Cronos Review

Back in 1993, long before he took us on a mystical journey through Pan's Labyrinth, introduced a wider audience to the world of Hellboy or brought his vision of massive Jaeger vs. Kaiju battles to the big screen in Pacific Rim, Guillermo del Toro released his debut feature film Cronos, a wonderfully unique take on a vampire tale, and thank goodness for that unique factor because honestly, I'm just about vampire'd out at this point.

My relationship with the sub-genre was tedious at best to begin with, and with the popularity that was ushered in from the True Blood series and Twilight franchise I had officially pushed anything involving a vampire off to the side into a category called "Not Interested". Last year Jim Jarmusch and his wonderfully deadpan comedic stylings brought the solid film Only Lovers Left Alive to the table and I appreciated its very interesting take on just how boring it could be to live forever, but rather than a potential revival of my interests it felt like an anomaly.

Thus I knew it may be a challenge to approach Cronos with an open mind, but I reminded myself of two things: Guillermo del Toro has earned enough of my admiration to be worthy of my trust that if anyone could make me entertained by vampires again, it would be him, and that this is a film released over 20 years ago, not just another lazy effort to catch on to a fad before it is exhausted from overkill.

GDT delivered. Cronos is a clever, entertaining gem.

The film tells the story of a man named Jesús Cris, an antiques dealer who happens to find a device inside an old wooden statue of an archangel. Jesús somehow accidentally activates this object and it grabs hold of his hand, doing all sorts of damage by the time he is free of it. Soon after the cravings begin, beginning a transformation for Jesús from a mortal man to a blood thirsty vampire.

I found it interesting to see del Toro making a little girl a central character of the film, much like in his crowning cinematic achievement Pan's Labyrinth. He has publicly mentioned his deep love for the masterpiece The Spirit of the Beehive by Victor Erice and I could feel the influences here again, this time in the shape of Jesús' granddaughter Aurora. Her presence adds an important component to the story, that piece of emotional attached Jesús still has to the mortal world, and his continuing desire to protect her despite his transformation keeps his character feeling rather human despite the fact that his physical appearance indicates otherwise.

As a directorial debut from Guillermo del Toro, Cronos is a pretty great work, a film that really makes you wonder if immortality is all it's cracked up to be.  

4/5

10 Most Anticipated Films March - June

As the weather begins to warm up, so does the season of cinema. While the second half of the year always features a far more interesting slate of films overall, that doesn't mean some truly special gems aren't released before July.

Here are the 10 movies I am most excited about that will hit theaters between now and the end of June.

Kumiko, The Treasure Hunter

Directed by Nathan Zellner

Starring Rinko Kikuchi

U.S. Release Date: March 18th

A film based on an urban legend surrounding the real life and death of Takako Konishi, as the media falsely reported that she died while on a quest to find the missing money buried near the end of the film Fargo. In actuality Konishi killed herself, but the fictionalized version of events is far more interesting and cinematic than reality. Reviews are pretty outstanding for this one, and I can't wait to see it.

Clouds of Sils Maria

Directed by Olivier Assayas

Starring Kristen Stewart, Juliette Binoche, Chloe Grace Moretz

U.S. Release Date: April 10th

Unfortunately, a common reaction when many people see the cast listing will be to write this film off because of the presence of Kristen Stewart. Insert Twilight jokes, comments about her personal life, whatever. The truth is, with the right material she can certainly act and apparently that is the case here. Why do I say that? Well, she recently won the Cesar Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance here in France. Not only is this a prestigious award, it's especially significant because Stewart is the FIRST American actress to ever win one. So yeah, safe to say I am excited to see this film.

Lost River

Directed by Ryan Gosling

Starring Christina Hendricks, Matt Smith, Eva Mendes, Saorise Ronan

U.S. Release Date: April 10th

Reviews for Lost River have been almost universally terrible and it was booed viciously at the Cannes Film Festival last year. So why do I have it on my most anticipated list? Because I don't care, I want to see it for myself and make up my own mind. The directorial debut by Ryan Gosling, word is this film was heavily and noticeably influenced by David Lynch and Nicolas Winding Refn, which makes me intrigued to say the least. 

A couple of years ago, people kept talking about how terrible Only God Forgives by Refn was. It was angrily booed at Cannes and the negative reviews came pouring in. In my opinion, it was one of the finest films of the year. So yeah, Lost River may be terrible, but I need to make up my own mind.

Ex Machina

Directed by Alex Garland

Starring Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac

U.S. Release Date: April 10th

Oh man do I love some good science fiction. I literally don't need to know anything from a project, just tell me it is well reviewed and science fiction and I will be there, and that is exactly the case here with Ex Machina. Critical reception has been fantastic, my boy Oscar Isaac is in it, and the writer/director Alex Garland previously wrote 28 Days Later, Sunshine and Never Let Me Go. Count me in.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Directed by Joss Whedon

Starring Robert Downey Jr, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Elizabeth Olsen, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, James Spader, Paul Bettany

U.S. Release Date: May 1st

What really needs to be said? The first Avengers film was, in my opinion, the first truly excellent thing to come from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, until 2014 rolled around and both Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy exceeded it. Those are the last two films to be released before Age of Ultron, so yeah, expectations are through the roof.

Far From the Madding Crowd

Directed by Thomas Vinterberg

Starring Carrie Mulligan, Michael Sheen, Juno Temple, Matthias Schoenaerts, Tom Sturridge

U.S. Release Date: May 1st

Talk about jumping in the complete opposite direction of Age of Ultron, and with the same release date no less. I read Thomas Hardy's novel of the same name, which was published roughly 140 years ago, and I liked it but was underwhelmed. Despite this, I am very excited to see this film adaptation. Why? Director Thomas Vinterberg's last work was The Hunt from 2013, which was without a doubt one of the greatest films from that year, so I was going to be excited about whatever he did next. Plus, I'm a fan of Carrie Mulligan, a pretty extraordinary actress. So while I will be seeing Avengers on the biggest screen possible that weekend, Far From the Madding Crowd won't be far behind.

Mad Max: Fury Road

Directed by George Miller

Starring Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult

U.S. Release Date: May 15th

While on my list because of the outstanding trailer, Mad Max: Fury Road is the first film on this list I am truly skeptical about. I can't shake that amazing trailer, disappointing film overall feeling, but I am hoping for the best. Regardless, I'm sure this will be a pretty spectacular sight on the big screen, and I hope it lives up to the footage we have seen thus far.

Tomorrowland

Directed by Brad Bird

Starring Britt Robertson, George Clooney, Hugh Laurie

U.S. Release Date: May 22nd

An intriguing trailer, a summer slice of science fiction that I can see with my very excited daughter, and Brad Bird. Enough said, I will be there.

Jurassic World

Directed by Colin Trevorrow

Starring Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard

U.S. Release Date: June 12th

Much like Mad Max: Fury Road, I approach Jurassic World with what can best be described as highly excited pessimism. I am going to see it, I really want to see it, and I hope it is great, but I just can't shake the bad feeling it will be a dud. Excited that Colin Trevorrow is at the helm here as I loved his previous feature film Safety Not Guaranteed, and much like most of the planet right now, I'm a big fan of Chris Pratt, so I am hoping for the best. 

Inside Out

Directed by Pete Docter

Starring Amy Poehler, Mindy Kaling, Bill Hader, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Kyle Maclachlan, Diane Lane

U.S. Release Date: June 19th

The world needs a truly great Pixar film. I have not hated anything they have done, including the Cars films which do what they intend to for their target audience, but it has been years since the glory days of a studio that released animated masterpieces annually. I have big expectations for Inside Out and will be severely disappointed if it ends up merely being "good. This one needs to be something special, and the first couple of trailers indicate it has the potential to be just that.

I'm sure a few of these ten films will be disappointing, but obviously I will hope for the best across the board. Here's to an exciting and highly anticipated next few months of cinema!