Us (2019) review

In 2012, Comedy Central debuted their latest series, Key and Peele, a sketch comedy show created by the duo of Keegan Michael-Key and Jordan Peele, who had previously gotten their big break on the hit comedy series MADtv. The show ran for 5 seasons up until 2015 and was a major critical hit, winning two Emmys and a Peabody Award and spawning several classic sketches such as Luther, President Barack Obama’s Anger Translator, and the East/West College Bowl, featuring football players with increasingly ridiculous names. Following its conclusion, both Key and Peele began to further their careers on their own accord, with Key taking on notable supporting roles in films like Tomorrowland and The Predator. Peele, meanwhile, transitioned into directing and started in the most unexpected place, the horror genre, with his 2017 directorial debut, Get Out. This psychological horror film about a black man who runs into trouble when he meets his white girlfriend’s family became one of the biggest hits of the year, grossing over $255 million worldwide on just a meager $4.5 million budget and amassing tons of critical praise from both critics and audiences. This ultimately led to Peele becoming the first African-American to win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. But now he’s back with his second directorial outing, Us, which once again delves into the horror genre while also serving as the first big step in what looks to be a huge year for Peele given that he’s also developing a new revival of the iconic series, The Twilight Zone. And thanks to strong performances and an equally strong script, this effectively creepy flick does, in fact, feel like a Twilight Zone story.

During a seemingly normal summer, the Wilson family, consisting of matriarch Adelaide (Lupita Nyong’o), her husband Gabe (Winston Duke), and their two kids Zora (Shahadi Wright Joseph) and Jason (Evan Alex) arrive at their beach home in Santa Cruz, California. While the family plans to have a relaxing vacation, Adelaide remains on edge due to a traumatic experience from her past when she visited the area with her parents in 1986, thus resulting in her being highly protective of her loved ones. This becomes especially important when, one night, Jason notices that four people are standing outside their house. When Gabe tries to ward them off, the four strangers manage to break into the house with relative ease. And if that wasn’t enough, Adelaide, Gabe, Zora, and Jason quickly discover that these four figures in red jumpsuits (Red, Abraham, Umbrae, and Pluto) look and act exactly like them (with Nyong’o, Duke, Joseph, and Alex also portraying their doppelgangers). As it turns out, the Wilson family’s doppelgangers are quite the violent bunch as they’re all armed with a pair of scissors and are hellbent on killing their ‘other selves’ so that they can take their place. Thus, the Wilsons find themselves having to survive this night of pure terror on their own against beings who always seem to be one step ahead of them. And as they soon find out, they aren’t the only ones who are experiencing this.

The first thing to note about this film is that you shouldn’t go into it expecting another Get Out. While both can be described as psychological horror films, these two films couldn’t be any more different when it comes to their themes and overall execution. Get Out, of course, was a horror-thriller steeped in extremely timely themes regarding race relations. Us, by comparison, is a bit more streamlined with its narrative but still manages to cover some deep themes from the struggle to overcome traumatic events in one’s life to the ongoing conversation of ‘haves vs. have nots’. It also surprisingly allows Peele the opportunity to show off his comedic sensibilities as this film features quite a bit of humor that mainly stems from banter amongst the main characters. By comparison, Get Out was a lot more serious (even though that didn’t stop the Golden Globes from nominating it for Best Comedy/Musical, for some reason) with almost all its ‘humorous’ moments coming courtesy of the incredibly self-aware Rod the TSA Agent. Ultimately, though, if there’s one major thing that these films have in common, it’s that they’re both full of strong themes and layered characters. And as a horror film, Us produces plenty of effectively creepy moments once the doppelgangers are properly introduced. Granted, it does take a little while for this to happen, but it’s a good kind of slow build-up that ultimately paves the way for a neat final twist that’s just as well-layered as the plot that it stems from.   

Just like Get Out, Us also benefits from strong performances from its cast. It’s all headlined by Lupita Nyong’o as Adelaide, who obviously gets the most character development in this film given that much of the plot revolves around that traumatic incident from her past and how she tries to move on from it. And because of it, it results in one heck of an emotionally-charged performance. She also has excellent chemistry with Winston Duke as Adelaide’s husband Gabe who, by comparison, plays more of a comedic role in the plot with some of the same self-aware quips as Rod from Get Out. And if you’ve seen Black Panther, then you’ll know exactly why Duke is more than qualified for such a role. Closing out the main quartet of leads are newcomers Shahadi Wright Joseph and Evan Alex as the Wilson kids Zora and Jason, who manage to be a lot more resourceful than most kids in horror films as they play an active role in the family’s efforts to fend off their doppelgangers. And on that note, a key aspect of this film is, of course, the fact that these cast members also portray their doppelgangers, who are referred to in this film as ‘the Tethered’. Everyone handles these dual roles very well, with each of them managing to make their Tethered an effectively freaky shadow in their own unique way (e.g. Jason’s Tethered, Pluto, mirrors his exact movements while also sharing Jason’s habit of wearing a mask). Like before, though, it’s Nyong’o who steals the show as her doppelganger, Red, who’s notably the only Tethered of the bunch who can speak (albeit in a raspy tone, but the point still stands) whereas all the other Tethered folks are either silent or restricted to grunts and screeches.   

Thanks to both this and Get Out, it can very well be argued that Jordan Peele is at the forefront of the horror genre’s recent renaissance. When I mentioned his upcoming reboot of Twilight Zone in the intro, that was, in fact, intentional as both of his current directorial efforts feel like they directly stem from that franchise’s brand of storytelling. In fact, Peele has even listed a specific episode of the show, ‘Mirror Image’, as a key influence for this film. Nevertheless, Us is yet another excellent directorial outing from him that avoids being nothing more than just a carbon copy of Get Out. Sure, this one isn’t quite as focused on timely themes as much as Get Out was, but the attention to detail when it comes to its themes and character development is still second to none. And because of this, Us boasts an incredibly well-layered narrative that slowly but surely builds up to a solid conclusion that gives several of the scenes that came before it a whole new context upon repeat viewings. It also helps that the film sports an excellent ensemble cast, all of whom do a terrific job handling the challenging dual roles of their characters’ normal selves and their sinister Tethered doppelgangers. In short, Us is yet another brilliant addition to the recent string of excellent horror films that we’ve been getting these past few years. And if that wasn’t enough, who would’ve guessed that many of these would end up coming from filmmakers who are primarily known more for their comedic projects, including the likes of David Gordon Green (the 2018 Halloween sequel), John Krasinski (A Quiet Place), and of course, one of the minds behind Comedy Central’s sketch comedy series Key and Peele.

Rating: 5/5!

Black Panther (2018) review

In 1966, Marvel legends Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created the first African-American superhero that ever appeared in mainstream comics. His name was T’Challa, ruler of the African nation of Wakanda and its greatest warrior, the Black Panther. Half a century later, the character would make his official live-action film debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 2016 release, Captain America: Civil War. In the film, T’Challa was played by Chadwick Boseman. Fresh off playing cultural icons like Jackie Robinson (42) and James Brown (Get on Up), Boseman added yet another cultural icon to his resume of film roles thanks to his excellent performance as the stoic regal warrior. And now, the Black Panther headlines his own solo film courtesy of director Ryan Coogler. Since 2013, the Oakland native has made a name for himself in the film industry with some of the most critically-acclaimed films of the past few years; and to put this all into perspective, Black Panther is only his third feature film to date. Prior to this, he directed the 2013 drama Fruitvale Station, which told the true story of the death of Oscar Grant III in the titular Bay Area Rapid Transit metro station, and 2015’s Creed, the unexpected continuation of the iconic Rocky franchise that ended up being its most critically successful outing since the original back in 1976. And with Black Panther, Coogler (and, therefore, Marvel Studios) ends up having yet another critically-acclaimed outing on their hands thanks to it being one of the most emotionally-charged outings of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.

In Captain America: Civil War, audiences were introduced to T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman), prince of the African nation of Wakanda who also serves as its greatest warrior, the ‘Black Panther’. When his father, King T’Chaka (John Kani), was murdered in a bombing at the United Nations, T’Challa embarked on a quest for vengeance against his father’s killer Helmut Zemo, though he ultimately let him live when he decided that he would no longer be consumed by vengeance. Thus, as Black Panther begins, T’Challa returns home to Wakanda to prepare to become its new king. However, he soon finds himself having to deal with two major threats to the peaceful existence of his kingdom. First, there’s Ulysses Klaue (Andy Serkis), a black-market arms dealer who has spent several years trying to find Wakanda and steal its most valuable resource, vibranium (AKA the material used to create Captain America’s iconic shield). The other big threat comes in the form of Erik Killmonger (Michael B. Jordan), a Black Ops soldier (who, as it turns out, harbors a major personal connection to T’Challa that’s tied to a key incident of Killmonger’s past that T’Chaka was directly involved in), who arrives in Wakanda hell-bent on taking the throne and utilizing the kingdom’s resources to initiate rebellions all over the world. This, in turn, forces T’Challa and his main allies, including his ex-lover Nakia (Lupita Nyong’o), his tech-savvy sister Shuri (Letitia Wright), and Okoye (Danai Gurira), leader of the Dora Milaje, Wakanda’s special forces group, to stand their ground to prevent Killmonger from taking over the kingdom and, subsequently, the rest of the world.

I’ve stated time and time again that the MCU has always done a fantastic job developing its main characters to the point where it results in some of the most effective emotional moments to come out of the superhero genre (e.g. the ending of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, the ‘big reveal’ in Captain America: Civil War, etc.). And with Black Panther, Coogler gives us one of the most emotionally-driven installments of the entire franchise. There’s a real spiritual sense to this film, and not just through its excellent portrayal of the world of Wakanda and its culture. Emotion practically drives everything in this film from character motivations for both heroes and villains to key moments in the plot that reflect modern race relations. All of this helps to make the film one of the most moving and culturally relevant films in recent memory while still being a fun and exciting blockbuster flick, a balancing act that Coogler handles terrifically. Because after all, this is still a Marvel Cinematic Universe film that we’re talking about here, and even at 18 films in, Black Panther still features everything that we’ve come to love from this franchise. Coogler and cinematographer Rachel Morrison (who previously collaborated on Fruitvale Station) more than deliver on the film’s solid action sequences, many of which are backed by the franchise’s consistently solid visual effects. And while Black Panther certainly doesn’t skimp on its emotional poignancy, it still finds plenty of time for the MCU’s trademark sense of humor.

Right from his first scene in Captain America: Civil War, Chadwick Boseman proved to be a major scene-stealer as his iteration of Black Panther was full of powerful, emotional nuance. And now that he headlines his own film, that firm resolve is strengthened even further along with a solid arc in which T’Challa struggles to figure out his identity as the new ruler of Wakanda. But he’s not alone in this endeavor, as he’s backed by some of the greatest female leads in the entire MCU. As Nakia, Lupita Nyong’o has excellent chemistry with Boseman (effectively making them one of the MCU’s best ‘couples’) while still being much more than just a traditional ‘love interest’. As Okoye, Danai Gurira continues her recent track record of playing badass warriors (following her turn as Michonne in The Walking Dead) as the staunch leader of the Dora Milaje who is NOT to be messed with. And as Shuri, Letitia Wright ends up being the film’s biggest standout as T’Challa’s snarky but high-spirited sister whose technological prowess manages to give even Tony Stark a run for his money. Of course, like any MCU film, there are plenty more standouts from this film’s excellent supporting cast. Daniel Kaluuya plays a minor but all-around pivotal role in the film as T’Challa’s best friend W’Kabi, the head of Wakanda’s ‘Border Tribe’ who ends up getting into a rather tough personal conflict with T’Challa over his handling of Klaue. And as for Winston Duke as the imposing M’Baku, the leader of the Jabari tribe who is in constant conflict with T’Challa over his impending rule, he surprisingly ends up providing the film with some of its best humorous moments. Close it all out with some solid turns from screen legends Angela Bassett and Forest Whitaker as T’Challa’s mother Ramonda and the sage-like figure Zuri, respectively, and you have one of the MCU’s best ensemble casts.  

Ultimately, though, one of the most well-received aspects of this film is something that you don’t hear of very often from critics and audiences when it comes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, its villains. And while I have gone on record stating that I don’t think that the majority of the MCU’s collection of antagonists are as bad as many claim that they are, I will openly admit that Black Panther features some of the franchise’s greatest villains. First, we have Andy Serkis reprising his brief cameo role in Avengers: Age of Ultron as Ulysses Klaue. Without giving anything major away, Klaue’s role in this film is minor but Serkis is clearly having a ball as the delightfully over-the-top arms dealer who gets plenty of the film’s best humorous lines. But, of course, the real star of the show is Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger, who is hands down one of the most layered antagonists of the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe. Keeping in line with the film’s strong sense of emotional depth, Killmonger’s backstory is steeped entirely in emotional sentiment, effectively making him a perfect foil for T’Challa in more ways than I describe here without delving into spoiler territory. His motivations are clear throughout as is Jordan’s fantastic, commanding screen presence in the role. Simply put, Killmonger is one of the prime examples of a ‘sympathetic’ antagonist; while he does serve as a major threat to T’Challa and company, there are instances where you do empathize with where he’s coming from. Not only that, but it’s also good to see Jordan get a top-quality role in a superhero film after his rather disastrous outing as the Human Torch in 2015’s Fan4stic. And for those keeping track at home, that makes two former on-screen Human Torches who ended up getting stronger material when they transitioned over to Marvel Studios (the first, of course, being Cap himself, Chris Evans).

Now, of course, anyone who knows me probably guessed beforehand that I was going to love this film given all the times that I’ve gushed about the MCU in the past… and they would be right. While I usually don’t like to lean so closely towards the film fan community’s consensus towards any given film, it’s hard to deny that Black Panther truly is a landmark installment of both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the superhero genre in general. For lack of a better term, director Ryan Coogler infuses this film with so much soul that it ends up being an emotionally powerful cinematic experience. Whether it’s thanks to the film’s deeply-layered plot or Michael B. Jordan’s phenomenal turn as arguably the MCU’s greatest villain to date, Black Panther is sure to hit you with all the feels. And really, at the risk of becoming a broken record, this is just yet another testament to Marvel Studios’ dominance of the superhero genre since the MCU’s inception. For the past decade, they’ve provided us with well-written and well-directed superhero epics that have been highlighted by their excellently written characters, jaw-dropping action sequences, and in their greatest outings, a fantastic sense of emotional poignancy that has made their protagonists endearing icons in the world of pop culture for years to come. Black Panther boasts all those things and then some.  

#WAKANDAFOREVER

Rating: 5/5!

The Jungle Book (2016) review

As many of you know, Disney’s current schedule of upcoming live-action releases is almost entirely consisting of live-action remakes of their animated classics. These last few months in particular have seen the company announce numerous proposed films, including a new Winnie the Pooh, a new Mary Poppins film, and The Sword in the Stone, just to name a few. This of course is following the highly successful box-office runs of films like Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland and 2014’s Maleficent. However, this new practice of theirs has attracted a considerable amount of controversy amongst certain audiences for the same reasons that basically affect any announced remake, namely the question as to why one would attempt to remake a beloved film like the many animated classics that Disney has produced over the years. I, on the other hand, am a little more optimistic that a fair amount of these ‘Disney remakes’ are going to turn out fine. That mindset developed for me after I watched last year’s live-action version of Cinderella, which ended up being my #3 favorite film of 2015. Not only was the film full of gorgeous visuals but it was also big on heart and the end result was a film that both honored the original animated classic that inspired it while also doing enough to distinguish itself as its own entity. You could pretty much say that it is solely because of that film that I’m generally optimistic about these upcoming Disney remakes. Because if you ask me, if at least a few of these remakes happen to be as well-made as Cinderella by filmmakers who clearly show a lot of affection towards the original film, then that would mean that the fact that all of these remakes are getting announced is nowhere near as bad as some may claim.

Which brings us to the latest in this line of ‘Disney remakes’, The Jungle Book. It of course follows in the footsteps of the company’s 1967 animated adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s iconic novel of the same name. Unfortunately, that version is forever connected to a tragic point in the history of Disney Animation as it was the last Disney animated feature that Walt Disney himself produced prior to his death in 1966, just ten months before the film’s release. But even with the loss of the studio’s visionary leader, the original Jungle Book became an animated classic and served as a very fitting swan song for the man who was responsible for some of the most famous animated films/shorts of all-time. This new version is directed by Jon Favreau, who in the past gave us hits like the first two Iron Man films, the modern holiday classic Elf, and his most recent effort, the charming (and also hunger-inducing) indie flick Chef. And just like Kenneth Branagh last year with Cinderella, Favreau very much succeeds in regards to how his take on the classic story of the man-cub Mowgli both honors the original film that inspired it while also making its own mark in film history. The new Jungle Book is easily one of the best-looking films of the year, which is even more impressive considering the method in which the film was made. But those visuals are only the icing on the cake as this remake very much succeeds in capturing the heart of the original Disney flick without being a complete rehash of what came before.

The film of course follows the same general plot of both the original Kipling novel and the 1967 Disney animated version. In the middle of the Indian jungle, a young orphaned baby boy is found by the panther Bagheera (Ben Kingsley). Realizing that he has no mother or father to look after him, Bagheera brings him to a wolf pack, which includes the boy’s ‘adoptive mother’ Raksha (Lupita Nyong’o) and the pack’s leader Akela (Giancarlo Esposito), who then proceed to raise the young man-cub, Mowgli (Neel Sethi), as one of their own. Mowgli’s peaceful life with the pack is soon threatened, however, when the vicious tiger Shere Khan (Idris Elba), who hates man after being threatened by them via man’s great asset, fire AKA what the animals refer to as ‘the red flower’, threatens to kill him and anyone who dares to protect him. Realizing that he is in danger, Bagheera and the wolf pack agree to have Mowgli brought to the nearby man-village so that he will be safe from Shere Khan’s wrath with his own kind. But while on the way to the man-village, Mowgli soon finds himself coming across all sorts of characters, from the laid-back bear Baloo (Bill Murray) to the devious and hypnotic snake Kaa (Scarlett Johansson) to the imposing ape King Louie (Christopher Walken), all while being simultaneously hunted by Shere Khan.

You want to know the most interesting thing about this film? It was shot entirely on a soundstage. Just like all of its animal characters, all of the jungle locales in the film are basically done entirely in CGI. And while some may argue that this would make the whole film ‘too artificial’ as a result, it actually does really work in regards to make everything look so photo-realistic even when knowing that most of it was created by computers. As for the film itself, it takes on a much darker tone compared to the original animated film, which does sort of make sense because the predator animals in this story could be considered as being more menacing in a live-action setting. However, it doesn’t get too dark to the point where it would completely draw younger audiences away. And aside from three new renditions of the songs ‘The Bare Necessities’, ‘I Wanna Be Like You’, and ‘Trust in Me’, the film avoids going the same musical route of its animated predecessor. All in all, this results in the film’s overall tone and plot being a generally equal mix of both the original animated film and Rudyard Kipling’s original novel. But of course this film is more than just pretty visuals, even though said visuals could very much make the film a worthwhile theater experience all on their own. At the end of the day, Favreau very much succeeds in capturing the heart of the original animated film in this new live-action setting. He does this through many things, including the multi-layered characters who are just as memorable as they were in the original animated film and the story’s strong themes of friendship and courage.  

As Mowgli, newcomer Neel Sethi is the only major live-action actor in the entire film. And considering that he had to go through the entire film shoot interacting with locations and characters that weren’t primarily added in until post-production, he definitely pulls off the act of managing to make it all seem natural quite well. At the same time, he also succeeds in making his Mowgli both likable and also very clever, the latter of which is represented by the many ‘inventions’ that he comes up with throughout the film. As for the animal characters, this film features a pitch-perfect voice cast as every actor/actress is an excellent fit for their respective roles. Bill Murray’s generally laid-back demeanor perfectly fits Baloo, who in this version is more sarcastic than his animated counterpart but is still a loyal friend to Mowgli through thick and thin. Ben Kingsley more than brings the right gravitas to the role of the noble panther Bagheera while Idris Elba provides one heck of an intimidation factor in the role of Shere Khan, who in this version gets a bit more backstory as to why he hates man. Some of the animal characters actually get more to do in this film compared to the animated film, particularly the wolf-pack and Mowgli’s ‘adoptive mother’ Raksha who, despite everyone telling her otherwise, very much treats Mowgli like her own son, resulting in a particularly emotional scene near the beginning when Mowgli decides to leave for the man-village. As for the characters of Kaa and King Louie, who each have one major scene in the film, Scarlett Johannsson’s alluring voice fits perfectly in the part of the hypnotizing snake while Christopher Walken’s wackier persona is fitting for King Louie. At the same time, however, this King Louie is considerably different than the one from the original film, as he is just as menacingly imposing as he is in size.

Now before I list my rating for this film, let me be clear about something first. While I’m about to give it a rating that’s ½ a star higher than my rating for the original Jungle Book, that doesn’t automatically mean that I view this new film as the ‘superior’ version, which is a claim that quite a few critics have been making these past few days. Just like with the new Cinderella, I view this new Jungle Book as a complement to the original film and not something that’s meant to ‘replace’ it. The original Jungle Book is still an undeniable classic (and one that, for the record, is far better than what Screen Junkies recently made it out to be) and this new version helps introduce the story of the man-cub Mowgli and his adventures in the jungle to a whole new generation. And it very much is an excellent new take on this classic story. From a technical perspective, it’s one of the most visually breathtaking films in recent memory which is saying a lot considering that the film is basically 95% CGI. But at its core lies the same heart that defined the original with a terrific cast bringing these classic characters to life. So yes… this isn’t the end of Disney’s live-action remakes. There are a lot more on the way, perhaps even a bit too many at this point. However, both this film and Cinderella are more than enough proof that they can be done and, more importantly, be done very, very well. So in short, contrary to what popular opinion may be, I am genuinely excited to see what Disney comes up with next in regards to re-imagining some of the classic films and stories that have defined many a childhood.   

Rating: 5/5!

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) review

(Note: Fear not, those who haven’t seen the film yet, for I will be as spoiler-free as possible during this review.)

It was over 38 years ago when George Lucas released the first installment of his epic space saga, ‘Star Wars’, later retitled ‘Episode IV: A New Hope’, into theaters. Despite all of the problems that occurred during the film’s production, it became one of the biggest hits of all-time, spawning two equally critically and commercially successful sequels and creating one of the biggest and most beloved franchises in pop culture history. After 1983’s ‘Return of the Jedi’, it seemed as if the story of Luke Skywalker and his friends had finally come to a close. Lucas initially had plans for a sequel trilogy but those plans ended up getting scrapped. However, Lucas would soon return to the world that he created through the creation of a prequel trilogy, beginning in 1999 with ‘Episode I: The Phantom Menace’, which explored the rise and fall of the original trilogy’s main villain, Darth Vader AKA Anakin Skywalker. However, while this second trilogy was just as commercially successful as the first, the prequel films did not receive the same critical acclaim as their three predecessors. Many ‘Star Wars’ fans were especially disappointed with the films as they felt that Lucas had placed greater emphasis on visuals than story and characters, the opposite of what made the Original Trilogy so beloved. Regardless, the films were still big commercial hits and when 2005’s ‘Episode III: Revenge of the Sith’ was released, once again we all thought that this was the end of the ‘Star Wars’ saga.

And then, in 2012, everything changed when Disney purchased Lucasfilm for $4.06 billion and announced that new ‘Star Wars’ films were going to be produced. Not only was there going to be a brand new trilogy of films that would follow the events of the Original Trilogy, as Lucas had originally planned, but there were also going to be ‘spin-off’ films that would further expand the universe. In January of 2013, J.J. Abrams, fresh off of resurrecting the ‘Star Trek’ franchise with 2009’s ‘Star Trek’ and 2013’s ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’, was hired to lead off the new series of ‘Star Wars’ films. And over the next two years, Abrams began production on what has arguably become the most anticipated film of all-time; ‘Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens’. Seriously, I don’t think there has been a film that has been this anticipated since, well, the last time ‘Star Wars’ made a comeback on the big screen with ‘The Phantom Menace’. And with that said, yes we are all very much aware about what happened the last time we ‘Star Wars’ fans hyped up a new film this much. That ended up backfiring big-time for most people and even though I was very excited for this new film, primarily because one of my favorite directors working today was directing it, I made an effort to keep my expectations in check hoping that, at the very least, this would not become another situation like ‘The Phantom Menace’ where most people would end up being very disappointed by it. But now that ‘The Force Awakens’ is in theaters, I can happily say that you will not be disappointed by what J.J. has given us.

It has been 30 years since the events of ‘Episode VI: Return of the Jedi’, in which the Galactic Empire had finally been defeated by the Rebel Alliance. But in the years since then, a new villainous faction has emerged in the form of the First Order to oppose the Rebel Alliance, now known as ‘the Resistance’. As the film begins, Resistance pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) is sent on a mission by General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) to retrieve a vital piece of information that both the Resistance and First Order are after. When the First Order catches up with him, Poe is captured but is freed by Stormtrooper FN-2187 (John Boyega), dubbed ‘Finn’ by Poe, who defects from the First Order when he finds himself unable to follow their vile ways. The two end up getting separated and Finn soon finds himself coming across Poe’s droid BB-8, who is carrying the aforementioned vital piece of information, and its current companion Rey (Daisy Ridley), a scavenger living on the planet of Jakku. With the First Order aggressively pursuing them, Finn and Rey embark on a life-changing adventure to bring the information that BB-8 is holding back to the Resistance before the First Order, and more specifically Dark Side user Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), gets it first. Along the way, their journey even sees them coming across legendary figures like the one and only Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and his trusty co-pilot Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew).

There have been quite a few people that have made comparisons between this film’s plot and the plot of ‘A New Hope’. And yes if you really do look at it, it’s true that this film follows quite a few of the same beats of that film, like the fact that the two main factions are after a piece of information of great importance to both sides or how the film’s finale revolves around a powerful space weapon. But even with that said, unlike some of the film’s detractors, I didn’t mind at all the fact that this film is very reminiscent of ‘A New Hope’ in regards to its plotting because it just shows how much J.J. Abrams respects the original trilogy while also making sure that ‘The Force Awakens’ is its own story. In other words, ‘The Force Awakens’ is very much a new ‘Star Wars’ film. It all feels like a very fitting continuation of the story since we last left it in ‘Return of the Jedi’, giving the major returning characters from the previous trilogy further character development that respects what has been set up before while also establishing its new main protagonists who will lead the way for the rest of this new trilogy; Finn, Rey, and Poe. And I must say that in our current age where the internet could spoil anything about a film (I very much sympathize with anyone who unfortunately had something about this film spoiled by jackasses trying to ruin everyone’s fun), it’s nice to go into a film like this generally unaware of what’s going to happen and I will say that there were some things in this film, namely certain plot-points that I of course won’t at all reveal in this non-spoiler review, that I didn’t see coming.

One of the major reasons why fans loved the Original Trilogy, particularly from a modern-day perspective, was that it was primarily done with practical effects in a time when CGI wasn’t even a thing yet. As a result, one of the major complaints of the prequel trilogy, as well as the changes made to the ‘Special Edition’ versions of the original films, was the over-reliance on CGI. So fans will be very happy to know that this new film does not go down the same ‘CGI-heavy’ road of the prequel trilogy. After all, J.J. did the same thing with the ‘Star Trek’ films, opting to utilize as many practical sets as possible for a sci-fi film of that scale. And that is once again the case with ‘The Force Awakens’. Sure there are obviously still quite a lot of CGI effects in this film but unlike ‘Attack of the Clones’ and ‘Revenge of the Sith’, in which Lucas went as far as to just shoot the actors in front of a green-screen and not actually shoot on a set, the major set-pieces of ‘The Force Awakens’ were filmed in real locations and they definitely look much better because of it, resulting in some pretty awesome action sequences. Not only that, but the screenplay by J.J. and ‘Empire Strikes Back’ and ‘Return of the Jedi’ writer Lawrence Kasdan, as well as J.J.’s direction in general, really captures the same fun spirit of the original films through fast-paced action and witty dialogue.  

As many of us know, the cast is a combination of both returning members of the Original Trilogy and a whole bunch of newcomers. Fans of the original trilogy should be satisfied with the appearances of the original leading trio of the series, all of whom easily return to their iconic roles with ease, especially Harrison Ford, with Han Solo basically having the most substantial role of the original trio in this new film. And right from the get-go, the new cast of leads are well-established and all three work greatly off of the writing. John Boyega gets a great redemptive character arc as Finn, the former Stormtrooper who rejects the ways of the First Order but then perhaps gets a bit too in over his head as a result, Oscar Isaac brings a Han Solo-esque charm and wit to the role of Poe Dameron, whom Isaac himself dubbed as the ‘best freaking pilot in the galaxy’ (a claim that he basically does back up given his piloting in the film), and Daisy Ridley captures a lot of the same relatable qualities that Luke had in the Original Trilogy and brings that to the role of Rey. Now let’s talk about the main villain, Kylo Ren. Without giving anything major away, Ren has a particular connection to the ‘Star Wars’ lore that not only makes for one hell of a reveal, but it also brings quite a lot of depth to the character and his motivations. It’ll be very interesting to see how Ren’s story arc will play out in subsequent films.

‘The Force Awakens’ is a film that very much lives up to the massive hype that the fans built around it. Like with Marvel and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, this film squashes the fears of any skeptic/cynic who thought that Disney’s purchase of the brand would lead to its downfall. It’s a film that both continues the ‘Star Wars’ series in grand fashion while also honoring its previous installments. Under J.J.’s excellent-as-usual direction, the film is a rousing adventure full of awesome action, funny dialogue, great character moments, and moments that just simply feel epic given the legacy of this franchise. As you could see from this review, I didn’t make much comparisons to the last set of ‘Star Wars’ films, the much-maligned prequel trilogy, because I wasn’t willing to go down the same path that I know many other reviewers are; using this film as another way to bash the prequels. Instead of being stuck in the past and busting a trilogy that seriously isn’t as bad as the internet constantly puts it out to be, I kept my eyes firmly locked on the future and based on this first film, I can tell that we are in for one hell of a new ‘Star Wars’ trilogy, with Rian Johnson set to direct ‘Episode VIII’ in 2017 and Colin Trevorrow to helm ‘Episode IX’ in 2019. But for now, I end my review with this message to the one and only J.J. Abrams. Thank you J.J. for giving us one of the most exhilarating film experiences in recent memory that proves just how special this franchise has been to many people and how it will be again for a whole new generation of fans. ‘Star Wars’ is back!

Rating: 5/5!

86th Annual Academy Awards: PREDICTIONS

Seeing how we are only a few days away from the 86^th Annual Academy Awards, which will be held on March 2^nd and hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, it’s that time again to do some predictions over who might be going home with an Oscar this upcoming Sunday. Now, I won’t be covering all 24 of the Oscar categories and that will mostly be for one of two reasons; A.) I may not be that familiar with the topic, such as sound mixing, sound editing, and makeup or B.) I haven’t seen most of the films in that category. In the case of the latter, I’m mainly referring to the Short Films (both live-action and animated), documentaries (feature and short-subject), and the foreign films. Also, in some categories, I’ll be listing some snubs that I feel occurred when these nominations were announced because there were a few noteworthy ones this year (as is technically every year). With that said, let’s get started…

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

*GRAVITY

*THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG

*IRON MAN 3

*THE LONE RANGER

*STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS

Possible Snubs: I’m kind of surprised that ‘The Lone Ranger’ got a nomination in this category (it also got one for Best Makeup) seeing how, you know, most people hated it. I didn’t, but for all of the reasons why I did like it, none of them were really for the effects. In its place, I would’ve given the nomination to a film like ‘Oz the Great and Powerful’, ‘Man of Steel’, or ‘Pacific Rim’. But even if one of these films did get that nomination, it’s kind of unlikely that they would win because…

My Pick: GRAVITY

Yeah, it’s obvious, isn’t it? It’s almost certain that ‘Gravity’ is going to win this award because its effects were one of the most praised elements of the film. There’s really no competition here. I mean, out of these other four, the only other one that I feel could come away with an upset is ‘The Hobbit’ because of the excellent effects for the dragon Smaug. But at the end of the day, this one’s pretty much in the bag.

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

*AMERICAN HUSTLE

*GRAVITY

*THE GREAT GATSBY

*HER

*12 YEARS A SLAVE

My Pick: THE GREAT GATSBY

A bit of a wild card pick here, because I know that not everyone was as big of a fan of this film as I was (if you recall, this was my fifth favorite film of 2013). But if ‘The Great Gatsby’ were to win one of these awards, I have a feeling it would be in either one of the two categories it’s nominated in; this or Best Costume Design (maybe both) because both the Costume and Production Designs for the film were truly great. I have a feeling ‘American Hustle’ might take this one (and for the record, the film did have an excellent production design) but for this category, I give my vote to the one and only… Gatsby!

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

*HAPPY (‘DESPICABLE ME 2’)

*LET IT GO (‘FROZEN’)

*THE MOON SONG (‘HER’)

*ORDINARY LOVE (‘MANDELA: LONG WALK TO FREEDOM’)

Possible Snub: While this is not exactly a snub, I do kind of have to talk about what was previously the fifth song in this category, ‘Alone Yet Not Alone’ from the film of the same name. Never heard of it? Don’t worry because when this nomination was first announced, I didn’t know about it either. However, a few weeks ago, the nomination was revoked because one of the writers of the song, Bruce Broughton, had contacted members of the Academy for some support; Broughton being a former governor of the Academy and currently a committee member of the Academy’s music branch. The song itself was actually pretty good (it had a really sweet melody), but there’s nothing that can be done now; it’s no longer nominated. With that said though, why then is the Academy just going to stay with only four songs in this category? Why not just give the open spot to another song, like Lana Del Rey’s ‘Young and Beautiful’ from ‘The Great Gatsby’ or ‘Oblivion’ from M83 and the film of the same name. Heck, I would be fine if they gave it to ‘A Little Party Never Killed Nobody’, also from ‘Gatsby’. Anyway…

My Pick: LET IT GO (‘FROZEN’)

‘Ordinary Love’ won this year’s Golden Globe for Best Song, but I’ll admit that I’m not that big of a fan of it. I mean, I get the whole thing about U2 and their connection with Nelson Mandela but at the same time I don’t think it’s the ‘Best Song’ of the year (from a film perspective, of course). That honor, I feel, should go to Robert and Kristen Anderson-Lopez for the standout single from Disney’s ‘Frozen’, ‘Let it Go’. It truly is one of the best songs from any Disney film in recent years; in fact I’d say it’s the best since the last Disney film song to earn an Oscar, ‘You’ll Be in My Heart’ from ‘Tarzan’. As for the other nominated songs, my runner-up pick would be ‘Happy’ from ‘Despicable Me 2’. I have not seen the film, but boy does that song have a catchy beat.

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

*THE BOOK THIEF

*GRAVITY

*HER

*PHILOMENA

*SAVING MR. BANKS

Possible Snubs: Um, where Hans Zimmer for ‘12 Years a Slave’? Now that was one of the best scores of the year. It was a simple score, but one that had so much powerful emotions in it at the same time. Also, while I haven’t seen the film, how about Alex Ebert for ‘All is Lost’? You know, the score that won this exact same award at the Golden Globes. Ah well…

My Pick: GRAVITY

This was actually a rather hard category to predict because I was torn between not two, but three of the scores that were nominated (the only three whose films I actually had seen). There’s Thomas Newman’s score for ‘Saving Mr. Banks’, which had some really beautiful melodies in it that, to quote my friend Matt, will make you want to watch ‘Mary Poppins’ again. There’s also the score from ‘Her’ by Arcade Fire which was really poignant and moving. But in the end, my vote will go to Steven Price’s score for ‘Gravity’, a score that goes along quite well with the intensity of the situations that occur within the film. I especially love the final selection from the score, which shares the name of the film, primarily for the epic choral performance at the end of it. For the record, I would be fine if any of the three scores I just mentioned win this award but if I had to pick just one, this would be that one.

BEST ANIMATED FILM

*THE CROODS

*DESPICABLE ME 2

*ERNEST AND CELESTINE

*FROZEN

*THE WIND RISES

Possible Snubs: No nominations for a Pixar film this year? I say that especially when considering that ‘Monsters University’ was a really good film. Sure, it wasn’t Pixar’s best film, or even the Best Animated Film of the year for that matter, but it was far better than the previous Pixar film, ‘Brave’, which for the record wasn’t bad but at the same time I wasn’t a fan of it winning this award last year because it wasn’t the best Animated Film of 2012.

My Pick: FROZEN

I’ve heard many reports that predicted that the Academy is likely going to give this award to ‘The Wind Rises’, seeing how it’s to be Hayao Miyazaki’s last film (I think; it hasn’t really been clarified if this is true yet). Now, I’m sure that ‘The Wind Rises’ is an excellent movie, as is the rest of Miyazaki’s work. However… I haven’t seen it. So, in its place, I’ll go with my pick for the Best Animated Film of 2013, ‘Frozen’. This one has really grown on me in the weeks since I first saw it in theaters. It truly is one of the best Disney films to come out in recent years and I feel that it will stand toe to toe with some of the most revered films in the Disney lineup. I’m really happy to see that it’s become the biggest hit for Disney Animation since ‘The Lion King’, as it has grossed over $980 million at the time I’m writing this and I have a feeling it will join that fabled billion dollar club in the next few days. But to all of you ‘Frozen’ fans out there, I ask that you please be prepared in case ‘The Wind Rises’ wins this award because there is a chance that it might win it. Don’t worry though, as these two films are the definite front-runners, so we’ll just have to wait and see who takes it on March 2^nd.

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

*BEFORE MIDNIGHT

*CAPTAIN PHILLIPS

*PHILOMENA

*12 YEARS A SLAVE

*THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

My Pick: TIE (12 Years/Wolf)

I couldn’t pick just one in this category. I would be fine if it went to either John Ridley for ‘Twelve Years a Slave’ or Terrence Winter for ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’. Both featured excellent screenplays for their own unique reasons. With Ridley, it was for not skimping on any of the horrors and struggles that slaves faced during that time. With Winter, it was for writing a screenplay full of witty and hilarious dialogue. Both of these films earn my vote.

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

*AMERICAN HUSTLE

*BLUE JASMINE

*DALLAS BUYERS CLUB

*HER

*NEBRASKA

My Pick: HER

Spike Jonze had a lot to work with in regards to ‘Her’. I mean after all, this is a story about a man who falls in love with the female voice of his computer’s operating system. Even with that strange premise, Jonze managed to make the characters feel real and yes that even includes the A.I. Samantha. He won this award at the Golden Globes, so I’m rooting for him to win it at the Oscars this year.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

*SALLY HAWKINS (‘BLUE JASMINE’)

*JENNIFER LAWRENCE (‘AMERICAN HUSTLE’)

*LUPITA NYONG’O (‘12 YEARS A SLAVE’)

*JULIA ROBERTS (‘AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY’)

*JUNE SQUIBB (‘NEBRASKA’)

Possible Snubs: I haven’t seen ‘August: Osage County’ and I’m sure that Julia Roberts was excellent in it, but in her place I would have given the nomination to Margot Robbie for ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’, as she made quite an impression for what was most definitely her breakout role.

My Pick: LUPITA NYONG’O

One thing about this year’s acting nominees is that there are pretty much direct front-runners in every single category (both lead and supporting). In the case of Supporting Actress, the front-runner seems to be Jennifer Lawrence for ‘Hustle’. Now, I love Jennifer Lawrence; she’s a great actress, she’s one of the most likable actresses working today, and she was great in ‘American Hustle’. But for this year, my vote goes to Lupita Nyong’o for her role in ‘12 Years a Slave’. She makes one hell of an impression in what was only her film debut with a very powerful and emotional performance. I’m fine if J-Law wins for ‘Hustle’, but I feel that this award should go to Nyong’o instead.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

*BARKHAD ABDI (‘CAPTAIN PHILLIPS’)

*BRADLEY COOPER (‘AMERICAN HUSTLE’)

*MICHAEL FASSBENDER (‘12 YEARS A SLAVE’)

*JONAH HILL (‘THE WOLF OF WALL STREET’)

*JARED LETO (‘DALLAS BUYERS CLUB’)

My Pick: MICHAEL FASSBENDER

Thankfully, Fassbender was not robbed of an Oscar nom like Leonardo DiCaprio was for ‘Django Unchained’ last year, both of whom portraying vicious slave owners in their respective films. Jared Leto is being tapped as the frontrunner for this award, but I haven’t seen ‘Dallas Buyers Club’ so I have to base this on the films I have seen and of the other four nominees in this category, my vote is for Fassbender. He really got into this role and even if he doesn’t win here, I have a feeling that this will not be the last time Fassbender gets a nomination.

BEST ACTRESS

*AMY ADAMS (‘AMERICAN HUSTLE’)

*CATE BLANCHETT (‘BLUE JASMINE’)

*SANDRA BULLOCK (‘GRAVITY’)

*JUDI DENCH (‘PHILOMENA’)

*MERYL STREEP (‘AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY’)

DEFINITE Snub: This category has the biggest snub of this year’s Oscars in my opinion; Emma Thompson for ‘Saving Mr. Banks’. Her performance carries the whole film and was easily the highlight of the film. Who would I switch out to have Thompson put in this category? Meryl Streep; it’s nothing against her (like with Roberts, I can’t say anything about her performance because I haven’t seen the film) but this is her EIGHTEENTH (!!) Oscar nomination. It’s kind of getting old seeing her get nominated almost EVERY year. She won this award for ‘The Iron Lady’ two years ago, beating out more deserving nominees like Michelle Williams for ‘My Week with Marilyn’ and Rooney Mara for ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’. But as for this year’s nominees…

My Pick: AMY ADAMS

I’ve given ‘American Hustle’ quite a bit of flak, calling it one of the most overrated films of 2013. I still stand by that even though I’ve warmed up to the movie a bit more after a second viewing. But out of all of the members of Hustle’s cast who are nominated for an Oscar, Adams is the most deserving. It was her who stood out the most in the entire movie, more so than Jennifer Lawrence, Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, and Jeremy Renner (by the way, you have to feel bad for Renner because he’s the only one of these five who hasn’t gotten a single nomination for his own work in the film (not counting the ‘best ensemble awards’). The front runner in this category is Cate Blanchett for ‘Blue Jasmine’ but like with Jared Leto (and his lead co-star; more on that in a second) for ‘Dallas Buyers Club’, I haven’t seen ‘Blue Jasmine’ so based on the films I have seen, Adams earns my vote. For the record, I’ll be fine if any of the cast members from ‘Hustle’ win an Oscar, but I feel that she is the most deserving out of all of them.

BEST ACTOR

*CHRISTIAN BALE (‘AMERICAN HUSTLE’)

*BRUCE DERN (‘NEBRASKA’)

*LEONARDO DICAPRIO (‘THE WOLF OF WALL STREET’)

*CHIWETEL EJIOFOR (‘12 YEARS A SLAVE’)

*MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY (‘DALLAS BUYERS CLUB’)

My Pick: CHIWETEL EJIOFOR

This category’s front-runner seems to be McConaughey for ‘Dallas Buyers Club’. While I haven’t seen the film, I won’t be complaining if he wins because it will help signify the successful career resurrection that he has had. So… based off of the performances I have seen, my vote is for Ejiofor. Like his co-star Lupita Nyong’o, his performance was very powerful and emotional and he got all of this across saying very little in the entire film. My runner-up pick would be DiCaprio; not only because he brought his usual A-game to the role of Jordan Belfort, but the poor guy has been long overdue for an Oscar.

BEST DIRECTOR

*DAVID O. RUSSELL (‘AMERICAN HUSTLE’)

*ALFONSO CUARON (‘GRAVITY’)

*ALEXANDER PAYNE (‘NEBRASKA’)

*STEVE MCQUEEN (‘12 YEARS A SLAVE’)

*MARTIN SCORCESE (‘THE WOLF OF WALL STREET’)

My Pick: ALFONSO CUARON

I’m just going to come out and say this; Gravity is not my pick for Best Picture but at the same time, I’m more than happy to give my vote for Cuaron in regards to the Best Director Oscar. It was a project that he spent four years on and considering how it turned out, he is very well-deserving of this award. Besides, not every film will win Best Picture and Best Director at the same event (just look at last year’s Oscars; Ang Lee won the Directing Oscar, but ‘Argo’ took home Best Picture). Even if I don’t think ‘Gravity’ is the best film of 2013, Cuaron definitely was the standout when it came to directing.

BEST PICTURE

*AMERICAN HUSTLE

*CAPTAIN PHILLIPS

*DALLAS BUYERS CLUB

*GRAVITY

*HER

*NEBRASKA

*PHILOMENA

*12 YEARS A SLAVE

*THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

My Pick: 12 YEARS A SLAVE

Quite simply, it would be a travesty if this didn’t win Best Picture. It truly was the best film of 2013; a hard film to watch, but that’s what you’d expect for a film like this; one that doesn’t skimp on any of the horrifying aspects of its subject matter. My runner-up pick is ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’, but I’m rooting for this film to win it because it’s the most deserving.