Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence.
Now Streaming on Disney+ for $30 Premium Access Mulan is a movie I went in wanting to like while simultaneously being unsure of what I’d get. We all know at this point how Disney’s live action remakes usually turn out. And while they can be admirable from a visual standpoint, they never rise above mediocre status in the end. Mostly because, aside from a few useless story changes, they are basically shot-for-shot remakes of their respective animated classic. And now it seems no Disney classic is safe from remake fever which brings us to Mulan. From the trailers, it appeared the studio was trying to do something different from the 1998 original. It looked more grounded in realism, and the PG-13 rating certainly instilled some hope that things might turn out different. Sadly, what we get is basically what we’ve come to expect. It seems futile to give a summary of the plot since, aside from a few story and character additions, everything plays out as expected. It follows the same beats as the original film without shaking things up to a major degree. There are some new elements in terms of the villains and the plot, but none of this really adds anything substantial to the overall movie. And this means yet another lackluster viewing from Disney’s ever increasing library of dull, live action retreads. Mulan's problems range from plot holes to bad dialogue to tonal and character inconsistencies. There appears to be very little effort put into the script. It all begins at the very start which gives us a look into the life of Mulan as a kid that wasn’t present in the original. It establishes her as an already skilled warrior; able to pull off impractical stuffs like they’re nothing. This immediately creates a problem since the film never shows us how she learned to do any of those wonderful stunts. They try to establish that she was born with this, but what she does is so insane that it seems lazy not to have some scenes that illustrate this further. This then leads into several other problems; like having Mulan already be super skilled creates inconsistencies when she finally reaches her training for the army. We are treated to the same montage of Mulan struggling to meet the expectations of the generals. Again, the movie tries playing the “she’s hiding it from the others” card, but the way the story treats this just feels like lazy writing. Much of the script hinges on scenes that appear out of nowhere with no real explanation. It feels like the filmmakers struggled to balance following the original while trying to add new wrinkles to the story. The result feels like there are pieces still missing from the overall film; nothing new ever gets fully developed while basic story elements don’t gel together well either. Mulan’s skills and aspirations also create major problems in terms of the film’s messages. In the original, Mulan didn’t want to get married, but she was willing to go along with it if it brought her family honor. She only decided to go to war to protect her father. This played to the core themes of the original; the idea of what family, duty, and honor truly mean. This makes her journey into the war more noble and makes her a fully realized character. In this new version, Mulan is very adamant about her desire NOT to get married. She actually dreams of going off to fight, so by taking her father’s place, she’s essentially getting what she wants. By the end, she doesn’t really learn a worthwhile lesson. She just gets what she desired from the beginning, and that makes her a more selfish and two-dimensional character than her actually two-dimensional 1998 counterpart. Much of this is due to Yifei Liu’s portrayal of Mulan, which I couldn’t help but compare to Mena Massoud’s performance from last year’s live action Aladdin remake. Sure, ethnicity wise, she’s perfectly cast in the role. But as a performance, she’s completely flat; never imbuing any kind of genuine emotion into the character. She just wasn't convincing as Mulan. There’s also major issues with the tone; boiling down to what they chose to keep from the original vs. what they chose to omit. Much of the humor from the original has been done away with in order to focus on a more grounded story. The problem is that they also include moments of cartoonish humor and more fantasy elements than even the original has. It really feels like they didn’t know what kind of tone they wanted to create. And, as with so many major blockbusters these days, the script relies heavily on exposition. Right from the start, characters completely spell out their plans and motivations, others explain the situation they find themselves in like they’re giving a history lesson, and we’re constantly reminded of things that literally just happened. It’s really annoying that Disney seems to think that the audiences, whether kids or adults, are no smarter than a 5th grader and have five second attention spans. Now, despite all of this, not everything about this movie is bad. What’s good mostly deals with the technical departments; specifically the cinematography, production and costume design. The world they have created is a visual marvel, and I commend the team for attempting to use more practical effects over the other CGI-heavy remakes. In terms of the visual, this film is a wonder to behold. But no amount of visual splendor can make up for what is yet another misstep for the once great Disney. It honestly feels insulting that the company makes movies knowing that their target audience, kids, has no real discerning taste in films. As a result, they don’t care that anyone older than them may want to watch their film. They put so much effort into making their animated films fun for the whole family that it’s shocking they don’t try to put the same effort into their live action ones. And with that, it’s pretty clear that I can’t recommend this new rendition of Mulan. Even if you love these kinds of films, there are so many others that are more entertaining than this one. It’s certainly not worth the premium access price. It will be available for free to all Disney+ subscribers on December 4, but with the original film available on the service as well, you and your family will have so much more fun watching the classic version over the one that will probably be forgotten a couple years down the road.
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Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some suggestive references and brief strong language.
Now playing internationally. Opens in America September 3 wherever theaters are open. Right off the bat, let me issue a warning to anyone looking to see this movie. This is not a film that you are going to understand after one viewing. Like many of Christopher Nolan’s films, his stories are based around complex scientific theories and reality-bending threats. For some, this may hinder their overall opinion of this movie. For others, and especially Nolan’s millions of fans, this will just make them even more eager to see it. And what you are going to get is one wild ride through Nolan’s wondrous imagination. He has always dealt with the concept of time in films like Memento, Inception, and Interstellar and how it molds our perception of reality. Now with Tenet, he’s playing with time directly as he sends us head first into the world of international espionage with a world-crumbling plot that spans across multiple time periods. We are placed in the perspective of our lead, only ever referred to as the Protagonist (John David Washington). He is a CIA agent who witnesses something odd while attempting to stop a terrorist attack. This leads him to a secret organization that studies the idea of “time inversion,” which has been used to create weapons that can move backwards in time. These inverted weapons can cause far more destruction than normal weapons and have the capability of ripping apart reality as we know it. Now he’s on a mission to discover the source of the inverted weapons and put an end to a plot that could bring about the end of all existence. With the help of a man named Neil (Robert Pattinson) and a woman named Kat (Elizabeth Debicki), the Protagonist finds himself in a world beyond his comprehension as his journey leads him both forward and backward through the veil of time itself. Tenet is, without a doubt, Nolan’s most visually impressive film to date. With his use of inverted time, he constructs some unbelievable action set pieces that will truly blow your mind. The Protagonist often fights with elements that are moving in both temporal directions. This creates some stunning image and adds a fresh new layer to what would have been standard action scenes. And as always, the visuals are one of the best parts of the movie. Nolan’s films always have the highest quality visual effects of any Hollywood blockbuster. What’s so commendable about his movies, and especially here in Tenet, is his extensive use of practical effects and the way he seamlessly blends CGI into them. The effect of things moving backwards in time looks almost too real, and helps make the action scenes all the more compelling, as inverted obstacles look like tangible threats. The Protagonist is also a very compelling lead, in no small part due to John David Washington’s portrayal of him. We never get a sense of who he was before the events of the film but Washington delivers a steely, world-weary performance that shows that, even though we don’t know much about him, he has seen enough to be fully competent of the situation. This is a man who knows his job and is ready for whatever time can throw at him. Pattinson and Debicki also give solid performances as the allies to the Protagonist. Like Washington, they too portray their characters as if they know more than we do. Pattinson, in particular, always looks like he knows more about the weapons and time inversion than he lets on. He has come a long way from his Twilight days and truly is one of the better actors working today. His performance here should give fans faith that he will nail the role of Batman next year. But one of the film’s biggest strengths is its ability to feel both traditional and fresh. The story beats and characters are all traditional tropes that make up a typical spy film. However, with the inclusion of the time inversion element, it makes the film feel like a modern update to the classic genre. Without this science fiction element, it would have been just another “run of the mill” spy effort. Overall, Tenet is the perfect definition of a Christopher Nolan film. It’s a complex, mathematical story that really requires audiences to pay attention. But in a world of mindless blockbusters that require little to no thought, having a film like this is just what 2020 needs. Not all theaters are currently open, but if one near you is playing this film, see it. You will not get the same experience seeing it on your computer or phone as you will seeing it on a massive screen. Rated PG-13 for some language.
Now Available on VOD and Select Theaters In 1989, dim-witted yet good hearted teens Bill S. Preston Esq. (Alex Winter) and Ted “Theodore” Logan (Keanu Reeves) dreamed of being totally awesome rockstars in a band they called the Wyld Stallyns. Their dream becomes more important than they could’ve ever realized when they discover that their music will one day unite the world and create a utopian paradise. Using a time-traveling phone booth, their mission to achieve this dream takes them across all corners of time and space. But time has passed. Both Bill and Ted have tried numerous times to write their prophesied song, but all attempts have ended in failure. They’re starting to believe that maybe they aren’t meant to unite the world, and are only meant to look after their now adult daughters Thea (Samara Weaving) and Billie (Bridgette Lundy-Paine). But the future isn’t about to give up on them yet. When a messenger named Kelly (Kristen Schaal) comes for them, Bill and Ted learn that not only are they destined to unite the world, but are also destined to save reality from falling apart. With only hours left until the destruction of all existence, they decide to travel through time and take their amazing song from their future selves. Meanwhile, Thea and Billie are also time traveling, putting together a band of famous musicians throughout history. In this time when we’re practically at each other’s throats all the time, the return of the duo who just want us to “be excellent to each other” seems like a dream come true. A third installment in this film series is something fans of the original have been wanting since the sequel back in 1991. After years of trying to get it off the ground, this new film finally made it to theaters, and it couldn’t have been better timed. Unfortunately, while Winter and Reeves are still a most excellent duo, their long-awaited return leaves something to be desired. Bill & Ted Face the Music has some genuinely hilarious moments, and is mostly saved by the titular duo who still work well together even in their 50s. However, they’re let down by a script that tries to juggle several different plotlines and doesn’t really seem to know what to do with any of them. The main story, as said above, involves Bill and Ted attempting to take their legendary song from their future selves. However, no matter how far they go, they encounter selfish versions of themselves that are more interested in regaining fame and fortune rather than saving the world. This is the funniest story of the bunch, as it allows us to spend more time with the characters we know and love. One of the side plots follows their daughters attempting to form a band for their dads to play the song with; which sends them on their own time-traveling adventure. While this story does have its share of funny moments, it’s let down by its unwillingness to be goofy in its portrayal of history. The first film never portrayed historical figures correctly, merely using them as jumping off points for comedy. That issue permeates throughout this film, as it seems unwilling to embrace the inherent goofiness that made the first two films what they are. Everything in this film is played much more seriously, and their new batch of historical figures are portrayed more accurately. This causes the film to lose some of the heart that made the earlier films so enjoyable. And while Reeves and Winter are still great together, their younger counterparts aren’t as great. Bridgett Lundy-Paine and Samara Weaving don’t have the same lovable chemistry as Bill and Ted, and while Lundy-Paine looks like she’s having fun, Weaving not so much. She looks rather uncomfortable trying to act like her free-spirited father. To be honest, her roles up to this point have been more serious, so it’s understandable she wouldn’t easily just “let it loose” with a role like this. It all comes crashing down in the final act, when the characters all reunite to play the song that will save all of reality. Their mission to put it all together is an almost incomprehensible series of loud noises, overly-complex time travel logic, subplots that just end with no genuine resolution, and jokes that mostly miss the mark. For being the epic event the series has been reaching for since the beginning, it was disappointing how sloppily executed and underwhelming it was. Bill & Ted Face the Music is a sequel that deserved to get made, and with all the original stars, writers, and the director of Galaxy Quest making his long-awaited return, the final result is sadly less than the sum of its parts. It isn’t as absurdly funny as its predecessor, and focuses on too many storylines for its 92 minute runtime to handle. It may be worth seeing if you love the first two and want to see where it goes, but maybe wait for the rental price (currently $19.99) to go down. You’ll find more hilarious good times in the most excellent Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure than in this movie. Rated PG-13 for some language and rude humor.
Now Streaming on HBO Max Herschel Greenbaum (Seth Rogen) doesn’t live a remarkable life. He hails from the country of Schlupsk in 1920, where he works as a ditch digger. Though he doesn’t have much money to his name, he finds happiness in his growing relationship with the young Sarah (Sarah Snook). They marry, and collectively decide that their dreams can’t be accomplished living in their poor homeland. So, the couple is off to America to make something of the Greenbaum name. Herschel gets a very low paying job killing rats at a pickle factory. He has confidence that their family will become more powerful as time goes by. But things change when a factory accident causes him to fall into a vat of pickles mere seconds before the whole facility is shut down. Believed dead, he is simply left there to lie with the pickles. But Herschel isn’t dead. 100 years later, he is released from his briny prison having not aged a day. The pickle brine somehow preserved his body for the last century, and now he finds himself in the ever-changing metropolis of modern-day Brooklyn. He is able to locate family, and to his shock, he only has one surviving relative; a computer programer named Ben (also Rogen). Faced with an era he can’t even begin to understand, Herschel is forced to catch up with the times, or be left in the dust. An American Pickle isn’t quite as sharp or wacky as its premise may suggest, but aside from all the missed opportunities, it’s a very funny and rather sweet little comedy. It certainly has its fair share of flaws, but the overall feeling of happiness is manages to generate is enough to outweigh its problems. It’s no joke that I had a smile on my face for much of the runtime, something that most movies aren’t able to do. Seth Rogen is really the main draw here. His dual performance as Herschel and Ben Greenbaum is very entertaining to watch. He really nails playing two polar opposite characters at the same time. Even though his accent as Herschel is a bit hard to understand sometimes, he still manages to wring some of the biggest laughs from the movie. There was something so joyful about watching him discover the wonders of modern life. Even though someone from the past discovering the future isn’t new, Rogen’s portrayal made it seem fresh. The humor is also thanks to the film’s writer, Simon Rich. The young comedian and author is known for wacky and surreal humor that satirizes modern society, like his television series Man Seeking Woman on FX or Miracle Workers on TBS. Here he gets many swings at the idea of our rapidly changing society and obsession with all things “vintage” and “ironic.” It is quite hilarious watching modern social media people think Herschel is just acting old to be hip, even though he’s dead serious. But for all its jokey potshots at society, the film is surprisingly more serious than expected. A story about a man preserved in pickle brine for 100 years should be a crazy and colorful comedy. In actuality, the film is much more tame and dramatic than you might expect. A lot of the story focuses on the ideas of grief and loss. It really feels like an indie film rather than a studio comedy, especially with its visual presentation. While this may seem like a missed opportunity, and parts of me did wish it was more comedic in its execution, this is actually one of the film’s biggest strengths. In a world where young people either mock the old ways, or embrace their own modern version of them, it’s nice to have a film that makes fun of this. Herschel thinks the way he does because, before he was brined, that was the normal. It’s not his fault that his mindset is so culturally outdated, yet everyone gangs up on him when he says something that sounds offensive. It’s nice to have a film that doesn’t make him the villain because of how outdated he is. It’s all about his personal journey to understand the world he’s in, but of course he’s going to hold onto his old thoughts, because to him, he lived in that world only yesterday. So many movies today are quick to point the finger at anyone we may think isn’t being respectful of all cultures, and that makes them seem niche and mean-spirited. This movie is neither. An American Pickle is a successful first feature outing for HBO Max. It’s much more serious in nature than one might think going in, and that may end up putting some people off. But despite this, it still manages to get major laughs thanks to Seth Rogen’s dual performance, some really witty satire from Simon Rich, and some surprisingly heartwarming moments that may bring a tear to your eye. If you have HBO Max, definitely stream this one. It’s worth your time. Rated: TV-14
Now Streaming on Netflix The 2018 Netflix teen comedy The Kissing Booth wasn’t the most well received original film on the service. Panned by critics for various reasons not worth mentioning, the main one was that many felt the film was full of clichés and was unoriginal. Honestly, it is easy to understand this sentiment, as it does feel like every teen trope ever wrapped in colorful, modern packaging. But for me, there is fun to be had with the film. The way to do that is to enjoy how wonderfully over-the-top it is. It feels like a satire of teen comedies rather than a genuine one. Nothing in the film is taken seriously, and the characters even seem to know that their story is ridiculous. This makes the film much more entertaining and manages to deliver a surprising amount of flat out hilarious moments. So, since this was a massively successful film despite the critical disdain, it’s no surprise that Netflix would want to cash in on this with a sequel. After the events of the first film, Elle (Joey King) is disappointed by the departure of her boyfriend Noah (Jacob Elordi) for Harvard, but is confident that they can make their relationship work. For now, she must go through her senior year with her lifelong bestie, and Noah’s younger brother, Lee (Joel Courtney). But things become complicated when the two decide to bring back their Kissing Booth business for the school’s upcoming homecoming fundraiser. Elle is pressured by her classmates to hire new kid Marco (Taylor Perez) for the booth, as many find him extremely attractive. She is also faced with a decision on what school to go to. Noah wants her to apply to Harvard so that they can be together, but she and Lee had already planned to attend the same university their mothers became friends at. All of these decisions force Elle to confront the direction her life is going and whether changing her plans is worth possibly losing the people closest to her. Like the first film, The Kissing Booth 2 is highly over-the-top. The characters are all crazy exaggerations of typical high school traits. This brings some more genuinely hilarious moments that make the first half of the film very entertaining. However, this sequel can’t manage to recapture the consistent heart of the first one thanks to a bereft of subplots and an extended runtime that sadly overstays its welcome. But let’s focus on the positive first. Again, just like the first film, this one plays like a satire of teen comedies. Everything here is so ridiculous that there really is no way to take any of it seriously. There are various side characters that are literally walking clichés, existing for no other reason than to be parodies of high school students. This leads to some of the most hilarious moments in the film, solely because of the gags the film has at the expense of its own target audience. Much of the humor also comes from the chemistry of King and Courtney. As their characters are lifelong friends, the two do another amazing job portraying this. They really feel like they have been friends their whole lives, and it’s actually adorable watching their interactions. The duo works so well together, and its their performances that make the movie so watchable even in its low points. However, the movie’s pure entertainment factor is eventually undone by its own runtime. This one clocks in at 132 minutes, 21 minutes longer than the previous film. A movie like this doesn’t really have a reason for being this long, and this film doesn’t do anything to surpass this expectation. As lovable as the characters are, the story they’re in begins to slow down around the 50 minute mark, and it becomes hard to keep up with what follows. This also isn’t helped by the number of subplots within the story. The first film had a simple plot involving Elle coming to terms with her growing feelings for Noah. This one, however, has multiple subplots. This wouldn’t be a problem, except that many of these don’t really help the main plot at any point. One subplot involves a classmate of Elle’s trying to express his love for another boy; and while this does lead to a really heartwarming scene towards the end, it doesn't do anything to push Elle’s story forward and ends up feeling mostly useless. The Kissing Booth 2 does its best to recreate the feel of the first movie, and somewhat succeeds thanks to more of the crazy satirical tone and lovable cast the previous one worked so well with. But with an overlong runtime and several unnecessary subplots, it ends up feeling like a slog the more it drags on. It is good for more laugh-out-loud moments, but can’t quite prove why a movie about teenage love needs to be this long. Regardless, with a third film already in post-production, I’m eager to see where the story will go from here. In the high stakes world of the CIA, JJ (Dave Bautista) is well-regarded for his skills as a fighter in tough situations. However, he isn’t as good with the slower, observational stuff, which angers his boss (Ken Jeong). Because of this, his next mission is a simple surveillance task with lower level hacker Bobbi (Kristen Shcaal). JJ thinks this will be a boring yet easy mission, until he runs into a problem he couldn’t anticipate.
Sophie (Chloe Coleman), a 9-year-old girl who is smarter and sassier than her age suggests, lives in the same building as JJ and Bobbi’s operation. When she stumbles upon their setup, she manages to blackmail JJ into being her personal bodyguard; training her in the ways of being a cool spy. As the two continually butt heads, they ultimately bond as they start to bring out the best in each other. Well, here we are at another movie who’s release was canceled by the pandemic. But before the virus postponed its release, distributor STXfilms had delayed it several times already. It was originally scheduled to come out last August, before moving to January of this year, then to March, then April, then finally getting bought up by Amazon Prime Video. Usually numerous delays like this aren’t a good sign as to the overall quality of the film. Now that it’s been released via streaming, it is easy to see why the studio was constantly holding it back. My Spy is an odd combination of espionage thriller and family comedy, and it’s not a good combo. It’s hard to classify this as family-friendly because there’s so much in it that isn’t really appropriate for kids, but the general tone isn’t any better suited for adults either. It all begins at the opening, when we learn there’s more to the film’s story than just “grizzled spy meets cute kid.” There’s a plot about international, nuclear arms dealing happening as well, which ties into JJ’s overall mission. These scenes get into some really dark places; such as semi-violent shootouts with Russian terrorists, people getting stabbed to death by the lead villain, and even casual swearing. It’s really not stuff that kids should be watching. But when Sophie comes into the mix, it becomes a completely different movie. Her interactions with JJ lead to various verbal and physical gags that feel perfectly fine for kids. There’s jokes about JJ being completely out of place because of his physical appearance, moments where Sophie outsmarts him by the simplest of actions, and even a subplot involving a buddying romance between him and Sophie’s mom. It’s all stuff that feels very family-friendly. All in all, the two different tones just don’t mix, and it really makes you wonder what kind of audience the film was intended for. It’s too casually violent for kids, while also too dim-witted and unfunny for adults. This jarring shift in tone permeates throughout the runtime, and it starts becoming confusing what kind of film the makers were going for. Aside from the off-putting tone, the film just isn’t that original. It does manage to get a few laughs, but all its biggest gags aren’t anything we haven’t seen before. Yes, there is fun to be had in watching Bautista get circled, physically and mentally, by someone 40 years younger than him, but their lack of true chemistry doesn’t help amplify the stale jokes they spit at each another. My Spy aims to be just a dumb fun movie, but its odd mix of kiddie and adult content make for a strange watch. It’s genuinely jarring how the film switches from scary spy thriller to goofy family comedy almost immediately, and the recycled material for other, better films doesn’t help to make this already middling affair any better. With the vast array of films and TV shows truly made for families available on streaming platforms, you’re probably okay skipping this one. As we continue to grow more sensitive of the world around us and the horrors of the adult world, we continue to censor and change the stories of the past to reflect what we believe today. This is most prevalent in fairy tales, which have been mostly changed into kid-friendly tales with lessons people don’t really listen to. What many don’t know is that these tales started as really dark, sinister stories involving subjects like kidnapping, cannibalism, and even underage sexual abuse (I’m not kidding).
Throughout the centuries of their existence, fairy tales have had many interpretations. As cinema came into play, they became the subjects of numerous film adaptations. Some recent ones have embraced the dark origins of the stories, but never in a way that captures the true horror that lies beneath the surface. Now one director, Osgood Perkins, is attempting to unearth the truth of the classic tale Hansel & Gretel, embracing the truly twisted story that it used to be. In the depths of an ancient fairy tale forest, siblings Gretel (Sophia Lillis) and Hansel (Sam Leakey) are trying to make it through their miserable existence living with their poor mother. One night, their mother throws them out and they are forced to fend for themselves. After days of wandering the woods without food or water, they believe that they may have found a home when they stumble upon a dark cottage that seems to warmly invite them in. The home’s owner (Alice Krige), while certainly strange in behavior, is more than welcoming of the two children. She gives them food, work, and a place to sleep for the night; everything that they had been looking for. It seems like the perfect place to stay to Hansel. But Gretel suspects otherwise, as she begins to unravel the truth behind their mysterious host and discovers something sinister hiding just beneath the surface. From the very opening of the film, which spins an original fairy tale like a horror story, you can tell that Osgood Perkins isn’t playing around. He isn’t going to tell you the classic tale like how your parents told you when they were putting you to bed. The opening is design to get you pleasantly unsettled, setting you up to witness something that resembles more of a nightmare than a kid-friendly bedtime story. Gretel & Hansel stands on its own in the crowded library of studio horror offerings. It looks and acts like an arthouse horror flick; one released by A24 like Hereditary or The Witch (the latter of which clearly inspiring some of the film’s shots). It relies heavily on surreal imagery and creepy symbolism, something that will definitely off-put audiences looking for a more straightforward film. But for those of you looking for something more unique in the genre, this is the breath of fresh air you’ve been looking for. From Perkins’s skillful direction, to the haunting production and costume design, to the total embrace of the fairy tale’s terrifying origins, this film does everything it can to stand apart from other modern horror films and fairy tale adaptations, and largely succeeds. Much of the success comes from Perkins’s direction. The way he stages the shots is very simplistic and dark, relying mostly on natural lighting and tight spaces to create a tense atmosphere. Many of the scary elements are kept in the background, and the camera angles never focus directly on them. That’s what makes them so much more scary. They feel like more of a threat when they’re lurking in the background, obscured from view but you know they’re there. And that’s how most of the scares land hard. That and the production and costume design. The world that Perkins has created oozes dread on every surface of its buildings and characters. There are scenes involving a sort-of dark sorcerer who's face is covered and wears a black colonial hat. Just the look of this character creates a nightmarish image that is genuinely haunting. The witch’s home is also an unsettling design. The darkened rooms and small spaces make you feel genuinely trapped like the characters, and makes the atmosphere so much more tense. All of this is held afloat by the performances of its cast. After making a splash with her performance in It, Sophia Lillis bring all the emotion she gave as Beverly to the character of Gretel, and more than manages to carry the majority of the film on her own. Alice Krige also plays a very menacing villain with her portrayal of the witch. She comes off as a genuine threat that will probably kill you if you cross her path. Gretel & Hansel is the perfect cure for fatigue towards the abundance of horror films made by studios. It relies far more on dread and atmosphere than cheap jump scares, and creates a completely menacing world that will haunt your dreams. Everything feels like a threat, and will make you root for our title characters to survive until the end. Though its more cerebral elements won’t be what most horror fans are looking for, the film’s arthouse sensibilities make it the first great horror movie of 2020. In a remote, country-side mansion in the 1990s, young school teacher Kate (Mackenzie Davis) has just accepted to be the nanny and tutor to a young girl named Flora (Brooklynn Prince), who has been recently orphaned after the death of her parents. Kate soon has more to deal with when Flora’s brother Miles (Finn Wolfhard) arrives home from boarding school. Despite the work this creates for her, she slowly starts to warm up to their presence.
But things aren’t exactly what they appear. As Kate settles into the massive home, she is plagued by strange noises and disturbed by the ubiquitous presence of disturbing mannequins. Soon, she starts seeing vivid images and nightmares that begin to suggest that there may be some sort of supernatural force stalking her. As she begins to uncover the secrets of the home and the family, she realizes she doesn’t have much time before these forces drive her insane. Based on the novel The Turn of a Screw by Henry James, this film is the latest of many adaptations of the book. The most famous being the 1961 classic The Innocents. It’s an expertly crafted horror film that accomplishes everything a film of the genre should without relying on weak jump scares and excessive gore. With that kind of legacy, it may prove to be a challenge for a new generation of filmmakers to try and one-up that film. But even if that’s what they tried to do, the film they made never even comes close. The Turning is a poor attempt at adapting the classic novel for modern day. Though it stays relatively close to the book’s basic premise, director Floria Sigismondi’s methods of updating it for today’s standards only succeed in, once again, alienating and demonizing the group that she is clearly taking potshots at. This version oddly feels less like a film and more like a punk rock rebel statement, which makes sense since she specializes in music videos, and her only other movie was about punk rockers. Probably one of the better parts of the film are the performances of Wolfhard and Prince. They have a good chemistry with each other; making them believable as brother and sister. Though Wolfhard is more menacing than the character should be, he comes off as a genuinely threatening presence. Prince also does a good job in her first studio film, even if her character is somewhat annoying at times. Unfortunately, they sit back seat to Mackenzie Davis, who gives a rather lackluster performance. She spends the film switching between over-the-top emotions and a complete “dear in the headlights” look. She never once becomes her character, and her distracting hairdo doesn’t help either. As evident as it is that she’s trying to break out and become a star, this movie is proof that she might have to try harder if she wants to accomplish that. But the films main problems come from the story. This new version makes a noble attempt to update certain elements of the story to fit the standards of modern day; emphasizing the backgrounds of the identities of the ghosts and trying to make it relevant to today. However, none of these attempts fit with the themes of a story and feel wildly out of place, and its portrayal of the villain will only succeed in alienating the crowds their apart of. This is further hampered by the film’s established setting, which combines elements from many different periods. It has a soundtrack from the 80s, the story is set in the 90s, and has a backdrop that matches today. The problem is that this strange combination is never given any reason for existing, and the various references often pull you out of the moment, diminishing any tension the film tries, and fails, to create. The Turning is a lackluster adaptation of the classic novel that seems content to rely on the clichés of modern horror films rather than stay true to the story’s themes. Mackenzie Davis never gives enough to lead the film, it’s filled with weak jump scares, and the filmmaker’s attempts to make the story relevant never fit with world she establishes. The only good thing about this is that the novel has another attempt to be adapted right with the upcoming second season of Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House. Deep below the surface of the ocean, within the Mariana Trench, the Tian cooperation is drilling the sea floor for resources. Among the crew of this complex rig is Nora Price (Kristen Stewart), a deep-thinking, cynical person who has a sort of bleak outlook on life; seeming disconnected from the world around her. At the start of the film, she explains in a monologue how being in the darkness of the ocean for months at time can mess with your head. But things aren’t going to stay normal for long.
While Nora is preparing for bed, a sudden earthquake causes the rig to suffer major structural damage under the water pressure. As she scrambles to safety, she meets and rescues fellow workers Rodrigo (Mamoudou Athie), Paul (T.J. Miller), Haversham (Jessica Henwick) Smith (John Gallagher Jr.), and their Captain Lucien (Vincent Cassel). With all the escape pods taken, their only option to walk across the ocean floor to another station in the hopes of escape. But as they make their way to their destination, they start to realize that they’re not alone outside. The further they go, the more they encounter what appear to be strange new sea creatures along their path. And these creatures have no intention of letting them escape. With eminent death staring them in the face, the crew must brave their darkest fears in order to make their way to the surface and escape these ravenous monsters. If this plot line sounds kind of familiar, its because it is very similar to the plot of the 1979 horror classic Alien. This consensus has been held against the film ever since the first trailer came out. The parallels are uncanny. From the claustrophobic setting and situations to the vicious foreign creatures that are the film’s villains. So does all this mean it’s a bad film? Well, not necessarily. Underwater may be a derivative story, but it’s well acted and competently enough to, in the end, be a fun movie nonetheless. It has a variety of clever scares and enough mystery about the monsters to keep the thrills consistently coming, even it it doesn’t offer much in the ways of dramatic motivation or proper character development. The film is mostly saved thanks to the work of the cast, specifically Kristen Stewart. For staring in a B-level horror movie, she gives a surprisingly A-level performance as Nora Price. There’s a level of charm and emotion to Nora’s near emotionless face that Stewart really conveys. She never looks afraid right on the surface, but you can see in her eyes that deep down, she’s absolutely terrified. It’s a stunning performance that really keeps the movie going during its slow moments, and you’ll find yourself rooting for her to survive the ordeal. But another actor to really hold the screen is Vincent Cassel, who gives a committed performance as Captain Lucien. The grizzled sea captain is a character we’ve seen before, but Cassel plays it with so much emotion that you’ll be rooting for him too. Really, it’s the cast that comes to the rescue when the movie begins to stumble. Everyone does well in their respective roles. Yes, even T.J. Miller. Early reviews were quick to point him as one of the film’s biggest flaws, labeling his character as annoying or out-of-place. But he actually isn’t as annoying a character as some are calling him. In fact, he’s actually quite charming. He’s the average jokey guy that we question why he’s even in this scientific setting; acting as the comic relief in the most tense situations. While many of his jokes don’t land, he’s still a charming presence that lightens the mood when the horror really amps up. However, all this is not to say that this film is flawless. Even though it is a fun film, one can’t help but see where the filmmakers could have done something more with the story. All of its problems start there. We’re dropped directly into the action with no real time to get proper introductions to the characters or motivations beyond the basic “let’s get out of here before we die.” It ends up feeling like an episode out of a 60s anthology series rather than a full film. Actually, it seems the film would have fared better if the creatures weren’t apart of it, or at least weren’t the villains. The idea of fighting for survival in a destroyed rig 7 miles below the ocean surface is already a more thrilling and engaging film without the ravenous sea monsters coming into play. Even the idea about losing touch with reality isn’t explored once it’s introduced. So many interesting ideas; all get thrown to the side in favor of evil sea monsters. In the end, it feels like the writers only scratched the surface on what the film could have been. Maybe their intention was to create a tense creature feature, but with what they did, they may have unintentionally opened the door to something more thought-provoking and dramatically involving then the story they chose to focus on. It’s hard to fully enjoy something when you can clearly see the essence of something better hidden within the cracks of the script. Underwater is a fun and frequently tense sci-fi thriller, and the cast give everything they can to make the film watchable, and they mostly succeed. However, with so much more potential hiding beneath the surface, it’s hard to accept what it is without wishing it was something more. If you’re looking for fun, there is fun to be had. But if you’re looking for something more intellectual, you may find yourself wanting to explore depths deeper than the film’s own characters. |