'The Dead Don't Die' Review

Synopsis: The peaceful town of Centerville finds itself battling a zombie horde as the dead rise from their graves.

Runtime: 105 minutes

MPAA Rating: R (for zombie violence/gore and language)

Who should see it? Adult fans of zombie movies and comedies.

Written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, The Dead Don't Die is an absurdist comedy set at the start of a zombie apocalypse. In Jarmusch's film, there's a discernible degree of self-awareness. Characters frequently break the fourth wall to comment on their surroundings and the recurring use of a single Sturgill Simpson song. The dialogue is hysterical and usually spoken in deadpan, but the undead invasion is surprisingly sluggish. Jarmusch slowly introduces his sprawling, star-studded ensemble of survivalists, and this laidback, deliberate approach wears thin fairly quickly.

Zombie fodder is a necessity, but Jarmusch's divided attention prevents him from meaningfully fleshing out these eccentric personalities. Jarmusch whittles down his cast to narrow his focus on select individuals, but it doesn't amount to much. The town residents are merely vessels to impart Jarmusch's message that our society has become far too fixated on material possessions. These zombies are more concerned with finding the products they enjoyed in their past life than eating brains, and the undead mutter the names of these commodities as they stroll around Centerville.

As the poster's tagline suggests, Jarmusch has amassed a respectable grouping of A-listers to portray this collection of quirky characters. Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Chloë Sevigny, Steve Buscemi, Danny Glover, Caleb Landry Jones, Selena Gomez, and Tom Waits are among those most prominently featured in the film, and each actor lends sufficient personality to their respective role. Murray and Driver carry an amusing rapport as police partners while Swinton's strange Scottish mortician Zelda Winston is a sure-fire scene-stealer on account of an off-kilter attitude.

Though it's a low-energy affair, the film remains enjoyable as celebrities engage in wacky antics and deliver side-splitting lines. Jarmusch succeeded in making a unique zombie comedy, but The Dead Don't Die never comes alive.

Film Assessment: B-

'American Made' Review

[This review was originally written in October 2017 and is now being published to coincide with the digital home media release. For an explanation of this, visit my Fall 2017 Important Update post.] 

American Made jettisons off the runway to tell the true story of Barry Seal, a TWA pilot recruited by the CIA to provide reconnaissance photos of the developing Communist threat in Central America. The covert operation quickly spirals out of control when Seal's piloting prowess catches the attention of the Medellin Cartel, and he becomes embroiled in flying guns, drugs, and Contras across borders in an operation that'd later be exposed as the Iran-Contra Affair.

American Made marks the second teaming of director Doug Liman with star Tom Cruise after Live. Die. Repeat. (or Edge of Tomorrow... just call it whichever title you prefer at this point I suppose). While I'd seen that pairing work wonders before, I was still skeptical considering Cruise's recent streak of stinkers: Jack Reacher: Never Go Back and The Mummy (2017). If there's one thing to said about Cruise though, it's that the man always gives his all, regardless of the quality of the film surrounding him. And it's the dynamic combination of Cruise's electric performance and Liman's dedicated direction that are able to charge American Made, and then some.

The film utilizes voice-over narration and visual graphics of maps to explain all the intricacies of the affair, similarly to how War Dogs and The Wolf Of Wall Street explained the logistics of gun running and the stock market. I liked this technique because it simplified the more complicated elements that would have been completely lost on me otherwise. It's also worth noting that Liman interwove actual footage of the events along with the film itself to grant the biopic a documentary-eque aesthetic. This technique is then mirrored in César Charlone's cinematography when certain scenes are shot with less discipline and underscored by rocking tunes to add further credence to this out of control narrative.

I'm glad that Linman sought to tell this story in a fun fashion, because otherwise we'd have been stuck with a boring biopic. Gary Spinelli's script playfully flies from one screwy situation to the next, ensuring audiences remember how messed up this all is by constantly reminding them of the severity of Seal's actions. Spinelli also remembers to keep things grounded and accounts for the measured details of how the entire ordeal affected Seal's personal life. This could have easily became uninteresting, but audiences will have likely been won over by Cruise's charm at this point, so they'll be reasonably invested in the characters and willing to stick around for the long haul (family and all). 

If there was one thing holding everything together though, it'd undoubtedly be the sly performance from Tom Cruise. Cruise appears to be having the time of his life making this movie, and it really shines through his captivating, roguish portrayal of Barry Seal. Every moment of Cruise's screen time is an utter delight, regardless of whether he's in the middle of a cartel shootout or riding away on a child's bicycle covered in cocaine. Very few actors could pull off such strange scenes as those, but Cruise consistently comes out on top.

At Cruise's side, Sarah Wright imbues Seal's wife with a kind, compassionate, and loving heart. Wright handles her dramatic bits quite well when push comes to shove, but for the most part is relegated to a stock supporting capacity.

Elsewhere, Domhnall Gleeson's kooky CIA operative 'Schafer' stands as a refreshing departure from the serious stint of his career (Brooklyn, Ex Machina, mother!, The Revenant, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens). Gleeson is toned down in comparison to Cruise's kookiness, but still stands out as an eccentric onscreen presence. Caleb Landry Jones, Jesse Plemons, and Jayma Mays also deserve mentions for their swell supporting roles as a dim-witted redneck, small town sheriff, and a relentless government official respectively.

So I suppose you're all wondering if American Made's outlandish true story was made for Americans... Well, thanks to Linman and Cruise, American Made is a wild ride well worth boarding regardless of where you're from!

Film Assessment: B+

'Get Out' Review

Nominated For: Best Picture, Best Director; Jordan Peele, Best Actor; Daniel Kaluuya, and Best Original Screenplay.

Won: Best Original Screenplay.

In Get Out a young African American photographer Chris is invited by his white girlfriend Rose Armitage to visit her family over the weekend. Chris questions the invitation because he's unsure how Rose's parents will react to the revelation their daughter's involved in an interracial romantic relationship. Once the couple arrives, Chris notices plenty of suspicious behavior from Rose's family and while seeking the truth only gets further drawn into the bizarre ongoings.

Get Out is written and directed by Jordan Peele, marking his directorial debut and second feature length screenplay credit following last year's Keanu. Peele is most well-known for being part of the Keye and Peele comedy sketches and up to this point his career really specialized in comedy, but Get Out verges into the horror/thriller genre and stands well apart from Peele's previous work. Peele demonstrates social awareness with his direction and screenplay, not only creating suspenseful surroundings, but also effectively incorporating social commentary on current race relations. He doesn't skew it entirely on one side of the spectrum with racist generalizations or stereotypes and the way Peele is able to amplify the anxiety of real world situations to genuinely thrilling sequences is downright brilliant. 

Peele incorporates nice doses of comedic relief in Get Out you probably won't see coming and does a great job fleshing out his characters with his script. My only nitpicks are that certain twists don't hold up under scrutiny and that on occasion it's slightly predictable when it abides too closely to the formulaic design of most horror films. On the flip side, I need to give props to editor Gregory Plot, cinematographer Toby Oliver, the sound design team, and the score composed by Michael Abels for taking the tension to another level with precise execution in all areas. 

In the casting department, Daniel Kaluuya makes for an exceptional lead as Chris, providing a performance that's both subtle and well-defined. Kaluuya makes the suspense more believable with fantastic facial expressions extenuating his situation and authentically communicating awkward social environments. Elsewhere, Allison Williams puts forth a surprisingly complex characterization as Rose and the facets of Rose's family each get an opportunity to send a chill down your spine as respectively portrayed by Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford, and Caleb Landry Jones. Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel, and LaKeith Stanfield are also unnerving in their respective roles and LilRel Howery stands out as Chris' friend Rod Williams with some great comedic delivery. 

Peele really outdid himself with his directorial debut and the talent at his disposal really worked wonders with the meager $5 Million budget. To sum it all up; stop what you're doing, Get Out and go see this!

Film Assessment: A-