Beauty and the Beast (2017) splendidly reimagines a tale as old as time

Photo Credit: Beauty and the Beast / Walt Disney Studios

A remake rarely fills a gap of something that simply wasn’t there before in the original. As Disney re-imagines a string of their own animated classics into live-action flicks, it’s difficult to imagine why they’d want to toy with perfection. Their transformation of the timeless Beauty and the Beast is truly spellbinding, if a little imperfect.

In a tale as old as time, Emma Watson stars as Belle, an independent bookworm who dreams of a bigger life than the one her small, provincial town expects. As a self-absorbed veteran Gaston (Luke Evans) sets out to own her affection, she is compelled to break a powerful spell held over another self-absorbed beast (Dan Stevens), who is actually a prince in disguise. Only one is truly worthy of her kindness to discover more than what meets the eye.

Fifty Shades Darker (2017) Remains Impotent

Photo Credit: Fifty Shades Darker / Universal Pictures

As the sequel to the controversial erotically-charged series, Fifty Shades Darker was touted to be more suspenseful, sexy, and alluring than its dry prequel Fifty Shades of Grey. With major changes made from the first movie like finding a new director with James Foley, and writer (also the author's husband) Niall Leonard, this installment had expectations to be exponentially thrilling. Though its previous flick created a nice foundation for the rest of the installments to build upon, this sequel struggles even more to find a plot, maybe even a pulse.

Fifty Shades of Grey concluded with the literal door closing in Christian's (Jamie Dornan) face along with his aspirations of making Anastasia (Dakota Johnson) his full-time submissive. She leaves of her own free will (yay!!) to bigger and better things ahead until Darker brings them back together after the tiniest of separations. But a dosage of obstacles start challenging their relationship as Ana tries to establish new demands from 'the boyfriend' and her boss Jack Hyde (Eric Johnson) becomes creepy and possessive over her as his assistant. Meanwhile ghosts from Christian's past like an ex-sub Leila (Bella Heathcote) and ex-dominant (Kim Basinger) simply can't let him go.

Author E.L. James and passionate readers would say the star-crossed lovers are focused on building a future together so nothing deters their love. Others will recognize that every conflict threatening to drive them apart are solved through limitless wealth and sterile sex. If a young woman establishing her wants both in and out of the bedroom could be argued as the overall arc, it increasingly exists out of mere convenience. Every time Ana doesn't want to be bought, Christian counters with sex, money, a charity ball, moving in, marriage, to steal her attention away. Even if Mr. Red Flags changes his nature over time, i.e. the dominant becomes the submissive, Ana's non-sexual wants (a job, independence, transparency) are often muted by Christian's privilege. What may be a tantalizing fantasy for readers on the page becomes an absolute hindrance on-screen as any issue the lovebirds encounter are frustratingly handled off-screen via Grey's limitless power.

So the sequel ends up relying on what it's most known for (sex) to make up for a dubious romance.

However, it merely follows in the same footsteps of the first movie of inserting sex to divert interesting conflicts between the leads and becomes even more sterile in its intimacy. Especially since Johnson still displays more than she should in an even stronger male-gaze aesthetic. Where the first movie could make the hook-ups at least tolerable, Foley lacks the judgment to properly set any tangible mood for the sex scenes, even the most vanilla kind.

If there is something to be had for Darker, it's all the best elements of the first movie - the cast and high expectations of production design, costume, and soundtrack, carry over well. As far as performances go, Johnson carries the film by still making us believe that Ana is genuinely invested in giving Christian more chances to change and open up to her. Her maturity on the type of woman she wants to be evolves, even if the script holds her hostage to Christian's whims. And because of that, unfortunately, the alluring nature of her co-star wears a crucial element of her story thin. Though Dornan is quite personable and charming when he doesn't have to deal with Grey's dark, twisted history, any commanding presence the character could have falls flat when Dornan's afforded scenes to dig deeper. As much as the story could intend exploring Ana's wants and needs in life, Christian the dominant becoming the submissive to her must be thoroughly read between the lines.

Established from the get-go by director Sam-Taylor Johnson, Fifty Shades's world remains visually elegant and sleek. Even with writing, production, and costume team alterations, her influence continues with the sequel's opulent, minimalist sets and luxurious wardrobes. Even the soundtrack, which initially kicked off with Beyonce, The Weekend and Ellie Goulding, is matched this time around with 'not being in love equates dying a thousand deaths' ballads by Sia, Taylor Swift with Zayn Malik, John Legend and Halsey. With the exception of a new avenue for the story to wander, Foley serving as the new director imprint is nearly impotent.

Unlike most adaptations where the book rarely lives up to the movie or transforms non-readers into fans, Fifty Shades Darker falls right in line for whom the film is made: E.L. James, her devoted readers, and perhaps curious hound-dogs. For all intents purposes, the sequel is posh enough to gawk at. But if you're looking for anything more than sex, which critics clamoured for and still didn't get, the story leaves everyone and everything pretty much impotent.

for readers: ★★★

for me:★☆☆

for everyone else:☆☆☆

I liked this though.

Working Girl (1983) spins the Cinderella fairytale in the workplace

Photo Credit: Working Girl / 20th Century Fox

Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) may not have an ivy league education, but she knows her value - a hard worker, creative, determined and a team player. Unfortunately, as a Wall Street temp, these qualities are taken advantage of by chauvinistic co-workers to treat her as a prostitute and to get overlooked by her bosses. Finally, when she's had enough, she risks everything to strike out on her own by posing as a high-end executive Katharine Parker (Sigourney Weaver) to make a business deal with a handsome investment broker Jack Trainer (Harrison Ford).

Though cliche and a little imperfect, Working Girl is a Cinderella story sprinkled with workplace sexism. McGill wants more than anything to prove her worth, share her ideas without a co-worker taking the credit and simply move on up the latter. Her age, gender and lack of former education hold her ambition hostage. In the most drastic ways like dressing up in her boss's clothing and setting up meetings with executives out of her professional league, she becomes her own fairy godmother. Women can be successful in a few different ways: stepping on people to stay atop the ladder, playing the game, or accepting their lot in life; using fashion, contacts, and an open ear as an opportunity to make their stamp.

The script isn't perfect, but it's a fun little romp to see who or when someone will catch onto Tess' extreme scheme. While posing as her boss, she has insatiable chemistry with the ever-charismatic Jack and tries to dodge other increasingly suspicious employees. Time isn't on her side as she cleverly pushes her ideas to the finishing line but risks people finding out she's just a secretary.

I’m not going to spend the rest of my life working my ass off and getting nowhere just because I followed rules that I had nothing to do with setting up.

Right away, Tess feels relatable, someone (a woman) who wants to work without involving sexual politics. This is primarily accomplished by Griffith as Tess; she's very subtle as a comedienne, quirky, and a fresh face that even now one would be interested in watching out for. You can see where she gets it as the daughter to Tippi Hedren, and Griffith's daughter Dakota Johnson carries the mantle now. As a second generation movie star, Griffith shares great chemistry with Harrison Ford whose dapper charm still holds up in the charisma department like hunks Clark Gable and Cary Grant.

Alongside Griffith for the ride is Sigourney Weaver, kinda unlike audiences have seen or are familiar with her before i.e. kicking ass and taking names in Aliens. Here, as Tess' boss and frenemy, she doesn't have a problem with stepping on people to get to the top, but she isn't entirely villainous. It's fun to question whether she is a true mentor or looking out for herself. Weaver is funny and sharp, and as usual, her character is not one to cross.

While the cast and story may be a little timeless, the movie is also a shocking refresher of the eighties era it's trapped in. The production design, and in particular, the costumes, are an astounding walk down memory lane, even if you didn't live through the era personally. The ginormous desktop computers, shoulder-padded suits, overwhelming perms, and gaudy make-up all come back to delight or horror.

Thirty years after this movie was released, equality in the workplace hasn't been fully achieved. The movie rightfully earned Academy Award nominations for its ladies: Griffith, Weaver, and Joan Cusack, as well as Best Picture and Director, and won for Best Original Song. Though elements of Working Girl might be outdated, but its scrappy heroine is funny, relatable, and elicits a serious case of go-getting.

Rating: ★★☆

Have you seen Working Girl? What did you think?

AMC Best Picture Showcase Weekend 2017

Just in time for the Oscars, AMC Theaters holds a back-to-back marathon of the movies nominated for Best Picture. Given the option, movie buffs can see the nominees in a 24-hour marathon or over two weekends. This is a special event my sister and I have loved participating for the past seven years!

We typically attend both weekends, but having previously seen three of the four nominees - Manchester by the Sea, Fences, Hell or High Water, La La Land - we opted to attend this past weekend's event which included Moonlight, Lion, Arrival, Hidden Figures, and Hacksaw Ridge. These are my quick thoughts on what I saw with perhaps fuller reviews to come in the future. Check out my faves at the bottom and feel free to share yours in the comments below!

Arrival (2016) inspires beauty and terror in humanity

Photo Credit: Arrival / Paramount Pictures

Aliens invading Earth forces humanity to take drastic action. Suspicion and premature counter-attacks are sparked by world leaders and civilians trying to protect themselves. What do we do to quell panic? get answers? defend our turf? Director Denis Villeneuve tackles the complexity of humanity in Arrival.

Based on Ted Chiang's short story Story of Your Life, linguist Dr. Louise Banks (Amy Adams) and physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) are recruited into a special military operation to communicate with the creatures which initially harbor ill intentions. Together, the duo work with other countries to prevent war.

The science fiction genre has had a rough go recently. Audiences can mostly count on a franchise like Star Wars to transport them to another galaxy, while others have failed to live up to the hype like Independence Day: Resurgence. Ones that aren’t quite so loud like Interstellar, which invites big ideas about human nature falls short either in the story or execution. There isn't a 'wrong kind' of sci-movie, but quietly, with its characters, story, and interaction with extraterrestrial beings, Arrival hits all of the right notes.

For one, the ever dependable Amy Adams leads with grace and complexity. Louise is wholly composed character when the end of the world hits, sticking to her normal routines like lecturing her classes and watching the news in her office. When she’s recruited by Colonel Weber (Forest Whitaker), that same sense of perseverance continues even as the government's higher-ups are counting on her to deliver. She’s resourceful to go about making contact the right way, and through her progress, we see her confusion and trepidation in a fractured environment.

Her quest isn’t about needing to see or speak to the aliens, but the beauty of language and how all races can try to understand one another. Language isn’t only verbal: it’s symbolic, visual, emotional, changes time, and derives from the intention of the giver by the receiver. You learn from the other person as you much as you may learn about yourself. Open lines of communication between person to person and country to country is vital whether or not there is an impending war going on between humans or against unknowable beings. There is beauty and terror in having the patience to not immediately go on the defensive. Even if the world itself takes a bleak turn, eerily mirroring our own shortcomings as well as our ability to connect and discover, Banks's expedition is one of endurance and tenderness.

The film's atmosphere is haunting and ethereal. Despite how chaotic the world becomes from these foreign visitors, the production design and the hypnotic score gives the journey a sense of awe and curiosity. The alien's tetrapods, in particular, are fascinating. From the outside, they are massive cocoons hovering mere feet off the ground, and inside, resemble a television stuck on a static channel as they communicate in Rorschach-test blots. The film's coloring may be muted, but the cinematography is vast as if Banks is just on the cusp of discovering life-changing secrets. The movie takes place on Earth, but one feels like we've been transported to another world.

Villeneuve has become one of the most popular directors by critics in recent years, and it’s not difficult to understand why. He has a keen sense of creating and world-building abstract ideas into intimate stories. This tale of aliens landing is gripping and patient, filled with love, hope, and determination. Almost above all else, Arrival explores human and non-human conflicts to provoke questions, and it's truly one of the best in a long time.

Rating: ★★★
Similar to: Close Encounters of The Third Kind
Have you seen Arrival? What are your thoughts?

Rome Adventure (1962) offers a languid visual treat

Photo Credit: Rome Adventure / Warner Bros.

New England librarian Prudence Bell (Suzanne Pleshette) resigns from her school after she's criticized for recommending a racy book Lovers Must Learn as part of the curriculum. Yearning for independence and navigating the art of love, a cruise to Italy introduces more courtships than she expected - Albert Stillwell, a nerdy student of Etruscan history, older perfect Roman lover Roberto Orlandi (personally my favorite), and a perfect hunky All-American Don Porter (Troy Donahue).

As a melodramatic journey of 1960s morals about love, sex, and chivalry, Rome Adventure is a picturesque romantic drama. Trailing the ingenue through her experiences, the movie travels at a leisurely pace. Using Europe as a captivating backdrop, Bell weaves in and out of the nooks of crannies of not only the country but desire, attraction, and friendship.

Beyond the geographical and human eye-candy of the male co-stars, Suzanne Pleshette is absolutely charming, and hard to believe with her grace and maturity, just twenty-five years old. Not experienced in love or romance, her character learns a lot about herself as an individual and as someone else's half, which makes her relatable. She's challenged to re-evaluate her self-value passed pure sexual attraction, a glamorous wardrobe, or an ethereal sophistication. Pleshette's doesn't necessarily give a powerhouse performance, nor does the direction really call for it, but her subtle expressions convey so much, it's hard not to be completely hypnotized by her presence.

Though Bell's earnest dalliances are fairly predictable, she shares a variety of camaraderie and courtships with all of her encounters. The chemistry  that absolutely sizzle on-screen is between Pleshette and Donahue. So much so, it's not hard to believe they married in real life after filming wrapped, though their off-screen relationship only lasted eight months.

Besides Pleshette, the production design makes up for the story's languid pace. Every frame captures the rich landscape of Italy, Switzerland, and other European landmarks allowing the cinematography to completely take you away. Someone get me a travel agent and tell them I want the Rome Adventure tour. As well, the costume design is to-die-for. No matter how unhurried the movie might be, Bell's summer getaway prudently plants the same ideas that Italy can be the place to fall in love.

Contrary to the title, Rome Adventure doesn't have an exciting bone in its body. The story is, by all means, a steady, old-fashioned drama topped with a little bit of humor and sexuality. But the leading lady and production is what will sweep you off your feet.

Rating: ★★☆ Similar movies: Under The Tuscan Sun Have you seen Rome Adventure? What are your thoughts?

Jackie (2016) elegantly reshapes American royalty

Photo Credit: Jackie / Fox Searchlight Pictures

Ask anyone of the Baby Boomer generation, and chances are they'll recall the day President John F. Kennedy was killed and how the news reverberated around the U.S. Even though history has cemented the family's legacy, as well as Jackie as a style icon, time itself, has rarely scratched the surface of the former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy's experience. That's where the intimate, poignant biopic Jackie steps in.

On November 22nd, 1963, Jack Kennedy and his wife Jackie were on a political tour through Texas when he was violently assassinated. Following Jackie through this horrendous ordeal, arthouse director Pablo Larraín dismisses the blind patriotism many biopics have taken before and dives into a non-traditional portrait of Mrs. Kennedy with a beautiful existential approach to trauma.

Swinging back and forth between the past and present, Jackie (Natalie Portman) dictates her memory of what happened on that fateful day and the immediate aftermath to Life journalist Theodore H. White (Billy Crudup). In giving the epilog of Jack's political career and her transition out of the White House, it reveals her grace under fire as she salvaged the lasting impression of her husband to grieving nation.

When movies recognize Jacqueline, it's often as the great woman behind the man, but rarely does it delve beyond the iconography of the infamous Pink Suit or the unforgettable black veil during her husband's funeral. In sculpting the final hours of his legacy we see the woman both privately and publicly.

In the midst of the tragedy as everyone looking to Jackie, it's difficult to imagine there was a time when the American Public didn't warm up to Jackie. But in the beginning of Jack's political career, her debutante behavior was actually a turn-off because she wasn't in the kitchen. In an eery premonition, her major role as First Lady was restoring the White House as a museum to deceased Presidents; elevating what was a home and workplace for the husband into a showcase of history. In almost an instant, her life becomes a question of preserving her family.

Jackie puts on quite the performance. The woman called to respond to Jack's death in front of the country is different to who she is in private to her staff, the press, Lyndon B. Johnson and his wife, Bobby Kennedy (Peter Sarsgaard), and her children. With each approach, she must consider what woman is expected of her as a new administration anxiously takes over, and she moves out of the White House.

All of this revolves around Natalie Portman who gives a demure and chilling performance. It's almost immediately forgotten that she is playing such a familiar figure. Her portrayal of Jackie isn't reserved to just imitating her voice or the physical mannerisms, but a greater reveal of anger, regret, shame, happiness, joy, prideful, and bitter rolling out in waves as the plot gradually builds to the literal shot heard around the world. As everyone around her is numbed into inaction, she's the one who takes the reigns, no matter how much everything weighs on her. Portman captures this essence of feeling like a ghost lingering in history and the classy, regal force that'll be remembered.

Between Jackie's moments by herself, with her staff, or in front of the nation, barriers are crossed between the audience and its subject. Her post-traumatic stress and bereavement are brushed in all different strokes of contemplative calm and terror. A cold formality lingers in the aftermath of the fatality with the grand procession and majesty of his burial. The lengths she goes to pursues the question if it was for her husband's benefit, to quench her own ego, or mourn with the public. Using original and archived historical footage, as well as a haunting score by Mica Levi, Lorrain's sweeping film is an intimate and haunting biopic. It's not a typical examination of worshiping the Kennedys and recognizes that Jackie in the movie is different to how we see or imagine her as outsiders. Jackie is an ethereal monument to a woman who shaped American royalty.

RATING: ★★★

Have you seen Jackie? What are your thoughts?

Christine (2016) tragically predicts our sensationalist world

Photo Credit: Christine / The Orchard

Based on a true story, Christine Chubbuck (Rebecca Hall) is an ambitious journalist for a local Sarasota tv station. Her immense dedication to simple yet meaningful human interest pieces is compromised when upper management intends to increase ratings for sensationalist news. 'If it bleeds, it leads' becomes the new standard, and Chubbuck struggles to match the style going as far as killing herself on-air.

Despite knowing the outcome of Chubbuck's life for this biopic, Christine intensely and thoughtfully delves into her mindset and struggles, especially mental health.

Just shy of her 30th birthday, Chubbuck is a person unto herself. She's never been involved with someone romantically, closes off from potential friendships, and has a complicated relationship with her mother. Getting married and having children is on her future itinerary, but it's sideswiped by plaguing health issues both physical and emotional. A lingering depression pushes her perseverance in the best and worst ways from an iron-fist like grip on her standards to an inability to communicate her needs to others. Despite her wanting more personal relationships, she's left with only a job, one of the utmost integrity in her eyes, to occupy her time which becomes the last thing she has to hold onto.

Rebecca Hall gives a tremendous performance portraying Chubbuck's downward spiral. Much of her character's personality and behavior is internalized. She has a tough time expressing herself to others, and when she does it's self-deprecating, retaliatory, or as harsh bursts of judgment towards herself. Both professionally and personally, Chubbuck continually asks questions, but tries to possess all the answers; a misfit who tries so hard to act as normally as everyone else does. Self-inflicted and environmental pressure weigh on her ability to handle and control what goes on in the studio, at home, and during telecasts. Hall's portrait is passionate and subtle capturing multiple sides of how her character feels: kindness, sympathy, detail-obsessed, hard-working, burdensome, self-conscious. She doesn't limit herself to one trait or another but undergoes many different emotional hurdles at once.

Like mental health itself, Chubbuck's struggles are a conglomerate of issues. In contrast to Chubbuck, other characters like Maria Dizzia (Jean Reed), weatherman Steve Turner (Timothy Simons), and on-air anchor George Peter Ryan (Michael C. Hall) have faced obstacles, but found ways to cope or "not dwell on everything". There's a nice mix of people surrounding Chubbuck who try to be her friend or let her be her own person. Before the inevitable ending, the movie hints at possibilities if she didn't judge herself too harshly or unloaded her burdens onto someone without feeling burdensome, if she got fuller treatment for her depression. There's no way of knowing what could've happened if her life played out differently, but the brief inclusion shows the script's thoughtfulness to its leading character.

Christine as film is a fascinating feat as a biopic considering Chubbuck's life isn't well-documented. Screenwriter Craig Shilowich interviewed previous colleagues and researched news pieces to create what he could of Chubbuck. He also connected to her depression making the project a personal examination of his own experiences, and one that movie goers who suffer from depression may relate to it deeply. Considering how many biopics over-indulge in someone's life to justify the commercial appeal, the movie is an impressive and intimate character study.

Director Antonio Campos adequately recreates the 1970s from the news stations equipment, occasional overgrown sideburns, and flared pants. The era serves mostly as a backdrop to its leading lady. At most, when Chubbuck concocts an idea to try to fit in with the new rules, the soundtrack kicks in with a catchy news-track similar to what a viewer would hear turning into News Update from Saturday Night Live or 60 minutes. Her life was her job, and it fittingly plays into Chubbuck's 'grasping at straws' brainstorming and avoids being a cheap attempt to be more stylistic.

A common criticism is the film's "exploitative nature", which wasn't the case at all to me. Softly in the background, the story focuses on sensationalism turning into "hard hitting news", mostly on Chubbuck's attempts to be promoted and her work validated. On the cusp of Watergate, and history forever holding it up as a daring example of journalism, the era's sexist nature ultimately cups her ambition - no matter the desperate lengths she goes to. Adding to the depth of her death, Chubbuck is more of a prophet having seen the graphic nature news would venture, and she wanted to hold onto her integrity. Regardless of her fate, culture carved its own path, fueled by click-bait titles and attracting readers into violent-gossipy articles to make gruesome acts appear glamorous. The movie doesn't make her a poster-girl for how our world would turn out, leaving the parallels of the media and her final moments a poignant tragedy.

Many celebrities or public figures, maybe even people we know or are well-acquainted with, who suffer a downward spiral aren't looking for fifteen minutes of fame as the news often reports; they're crying out to be seen and heard. This point is well-established throughout, and it's difficult to not feel relatable to her in many ways. Slow-burning and tactful, Christine is a fascinating examination of a woman in a man's world, her mental illness, and going to extremes as a devastating last resort.

RATING: ★★★

Have you seen Christine What are your thoughts?

Fences (2016) is a marvelous home run

Photo Credit: Fences / Paramount Pictures

Sometimes we build fences to keep people out, but those same barriers can keep their loved ones locked in. In Fences, this gripping realization chips away for the Maxson family. Set in the 1950s against the backdrop of Pittsburgh, Troy's (Denzel Washington) marriage to wife Rose (Viola Davis), lost potential and responsibilities of as a father, husband, and man buckle under his own personal demons and the limitations of the times.

Like most theatrical adaptations, the performances and script deliver all of the emotional action to give a wildly complex study of characters. This is completely true of Washington's adaptation of the August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play.

At the center of this complicated drama is Washington and Davis bursting with restless energy. Imprisoned by the nature of the era, Troy and Rose have raised a family together but their compromises have kept them coiled to each other for good and bad reasons. They share an enduring love tainted by the sacrifices as a husband/wife/mother/father/etc. and the imposed repercussions of the Jim-Crow era.

Troy: It's not easy for me to admit that I've been standing in the same place for eighteen years!

Rose: Well, I've been standing with you! I gave eighteen years of my life to stand in the same spot as you!

Troy and Rose are very different sides of the same coin. Troy waxes philosophical about life, duties, and responsibilities, hammering out tough love to his sons and wife, but fails to recognize the hypocrisy of his actions. Washington brings to life an imperfect man who does despicable things to deal with his existential crisis.

As his counterpart, Davis as Rose is a force to be reckoned with. As much as Troy dwells on all that he gives to his family, rarely if ever does he understand how much Rose has given in order to sustain their marriage. Having faced and faces the same trials as he, she's buried her dreams and let them be forgotten, but continued to forge on ahead with a silent resolute nature. Life, and Troy, has taken its toll until the final straw breaks prompt a poignant almost impossible strength.

Impressively, theatrical adaptations of a play often rely on the playwright's work to deliver all of the action - unless the direction or script is drastically altered to be more blockbuster. As Troy's family square off against each other, the script rarely feels like there is a dull moment.

Washington's experience of the play as an actor, and now director and leading role pushes him to he executes how a play of such timely significance could be adapted. The city of Pittsburgh bustles in the background as this nook puts a generational, cultural, and historical experience on display. His focus of the Maxson's family places them solely in a minimalist and intimate environment; their claustrophobic backyard acts as a boxing ring for fights, confessions, criticism and speeches. Wilson's story grows seamlessly into three acts, lending a balanced examination to all of the characters.

Fences is a centerpiece of titanic performances and deliver as an adaptation. Washington executes the story as if you were attending a play on film but stand on its own. His work as a director and the cast is a gripping character study and a marvelous home run.

RATING: ★★★ Have you seen Fences What are your thoughts?

La La Land (2016) lacks that little something extra

Photo Credit: La La Land / Summit Entertainment

Every city shimmers with stars trying to outshine their hardships. Making dreams comes true isn't easy, but the aspirations people hold offer a long forgotten hope and determination hidden underneath the daily grind. As is the centerpiece of Damien Chazelle's musical-drama La La Land.

Set against the vast landscape of Los Angeles, Mia Dolan (Emma Stone) is an aspiring actress working on the Warner Bros. lot serving as a barista to film stars. Every chance she has the striving starlet heads out to an audition and faces the grueling cycle of rejection and perseverance. When she meets Sebastian Wilder (Ryan Gosling), a struggling jazz pianist, they grapple with getting by and pushing each other forward.

Straight out of the gate, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling are a charming duet. Having worked together in two films before, they share an undeniable camaraderie that translates to the big screen. Together and separately, they speak so much to the struggle and glory of abandoning a day job when everything they do may be in pursuit of their dream. Their characters' relationship adds a gradual weight of questioning themselves and each other. Dancing and singing, loving and fighting, they create relatable characters and deliver earnest performances.

Another delightful and unexpected character is Los Angeles. Every location like Mia's apartment or Seb's bar is more than a backdrop; it teems with energy, hope, validation, success, failure. Efforts by the costume, cinematography, and music make the city absolutely electric. Between brushes with celebrities, old landmarks tarnished and celebrated by modernity, and the cast's trepidation and excitement to put themselves out there over and over again, there's so much life bursting beneath Hollywood Hills. California dreaming may be the setting here, but it also gives everyone a new chance to think of their own little corner of the world and how it gleams with ambition and longing.

You've got the glory, you gotta take the little heartaches that go with it. - Singing in the Rain

Though the acting is delightful and the story brims with touching highs and lows, critics' comparisons that this movie completely resurrects the musical genre once led by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, or Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds, is a little misleading.

Chazelle's bittersweet championing of artists for La La Land is drastically different than his unabashed hit Whiplash, not just in style but also somewhat in quality. While the latter may not be considered an official musical, Chazelle's ability to express sacrifice and abuse between mentor and student through jazz with tight editing in an intense pace is masterful. Here, Chazelle channels 1950s Tinseltown but his attention to detail doesn't feel as sharp. The musical sequences start as imaginative but grow repetitive by just dropping a spotlight. Though the film references are neat for movie buffs, and it's totally impressive to create a modern musical with original songs instead of adapting another Broadway hit, some touches feel like an aesthetic choice; some seem deliberate, some seem random, and the mixture misses opportunities to flesh out the tone he's aiming for.

Unlike Michel Hazanavicius' vision with The Artist to recreate a silent film, Chazelle shines his attention much more on Sebastian's quest than MGM spectacles via Busby Berkley, Vincente Minelli, or the studio system in general. And this does a disservice to Mia whose journey becomes a little too befuddled by the audition-rejection machine. Her devotion to storytelling, an one-woman show, and admiration of film or its icons beyond the occasional Ingrid Bergman poster and takes a gradual backseat to all things jazz.  This isn't to say that there aren't nods to Old Hollywood at all, just that her love of acting or movies or creating characters doesn't speak volumes the way I thought it could. What really blooms with nostalgia is Justin Hurwitz's animated score and how the production uses 'old' and 'new' film styles to share the character's struggles - even if it doesn't hit all the right notes.

Ultimately, the film's retro elements emulate the characters' expectations while reality is much more of a contemporary drama.

Mia and Sebastian's joy and pain spring about in whimsical declarations and somber melodies, a dance among the stars to whistled musings along a pier at sunset. Their hopes and doubts are illuminated with bold sets and vibrant costumes a la Singing In The Rain or American In Paris. When reality interjects with sacrifice, rejection, and facing failure, the movie tones down on those cinematic sensations. 'Cause the unfortunate drawback of our desires is that sometimes reality is nothing to sing about; people have to make ends meet or live up to their own expectations. Dreams lift us up, and reality can grind us down harshly. Both avenues are engaging, but it does feel like there is more drama than musical.

Much like the vintage film factory where average Joes and Janes toiled away to be in showbiz, La La Land draws on conflict and compromise of dreams. Life may not be as easy as it looks in the grand movies we lose ourselves in, but sometimes seeing it through Technicolor glasses goes a long way. Chazelle celebrates creatives with Stone and Gosling delivering buoyant and warm performances. Though Chazelle's musical-drama left me inspired and deeply contemplative, it's not as tightly constructed as his previous work. It does, however, leave goosebumps, butterflies, and a lasting impression to the fools who dream and the mess we make.

RATING: ★★☆

Have you seen La La Land What are your thoughts?

Sully (2016) struggles to stay afloat

Photo Credit: Sully / Warner Bros Pictures

It's often said that everyday heroes aren't born, they're made. With years of experience and dedication behind them, gut instinct or intuition manages to override logistics. When a miracle trumps all the odds, it's easy to be skeptical or to think it's blind luck. All of this culminated with an on-screen adaptation of true events about Captain Chesley Sullenberger (Tom Hanks) landing his passenger flight on the Hudson River to save everyone on board, and the attention it received as the Miracle on the Hudson.

Brought to life by veteran director Clint Eastwood, Sully is a combination of the events leading up to this unexpected landing and the aftermath. The story touches on a bit of everything like Sully's past his post-traumatic stress after the crash, the world's frenzy around his heroics, and his pragmatic ability to handle the press.

Though the movie is in experienced hands, it's not very clear what Eastwood's intention is. He certainly builds a heart-pounding recreation of Sully's flight from take-off to the landing, but other parts of the movie tries too much to be a biopic while capturing the insurance investigation he faces from the airline. Scenes dealing his shaky life at home feels cold and distant compared to the detail of Sully and the first-responders' actions bringing hope to New York City after 9/11.

Fortunately, Hanks makes the film take flight. His Sully is fairly pragmatic and dedicated to his job. Nothing of what he, his crew or the passengers survived could be trained for. Yet his entire career of transporting millions of people around the world and thousands of flights is judged on 208 seconds, and the experience he has to make the necessary calls. It's truly astounding and frustrating when he comes under fire for saving more than a hundred people as the inexplicable outcome is challenged as a fluke. Hanks is profoundly polished as Sully balances his worry of having failed his crew and the passengers, and the odd fad of becoming famous for what he did. It's one of his sharpest performances to date.

Hanks isn't entirely on his own. Every actor or extra like the first-responders, host of skeptic insurance agents, and his legion of admirers feel authentic. Aaron Eckhart as First Officer Jeffrey Skiles, in particular, has a refreshing sense of professional camaraderie as he and Sully's rapport is humorous and amiable. Despite dramatically re-enacting the whole incident from take-off to crash and the consequences, every scene feels sincere and avoids being over-the-top like many 'disaster' flicks.

Sully is a fitting addition to Eastwood's string of films focusing on All-American figures like J.Edgar, Jersey Boys and American Sniper. The story itself is fascinating, especially for those who remember the incident on the news but wasn't quite sure of all the details. Hanks' performance and the Miracle on the Hudson is an inspiring, distinct reminder of the human spirit, even if Eastwood's vision struggles to stay afloat.
Rating: ★★☆ Have you seen Sully What are your thoughts?

Bridget Jones Trilogy Review

Photo Credit: Miramax Films / Universal Pictures

Bridget Jones is one of my all-time favorite film characters. The trilogy itself might exaggerate love as all romantic comedies do, but its heroine doesn't adhere to the improbable Hollywood standards. You know the kinds: the hot forbidden but normal-enough-looking girl next door who manages to be the cool girl most guys want in every situation. Or the Manic Pixie Dream Girl. ETC.

No, Bridget is something else. She's self-destructive but determined; idealistic; flighty and charming; pressured by society about dating, marriage, and body, but tries to be single-minded. And, it's been quite the treat and torment to watch her journey through Bridget Jones's Diary, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, and Bridget Jones's Baby.

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them (2016) casts a mediocre spell

Photo Credit: Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them / Warner Bros. Pictures

Five years ago the Harry Potter film franchise ended. I would've never believed then J.K. Rowling would be at it again. But her endless imagination apparates again to the big screen with an adaptation of the Hogwart's fictional textbook Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them.

Based in the 1920s, magizoologist Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) briefly travels to New York City while en route to Arizona. Unaware of the U.S. wizarding government's ban on magical beasts, Scamander's creatures are in danger when they're accidentally set loose. No-Maj - American equivalent to Muggle - Jacob Kowalski (Dan Folger), a former Auror Tina Goldstein (Katharine Waterston) and her sister Queenie (Allison Sudol) team up with the British native to catch his critters before the wizarding world is exposed.

Veteran Harry Potter director David Yates returns to helm this next franchise with Rowling tackling the role of screenwriter. By reputation, this duo have some fair expectations to live up to but also the freedom to start from scratch. Introducing a new collection of characters into a familiar setting is no easy feat, and together they conjure an enjoyable flick.

Mainly we ride the Hufflepuff coattails of bashful and awkward Scamander. He's naturally more comfortable with animals than people, but instead of fully succumbing to a fear of not fitting in, he protects his unique "beasts" from being abused or mistreated by other wizards. His creatures are absolutely adorable (GIVE ME A NIFFLER AND BOW TRUCKLE NOW PLEASE), and the story lovingly explores his struggling relationship with humanity.

Along with him for the ride are two witches and a No-Maj. Career gal Tina Goldstein might do anything to get back into the President's good graces but her doubts against Scamander are transformed by his sweet but oblivious nature. Her vivacious sister Queenie uses her telepathic gifts to help, and they all develop a close friendship with Jacob (beautifully played by Folger). Each character is connected by the world ostracizing them. Their humility, warmth, and kindness unites them to face mayhem and create a little mischief together.

But a few other minor characters bewitched my interest a little bit more. No-Maj Mary Lou Barebone (Samantha Morton) runs a horrific crusade against witches and wizards. She takes advantage of impoverished children by invoking fear of evil and witchcraft to earn their trust and implement her beliefs. One of her children, a traumatized teenager Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller), is secretly taken advantage of by a mysterious wizard (Colin Farrell). Morton's intimidating presence, alongside Farrell's dark intentions, creates quite a startling difference from Scamander's humorous escapades. As a trio, they effectively stand-out, especially Miller. Their scenes could've been a fascinating movie of it's own.

Like the Harry Potter films, the locations are almost characters themselves. The production splendidly swoops us into another dimension. Costume designer Colleen Atwood never fails to create beautiful wardrobes befitting everyone's personality. Veteran Harry Potter production designer Stuart Craig creates wonderful to disturbing landscapes with the dark Barebone house to the opulent Magical Congress of the United States, and Tina and Queenie's homely apartment. While there might be a bit of CGI explosion to cover Scamander's creatures, every tiny production element lends a great deal to how this era of magic looks and feels.

Unfortunately, the gamble to make this movie a prequel and give Scamander is his own adventure doesn't come without a few problems. Some of it exists merely in our Muggle world such as controversies over white-washing, Rowling's distortion of Native American legends, and news of Johnny Depp's casting. For the movie itself, Rowling creates intriguing characters but she doesn't fully flesh out the story. The bulk of the plot even reminded me of the super-disorganizedSuicide Squad. 'A band of misfits tracks down unjustifiable threats in the city, only to be thwarted by an unstoppable superpower who is manipulated by an unsuspecting antagonist.' The plot between the two is inherently the same, just a bit more fantastical for the latter.

Fantastic Beasts welcomes us back to the wizarding world, but its intricate details often contradict each other. This mostly stems from Rowling toying with allegory and segregation, but not firmly establishing them - either as obstacles that should come into play against Scamander or for the xenophobia she touches upon. One-half of the story centers on her rules of both societies, and the other half is a pure delightful escape. They often give the impression of being different movies instead of complimenting each other.

Out of everything, David Yates might've delivered one of his better directorial work for the Potter series, even if it has pacing issues. There's nothing not to love about Rowling's new band of misfits and villains. The only issue is that the movie tries to do its own thing, but allow her to drop hints for the future. Which even being fully aware that more movies are on the way, it's a slight shame this doesn't feel complete. As much as I'll probably revisit this spectacular world again in the future - inevitably, it is still Harry Potter - this tale struggled to be the spellbinding cinematic return I anticipated.

Rating: ★★☆

Have you seen Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them? What did you think?

5 Reasons You Need To Watch What We Do In The Shadows (2014)

Photo Credit: What We Do In The Shadows / Madman Entertainment

Throughout literature, television, and film, vampires are typically presented as horrifying and tantalizing creatures of the night: dark, brooding, waiting to feast on innocent people. Hidden under centuries of scary (and humanizing) lore, What We Do In The Shadows brings to light just how funny vampires can be.

I hadn't heard of this movie but had seen the fandom for it flourish all over Tumblr. Not knowing much about the flick, something propelled me to check this out as soon as I could. And it totally does not disappoint! In fact, it's pretty much become my latest obsession. I dare say the same thing may happen to you. Here are 5 Reasons You Will Really Love What We Do In The Shadows.

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The Story
In the same vein of mockumentaries like This Is Spinal Tap and The Office, director and writers Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi team up to spotlight a group of vampires sharing a flat together in Wellington, New Zealand. Hundreds of years apart in age and originating from all over the world, the vamps get along pretty well as they address their domestic concerns like chores, avoiding daybreak, getting dressed without seeing their reflection, and unusual obstacles while hunting humans. Tensions start to rise when a recently turned Nick brings danger to their doorstep.

The story has a great balance of hilariously showing the every-evening struggles it takes to be a vampire and actually having a bit of a plot. Is being a 'bloodsucker' all that it's cracked up to be? Well, the results are bloody funny. Believe the hype this movie's earned.

Awesome Quotes
A small worry of mine before seeing the movie was that it would be too raunchy or a one-note Twilight parody. (There is use of blood and curse words but it's not excessive.) It's pretty surprising how many references are made about other vampiric icons, but still manages to do its own thing, offering a lot of one-liners and jokes. I'm not sure I've ever laughed so hard!

Yeah some of our clothes are from victims. You might bite someone and then, you think, 'Oooh, those are some nice pants!

I go for a look which I call dead but delicious.

We're vampires, we don't put down towels!

(gif) The Worldbuilding
While world-building mostly centers on the batty fiends, it's pretty impressive how engaging the setting is. When they have run-ins with werewolves and humans, this underworld is something you can easily sink your teeth into. The werewolves made me howl with hysterics, even if they are not in the movie a lot. Nothing feels forced or tries to tackle too much with too little characterization or story. I kinda want to live in this fictional yet realistic world (but not really 'cause of immortality and killing people like #vampirethings.)

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Mix of Old and New
The mockumentary is a delightful mix of old and new. Humans are supposed to be purely off-limits except to serve as victims or to be turned. But Stu is pretty amazing - he's a software analyst who helps the housemates sink their teeth into the times and technology. We're along for the ride as they learn to text and use the internet. The crew's house is typically old-school filled with portraits and antiques. But the movie itself is delightfully modern complete with familiar gags while introducing them to the 21st century.

Favorite New Squad

Of course, I couldn't leave out the main characters. Maybe it's just me but the reputation of vamps has become a little bit repetitive over the years; the dark and brooding mystique often expressed in a story that tries to humanize them via a romance or their struggles to completely accept their transformations. Well, here, the crew is still humanized but by how eccentric they all are. Each behaves in a unique way depending on when they turned, who they love(d), and what gifts they have (flight, hypnosis, etc).

Viago (left) is the cinnamon roll, a bit self-conscious and cautious of how he targets his victims. For as old as he is, he never seems to quite get the hang of it. His tale of holding onto a lost love makes him an even sweeter dandy.

Deacon (middle) is a low-fi Polish ex-Nazi who loves to display his sensual dancing side. He's easily jealous but quick to defend his friends when someone tries to cross them. He also isn't a very take-charge vamp, as he has his familiar Jackie take care of most of his bidding.

Due to a humiliating loss in a battle against famed legend known as The Beast, Vladislav (right) isn't the best at his psychic abilities nor animal transfiguration, but he truly does try - to hysterical effects.

Petyr (not pictured) likes to spend time alone in his stone crypt, but one steely-eyed glance with this 8,000-year-old Nosferatu and you can't help but love him.

Each character is unique, and they don't get along perfectly, but it's believable enough to think these guys have been roomies for hundreds of years. Together, they makeup one hell of a goth squad - and probably your favorite new one too.

10 Cloverfield Lane (2016) changes the spin-off game

Photo Credit: 10 Cloverfield Lane / Paramount Pictures

Monsters come in many forms. Michelle (Mary Winstead Elizabeth) encounters a series of her own when she wakes up in an underground shelter after a brutal car accident. She's being held hostage by a paranoiac ex-Navy man Howard (John Goodman), who claims he didn't just save her from the horrific wreckage but a hostile enemy invasion. Faced with mind-games within the absurd refuge and the loom of an apocalypse, she is forced to decide whether the person who claims to rescue her is as dangerous as the unidentifiable threats she's protection against.

Hollywood has attempted the innocent-woman-held-captive trope time and time again. A lot of films in the genre merely torture-porn babes and commits to violence for violence's sake to cheap effect. Another go of this type of flick doesn't seem strictly necessary, but producer J.J. Abrams and his team prove it's worth another try. By transforming those worn-out elements, they create a surprising game-changer.

Claustrophobic and engaging, 10 Cloverfield Lane meshes the action of a budding end-of-the-world scenario with psychological teases. The story's atmosphere and Howard's apparent safe haven is full of misdirection and suspense that calls into question: where is safe? what is the truth?

Michelle's fate is challenged in the all the best and terrifying ways. By making her a confident and resourceful heroine, she uses every weapon - both intelligence and with the tools at hand - to challenge her fate. A lot of the film's thrills walks the fine line between her (and another captive Emmett) letting her guard down to accept the truth and staying suspicious because some facts are not what they seem. Played awesomely by Mary Winstead Elizabeth, she is such a kick-ass character in this genre.

Her feat is challenged by an environment that is emotionally and physically confining. Plenty of evidence supports that deadly forces have invaded humankind, which makes it difficult to maneuver whether or not it's even smart or safe to venture outside. The mood is toyed with how Howard's dwelling is like a dream conspiratorial theorists' tiny home. It's completely decked out in not only food, water, and filtered air but fully furnished kitchen, dining room, living room, games, music, and movies. The familiar, even nostalgic, atmosphere is cozy and trusting. But it's all remnants of what life was before and it merely masks the tension in the air.

On top of which, surviving either means playing house with Howard or making an escape - and neither choice seems to be in her definite favor. John Goodman is brilliant as the unhinged survivalist. He is calm and collected with a touch of creepy one second, and then completely enraged the next. His backstory and Michelle's survival greatly navigates between letting your guard down and unpredictable twists. There's a definite sway between acquiescing to rules in order to keep the peace and trying to understand what lurks behind his conspiratorial beliefs.

Like it's predecessor Cloverfield, the story doesn't center on creatures versus humans. This sequel's quest (which also works as a standalone) is much more than facing scary monsters in an apocalypse, but also conquering monsters in human form who have to be endured or defeated in order to survive. Twists sprinkled throughout the film never lets the story rest on a captured woman or cheap violence. With refreshing characters and effective suspense, 10 Cloverfield Lane is a worthy thriller.

Rating: ★★★ Have you seen 10 Cloverfield Lane? What are your thoughts?

Galaxy Quest (1999) inspires us to never surrender our fandom

Photo Credit: Galaxy Quest / Dreamworks Pictures

Galaxy Quest is a very clever satire, mixing fans' passion for science-fiction and highlighting the best and corniest aspects of its entertainment with clever homages.

At the height of its popularity, a fictionalized sci-fi soap opera Galaxy Quest was canceled. The riveting cliffhanger involving Cmdr. Peter Quincy Taggart (Tim Allen) and his crew are left to the imagination of hardcore fans in cult corners and fan conventions. Science fiction proves to be all too real when the dysfunctional cast is greeted by real aliens who misinterpreted their tv show as facts and are calling on them to save their race.

Parodies are a particularly challenging film to pull off. Films like Scary Movie or Epic Movie start off with decent ideas to spotlight inconsistencies and zany cliches but then it's enterprise is warped by absurd and irrelevant jokes. Galaxy Quest, on the other hand, is a totally fun ride notating just how quirky, heartfelt, and bold the genre is while honoring the big role fans play in its success.

Using Star Trek and similar franchises as it's backdrop, the movie latches onto details that a variety of viewers can understand from the most hardcore Trekkies to most general movie goer. The story (even if it has a plot-hole or two the size of a black hole) and the script makes entertaining references everyone has seen at some time- like the suave captain who takes his shirt off for no reason, fans knowing more about a spacecraft's technology than the actual crew, the unaccredited crew member who is doomed to die, the cross-species romance subplot, and so much more.

With all the little nods aside, one of the best ways Galaxy Quest spoofs beloved various series is how the cast resents or embrace the lasting impact of their one hit wonder.

One of my favorites is Sigourney Weaver as Gwen DeMarco, or Lt. Tawny Madison. (The other credited actor is below). Her main role is to repeat every command the computer responds to or gives. She represents the token female character who isn't given much to do except look hot. (Doesn't this sound like a few franchises nowadays?) Despite her lack of agency fans dress up as her to value her inner strength, sure but also question whether the torrid chemistry DeMarco has with Tim Allen's Commander was genuine. When Gwen's mates recognize the ridiculousness of her role, she owns up to it but does it anyway with authority. The movie scoring Sigourney Weaver to portray Gwen takes the movie to another level of meta brilliance.

And there is also Alan Rickman as Alexander Dane. Similar to the "don't want to be recognized only as Luke/Spock' phases Mark Hammill and Leonard Nimoy went through, Dane is entirely over his involvement in the franchise. He can't stomach repeating catch-phrases and making appearances, yet for all the lamenting he does, it is uniquely a part of him; a role he can't even shake off when he's at home. Rickman delivers a wonderful performance, putting his underrated timing and humor to great use.

For a movie that's seventeen years old, Galaxy Quest achieves an impressive feat by being highly aware of how geek culture supports, and nearly rescues, the cast from their own intergalactic demise. To great surprise, upon the film's initial release, it was a hit not only with Star Trek's Trekkies but even actors from the series like George Takei and Patrick Stewart. Even though the landscape of the genre and it's devotees has changed since 1999, the movie stays surprisingly relevant with age.

Beaming up the power of sci-fi and its earthling admirers, the movie was way ahead of its time. Galaxy Quest affectionately celebrates eccentricities within this ever-growing community: the conventions, actors dealing with the pros and cons of a canceled franchise, its tropes, and the fans. It doesn't skewer or point fingers, casting the genre or fans out to be bad or weird. In fact, with comedy, action, and heartfelt respect, it teaches to never give up, never surrender your fandom.
Rating: ★★★ Have you seen Galaxy Quest? What are your thoughts?

Ghostbusters (2016) stands on its own two feet

Photo Credit: Ghostbusters / Columbia Pictures

Dr. Erin Gilbert (Kristin Wiig) is a quirky physics professor whose bid for tenure is put on hold when a former friend obsessed with the paranormal Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy) and her zany engineer Dr. Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon) republishes a book they wrote about the supernatural. In exchange for removing the book from publication, Gilbert assists the duo to investigate a possible haunting.

When their investigation turns out to be a real phenomenon, the group decides to open a ghostbusting business, soon adding Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones) into the mix. This being 2016, the gals' work soon faces backlash from online spectators and band together to save New York City from an impending supernatural apocalyptic event.

Even though the movie features some of the biggest comedians around today, my two biggest reservations were the movie's comedic tone and the cast. Comedy and action flicks today have a knack for breaking the fourth wall to become super awkward in landing punchlines. This, coupled with not being big fans of Wiig's work and worrying that McCarthy would only be on a roll of sweary tirades and pratfalls, my expectations for the movie were low at first. How the flick was going to fare was like gambling to cross the streams and praying it pays off.

Payoff, the movie really did. Director Paul Feig with screenwriter Katie Dippold pack in enough action, comedy, and heartfelt team spirit to create one heck of a ride. The script subtly follows thee original but stays unique in all the right places. They commit to doing their own thing, and deal with the extensive offline backlash, but not forget where their inspiration sprang. Their adventure isn't concerned with being flashy or "rewriting film history", just with being entertaining, giving more actors a chance to shine, and celebrating friendship.

The cast is truly a revelation, especially Wiig and McCarthy and how I imagined them. They step out of their comfort zones and don't rest on their trademark personalities. Gilbert and Yates are sensible, pragmatic and quirky leaders of the pack with McKinnon's Holtzmann and Jones' Tolan are not too far behind. There's no doubt these women are funny in their own right, whether I'm a fan of them or not, but the cast shares more than just camaraderie through comedy. Their characters use brains, brawn, and sisterhood to take down some nasty, creepy ghosts; it's downright awesome.

However, even though the movie takes two steps forward with its leads, Hemsworth and the villain both take a complexity hit. Chris Hemsworth's role as the beefcake secretary Kevin is dumber than dumb and is pretty useless. The villain, too, a creepy demon responsible for unleashing the ghosts on New York City is just a-okay. The epic finale between the Ghostbusters versus supernatural bestows some epic special effects, but the demon himself isn't entirely threatening and a little too forgettable. It would've been nice and even better if they weren't merely stand-ins (hot or not).

After so many reboots and remakes, it's a good skill to learn how to distinguish the old from the new. Ghostbusters didn't hold a lot of hype for me in the beginning, but it really exceeded my expectations. In the opposite effect of Suicide Squad's trailers over-promising, Ghostbusters' promotions under-delivered. The cast is so much fun and their characters achieve so many levels of kick-assery. Feig's movie doesn't clone the original and manages to stand on its own and beyond the hype. Let's go!

Rating: ★★★

Have you seen Ghostbusters? What are your thoughts?

Gender Swapping Takes Hollywood by Storm (and we're already tired of it)

After the critically-praised and box office failure Ghostbusters (2016), Hollywood is on a roll with not just remakes in general, but ones featuring gender-swapping. The latest is a female-centered Ocean's Eight set to star Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Rihanna, Helena Bonham Carter, Mindy Kaling and Awkwafina. Upon release of this news, a supposed Ocean's Eleven fanclub came out in protest with battle cries of "How could women do this?" and "Hollywood has run out of ideas".But it's not like remakes are anything new.

Consider: the newly announced A Star Is Born (2018) is a remake of A Star Is Born (1976) which is a remake of A Star Is Born (1954) which is a remake of A Star Is Born (1937). The upcoming Steven Soderburgh produced Ocean's Eight feels right at home in following Soderburgh's remake franchise of the original Frank Sinatra version from 1960. (Is your head's spinning yet? Mine is. *sigh*)

If most stories in books to comic books and films are recycled and remakes have existed since yesteryear, is gender-swapping a problem? how do we solve it?

As superhero franchises, adaptations, sequels, and spin-offs take over the movie calendar, remakes prove Hollywood has run out of ideas. And, gender swapping may gradually worsen the genre's already poor reputation.

As female actors replace roles previously assumed by male actors, news of the casting is designed to create buzz. However, the news is more or less coming across as boring. Instead of movie goers growing excited about the go-to tool Hollywood is using to get butts into the seats, it seems flipping sexes is only engaging people into man or woman hating. Adding to the misogyny and misandry pot, flicks focusing on female gender-swapping receive more negative feedback than male-swapping.

Splash is another remake on the chopping block. The film centers on Tom Hanks' Allen falling in love with a woman who is secretly a mermaid and living out this wild fantasy of being her beau. In the newer version, Channing Tatum will star as the merman while and Jillian Bell takes over Hank's role. The details have already received positive support across the board. As audiences ride the waves until Tatum scales the scene, Ocean's Eight is already looking to avoid a misogynist reception.

In all of this effort to empower performers and audiences, Hollywood is essentially missing the point. Women can offer more representation without having to be forever associated with re-creating "men's films". Or without the one male role in a female-flick being the sexy idiot. The truest way for remakes to succeed is not to just switch sexes, but ensure that the quality in how characters are written, directed, and portrayed is good or better than the average remake.

Ghostbusters might have not been a box office success, but it was praised by critics and audiences for giving women the opportunity to be seen as funny, smart, and capable individuals who kick ghoulish asses. It's one of the reasons I loved the revamp, and the same could be said for Ocean's Eight if turns out that all of this gender-swapping is just white noise. But the vitriol reception director Paul Fieg's recreation received cast the film into the ether before it's official release, only furthering a reflection of rampant sexism. And it hasn't halted Dan Aykroyd's plans for his all-male reboot set.

Real opportunity for layered characters exists. But Ghostbusters failed in this regard when it came to Chris Hemsworth's role. As tongue-in-cheek commentary on the male gaze, he's pretty much reduced to the beefcake secretary, he's funny but dumber than dumber and just there to be a eye candy. While there's nothing wrong to slobber over celebrity hotness, the Thor actor wasn't used to the best of his abilities - especially considering his hilarious stunts hosting SNL. Just like the wives in the Ocean's Eleven movies, he's almost so useless he might as well not be in the movie. The movie has great female leads, but his performance is surface-level.

One of the positive qualities Hollywood has going for it with gender-swapping is that, like Ghostbusters, it might improve representation and raise the bar of speaking roles versus shedding clothes. Women, while replacing men, have an opportunity to make their casts as diverse as possible, opening more opportunities to women of color gracing the screen too. However, critics are trying to use the history of women being treated as objects to excuse men to pay their dues. It's sad, that so far, gender swapping is limiting performers into one-dimension.

A dire doubt emerges in these seas of clones: if studios are so focused on remaking male-dominated films, do they believe women can't sell movies? that it's advantageous to tie them to a previously "masculine" franchise? What will happen to our own unique stories if Ghostbusters and Ocean's Eight aren't simply creative anomalies?

In 2015, director George Miller created post-apocalypse action thriller Mad Max: Fury Road. No harm, no foul, the flick was the fourth installment of his series, and it still proved to be one of the most innovative, game-changing movies of that year and years to come. Additionally, women weren't the only driving force of the film, but the production team such as the editor were the heart of his crazy, imaginative adventure. Meanwhile Tom Hardy's Mad Max nor the villain Immortan Joe were reduced to tropes. It wasn't just a "she movie" or a "he movie"; it transcended type in more ways than one.

The remake genre is notorious for sucking. Fresh stories ignite imagination so much more than cardboard cut-outs. Unfortunately, wholly original mainstream movies that aren't a spin-off, an adaptation, a sequel, apart of a franchise or a remake seem all too rare. In actuality, movies should incorporate all people; not "assign a gender" to tick off certain boxes. If remakes are going to tackle gender-swapping, they can't rest on being carbon copies.

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Suicide Squad (2016); the joke was on us

Photo Credit: Suicide Squad / Warner Bros Pictures

High-ranking government official Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) believes there's a certain set of skills from a group of imprisoned super-villains that's worth using to her advantage. In fact, she thinks they can be maneuvered as a covert strike team if the president or the United States falls into the dangerous hands of a terrorist. Recruiting a mixed bag of assassins and crazed freaks locked up in a massive security prison, these worst of the bad are united in a battle for "good".

Director David Ayer was handed the keys of the kingdom to direct an installment for the DC film universe. In what was one of the most hyped movies in the super-antihero genre, quickly divided moviegoers into love or hate camps, and for good reasons. Suicide Squad has a lot of things going on; some rewarding, some lousy, most of which can't adequately be made sense of.

A big source of ire is simply the perverted faux marketing the film suffered at the hands of Warner Bros. Whether it was an attempt to get one over on it's rival Marvel or the more necessary material ended up on the cutting room floor, the film's assured adrenaline rush lags in comparison to the awesome trailers trolling fans for the past year. Ayer's next leg of DC's franchise comes across more like a messy game of bumper cars trying to get across an imagined finished line.

Essentially, the story struggles to identify what the squad is supposed to do in terms of its all-important mission and how we feel about the group.

Unlike individual installments that focus on one superhero, this flick takes us through the backstories of the entire squad: skilled marksman who never misses Deadshot (Will Smith), unbalanced former psychiatrist Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), an assassin Boomerang (Jai Courtney), a reptilian supervillain Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), and a fire-summoning former L.A. gang member El Diablo (Jay Hernandez).

The peak into who these guys are and why they are so dangerous works to a point; we understand how they can get their hands dirty and bloody and find justification for it. The film almost spends too much time unmasking the squad until their reputation as actual dangerous criminals becomes blurred. As much as we care of the bad guys, should our hearts turn so soft to them that we forget why they are behind bars? that the impetuous headstrong Waller starts looking like the villain?

While the inclusion of backstories isn't a major mistake, their insertion is one example of the disorganized story. The script is too dedicated to playing up the task force's all-important government-imposed mission. Waller and her supposed villain end up coming across like a magician using choppy misdirection to complete a half-brained trick. The squad gel together but their cause is poorly executed.

As an ensemble and building up the squad, the cast is certainly on point. Most of the squad is very well-rounded, share a humorous camaraderie, and make-up one hell of a team. Smith and Robbie steal the show and nearly every scene. Though the pair already has great chemistry together from their previous film Focus, the two really step it up here; so much so, it would be great just to have individual installments of their own.

Additionally, there is no shortage of compliments that can be given to Robbie, who seems to be an entirely different movie of her own. Her Harley Quinn is vulnerable, clever, off her rocker; completely complex. Robbie has so much fun with the role without letting her performance become a caricature or sloppy. She is definitely the star of the film.

Suicide Squad isn't wholly intolerable. Ayer's initial attempt to create a gritty comic book ride ultimately gets diluted down into a very flawed flick. With a good cast, and wicked soundtrack, his original vision - whatever that may have been, barely survives. The film ends up existing in the ether of the superhero genre, where one can only dream it was as exciting as its trailers. Sorry to say, the joke was on us.

Rating: ★☆☆ Have you seen Suicide Squad? What are your thoughts?