The Gift

*** out of ****

The Gift is Australian actor Joel Edgerton’s first venture into feature filmmaking despite years of experience in the business through performing and writing. Rebecca Hall and Jason Bateman play a married couple moving into a new expensive home in the California hills and begin to receive uncomfortably awkward visits from an odd man (Edgerton) from the husband’s past.

Like the similarly titled The Guest from last year, this movie feels like an affectionate throwback to bad thrillers from the early nineties. It’s absurd and even predictable, but there’s a degree of care put into the revival of old clichés, as if there’s a meaning being expressed.

Rebecca Hall’s performance as the wife is also a strong center for the film, even if she continues to be typecast as a modern Mia Farrow of a leading lady: A good woman, slowly learning the sordid secrets of the people who surround her. 

I saw the film’s big twist coming from a mile away, but when it arrived, I was relieved that it had a little more purpose than shock value. Regardless of this movie’s formulaic nature, it’s effectively intense and very creepy.

Mission: Impossible -Rogue Nation

*** out of ****

After Brian De Palma, John Woo, J.J. Abrams and Brad Bird; writer/director Christopher McQuarrie takes the helm in the fifth entry in the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, which has become an action vehicle for Tom Cruise comparable to the 007 series. Despite light connections, such as the character Luther (Ving Rhames) appearing in every movie, they’re all practically standalones with a different atmosphere and plot each time with very little character building.

That’s fine. The Bond movies do the same thing and we accept them for what they are. The Mission: Impossible movies take inspiration from the original television series with absurd technology, gadgets and improbable masks, which always seem to serve as a cheap “gotcha!” device. Ever since 1996, when the first entry in the re-imagined cinematic series began, we’ve been getting big budget action-packed cinematic treatments to these concepts and all of them – except for the second one – have been pretty damn cool.

So now that I’ve seen Rogue Nation, I’m happy to say that Cruise and his producing partners still know what they’re doing. Like Mad Max: Fury Road, this is a movie that reserves its CGI for where it is needed while amazingly real stunts (many of which Cruise does himself) are pulled off right in front of the camera.

This movie, once again, finds a reason for Cruise’s Ethan Hunt and his team to be cutoff from the support of the American government as they search for the man behind an organization known as, “The Syndicate,” which seems to be causing disasters all over the world that look like accidents but seem to have specific results. I could deconstruct the plot for which I felt this movie wasted too much time, but I have to remember that McQuarrie was the man who wrote The Usual Suspects, so maybe I should skip a bit and say that the action set pieces still deliver. An assassination attempt during a performance of Turandot at the Vienna State Opera House is probably this movie’s most inventive segment.

This movie isn’t as fun as the last entry in the series, Ghost Protocol as its tone is a little less jovial and the score by Joe Kraemer isn’t as inspired as Michael Giacchino’s work in the last two. However, once again, Robert Elswit's celluloid cinematography continues the visually rich tradition of the series; the return of Simon Pegg as Benji, the timid tech specialist, still getting used to field work, is a welcome one; and the addition of Swedish actress Rebecca Furguson gives this series a female character who seems interesting for once –and looks tastefully more mature than a lot of the nineteen-year-olds they recruit as love interests in movies like these.

In short, it’s a little longer than it needs to be and seems uncertain as to how seriously it takes itself, but you can still expect a helluva show.

Vacation (2015)

** out of ****

In Vacation, we essentially get a remake of National Lampoon’s Vacation -the raunchy road-trip comedy from 1983. The film is technically a sequel, now starring the grown-up Rusty Griswold (now played by Ed Helms), a character who changed age, appearance, and personality enough throughout the original run of Vacation movies that it isn’t really a stretch for him to now be a father character with the same oblivious and delusional optimism that his father (Chevy Chase) possessed.

It’s a remake masquerading as a sequel, because Rusty is desperate to take charge of his family’s growing disconnection by forcing them to experience a road trip, like the one he had as a kid. So once again, the Griswold’s are off to Walley World with a mess of trouble to encounter along the way.

I found it to be as mixed an experience as the original film, which may have had an impact during the new run of low-brow studio comedies of the time but isn't an example of a solid comedy in my book (the tamer Christmas Vacation is significantly funnier). Some of the weaker aspects of the new movie’s humor are stretched thin, while a lot of other gags land beautifully. Writers/directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein (the scribes behind Horrible Bosses) essentially do a good job in the invention putting a spin on concepts borrowed from the original and maintaining an irreverent tone -an important trait that a lot of character-arc obsessed comedy movie writers don't seem to understand.

Unfortunately, Ed Helms turns in a one-note performance with his lead character, often showing a big fifties-dad smile that no kid today should view as familiar. Christina Applegate, as his wife, often outshines him with an understated performance amazingly equal with Beverly D'Angelo's borderline tolerant attitude seen in the earlier movies. The feuding children are this time brothers, where the younger of the two is the bully - which felt original. 

The talented list of cameos throughout the film also provide an element of satisfaction -particularly during a visit to the Four Corners Monument, which results in a jurisdictional stand-off among four officers of separate states -all played by good comic actors.

Vacation may be an unwanted cash-grab with a weak imitation structure, but it inspired just enough laughs for me to give it some kind of very mild recommendation. 

Pixels

* out of ****


In Pixels, Adam Sandler looks worn-out, uninterested and lazy in the role of a former arcade game champion, who is supposed to be reinvigorated when the call to be a hero comes his way. I rarely hold the movie star accountable for a bad performance, but I have to bear in mind that while Sandler may not be the director, this is the man in front of - and behind most of his movies.

There's one long dumb scene when he's brought in to consult top men at the White House. After his suggestions are disregarded, he makes his way toward the door, turns back to all the pompous esteemed men, and resorts to the lamest name calling rant he has ever produced in his two decades of mean-spirited humor.

This was only shortly after he had a conversation with a beautiful woman that got intimate a little unbelievably fast - and when she rejected his attempted kiss, he used so many words to call her a snob.

It's my assumption that this is Sandler maintaining his long tradition of pandering to an audience, which he assumes to be lower-class. He probably assumes this audience feels ignored by more accomplished people. He's right there with them as an overgrown kid who doesn't care about fine dining, table manners or imported beers. Sandler essentially crouches down to the "common man" and makes baby noises, hoping that he paid extra to watch his latest lack of passion in 3D.

I may be capable of defending this man for his proven comic and acting potential, but when Sandler himself has spent nearly a decade avoiding this potential, opting instead for his Happy Madison production company to act as a cheerleader for ignorance and low standards in moviegoers, I’m finding myself siding with so many others who just choose to hate the guy.

As dumb an idea as a feature-length version of the internet short, Pixels may sound to some, the concept of aliens invading our world while taking the form of low bit-rate ‘80s arcade game characters sounds like comic gold to me. The short film proved how aesthetically amusing the concept was. Forming a story around it that mocks disaster films could have gone in a great direction if Sandler and Co. (that is, whoever these screenwriter lackeys of his may be) had felt inspired.

Beyond Sandler's tendency to bring in overqualified actors (This time it's Josh Gad, Peter Dinklage, and poor Michelle Monaghan) to work with himself and Kevin James (as this movie's President of the United States), the only new effort this film shows is in its aesthetics. Giving a higher-grade representation of what the short film already accomplished, courtesy of big name effects houses, is the kind of eye candy that works like bait for people who have the most superficial assumptions of what will excite them. Chris Columbus, a seasoned (if not great) director was also brought on board which gives this particular Crappy Madison production a comparatively rich look.

But do not be fooled. The fact that this movie looks higher quality, only makes it worse that below the surface is a long, sad, unfunny experience utilizing money and power to tamper with an entire generation’s affection for classic video games without any appreciation for the privileged opportunity. The story doesn't really make sense - even on its own terms; jokes with potential are botched before your eyes, and the ending involves a resolution that is so jaw-droppingly sexist, you'll want to believe it's simply shock-humor on Sandler's part... 

...But there's no way he's that sophisticated.

This isn’t a disaster comedy. It’s a comedy disaster.

But you don't need to take my word for it...

Trainwreck

*** out of ****

I’ve finally seen the Amy Schumer/Judd Apatow collaboration, Trainwreck. Apatow’s showbiz influence continues to outshine the wasted expensive efforts of his former roommate, Adam Sandler. He actually has an appreciation for the complications of human relationships and while he continues to see movie projects as an excuse to show characters who work with celebrities, he knows how to utilize all those "as himself/herself" performances beautifully. I never thought LeBron James would have such a funny screen presence.

Director aside, Schumer’s screenplay - and performance - give us the fearless sexuality of a shameless man-using heavy drinker as she confronts her fears of emotional commitment.

Schumer provides multiple aspects for her fictional surrogate to justify the character's many issues. The movie opens with a flashback childhood scene where her shockingly unfiltered father, played with excellent rudeness by Colin Quinn, explains without reservations to Amy and her sister, Kim, that he is leaving their mother because, "Monogamy isn't realistic."

In the present day, Amy is single and working as a top writer for a Manhattan-based racy pop-culture magazine, known as "S'Nuff." Her hilariously soulless boss (Tilda Swinton) assigns her an interview piece on a doctor (the great Bill Hader) famous for working with professional athletes. This is of no interest to Amy who doesn't like sports, but when they meet, there is an immediate connection, even though he is a man of self-control, starved for intimacy and she can't keep count of the amount of men she's slept with -even in the past year.

Meanwhile she keeps in touch with Kim (the beautiful Brie Larson), as they deal with caring for their father who is suffering from multiple sclerosis and has been admitted to a nursing home. Amy is forgiving of her father's flaws, while much closer to him than Kim, who, much to Amy's annoyance, has taken a conventional path in life, forsaking her father's ways, and finding contentment with a supporting husband (the self-deprecating Mike Birbiglia) and children.

As Amy's relationship with the good-willed doctor continues, her anxiety begins to escalate in reaction to his sincere love for her which she doesn't know how to return, even if she feels it for him as well.

Apatow, oftentimes seems to be making movies that are, structurally speaking, dramas with funny players involved who have the freedom to riff and render everything comedic. He gives most characters a degree of emotional justification for their attitudes. I have never seen Amy Schumer's TV show or stand-up, but I've had the impression, through interviews, that she also has the same need for important meaning behind sordid laughs. This movie really demonstrates a good pairing between artists.

Like all Apatow films, there are several scenes that could have been reserved for home release extras. Hell, Funny People suffered so much from this problem, it could have been broken up into different movies and given more room for critics to encourage Adam Sandler to continue the righteous path. But I digress. What I'm trying to say is that this is a good two-hour movie that only comes close to feeling indulgent. Were it not for Apatow's continuing refusal to shape a comedy by way of trimming its length, it would have been even better.

Amy

**** out of ****

My willful ignorance of popular music can lead to shame at times. When Amy Winehouse would appear on the covers of magazines with that sexy figure covered in tattoos with a loud dress, heavy makeup and big hair, my instinct was to ignore her. When she made the tabloid covers at the grocery store for her substance abuse issues, I definitely continued ignoring. Like so many others, my response to her death was cynical as well.

I never really understood that among all the circus attractions who make it to the top of the billboard charts, Winehouse was a uniquely gifted singer/songwriter. Asif Kapadia’s new documentary, Amy, explores the short life of this artist, whose self-destructive behavior was exploited by tabloid journalism, tainting the memory of someone who really had a lot to give.

Kapadia’s stylistic choices are noteworthy. This is great documentary filmmaking, which thrives on restrictions. The entire movie is made up of photos and footage from home videos, camera-phones, professional concert filming, and television appearances – all broken up by weightless drone cinematography of the locations for which the story of Winehouse’s life focuses. What it doesn’t show, are its interview subjects. All the testimonials from family, friends, and colleagues, are audio-only - overlapping the constant flow of imagery showing Amy as they provide unreserved commentary of their relationship to her troubled existence.

The constant in the film is the face of Winehouse as it fluctuates between inspired joy and lifeless despair. I didn’t walk away from this documentary, convinced that Winehouse was a great person. Like so many talented artists she was a tortured soul letting down those who cared for her, but this was matched by the amount of people responsible for her well-being and failed (some more miserably than others), enabling her eventual demise. This is a devastating film, but once you start watching, it’s impossible to ignore.