Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) Review

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014)

D: Jonathan Liebesman

W: Josh Appelbaum, Evan Daugherty, Andre Nemec

S: Megan Fox, Alan Ritchson, Jeremy Howard, Pete Ploszek, Noel Fisher, Will Arnett, Danny Woodburn, William Fichtner, Johnny Knoxville, Tony Shalhoub

The heroes in a half-shell are back in their fifth onscreen adventure. This time around they combat the evil underground criminal organization, The Foot Clan, and their boss the evil Shredder. Will they be able to stop the Shredder's evil plans?

I want to first go over my opinions on the other Ninja Turtles films. The original film from 1990 to me is still a pretty decent film, with a pretty good story and some great costumes. The second film is a massive guilty pleasure, yeah it is a weak film but I still enjoy it. The third film... just lame. TMNT (2007, Dir. Kevin Munroe) for me is probably the weakest film, mainly because it seems to think that by making everything dark and angst ridden it is automatically deep. Oh and the new tv show on Nickelodeon is really damn good. 

But now let us get to the newest film. Like a little people I wasn't looking forward to this film, and yes one reason was because of Michael Bay being attached to the project, but after the first trailer... I still wasn't too sure about it. But after seeing more and more and seeing the Turtles interacting with each other I was getting a bit more excited. But after watching the film now I can say that this is... lackluster. It is far from being the worst film in the series, but it could have been so much better.

Let me get this off the bat, Megan Fox was a bad choice for April O'Neil. This part should have gone to someone like Rachel McAdams or Emma Stone. Also the new designs are a mixed bag for me. I don't like that they're really bulky, but the extra features of clothing and such give them nice distinct looks. Except for Donatello's glasses. You know, in you case you forgot he was a nerd. But other than that I like the extra stuff they added. They'll never top the original puppets created by the Henson Company, but they're a little better then the ones used in the 2007 movie. 

Seriously, these designs are so freaking dull!

Speaking of the Turtles themselves, they're fine persona wise. Also they have plenty of funny lines and moments in the film. The director, Liebsman, stated that he really wanted to get the Turtles humor down and he did in my book. Come on, how could not crack a smile at this scene here. 

So what's the major problem with this film? The script. It feels like they're using the first draft of the screenplay for it. It had the ideas and what they want but it feels really underdeveloped. There are some interesting ideas that needed to be explored a lot more. The biggest example of this is that the turtles were not some random turtles found in a random puddle of ooze by a rat (or in some cases Hamato Yoshi). Nope, this time around the turtles and Splinter were part of a scientist experiment conducted by April's now deceased father. One of the other scientists (Fichtner) turned out to be EVIL! And turned out to be a disciple of the Shredder. And they are going to use it to take of the world. OF COURSE! Now April managed to rescue the turtles and Splinter from the lab when April's father destroyed the lab, after finding out the evil scientist's plan. Oh, and spoilers Fichtner killed April's father. Yeah, I'm sure you're all surprised. 

This is an interesting idea, it gives the Turtles and April and stronger connection then just, 'Oh hey I found a bunch of giant mutant turtles. Okay I'm friends now.' But it isn't really developed. The film wants to have the message of family and how even though they come from completely different backgrounds in a way they're still one. But instead we get clunky dialogue about how they're family and such. Critic Jeremy Jahn pointed out that the film seem to rely on you already knowing about the Turtles and their history instead of developing it in the film. (By the way check out his videos, he is awesome.) They could have gone a little deeper by having Splinter still be Hamato Yoshi's pet and then April's. He could have been unsure if this girl was worthy of owning him. 

But what about the action? This movie has to be good in that department. Well... yes and no. The use of CGI does allow them to do more but it goes by so fast that it is a little hard to keep track of what's going on. Also, there is way too much slow motion being used. 

As it stands for me, this isn't the worst Ninja Turtles product, but it could have been better. If you're interested go see it or at least wait until it is out on DVD and Redbox it. If you've been one of those guys who has been going, "F**k Michael Bay!" Then this film won't change your mind. In the meantime, go check out the first two films from 1990 and 1991, and the latest show that's on Nickelodeon. 

Cowabunga!

Rest in Peace Robin Williams (1951-2014)

It is with a very heavy heart that I write this post. On August 11, 2014 after coming home early from work, I got on Facebook and saw the headlines... "Robin Williams dies at 63". I can't begin to tell you the amount of sadness I felt. I even began to cry about the fact that Mr. Williams is no longer with us. The amount of laughter and joy this man brought to me, and countless others, is difficult to put into words. I loved this man and his work. So in this post I will go through the movies and other aspects about Robin that made me love him. I'm sure what I say in this post applies to so many others and I hope they serve him justice. So where do we being? How about the film we've all seen and love: Aladdin

Yes, the film and the role that more than likely got cemented into our heads. "The ever impressive, the long-contained, the often imitated, but never duplicated... duplicated... duplicated... duplicated... Genie of the Lamp!"

Yep, this is not only one of Robin's most memorable characters, it is also one of the most memorable characters in animated film history. Williams made the character his own and it can never be duplicated again. It was so good that the famed film critic Gene Siskel said in his review of the film that Williams should have gotten an Oscar nomination. Yeah, he was that good. I loved watching Robin's performance when I was a kid and I love watching it as an adult. It is obvious that Williams had a massive impact on the character and script, and because of that the character is immortalized. And of course, we can't forget the amazing job he did singing "Friend Like Me"

But now onto two movies that I watched a lot when I was kid, Popeye (1980, Dir. Robert Altman) and Hook (1991, Dir. Steven Spielberg). Now I know what you're thinking, "Popeye? Really?" Yes, really. My family and I every summer would go on family vacations and we had a little TV with a VHS player, we'd have a basket of tapes and one movie we'd watch all the time would be Popeye. Now, I'm willing to admit it isn't that great of a movie. But at the same time... what did you expect from a movie about Popeye the Sailor? This worked in my opinion. But what about Robin's  performance? He was perfect. Nobody else could have played this part. Don't believe me? Then watch this!

As for Hook, as I stated in my tribute post to my local video store, there were two movies I always rented from there and Hook was one of them. Now much like Popeye, I'm willing to admit it isn't Steve Spielberg's strongest film, but it is still a massively charming movie. Who else could you get to play an adult Peter Pan who has to go on a spiritual journey to rediscover who he is? Robin Williams, duh! I mean, just watch him!

Mr. Williams won one Oscar in his lifetime and that was for Best Supporting Actor in the movie Good Will Hunting (1997, Dir. Gus Van Sant). When it comes to performances that get an Oscar, I like to believe that there's one point that sets it in stone that this is a worthy performance. For me that moment was this one. But this is a good runner up. Again, my words can't do it justice. Just watch a behold.

But Robin's best trait was his mastery of improvisation. Watch any interview or comedy special he did and he would just tell twenty jokes a minute. It is extremely impressive. Hell, I bet I could sit a chair and he'd probably come up with five jokes there. Check out this clip from his guest appearance on Inside the Actor's Studio. By the way, this episode is one of the funniest bits of television in existence. 

To conclude, there's a lot to talk about with him. I could probably write a series of books about his work. There's still a lot I need to see. But I'll end with this.

Mr. Williams we will miss you. We will miss your charm, your wit, and your ability to make us laugh. We will make sure that future generations know about your brilliant work. I certainly hope that we meet in another lifetime and that you've found peace.

"No matter what anyone says, you'll always be a prince to me."

Guardians of the Galaxy Review

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

D: James Gunn

W: James Gunn, Nicole Perlman

S: Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Lee Pace, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Djimon Hounsou, John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, Benicio del Toro

Marvel Studios unleashes another film onto the public, at this point they appear to be unstoppable. But as long as they keep making movies like this (and Captain America: the Winter Soldier) I'm fine with that. This time around we follow a group of unlikely heroes banding together to stop an evil force who wants to disrupt the peace and conquer the galaxy. 

I really like these kind of stories. I like seeing these different people come together for a common goal and seeing the different personas interacting with each other. And this group... well you can't get more ragtag than this group. You've got an Missouri born smuggler (Star Lord played by Chris Pratt), an orphaned alien turning on her abductor/boss (Gamora played by Zoe Saldana), a revenge seeking warrior (Drax the Destroyer played by professional wrestler David Bautista), and a genetically engineered smart aleck raccoon (Rocket voiced by Bradley Cooper) and his walking talking tree buddy Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel). 

A big problem that can happen with these types of movies is that team members could easily become just a one note character. Like, he's the smart one, he's the strong one, he's the notable leader, she's the token woman. But that is thankfully not the case here. Each character has their own unique back story and each contributes to the story. Watching these guys play off each other is awesome. Also I have to give special credit to Cooper for his great voice acting for this movie, the guy made me feel for a talking raccoon. Also this is probably Vin Diesel's strongest performance since The Iron Giant (1999, Dir. Brad Bird). Now that I think about it, Groot and the Giant are very similar. Both are giant man made creatures with mysterious (at least to me) origins, both are soft spoken and gentle, but both can very tough and dangerous. And both do something that... um... when you see the film you'll know what I'm referring to. 

As for the villains of the movie, they serve their purpose well. Though I will admit they didn't leave a big impact on me, except for Nebula. Okay that might be because she's played by Karen Gillan, and I'm a big Doctor Who  fan, and a big Karen Gillan fan. Okay, I have a crush on her I'll admit. But she's still awesome. 

Yes, even when bald and  playing a villain 

Though (SPOILERS) we never see what happened to her so she might appear in a future film, and if something did happen to her, I missed it. 

But the one thing about this film, and all the recent Marvel films I've seen, that I want to point out that makes me really like these films is that THEY'RE FUN! My biggest problem with the some of the DC films is that they're all dark and moody without any trace of fun. Now, I'm not saying their can't be a story or drama but when the story is nothing but the heroes mopping about and talking about their responsibility as a hero, it gets dull. 

Also Marvel just seems to embrace these characters and what makes them unique. None of them are the same. Whereas DC just seems to try to turn them into Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight films.

So to sum it up, I've got no major issue with this film. Check it out. Oh, the 3D is worth it if you want to see it in 3D. 

What are you waiting for? Go see it! Come and get the love from the movie.

Oh and the soundtrack is awesome. 

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Rest in Peace James Garner (1928-2014)

This week the world of film and television lost one of its greats, James Garner passed away at the age of 86 years old at his home. 

I can never claim to be a fan of his two big television series Maverick and The Rockford Files, because I've never seen a full episode of either, but as you can guess I have seen plenty of his films. One of the best things I can about the late Mr. Garner was that he was extremely charismatic. It's easy to see why this man remained so popular through out his career, it probably explains why he got two TV series. 

Now a lot of Nicholas Sparks fans would probably know him for his performance as the older Noah Calhoun in the 2004 adaptation of The Notebook (Dir. Nick Cassavetes). Even though I can't really say I'm a fan of the film, or any Nicholas Sparks related material for that matter, I can that the film did have good performances and Mr. Garner was no exception. He just had this warmth about him. A very inviting feel, that made you feel comfortable. Also, he and Gena Rowlands had great chemistry together. 

He was introduced to a new generation of fans a few years before The Notebook. In 2001 Disney Studios released its 2001 animated epic Atlantic: The Lost Empire (Dir. Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise), in which Garner played the leader of the expedition to find Atlantis and the main antagonist. Garner managed to convey nearly every trope every good villain character should have, he would draw you in with his professionalism and then when the time came he showed his real color without batting an eye. 

For me Mr. Garner will always known for his role in one of my favorite films, The Great Escape (1963, Dir. John Sturges). In this WWII POW movie he portrayed American RAF pilot Flight Lt. Bob Hendley, or as he was known to the Allies in camp, The Scrounger. Every scene with him you got a great sense of who he was not only through the writing but through Garner's performances. He could be manipulative when he needed something from the guards, but he was also friendly and compassionate, as indicated though his friendship with the forger of the group, Flight Lt. Colin Blythe (played by Donald Pleasance of the Halloween franchise). 

I'll end this post with a clip from The Great Escape when Garner, along with the other two American POWs (Steve McQueen and Jud Taylor), give out homemade liquor in the camp on the Fourth of July. Mr. Garner, you will be missed. Rest in Peace.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) Review-Spoilers

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
D: Matt Reeves
W: Mark Bomback, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver
S: Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Toby Kebbell, Kodi Smit-McPhee

Caesar the ape returns in the (technically) eighth film in the Planet of the Apes series. This time around he lives in harmony with the other apes from the previous film, Rise of the Planet of the Apes. In between films, a deadly virus broke out wiping out a good chunk of humanity, and now a small band of humans hopes to gain a power source from a dam so they communicate with the outside world. Obviously, doing this will be no easy task considering many of the apes don't trust the humans and vice versa. Will the humans and apes resolve their differences? Or are they doomed to fight?

I haven't seen the previous film in this particular installment though from what I gathered it's a film that seems to be saved by the performance of Andy Serkis, the rest of film was okay. Now, I have seen the other Planet of the Apes films. I saw all original five films when I was younger on VHS and I caught Tim Burton's version on TV. I do enjoy the first five in one way or another, but Burton's film.... eh no. 

As it stands right now, this installment is pretty decent. The best thing about the film is Andy Serkis. I am convinced that this man can do no wrong. He is that good of an actor. The animation and CGI on the apes is really well done and Serkis's body language and facial expressions are able to shine through. By the way, (SPOILERS) the movie begins and ends with close ups on Caesar's eyes. The expressions given to those scenes is amazing and definitely worth interpreting. 

This movie is basically a remake of Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973, Dir. J. Lee Thompson), though it does try to develop things a little more and give some reasoning behind the actions. To go into detail would mean spoiling A LOT though given the characteristics of some of these characters. A lot of these characters are very basic and in some cases dull. The most annoying in this case is that both humans and apes have a jerk character who has no real dimensions. For the apes it is a Bonobo ape named Koba (Toby Kebbell) who was tortured and experimented on by humans, though it becomes obvious he wants power as well. For the humans it's Carver (Band of Brothers's Kirk Acevedo) who doesn't like apes... for some reason.  

But there is ONE human character that I liked and found multi-dimensional, Dreyfus played by the always fantastic Gary Oldman. When the humans receive electrical power he looks at his iPad and we see pictures of his military squad and his family, Oldman's acting in the scene is pure, simple, but amazing. It made me like him so much. 

While the dullness of the characters does bother me the movie makes up for it by having some spectacular battle sequences. Seriously, watching Caesar and Koba fight is awesome, and watching the apes ride on horse back with machines guns is something to see.

So yes I do recommend this movie.

Also out of all the Apes films I've seen this is how they rank.

Planet of the Apes (1968, Dir. Franklin J. Schaffner)
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972, Dir. J. Lee Thompson)
Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970, Dir. Ted Post)
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014, Dir. Matt Reeves)
Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973, J. Lee Thompson0
Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971, Dir. Don Taylor)
Planet of the Apes (2001, Dir. Tim Burton)

I'll get around to watching Rise of the Planet of the Apes. 

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Rest in Peace Eli Wallach (1915-2014)

Rest in Peace Eli Wallach

1915-2014

Today the world of cinema lost one of its best character and method actors, Eli Wallach. I was first exposed to Mr. Wallach when I saw him as Calvera, the Bandit Leader, in one of my favorite films of all time, 1960's The Magnificent Seven. In his first scene he comes with his men and just starts casually talking to the village's leader as if they were old friends, and that he and his men aren't doing anything wrong. He is so sure of himself and he just steals every scene. Even in a scene where he first meets the seven and showing resistance, but by the end you get the idea that he isn't used to this sort of thing. Every line he delivers adds so much to the character. 

But of course, I'm sure most of you know him for his role as Tuco Benedicto Pacífico Juan María Ramírez aka "The Ugly" in Sergio Leone's masterpiece, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. This was another performance in which he stole every scene. The way he dives into the role of this manipulative, two-faced, yet engaging bandit, truly does highlight how great an actor he was. Leone is best known for having the camera stay on the actor's face and letting their expressions speak for them, and Wallach was perfect in every scene. One of the best scenes in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is when Wallach's character is cornered while taking a bath by an opponent he faced early on in the film. The adversary goes on and on about how he's going to kill him, and Wallach just goes and shoots him, and delivers one of the best lines in any films, "When you have to shoot, shoot. Don't Talk." Even before that, the expression of Wallach's face says so much about what his character is thinking. It is amazing. 

Mr. Wallach career expanded decades and has worked with some of the best minds in the film business. He earned a Golden Globe nomination for his breakthrough film performance in Baby Doll (1956, Dir. Elia Kazan), he was one of hundreds in the Western epic How the West Was Won (1962, Dir. John Ford, Henry Hathaway, George Marshall), he was in romantic comedy The Holiday (2006, Dir. Nancy Meyers), and was in Mr. Freeze at one point on the 60's Batman series. I'll end this post with the video of Mr. Wallach's speech when he received his Honorary Oscar in 2010. Rest in peace, Mr. Wallach. We'll never forget you, and your movies. 

Rest in Peace

Double Feature: Jersey Boys & Joe

Another double featured article this week. This weekend we have the big screen version of the hit Broadway show, Jersey Boys, and the new Nicolas Cage movie, Joe.

Jersey Boys 
D: Clint Eastwood
W: Marshall Brickman, Rick Elice
S: John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, Michael Lomenda, Vincent Piazza, Christoper Walken

Clint Eastwood directs the big screen version of the hit Broadway show, Jersey Boys. The story is about the legendary vocal group The Four Seasons and the trials they had to go through during their career. 

This is a very basic biography film about the group, it tries to throw in several different things that happened, mainly about Frankie Valli. You've got their rise to fame, the growing tension between the members and the debt they had with the mob, Valli's failed relationships, the tragedy involving one of Valli's daughters, and so on. Because of this, the film does suffer a little bit in the script department, but only by a little. The strongest aspect is the script is the one involving the formation of the group and the trouble they got in with the mob. 

The real highlight of the film is the performances. There is not a dull one in the bunch. John Lloyd Young, who won a Tony for his portrayal of Frankie in the original Broadway show, gives a flawless performance in big screen debut. The chemistry he has with the other members is simply stunning, and it doesn't come off as just him doing a stage version of his character, he makes a great transition to the film. I can see this guy doing a lot of great work in the future. 

Eastwood does a great job at adapting this stage show to the big screen. Now grant it, I haven't seen the stage show, but this does work well for the screen and doesn't come off as them trying desperately to adapt make the movie like the show. Eastwood knows when to place in the narrations, from the show, by the characters and does a great job using a single long take for their narration. The only time when it seems like a musical is that the very end just as the credits start to roll, they have all the actors come out and dance in a big elaborate number.

Also, Eastwood does a really good job at placing the music. The music does come in a lot, but the larger numbers only happen for the bigger hits of the group. There are full musical numbers when they sing Sherry, Walk Like a Man, and Can't Take My Eyes Off You. Again, Eastwood knows what he's doing. The guy has had experience with music before. Yes, he was in Paint Your Wagon (1969, Dir. Joshua Logan), but I'm referring to the music he has composed for his movies. Check out the music he composed for his 1992 Oscar winning film Unforgiven. 

This is a definitely a movie to check out if you're a Four Seasons fan, and if you're not, it's still a pretty good film. Check it out.

Oh and for the record, my favorite Four Seasons song is December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night).

Now onto the latest film starring Nicolas Cage. 

Joe
D: David Gordon Green
W: Gary Hawkins
S: Nicolas Cage, Tye Sheridan

Nicolas Cage stars in the new Southern Gothic movie, Joe, based on the novel by Larry Brown. In this movie Cage plays the titular Joe who is an ex-con and blue collar worker who ends helping a 15-year-old boy (Mud's Tye Sheridan), but at the same time finds himself in situations that tempt his patience and tries to avoid getting in trouble.

In recent years, Nicolas Cage has become sort of punchline in the movie world. A lot of that is because of the film roles he has taken (the remake of Wicked Man is the biggest example), but watching this film it sparked in my mind, "Oh, that's right. Cage is a good actor." His performance in this movie is amazing, there are few times when he does his trademark crazy antics, but it works given the situation and the motivation for the character. One thing I really liked about his character is that he isn't some shady, brooding loaner who doesn't want any human contact, he's a regular Joe (I couldn't resist the pun) who is just trying to stay out of trouble and trying to live his life. We see him interacting with not only the kid, but also his co-workers and various members of the community. It's a great touch, and it shows that he is trying his hardest to stay away from a violent and mentally destructive life.

Two more performances I have to give praise to is from Tye Sheridan and Gary Poulter. Tye Sheridan, as I stated before, was in the movie Mud, and he gave a genuinely great performance, and his performance here is another great example. Hopefully we see a bright future with this guy, and not the tragic life that happens to some child/teenager actors. Also Gary Poulter, who plays Sheridan's Dad in the movie, gives a haunting and rather tragic performance in this film, it's especially great considering how Poulter has had no acting experience before this, he was a homeless man. He was a local of the area where director David Gordon Green was filming and he got a fantastic performance from him. It is tragic to note that Poulter died shortly after filming was complete.

It was after watching this film I began to realize that I love Southern Gothic stories, and a big reason because of characters and the setting. Now I grew up in Ohio, and I've lived in Ohio all my life, but I did grow up in a forested and country environment, and so seeing this stuff used as the setting thrills me, because it can change and represent the characters and story so well. With this film we see Joe working with a group whose task it is to clear a section trees by inserting them with poison mixture so they die and make it easier for the lumberjacks to cut them down (I think that's what the task was). It's a perfect place to set up that the main character surrounded by dying environment which essentially represents Joe's inner thoughts and feelings. And when you watch the film and see the ending it comes full circle, and you'll see what I mean by this environment representing or symbolizing the character's thoughts and stories.

One final note that I have to praise is a song written for the film by Ryan Bingham. Bingham is a country/Americana singer who had previous movie success when he co-wrote and performed the Oscar winning song The Weary Kind, for the Jeff Bridges movie Crazy Heart (2009, Dir. Scott Cooper). Bingham hits another bull's eye in my opinion with his song For Anyone's Sake..

So in case you couldn't tell, I highly recommend this movie as well.

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