Movie Review: Birds of Prey … And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (R – 109 minutes)

The Birds of Prey have been around in DC Comics since 1996 – give or take. After Barbara Gordon (Batgirl) was crippled, she shifted her talents to becoming Oracle – the ‘girl in the chair’ for a new crew of crimefighters. The roster has rotated over the years, as with all superhero teams, but the main characters are Black Canary and Huntress.  In 2002, there was a short-lived TV show called Birds of Prey that included Ashley Scott as Helena Kyle (Huntress), Dina Meyer as Barbara Gordon (Oracle), Rachel Skarsten as Dinah Lance (Black Canary), Shemar Moore as Jesse Reese, Ian Abercrombie as Alfred Pennyworth, and Mia Sara as Dr. Harleen Quinzel.

In 2016, the DC cinematic universe released Suicide Squad, after said squad had already been covered very well in both Smallville and Arrow.  Essentially, they are a group of villains with chips in their heads recruited to go on near impossible missions for the ‘good’ guys’ government. If they go rogue, boom – exploding heads. The movie was an absolute mess.  Margot Robbie was introduced as Dr. Harleen Qunizel – or Harley Quinn, the Joker’s girlfriend/property/whipping girl/abusee.  

Here, Margot Robbie has shifted to producer in a movie directed by Cathy Yan.  

Harley has finally decided enough with the way ‘Mr. J.’ treats her and has broken up with him for good. She swiftly realizes that fear of the Joker is what was keeping the criminals of Gotham from attacking her and now everyone she’s ever wronged is out to get her, which is a long list. Meanwhile, Detective Renee Montoya is struggling to make any progress in the GCPD where Captain Fuller is apparently her boss who cheated her out of a promotion years ago. With the Joker out of town and Harley fair game, Roman Sionis is looking to move up in the organized crime world. Dinah Lance is working as a singer in his club and Montoya is recruiting her to work as an informant thanks to a relationship Montoya had with her mother. Suddenly, a new killer appears in the city, wiping out a lot of the crime bosses with a crossbow.  Teen pickpocket Cassandra Cain accidentally steals something that all parties are after, leading to a confrontation of epic proportions.

Now, while that sounds like a lot, it actually fits together into a decent story. Cathy Yan weaves together a lot of independent pieces into a cohesive piece with incredible action sequences and some genuine laughs.  I was really pleasantly surprised by this movie.  I haven’t been impressed with most of the DCCU to date – I liked Shazam, most of Wonder Woman, and some of Aquaman, but the rest have not been great. This is one I genuinely liked.  I was blown away by the hand-to-hand combat sequences and the majority of the characters.

Margot Robbie producing this has made a huge difference in Harley. She’s must less annoying and what I really appreciated was the moments where you see Dr. Qunizel is still in there. I mean, she was a doctor, and while now definitely insane, it was nice to see her use her brain repeatedly. And yes, having a female director was a huge improvement for me as the movie is not shot in the ‘male gaze’.  If you’re not sure what that means – it’s the difference between the way the Amazons look in Wonder Woman versus how they look in Justice League.  It’s subtle, but it does make a difference.  I enjoyed Robbie’s performance, and I liked that Harley finally stepped into her own. Slight spoiler here – but I also enjoy that she’s not suddenly a ‘good guy’, which I worried about when I heard about this movie. The Birds of Prey are traditionally heroes, and Harley, despite her popularity, is still a villain.

There’s no Oracle in this, but I wouldn’t mind seeing a BOP sequel with no Harley and Oracle establishing the team firmly.  Rosie Perez is a great version of Montoya who is just fed up with being unable to make progress as a good cop.  Jurnee Smollett-Bell was a good Dinah Lance, but not as good as Juliana Harkavy (just my opinion).  For me, the big reveal of her ‘skill’ – which is a slow build all movie – was a bit difficult because I’m so familiar with the character. I spent a large part of the movie wondering why she wasn’t Canary-ing yet.  It’s not her fault, it’s the hard part of making a movie with characters that have already been done so well on TV when the cinematic universe (except for Ezra Miller) is trying to pretend the TV universe doesn’t exist.  

I really enjoyed Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s portray of Helena Bertinelli and how the driving rage of pure vengeance can turn a person into Huntress. She’s cold and awkward and fantastic in this role. She stole most of the group scenes for me. Ella Jay Basco as Cassandra was appropriately funny and annoying as the teen thief. 

I was far less happy with the antagonists in the movie.  Anthony Carrigan was so fantastic as Victor Zsasz on Gotham that Chris Messina had really no chance in this. He’s certainly creepy and weird, but sidelined. It pains me to say it, but Ewan McGregor is terrible here. He’s terribly miscast as Roman Sionis and even less convincing once he puts on the Black Mask.  McGregor attempts to go big for the crazed and out of control Sionis but it comes off as trying way too hard.  For the second review in a row I can’t help but think this movie would have been better with Nicholas Cage in that role.

Overall, I was very surprised by how much I liked this movie, of course, I did go in expecting to hate it. I can’t say enough about how much where your expectation bar is affects your viewing of a movie.  Yes, it is rated R, but it keeps pretty well contained, some language and blood – without going too far. And side note – the hyena is fine and makes it through okay.

6 out of 10. Fun, great action, looking forward to seeing Oracle show up at some point.

Movie Review: The Gentlemen (R – 147 minutes)

I remember watching Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels in 1998 and thinking that it was different than most other things I had seen. Guy Ritchie established the cockney-gangster genre dealing with their hijinks in some seedy areas.  The movie was hilarious and violent with some really fascinating characters.  Not to mention that it introduced the world to Jason Statham and Vinnie Jones the actor (some were already familiar with Vinnie Jones the footballer).  The movie covered four friends as they dealt with trying to repay a £ 500,000 gambling debt.  

Ritchie followed with Snatch in 2000 and RocknRolla in 2008. These movies all deal with a twisty story running through a lot of various groups of off the wall characters.  The Gentlemen is definitely a shift back to that type of movie.  The story is told by way of tabloid reporter Fletcher explain what he thinks is happening to gangster Raymond.  Raymond works for American marijuana mogul Mickey Pearson who is running an empire in the UK.  He has decided he’s ready to retire and is looking to sell his entire business.  He’s chosen to sell it to another American, Matthew Berger.  

Before the deal goes through, Mickey has to deal with rival gangster Dry Eye who is sort of working for a heroin kingpin named Lord George. There’s also a minor-level royal named Pressfield involved and his heroin-addicted daughter, Laura.  In addition to that, there’s a group of high-energy boxers/youtubers and their Coach who get tangled up with the situation and that’s not mentioning Fletcher’s boss Big Dave and Mickey’s wife Rosalind, who seems to be running a chop shop of sorts.  Oh – and a Russian oligarch and his hitmen.

That sounds complicated and that’s really just the folks involved without touching on the actual plot itself. There’s a lot happening, which is what Ritchie specializes in – a lot of characters who all get involved in what should be a simple and straightforward situation. It’s really fun and feels a bit like a throwback to his earlier work.  Like his other movies, there are at least a couple of scenes that I found uncomfortable. In Lock Stock, a guy takes a machete to the shoulder, and spends some time like that.  In RocknRolla, there’s a bit with pigs I don’t care for.  Here, there’s another pig sequence that upsets me as well as an unnecessary and insulting near-rape. Also a ton of casual racism - so much casual racism. It's really unnecessary, doesn't serve any point, and seemed far more obvious to me here than in any of Ritchie's previous movies.  Those bits were uncomfortable. I think they could have been eliminated and without affecting the story.  In any case, if you like some of Ritchie’s other work, you’ll like this. The entire cast is great and you can tell they are having fun in these insane roles.

Hugh Grant is at his scummy best when playing the tabloid creep Fletcher.  Charlie Hunnam is excellent as Raymond – and honestly, this maybe where he should hang out. I did see Ritchie’s King Arthur movie, and Hunnam is better here. 

McConaughey slinks through the movie and feels a little like he is playing himself.  He fits the marijuana kingpin role with ease - I saw someone mention how much more interesting it would have been if Nicholas Cage was playing that role - that would have been amazing! Originally Kate Beckinsdale was cast as Rosalind but scheduling conflicts had Michelle Dockery replace her.  Unfortunately, that doesn’t really affect the movie, there’s not a ton of great female roles in this and as much as Rosalind gets touted as tough, she still ends up having to be saved by her husband - again, enough with rape and near-rape as character development and plot points - it's lazy.

Henry Golding is equal parts smooth and slimy as Dry Eye and Tom Wu returns to Ritchie work as Lord George.  

Colin Farrell was fun as Coach and really made me wish he had started working with Ritchie earlier. 

I did find my self missing Jasons Statham and Flemyng as well as Vinnie Jones. It would have been nice to see them return.  Overall, the movie is fast-paced and definitely a return to classic Ritchie flicks.

7 out of 10

A standout for me was Bugzy Malone as Ernie, one of the boxers.  Yes, that's him doing the song as well. The boxing crew were easily some of the most entertaining characters with some of the funniest scenes.  Also - be sure to note that Legends of Tomorrow’s Franz Drameh is back there as one of his crew!  Bugzy is a grime artist from Manchester. 

You should probably get familiar with grime as Stormzy is about to hit big in the States.  Grime might be simply described as British rap, but it is more than that.  It first popped up in London in the early 2000s, coming out of UK garage music with influences from jungle, dancehall, and hiphop.  It’s fast, syncopated with heavy backbeats, and typically aggressive and often more electronic than American rap. There are those who are saying that it has begun to soften as it begins to crossover to more mainstream audiences.  Bugzy Malone is just one of many grime artists – I already mentioned Stormzy, but there’s also Leathal Bizzle, Skepta, Dizzee Rascal, AJ Tracey, D Double E, and Wiley.  As a bonus, here’s one of my favorite Wiley songs (which I wouldn't really call grime), featuring a verse by a big time D.J. who acted in Ritchie’s RocknRolla and should be Bond but isn’t.

Movie Review: Bad Boys For Life (R – 124 minutes)

The first Bad Boys was released in April of 1995 and took two TV sitcom stars and turned them into movie stars. This was the beginning of the ‘Will Smith owns Summer blockbusters’ run that then included Independence Day and Men in Black.  The movie was directed by Michael Bay and followed two super-cool Miami cops, Mike Lowrey (Laaaahhhwwwwreeee) and Marcus Burnett, as they too down a big-time drug lord.

This sequel (I hated the second one so I’m skipping over that), picks up 25 years later (holy crap – its been 25 years). Marcus is getting even more serious about retiring and Mike is trying to convince himself and everyone else that he’s still in his twenties. Marcus wants to spend more time with his first grandson. During a footrace for Marcus’s retirement (as silly as this is, it felt very much like something these two would do) Mike is shot by an assassin who is also taking out several other prominent Miami lawmen and peacekeepers.  

Once Mike recovers, he gets a bit bullheaded (okay, stupidly stubborn) about investigating his own shooting despite Marcus having stepped away. Mike ‘assists’ the new AMMO team that is researching the crime.  AMMO is run by his ex and features a group of high-tech young guns who each get just enough character development to make you realize they are individuals, but not enough that you remember their names.  Eventually, Marcus comes back in to help Mike one last time as they track down the criminal behind the killing spree. 

The movie is not directed by Michael Bay this time around – but no worries! He does show up as a wedding emcee.  Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah step in to direct and maintain most of Bay’s trademarks which fit this local and style perfectly - slow-mo spins! sweat! dance clubs!  The action is fun and the stars haven’t lost any of their chemistry. 

Will and Martin are great, still funny, and still capable of being action-packed when necessary. The scene where Marcus gets teary-eyed while holding his first grandbaby was funny and touching.  Will manages to be unlikeable as Mike struggles to deal with some issues from his past while refusing to take assistance from those offering it.  Eventually he turns it around, and as crazy as it sounds – I am ready for Bad Boys 4.

What I really liked was the new team of AMMO (Advanced Miami Metro Operations). Led by Paola Nunez’s character Rita and featuring Vanessa Hudgens, Alexander Ludwig, and Charles Melton as the cocky young agents, the team is entertaining and fits in perfectly.  Actually – I was really surprised by Vanessa Hudgens, maybe I want to see her in more action movies?  

Joe Pantoliano and Theresa Randle are both back as the captain and Marcus’s wife. The same guy who showed up to date Marcus’s daughter in Bad Boys 2 returns to be her husband in this one. 

Kate del Castillo and Jacob Scipio play the heavies, a cartel drug lord and her son. Del Castillo was particularly menacing.  I love a legitimate female villain and she was pretty epic. 

Overall, the movie was super fun with just the right amount of nostalgia factored in with new and updated action. 

7 out of 10 – Certainly better than I was expecting based on Bad Boys 2, but not quite as good as Bad Boys original flavor.

Movie Review: Parasite (R - 132 minutes).

I managed to squeeze in watching this movie the day before it had a surprise victory for Best Picture at the Academy Awards.  And, I have to say, I agree with that choice!

Parasite begins by introducing us to the Kim family, who are very poor and living in a tiny apartment. They are all currently unemployed and are working folding pizza boxes to have some type of income. The son, Ki-woo, meets up with a friend of his named Min who is about to study abroad but not before dropping off a gift of a Scholar’s Rock for the Kim family.

Slight spoilers here - Min has been private tutoring the daughter of a rich family and recommends the job for Ki-woo.  Ki-woo and his sister, Ki-jung, work together to forge him documents verifying his attendance at a University. He goes to meet with the wealthy family who live in a very fancy house designed by a famous architect.  Once there he charms the lady of the house, Mrs. Park, tells her he’s tutored English before and uses the English name, Kevin.  

He meets with the daughter, Da-Hye, and notices that her younger brother is a bit out of control.  Through discussions with Mrs. Park, he learns that the son needs special tutoring. He swiftly comes up with a recommendation for an art therapy teacher and the next visit, brings his sister, who lets them know her English name is Jessica and that she’s an experienced art therapist.  When getting a ride home from Mr. Park’s driver, ‘Jessica’ orchestrates a reason for the driver to be fired and recommends a driver she knows well. Sure enough, Mr. Kim applies for and gets the open position just before orchestrating a reason for the Park family’s housekeeper to be let go.  He recommends Mrs. Kim, and before you know it, the entire family is working for the Park family. They are making good money and all seems well – but of course, things start to unravel from there.

That’s all I am going to say because you really should see this movie. Director Bong Joon Ho has also just won the best Direction Oscar and it is well-deserved.  The movie is a dark comedy – really dark. It’s not a horror movie, but it does get creepy and violent as it goes on. There are several dogs in the movie and they all make it through okay. I spent some time worrying about that, so I will save you that trouble!

It starts out pleasant enough, and the Kims seem to be the protagonists. However, as the movie continues, and the differences between the classes get more distant, you’re not entirely sure who you are rooting for, if anyone.  Bong Joon Ho manages to make a movie that highlights the ignorance of the wealthy and the desperation of the poor without making a scathing commentary on either.

It is an incredibly fascinating movie and well worth a watch. It is shot beautifully and the house is gorgeous, but feels unfriendly.  There were bits that felt similar to Jodan Peele’s Us but I do think this one is a little more clear and a bit less gory.  Even the name hints at the theme – the relationship between the families starts out symbiotic, but then shifts to parasitic. Its entertaining, haunting, weird, and perfectly crafted.

8 out of 10.

2019 Year in Review

When I began writing this post, I had seen exactly zero of the nine best picture nominees. Now, that may say something about the nominees or something about me. In either case, I usually have some interest in at least one or two of the nominees, but this year, I just didn’t have a ton of interest or time. I cannot wait until I finish this MBA degree and have all my time back to me!  I’m tired of homework getting in the way of my movies! Ha!

In any case - I unashamedly love the summer tent-pole popcorn-flick blockbusters. Based-on-a-true-story character-driven acting-powerhouse independent-style quiet award-movies are not my cup of tea. I can absolutely acknowledge the brilliance in the craft, the superb performances, and fantastic direction, but I just have little to no interest in watching them. I would rather watch movies that are super fun, non-committal, and a bit of an escape from some of the real life drama and drudgery. That being said, there are some beautifully crafted movies nominated this year.  Here are the top 17 movies the academy thinks you should see.  Why 17?  Because those are all the movies that got more than 1 nomination – Plus one bonus with one nomination – because I actually saw it. Italics blurbs are from IMDB.com, because you needed the taglines on some of these. Trailers are off Youtube, and ScreenJunkies provided the Honest Trailers. 

*Update – I have now seen three of the best picture nominees – it took me a while to write this one!

18. Hair Love (1 nomination): This is former NFL player Matthew A. Cherry’s story about a father doing his daughter’s hair. Now, that may sound simple, but as with all excellent animated shorts, it tells the story with very few words and movingly beautiful animation. Cherry has been awesome for a long time and it is wonderful to see more people start to realize that and get on board with his craft.

17. Toy Story 4 (2 nominations): When a new toy called "Forky" joins Woody and the gang, a road trip alongside old and new friends reveals how big the world can be for a toy.  Are we already on the 4^th of these? I definitely missed a couple.  Pixar makes quality animated movies and this is no exception. Chances are if you liked the first three, you’ll like this one. Entertaining with the added bonus of Keanu Reeves as Canadian Stunt Toy Duke Kaboom – this is the first of several mentions of Keanu in this post. 2019 was definitely a Keanussance of sorts and hey, the third Bill and Ted movie is out later this year.

16. Pain and Glory (2 nominations): A film director reflects on the choices he's made as past and present come crashing down around him. This movie is directed by Pedro Almodovar, who has worked with Antonio Banderas quite a few times over the years. Here, Banderas plays a version of Almodovar as he flashes through some of the moments in his life. It’s supposed to be beautiful and touching.  

15. Judy (2 nominations): Legendary performer Judy Garland (Renée Zellweger) arrives in London in the winter of 1968 to perform a series of sold-out concerts. The academy loves a bio-pic, and Zellweger has been cleaning up this season.  She’s your safe bet for best actress this year.  The movie follows Judy Garland in the last year of her life when she relocated to England for a few shows. Here’s a bit of business for you to impress people at your Oscar party – Judy’s birth name was Frances Ethel Gumm.

14. Honeyland (2 nominations): The last female bee-hunter in Europe must save the bees and return the natural balance in Honeyland, when a family of nomadic beekeepers invade her land and threaten her livelihood.  This is a movie directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov.  The lead beekeeper begins in the remote mountains of North Macedonia and deals with her interactions with the new arrivals next door.  It covers climate change, biodiversity loss, consumerism, and the exploitation of natural resources. Fun fact - It was originally planned as a documentary short about preserving the land around the river Bregalnica. Well, maybe not a fun fact, but a fact.

13. Harriet (2 nominations): The extraordinary tale of Harriet Tubman's escape from slavery and transformation into one of America's greatest heroes, whose courage, ingenuity, and tenacity freed hundreds of slaves and changed the course of history.  This story is incredible and deserved to be a giant movie and the biopic has been in the works for years. I love Cynthia Erivo, and am happy that she will probably EGOT (not this year), but were there not any American actresses that could play this incredible American action hero?  Keep in mind it is a movie, not a documentary, so the story is not completely accurate, but still, a good movie.  Reminder, if you haven’t see the episode of Drunk History where Octavia Spencer plays Harriet, watch that, it’s pretty epic.

12. The Two Popes (3 nominations): Behind Vatican walls, the conservative Pope Benedict and the liberal future Pope Francis must find common ground to forge a new path for the Catholic Church.  I remember it being mentioned many times how much Pope Francis looked like Jonathan Pryce when he first got the job, not really a surprise he’s playing him here.  This movie is a lot of sitting and talking, as a heads up. Not sure if you were expecting the two popes to go on a treasure hunt together.  Now, that’s a movie I would watch. 

11. Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker (3 nominations): The surviving members of the resistance face the First Order once again, and the legendary conflict between the Jedi and the Sith reaches its peak bringing the Skywalker saga to its end. So here’s the first one on the list that I have seen. I loved this movie, I thought it was a good conclusion to the new trilogy and had some really wonderful moments. It had some iffy moments too, but on the whole, pretty fantastic.

10. Bombshell (3 nominations): A group of women take on Fox News head Roger Ailes and the toxic atmosphere he presided over at the network. I was confused by the marketing of this movie – it almost made it look like a comedy. Which it is not.  I just finished watching it and it was really good. It’s a rough topic, but the movie manages to really clarify why it was so difficult for these women to come out with their stories, what it means for them, and how it can affect others. The performances are all great, and yes, this team is walking away with the Hair and Makeup Oscar with little to no competition. 

9. Ford v Ferrari (4 nominations): American car designer Carroll Shelby and driver Ken Miles battle corporate interference and the laws of physics to build a revolutionary race car for Ford in order to defeat Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966. This movie covers a situation where the Ford company built a new racing car with the potential to beat the top of the line Ferrari racing car.  No part of that sounds interesting to me, but the production on this is supposed to be great.

8. Parasite (6 nominations): All unemployed, Ki-taek and his family take peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks, as they ingratiate themselves into their lives and get entangled in an unexpected incident.  Creepy and weird, an amazing statement on the desperation of classism. It is expertly written, brilliantly directed, and excellently performed.  Definitely should win best picture, but probably won’t – will definitely win best International picture. Haunting. Haunting is the word. It sticks with you for a while after watching it.

7. Marriage Story (6 nominations): Noah Baumbach's incisive and compassionate look at a marriage breaking up and a family staying together.  I made it through almost all of this movie. Now, whether you think Baumbach drew from the dissolution of his own marriage to Jennifer Jason Leigh or not, the movie does depict a divorce between a working actress and stage director as they try to make it work between New York and L.A. And perhaps because its tangentially about ‘the business’ is one of the reasons it is getting so much award season love (the academy loves to honor itself and those that love it). It’s well-acted, feels very theater-y for lack of a better term, and is very depressing – especially once the lawyers get involved. Honestly, the best part of this movie is the memes that have come from Adam Driver's performance mashed up with The Child from the Mandalorian.

6. Little Women (6 nominations): Jo March reflects back and forth on her life, telling the beloved story of the March sisters - four young women each determined to live life on their own terms.  Louisa May Alcott’s novel was first published in 1868 - a coming of age story about the four March sisters in Cival War times.  There have been countless adaptations: a silent film in 1917, three TV movies in the 40s, mini-series, and radio dramatizations. There are also musicals and plays.  There were three movie versions in the last two years. I suppose when the source material is good – why not make it over and over again. This version directed by Greta Gerwig leans into the money and economic independence subplots heavier than others – giving it a relatable touch for modern audiences.

5. Jojo Rabbit (6 nominations): A young boy in Hitler's army finds out his mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home. Taika Waititi’s absurd anti-hate movie that is the most unique movie of the year. The movie is drawing some ire for ‘softening’ Nazis – but I think we can still all agree that Nazis were and are scum-of-the-earth evil, and should be eradicated.

4. The Irishman (10 nominations): A mob hitman recalls his friend Jimmy Hoffa. I haven’t watched this because it is three and a half hours long and I typically do not like Scorsese’s movies.  If you do, this is supposed to be one of his best as DeNiro plays DeNiro through several decades recalling his interactions with Pacino (Hofffa). 

3. Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (10 nominations): A faded television actor and his stunt double strive to achieve fame and success in the film industry during the final years of Hollywood's Golden Age in 1969 Los Angeles. Quentin Tarantino finds a new way to put feet on the screen.  This would be another one where if you like Tarantino movies, you will probably like this. Featuring what is supposed to be excellent performances from DiCaprio, Pitt, and Margot Robbie.  Pitt is going to win for best supporting actor. It’s a love letter to old Hollywood, which the academy loves, so I am actually a little surprised it’s not projected to win more.

2. 1917 (10 nominations): April 6th, 1917. As a regiment assembles to wage war deep in enemy territory, two soldiers are assigned to race against time and deliver a message that will stop 1,600 men from walking straight into a deadly trap. Sam Mendes directed this movie to look like a complete single shot as a man struggles to warn another group of soldiers. That’s technically very impressive and is supposed to be one of the most immersive movies ever. So, if you want to be immersed in World War I, here’s your film.

1. Joker (11 nominations): In Gotham City, mentally troubled comedian Arthur Fleck is disregarded and mistreated by society. He then embarks on a downward spiral of revolution and bloody crime. This path brings him face-to-face with his alter-ego: the Joker. Seriously, this got the most nominations? Whatever. I’m of the opinion this is in general an unnecessary movie, but mainly because I believe the Joker should only exist as the chaos flip-side to Batman’s order side of the coin. He’s just the Joker, and giving him a backstory or character development humanizes him. I prefer psychopathic clown murderers not get humanized, but hey, whatever. As much as Ledger was great with the character, Mark Hamill is my preferred Joker – from the show, but mainly the Arkham games. The absolute glee he takes in being pure and uncalculated chaos is perfection.

So there you have it, I’m now up to 5 of these 18, but that is counting the one short as a full watch. Hey – it counts!  By way of comparison – or, in case your movie tastes are more similar to mine, or in case you are just curious what I enjoyed this year – here’s my top 15.  There are 2 that crossover, but it should have been at least four, and perhaps 6 if visual effects and special effects were separated to two categories.

15. Last Christmas: Kate is a young woman subscribed to bad decisions. Working as an elf in a year round Christmas store is not good for the wannabe singer. However, she meets Tom there. Her life takes a new turn. For Kate, it seems too good to be true. I know, I know, this was trite and superficial and just another rom-com. I can’t help it – I really liked it. I think it was charming and redemptive. I like the twist, which I spotted just moments before it was revealed. I also loved all the George Michael music, which was lovely. Plus, Henry Golding doing a full out Bond impression. Someone let that dude play Bond already.

14. Stuber:  A detective recruits his Uber driver into an unexpected night of adventure. This movie felt like a throwback to dumb 80s buddy cop flicks. Dave Bautista and pre-jacked Kumail Nanjiani play the leads. The story is simple, the action good, and the chemistry between the two of them fun. What more do you want? No, wait, don’t answer that.

13. How To Train Your Dragon The Hidden World: When Hiccup discovers Toothless isn't the only Night Fury, he must seek "The Hidden World", a secret Dragon Utopia before a hired tyrant named Grimmel finds it first. I like this one so much better than the second one but still not as much as the first.  The Vikings are still Scottish for some reason, but the animation is so incredibly lovely. Seeing it in 3D really helped with the flying sequences. The reveal of additional Night Furies and a true place for Toothless to belong was just beautiful.

12. Shazam!: A newly fostered young boy in search of his mother instead finds unexpected super powers and soon gains a powerful enemy. Entertaining and fun nearly all the way through. Zach Levi was born to play a kid in an adult’s body.  The theme of family being who you choose and who loves to choose you rather than necessarily the blood you are born with was wonderful. Can’t wait for the sequel.

11. Hobbs & Shaw: Lawman Luke Hobbs (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) and outcast Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham) form an unlikely alliance when a cyber-genetically enhanced villain threatens the future of humanity. This is just pure over the top nonsense and would have cracked the top ten if they could have gotten the editing under control. If there’s one thing I learned from Wesley Snipes (there are several, in fact), it’s that you always should shoot your hand to hand combat sequences in a one-shot from a distance so that the audience can see and appreciate the fight choreography. This movie has two action-capable leads and about a thousand cuts per fight. Aside from that, it is really big time summer blockbuster nonsense fun. There was rumored Keanu in this one, but it didn’t develop – maybe in the sequel.

10. Hustlers: Inspired by the viral New York Magazine article, Hustlers follows a crew of savvy former strip club employees who band together to turn the tables on their Wall Street clients.  Listen, I’m not that big a JLo fan, but how she did not get nominated for this is a little puzzling. She does an incredible job playing the mother-hen stripper who teaches the up and comers how to get what they want. They’re so caught up in how successful they are that they don’t even notice when they start to cross the line and consequences begin to catch up.

9. John Wick Chapter 3 Parabellum: John Wick is on the run after killing a member of the international assassins' guild, and with a $14 million price tag on his head, he is the target of hit men and women everywhere. There are less cuts in the fight sequences here as Keanu bulldozes his way through hit-people here and abroad. Halle Berry and her two dogs were incredible and so was the fantastic Mark Dacascos who is literally all of us when interacting with Keanu.

8. Godzilla King of the Monsters: The crypto-zoological agency Monarch faces off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. Loved the monsters in this but could have used less of the people. The idea of releasing all the slumbering kaiju in an attempt to re-balance the environment is an interesting idea. Godzilla looks amazing – especially after leveling up, Mothra was stunning, even Ghidorah’s alien self was impressive. I can’t wait to see Godzilla take on Kong – still team Godzilla on that one.

7. Spider-Man Far From Home: Following the events of Avengers: Endgame (2019), Spider-Man must step up to take on new threats in a world that has changed forever.  Whichever MCU movie followed Endgame was going to be tough but this one was able to do it with an accurate sense of the trauma from that movie and a sense of fun that is appropriate for Spider-Man and his first trip to Europe. Also, really great portrayal of Mysterio, which was a surprise to me!

6. Always Be My Maybe: Everyone assumed Sasha and Marcus would wind up together except for Sasha and Marcus. Reconnecting after 15 years, the two start to wonder - maybe? This was an exceptional rom-com that showed up on Netflix last year and began the Keanussance of the year. He shows up as a new boyfriend for Sasha just as Marcus wanted to tell her how he felt. Keanu steals the movie, but the very best part is Randall Park’s song over the end credits about punching Keanu.

5. Dolemite is My Name: Eddie Murphy portrays real-life legend Rudy Ray Moore, a comedy and rap pioneer who proved naysayers wrong when his hilarious, obscene, kung-fu fighting alter ego, Dolemite, became a 1970s Blaxploitation phenomenon. Another Netflix entry, this biopic traces Rudy Ray Moore as his takes Dolemite to the big screen. I loved this movie so much! It’s a tribute to believing in yourself and a love letter to movies that are made for and by the fans. It’s hilarious, touching, and genuinely funny. Be sure to check it out, mostly for Wesley Snipes’ over the top performance.

4. Knives Out: A detective investigates the death of a patriarch of an eccentric, combative family. I knew this would be good and it still didn’t disappoint. Once the old man dies, the family stumbles over one another to prove they didn’t do it, but they all look guilty. It’s a classic who-done-it that never takes itself too seriously. I wish Patrick Wilson had played the Daniel Craig role, but hey, you get what you get.

3. Captain Marvel: Carol Danvers becomes one of the universe's most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races. I had been waiting on this one a long time and again – did not disappoint. Carol Danvers can be a tough character, as she is not particularly likeable. Brie Larson did a good job in making her confident, qualified, and no-nonsense. The final ‘fight’ sequence with Jude Law’s character and the acknowledgement of ‘I have nothing to prove to you’ was epic. Plus, Goose the flerken was fantastic, and Samuel L. Jackson getting to cut a little loose as a younger, pre-Avengers Nick Fury was great.

2. Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker:  I’m saying the same thing here, but I really appreciated this as the end of the saga. It managed to take the new characters, incorporate the old characters, and wrap everything up tightly. Read my post on it if you want more detailed thoughts. Most of it made me really happy.  Love the new characters, love the ends for old characters, and appreciate that Rey was able to write her own destiny and choose her own family, despite the efforts of everyone around her attempting to tell her who and what she was meant to be.

1. Avengers: Endgame: After the devastating events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018), the universe is in ruins. With the help of remaining allies, the Avengers assemble once more in order to reverse Thanos' actions and restore balance to the universe. What is there to say about this one? It’s the culmination of 10 years of movies that managed to tie everything together and provide perfect endings for the characters that needed them while simultaneously creating launch points for others. I can’t wait for the next phase of MCU flicks, but this one will never be topped. Avengers, Assemble.

And, because it’s always more fun, here’s my worst of the year – honestly, not too bad this year. Nothing I straight-up hated, which means I was either better about going to the movies and seeing only things I was interested in, or that movies in general were better! Either explanation is fine with me!

5. The Hustle: Two con women - one low rent and the other high class - team up to take down the men who have wronged them. I remember not really liking Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, so it would make sense that I wasn’t all that fond of this remake. Anne Hathaway is not one of my favorites and while I enjoy Rebel Wilson, she wasn’t at her best in this. Also the tag line is misleading, there’s not really any revenge at play, there’s just con-artisting.

4. Men in Black International: The Men in Black have always protected the Earth from the scum of the universe. In this new adventure, they tackle their biggest threat to date: a mole in the Men in Black organization. This wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t great. I think that’s the issue, it could have been better.  The original was so interesting, different, and filled with practical effects.  This one is CGI heavy and not as well put together. Had some good moments, but a little uneven.

3. Us: A family’s serene beach vacation turns to chaos when their doppelgangers appear and begin to terrorize them. Now, maybe this shouldn’t be on the worst list and Lupita definitely needed an Oscar nomination for her dual portray of both versions of the same character. When I saw it, it was fine. Then, the more I thought about it, the more holes and questions appeared. It starts to fall apart the more you think about it, which is not typically an issue I have with a movie – but this one felt like it was trying to make a statement. Maybe it was a commentary on classism, materialism, wealth, separations, duality? In any case, the message was not clear and there were way too many rabbits being eaten alive. That gets you on my worst list.

2. Terminator Dark Fate: An augmented human and Sarah Connor must stop an advanced liquid Terminator, from hunting down a young girl, whose fate is critical to the human race. Well, they tried. And parts of this are great! Okay, Linda Hamilton is great! The rest is a little sloppy.  I enjoyed the new characters, but maybe they would have been better off just creating a new sci-fi action flick instead of trying to tie another Terminator movie into the series.

1. X-Men Dark Phoenix: Jean Grey begins to develop incredible powers that corrupt and turn her into a Dark Phoenix, causing the X-Men to decide if her life is worth more than all of humanity. And here we are, down to my least favorite movie of last year. It’s really not their fault – it’s mostly my fault. I love the 90s cartoon so much and their take on the Phoenix saga was so good, there was no way this could live up to it, and I knew that going in. It just feels like so many of the actors in this did not want to be there. Jennifer Lawrence looked genuinely excited to be getting killed off early. It slogs through flashbacks, poor action sequences, iffy dialogue, disinterested performances, and a random Dazzler cameo.  Maybe just let the X-Men chill for a bit until the MCU is ready to incorporate them?

There you have it – my exhaustive take on 2019. More than you wanted to know! Good luck in your Oscar pools, and let me know what you thought of the year in movies!

LAMBs Devour the Oscars 2020: Visual Effects

I'm happy to be participating in the 2020 LAMBs Devour the Oscars, where various LAMB (large association of movie blogs) members choose different Oscar categories and breakdown the nominees. It's very helpful when you're looking to fill out your Oscar pool!  Check out the rest of the posts at http://www.largeassmovieblogs.com/.

The Academy Award for Visual Effects (VFX) honors the ability of the filmmakers to create on-film environments, creatures, situations, or objects that would otherwise be too dangerous, impractical, expensive, or flat out impossible to film.  In terms of semantics, “special effects” describes stunts and action sequences or the practical effects that include set and creature building – puppets, animatronics, and such.  “Visual effects” tends to refer to using computer-generated imagery (CGI) for the same purposes – Jar-Jar, Thanos, and such.  Honestly, I feel like they should be two separate awards, because there are talented folks working in both areas and they each cover different areas of the production.  This is one of the ‘technical’ categories and the one that often has the best chance of having larger, summer, tent-pole type movies nominated. This year, there are five nominees for the award:

Avengers: Endgame (Dan DeLeeuw, Russell Earl, Matt Aitken, Dan Sudick)

No shock here, but this team was nominated last year with Avengers: Infinity War.  This is essentially the second half of that story where the Avengers must recover from devastating loss to try to pull victory from the jaws of defeat.  Or, more accurately, from Thanos’s gloved hand.  The effects in this movie are beautiful and almost too many to mention:  The Milano listing in space, a time-heist to pre-collect infinity stones, Banner-Hulk, and all of Josh Brolin’s performance as Thanos.  The epic final battle sequence should be enough to walk away with this award (should be - but won’t).

The movie goes from digital planet to digital planet and while the majority of the effects are digital, a lot of the battle sequence was practically shot on greenscreens to add digital enhancements and background later.  See Valkrie above sitting on a non-horse. Brolin should have been nominated for his performance in Infinity War. Here, younger Thanos is less compelling, but that’s the way it should be – the last movie was his, this one is more Avengers-centered. As powerful as the effects in this movie are, the stars that shine the brightest are Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. turning in some very human performances.

The Irishman (Pablo Helman, Leandro Estebecorena, Nelson Supulveda-Fauser, Stephane Grabli)

The Irishman is Martin Scorsese’s three and a half hour Netflix movie tracing the life of World War II veteran Frank Sheeran.  He worked as a hustler and a hitman as he circled around Jimmy Hoffa and others.  Here, the visual effects are used to de-age the actors as the film stays with them throughout many years. Previously, this would have been done by hiring younger actors to portray the characters during different timelines. Instead, groundbreaking effects house Industrial Light & Magic stepped in, brought the de-aging CGI they’ve perfected in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to young-ify these grumpy old dudes.

Now, I haven’t watched the movie yet as I don’t typically care for Scorsese’s films. Add that to the negative comments he made about the MCU movies recently and that combines to me having little to no interest in this.  I do find it a bit incredible that the movie is now nominated for an Oscar using a crew and technology that was used throughout the Marvel movies. Speaking strictly of the effects, it looks as good here as it does in previous appearances – which is fine. It’s still not great, and you can certainly tell the younger Robert DeNiro looks a little suspect and rubbery – but definitely impressive.  It’s an interesting discussion whether it’s better to de-age the actor to give one performer the ability to trace the character they are working on through various times or if it would be better to find a younger actor who could mimic the older actor’s presence and mannerisms to cover the timeline.  In either case, this technology is not going away and it will only continue to improve.

The Lion King (Robert Legato, Adam Valdez, Andrew R. Jones, Elliot Newman)

This is another interesting entry.  This movie is the “live-action” remake of Disney’s animated Lion King. However, the reality is that this movie is basically an animated film as well. It just happens to be computer animated as you can’t really get real lions to hit marks and deliver lines – not yet anyway.  The story follows Simba as he Hamlets his way through the death of his father at the hands of his uncle, his exile, and triumphant return.

The effects are stunning and the animals look incredible.  However, many fans were disappointed that their faces didn’t convey the same emotion as the previous animated version.  In a way, this is a testament to how real they look.  Should this instead be nominated for best animated movie? Perhaps.

1917 (Guillaume Rocheron, Greg Butler, Dominic Tuohy)

This movie covers the story of two British soldiers who are sent on a dangerous mission in World War I.  The movie is incredibly immersive and many of the shots look practical but were accomplished with incredible effects work.

This movie has a lot of ingredients that the Academy loves – historical, based on true events, war movie, and character-driven.  In particular, they love given the effects Oscar to a movie that uses effects in a more subtle way to enhance the reality of the film as opposed to more impressive CGI world or character building. This would definitely win a ‘special’ effects Oscar, but should it win a ‘visual’ effects Oscar? Since there is only one, that’s not a discussion we get to have at this point.

Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker (Roger Guyett, Neal Scanlan, Patrick Tubach, Dominic Tuohy).

This team was nominated in this category last year for Solo: A Star Wars Story.  Here, they help bring the Skywalker Saga to a close.  Because of the size and scope of this movie, this is again one where effects dominate the movie.  From the spaceships hurtling through atmospheres to alien crew members and battles on different planets, the effects are integrated perfectly.

There are several sequences in the movie that incorporate CGI and practical effects in a really wonderful way. Rey and Ren’s fight on the bridge while force-jumping over giant waves is fantastic. Rey’s cave-test is also great.  As impressive as the giant final space-battle is, more impressive is Ian McDiarmid’s make-up, prosthetics, and lightning fingers as Emperor Palpatine. His performance layered with those enhancements is ultimate evil personified by a character that revels in his evil.  Also, the practical effects of Babu Frik, that should be enough to win right there.

Who Should Win:

My heart wants Endgame to win, because that final battle sequence is incredible. I have watched the sequence between “On Your Left” and “Avengers Assemble” nearly 100 times at this point because for me it demonstrates that the CGI effects are lovely and magnificent, but they are nothing if they are not grounded by great performances from the actors. Watch it again and pay close attention the emotions that are all conveyed non-verbally as the Returned step through their portals.  But, especially watch Hemsworth’s reaction to Evans build up and then saying “Avengers Assemble” – it’s the reaction of a man who has waited ten years to hear his friend say that phrase equally as much as it is the reaction of a depressed and fallen Asgardian King finally seeing hope after five years of darkness and loss – who of course then channels lightning through his body. Perfection. 

Who Will Win:

I don’t think anyone can beat 1917 here. It has all the Academy’s favorite ingredients at play.  Of course, they also love Scorsese but I think that 1917 is the safest bet for your office Oscar pool.