course the internet has some opinions about this characterization: Some stated that he might be an autist or some kind of psychopath, (which he probably, surely is).
But though that might be an suitable character-trait (or better: the absence of such), I think the creators of «Drive» may had a different goal in mind:
While the protagonist’s behaviour could (and would) be interpreted as just awesome, unshakeable coolness, which is surely a trait that a male thirty-something viewer gladly can and will identify with, there might’ve been a difference plan at play.
Maybe it’s not so much a coolness but the mentioned absence of character that makes this movie so darn good. Instead of developing a «real» person the audience hopefully can identify with, the creators might intended to try out a different route: The video game approach.
Making the playable character in games often mute, sometimes faceless or having a customizable appeareance to mirror the player’s personality (or their wishes and fantasies) helps the player to project himself onto (into?) the main character.
This interpretation of «Drive» is probably old news, but it just got to me now:
«Drive»’s main character might have been left blank intentionally, for the viewer to fill in and by doing so, getting a more immersive viewing experience. (And Ryan Gosling’s looks surely help to make this projection even more inviting.)
So there you go. Probably not my best article, surely not written in my best english, and lacking some kind of arc. But «Drive» is still a hell of a great movie, nonetheless. If you haven’t watched it yet. Whattaruwaitingfoor?!!!
Post scriptum:
Watching the third act, I just realized that this movie is even more cleverer (yes, I just wrote that) than I thought (and I probably missed the whole point of it up until now):
In the final act, the whole no-character theme is taken to the next level when the driver puts on an almost life-like latex mask to hide his personality (even more) while doing some nasty deeds. Adding the given elevating soundtrack in this scene to the mix, it seems like the Driver all but reaches a state of complete absence of identity and personality, finally achieving some sort of climax of his evolution, becoming some kind of Über-mensch (no Nazi-relations intended, but some transportation business ones are).
The soundtrack underlying the last scene («real human being») seems to support the theory that the movie tries to make a point that the protagonist only finds his own humanity after he’s shed all his earthly individual traits and characteristics.
To go bald where no X-Man has gone before…
If anything, «X-Men: Apocalypse» is a mixed bag. Let’s call it a roller coaster: An exciting, but extremely uneven experience. Some really great moments carry on for just a little bit too long, some cringeworthy creative decisions lead into funny scenes. On one hand we get some gripping sequences stolen by the new characters, on the other hand I was left speechless by some unused, even wasted talent of the veterans (and villains). Especially Magneto (Michael Fassbender) seemed to be stuck in a much darker, more serious, and in the end, probably better movie. I liked Raven though, who didn’t seem to care too much in a natural way, which both fit her character and her real life counterpart (Jennifer Lawrence).
The X-Movies where always the ones I expected the least of; not including the first one, when the genre was still fresh and exciting. For a long time, this lack of expectation protected me against some serious disappointment – up until «Origins: Wolverine», which barely qualified as a movie.
On the bright side, compared to, let’s say «BvS», «Apocalypse» never felt like a mess. All the parts fit together somehow and I even got more than a few satisfying fan serving moments and references to past and future plot points,… it all just felt somewhat clunky.
The problem at hand may be that I didn’t feel much of anything, like in most Bryan Singer pictures – I’m often impressed but rarely moved. In contrast, the movies of the «real» MCU may be as constructed and schematic as they come, but I always feel at home, and I keep caring for the characters in the midst of spectacular action and gripping storytelling.
While watching «X-Men: Apocalypse», I think I spotted a solid movie shining through the cracks, but this film wasn’t it. Apocalypse’s design sadly doesn’t look much more convincing than in the first trailer, the character motivations where all over the place, and Olivia Munn didn’t seem to be enjoying her part as much as I thought she would be.
Was I not entertained?! Oh, who am I kidding? I surely was!
Sadly, I never recognized the quality and coherence I thought I saw in «First Class». Not in «Days of Future Past», which was a small step in the wrong direction, and surely not in this one. But I still kind of liked them all. Not like a «real» Marvel flick, but you now, it’s still my childhood heroes,… on the fracking big screen, with costumes, powers and all.
I may be giving this one some extra slack because it’ll hopefully be the last one in the current installment, and it did a surprisingly solid job in tying it all together, bringing the story to a satisfying end.