'Spider-Man: Far From Home' Review

Synopsis: Our friendly neighborhood superhero decides to join his best friends on a European vacation. However, Peter's plan to leave super heroics behind for a few weeks are quickly scrapped when he begrudgingly agrees to help Nick Fury uncover the mystery of several elemental creature attacks, creating havoc across the continent.

Runtime: 129 minutes

MPAA Rating: PG-13 (for sci-fi violence, some language, and brief suggestive comments)

Who should see it? Marvel fans of all ages.

**Spoiler Warning for Avengers: Endgame**

Billed as the end of Marvel's "Infinity Saga" and third phase of superhero outings, Spider-Man: Far From Home sees Spider-Man: Homecoming creatives Jon Watts, Chris McKenna, and Erik Sommers swing Peter Parker across the Atlantic to embark on a globe-trotting adventure in the wake of Avengers: Endgame's poignant resolution. Though Iron Man is a no-show, Tony Stark's shadow looms over the production as the world mourns the heroic billionaire-philanthropist and asks who will step up to fill the void Stark left behind. All the while, Peter feels lost without his mentor. Clearly traumatized by all he's endured, Peter's unsure if he's ready to singlehandedly accept the responsibility associated with super-heroics when he'd rather partake in the pleasantries of an average teenage life. 

Peter's struggle to balance both identities has been a staple of the character across every medium since his creation, but that dilemma is especially prevalent in Far From Home. Every incarnation of the web-head deals with this eventually, but I particularly like how this version is doing so while still in High School. Fighting elemental creatures made of fire and water is just as challenging as telling a girl he likes her, and that aspect of the character makes Peter more relatable than most superheroes. Not to mention his headspace after Endgame further complicating matters.

Returning director Jon Watts ups the ante of Spidey spectacle, seemingly more confident helming action after his experience on Homecoming, as he and his crew deliver sequences I'd never have imagined to be possible on the big screen. The visual effects were noticeably an improvement over Homecoming as well while the spectacular new suits Spider-Man dons throughout the flick each have their moment in the limelight. Underneath it all, Michael Giacchino's varied orchestral arrangements provide an ideal accompaniment to the wall-crawler's international exploits.  

Swinging onscreen for his fifth outing as Spidey, Tom Holland continues to portray Peter Parker with the appropriate awkwardness and insecurity contrasting his youthful exuberance. He's solidified himself as my favorite iteration of Spider-Man by this point, and I hope he carries on with the role in years to come! Opposite Holland, Zendaya's MJ proves to be more than a strange, snarky side character as she's fleshed out through her interactions with Peter.

Meanwhile, Mysterio's live-action debut piqued my interest as I was thrilled to see he would be brought to the big screen complete with the green/gold suit, purple cape, and glorious fishbowl helmet. Underneath said helmet, Jake Gyllenhaal lends manic energy to Quentin Beck that was an utter delight to witness. Discussing the character in detail risks spoiling the movie's many twists and turns, but I was pleased it proved to be a faithful onscreen adaptation.

Filling out Peter's class, Jacob Batalon, Angourie Rice, and Tony Revolori return as Ned Leeds, Betty Brandt, and Flash Thompson while Remy Hii is introduced as new student Brad Davis. The young cast offers humorous depictions of familiar high school personalities. However, some comedic bits in the first act didn't stick the landing. 

Reprising their roles from other corners of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders, and Jon Favreau each appear as Nick Fury, Maria Hill, and Happy Hogan respectively. One of the joys of the MCU is witnessing characters come together and interact with one another for the first time, so it was nice to watch these characters bounce off Peter. Other noteworthy adult characters include Marisa Tomei's dependable Aunt May and Martin Starr and J.B. Smoove as a pair of wacky high school teachers chaperoning the trip. I noticed people leaving my theater, so I felt it was worth reiterating that you should stick around after the ending for two pivotal post-credit scenes.

Full of laughs, action, adventure, and awkward teen romance, Spider-Man: Far From Home is a spectacular sequel that delivers everything audiences have come to expect from an entry starring the celebrated web-slinger. Far from what I'd imagined I would walk away thinking, Far From Home is also my new favorite live-action Spider-Man film.

Film Assessment: A

'Okja' Review

The year is 2007 and Lucy Mirando has overtaken her family's large livestock company known as the Mirando Corporation. Lucy desires to restore the corporation's image in the wake of the disreputable one put forth by her father and twin sister, so she announces the implementation of a Super Pig project as a means of revolutionizing the food industry. Essentially, the Miranda Corporation has "naturally bred" a special super pig and distributed twenty six super piglets to be raised by farmers all across the world for a competition. Ten years later, Okja accompanies Mija, a young South Korean girl who lives with her grandfather in the mountainous rainforest area as a committed caretaker and steadfast companion to one of the super pigs she's affectionately named Okja. When the Miranda Corporation takes Okja away, Mija embarks on an insane adventure to rescue her best friend by any means necessary. 

Okja is an original Netflix production written and directed by South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho. The film made a substantial debut at last year's Cannes Film Festival and was later released that summer in select theaters as well as the esteemed streaming service to widespread critical acclaim. I've heard a lot online about Netflix's marvelous motion pigture since its late June debut, but only got around to watching it earlier today due to Houston's icy roads and school closures. As a massive fan of Joon-ho's work on Snowpiercer, I was quite excited to see what he'd do with Okja. 

Thankfully, Joon-ho delivers by telling a sweet story about a young girl and her genetically engineered super pig. Everyday stuff, right? Not quite what you'd see on a regular basis in your day-to-day life, but fascinating nonetheless. Despite some unnecessary poo jokes, I did find Okja to be a quirky, enjoyable watch. I think parents should be forewarned that despite the kid-friendly look of Okja, the film's a little liberal with the F-bomb and other curse words. So just know when perusing through Netflix that this probably isn't the best thing for your kid to be watching. While the script penned by Joon-ho and Jon Ronson revolves around an unconventional friendship, there are relatable subtexts to be found regarding corporate greed, animal cruelty, the ethics behind food production, and public relations. 

Although Okja's themes held the potential to compromise the narrative in favor of presenting a PETA  PSA, Joon-ho and Ronson point to the extremes of each ideology and suggests neither side of this disputed topic is morally resolute (even though the the film's clearly against animal cruelty and processed food). Mija has no agenda in the story beyond an overwhelming urge to save her friend, and I think that's precisely why Okja functions so well as social commentary on corporate ethics. If Mija was firmly against corporations from the start rather than standing in as an unbiased lens to tell this story through, the messages would have come across as heavy-handed and overbearing. 

Joon-ho and Ronson wisely gravitated towards Mija's purity as a protagonist to fairly communicate their ideas, and I was quite appreciative of that since it made the film more enjoyable to watch. The film's also bristling with beautiful imagery from cinematographer Darius Khondji and Jaeil Jung's musical score was especially pleasant to hear as an illustrious accompaniment to the film's outrageous ongoing events. Okja also partakes in the one of the most peculiar film trends from 2017 by prominently featuring a song from John Denver. From what I've seen, the list currently includes Free Fire, Alien: Covenant, Logan Lucky, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and now Okja.

At the center of it all is the benevolent friendship between Mija and Okja. Just on the cusp of looking believable, the visual effects used to create Okja are immensely impressive. I say so with a bit of apprehension because Okja didn't fully function as an authentic animal for me the ENTIRE time I was watching. That's not to say that the vfx are shabby at all because I truly thought they were terrific, but I do think Okja does appear to be a distinct digital creation in certain moments. It goes without saying though that Okja would not have worked as a visual effect if it weren't for an actress who could convincingly act alongside a CG-rendered creature, which Okja has with An Seo Hyun. 

Hyun skillfully captures Mija's innocence while conveying an underlying tenacity and fierce determination in her pursuit of Okja. Hyun has primarily worked in the space of Korean film and television, but I think her impressive acting in Okja may enable her to find success in other markets. Although she scarcely spoke English, I can picture American audiences warming up to her for whatever reason. Random, I know, but somewhat relevant to the review I suppose.

In regards to the remaining cast, Okja brought together a wealth of well-regarded acting talent who are all deserving of a mention. Paul Dano, Steven Yeun, Lily Collins, Daniel Henshall, and Devon Bostick stand in as respective members of the Animal Liberation Front Jay, K, Red, Blond, and Silver. Of the bunch, Dano and Yeun are provided the most material to work with and both actors leave a favorable impression when all is said-and-done.

As for more recognizable A-list talent, Jake Gyllenhaal and Tilda Swinton each provide an interesting offering of zany personalities to add to the mix. Gyllenhaal's at his quirkiest in the role of an eccentric  zoologist and formerly beloved TV personality, and it's certainly a drastic departure from his normal array of characters that I wasn't expecting.

Joon-ho must have watched Hail, Caesar! and felt particularly inspired afterwards because Tilda Swinton is once again portraying a pair of twin sisters. This time, it's Lucy and Nancy Mirando, and the two couldn't be more different. Lucy's glowing with optimism and a peppy personality while Nancy's comes across to be... a negative Nancy... Anyways, Swinton proves once again to be a chameleon by adding these two roles to her longwinded, impressive acting resume.

Despite focusing around a genetically modified super pig, Okja is not a prime example of cinematic swine. Okja instead exemplifies the value of focusing a story on character and sentiment rather than piggybacking an obvious agenda. 

Film Assessment: B+

'Life' Review

Life accompanies the crew of astronauts onboard the International Space Station as they recover a rocket carrying samples from Mars and discover signs of extraterrestrial life among the Martian soil. Suddenly, Life becomes an amalgamation of Alien and Gravity as the life form dubbed "Calvin" turns out to be hostile and the crew must fight for not only their survival but the fate of humanity. Those hoping Life would be a groundbreaking science fiction thriller will be disappointed to see it falls in line with the standard suspenseful sci-fi tropes already established. 

However, director Daniel Espinosa lends his hand to craft a truly terrifying claustrophobic atmosphere. The tight, confined environment of a space station makes an excellent background for a thriller, so it's no wonder Alien was such a hit in 1979, but Espinosa and his screenwriters found some inventive ways to build suspense that weren't too terribly predictable. The Deadpool writing duo Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are responsible for Life's screenplay and while it occasionally felt derivative of similar works, I was consistently on the edge of my seat thanks to the frightening situations the duo concocted. 

If I had any grievances with the writing, it would be the fact these astronauts are all exceptionally intelligent individuals who made the dumbest decisions possible in their situation. I always find it incredibly aggravating when a character does something that the audience knows won't end well, especially when the character has been established as an intellectually sound human being. Life actually reminded me a little of Jurassic World at times, wherein the scientists are dunces and the threat is suddenly able to do extraordinary things for the sake of moving the plot along with little-to-no explanation. 

From a technical standpoint, Life is remarkable. The visual effects and production design were quite convincing to the point I never questioned the crew were in space and I liked the creature design of the creature in particular as a space squid of sorts. I doubt Life will earn any accolades from the Academy but it's great work nonetheless. My only complaint about the effects was that there was some blood I'm certain was computer generated because it looked very fake floating about the space station. I also found the musical score to be lacking and the cinematography to be so-so, occasionally capturing the reality of intimate enclosures and other times focusing way too much on an actor's reaction to something. An egregious example would be that the beginning of the film was largely composed of shots where the audience watches a character react to another character doing something instead of directly seeing the events firsthand, and this grew very tiresome as just an uninteresting framing choice by the director or cinematographer the way it all played out. 

The talent gathered for Life are top-notch actors who lend commendable performances but their actual characters feel hollow as a result of lacking development during the first act. Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada, Olga Dihovichnaya, Ariyon Bakare are all doing the best they can but none of them were really able to bring much out of their characters beyond the bare-bone characterizations provided by the script. The character motivations and general background was well established but I found it a stretch to actually care about these people once the alien started picking them off one by one. 

Life does little to liven up the sci-fi horror scene but it bolsters strong direction, a talented cast, and excellent execution of a well-worn premise. Life is worth catching on home media or cable but not quite worth a trip to the theaters for anything beyond matinee ticket price. If you want to see off-brand Alien, then this is just the thing for you.

Film Assessment: C+

'Nocturnal Animals' Review

Nominated For: Best Supporting Actor: Michael Shannon.

In Nocturnal Animals an affluent art gallery owner Susan Morrow receives her ex-husband Edward's manuscript for an upcoming novel "Nocturnal Animals" dedicated to her. As Susan reads the horrifying tale of revenge she reflects on her past with Edward and the film sphincters off into three stories that are more interconnected than one would first suspect. 

I won't explain much else because the less you know going into the Nocturnal Animals, the more confused you'll be leaving the theater spurring on an intellectual train of thought that will allow you to eventually put all the pieces into place and see the big picture of Nocturnal Animals. Nocturnal Animals like Arrival, another film that was released this year starring Amy Adams based on obscure literature, is a thought-provoking cinematic experience. 

Viewers will be baffled by the shock value found in the film's bonkers slo-motion opening sequence of nude morbidly obese women dancing while the opening credits slowly creep onscreen, thankfully giving the audience something else to focus on, and from that point on will likely be striving to understand exactly what is happening and struggle to find connections between the splintered narratives. This is a film that will probably be more enjoyable to watch with successive viewings because the viewer will have already digested the crazy proceedings once. They then might be able to better understand what it all means and believe me, Nocturnal Animals warrants plenty of analysis. 

Former fashion designer Tom Ford writes and directs the insightful revenge thriller, taking the viewer on a ride that first exposes them to a refined, elegant environment before plunging them into a fictional take on West Texas that's truly got grit. One of the more interesting aspects of Nocturnal Animals is how fabricated Susan's reality seems and how realistic Edward's fiction appears and Ford further brings out visual juxtaposition between the two as cinematographer Seamus McGarvey brilliantly frames gorgeous picturesque imagery while editor Joan Sobel expertly cuts between the trio of tales. I haven't read Austin Wright's novel on which the film is based, but can say Ford's screenplay is an excellent adaptation for the screen and it's also worth noting that Abel Korzeniowski calamitous compositions are a great underlying accompaniment. 

Nocturnal Animals also features a seasoned cast of A-list actors who bring a strange blend of understated and overstated performances that will likely garner praise this coming awards season. Amy Adams' Susan Morrows is simultaneously hopeful in her past and calculating as a result of her long-winding life while Jake Gyllenhaal also gets to inhabit dual personas as Susan's recollections of her past lover Edward Sheffield and the protagonist of "Nocturnal Animals" (Sheffield's novel) Tony Hastings bringing serene sensitivity to one and a brewing venomous longing vengeance to the other. 

Two supporting performances steal the show though as Michael Shannon plays an unhinged officer with some Southern drawl and Aaron Taylor-Johnson's deranged redneck sociopath Ray Marcus will make your skin crawl. Other familiar faces including Isla Fisher, Armie Hammer, and Laura Linney are to be found in bit-supporting roles and are serviceable for their minuscule screen-time. 

The ending of Nocturnal Animals will leave many unsatisfied but the longer my mind dwelled on it, the more appropriate the ending seemed to be considering the overarching theme of revenge. Many will probably be turned off by Nocturnal Animals' oddities, only taking everything at surface level and refusing to dig any deeper, but I found the thriller to be intellectually engrossing and would highly recommend it to anyone that likes to solve puzzles or leave a film pondering the plot. 

With that being said, there were some things that don't quite fall into the big picture yet in my mind and I'm sure that once I revisit Nocturnal Animals enough I could decipher the meaning but I'm interested in acquiring it on Blu-Ray for a director's commentary alone. Nocturnal Animals takes a chaotic approach to it's three-pronged story structure and I found bringing order to the chaos through thought processes the most satisfying part of the viewing experience, but the slick cinematography, exceptional editing, mixture of nuanced and exaggerated performances, and concentrated direction amidst the insanity alone make Nocturnal Animals worth a watch.

Film Assessment: A-