The Academy Awards: Better than Last Year...But Good?

The 88th Academy Awards have come and gone.  All I can say is PHEW...Mad Max Fury Road didn't win Best Picture.  All is right in the universe.  Though it did beat out some huge films and swept the technical categories taking home Best Production Design, Film Editing, Costume Design, Makeup, Sound Editing, and Sound Mixing.  That being said, there were some pretty big upsets.  Ex Machina, one of my personal favorite films of the year took home Best Visual Effects over popular favorites like Star Wars and The Martian which was both surprising and well deserved.  Spotlight, a true underdog in my book, took home the most coveted award of Best Picture which was a delightful shock and Leo finally secured Best Actor for his role in The Revenant.  His acceptance speech was both humble and poignant as he used his time to talk about the problem of global warming and a variety of other world issues.  Brie Larson won Best Actress for her stunning role in the emotionally powerful Room which I'm still DYING to see.  Alejandro Inarritu secured Best Director for The Revenant, his second year in a row (last year he won for Birdman).  Final highlights included Ennio Morricone winning Best Score for his soundtrack to Quentin Tarantino's Hateful Eight and Pixar's Inside Out taking home Best Animated feature.  As anyone knows though, the awards are only half the night.  Chris Rock was a great host who kept things light but decidedly topical focusing almost entirely on the lack of diversity in this years nominees.  A speech by the head of the Academy on diversifying Hollywood added a seriousness to Rock's jokes as she addressed the audience directly and called for all involved in the process of making movies to try harder to include more people of color in the film industry.  Overall, the night was just what I've come to expect from the Academy Awards.  A few upsets, some hit and miss jokes, some long winded speeches, and some poor choices.  But hey, at least they raised over $65,000 for the Girl Scouts of America by selling cookies to tipsy celebrities.

The Martian Was Sci-Fi Perfection

      The Golden Globes died for me this year.  Science fiction director extraordinaire Ridley Scott's adapation of Andy Weir's critically acclaimed novel The Martian won Best Comedy.  BEST COMEDY!!! Are you kidding me??  Now, I never read the book...but any idiot with half a brain could tell you just from reading the back cover that it is decidedly NOT a comedy.  What it most certainly IS is a fabulously acted SCI-FI film with gorgeous environments, accurate science, and stunning visuals.
      Matt Damon plays protagonist Mark Watney, a botanist and mechanical engineer working on Mars as part of the Ares III mission to the red planet.  After a suprisingly violent sandstorm forces the crew to make an immediate departure from the planet's surface, Mark is struck by debris and believed dead.  The crew retreats to the Hermes orbital station and begins their return voyage to Earth.  Mark wakes up after the storm subsides and makes his way back to the HAB where the astronauts had been living on the surface.  Faced with immeasurable odds, Mark must overcome each obstacle one at a time if he ever hopes to survive long enough to make it home alive.
      Damon's portrayal of Watney is superb.  It's always dangerous when you put such a recognizable and iconic actor in such a role because it can be hard to immerse yourself in the film.  It's so important to be able to sympathize with the plight of the survivor in films such as this and the added variable of survival in space makes it all the more harrowing.  As such, prominant actors can often be more of a distraction than an enhancement and make it harder for the viewer to put themselves in the protaganists shoes.  This is not the case in The Martian.  Damon is superb.  Supporting actors were also on their game, most notably Jeff Daniels as the Director of NASA and Jessica Chastain as Ares III mission commander Melissa Lewis.
      While the film certainly utilizes a heavy amount of comedic relief, mostly from Watney as he talks to his video log, it is meant to help keep Mark and the viewer sane as the notion of years alone on the red planet begins to sink in.  It's important to make light of any dire situation to avoid panic and ultimately failure.  The fact that this sarcastic, comedic relief was misconstrued as outright comedy by the motion picture elite is downright embarrassing.  I'll leave it at that.
      The films visuals are brilliant and showcase the beauty of the Martian surface.  Large rock formations, sweeping dunes, and a glowing orange sky serve as the backdrop to Mark's survival activities.  They are a constant reminder of the perils and beauty of space.  While the film certainly had its pitfalls, overall I can't speak highly enough about the acting, script, and visuals.  When combined, they do exactly what science fiction is supposed to do: inspire, intrigue, and continually tempt humanity to open the Pandora's Box that is deep space travel.

Ex Machina Is Science Fiction At Its Best

It’s no secret that I am a HUGE fan of what I’ve in the past called “classy science fiction”.  That is to say, sci-fi which tackles broader, more serious topics and how they relate to the human experience.  Alex Garland’s Ex Machina fits this description perfectly and captures the imagination whilst simultaneously offering a frightening and realistic example of the future of artificial intelligence. 

The movie stars Domhnall Gleeson as Caleb, a talented young programmer working for Bluebook, the world largest search engine.  After being selected for a secret weekend at a remote compound owned by the company’s founder Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac) Caleb learns he is to administer the Turing Test to an exciting new humanoid robot with astounding AI.  Caleb learns his task is to see how he relates to “Ava” despite knowing she is a machine.  Over the course of the week, Caleb finds himself being drawn deeper and deeper into Ava’s psyche and begins to empathize with her situation.  Ava’s imprisonment inside the compound coupled with her apparent human like intelligence causes some profound moral questions in both the viewer and Caleb.   Particularly when Ava manages to short circuit the facilities security system and speak candidly with Caleb, where she reveals that all is not what it seems. 

Calling into question humanities right to create such life, Ex Machina crafts a beautiful reality; one which we as a species are fast approaching.  AI has long been a deep rooted human fascination and the film manages to capture the love and fear we are certain to have for these intelligent machines when we do in fact create them.  As is said by Nathan in the film, it was not a matter of if, but a matter of when. 

As you watch Caleb interact with Ava you begin to question how you would feel in the same situation.  Simultaneously, you’re left thinking about the broader question of whether or not you consider Ava to be a human equivalent.  If she looks, acts, and feels like a human both internally and externally, does that make her human?  Touching upon a multitude of these themes, the film does what any great sci-fi film should in that causes you to question the very essence of what it means to be alive while managing to avoid cliché.  After many great moments, the film’s ending is both surprising and exciting making Ex Machina one of the best sci-fi films I’ve ever seen. 

Jupiter Ascending Was Flashy But Not Memorable

As sci-fi movies go, Jupiter Ascending was pretty typical.  Captivating plot twists and intriguing storylines were sacrificed in favor of stupendous action sequences and brilliant visual effects.  The resulting movie is a two hour burst of flashing lights and not a single memorable line.  That being said, the movie did have a certain entertainment value and thus can’t be tossed away entirely.

The movie centers on Jupiter Jones (played by Mila Kunis) who learns she is a genetic reincarnation of the powerful matriarch of the Abrasax family who until her recent passing, owned the Earth and many other planets.  Now pursued by the wealthy woman’s three children, Jupiter is assisted by Caine, an ex-soldier with a bone to pick with the Abrasax children and their demented methods to achieve immortality.  If this all sounds loose, that’s because it is.  Small details like Caine’s lost “wings” and his past mentor/friend Stinger (played by Sean Bean) are glossed over so quick they feel like snippets thrown in to try and establish more character depth.  But the film progresses from one thing to the next so quickly we never get the chance to really develop any sort of attachment to ANY character.  Even Jupiter’s backstory feels so rushed and insignificant that it’s hard to sympathize with her plight in any way.  While there are many grand declarations of futuristic technologies and processes interspersed with brief explanations of the history of the universe and the aliens Jupiter encounters, it is almost all lost amongst the flashy miasma of the action sequences which tend to flow from one to the next allowing for little time to understand what you’re witnessing.  On top of that, little explanation is given as to how these advanced human races have managed to maintain control over vast quantities of our own solar system without ever being noticed.  The only reason we are given is some sort of Men in Black rip off where Caine tells Jupiter that they erase people’s memories when they witness something they’re not supposed to.  That’s pretty flimsy when you see the scale of destruction left by many of the events in the movie.

While I totally appreciate a female lead in a genre which predominately sees male protagonists, I feel that Mila Kunis was a poor choice.  She has reached a level of notoriety that makes it hard for you to see her as this poor daughter of a Russian immigrant who works as a cleaning lady.  She doesn’t fit that role and when combined with Channing Tatum who is also a recognizable figure, the film lost much of its believability, something that is CRUCIAL for a good sci-fi film. 

Overall, I would have loved more backstory.  The story of the alien “humans” who are simply a more advanced version of our own species I found very intriguing and in my opinion would have made a far more interesting story than the one we got.   In the end, the effects were dazzling and the action sequences top notch (despite being a little too chaotic).  Fans of Divergent or Hunger Games will probably love the movie.  Fans of Cloud Atlas or Moon will not.  You get my point. 

Lucy is Neither Science Fiction or Memorable

When I first saw the trailer for Lucy starring Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman I wasn’t too intrigued.  It seemed to be an interesting concept but one that would surely fall into the forgettable, 90 minute Hollywood “sci-fi” film category with films like Apollo 18 and Chronicle.  Then I found out it was directed by Luc Besson, the visionary directory who gave the world The Professional one of the greatest films of all time in this bloggers book.  I had to give it a try.  Going in with an open mind, I was surprised to find the film accelerate from 0-60 in no time at all.  After a random and unexplained opening scene the viewer is dropped right into the middle of a nefarious drug smuggling operation controlled by an unnamed organization of Asian mobsters.  Not what you were expecting right? Me neither.  Scarlett Johansson’s character Lucy is put in a situation in which she ends up ingesting a new mysterious drug she is supposed to be transporting.  Naturally, this has significant side effects including allowing her to, drumroll…..use 100% of her brain capacity as seen in the trailers.  Morgan Freeman’s random scientist character has almost no significant role whatsoever and serves as more of a narrator.  Someone who is describing what’s happening in a way that allows the viewer to kind of understand what’s transpiring.  The film felt very chaotic.  Jumping from one thing to the next in a series of violent random outbursts as Lucy attempts to secure more of the drug that is fueling her existential evolution while also trying to take down the mobsters who put her in this situation.  While certain moments were exciting, nothing jumped out as particularly memorable and to call the film science fiction is one hell of a stretch.  More focus on the science and less on the car chases would have worked to the films advantage but as I expected, the end product tries to be more of a Hollywood action flick than a thought provoking sci-fi film.  Mr. Besson, what were you thinking?? I should have gone with my initial instinct instead of sitting through a 93 minute cross between Taken and Limitless.  Thanks but no thanks.

Guardians of the Galaxy Failed to Live Up to the Hype

Marvels latest film Guardians of the Galaxy was a jumbled overload of characters which when combined with a basic plotline left me wanting more.  After all the hype surrounding this film, I was anxious to finally see it.  Of the countless characters, worlds, gods, and ships that get tossed around my favorite character inronically ended up being the one I was most skeptical about from the first time I saw the trailer, the raccoon.  But we’ll get to that.  The film centers on Peter Quill, AKA Star Lord who is abducted in 1988 by a group of space pirates.  Years later we find Quill exploring an alien world and recovering a mysterious orb which he intends to sell.  The orb is sought after by the evil Ronan, a member of the Kree who is working with a galactic super being named Thanos in an attempt to destroy planets.  After Thanos’ adopted daughter Gamora is sent to intercept Quill, the two end up colliding with a pair of bounty hunters, the genetically modified raccoon Rocket and his towering humanoid tree Groot.  The whole group is promptly arrested and imprisoned where after meeting the final member of their  band of misfit toys, they decide to work together in an attempt to sell the orb and take down Ronan in the process.  The film had plenty of laugh out loud moments as the viewer sympathizes with the awkward fish out of water character of Star Lord who is portrayed by Parks and Recreations Chris Pratt.  However, the movie couldn’t quite decide which demographic it wanted to cater to which was a detrement to the acting and story.  The visual effects were out of this world, not to be cliché and there was plently to keep your eyes busy between epic space battles, daring escapes, countless large explosions and plenty of different colored aliens.  Still, despite its successes I was looking for more from a film many hailed as the best Marvel movie yet.  As this was clearly just the start of a new franchise which will see this awkward gang going on more adventures, I’ll just have to wait and see if its follow up trumps this new addition to the Marvel family.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - Simply Superb Sequel

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was spectacular.  The follow up to 2012’s amazing Rise of the Planet of the Apes which rebooted the famed franchise, Dawn continues in the same vein with action packed tension and emotional depth.  Taking place ten years later, we find the world devastated by the Simian Flu, the deadly virus which kills humans and boosts apes intelligence that was shown spreading worldwide at the close of the first film.  Still in the woods outside San Francisco, Caesar has built a developed community and is the leader of a new generation of apes living in peace.  This is until a chance encounter between a group of humans led by a man named Malcom, and Caesar’s son Blue Eyes alongside a fellow ape.  One of the humans with Malcom shoots Blue Eyes’ friend and the group flees.  Caesar decides to lead a large number of apes to the human settlement in a show of force.  Riding into town on horseback and clearly establishing himself as the leader, Caesar addresses the human colony telling them if they stay on their land, the apes will stay on theirs.  This would be fine if it wasn’t for the hydroelectric damn near the ape’s village which the humans desperately need for power.  Malcom convinces their leader Dreyfus (played by Gary Oldman) to give him three days to attempt to make peace with Caesar.  Friendships are created and loyalties broken as Malcom and Caesar attempt to preserve peace contrary to the wishes of Dreyfus who arms the humans for conflict and Koba, Caesar’s second in command who despises humans for the treatment he received under their care before the outbreak.  The film is a cinematic triumph as you sympathize with both the apes and the humans.  Neither is in the wrong, and despite the emergence of one distinct villain over the course of the film, everyone involved is just trying to survive and make a life for themselves.  The scenes between Malcom and Caesar are by far some of the most powerful as Caesar comes to realize that there are plenty of decent humans left and that despite his naïve point of view, there are plenty of evil apes.  The film contrasts the societies of the apes and humans in wonderfully unique ways to show that while we are different, we are very much the same.  This realization of equality is all the more heart wrenching as the two sides fall deeper and deeper into a conflict which will inevitably lead to all-out war.  Dawn of the Planet of the Apes has proven that the first film was not a one hit wonder and that the newly revamped franchise is only going to get better and better.  The film is still playing in some theatres so go see it while you still have the chance!

Under the Skin Was Terrible

I don't usually write poor reviews as I can often find the good in any movie but this particular film was an absolute chore to get through.  Several times I found myself wanting to just shut it off, but I stuck it out to the bitter end which was worth it as the best scenes in the movie are arguably the final few.  The film stars Scarlett Johansson as an alien seductress who comes to earth in search of human specimens.  After donning the clothes of a deceased female motorist, she begins to pursue men as she drives around the Scottish countryside.  All the while she learns a little bit at a time about the humans she is interacting with.  After abducting then men she brings them back to her apartment (which appears to be a disguise for her ship).  Once inside the ship, a simple, infinite black void, the men are stripped and absorbed into a viscous liquid where their insides are sucked out leaving behind only their skin.  In the end, the alien begins to sympathize with humanity, eventually letting one of the men she brings to her house go.  However, her mysterious accomplice, a man on a motorcycle who we assume is another alien, quickly tracks him down and disposes of him.  At the end of the film, the alien is attacked by a logger in the woods who manages to rip some of her "human suit" off revealing the shiny, obsidian like alien figure beneath.  This is without a doubt the best part of the film as we get to actually see what this modern take of the "body snatcher" looks like.  I won't give away the ending as I encourage everyone to form their own opinion and watch it for themselves.  The film garnered mostly positive reviews (incredibly) so there's no saying that you wouldn't thoroughly enjoy it yourself.  While I understand what the movie was trying to get across, I felt that it took forever for you to come to the realization that this is all that is going to happen.  Just Scarlett Johansson finding men to bring to her empty black spaceship over and over and over again.  By the time you realize that the plot isn't going to go anywhere else it's too late and you might as well just wait it out til the end.  Overall, the film is a dark take on the "alien abduction" theme and is more about experiencing humanity through the eyes of an extraterrestrial than anything else.  If you go in to it with that mindset, then it's easier to appreciate what the film was trying to do.  But I assure you, if you go into it expecting a sci-fi thriller, or really action of any kind, you will be 100% sorely disappointed.  No part of it keeps you on the edge of your seat and the lack of any sort of meaningful soundtrack (while adding to the films haunting nature) makes it feel drawn out and flat.  Most definitely the most disappointing film I've seen in years.

RoboCop - Classic 80's Action for the Modern World

                It's sad to admit that I have never seen the original RoboCop so I can’t comment on how well the 2014 remake follows the first film from the 1980’s franchise.  However, I can say that the film was very entertaining in its own right and was a perfect example of taking a tried and true idea from decades ago and adapting it to the modern world which has been the norm in Hollywood lately (See my review of Rise of the Planet of the Apes). 

                The movie takes place in 2028, scarily only 14 years in the future, in a time when the US conducts its foreign policy with robotic soldiers and drones to cut down on both US soldier and civilian casualties.  All the robots are supplied by multi-billion dollar corporation OmniCorp which is seeking to expand its market to the United States where crime is still a huge issue all across the country.  OmniCorp CEO Raymond Sellars has been trying for years to establish an artificially intelligent national police force which he believes would ultimately eliminate crime across the board.  Unfortunately, public opinion shows that the country is frightened by the idea of robot soldiers patrolling the streets and so Sellars must find a way to sway the public into thinking it’s a good idea.  Enter police detective Alex Murphy.  After attempting to bring down a major crime boss with ties to the Detroit Police Department, Murphy is critically injured by a car bomb outside his home.  Left with almost no physical body, Murphy’s wife gives the go ahead to OmniCorp’s head scientist Dr. Dennett Norton to build a robot body for him.  Alex first struggles with his new life as he comes to terms with the fact that he is nothing more than a robot with a human head.  Becoming the poster boy for OmniCorp’s overarching goals, Alex becomes RoboCop, a super soldier with the strength and skills of a robot soldier and the intelligence, emotions, and free will of a human being.  This last trait however is only mimicked.  Alex believes he is in control when in reality his body and mind are controlled exclusively by Dr. Norton.  Over the course of the film, Alex must fight this control and use the human side of him to take back control of his artificial body. 

                The film felt like any classic 80’s action flick updated for the modern world.  Explosions and beautiful effects are the focal point to help detract from the plot which isn’t too complex or intricate.  The curse words and occasional nudity give the film its R rating which is disappointing as neither is necessary and I feel the film would have been better with a PG-13 rating.  Overall, the film has some great acting, particularly by Gary Oldman who plays Dr. Norton.  Straddling the line between good and bad, his character is by far the most complex and fun to watch.  If you’re a fan of the original then I’m sure you’ll enjoy the remake purely for nostalgia’s sake.  If not, the movie is an ideal example of a blockbuster action film which keeps you exhilarated from start to finish as you rarely go more than 5 minutes without someone firing a gun or blowing something up.

Exciting Summer Shows

I can't believe it but the Game of Thrones finale is this Sunday and that means that we will have to wait another year until more episodes.  But that doesn't mean there's nothing to watch.  This Summer promises to have some great new television series starting up about everything from angels, to vampires, to Victorian mysteries.  Some notable ones to check out include: Leftovers, an HBO show in which a huge section of the worlds population suddenly disappears and the rest of the planet is left to pick up the pieces and decide what happens next.  Penny Dreadful, a Showtime drama about Victorian England using fictional characters from the era such as Dorian Gray and Victor Frankenstein.  The Strain which premiers on FX, is based on the book series by Guillermo Del Toro about vampires and promises to be just as gory and realistic as the Walking Dead.  Other cable network shows include Dominion on SyFy which is based on the movie Legion and involves the disappearance of God and the subsequent battle between the angels Gabriel and Michael.  Finally, for those who are looking for less substance and more action and explosions, check out Last Ship on TNT.  Directed by action filmmaker Michael Bay, the show is about a battleship out at sea which receives information that 80% of the worlds population has died of a mysterious disease and it is up to the crew of the ship to find a cure.  All seem interesting and with such a wide variety, there's a little something for everyone.  Read the full Rolling Stone hot summer series list below.

New Summer Series

Spike Jonze's "Her" Raises Many Ethical and Philosophical Questions

      From a sociological perspective, Her was very intriguing and raised a lot of ethical questions which were fun and interesting to ponder while watching.  That being said, the movie was not the romantic comedy the previews billed it to be.  

      Theodore Twombly is an introverted and quiet middle aged man going through a devastating divorce.  Ironically working at a company which writes personal love letters for people, Theodore goes through the motions of his average life wondering if this is it.  If he will ever feel the happiness he felt with his now ex-wife or if he is destined to only feel lesser versions of all the times he spent with her.  He has supportive friends and a comfortable life but what Theodore desperately wants is to love and to be loved once again.  

      No year is specified, but the “near future” the film takes place in shows a society not too far from our own.  Every single person has a small earpiece which they speak to constantly.  It reads them their email, gives them messages, and searches the web, anything you desire.  As such, humans have becoming increasingly disconnected from each other, similar to how many people in our society today claim that the smartphone and social media have destroyed personal human interaction.  This only compounds Theodore’s problems as he finds it increasingly difficult to meet someone meaningful.  That all changes with the invention of OS1, a personalized, artificially intelligent operating system available for purchase which promises to be anything you want it to be.  

      Theodore decides to give it a try and after booting it up and answering a few basic questions, Samantha is born.  Voiced by Scarlett Johansson, Samantha instantly makes a connection with Theodore.  The two become fast friends as Theodore and Samantha have conversation after conversation with each other.  Constantly connected via his earpiece, Samantha is only a click away whenever Theodore wishes to talk to her and after a while, the viewer begins to feel as though she is a physical person that he’s speaking to on the phone.  She can even see and comment on the world around him via his “smartphone”, a tiny tablet which connects to his earpiece that Theodore carries around in his breast pocket.  

      Here’s where the movie starts to delve into some deep philosophical and ethical questions.  Samantha is, for all intents and purposes, a person.  She can think, learn, feel, make decisions, be angry, sad, happy, frustrated, depressed, you name it.  The two have many conversations about what she is.  Is she just a computer program or something more?  As the two fall in love, become intimate, and begin to pursue a more meaningful relationship these questions become all the more imperative and you quickly begin to realize that there is no direct answer.  Not only a commentary on love, Her is a commentary on life itself and what it truly means to BE alive.  

      Director Spike Jonze does a fabulous job at subtly dealing with these questions alongside some superb acting, particularly by Johansson.  At the end of the day however, the movie is an overall depressing story and one that leaves you with more questions than answers.  But in a way, that’s the point.  Does anyone really have a definitive answer to life or love?  No, just like Theodore, we simply have to dive in feet first and hope everything works out.