'Hereditary' Review

When Ellen dies, her daughter's family begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry. The more they discover, the more they find themselves trying to outrun a sinister fate they seem to have inherited. 

Hereditary is helmed by writer-director Ari Aster, and I was astounded to learn this was a filmmaker's feature debut after seeing Hereditary last night because the exquisite artistry on display. Despite having previously only directed six short films, Aster demonstrates the control of an experienced auteur as he unleashes an unrelenting and unforgiving experience that will plague your mind long after the credits finish rolling. 

Where I largely use my reviews to evaluate my subjective enjoyment of a film, that will not be the case here. The reason being is that I didn't particularly "enjoy" Hereditary. I actually didn't know how I felt about it afterwards aside from finding the film to be deeply disturbing on many accounts. While that may be the case, I certainly appreciated the craft behind it. Where some audience members may write it off altogether for the two hours of insanity, I must admit Hereditary was quite effective in regards to accomplishing its objective since my entire audience was perturbed.

With that being said, nothing will prepare you for the unsettling imagery you will bear witness to should you choose to watch Hereditary anytime soon. Its worth mentioning that Hereditary has some strange symbolism fixated on particular types of disembodiment and destruction. Once you see the film, you'll know exactly what I'm referring to as you're liable to pick up on these if you pay close enough attention. Interpreting the symbolic significance is another story altogether.

In regards to scares, Aster brought a brilliant blend of arthouse and mainstream horror that should appeal to indie-cinephiles and general audiences alike. Aster mostly relies on the narrative's unpredictable nature to provide varying forms of shock value, but you'll be in a sense of unrest regardless of the approach. I wouldn't say that I scare easily, but I was unnerved for a large portion of the film's runtime to the extent where it was legitimately difficult for me to sleep last night. If you crave that feelings of fear and anxiety, you'll certainly find them here.

 

While supernatural forces are fairly prevalent in the horror genre, a scene towards the end verged a little too far in the direction of being a straight-up Satanic ritual, and that made me even more uncomfortable than the uneasiness that had been built up over the course of two hours. While it's totally your prerogative to find this ending acceptable or simply shrug it off, it was too much for me. For those who have seen the film, I'm referring to the last five minutes rather than the whole ordeal shown in the image above. Beyond that, there were moments meant to be intense that wound up being unintentionally hilarious (I'll revisit this) and some dialogue and story elements that just didn't work for me either.

Aside from those nitpicky gripes, I relished in Pawel Pogorzelski's stellar cinematography, found the editing and sound design to be spectacular, and was endlessly unnerved by Colin Stetson's score which steadily encroached with eerie dissonance before accosting your heart rate in the crazy conclusion. One nice touch was how the crew occasionally utilized the miniatures and models spread throughout the house to help tell the story in inventive, unique ways. 

As for the acting, there's not really a weak link in the core ensemble. The supporting actors seen throughout are another story, but they're largely irrelevant. However, Toni Collette provides a powerhouse performance as Annie that's easily the best I've seen this year. While I haven't really seen any of the heavy awards contenders yet by nature of release schedules, Collette turns in what I consider to be the first Oscar-worthy performance I've seen all year, and I've got a gut feeling it will stick till the end. Colette not only exhibits a wide range for such a complex character that goes through some unbelievable trauma, but she accomplishes the task with incredible nuances.

The remaining family members Steve, Peter, and Charlie are portrayed with a quiet intensity by Gabriel Byrne, Alex Wolff, and Milly Shapiro respectively. These actors each do a fine job internalizing their character's worries and anxiety amidst the insanity, but Shapiro is well-worth noting because this is her first feature role. 

As I've mentioned, Wolff turns in a commendable performance, but some of his scenes involving crying were a little over-the-top to the point where many audience members, including myself, laughed in specific scenes. Otherwise, I really connected to his character because of a major event that came out of nowhere and really affected him. It struck a chord with me largely because I'm also an older brother and can totally understand his thought process afterwards.

There's no doubt about it, Hereditary is horrifying and I highly doubt you'll see anything scarier in theaters for quite some time. If you're up for seeing something sick and twisted, Hereditary should be right up your ally. Otherwise, you'd be much better off skipping this one to see a tamer summer release like Solo: A Star Wars Story or perhaps either Deadpool 2 or Upgrade if you want something in-between those extremes.

Film Assessment: A-

'Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle' Review

In Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, four high schoolers discover an old video game console while in detention. They plug in the game and select their avatars, only to find themselves teleported into the game as those avatars. It's then up to the studious Spencer, athletic jock Fridge, self-absorbed popular Bethany, and insecure Martha to beat the game by returning the sacred jewel of Jumanji to its rightful place in the forms of the daring explorer Dr. Smolder Bravestone, meek zoologist Moose Finbar, accomplished map-reader Sheldon Oberon, and formidable fighter Ruby Roundhouse.

In all honesty, I have not been looking forward to this film at all. I was first skeptical at the very idea of rebooting the revered 1995 Jumanji, and then the trailers did nothing to ease my concerns due to the seemingly forced humor. It just seemed like a needless reboot produced and distributed for the purposes of making a quick buck.

However, I must report that I was pleasantly surprised by everything director Jake Kasdan had in store for audiences! I'd liken it to my experience watching last year's Ghostbusters, where I went in with enormously low expectations to discover a surprisingly enjoyable film instead of the cringeworthy mess I had imagined. Perhaps, it was because I had low expectations that I wound up enjoying either, but I'd like to think they're both entertaining action-comedies. 

  

This is not to say Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle surpasses the original by any stretch of the imagination (except perhaps in regards to effects), but it puts an interesting spin on the premise of Chris Van Allsburg's classic children's book. One reason I think the original is better, in actuality, is that it feels like a generational family-friendly classic that will be probably passed down for quite some time. I simply can't imagine parents sitting their kids down to introduce them to Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle twenty years from now, but who knows, my generation is kinda weird.

Anyways, screenwriters Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Scott Rosenberg, and Jeff Pinkner make great use of the video game setting and body-switching premise to poke fun at the typical tropes found in most video games and the stereotypes associated with high school students (jock, nerd, popular girl, and the insecure reserved girl). On paper, it would probably seem pretty thin, but it works thanks to the charming cast and efficient execution from Kasdan.

I also distinctly remember an outpouring of internet users making a fuss over Karen Gillan's skimpy outfit in a jungle setting making no sense, because what's the internet without complaining? Well, this is addressed fairly quickly with the rationale female video game characters are typically designed that way. Just look at Laura Croft.

 

Kasdan also handles the action sequences quite well, considering it's his first time to direct an action film. The action's fun and over-the-top, just like it would be in an actual video game. Would any of it be up for contention alongside the best action sequences of the year? No, but they're all entertaining to watch. One weakness would be that some of the CG doesn't quite look authentic (namely the animals), but I suppose one could reason that was purposely done because of budgetary restraints and to match the video game setting. Plus, this is Jumanji... Not War for the Planet of the Apes... I'm not expecting ground-breaking, realistic visual effects from every single frame of this film.

As for the core cast, they're truly the ones who made it all work. It was incredibly entertaining to watch Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Karen Gillan, and Jack Black play against their traditional type-casting. Watching "The Rock" and Karen Gillan play awkward, insecure teenagers trapped inside practically perfect adult bodies was amusing to say the least. Though, it's Jack Black who stands out most as a superficial, social media obsessed teenage girl. I'd provide examples of the way his character's written, but I'd rather not giveaway the funniest moment of the movie that hasn't been abused in the trailers already. Kevin Hart, on the other hand, continues to seemingly act like himself and just run around screaming as the stock, slapstick comedian or whatever. That is admittedly one of the more grating elements of the film, but you probably won't have a  problem with it if you like Kevin Hart in other movies.

Alex Wolff, Ser'Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, and Morgan Turner play the real-life versions of the stereotyped teenagers characters a little on the nose, to the point that the high school bookends feel rather cliché, but they're all serviceable when used. You won't leave saying these four are the breakout stars of the movie because they're not in it all too much, but they're not grating either (which could have easily become a problem).

Nick Jonas is also in the film, and he's... fine, I guess... His character's probably the least interesting of the bunch because audiences are introduced to him quickly, and don't spend nearly as much time with him, but he's not really a hinderance or an asset. It seems like he's there mostly to have teenage girls swoon.

The one weak link would be Bobby Cannavale as the film's antagonist, Van Pelt (who's realy not at all like the version from the 1995 original). It's largely due to the screenplay, but Cannavale doesn't really do much of anything and his motivations are unclear. He kinda just has a menacing, foreboding presence and creeps you out because bugs are crawling all over him while he remains completely unbothered. He's just another forgettable, two-dimensional villain.

To me, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is a fun, disposable action-comedy that will probably be completely forgotten in a matter of months. Is it a fun time at the theater worth a matinee? Yes. For parents, should you bring kids? I'll leave that up to you, because I think that depends on your leniency for language. I'll just inform you that there were some jokes said about the male anatomy I personally wouldn't want my children to hear if I were a parent. Nothing encroaching R-rated vulgarity, but still rather risqué for a PG-13 rated film and not exactly kid-friendly. 

In this crowded week at the box office leading up to the holidays, I've yet to see many of the films opening, but I can at least assure you Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is an entertaining use of two hours. Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle is that surprising sequel that manages to successfully revitalize the original's premise for contemporary crowds.

Film Assessment: B-

'Patriots Day' Review

Patriots Day depicts the events of the Boston Marathon bombing on April 15, 2013 and the subsequent manhunt for those responsible. Patriots Day is the third collaboration between director Peter Berg and actor Mark Wahlberg, following up Deepwater Horizon and Lone Survivor, to depict a recent true story in typical bio-pic fashion, they should totally get a production company up and going called Berg & 'Berg (Just a thought). 

Patriots Day is very unique in the regard it walks the fine line between being a reenactment, a documentary, and an overdramatized depiction of the events. The film could have easily fallen off the tightrope into one of the aforementioned categories in less capable hands but Berg delivers one of the most authentic cinematic experiences imaginable. One aspect I really liked was how Berg and editors Gabriel Fleming and Colby Parker Jr. were able to incorporate actual security camera footage and news reports without compromising the film overall. I'm not sure exactly how accurate the story is but everything that happened certainly felt real, and that's the highest praise I can give Patriots Day, and seemed like a fairly reasonable approximation of the events based on the news reports I remember. 

Every line of dialogue and even the most basic character interactions felt incredibly authentic and that can all be credited to the writers behind Patriots Day's story and screenplay; Eric Johnson, Paul Tamasy, Joshua Zetumer, Matt Cook, and Berg himself. Patriots Day chronicles the events through multiple perspectives, maximizing the emotional connection to these characters, and there will be times while you're watching it where you will wonder how this character could possibly factor into the story but I guarantee every scene thought to be a wasted moment has its payoff down the line. 

The only real shortcomings from the script is that due to the multitude of viewpoints explored many characters feel a tad underdeveloped and Mark Wahlberg's fictional police officer Tommy Saunders feels like a convenient connective tissue tying everything together. In other departments, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' chilling compositions provide an ideal ambiance and Patriots Day's cast is the cream of the crop, with big names aplenty in key supporting roles and relative unknowns filling in the gaps. 

Even though Mark Wahlberg plays a fictional character, he delivers what I'd consider one of his career best performances. Wahlberg has one scene in particular after the bombing that's absolutely phenomenal exploring the PTSD angle to law enforcement, similar to a scene in Deepwater Horizon although under completely different context. 

Sprinkled throughout the supporting cast, Jimmy O. Yang's Dun Meng is one of the film's everyday heroes who will leave a lasting impression, Themo Melikidze and Alex Wolff successfully humanize the bomber brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, while Melissa Benoist is haunting in an interrogation scene as the Tamerlan s wife, surprising because she's typically a bright rosey face as Supergirl. John Goodman, Kevin Bacon, J.K. Simmons, and Michelle Monaghan each deliver admirable supporting roles but as I mentioned earlier are scarcely underdeveloped. 

In summary, Patriots Day could have easily become a propaganda piece but Berg paid the upmost respect to those affected by the bombing and appropriately honored those who shone in Boston's darkest moments. 

Film Assessment: B+