'Serenity' (2019) Review

Baker Dill is a fishing boat captain who leads tours off of the tranquil enclave of Plymouth Island. However, his peaceful life is shattered when his ex-wife tracks him down and begs him to save her and their young son from her abusive husband. Thrust back into a life he wanted to forget, Baker now finds himself struggling between right and wrong. 

Written and directed by Steven Knight, Serenity is sure to be the most bizarre thing shown at the multiplex all year. I was drawn into seeing it purely out of curiosity upon learning there was a ludicrous twist at the film's center (I'll eventually elaborate on this in a clearly marked spoiler section of the review) but walked in entirely unaware of what would soon occur. While I'll quickly detail why I believe you shouldn't waste your money seeing Serenity in cinemas, going in blind is the proper way to best experience this head-scratcher of a movie. Knowing absolutely nothing about it aside from the talent involved with the project honestly made the experience all the more interesting as I was perplexed to wonder why in the world this project wasn't scrapped at the scripting stage. At the outset, the story seemed to be a modern take on Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, but it then became a thriller of sorts before eventually evolving into something else entirely. I'd say Serenity has an identity crisis, but that's not quite the case. 

It knows what it is, but Knight doesn't reveal what Serenity's actually about until the end. I've heard it said plot-twists can make or break a movie but never seen a late revelation neuter its narrative quite like this. A bonkers twist turns the entire thing on its head and makes you re-evaluate everything you just watched, but not in a good way. Ultimately, this discovery calls the whole plot into question. So what is this game-changer of a twist you ask? I'm happy to tell you.

**Spoiler Warning for Serenity**

When Dill's ex-wife Karen finds Dill, she asks him to take her husband Frank out fishing and push Frank overboard to be eaten by sharks. She requests this of him because she and their son are abused by this man. Dill contemplates the deed over the course of the film but declines several times before eventually agreeing. Meanwhile, there's a character named Reid Miller who's been trying to speak with Dill but regularly misses him by mere minutes. It quickly becomes a recurring gag as the story progresses. Towards the end, Reid finally reaches Dill and shadily tries to give him free product (a fish finder and other materials to help him fish). Dill sees through the deception when Reid accidentally tells Dill that he knows of the murder plot, so Dill demands Reid tell him what's really going on. The audience then learns that everything in Serenity is happening inside of a video game created by Dill's son Patrick in real life.

We learn Dill actually died in the Iraq War and that Patrick coded the game as a way of connecting with his lost father. It's a form of escapism from his troubled life which enables him to "fish with his father again." However, as Patrick's focus shifts from fishing with his dad to murdering his step-father, the game follows suit, and a fantasy scenario ensues where his father can "save him" in the virtual world. It's quite literally wish fulfillment for the young boy, and the game is representative of Patrick's inner thought process. There are some subtle hints towards this, but the twist comes entirely out of left field and renders everything else to follow as inconsequential. Essentially, Dill becomes self-aware of the fabricated reality without realizing it, but Reid's revelation helps him see it the following day for himself.

The focus is then once again drawn to whether Dill will kill Frank or not, but the conflict immediately becomes superficial because the illusion of choice for this character is gone. He's not the one making the decision. He's a video game avatar. His sentience is left largely unclear, but since his dilemma is symbolic of Patrick's struggle, you'd assume Patrick's the one in control. Anyways, the non-playable characters (NPCs) populating the game try to convince Dill he shouldn't kill Frank, but nothing they say dissuades him. In fact, the game and the NPCs sabotage this plot somehow by sending gang members to break Frank's hand so he can't fish. This plot point is incredibly confusing because the audience is aware Patrick is in control of the game, so did Patrick willingly put this obstacle in his own path? That question's never really answered, but it's implied the game did this on its own? Very confusing, I know. Despite this obstacle and many others, Dill ends up embarking on the fishing voyage with Frank and Karen (who comes along to help Frank fish). Another character somehow sneaks onboard and shows up out-of-nowhere as an attempt to adding further weight to this choice. It's treated as though Dill will be punished for following through with the murder, but the audience already knows this is all taking place inside a video game, rendering the stakes meaningless. 

I mentioned earlier that The Old Man and the Sea came to mind while I watched this insane production, and here's why... In the very beginning, there's a specific fish called "Justice" that Dill is desperately trying to catch. Nevertheless, the fish eludes him time-and-time again. So to bring things full circle, they catch Justice on the fishing line and hand the rod to Frank. The fish is putting up a fight, so Frank ends up at the edge of the boat. Anne and Dill release Frank, he falls overboard and is dragged to the depths of the sea to drown. Then, we see Patrick from the computer monitor's perspective. He's holding a knife and contemplating something. He gets up and leaves the room to go LITERALLY kill his step-father. The film has lost ALL subtlety at this point. It's shown that Patrick went to some sort of facility or mental institution. However, we then see the ending from Dill's perspective inside the game. He speaks to Patrick in real life via a payphone somehow... Whatever... At this point, I'd already questioned so much... Patrick tells him they can be together again and the world dissolves before reforming, bringing Patrick into the game. This ending's fairly ambiguous with a wide range of possible implications, but it just seemed like a strange way to end such a sadistic story. 

It's a happy ending which effectively condones violence with virtually no consequences. The characters get what they want, but at no cost in spite of their heinous actions. Imagine if there was a happily ever after for all the characters in Breaking Bad, that's how out-of-sorts this seemed. Not to mention how confused I was by the pivotal twist...

**End of spoilers**

Regarding positives, I'd say the cinematography offers up idyllic imagery. I think I've gone on enough regarding the writing and direction, but elsewhere, the score rarely matched the tone of what was happening onscreen and the acting was less than stellar for this A-List line-up of Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jason Clarke, and Diane Lane. 

Aside from its bonkers twist, Serenity is a dull expedition which capsizes after encountering some troubled waters...

Film Assessment: D-

'White Boy Rick' Review

Sorry for the delay on this review, but I've been busy with schoolwork and making preparations for a video about Star Wars: The Last Jedi. I saw this film about two weeks ago and kept forgetting to write my review. Since I'll be seeing A Star Is Born (2018) and Venom soon, I figured I should get caught up on reviews.

'White Boy Rick' Review

White Boy Rick tells the true story of teenager Richard Wershe Jr., who became an undercover informant for the FBI during the height of the crack epidemic in 1980s Detroit to keep his father out of jail. When young Rick gets in too deep, he finds himself seduced by the lure of easy money and becomes a drug dealer himself. 

Directed by Yann Demange and written by Andy Weiss, Logan Miller, and Noah Miller, White Boy Rick desperately struggles to live up to its unbelievable subject matter. The trailers presented White Boy Rick as an eccentric wild-ride, but hardly any of that high-energy insanity made it into the finished film. The crime drama is ultimately sluggish and unfocused, bogged down by an unlikable protagonist, wooden acting, and way too many running subplots. The conflict between characters regularly was resolved off-screen, so it seemed like the more exciting story elements were either cut or never even filmed. There was a stretch of perhaps ten minutes or so where the film had my complete attention and investment. Otherwise, I deemed it to be dull, lifeless, and not worth my time.

The one obstacle White Boy Rick unfortunately never overcomes is the inexperience of its lead actor, Richie Merritt. Merritt is making an effort but lacks the charisma for Rick to be a character worth the audience's investment. A film like this requires an energetic lead performance along the lines of Leonardo DiCaprio's Jordan Belfort in The Wolf Of Wall Street or Tom Cruise's Barry Seal in American Made, and Merritt can't muster up the acting chops. As Rick's father, Matthew McConaughey is undoubtedly the star, acting circles around the rest of the cast.

Like the titular protagonist, White Boy Rick is well-intentioned but hopelessly lost. The film is competently made and features an outstanding performance from McConaughey, but has little else going for it when all is said-and-done. 

Film Assessment: C-

Recollection Reflection Review: 'Interstellar'

This review was originally supposed to be published the week Dunkirk was released, but it just got delayed and delayed and delayed due to extenuating circumstances... However, we can just pretend I'm publishing it now to coincide with Dunkirk's home media release and the upcoming Ultra HD 4K editions of Nolan's films next week. In other news, I'm all caught up with my draft reviews of more current releases (which I'll soon finally be able to share with you) and I'm currently overcoming an illness, so it seemed like the optimal time to finally work on this review.

'Interstellar' Review

Nominated for: Best Visual Effects, Best Production Design, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Original Score.

Won: Best Visual Effects.

Recollection- 'Interstellar' Review

Reflection- I can recall seeing Interstellar in IMAX three years back and being blown away by Nolan's mastery of storytelling, both visually and narratively. I'd consider my older review of the film more simple in detailing my thoughts when compared to my more recent reviews, but that's exactly why I started doing these Triple-R Reviews! Anyways, since that review I've discovered more and more to love about Interstellar every time I watch it, so I suspect this review will come across as much more enthusiastic!

Review- Interstellar launches audiences into a future where Earth is experiencing a global crop blight and a second Dust Bowl that are rendering the planet to be uninhabitable. When mysterious forces lead former NASA pilot Cooper to the secluded remnants of NASA, physicist Professor Brand informs Cooper there may be a way to save mankind. Ten years prior, NASA sent twelve landing pods to twelve potentially habitable worlds through a wormhole on a series of missions known as the Lazarus missions. Of the twelve sent, three promising worlds were discovered in one system. Cooper then joins the crew of the Endurance to travel through the wormhole to that system and identify which of those three planets would be optimal for human colonization.

Interstellar was directed by Christopher Nolan, who also cowrote the film's screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan. Interstellar was Nolan's ninth feature length film and his first project following the completion of the Dark Knight Trilogy, but Nolan's auteur fingerprints can still be found all over Interstellar. The film is just as emotionally and intellectually charged as the best of Nolan's work and even features one of his trademark ambiguous endings.

Interstellar's defining characteristic is its determination to tell a personal story on a universal scale. Nolan wisely waits to widen the scope of the character's circumstances till aptly investing audiences in the focal father/daughter relationship between Cooper and Murph. Only then, does Nolan up the ante. Cooper is presented with a monumental decision to choose between abandoning his kids in hopes of saving the human race and staying on Earth to raise his children at the risk of humanity's survival. Objectively, it'd be easy to pronounce a decision. However, in actuality, the alternatives bear fare more weight. By firmly establishing a steadfast bond between Cooper and Murph, the stakes have astronomically risen and audiences understand Cooper's trepidation as he journeys out into the great unknown. From that point onward, Interstellar's anecdotes revolve around perseverance in the face of the most improbable odds, proving that love is the only thing that truly capable of transcending time and space.

Technically, Interstellar is masterfully made in every way, shape, and form imaginable. The visual effects are not only awe-inspiring to look at, they also bestow an authenticity to the incredible and extensive fabric of space. In fact, I can't think of a single frame that looked as though it were captured inside a sound stage against a green screen background. In other departments, the film features stunning cinematography, intense editing, phenomenal production design, stirring sound editing and sound mixing, and another sensational score from Hans Zimmer. I'd daresay it's one of his best film scores to date because each composition not only suits the subsequent scenes, but also stands as an epic piece of music on its own merit. In fact, I often listen to themes from his Interstellar soundtrack because it can be soothing or simply provides a grandiose sound that's difficult to find elsewhere. 

Sure, the sequence inside the tesseract can be a bit of a head-scratcher on first viewing, but I've found it to make much more sense on subsequent rewatches. The sequence really serves as the lynch pin of the entire film, tying everything together remarkably well thematically and narratively. 

As for the cast, Matthew McConaughey turns in one of his most emotionally vulnerable performances yet as Cooper. McConaughey sells Cooper's warmth and trauma equally well with many of his scenes packing an emotional wallop. The sequence where he leaves his family is notably heart-wrenching, as well as one onboard the Endurance when he's watching video messages from his grown children. If neither of those bring you to tears, then you're simply not human. Mackenzie Foy and Timothée Chalamet also deserve some recognition for playing the younger versions of his two children, Murph and Tom. Foy, in particular, shows a lot of promise as an captivating child actor considering she's never overshadowed by McConaughey's larger-than-life screen presence in their scenes together. 

Jessica Chastain and Casey Affleck lend themselves to playing the adult versions of Murph and Tom, and both are quite good, but Chastain takes the cake. Chastain expertly builds upon everything established by Foy and McConaughey to ensure the mature Murph is resolute, intelligent, and headstrong, but believably so. 

As for the crew of the Endurance, Anne Hathaway convincingly captures Brand's intellect and empathy while David Gyasi discerns Romilly with more cerebral sense.

Rounding out the Nolan regulars, Michael Caine offers a solemn, serene performance as Professor Brand with one scene in particular that really shows his acting talent beyond playing a sophisticated British man.  

Last but certainly not least, I must credit Bill Irwin for voicing and operating the hydraulics for the snarky tactical robot, TARS. I think the design of the robot is unique and impressive on its own, but I've found myself gravitating towards the robot every time I watch Interstellar thanks to Irwin's precise line delivery.

Perhaps, three years ago I would have told you that I merely enjoyed Interstellar for Nolan's astonishing craftsmanship and superb storytelling, but it's only now that I realize Interstellar is an film that will endure the test of time for its impeccable example of the resilience of the human spirit. It's emotional. It's intelligent. It's insightful. It's exceptional.

Film Assessment: A+

'The Dark Tower' Review

In The Dark Tower, opening text informs the viewer that a Dark Tower exists at the center of our universe, holding everything together and shielding all worlds from persisting, external dark forces. The viewer is also told that it's believed the mind of child is powerful enough to bring the tower down. Walter O' Dim, the Man in Black, seeks to destroy the tower and unleash evil upon the universe, while the Gunslingers, an order of warriors brandishing .45 revolvers, are pledged to defend the tower with their dying breaths. Unfortunately the Gunslingers are mostly gone, so the lone surviving Gunslinger, Roland Deschain, remains locked in an eternal struggle with the Man in Black in hopes he can prevent Walter from demolishing the Dark Tower. 

All the while, the Man in Black has been kidnapping children to power a super-weapon he hopes can topple the Dark Tower, but none of the children's minds are powerful enough. However, Jake Chambers begins seeing glimpses of the Tower, the Gunslinger, and the Man in Black in his dreams, so the Man in Black sends his cronies after Jake in hopes he could be the one to decimate the Dark Tower. Jake, intent on learning the truth behind his visions, journeys to Roland's world and the two team up to take down the Man in Black once and for all. 

That may be the longest plot synopsis I've ever devised, because the mythology and world-building Stephen King's novel simply can't be condensed. Unfortunately, the director and team of screenwriters behind this movie never got that memo. For those who didn't know, The Dark Tower adapts a series Stephen King's novels. Yes, I said SERIES. The Dark Tower draws inspiration from not one, but EIGHT different books. While I have not had the pleasure of reading any of these, the friend who I brought to the screening had at least read The Gunslinger and he said the movie was VERY different from the book. Therefore, I feel this film will be quite divisive and receive plenty of hatred from fans of the source material, and you only have to look at the Rotten Tomatoes score for an indication of it (currently at 18%).

However, I'll come to this movie's aid and say I didn't think The Dark Tower was THAT bad (yet another example of the unjust implications of the Tomato-meter). Director Nikolaj Arcel and his stunt coordinators were at least able to put together some entertaining action sequences showcasing the Gunslinger's impeccable accuracy, and while the visual effects aren't the greatest, they're forgivable when you see the meager budget the filmmakers had at their disposal. Even though the Dark Tower supposedly holds the universe together, the film itself doesn't have a solid foundation. 

There's some serious pacing problems as it took awhile to get things going and the script was rather weak. Arcel had a hand in the screenplay alongside Akiva Goldsoman, Jeff Pinkner, and Anders Thomas Jensen, but the story concocted can't help but feel underdeveloped. The worlds in The Dark Tower are supposed to feel epic and expansive, but the lacking explanation will leave non-readers a bit confused. We understand who's good, who's bad, and their basic motivations, but beyond that the audience never gets to really know any of the characters. The points that are actually established end up biting the bullet, because they're comfortably conventional.

It's also worth noting that The Dark Tower is yet another attempt to get a franchise off the ground. Just yesterday, news surfaced that The Dark Tower television series had set Glenn Mazzara as the series showrunner and the film's advertising has also relied heavily on teasing the possibilities of a shared Stephen King cinematic universe. I'm not necessarily against these ideas, but am simply curious if Sony's invested the time in properly planning it all out before seemingly jumping headfirst into the franchise field. Studios no longer wait to judge a movie's critical reception before investing heavily in them. Instead, they go ahead and announce all the inevitable details. There's rarely much thought put into franchise filmmaking these days and I personally find that a tad disheartening. 

Despite The Dark Tower's story shortcomings, the lead actors consistently managed to elevate the proceedings. Tom Taylor proved to be a perfectly adequate child actor, considering he displays an exceptional emotional range. Taylor's not exactly in the league of the young talent to emerge of late, but he's never overshadowed by his experienced costars either. Idris Elba, on the other hand, can really do no wrong as he deftly wields western weaponry with the aim of John Wick. Elba carries the attitude of an outlaw haunted by the horrors of his past, trudging through the thick of everything. Once Jake and Roland return to New York, there's a fish-out-of-water element that gets some mileage from their onscreen chemistry.

On the flip side, Matthew McConaughey summons enough gusto to grant the Man in Black a dastardly demeanor. McConaughey's calm, collected speech comes across as really creepy in the manner utilized and he confidently comes across as the intimidating, unstoppable force the movie's trying to sell you on. I can guarantee those Lincoln commercials won't come to mind while he graces the screen. Sadly, the other actors don't leave much of an impression since they mostly embody stock characters that are given much to say-or-do. 

While I'd love to say The Dark Tower stood strong amidst adversity, I can't quite offer that vote of confidence. The foundation's sloppy and it's only help up by the terrific trio of leads and a some select, rousing action scenes. The Dark Tower would be an adequate experience at the theater, but it doesn't demand to be seen in theaters. There are so many better alternatives still out there such as Baby Driver, The Big Sick, Spider-Man: Homecoming, War for the Planet of the Apes, and Dunkirk. If you're really gung-ho on seeing The Dark Tower, go ahead and check it out at a matinee showing. Otherwise, I'd wait it out to rent or catch on cable. 

Film Assessment: C+

'Sing' Review

I had the chance to catch Sing about a month early on November 26th for a promotional Sing Saturday event but decided to refrain from posting the review so that my readers would have my thoughts on the feature fresh in their minds before or after they see it.

'Sing' Review

In the world of Sing, animals coexist in a utopian society, think dumbed down Zootopia, and koala theater owner Buster Moon is facing the potential foreclosure of his grand establishment so Moon decides to put on a singing competition in hopes of saving his theater. The prize reward is accidentally advertised as $100,000 that Moon doesn't possess and the film follows the succeeding shenanigans.

For all intensive purposes it's like all televised singing competitions; The Voice America's Got Talent, or American Idol, but with animals. As amusing as it is to watch animals sing, it gets old fast as it's difficult to stay engaged when there's little story present and the film relies almost entirely on the spectacle of singing animals. Also almost every "surprise" or moment of interest was shown in the film's marketing material so you can't help but feel that you've seen the movie already if you've watched one of the trailers. There are admittedly moments of fun, where I laughed hysterically, but those are too far and few between to make up for the lackluster predictable story.

Writer and director Garth Jennings alongside co-director Chrisophe Lourdelet manage to develop interesting concepts but don't ever fully flesh them out. Jennings' screenplay is constantly trying to shoehorn emotional character arcs into the story but when there's so many characters for the story to follow, these arcs can't help but feel lost on the viewer. Lourdelet amasses an interesting bunch of creatures but fails to properly service any of them since he's constantly switching gears, which is really a shame considering the voice talent involved.

On that note the film features Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Scarlett Johansson, John C. Reilly, Tori Kelly, Taron Egerton, Nick Kroll, and the director himself voicing the exuberant koala, stay at home mother pig, mob mouse, apprehensive porcupine, lazy llama, shy elephant, gorilla reluctant to join the family gang, flamboyant dancing pig, and the clumsy lizard assistant respectively. It's great to hear these stars sing jukebox hits but the lack of any noteworthy or original music makes Sing feel run of the mill, there's so many songs that I won't bother listing any and am simultaneously wondering how much of the film's budget went towards acquiring the rights to all this music. Also, the animation in Sing looked fine but was nothing compared to superior animated efforts this year like Zootopia, Finding Dory, or Moana for starters. 

Overall, Sing is sufficient family entertainment but Illumination Entertainment doesn't dare to traverse the emotional depth or sophistication that Pixar, Walt Disney Animation Studios, or Dreamworks Animation often explore. Illumination appears to be a studio that's capable of churning out mediocre family-friendly content that children adore, leading to big box office returns and the development of even more animated projects from the studio. Illumination's biggest problem is that it plays everything too safe, leading to formulaic features that spread themselves thin with abundant characters and storylines and no means of servicing them all.

When it comes down to it, Sing finds itself in the same rut that plagued Illumination's other release this year, The Secret Life Of Pets, and when placed next to the other animated releases this year it will probably be justly forgotten.

Film Assessment: C-

'Kubo and the Two Strings' Review

Nominated For: Best Animated Feature and Best Visual Effects.

Kubo and the Two Strings is the fourth full length stop-motion animated feature from Laika Entertainment, an animation studio which specializes in stop-motion feature length films. For those unfamiliar with stop-motion, it is an animation technique where an object is subtly moved and the filmmaker snaps a picture, the pictures are all edited together with small increments between the frames and so it appears as though continuous movement is happening. I'm actually a little familiar with stop-motion since I made a few stop-motion shorts as a child and I can attest to the fact that it's a tedious process, therefore I have plenty of respect for the filmmaking behind stop-motion films. I'll admit that I haven't seen any prior Laika films, but I am much more eager to give them a chance after watching Kubo and the Two Strings.

I won't disclose too much of the plot because the less you know the better, but Kubo and the Two Strings tells a classic archetypal hero's journey of a young boy Kubo in search of mystical armor to defeat evil forces who threaten him, his family, and his village.

One of the unique appealing aspects of Kubo and the Two Strings is that it feels deeply rooted in Japanese mythology; samurais, honor, family, and legacy are brought to the forefront while the score composed by Dario Marianelli has the air of Oriental inspiration. Travis Knight, president of Laika, makes his directorial debut after serving as a lead animator on previous Laika projects and he hits the mark. Knight, his team of animators, and cinematographer craft some compelling visuals and the stop-motion is seamless, so much so that in moments I forgot I was watching a stop-motion film.

The screenplay from writers Marc Haimes and Chris Butler manages to take a seemingly basic story and make it pop with Eastern influence and cool dialogue while offering laughs, heart, and a terrific story.

Another high mark of Kubo and the Two Strings is definitely it's talented voice cast. Art Parkinson brings a grounded relatable protagonist for the audience to support as he evokes childlike wonder in the young Kubo. Matthew McConaughey, Charlize Theron, Ralph Fiennes, and Rooney Mara offer up a wide ensemble of supporting characters encompassing the heroic well-intentioned Beetle, the stern protective Monkey, the malevolent Moon King, and a pair of creepy sisters.

I won't be surprised if in February we see Disney or Pixar win the Best Animated Feature, but I surprisingly can make a huge case for why Laika deserves the golden statuette after I was blown away with Kubo and the Two Strings. Kubo and the Two Strings astounded me start to finish with an original premise, terrific characters voiced by an incredible cast, endearing themes, and remarkable animation showcasing some high-brow visuals making for not only one of the best movies this summer but also one of the best films I've seen all year.

Film Assessment: A

'Interstellar' Review

Nominated for: Best Original Score, Best Production Design, Best Visual Effects, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.

Won: Best Visual Effects.

I saw Interstellar on Saturday, but thought I would wait till I was more caught up with my other reviews before posting my thoughts on the new Christopher Nolan film. Some say it's similar to Gravity, but it's very different, and I didn't really like Gravity so I thought this film was much better! While it seems like the response to this film has been mixed, I really enjoyed it! This is by no means Christopher Nolan's best film but in my opinion it's one of the better Nolan films. I have very few problems with the film, and wouldn't be surprised if it got at least a few technical nominations at the next Oscars. The acting in the film is great! Matthew McConaughey and Jessica Chastain give great performances and Bill Irwin does some wonderful voice acting for a robot named Tars, who was probably one of my favorite characters in the film. Anne Hathaway had a small role but she did well with what she was given. However the film is almost 3 hours long, so it seems very long in some scenes. I have seen a lot of people complain about not understanding some of the science of the film or the ending, but I didn't have any problems with that aspect of the film and actually liked the ending! Overall this film is definitely worth the trip to the theater and if you have the chance, I'd see it in IMAX!