Batman Begins Review

Those two words we dread nowadays as the superhero sub-genre continues to flourish financially and thus take up most of the screens at the local theater each weekend: origin story. We dread them because they typically are mentioned due to reboots of heroes we are already so familiar with, their origins are like that tale your Uncle tells every single year at the Thanksgiving dinner table. Spider-Man is abandoned by his parents, lives with his Aunt and Uncle and gets bit by a super special arachnid. We get it. A wee little Bruce Wayne walks down a dark alley with his parents when a shady criminal spills the blood of the elders, a memory that haunts him until the day he decides to don the cape and cowl and beyond. Been there, done that.

The imaginative and highly skilled Christopher Nolan at the helm of the story of the Dark Knight though? Yeah, I would watch that. Over and over and over again, because Batman Begins is dark and delicious fun.

Gotham is bathed in shadows and plagued by a violent, seedy underworld, yet despite the serious tone and cold aesthetic I am unable to take my eyes off of the ominous, gloomy world built by Nolan here. The rain pours down and each frame feels crisp and alive, appropriate for the moment. The revival of a character beloved but absent from a good film in over a decade prior to Nolan stepping in to bring him back from his Joel Schumacher induced cinematic death. It was a wonderful feeling, sitting in that cinema shortly after this film was released and feeling all of the pessimism and ugliness associated with Batman on the big screen wash away. 

Batman Begins is the way an origin story should be done, and I can't help but wonder if the showrunners of the new Daredevil Netflix series were influenced by this one when they began crafting their rather brilliant series. Spread out over thirteen hours rather than a mere two, it is difficult to compare the two in terms of storytelling and character development but the tone and the atmosphere feel remarkably similar. If Batman Begins was in fact the model to build off of, they picked a wonderful picture to replicate.

4.5/5 

50 Best Films of 2014 - #20 - #11

Now into the top 20 films from 2014

20. Under the Skin

A tricky one to recommend, Under the Skin is enigmatic and utterly, shockingly strange, and while I loved it obviously and I know others who did as well, I also know a fair share of people who would ask me why the hell I wasted their two hours, or they would turn it off halfway through in disgust. This is really only a safe bet if you meet one of these two conditions: a) you are physically attracted to Scarlett Johansson, or b) you find strange, abstract cinema with some real depth and meaningful thematic substance appealing.  

I will leave it at this: there is some really interesting stuff happening here regarding the way we view and treat women in society.

19. Blue Ruin

I really expected this to be a by the numbers, you can see what is approaching around every corner revenge thriller. I was so damn wrong. Blue Ruin is smart, edge of your seat stuff, if you have Netflix streaming I highly suggest checking it out.

18. Life Itself

Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, I used to walk to a store nearby to purchase a newspaper every Friday specifically for the movie reviews, and it wasn't a difficult decision whether I should pick up a Sun-Times or a Tribune. I wanted to read the words of Roger Ebert, and even when I disagreed with the man, I always admired him. Life Itself is a wonderful documentary that serves as a tremendous tribute to Roger, but the best thing about it is that it is honest rather than simply positive pandering. Steve James doesn't mind showing that his subject was flawed because it is human to be flawed, and as a result the film is truly special.

17. Foxcatcher

A chilling and brilliantly performed picture based on a true story, I was engrossed inside the world crafted by Bennett Miller from start to finish. Foxcatcher is a cold and dour experience without a doubt, and one looking for anything light and fun will surely be counting the minutes until it's over, but if you are like me and find odd amounts of joy watching something ominous this may work wonders for you too.

16. Inherent Vice

Luckily for me, I had read the delightfully strange source material this was based on before seeing the film, the novel by Thomas Pynchon of the same name, so I knew what to expect going in. I knew much of the narrative would seem incoherent and the style of storytelling would feel out of sorts, but strangely that was what makes Inherent Vice such a blast to witness unfold. Sure, it's a mess, but what a glorious mess it is. Directed by one of the brightest modern auteurs working today, Paul Thomas Anderson, even if you have no idea what the hell is going on you have got to admire just how well crafted the ride is.

15. Nightcrawler

Lead by my favorite male performance of the year by Jake Gyllenhaal as Lou Bloom, Nightcrawler is another dark and creepy entry into my list, but unlike Foxcatcher it also has a wickedly clever sense of humor as well. The fact that this ended up at #15 on the year is a testament to just how strong 2014 was in cinema, because my goodness I love this movie.

14. The LEGO Movie

The first movie from 2014 I saw ends up being one of the finest of the year. It isn't often I can say that because typically the early months are the doldrums of the theatrical calendar, but The LEGO Movie turned out to be shockingly great. So clever, so warm, so much damn fun with a third act twist that brought quite a few tears to the eye, what initially felt like it was destined to be solely an advertisement for toys turned out to have an important and meaningful message in the end.

13. How to Train Your Dragon 2

Back in 2010, I was one of the few people who felt the first How to Train Your Dragon was the best animated film of the year. Understandable because the also amazing Toy Story 3 was released during that very same year, but How to Train Your Dragon just had this magical feeling that cast a spell on me and won me over immediately. I was concerned the sequel would be a let down, but that skepticism vanished quickly as the characters, the story and the stakes all matured since the release of the original. For quite some time this movie held my top spot of 2014 and with each revisit I am reminded why. How to Train Your Dragon 2 is an amazing film for any person of any age. 

12. Like Father, Like Son

The switched at birth story has been done before, but never this eloquently and with this much realism and passion. Like Father, Like Son is heartbreaking and thought provoking cinema, asking a rather important question: what makes a child yours? Is it the blood and genetics you share, or is it something more? A truly beautiful film, and as a father I made a very strong connection with this work.

11. The Raid 2

The first Raid film completely caught me off guard as I had assumed I would be bored by something that was essentially non-stop action, and instead I was pumped full of adrenaline and exhausted by the end of that insanely intense, blood soaked film. Within the first minute of The Raid 2, as the movie opens outdoors with a wide shot that is far different from the cramped and claustrophobic nature of the first film, it is clear director Gareth Evans wants bigger and better things with the sequel. That is exactly what he delivered, as this time around things are far more story oriented, yet when the action does show up it is just as intense and just as awesome as before. 

Next up, the top ten films of 2014. The picture above is from a work that landed not only on the list, but in the top 5 of the year.

Resolution Review

It's such an exciting feeling, when a film is announced that you know without a doubt you will be seeing with high expectations the moment it is released. A director is chosen and it inspires a reaction inside me, good or bad. Casting news, who will be composing the score, which top of the line cinematographer is selected to dazzle the audience with their keen eye. The first teaser trailer, a second one unveiling far more detail, and various clips to quench the cinematic thirst until the picture is finally released and I can take my seat, overflowing with anticipation, counting on the finished product being everything I could have hoped for and more.

This is the progression that many films take with me, as I am following the news and checking for updates on a regular basis, so when literally 30 some hours ago a friend of mine gave me a recommendation of a movie that I had never even heard of, I took notice. I did absolutely no homework after he told me the title as I decided to enter the experience as fresh as I possibly could, with an untainted mind and with the definition of zero expectations. I just clicked over the Netflix streaming, located Resolution and hit play. I was handed the gift of a fresh movie experience and I couldn't wait to unwrap it from the beginning. 

Directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, Resolution is a deceiving, completely surprisingly experience and I mean that as a very, very big compliment. During the first half of the picture, perhaps even beyond that, I watched it assuming it was merely a well made but relatively routine supernatural horror film. I admired it throughout because it was very well made and clearly an example of making the most of a low production budget, but I just kept waiting for the obvious and expected to occur. However, as the conclusion drew near it became apparent that this was a bold, unique and original work that was headed in a far different direction than I has assumed, and a huge smile literally spread across my face. I am reminded of when I screened the Gareth Edwards film Monsters last year, one that crept up on me and knocked my socks off by the time the final frame left the screen. Resolution is so damn good.

The premise is basic and extremely minimalist in nature. Michael and Chris were best friends but are headed in very different directions, Michael a married man with a baby on the way, Chris literally hiding out in a cabin in the woods, addicted to crack and headed down a path that can only result in an early death. Michael decides to take one more chance at saving Chris and cleaning up his life, but this won't be a simple intervention or a heartfelt conversation while hoping for the best. Michael has a taser and a pair of handcuffs, and he is willing to use both to ensure that Chris can neither leave this cabin nor smoke the rest of his stash.

Early on it is established that this won't be simply a story of two friends working out their personal demons and trying to shake the power of an addiction to hardcore drugs. Something supernatural is taking place here, as an entity is making itself known through cryptic messages to Michael and its obvious that it is not happy. Now, this is a difficult part of the film to discuss without spoiling the experience, but the supernatural aspect was initially suspect and probably leading towards predictability, yet by the end it was absolutely the soul of the film, the piece that I loved the most and admire so deeply because of what it is really trying to say beneath the surface. In the end you may not comprehend what the message was, and this is understandable. The closing moments are rather ambiguous and confounding, but pay close attention to the dialogue during this film as they discuss that the entity is looking for a story and needed the right ending to it. Then the final words uttered of the film made it all click, and I wanted to stand up and give an ovation to whomever was smart enough to write this extremely self aware and clever screenplay. 

While far, far less comedic than the film Cabin in the Woods, I was reminded very much of that here with Resolution because bubbling beneath the surface of this story is a look at horror films and what we, the audience, demand of them. If you decide to pull up Netflix streaming and give this one a spin (and you absolutely should), think about the title and what it might mean: Resolution. The main characters here, Michael and Chris, come to one in the end and it certainly isn't what I could have ever expected, but would the supernatural force that threatens them allow it to happen? 

In the end this isn't a film about Michael or Chris or drugs or drug dealers or even the lurking dangers of a supernatural force at all. It is a film about expectations and the workings of the human mind, and in the end it asks us a question: do we want a warm and uplifting resolution in which Chris chooses to go to rehab, turning his life around and becoming close with his former best friend again? Or do we want exactly what we were expecting all along? 

4.5/5

Like Father, Like Son Review

Typically when I am writing rave reviews, I mention the unique and fresh premise or the stylish cinematography, and yet here we have Like Father, Like Son, a Japanese drama about a switched at birth scenario, a premise that has been featured in previous films and a current television series. Absolutely nothing about the aesthetic of this film is flashy or seemingly inventive. At first glance, this is a work that feels ordinary, familiar, nothing that will blow your mind or dazzle your technical sensitivities.

So is the end result an ordinary, familiar, nothing with will blow your mind film? Not even close. Like Father, Like Son is one of the best movies of 2014.

I am painfully unfamiliar with the work of esteemed Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Koreeda, as the closest I have come to seeing one of his movies prior to this was when I checked a copy of After Life out of the library and then the disc didn't function. I have heard so much praise heaved in his direction and I finally got to experience why this is, and if Like Father, Like Son is an indication of his overall filmography, I understand it all now. So much nuance, so much heartbreak, so much feeling seeps out of this picture, but the brilliance of it is that it doesn't have to try very hard to achieve its excellence. Everything about this feels natural and real, and as a result I believed in the story and these characters.

The story of Like Father, Like Son revolves around the Nonomiya family, and the lead role is the father Ryota, a man driven by his financial success in life rather than spending time with his wife and young son. The normalcy of their routine of life goes off the rails when they find out one day that the son they have loved and raised for six years is not actually their own, that the hospital switched out their child with another newborn boy. When they meet up with the other family involved in the swap, complex emotions rattle these parents to their core and they are forced to ask themselves, continue raising the child that owns their hearts but doesn't share their blood? Or correct the original mistake and begin anew with the child they were always supposed to spend their lives with?

For me the answer is simple, as I could never say goodbye to the beautiful little girl I have shared so many memories with over the past seven plus years regardless of whether she turned out to be literally my own or not, and yet despite this I still found a way to be conflicted while watching this film. For me, family and love stretch far beyond anything a blood test could prove, but at the same time I can't wrap my mind around how surreal it would be to see the child you actually created being raised by someone else.

Koreeda had such a focused hand when crafting this movie, a picture that on paper is screaming to be melodramatic yet it never is, not for a moment. This is also a credit to the perfect performances throughout, as we can see the pain and love they feel in them even during silent moments, as their eyes and mannerisms do plenty of talking. Like Father, Like Son is quite simply a beautiful, heart felt film, and if you have Netflix streaming I suggest you look it up and give it a spin. You will not regret it.


5/5

Mission Blue Review

When it comes to what I eat, I am not ignorant of the facts, nor do I choose ignorance to avoid thinking of what I consume. I know that conditions are often times not ideal for the animals that unfortunately had to die to find their way to my plate, and I am honestly not okay with that. So why do I choose to continue with the same eating habits rather than deviate from them to make a moral or ethical point?

Simple. They taste great.

I don't take it as an insult if anyone finds this willingness to enjoy something that I know may be wrong to be selfish. I am well aware that I can put my own satisfaction in front of the greater good at times and this fact doesn't result in me losing even a second of sleep at night. Honestly, if I made every single decision in accordance to some guided path of moral or ethical enlightenment, if I devoted my existence to ensuring the lives of others went swimmingly while disregarding my own, I would be far more troubled about my choices. 

The exception to this, however, is the state of our planet. Not that I do everything I should to fix the problem, but I do try to do the little things. This is because the idea of a dying world left for not only my child, but her children as well and so on, is enough to sometimes keep me up at night. The new Netflix original documentary Mission Blue focuses mainly on one woman, Sylvia Earle, as it details her life and work as an oceanographer, marine biologist and environmentalist, and it clearly showcases the devastating effects humanity is having on our oceans. Learning about Earle herself is interesting enough and worthy of a recommendation, but the power of this film is the evidence presented of the toll we are taking on our planet and the hope that a new generation of people will be willing to continue the fight to clean up our oceans, valuing preservation over corporate interests.

One aspect of this film I greatly appreciated was it avoided being judgmental or heavy handed in its narrative. As a huge fan of the wonderful flavors of seafood, I never felt as if I was being admonished for eating such things, when instead I was in agreement with the larger point that those catching these creatures are doing so when they are far too young, and thus they have been unable to breed before becoming a meal. It's unnatural to be removing a species from their habitat before they have had the opportunity to create new life, and thus a well known item on a restaurant menu like bluefin tuna is quickly disappearing completely. 

This brings me back to the way I started off, regarding my selfish love for food regardless of the consequences. Will I keep eating seafood? I'm sure I will, but at the very least I can say that Mission Blue has made me feel uneasy about it. A dying ocean means a dying Earth, and when the film chooses to focus on such things it is handled effectively and with meaning. Knowing now just how critical things have gotten, that the ocean isn't this unstoppable, unflinching force that its vastness portrays it to be, does make me hesitate before I place my next order. This tells me that at least in one very important way, the film did its job.

4/5

It's Such a Beautiful Day Review

A man named Bill is diagnosed with a terminal illness which is never specified during the film, but it doesn't need to be. Does specificity matter once the word terminal has been invoked? We follow the struggles faced by Bill as he deals with seeing the world through this new perspective. We see various memories from Bill's past, an unsettling childhood, a history of mental illness that surrounded his upbringing. These memories are quite twisted and literally unbelievable, so perhaps they are not accurate representations of what Bill really went through, but does it matter? These are the memories Bill now carries with him, what he is forced to believe once truly happened, so whether fact or fiction their burden is still felt by Bill. We feel it too, the weight of what happened once to Bill and even more so what is happening to him now. We feel it, and we care deeply for this man.

Oh, I forgot to mention. Bill is a stick figure.

The only way to discern Bill from the other characters that appear throughout this film is his hat. That, and the anguish he feels as he copes with his illness, his symptoms, the reality of his situation. The fate that approaches him, which he can do nothing about. How can we see the pain felt by a stick figure? How can we appreciate his situation when he has so little features to demonstrate this? The answer to these questions is the biggest compliment you can pay to Don Hertzfeldt, the man who crafted this beautiful little gem of a film and also serves as the narrator that takes us on Bill's journey.

Roughly an hour long, It's Such a Beautiful Day is actually a feature made up of three shorts seamlessly edited together. The storytelling can be jarring as we go from the present to the past suddenly and unexpectedly, but that seems intentional and important given the nature of the narrative and the mind of the man we are following. You may not take this film seriously at first glance, and I don't blame you. Honestly, even with the incredible reviews and high praise I encountered to learn about this movie, I don't think I expected it to live up to any lofty expectations such things typically set. I went in thinking, an hour of a stick figure? How great can this really be?

So, so great. So profound. Such a unique cinematic experience, one that is now available on Netflix streaming. If you subscribe to the service, set aside an hour, sit down and experience the type of film you have surely never experienced before. I never thought such crude, drab animation could be so life affirming, sobering and deeply tragic.

It's such a beautiful film.



5/5

The Immigrant Review

The opening shot of The Immigrant is of the Statue of Liberty, a symbol of hope and salvation for immigrants arriving at Ellis Island during the early portion of the 20th century, which is when the film takes place. I was born in suburban Chicago in 1984 and I have never left besides a few vacations, so I cannot pretend to have any idea what it would feel like to leave a tragic life behind in search of the American dream, but I would have to imagine that seeing such a grand symbol on the horizon would be a joyous moment for those that associate it with better days ahead. What filmmaker James Gray does is give us this brief taste of the hope before quickly reminding us that this journey so many took wasn't a simple transition from dire to desired circumstances the minute they stepped off the boat and onto American soil.

A crucial aspect to pulling off a period piece like The Immigrant is getting the tone and vibe of the times right, and here is where Gray and the entire team working on the film really nailed it. The production and costume design were beyond convincing, making the experience feel as authentic as possible, and the cinematography by Darius Khondji is lush with warm tones, a glow that beautifully illuminates an otherwise unspectacular frame. Despite the familiar faces of the cast, I never once felt like I was watching a fictional portrayal of the 1920's. Those working behind the scenes on The Immigrant really brought me there.

The story of the film is technically simple but never lacking depth of its study of humanity and the emotional weight of what people suffered through in search of happiness. Marion Cotillard plays Ewa Cybulska, a woman who has come a great distance from a war torn Poland with her sister Magda. Shortly after arriving they are tragically separated after Magda is found to be ill and immediately quarantined to avoid the spread of any disease. Due to her behavior and having been deemed to have a suspect morality, Ewa is to be deported back to her old life only to have a hero named Bruno Weiss (Joaquin Phoenix) swoop in and save her, keeping her and her dreams alive in America. Unfortunately it doesn't take long for Ewa to realize that the motivations of Bruno are cruel and dangerous rather than heroic as he forces her into his burlesque show and also a life of prostitution.

The portion of the film that stumbled a bit for me was after the cousin of Bruno is introduced, a magician named Orlando played by Jeremy Renner. It wasn't the performance of Renner that was my issue, in fact he is quite good in the role, but the inclusion of the character itself simply didn't meld into the experience like I would have hoped. I found the whole idea of an Ewa love interest being seemingly the polar opposite of the evil Bruno, and oh by the way he happens to be his cousin too, to be a little too convenient, and it was the first portion of The Immigrant that felt like a misstep that pulled back the curtains a bit on the otherwise overwhelmingly authentic vibe.

Speaking of performances, Cotillard in the lead role is astonishing. She has a way about her that feels like a person confused, scared, and vulnerable, and it isn't so much found in her words or the way she delivers them but instead in her eyes, in her mannerisms. Everything about her felt so real and believable for the circumstances of the character, a performance all encompassing that transcended simply delivering a script with passion. I saw the other day that the New York Film Critics awarded Cotillard with the Best Actress award for both this and another 2014 film titled Two Days, One Night which I am yet to see, but based on The Immigrant alone I can appreciate the choice. Perhaps not the best female lead I have seen this year (that still goes to Rosamund Pike for Gone Girl), Cotillard certainly isn't far behind.

The Immigrant is a very good, possibly great film that, to be honest, doesn't leave the impression that it will be on my radar for a revisit or be relevant to me cinematically going forward, but it is certainly worth a look for anyone who wants to appreciate the incredible detail that goes into making a film feel like it was actually shot during the period it is set in. Oh, and that performance by Cotillard deserves some attention as well.


4/5

E-Team Review

There is a sequence during the Netflix Original documentary E-Team that felt very familiar to me at first glance, and I realized its striking similarities to a moment during the recent film The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 in which Katniss explores her former home after bombs had turned everything she found familiar to rubble. In E-Team an area that had been a place of relative normalcy only an hour earlier is now completely destroyed by bombs from above, an aerial strike on a residential location, women and children wounded, innocent lives lost. 

That particular moment in The Hunger Games is effective and emotionally stirring, sure, but in the end it is fiction. I get swept up in the narrative and buy into the story, but I can go home knowing that no actual harm was done. The destruction is a set designed by Hollywood, the bodies and bones all props placed carefully by professionals. What we see in E-Team is far too real, and it is painfully haunting. The documentary focuses on a team of people that are sent into areas that recently experienced horrific tragedies deemed emergencies, and the goal of the team is to investigate whether human rights of those impacted have been violated.

The cameras are rolling constantly almost like a found footage film, only this footage actually is legitimate and I considered the possibility at times that it would need to be found rather than returned safely. During a sequence or two, the camera is put down and not focused on any particular subject as planes fly overhead and bombs are being dropped nearby. It sounds awful to label such atrocities as entertaining because obviously I would prefer humanity wouldn't suffer such awfulness in order for me to see it, but it is during these tense moments that E-Team is nearly overwhelmingly compelling, as my eyes couldn't leave the screen even if I had tried.

I had to remind myself that the real point of the documentary isn't the atrocities themselves but to understand these people who risk their lives to investigate them, so while spending a decent amount of time focusing on the quieter moments of their lives away from the war zones may not have been as interesting, the decision to do so was necessary for the film to achieve its goals. I actually think the real flaw of E-Team is that it could have been a little bit longer, had a little bit more meat on its bones, because the subject matter felt heavier than the sub-90 minute running time was capable of showcasing. 

While documentaries such as this or the other Netflix originals I have seen like Virunga or last years incredible work The Square aren't particularly fun to watch in terms of their subject matter or message, they are important and riveting films that deserve our attention. I get to sit on this couch in a warm home in front of a beautiful LED screen. The least I can do is better understand what is happening in the world outside these walls and appreciate why these people went to such great and dangerous lengths to have these films made.

4/5