Tag Archives: Drama

The Red Turtle (2016)

08 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by in Blogathon, Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Shall I sit here all alone
And wait for death to call me home?
Now that I am stranded here,
Have worth and meaning flown?

Shall I push uphill my stone
And watch it roll back down and groan
And wish that life had chanced to veer
Somewhere less sorrow-prone?

Perhaps I’ll work myself to bone
And die unloved and thus unknown,
But if somebody could appear
And comfort give to persevere,
I’d gladly bear my daily stone
With one to call my own.
_________________

MPAA rating: PG

This review is my contribution to the Colours Blogathon hosted by Catherine of Thoughts All Sorts, focusing on all manner of movies with colorful titles. I chose The Red Turtle not only for the color in its name, but because I was curious about this feature-length silent film that earned an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature when Your Name didn’t. Now that I’ve seen it, I completely agree that it deserved such an honor because this story of a shipwrecked man stranded on an island is a piece of cinematic art. So many cartoons these days rely on hyperactive humor that something like The Red Turtle is an anomalous reminder that animation can offer compelling stories without jokes or even words through simple mastery of the medium, allowing silence to make it universal.

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The beautifully simple animation is the product of a collaboration between Dutch director Michaël Dudok de Wit, winner of the 2001 Animated Short Film Oscar for the lovely Father and Daughter, and the not-yet-defunct Studio Ghibli. I’m still surprised at Ghibli’s involvement because The Red Turtle has no resemblance to anime, except maybe in the attention to natural detail, yet I’m reminded that anime is not limited by the usual big-eyed style. The Oscar-winning short film La Maison en Petits Cubes has a European aesthetic similar to The Red Turtle, but, despite the French name, it was a Japanese production. So you could say that The Red Turtle is a best of both worlds, combining the visual imaginations of its animators in a surprisingly accessible, almost watercolor style.

Silent animation is usually the realm of short films, and it must have been a risk to protract what could have been vastly shortened to a feature-length story. Those with short attention spans will likely be bored by the third raft-making attempt, but the patient should find the narrative rewarding in its ambiguity. As with Cast Away, actions speak louder than words, and the painterly animation is so superb in its simplicity that I was rarely bored. It’s all in the details, like the humorous characterization of the crabs watching the man’s efforts or the lush island greenery swaying in the breeze, and the realistic water is worth particular praise, whether serene on the horizon or violent in its outbursts.

I don’t want to say much about the actual plot since it’s best experienced with the intended visuals to tell the story, but it very much fits its description as a fable, a seemingly straightforward tale that can be appreciated on its surface or on a deeper, more symbolic level. The Red Turtle itself remains something of an enigma, even as it becomes a profoundly important part of the castaway’s life, infusing the film and its ending with a bittersweet emotion that is strongly felt, if not fully understood.

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So, yes, The Red Turtle is absolutely Oscar-worthy and, if not for last year’s hefty competition, might well have won. Why couldn’t a film like this come out in 2006 or 2011, when Disney/Pixar wasn’t a shoo-in? I suppose I can now turn my blame on My Life as a Zucchini (the only nominee I haven’t yet seen) for Your Name’s lack of nomination last year because The Red Turtle is more than deserving. Despite its slow narrative that could have been a short film, it’s a piece of modern art that is becoming rarer and rarer in the world of feature-length animation.

Best line:  (the man’s only line) “Heeeeey!”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
506 Followers and Counting

 

The Letters (2014)

05 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by in Christian, Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Blessed are the selfless, though hidden they may be.
Blessed are the quiet; their thoughts the Lord will see.
Blessed are the pious, who do not seek renown.
Blessed are the few who suffer thorns their earthly crown.
Blessed are the holy ones, who rarer get each year,
For even in the darkest world, their light we will revere.
____________________

MPAA rating: PG

After watching The Letters last night, I figured it couldn’t be a coincidence that I happened to watch a movie about Mother Teresa on the one-year anniversary of her canonization as a saint. That’s why I hurried to write a review for today, the anniversary of her death, known in the Catholic Church as her Feast Day. A passion project of director William Riead, The Letters is one of the better faith-based films of recent years, a tribute to a woman of unparalleled holiness.

The Letters takes its inspiration and name from the many letters Mother Teresa wrote to her spiritual confidante Father Celeste Van Exem (Max von Sydow), who describes her story to Rutger Hauer as an investigator into Teresa’s cause for canonization. English actress Juliet Stevenson does a marvelous job (and feigns a convincing accent) as Mother Teresa herself, whose compassion for the poor outside her convent’s gates led her to petition for permission to leave the cloister and serve the unwashed masses of Calcutta, India. Over the years, despite her well-publicized sanctity, she also endured feelings of abandonment by God that have been called a “dark night of the soul,” a cross other saints have carried as well.

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The Letters has received mostly negative critical reviews, but I don’t find that surprising, considering how Christian films tend to be more appreciated by their target audience than by secular viewers. Yet The Letters doesn’t seem concerned with proselytizing, just as Mother Teresa didn’t approach the Indian communities to win converts. It’s a testimony of her commitment to God and to helping others, and while some have tried to cast aspersions on her motivations and methods, I find nothing wrong with a wholly positive view of a woman who dedicated her life to serving the poor. Perhaps some people wanted a darker, more challenging view instead of a shiny biopic of a saint at work. After all, most would probably prefer to watch the latest gruesome death on Game of Thrones than the inspiring rescue efforts to aid the Hurricane Harvey victims. Yet positivity and holiness deserve their day, and a movie like The Letters presents them as truly admirable.

That’s not to say that The Letters is perfect. It does have better acting and production values than some Christian films, but the beginning jumps about in time and place a bit confusingly. Plus, the initial confrontations with Indian Muslims urging Teresa to leave seemed rather half-hearted, rarely making it feel that she was actually in danger. Even with these caveats, The Letters is pure inspiration, revealing Mother Teresa’s spiritual turmoil that has only increased Christians’ veneration of her. With so much wrong in the world, sometimes just watching a selfless hero in action, an example to aspire to, is enough to stir the soul and make us want to serve where we can more faithfully.

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
506 Followers and Counting

 

Ink (2009)

03 Sunday Sep 2017

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Dreams in the night
Carry darkness or light
Into minds at the height of their delicacy.
Deep in our slumber,
Charades without number
Parade through our heads, entertainment for free.

They charm us and threaten
With visions they let in,
But who holds the keys to such reveries sown?
What nightmare dimensions
With clashing intentions
Have displaced our thoughts with ideas of their own?
____________________

MPAA rating: Not Rated (should be R, mainly for language)

After ranking Ink at #11 on my Top Twelve Underrated Movies, I thought I should give this low-budget cult hit a full-fledged review. Written and directed by independent auteur Jamin Winans, Ink is so many things at once that it’s hard to classify it. It’s a fantasy about the clashes between invisible forces of good and evil. It’s a redemption tale of a father returning to his estranged daughter’s life. It’s a visually inventive head trip following a monster’s kidnapping of a girl’s soul. How it merges all these disparate components into a mostly cohesive and surprisingly meaningful whole is quite the experience, one that doesn’t let its budget limitations hinder it too much.

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Chris Kelly plays John Sullivan, the father I mentioned, whose wife’s death caused him to lose contact with his daughter Emma (Quinn Hunchar), whom he kept at arm’s length even when they were together. Bitter, he throws himself into his work, not even caring when she later falls into a coma. This side of the story is fairly down-to-earth, but the reason for Emma’s coma goes off into an ever more ambitious dark fantasy. For starters, there are Storytellers, invisible spirits who disseminate sweet dreams like the Sandman from Rise of the Guardians, and Incubi, creepy screen-faced baddies who plant disturbing nightmares. Amidst this nightly battle, a hulking creature named Ink dressed in black rags steals Emma, or rather her spirit, from her bed and plans to trade her to the Incubi.

On one hand, you can tell it’s a low-budget production. The camerawork lacks the Hollywood polish we’ve come to expect, and some of the effects look like they’re from a Disney Channel movie. Yet the film continually manages to impress where it counts. For example, Ink’s initial confrontation with the Storytellers trying to save Emma has some amazingly well-choreographed action, with the unique twist of time rewinding to return every smashed object to its original condition. This is the spirit world, after all. Likewise, the editing ranges from overly jerky at times to downright brilliant during an exceptional scene where an eccentric “Pathfinder” (Jeremy Make) creates an unforeseen chain reaction that ties in to an earlier scene. It reminded me a lot of that sequence from The Curious Case of Benjamin Button where the narrator describes all the little cause-and-effects that brought about an accident.

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Sadly, Ink is occasionally spoiled by some strong language, mostly from Chris Kelly (his first line is a tantrum of F-bombs), and I do feel it could earn a wider audience without it since the rest is grim but not overly objectionable. I also thought a few characters were trying too hard to be eccentric at times. Plus, a certain revelation might bend time and minds a bit too much to make total sense, but it’s a twist that has kept me thinking since and adds enormous layers to the film’s narrative.

I don’t know how Jamin Winans views God and religion since they’re never explicitly brought up here, though his next film The Frame seems to regard God as an absentee controller. Yet, there are several scenes in Ink that hold strong spiritual meaning, especially the Best Line below that seems to sum up how God sees his broken creation. The Storytellers are easily compared to angels as well, as the Incubi are to demons whispering hate and pride into people’s minds, and I loved a climactic scene toward the end that switches back and forth between the calm mortal world that John sees and an intense, invisible battle happening all around him. I wouldn’t doubt such unknown struggles happen every day between good and evil.

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Oh, yeah, how could I forget the reason I discovered Ink, namely its moving score by Winans himself, which I heard in a collection of movie soundtracks. It’s a perfect atmospheric accompaniment to the film and its emotion, and one notable track called “The City Surf” was even sampled as “Into the Fray” in the film The Grey. As I said, Ink’s plot has multiple layers to peel back, ranging from flashbacks to metaphors and symbols to varying the level of color depending on the world shown, all of which add up to a profound reflection on life, death, and regret. It’s a film that sticks in the mind long after it’s over, which has understandably earned it a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s clever and well-crafted proof of the potential of indie filmmaking, causing me to wish that it had the overall technical quality to match its ambition. I’ve said it before, but someone get Winans a bigger budget!

Best line: (Ink) “I am ruined, why can’t you see that?”   (Liev, a Storyteller) “Because I choose to see you for what you were intended to be, not what you’ve become.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
506 Followers and Counting

 

The Glenn Miller Story (1954)

20 Sunday Aug 2017

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(Best sung to “Little Brown Jug”)

Music once was full of brass;
Dance halls dripped with the sound of class.
Rock and roll had yet to grow,
But folks all knew Glenn Miller, though.

Ha, ha, ha, what a sound,
The kind to make Miller’s band renowned!
Ha, ha, ha, songs that stay,
The kind today’s elevators play!
__________________

MPAA rating: G

My mom has been urging me to check out more Jimmy Stewart movies lately, which I don’t mind since he’s one of my favorite actors, with a natural likability rivaling Tom Hanks. My latest exploration of his filmography is The Glenn Miller Story, which I hadn’t thought to see before because I didn’t know who Glenn Miller was. I’m sorry for my youthful ignorance now because it’s really an excellent role for Stewart and focuses on a style of music I rarely consider.

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For those like me who may recognize Glenn Miller’s name but don’t know who he was, he was a big band leader in the 1930s and ‘40s whose band’s famous recordings include “Moonlight Serenade,” “In the Mood,” and “Pennsylvania 6-5000.” I was familiar with almost all of these songs, especially “Little Brown Jug,” which I learned to play on piano as a kid, but because most of them don’t have lyrics, they’re typically relegated to background music, making them recognizable but not necessarily known. Yet before rock and roll got off the ground in the ‘50s, this jazzy orchestra music ruled the dance halls of America, and like Stewart’s Lindbergh biopic The Spirit of St. Louis, it was made at a time when people still remembered these pre-war events.

The film recounts Glenn’s early struggles, such as repeatedly pawning his trombone in between shows, and his eventual rise to stardom, always in search of “the sound” that would set his band apart. It also focuses on his romance with Helen Burger (June Allyson), whose initial wariness of Glenn’s rootless vocation melts into wholehearted support of his dream. Stewart is his usual lovable self, letting his charm overshadow his character’s frequent inconsiderate treatment of others, which is more out of preoccupation than malice. He also does a fine job pretending to play the trombone. Allyson, though, almost outshines him, bringing considerable warmth to the usual encouraging spouse role and making me like her as an actress even more than I already did from Good News. I was also surprised to see a young Harry Morgan of M*A*S*H fame, and an abundance of famous musicians who knew Miller cameo and perform, though due to that youthful ignorance I mentioned, I only recognized Louis Armstrong.

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What I especially liked about The Glenn Miller Story is that it didn’t fall into the problem I usually have with musical biopics. Most biographical films like this (think Ray, for instance) typically leave me with a more negative impression of its subject than I had before, exposing marital infidelity and drug use that taint their public image. It may be true, but it’s sad. Glenn Miller doesn’t do that, probably due to when it was made, instead depicting the music and romance of its title character without aiming to blemish his legacy. If I had a greater love for the big band style, this movie would easily make my list, but even if it just misses the cut, I greatly enjoyed its story and lead performances. My mom likes it even more, since she grew up with her parents listening to this kind of music, and it always puts a big, nostalgic smile on her face to hear it again. I feel bad now for putting off seeing it and not knowing of the talented Glenn Miller.

Best line: (Helen, several times) “Honestly!”  (I’ll think of this movie now every time I hear that.)

 

Rank: List Runner-Up (a very high one)

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
506 Followers and Counting

 

The Founder (2016)

17 Thursday Aug 2017

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The founders and dreamers and takers of risk
Are known for success
And their tirelessness
And refusal to heed the world’s stubborn “tsk, tsk.”

Yet no success came without stumbles and loss,
And when a dream bleeds,
It plants cynical seeds
Just waiting to sprout when the dreamer is boss.

When dreams do pay off and the struggle is won,
The dreamer may find,
As he glances behind,
Regret hanging over the great deeds he’s done.
___________________

MPAA rating:  PG-13 (for brief language, could otherwise be PG)

Based on its December release and strong central performance, The Founder was clearly aiming to be Oscar material, but even if that didn’t happen, it’s still a well-wrought peek into the history of an icon. McDonald’s is such a mainstay of American culture that it’s hard to imagine a time without those “Golden Arches” on every other corner, which is appropriately what Ray Kroc envisioned when he had the idea to revolutionize the food industry. Then again, did he revolutionize it or simply spread the change and reap the glory? The movie itself can’t quite decide on a definitive answer.

From the very beginning, it’s easy to sympathize with Kroc (Michael Keaton, in fine form), a washed-up milkshake machine salesman whose past attempts at scoring the next big thing have been nothing but fiascoes. After enduring the drawbacks of the drive-in (which I didn’t even know had such negatives back then), a visit to San Bernardino, California, introduces him to the very first McDonald’s, the immensely popular brainchild of Mac and Dick McDonald. It was strange watching Ray see fast-food conveniences that are commonplace today for the very first time, things like eating out of paper or receiving your order within minutes. It’s a reminder of just how game-changing the McDonald brothers’ idea was, and Ray recognizes its potential immediately and dives head first into his new goal of franchising the heck out of it.

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Because the title is The Founder and not The Founders, Ray’s eventual takeover of the company should come as no surprise. Yet, watching it with my VC, I was struck by how objectively the film presents Ray’s machinations and how differently my VC and I viewed his actions. We both empathized with Kroc’s early business failings and aspirations, especially when he convinces Dick and Mac to franchise and employs other down-and-out everymen like himself, giving them a chance that didn’t come as easily for him. It’s also hard to argue with his success, sprouting new McDonald’s locations throughout the Midwest, albeit with some bumps along the way.

Yet at some point, a line is crossed between admirable enterprise and predatory ambition, and it’s an ambiguous boundary that could be different for each viewer. I thought he was pushing a bit too far when he started going around Dick and Mac’s orders, frustrated at their constant negativity toward his big ideas. My VC, on the other hand, sympathized with Ray far longer and thought that the McDonalds were a little too naïve and standing in the way of expansion and profit, especially since they weren’t taking the risk Ray was. I can’t say she’s wrong since it comes down to how hard-hearted each of us thinks the world of business should be, though we both agree there’s still a point when Kroc’s cutthroat philosophy goes too far, even extending into his marriage and personal life. This dichotomy of runaway creative success and regrettable corporate backstabbing reminded me a lot of The Social Network, especially with its dubious but visionary real-life subject.

Image result for the founder filmDirected by The Blind Side’s John Lee Hancock, The Founder is an entertaining look at how a pioneering burger joint became an institution, made more unique by its moral ambivalence. Keaton excels as Kroc, with just the right amount of car salesman charisma to make him relatable and explain his marketing success, and the rest of the actors offer commendable support, especially Nick Offerman and John Carroll Lynch as Dick and Mac, respectively. It does make me wonder how the current McDonald’s Corporation felt about the film, since it doesn’t steer away from the ruthlessness of its self-proclaimed founder. The Founder is both a success story and a tale of loss, one that charted a new course for the restaurant industry and properly records what was lost along the way.

Best line: (Ray, quoting a motivational recording he listened to) “Nothing in this world can take the place of good old persistence. Talent won’t. Nothing’s more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius won’t. Unrecognized genius is practically a cliché. Education won’t. Why, the world is full of educated fools. Persistence and determination alone are all-powerful.”

 

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
505 Followers and Counting

 

The Conjuring 2 (2016)

06 Sunday Aug 2017

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The rooms where we sleep
Or attempt to count sheep
Were once home to others whose presence runs deep.
The bodies they wore
May not breathe anymore,
But tormented souls may demand an encore.

These lingerers, led
By the master of dread,
Can pester our peace and plant fears in our head.
May we not forget
He Who makes demons sweat
Is on our side, giving them reason to fret.
___________________

MPAA rating: R

Anyone who’s read my few horror reviews knows that I’m picky about the genre, with a low tolerance for gore and high admiration for developed characters, tension, and atmosphere. The Conjuring fit my tastes perfectly, with an exceptionally creepy story highlighted by strong performances and a positive religious message. The 2016 sequel, also directed by James Wan, may be more of the same, but that’s not a bad thing when it upholds what made the original great.

While the frightening opening involves the infamous Amityville house namedropped at the end of the first film, The Conjuring 2 focuses on the less-known (at least in America) Enfield Poltergeist. The Hodgsons, headed by single mother of four Peggy (Frances O’Connor), seem like a perfectly normal, if struggling, family, and there’s little unusual about their London home, again explored with one of those skillful tracking shots Wan employed to introduce the first film’s haunted house. Before long, though, eleven-year-old Janet (Madison Wolfe) becomes the central target of many otherworldly events, including instances of possession, and paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) are asked by the Catholic Church to look into it, at their own peril.

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As with its predecessor, I suspect the R rating is for sheer intensity because the film relies on mood and suspense far more than violence. A child’s zoetrope about the Crooked Man becomes the haunted object of the week, taking the place of the first film’s music box, and even if it’s not clear who or what the Crooked Man is a manifestation of, he’s an effective boogeyman for a few scenes. A demonic nun is also an unnerving presence throughout, though I’m not a fan of that kind of blasphemous imagery, even if it is explained.

The haunting of the Hodgson home is full of dark tension and jump scares, all well-executed, but it’s not the encroaching evil that sets The Conjuring films apart. As with the first movie, the Warrens are the best thing about this series. In the midst of demonic terror, they are a testament to the conquering power of God and their mutual love, plus a spirit of joy epitomized in a musical scene that becomes an island of light amid the darkness. When Ed converses with an old man’s ghost who speaks through Janet, he refuses to be cowed and sends the ghost shrinking away by confidently extending a crucifix. From their separate conversations with Janet, the Warrens’ devotion to each other is unmistakable, and after the nail-biting finale, this horror movie almost changes genre to end on a rare feel-good romantic note, at Christmastime no less.

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With the Hodgsons as the sympathetic victims and the Warrens as the godly defenders, The Conjuring 2 again places its horror movie tropes into the context of spiritual warfare, and as strong as the demons seem, it’s still satisfying to see them banished to hell by the name of Jesus. It’s not surprising that the film takes rampant liberties with the actual story, but I liked how they incorporated some doubt about the authenticity of the haunting, since many skeptics claim that the girls faked the paranormal phenomena. The Conjuring 2 may seem like old hat to horror aficionados, but for me, it’s an example of a trend of spiritually and emotionally mindful horror that Hollywood should keep following.

Best line: (skeptic Anita Gregory) “Last year I was conned by a Welsh family pretending to be possessed by demons. And honestly, I don’t know what was worse: the demons or the people who prey on our willingness to believe in them.”   (Lorraine) “The demons… are worse.”

 

Rank: List-Worthy (joining the first film)

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
501 Followers and Counting!

 

2017 Blindspot Pick #7: In Your Eyes (2014)

30 Sunday Jul 2017

Posted by in Blindspot, Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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Loneliness can be your lot
And leave you empty and distraught,
Even when alone you’re not
In daily life’s ordeal.
For life seems like an afterthought
When no one else knows how you feel.

But then the loneliness can fade,
No longer stressed, no more afraid,
When love more real cuts through charade,
And lonely souls are paired.
For newer joys are worth the trade
When feelings, thoughts, and love are shared.
_____________________

MPAA rating: Not Rated (could have been PG-13, but more R due to periodic profanity and some sensuality)

I chose In Your Eyes as one of my Blindspots because of the positive reviews I’d seen from some of my fellow bloggers, and my interest was further piqued by comparisons to last year’s anime hit Your Name. Whereas Your Name involves two strangers actually switching bodies, In Your Eyes features a telepathic (or more accurately, empathic) link between two random people on opposite sides of the country. Based on a decades-in-the-making screenplay by Joss Whedon and directed by Brin Hill, this supernatural romance certainly has its odd parts but incorporates a lot of what I love about the genre.

Image result for in your eyes michael stahl-david film

The two leads are played by Cloverfield’s Michael Stahl-David and Ruby Sparks’ Zoe Kazan, the former as a New Mexico parolee named Dylan and the latter as a New Hampshire trophy wife named Rebecca. Little do they know that they have shared a mental link since childhood, when one’s sledding accident somehow affected them both, but suddenly, it becomes strong enough to allow them to converse with each other and see what the other is seeing. I was a bit annoyed at first that there was no explanation or trigger to the sudden strengthening of their bond, aside from “Why not?” But then I recalled that Your Name didn’t have a very clear reason either, so it’s perhaps best to just roll with it since these cosmic movie connections are hard to clarify in reality.

Despite being separated for most of the film, Kazan and Stahl-David have engaging chemistry to spare. Their long-distance conversations feel natural to us since it’s as if they’re talking on the phone, but to everyone else, it looks like they’re talking to themselves or suffering bizarre outbursts that elicit worry and sideways glances from those nearby. (My VC actually thought it was stupid that they kept talking to each other out loud with no thought to how crazy they looked to others.) As with Taki and Mitsuha in Your Name, they learn a lot about each other, from past stresses to present foibles, through the rare opportunity of vicariously witnessing the other’s life. I especially liked how one tends to comment on what’s happening to the other, a voice in the head they have to try to ignore, like the hologram Al from Quantum Leap.

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Also worth noting are the direction and cinematography, which infuse many scenes with a luminous quality that enhances the enchantment of their unusual bond. The contrasting settings also heighten the distance between them, from Dylan’s orange desert to Rebecca’s blue-tinged snowscapes. The editing does well in visualizing their shared feelings, culminating in a bizarre but sensual bedroom scene. (Is there even a word for that? Long-distance intimacy?)

As much as I enjoyed both the romance and fantasy aspects, I must admit I didn’t love In Your Eyes quite as much as I’d hoped. It isn’t just the lack of explanation or the oddness of the very concept. The climax builds to a satisfying final scene, but all the events leading up to it are left open-ended, making me think there will be lots of unaddressed bumps on the road to a happy ending. Plus, as good as In Your Eyes is, I think Your Name did a similar story better, just as it did with The Lake House. Even so, In Your Eyes deserves a lot more attention than the few bloggers who have tried to promote it. For any fan of unorthodox romance or extramundane relationships, it’s definitely worth your time.

Best line: (Rebecca, realizing who she’s talking to the first time) “Wait, you’re real. You’re a real person!”   (Dylan) “Oh, that’s the sweetest thing anybody’s said to me all day.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
497 Followers and Counting

 

Split (2017)

24 Monday Jul 2017

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Here I sit and calmly wait
As others take the stage for now,
The normal ones who dominate
And cast their glares of fear and hate
Because they know my time will come,
No matter what they may allow.

Within our host, I wait my turn,
For others must prepare my way.
I’m just a rumor, no concern,
Until too late, the normals learn
That darkness kept beneath their thumb
Will be set free, and they will pay.
______________

MPAA rating: PG-13

After reaching an atrocious low with The Last Airbender, it seems M. Night Shyamalan has enacted a comeback, a return to the well-crafted psychological thrillers that first made him a household name. Found-footage horror The Visit was an improvement, wringing tension from a low budget, even if the story had holes and strange parts to criticize. And now, Split is another step in the right direction, boasting elements that are deserving of genuine praise, even if it’s not at the same level as Shyamalan’s early work, like Unbreakable.

The captivity thriller seems to be a popular subgenre of late, including 10 Cloverfield Lane, Pet, Berlin Syndrome, and of course, Split (or, as I call it, Sybil meets Psycho). Right from the start, outcast highschooler Casey (Anya Taylor-Joy) is abducted with two of her more popular classmates, Claire (Haley Lu Richardson) and Marcia (Jessica Sula), and they awake in a small locked room. Their kidnapper Kevin Crumb (James McAvoy) acts like different people whenever he interacts with them, and sessions with his understanding psychologist (Betty Buckley) reveal that he actually has 23 separate identities. We only get to see eight at the most, but three in particular have taken control of Kevin and, by kidnapping the girls, are preparing for the arrival of a much more dangerous personality called the Beast.

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The best thing about Split is James McAvoy simply because, without his phenomenal acting, the film could collapse under a weaker performance. Whether he’s an OCD-ridden pervert, a threateningly proper matron, or a mischievous little boy named Hedwig, his acting, accent, and body language really sell Kevin’s divided character. He even manages to act as one personality pretending to be another personality. Betty Buckley and Anya Taylor-Joy do fine work as well, with the former convincingly laying out exposition and the latter capturing the fear of trying to keep her wits about her.

Unfortunately, Split’s sad and disturbing narrative makes it a film I’m not likely to see often. Aside from the claustrophobic captivity aspect and tension, which were also well-done in 10 Cloverfield Lane, there were moments that could have benefited from a rewrite or better editing, like the protracted kidnapping scene, which had me thinking “Why doesn’t she dart out the door?” rather than holding me on the edge of my seat. One bizarre dance scene with the Hedwig personality reminded me that, as with The Visit, I don’t think Shyamalan’s attempts at comic relief work as he intends; it’s just a very strange scene, even if it were done by the 9-year-old boy Kevin thinks he is.

My biggest complaint comes toward the end, where the already disturbing storyline turns murderous and goes a bit too far for me and my VC, even if there’s restraint in what is actually shown. I appreciated the semi-twist that made sense for the traumas shared by Kevin and Casey, but the ending doesn’t provide much closure to anyone’s story. Perhaps I’ll appreciate Split more with the arrival of the announced sequel it’s clearly leading into, and I’ll admit I’m more excited for that follow-up than I was about Split.

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Even with my objections, Split is a definite step up for Shyamalan, well-acted and taut, and promises even more intriguing things to come. It’s perhaps best thought of as the birth of a supervillain, and while it succeeds in creating a dangerous and conflicted character, I’m more interested in the hero he’ll oppose.

Best line: (9-year-old Hedwig, after awkwardly kissing Casey) “You might be pregnant now.”

 

Rank: Honorable Mention

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
497 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Over the Top (1987)

19 Wednesday Jul 2017

Posted by in Movies, Poetry, Reviews, Writing

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If I had rippling muscles
And a huge right arm to lend,
I’d enter contests proving
What a beast I am at moving
Other people’s arms at angles
That they were not meant to bend.

I suppose my strength would let me
Find more meaningful success,
But when limbs become this hefty,
Whether right-handed or lefty,
There are few things quite as tempting
As to prove one’s manliness.
__________________

MPAA rating: PG

Many of Sylvester Stallone’s films are designed to reinforce his manliness, the kind of machismo that automatically raises the ambient testosterone level. If there’s any doubt about who the toughest guy in the room is, just wait, and he’ll prove his muscular superiority.

That’s the kind of movie I assumed Over the Top would be based on the fact that it’s about an armwrestling competition, and that’s what it is, but not all it is. It’s also, surprisingly, a family film, in contrast to Stallone’s many R-rated actioners. He plays Lincoln Hawk (now that’s a cool ‘80s name if I ever heard one), a trucker who attempts to bond with his estranged son Michael (David Mendenhall) via a road trip, much to the chagrin of the boy’s rich, Hawk-hating grandfather Jason Cutler (Robert Loggia). As Michael’s chilly treatment of his absentee father melts in the wake of cross-country bonding, we get to see Stallone show off his armwrestling expertise. Can he use that underdog prowess to earn back his son from the intrusive grandfather? Can he defeat all the trash-talking he-men at the World Armwrestling Championship? Can he? Can he?!

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You probably know the answer so, yes, Over the Top is entirely predictable, but it still manages to be enjoyably so. The first half especially engenders the same tough-guy sympathy that Stallone had in Rocky, as he tries to break down Michael’s walls and prove he’s more than the irresponsible Neanderthal Cutler considers him, with some stunning western scenery to back their father-son journey. The latter half is more typical sports stuff, with Hawk’s future, fatherhood, and everything else depending on his strong right arm. As he trains hard and progresses through the championship with accompanying encouragement and theme music, it’s hard not to feel like you’re watching an obvious variant of Rocky and The Karate Kid, but it’s still aggressively macho fun. I just didn’t understand how winning the championship would legally get Hawk’s son back or why Cutler was intent on stopping him, when I thought Hawk had already signed over his parental rights.

Even if the details are left vague, Over the Top is decent fun backed by rousing rock songs, and it’s not nearly as bad as its reputation as a bomb would indicate. By the way, the title refers to conquering the middle arm position during an armwrestling match, though I suppose it also applies to the bravado of the championship itself. Over the Top may not stand out next to most of its ‘80s brethren, but it’s worth a watch if you’re in the mood for macho.

Best line: (Hawk) “The world meets nobody halfway. When you want something, you gotta take it.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
497 Followers and Counting

 

Deepwater Horizon (2016)

16 Sunday Jul 2017

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(Can be sung to “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”)

The waves lapped the pipes, the sea’s unavailed gripes,
At the feet of Deepwater Horizon,
And no one on board thought this rig of reward
Would be one to have a surprise on.

The oil down below had had nowhere to go
Till a tube tapped the well of the ocean.
And well it had stayed under instruments made
To ensure there was no upward motion.

Till caution was dropped, and the great bubble popped
And laid waste to Deepwater Horizon,
Where before the rig’s throb, busy men on the job
Never thought they would meet their demise on.

Like ink swiftly bled, the well’s sable soul spread
On the waves of the ocean surrounding,
Although the crew tried as eleven men died
And the fire and spill were confounding.

When the morning sun’s light showed the gulf dark as night
Stretching out from Deepwater Horizon,
No worse oil spill from the maw of man’s drill
Had anyone ever laid eyes on.
_______________________

MPAA rating: PG-13 (for intensity and frequent obscenities)

From The Day After Tomorrow to 2012 to Geostorm later this year, so many disaster movies focus on wildly improbable worldwide catastrophes that it’s easy to forget how visceral a real-life disaster can be. Deepwater Horizon may follow the trend of making a movie about any recent event of media significance (like Patriot’s Day, also from director Peter Berg and star Mark Wahlberg), but it’s far from a cash-grab and uses that genuine intensity to remind audiences of just how bad the 2010 BP oil spill was at its start.

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The first half has the workaday detail of a documentary, with much resemblance to the docudrama credibility of Captain Phillips. I can’t speak to how close the film is to the actual events, but the re-creation of the Deepwater Horizon rig is entirely convincing and never once had me doubting the truth of what was shown. There’s not an abundance of character development, but it’s easy to identify with the everyman likes of Wahlberg, Gina Rodriguez, and Kurt Russell as the supervisor fondly called “Mr. Jimmy.” True, the beginning threatens to get dull with all the technical jargon, but there’s the constant threat of what we know will happen. And that culmination doesn’t disappoint.

When the actual disaster starts, the explosions rarely let up, and it’s a thrilling and incendiary experience, of course from the comfort of one’s living room. It never was tainted by easily recognizable CGI, and it well deserved its Oscar nominations for Visual Effects and Sound Editing. Even if most of the casualties don’t have the emotional impact of similar films, the loss of life is stressed by the end, with a rare focus on each and every victim before the credits. After the intensity of the accident itself, I also welcomed the relieved prayer that followed the survivors’ escape; it was a believable religious aspect often lacking from other disaster flicks.

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Deepwater Horizon offers a cinematic thrill while also making you dislike BP executives more than you thought you did, personified by the smarmy, corner-cutting manager played by John Malkovich, who’s good as usual but a bit overly snide. Like Wahlberg’s character, I wondered if he was on medication. Thanks to its potent realism before, during, and after the calamity, well-executed from start to finish, I’d say Deepwater Horizon is one of the best disaster films of recent years.

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
496 Followers and Counting