Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) review

I must admit that I went into Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker feeling rather hesitant, a genuine first for me when it comes to Star Wars. Now, to be clear, this had nothing to do with the film itself since I had full faith in the amazing cast and crew who has brought this sequel trilogy to life and, of course, J.J. Abrams, who returns to the director’s chair after getting this whole trilogy started with 2015’s The Force Awakens. What I didn’t have faith in… was the Star Wars fandom. It’s been well-documented at this point that the Star Wars fandom has been in quite the volatile state these past few years after the release of 2017’s The Last Jedi, which has easily become one of the most polarizing films of all-time. While some found it to be quite arguably the best Star Wars film to date for its willingness to take risks when it comes to its writing, others thoroughly hated it for that exact reason. And because of this, the film spawned a small but incredibly vocal faction of critics who have taken it upon themselves to declare war against Disney, Lucasfilm, and the latter’s president Kathleen Kennedy for their allegedly piss-poor handling of the franchise. As such, J.J. Abrams now finds himself having to deal with perhaps the worst set of expectations ever thrust upon a Star Wars film; trying to appease those who despised The Last Jedi while simultaneously trying not to piss off those who preferred that film’s method of storytelling. It’s a complicated task that’s clearly been reflected in the film’s overall reception, but J.J. manages to pull through to deliver a satisfying finale to the Skywalker Saga.

In the year since the events of The Last Jedi, the severely limited forces of the Resistance have struggled against the might of the First Order, now led by Supreme Leader Kylo Ren (Adam Driver). And if that wasn’t enough, the whole galaxy receives an unexpected broadcast from none other than Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), who supposedly met his end during the Battle of Endor as seen in Return of the Jedi. When Ren confronts the Sith Lord, Palpatine reveals that he has an armada of powerful Star Destroyers that will serve as the ‘Final Order’ and destroy the galaxy once and for all. The only one who could possibly stand in their way is Rey (Daisy Ridley), the Force-sensitive scavenger turned Jedi from Jakku who had trained with the late Jedi Master Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and is now guided by Luke’s sister, General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher). Rey and her friends, former First Order stormtrooper Finn (John Boyega) and Resistance commander/pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), soon learn that Palpatine is hiding out on the uncharted planet of Exegol. And because of its elusive status, the only way to reach it is by finding a device known as a Sith Wayfinder that will give them the planet’s coordinates. Thus, Rey, Finn, and Poe find themselves in a race against time to find the Wayfinder and reach Exegol, all while being endlessly pursued by Ren and the First Order, before Palpatine can unleash the ‘Final Order’. In the process, Rey continues to struggle with the growing connection that she has with Kylo Ren and finally begins to uncover the secrets behind who she really is, which effectively poses some major ramifications for the galaxy.

Despite its immense success with both critics and audiences, J.J. Abrams’ last Star Wars film, The Force Awakens, received quite a bit of flak for allegedly being a ‘carbon copy’ of the original Star Wars film, A New Hope. This, in turn, can explain why a lot of attention was made about Rian Johnson’s efforts to ‘freshen things up’ with The Last Jedi… even though one could argue that it too could be described as a mirror of its original trilogy equivalent, The Empire Strikes Back. As for Rise of Skywalker, the argument of ‘been there, done that’ has once again become a source of contention amongst critics, especially due to the return of Emperor Palpatine as the main antagonist despite the previous film’s concerted efforts to “let the past die”. But just like the whole ‘it’s just A New Hope again’ debate that now dominates the conversation when it comes to The Force Awakens, I’d argue that this isn’t as big of a deal as it’s been made out to be. Sure, all three films in the sequel trilogy do share some similarities with Episodes IV through VI, but it’s not like they’re downright ripping off the plots of those films. Instead, these parallels only help to strengthen the sequel trilogy’s narrative while also providing some nice callbacks and solid conclusions to some of the series’ longest-running plotlines. And because these newer films have done a phenomenal job when it comes to developing their main characters, this paves the way for some incredibly powerful emotional moments. In other words, J.J. Abrams once again proves that he’s a natural when it comes to crafting that classic Star Wars atmosphere. And while The Last Jedi ended up providing some of the most gorgeous cinematography that the series has ever had, J.J. and his long-time cinematographer Dan Mindel continue to prove that they can deliver visuals and action sequences that are just as amazing by comparison.  

One interesting thing to note about Rise of Skywalker is that it’s the first entry of the sequel trilogy where the lead trio of Rey, Finn and Poe are all together for a good chunk of the run-time whereas the previous two films had them separated in various ways. This wasn’t a bad thing, for the record, but it is nice that this film finally gives these three a chance to work together and Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, and Oscar Isaac are all fantastic once again in their respective roles. Rise of Skywalker also does a wonderful job when it comes to furthering their overall character development, whether it’s Poe continuing to grow as a leader for the Resistance or Rey learning about her heritage and what that could potentially mean for the galaxy. All this great character development from the protagonists is matched perfectly by their foil, Kylo Ren, as Adam Driver continues to shine as the emotionally volatile Dark Side user whose complex character arc reaches its cathartic conclusion in this film. The four leads are then excellently backed by several of the sequel trilogy’s great supporting players, including Domhnall Gleeson as General Hux and Kelly Marie Tran as Rose Tico, although fans of the latter will be disappointed by her severely limited screen-time. After that, the film adds in some fun new characters including Keri Russell as Zorii Bliss, an old acquaintance of Poe’s, Richard E. Grant as First Order General Pryde, who slowly works his way into becoming Kylo Ren’s sinister second-in-command, and Naomi Ackie as Jannah, who is revealed to be a former First Order stormtrooper just like Finn.

Moving over to the series veterans who notably make a return in this film, the biggest of the bunch is, of course, Ian McDiarmid as Emperor Palpatine. Regardless of how one feels about the decision to bring the character back, McDiarmid is once again terrific as the imposing Sith Lord, especially since he opts for the generally more subdued version of the character from the original trilogy instead of the cartoonishly over-the-top iteration from Revenge of the Sith. Another welcome return comes via Billy Dee Williams’ suave smuggler Lando Calrissian, who promptly continues to be one of the most charismatic figures in the entire Star Wars galaxy. But easily the most notable element of this film’s cast is how Leia ultimately factors into everything. While it was originally planned to give her a prominent role a la Han Solo in The Force Awakens and Luke in The Last Jedi, those plans ended up falling by the wayside after Carrie Fisher’s untimely passing in 2016 after she had finished working on The Last Jedi. However, instead of just giving Leia an unceremonious off-screen death as a lot of films tend to do whenever an actor/actress doesn’t return to reprise their role, J.J. manages to work her in via the use of unused footage from The Force Awakens. The overall implementation of this footage into the film is a truly fascinating feat to behold given how much work clearly must’ve been done to make it all possible. Nevertheless, it does its job beautifully and effectively gives the most iconic heroine in the Star Wars saga the emotionally fitting send-off that she damn well deserves.

I’m well aware that everything that I’ve said in this review isn’t going to fly well with certain audiences. Just like The Last Jedi, The Rise of Skywalker has been an incredibly polarizing affair to the point where even critics are just as mixed towards it as audiences are. As alluded to earlier, while The Force Awakens may have managed to scoot by without getting dinged too hard for supposedly being ‘too much like A New Hope’, it’s clear that critics weren’t as forgiving towards Rise of Skywalker for doing the same thing. And yet, as someone who has been a fan of the sequel trilogy ever since the first teaser for The Force Awakens was released, I found Rise of Skywalker to be a perfect finale for this trilogy. As a film that’s truly grand in both scale and emotional depth, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker provides a wholly satisfying conclusion to both the sequel trilogy and the entire Skywalker Saga as a whole. Sure, some have argued that it attempts to undo a lot of the controversial plot-points from The Last Jedi, but the ways in which J.J. Abrams and co-writer Chris Terrio conclude the story of Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron, and Kylo Ren still feels consistent with what we’ve seen from the previous two films. And through it all, J.J. and his crew continue to go above and beyond when it comes to the film’s incredible action sequences and breathtaking visuals. Sadly, though, it seems like The Rise of Skywalker will end up being regarded as a ‘failure’ even though I’d argue that it isn’t the film’s fault. Instead, I’d attribute it more to the period in which it was released where the Star Wars fandom proved to be in a state of total disarray, thoroughly compromised by its utterly ambiguous expectations.

Rating: 5/5!

Jumanji: The Next Level (2019) review

Of the many classic children’s books that author Chris Van Allsburg has written, one of his most famous is 1981’s Jumanji. The story follows two kids named Judy and Peter as they come across a magical jungle-themed board game named Jumanji that forces them to endure realistic versions of the various obstacles that they come across in the game. Upon publication, the book was so successful that it earned Van Allsburg his first Caldecott Medal for being the year’s ‘most distinguished American picture book for children’. In 1995, the book was adapted into a feature film by former VFX artist turned director Joe Johnston that starred Robin Williams in the role of a man who ends up trapped inside the game for 26 years. And while the film didn’t necessarily do too hot with critics, it was a sizable hit at the box-office and is still very much regarded as a beloved 90’s classic. Thus, it was that legacy that made fans quite skeptical towards the announcement that a new take on Jumanji was in the works, especially since it was first announced only a year after Williams’ tragic death in 2014. And yet, instead of being a straight-forward remake of the original, 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was a sequel that re-imagined the world of Jumanji as a video game that the film’s main protagonists get sucked into. Upon its release, the film surprised many by doing solidly with critics and managing some impressive staying power at the box-office as it grossed nearly $1 billion worldwide. And because of this, a sequel was promptly put into development once again directed by veteran comedy director Jake Kasdan and headlined by the quartet of Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan. Sure enough, all this talent in front of and behind the camera results in yet another highly entertaining popcorn flick even if it does retread a lot of familiar territories.

It has been three years since high school students Spencer Gilpin (Alex Wolff), Martha Kaply (Morgan Turner), Anthony ‘Fridge’ Johnson (Ser’Darius Blain), and Bethany Walker (Madison Iseman) were sucked into the dangerous world of the video game Jumanji and turned into the game’s eclectic group of playable avatars. The four teens ultimately managed to escape their predicament by coming together as a group, which effectively changed their lives for the better once they got out. However, while his friends have all managed to move on with their lives, Spencer finds himself having a lot more trouble when it comes to re-adjusting back to life in the real world. Thus, Martha, Fridge and Bethany soon discover that Spencer ended up ‘fixing’ the game (which they had destroyed at the end of the previous film) and has gone back into it, forcing them to go back in as well to rescue him. Upon their return, however, they quickly realize that things are a bit different this time in the world of Jumanji. While Martha reprises her role as dance-fighting commando Ruby Roundhouse (Karen Gillan), Fridge ends up switching to the role of cartographer/curvy genius Professor Shelly Oberon (Jack Black). And instead of having Spencer and Bethany by their side out the starting gate, the two learn that Spencer’s crotchety grandfather Eddie (Danny DeVito) and his estranged friend Milo Walker (Danny Glover) have been sucked into the game as well. Now Eddie inhabits the role of Dr. Smolder Bravestone (Dwayne Johnson), the strong, muscular archeologist with the power of smoldering intensity, while Milo becomes Bravestone’s ‘backpack guy’, zoologist/weapons specialist Franklin ‘Mouse’ Finbar (Kevin Hart). And so, Martha and Fridge are now forced to adjust to the personalities of their new comrades as they set out to find Spencer and Bethany, which involves them embarking on another adventure to save Jumanji from an imposing new threat.   

Jumanji: The Next Level is admittedly one of those cases of a sequel that doesn’t try to deviate too far from the things that made its predecessor the massive hit that it was. Namely, it retains almost the exact same general plot structure of its predecessor right down to its main conflict of the group trying to stop a bad guy who stole a mythical jewel. And just like Welcome to the Jungle, most of this film’s humor is still based around how the main characters’ personalities are translated to their video game avatars. That said, though, the best aspect of Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was its humor, which means that The Next Level is just as much of a top-notch comedic riot throughout. It also helps that this film properly retains the solid character development that the lead quartet of Spencer, Martha, Fridge, and Bethany gained in the previous film. Whereas the pre-game sequences of Welcome to the Jungle were some of the weakest moments in that film, those same moments flow a lot better in this film (as does the humor in those parts) because of the main characters’ vastly improved camaraderie. In other words, if there are two things that The Next Level does better than its predecessor, it’s that the humor is a lot more consistent this time around and the main characters get to start out as the endearing quartet that they were at the end of the previous film. And while that technically means that the new character development that they get in this film isn’t necessarily as substantial as what they had in the previous film, it still results in another entertaining adventure with a feel-good ending. Plus, despite its adherence to the previous film’s formula, The Next Level does switch things up in the best way that it possibly can by trading the previous film’s jungle setting for fun, new action set-pieces in both the desert and the wintry mountains.

It goes without saying that one of the best aspects of Welcome to the Jungle was getting to see the lead quartet of Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan take on the personas of their real-world counterparts, whether it was Dwayne Johnson acting like an easily scared nerd or Jack Black embodying a self-absorbed teenaged girl. Sure enough, this concept is once again handled brilliantly in The Next Level as each member of the quartet gets to take on a new personality over the course of their latest adventure. The hilarious results that stem from this are so delightful, in fact, that I can’t even mention them all here (outside of Johnson and Hart’s spot-on impressions of Danny DeVito and Danny Glover, respectively) because I’d be delving into spoiler territory. But just like before, these four have an utterly phenomenal camaraderie that’s also well-reflected by their real-world counterparts as Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser’Darius Blain, and Madison Iseman all benefit greatly from the solid character development that they got from the previous film. Meanwhile, Danny DeVito and Danny Glover are a fun pair of additions to the ensemble (in their admittedly minor roles outside of the time their characters spend in Jumanji) as is Awkwafina as the game’s newest avatar, thief Ming Lightfoot.  Unfortunately, as was the case with the previous film, The Next Level’s biggest shortcoming is its villain, warlord Jurgen the Brutal. Sure, it’s revealed that Jurgen was the one who killed Dr. Smolder Bravestone’s parents in a ‘cut-scene’ flashback, but just like with Bobby Cannavale’s Van Pelt from Welcome to the Jungle, Jurgen is adversely affected by his generally limited role in the plot despite Game of Thrones alum Rory ‘The Hound’ McCann’s best efforts in the role.

Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was easily one of the most entertaining films of 2017. Sure, it may not have been the most thought-provoking film to come out of the action-adventure genre, but the phenomenal comedic performances from Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan effectively made it a good, old-fashioned crowd-pleaser. Thus, while it doesn’t exactly reinvent the wheel when it comes to its writing, Jumanji: The Next Level dutifully retains everything that made its predecessor such a big hit, resulting in an arguably superior follow-up. Even though it does repeat practically every major story beat from its predecessor, The Next Level does have the advantage when it comes to not having to deal with the more awkward bits of set-up from Welcome to the Jungle. And because of this, the whole film flows a lot better when it comes to its humor, pacing, and overall camaraderie between its main characters. This, in turn, also helps when it comes to the film maintaining the simple but effectively heartwarming emotional beats that have always been an element of these films, like in the original Jumanji when Alan Parrish learned about how much things changed when he got sucked into the game. Because of all this, Jumanji: The Next Level is another solid entry in this growing franchise, although I will say that if they end up doing another one, they should probably try to do something a little different story-wise. One way could involve the incorporation of elements from the original book’s 2002 follow-up Zathura, which had a pair of brothers go through a similar scenario but with a space-themed board game. That book got an enjoyable albeit commercially underrated film adaptation in 2005 via director Jon Favreau, and while Favreau did try to distance it from the original Jumanji film since he wasn’t a fan of it, it could be fun to see a new spin on Zathura that’s in line with what we’ve gotten from these last two Jumanji films.

Rating: 4.5/5

Frozen II (2019) review

Calling Disney Animation’s 2013 release Frozen one of the most successful projects that they’ve ever made would easily be one of the biggest understatements of all-time. Upon its release, this loose adaptation of author Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Snow Queen became the studio’s first animated film to gross over $1 billion worldwide (not counting subsidiary Pixar’s Toy Story 3, which did the same thing in 2010). It won two Oscars for Best Original Song and Best Animated Feature and has widely been regarded as one of Disney Animation’s modern masterpieces. And while there have undoubtedly been a select number of folks out there who were likely driven mad by the truly extensive mark that the film left on pop culture, there’s no denying that Frozen was very much one of those films that was fully deserving of becoming the full-on cultural phenomenon that it still is today. Whether it was thanks to its lovable cast of characters or its undeniably catchy soundtrack, Frozen quickly blossomed into one of Disney’s biggest animated franchises that would later spawn a few animated shorts to build up hype for the film’s heavily anticipated feature-length follow-up. And now, the story of the Royal Sisters of Arendelle officially continues with Disney Animation’s 58^th official animated feature, Frozen II. Luckily, for fans of the franchise, this sequel brings back almost all the key players from the first film, including songwriters Robert and Kristen-Anderson Lopez, the core quartet of leads Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel, Jonathan Groff, and Josh Gad, and directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee. And because of this, Frozen II is a fantastic sequel to its equally fantastic predecessor as it flawlessly retains everything that made the original Frozen a beloved Disney classic.

 

For the past three years, the Kingdom of Arendelle has thrived under Queen Elsa (voiced by Idina Menzel), especially after she was able to rekindle her relationship with her younger sister, Princess Anna (voiced by Kristen Bell). However, on one faithful night, Elsa becomes entranced by a mysterious voice calling out to her from afar, and when she finally interacts with it, the kingdom is suddenly ravaged by mysterious elemental forces. Elsa and Anna soon learn from the wise troll Grand Pabbie (voiced by Ciaran Hinds) that this recent turn of events is due to Elsa unintentionally awakening the four elemental spirits of Earth, Fire, Water, and Air. And as he informs them, the only way to set things right is to travel to the Enchanted Forest that their parents, King Agnarr (voiced by Alfred Molina, replacing Maurice LaMarche from the first film) and Queen Iduna (voiced by Evan Rachel Wood, replacing director Jennifer Lee from the first film) told them about when they were younger. For years, this Enchanted Forest has been consumed by an impenetrable wall of mist that has trapped all those inside it after an unexpected fight occurred between the native Northuldra tribe and a group of Arendellian forces. Thus, Elsa, Anna, sentient snowman Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad), and Anna’s ice harvester boyfriend Kristoff (voiced by Jonathan Groff) embark on a journey to appease the elemental spirits, specifically by uncovering the cause of this long-standing conflict. Along the way, Anna and Elsa even begin to discover the secrets behind the magical ice powers that the latter has possessed her whole life.

Frozen II certainly fits the bill when it comes to being a ‘bigger sequel’ in every sense of the phrase. The adventure that Anna and Elsa go on in this film is far grander in scale than the one from the first film, and while it does continue to maintain the usual light-hearted atmosphere of a Disney animated film, it is a little darker in tone compared to its predecessor. In other words, Frozen II does what any good sequel should do by naturally expanding its universe while also showing a genuine sense of maturity from a storytelling perspective. At the same time, though, it never loses sight of any of the things that made its predecessor so iconic, especially the strong and loving relationship between its lead sister duo. The animation is superb as always and the new songs by Robert and Kirsten-Anderson Lopez arguably stand toe to toe with the first film’s truly unforgettable soundtrack. Highlights of the sequel’s soundtrack include but are not limited to Elsa’s big solo ‘Into the Unknown’, Anna’s downright devastating solo ‘The Next Right Thing’, which stems from what is quite possibly the most emotional moment in the whole film, and Kristoff’s 80’s power ballad (yes, I know what I just said…) ‘Lost in the Woods’. Now, if there was any sort of shortcoming with this film, it’s that, because of how its story is structured to focus primarily on Anna and Elsa above everything else, Frozen II doesn’t really spend a lot of time with the new characters that it introduces. As such, certain subplots like the feud between the Northuldra tribe and the Arendelle soldiers who got trapped in the Enchanted Forest sometimes tend to get overlooked. And yet, I don’t even remotely consider that to be a bad thing in this instance since this series has always done a wonderful job of exploring the theme of how love truly does conquer all through the phenomenal heroines who headline it.

On that note, one of the coolest things about Frozen II is how it manages to shake things up a bit when it comes to the overall roles that Anna and Elsa play in this story. While the original Frozen was sure to give them equal amounts of quality character development, it was fundamentally told from Anna’s perspective since it was all about her taking the initiative to set things right and rekindle her relationship with Elsa. By comparison, Frozen II focuses more on Elsa as she works to appease the four elemental spirits while also learning the truth about why she’s the one who possesses magical ice powers. Nevertheless, the unbreakable bond between these two sisters continues to be the most important aspect of this franchise, and as always, it’s primarily thanks to the phenomenal work by Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel in their respective roles. Bell continues to be effortlessly charming and spunky as Anna while Menzel once again imbues Elsa with all her grace and power. Fellow returnees Jonathan Groff and Josh Gad are also excellent once again as Kristoff and Olaf, respectively, with Groff getting to explore a wonderful new side to the loyal Ice Harvester via the numerous attempts he makes at trying to propose to Anna and Gad, as to be expected, continuing to get many of the film’s best humorous moments. After that is when the previously mentioned dilemma of the film not giving its new characters a lot to do comes into play, but for what it's worth, everyone else in the cast does a solid job with what they have. This includes Sterling K. Brown as Lt. Mattias, a friendly Arendelle soldier who was amongst those trapped in the Enchanted Forest, and Evan Rachel Wood as Anna and Elsa’s mother Iduna who, despite only appearing mostly in flashbacks, does get her backstory explored in some very fascinating ways that help add to the film’s strong emotional poignancy.

While I may not have as much of a history with it compared to the likes of The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin, the first Frozen truly is one of my favorite Disney animated films of all-time; in fact, it’s amongst my Top 5, even, when it comes to Disney’s long line of animated classics. Granted, you might think otherwise if you look back at my original review of it from 2013 where I only gave it a 4/5, but it goes without saying that that old review is the very definition of ‘dated’. Simply put, Frozen became one of those films that I became more and more attached to as time went by, and as I noted in the intro, I’m personally glad that it became the worldwide phenomenon that it did no matter how much some people got utterly sick of it after a while. And as for Frozen II, I’m happy to report that it’s another fine addition to this beloved franchise. Just like its predecessor, Frozen II is a perfect mix of gorgeous animation, unforgettable songs, and a powerful emotional core. It expands upon the world of Frozen in ways that feel appropriate for the story that directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee (the latter of whom was just recently named Disney Animation’s new Chief Creative Officer) are telling. And while it does follow the route that most sequels go by being a far bigger adventure than its predecessor, the strength and beauty that stems from the bond of the perpetually endearing sisterly duo of Anna and Elsa is still very much the driving force of this franchise. Because of all this, it goes without saying that Frozen II is yet another rousing success for Walt Disney Animation that is sure to delight the fans who made this franchise a pop-cultural landmark.

Rating: 5/5!

Ford v Ferrari (2019) review

As its title suggests, Ford v Ferrari delves into the heated rivalry between two of the most prominent manufacturers in the automobile industry. On one side, you have the Ford Motor Company, whose founder Henry Ford invented the first ‘affordable’ automobile, the Model T, and revolutionized the process of assembly-line production for his company’s line of cars. On the other side, there’s Enzo Ferrari and his prestigious brand of Italian sports cars that quickly became a staple of auto racing, especially in the 1960s when it won the annual race event known as the 24 Hours of Le Mans in Le Mans, France for six straight years. Ford v Ferrari specifically focuses on the former’s attempt to finally beat Ferrari at this historic event, which it ultimately managed to accomplish in 1966. It is the latest directorial effort from director James Mangold, who has had a considerably lengthy career in the industry with hits such as the 2005 Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line and his 2007 remake of 3:10 to Yuma. In recent years, however, Mangold has also become known for his major contributions to the superhero genre through the two films that he made with Hugh Jackman starring in his iconic role as the legendary X-Men member Wolverine. The first of these was 2013’s The Wolverine, which fared a lot better with critics and audiences than Wolverine’s first solo outing in 2009, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and was then followed by 2017’s Logan, which gave Jackman’s version of the character the emotionally satisfying send-off that he damn well deserved. And with Ford v Ferrari, James Mangold ends up having yet another hit on his hands thanks to a finely tuned racing biopic that fully benefits from its dynamite cast, thrilling racing sequences, and all-around sharp direction.

It is 1963 and the Ford Motor Company, as led by Henry Ford’s grandson Henry Ford II (Tracy Letts), is dealing with a severe decline in car sales. To fix this problem, Ford’s Vice President Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal) proposes that the company should start getting into racing to properly appeal to the current generation of potential car owners, which they can achieve through a deal with Ferrari, who has also been struggling financially. However, when Iacocca proposes this deal to company founder Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone), the legendary entrepreneur refuses, takes a deal with Fiat instead, and vehemently blasts Ford for “building ugly little cars in ugly factories”. Fueled by this criticism, Henry Ford II launches the company’s new racing division and proclaims that they will defeat Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. To accomplish this, Ford hires Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon), who had previously won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1959 before being forced to retire due to a heart condition, to run the division and build what ends up becoming the GT40. In turn, Shelby enlists the help of his long-time friend Ken Miles (Christian Bale) with the promise that Miles will be part of the company’s drivers at Le Mans. However, Ford executive Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas) strongly opposes the idea since Miles’ hot-headed nature doesn’t gel with the company’s usual image. Shelby persists, however, since he knows that Miles is quite possibly the only driver that can seriously pose a threat to Ferrari’s success.

Given the nature of this film’s plot, it goes without saying that Ford v Ferrari features some incredible racing sequences. Every single one of them benefits from excellent cinematography and they flawlessly recreate the pure kinetic energy that stems from a day at the racetrack (and yes, they were all done for real). However, this energetic spirit isn’t just limited to the racing sequences. While Ford v Ferrari does boast a hefty 2-½ hour runtime, its strong pacing and impeccably tight editing from James Mangold’s go-to editor Michael McCusker and up-and-coming editor Andrew Buckland (who has also worked on a few of Mangold’s previous films) means that there’s never a dull moment. A lot of this is also thanks to how Mangold excellently handles what can best be described as a ‘David and Goliath’ story on two different fronts. As much as this is a story about how a perennial underdog like Ford managed to dethrone Ferrari, one of the most successful auto racing teams in the world, it’s also very much a story about the two men who played the most prominent roles in making it all happen. They may not have been the kind of guys who flawlessly represent the company’s image, but they knew that going against the norm was the only way that they could possibly beat Ferrari at their own game. All this is especially prevalent when it comes to how the film ends. Without directly spoiling anything (which, I admit, may not be that necessary of a thing to point out since this is a true story), Ford v Ferrari boldly decides to end on a note that, in a different biopic, would’ve just been relegated to the closing text that pops up before the credits roll. But in this case, the decision to include that final plot point is what ultimately gives Ford v Ferrari its most prominent emotional beat.  

The other factor behind this film’s success is its amazing ensemble cast headlined by the potent duo of Matt Damon and Christian Bale. Not only do these two have phenomenal on-screen camaraderie, but they also provide an incredibly fun dynamic that stems from their characters’ radically different personalities. Whereas Carroll Shelby is the smooth-talking, charismatic Southerner, Ken Miles is the cockier Brit who isn’t afraid to express his particularly blunt opinions on any given matter but is also a fully devoted family man. On that note, the film does a nice job of handling the roles of Miles’ wife Mollie (Caitriona Balfe) and their son Peter (Noah Jupe) in the story even though they don’t directly factor into the work that Carroll and Ken do for Ford. Caitriona Balfe benefits nicely from Mollie Miles having just as much of a feisty personality as her husband, thus allowing her to be far more than just a passive supporting character, while Noah Jupe does a solid job with the simple but highly effective arc of a young racing fan who’s forced to learn about the dangers of the sport the hard way. After that, the film is chock-full of excellent supporting turns from the likes of reliable names such as Jon Bernthal as Lee Iacocca, the only Ford executive who doesn’t clash with Shelby and Miles’ ways, and Tracy Letts, who brings the right amount of bold conviction to the role of Henry Ford II.

Ford v Ferrari is easily one of the best films of 2019. Simply put, this is one of those films that flawlessly manages to hit all the right notes when it comes to everything that went into making it. James Mangold’s phenomenal direction sets the stage for an utterly thrilling racing biopic that thrives thanks to its incredible racing sequences and pitch-perfect pacing, with the latter being a vital factor in overcoming the pressure of the film’s weighty runtime. But to be clear, the fact that Ford v Ferrari is 2 ½ hours long is never once an issue because it always maintains an incredibly compelling underdog story with a solid emotional hook thanks to its emphasis on the two men who practically made it all happen. These two men, Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles, are excellently portrayed by Matt Damon and Christian Bale, respectively, as they do, indeed, carry the whole film while still being backed by a phenomenal supporting cast. Because of this, it’s safe to say that these two will be major frontrunners for all the big acting awards during this year’s awards season. And yet, perhaps the best aspect of Ford v Ferrari is that it’s one of those films that’s so universally appealing that you don’t have to be a big fan of auto racing to enjoy it. In other words, James Mangold manages to craft a film that fully succeeds at being both an incredibly well-made awards contender and a good old-fashioned crowd-pleaser.   

Rating: 5/5!

Lady and the Tramp (2019) review (Disney+)

Disney’s brand-new streaming service Disney+ is finally here, granting Disney fans premier access to a vast and varied collection of the company’s legendary filmography along with some exciting new projects from practically every major facet of the Disney universe. And here on Rhode Island Movie Corner, that means that you folks can expect plenty of reviews of Disney+ originals for the foreseeable future, which all begins with a review of the latest entry in Disney’s recent line of live-action remakes. Oh sure, I know some of you probably just rolled your eyes right now given how many of these have been made at this point, but as I’ve made it clear plenty of times by now, I’m all for these new spins on classic Disney stories, which includes today’s installment, a remake of Disney Animation’s 1955 release, Lady and the Tramp. Overall, I’d sum up Lady and the Tramp under the category of ‘Disney classics that, unfortunately, tend to get overlooked sometimes due to some of the other films that came out during that period’. In this instance, Lady and the Tramp, as far as its initial release was concerned, was sandwiched right between two of what are arguably Disney Animation’s most iconic films, Peter Pan and Sleeping Beauty. And yet, I think it’s safe to say that this charming little tale of a pampered Cocker Spaniel who falls in love with a street-savvy stray mutt is just as well-regarded as the other Disney classics of its time, especially thanks to its iconic sequence where the titular duo share a romantic spaghetti dinner to the tune of ‘Bella Notte’. This, of course, brings us to its new live-action remake, which is directed by Charlie Bean, a veteran animator who’s worked on several classic shows including Dexter’s Laboratory and The Powerpuff Girls. He also made his directorial debut back in 2017 with the considerably underrated LEGO Ninjago Movie, and here, he delivers an earnest and all-around heartwarming rendition of a classic Disney love story.

In a quaint little Midwestern town, Jim Dear (Thomas Mann) gives his wife Darling (Kiersey Clemons) a Cocker Spaniel for Christmas, whom they name Lady. As time goes on, Lady (voiced by Tessa Thompson) becomes incredibly accustomed to her life of luxury, especially after Jim and Darling give her a new collar. However, things start to change when she meets a stray mutt who’s often referred to as ‘the Tramp’ (voiced by Justin Theroux), who informs her that she isn’t going to be the center of her owners’ universe anymore because they’re about to have a baby, and as he puts it, “When the baby moves in, the dog moves out”. Sure enough, Jim and Darling end up having a baby girl named Lulu and Lady soon finds herself getting much less attention than she used to. To make matters worse, an incident in which Lady gets into trouble with Darling’s dog-hating Aunt Sarah (Yvette Nicole Brown) while Jim and Darling are away results in her ending up out in the streets without a collar and far from home. Thus, when she eventually reunites with Tramp, he offers to help her get home and begins to show her everything that he experiences as a street dog all while avoiding Elliot the local dogcatcher (Adrian Martinez), who’s hellbent on capturing Tramp and putting him in the pound. And in the process, an unexpected bit of romance starts to blossom between this most unlikely pair.  

Like Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin before it, Lady and the Tramp is another case of these recent live-action Disney remakes where, admittedly, most of its big changes are cosmetic in nature. For starters, instead of rarely showing their faces like in the original, Jim and Darling are featured a lot more prominently in this version whereas Aunt Sarah plays a lesser role than she did in the animated film in favor of a generally expanded role for the dogcatcher as the new main antagonist. But easily the biggest change comes via Aunt Sarah’s pair of Siamese Cats, who receive a considerably major overhaul due to their animated counterparts often being considered as racist stereotypes complete with a new song, ‘What a Shame’. The story, meanwhile, is basically the same as the original with the exact same story beats, from the troublesome rat that constantly pesters the family to Lady’s brief tenure in the pound where she learns ‘the truth’ about the Tramp. And unlike the other recent live-action Disney remakes, this one doesn’t really do much to update the story from a modern perspective outside of the previously mentioned revision of the Siamese Cats and the fact that Jim and Darling are a biracial couple. However, this new film still does a very nice job when it comes to its overall handling of this story and consistently maintains the same pleasant atmosphere of its animated counterpart. Yes, even that iconic spaghetti scene is still beautifully executed even with a live-action/CGI coat of paint.

A lot of this has to do with the film’s unique method of bringing its animal characters to life. While it clearly could’ve been quite easy to just have all the dogs portrayed solely through CGI since that is what many films tend to do nowadays for animals, Lady and the Tramp instead manages to go the extra mile by casting real dogs (many of them rescues), with the utterly adorable duo of rescues Rose and Monte taking on the title roles. And while the film does obviously use CG to have them talk and to give them digital doubles for certain sequences, it’s so well implemented that it’s often legitimately rather hard to distinguish between scenes where the dogs are either real or fully CG. It also helps that Lady and the Tramp are given an excellent duo to voice them in Tessa Thompson and Justin Theroux, respectively, as both do a wonderful job in making these two incredibly lovable and effortlessly charismatic while also sporting some lovely chemistry. They’re then backed by an equally solid supporting voice cast headlined by the likes of Sam Elliott as Trusty the old bloodhound and Janelle Monáe as Tramp’s flirtatious friend Peg the Pekingese (Monáe, of course, performs the classic ditty that is ‘He’s a Tramp’ and also helped write the Siamese Cats’ new song). As for the film’s human cast, Thomas Mann and Kiersey Clemons have solid chemistry that’s on par with Thompson and Theroux as Jim and Darling even if they still end up playing the same generally passive roles that their characters had in the original. After that, you have some nice supporting turns from Yvette Nicole Brown as Aunt Sarah despite her significantly reduced role in this version of the story and Adrian Martinez as the dogcatcher, who manages to be an effectively menacing villain without being too campy.

Many of these recent live-action Disney remakes have extensively used CGI to help bring the fantastical worlds of their stories to life. Lady and the Tramp is not one of those films since, just like the original, it is still very much an old-fashioned love story set in a practically picturesque Midwestern town like the ones that Walt Disney himself grew up in. As such, its use of CGI is a lot more limited compared to the other films of its subgenre which, even as someone who has loved all these recent Disney remakes, I have to admit is a nice and refreshing change of pace when it comes to these films. In other words, it could be argued that this new version of Lady and the Tramp eschews what has become the traditional process of remaking a Disney classic in favor of a pleasantly nostalgic ‘back to basics’ approach. However, if there is one thing that this film has in common with the other recent live-action Disney remakes, it’s that it’ll ultimately once again be the subject of controversy amongst those who are fully against this current cinematic trend. It also doesn’t help that this version of Lady and the Tramp doesn’t really do much to update its story for a new generation outside of abolishing some racist stereotypes. Ultimately, though, while it may not necessarily be the best of these live-action Disney remakes, Lady and the Tramp still thoroughly succeeds at being an immensely heartwarming crowd-pleaser thanks in large part to its extensive use of actual dogs instead of CG creations. But if you are one of those folks who still prefer the animated incarnations of these Disney classics, you’ll be pleased to know that the original Lady and the Tramp is also readily available for your streaming pleasures on Disney+. In fact, the same can be said for all the Disney classics that have received remakes these past few years. I’ve always argued that these remakes can peacefully co-exist with their animated counterparts and I’m pleased to say that Disney+ is now proving that this is, indeed, possible.

Rating: 4/5

Doctor Sleep (2019) review

There have been countless adaptations of author Stephen King’s works over the years, and yet, amidst all the hits and the misses, there’s one that King has always had mixed feelings about. The film in question is The Shining, the 1980 adaptation of King’s 1977 novel of the same name. Despite attracting generally mixed reviews upon its initial release, the film has gone on to become a staple of the horror genre and one of the many classic outings from legendary director Stanley Kubrick. King, however, wasn’t too pleased with the film due to the many radical changes that Kubrick made to the story, including but not limited to an overall undermining of the main character Jack Torrance’s ‘everyman’ persona in favor of Jack Nicholson’s more unhinged characterization. This then led to King penning the script himself for a more faithful adaptation of the book via a 1997 miniseries, and in 2013, he released a follow-up novel, Doctor Sleep, which continued the story of Danny, the young son of Jack Torrance, as he matures into adulthood. But when it comes to this novel’s new film adaptation, it takes the bold route of trying to combine elements from both Stephen King’s Shining novels and Stanley Kubrick’s iconic yet not quite faithful film adaptation of the 1977 original. This daunting task goes to director Mike Flanagan, who’s become quite a notable horror director these past few years thanks to his work on projects like 2017’s Gerald’s Game (another Stephen King adaptation) and his critically acclaimed TV series adaptation of author Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House. And sure enough, Flanagan manages to land another big hit with Doctor Sleep, which aptly succeeds at being a natural follow-up to one of the most iconic horror films ever made without ever feeling like a direct carbon copy of what Stanley Kubrick managed to accomplish.

It has been nearly four decades since young Danny Torrance and his mother Wendy (Alex Essoe) managed to escape the devastation at the Overlook Hotel in Colorado caused by Danny’s father/Wendy’s husband Jack. Since then, Dan (Ewan McGregor) has struggled to cope with all the trauma that he endured from that incident to the point where he’s even fallen victim to the same drinking habits that his father had. In doing so, he’s also attempted to repress the psychic abilities that he’s had since he was a kid, which the late Dick Hallorann (Carl Lumbly), who also had these abilities, referred to as ‘The Shining’. Dan eventually ends up in the town of Frazier, New Hampshire, where he manages to secure a job as a hospice worker that allows him to use his powers for good. He also ends up meeting a young girl from Anniston, New Hampshire named Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran), who’s also revealed to have the Shining. However, in the process, Abra and Dan end up attracting the attention of a cult known as the True Knot, led by the mysterious Rose the Hat (Rebecca Ferguson), who feed on the essences of young children who have the Shining to maintain their youthful appearances. And through their initial interactions, Rose realizes that Abra might just be the most powerful psychic child that the True Knot has come across in quite some time. Thus, despite his reluctance to get involved in this situation, Dan teams up with Abra to protect her from the True Knot, and in the process, is even forced to finally start confronting the dark past that has haunted him his entire life.

Now, despite what I said earlier about how the film attempts to combine elements from both Stephen King and Stanley Kubrick’s versions of The Shining, it’s clear from the get-go that this adaptation of Doctor Sleep mainly takes inspiration from the latter. While this isn’t a case where the film just relies solely on Kubrick’s film at the expense of telling its own story, the imagery that Flanagan uses to address Dan Torrance’s past always comes from the 1980 film right down to some very impeccable recreations of its key moments. And while Flanagan doesn’t outright mirror Kubrick’s classic shooting style of long takes and wide shots, he and his long-time cinematographer Michael Fimognari do mimic that method in a few select sequences. In other words, not only does Doctor Sleep benefit from having some phenomenal cinematography, it also legitimately feels like the kind of follow-up that Kubrick would have done if he’d made this. The only major instance where the film’s connections to Kubrick’s Shining start to get a little problematic is its finale which, without spoiling anything, basically ends up becoming one big Shining callback after another. At the same time, though, the ending also allows for some nods to King’s version of The Shining, resulting in a unique hybrid of an adaptation that, at the end of the day, does end up honoring both incarnations of its predecessor in a respectful manner. Plus, even though the film boasts a hefty run-time that nearly rivals It: Chapter Two, its story is always a compelling one even with the slow-burn narrative that it consistently maintains.

Like many Stephen King works, Doctor Sleep is also very much a character-driven story, and in this instance, it all begins (and, in many cases, ends) with Dan Torrance. Stephen King has said that one of the main reasons why he wrote Doctor Sleep was because he was curious about what young Danny from The Shining would be like as an adult. As it turns out, Dan ends up becoming quite the tragic but overall sympathetic figure who’s just trying to move on from his traumatic past, and Ewan McGregor does a phenomenal job conveying all the emotional turmoil that Dan has been dealing with since his time at the Overlook Hotel. Newcomer Kyliegh Curry shows the same brilliant sense of commitment to her role as Abra, who could technically be described as this film’s equivalent of young Danny from The Shining given that both are precocious kids thanks to their Shining abilities. However, Curry does manage to differentiate herself from Danny Lloyd’s performance as Danny in Kubrick’s film in some very distinct ways, whether it’s due to her notably spunkier personality or something as simple as the fact that she’s a teenager whereas Danny was only five during the events of The Shining. Rebecca Ferguson, meanwhile, is terrific as the film’s main antagonist Rose the Hat, who brilliantly blurs the line between being manipulatively charismatic and chillingly menacing. This, in turn, helps to make her cult, the True Knot, a genuinely imposing threat right from the very beginning. And then, to close it all off, there’s some solid supporting turns from the likes of Cliff Curtis as Billy, a friendly Frazier local who ends up tagging along with Dan and Abra on their journey, and Carl Lumbly, who manages to be quite the spot-on successor to the late Scatman Crothers as Dick Hallorann.

As embarrassing as it might be for me to admit, it wasn’t until recently (e.g. the day before I went to go see this film) when I finally watched The Shining for the first time. As such, my overall thoughts on the film ultimately ended up falling in line with my thoughts towards John Carpenter’s Halloween. In other words, despite having seen it at a point where I’ve already witnessed plenty of films and TV shows that were either heavily inspired by it or have satirized it in some form, I could still appreciate all the masterful filmmaking that went into it. And even though we’re far removed from the time of Stanley Kubrick at this point, Doctor Sleep manages to be a worthy follow-up to the seminal classic that precedes it. Through this film, director Mike Flanagan crafts a highly compelling and character-driven supernatural thriller that thoroughly respects its predecessor while still being able to do its own thing. And while the film’s reliance on the imagery of Kubrick’s film does mean that this technically isn’t a note-for-note 100% faithful adaptation of its source material, its story and character beats end up being more in line with Stephen King’s original vision for The Shining. In other words, the best way to describe this adaptation of Doctor Sleep is that it’s a film that is done in the style of Stanley Kubrick but with Stephen King’s narrative sensibilities. Because of this, the film manages to do what some may have considered utterly impossible by bridging many of the narrative divergences that were caused by what is still quite possibly the most radically different interpretation of a Stephen King story. And while it clearly must’ve been an incredibly daunting task to try and do a follow-up to one of the most iconic horror films of all-time, Mike Flanagan handles all this immense pressure with ease and continues to prove why he’s one of the most revered horror directors as of late.

Rating: 4.5/5

Terminator: Dark Fate (2019) review

The Terminator franchise has gone through quite a fascinating run over the years that has mainly been defined by its repeated yet ultimately unsuccessful attempts at kick-starting a full-fledged franchise. It all began, of course, with the original Terminator from 1984. This low-budget, noir-inspired sci-fi thriller went on to become a landmark entry in the sci-fi genre and effectively launched the legendary career of its director, James Cameron. Cameron would then return to the world of Terminator 7 years later with Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Judgment Day was a far bigger sequel in every sense of the word, and upon its release, it too became a critical and commercial success to the point where it’s often regarded as not only one of the finest films of its genre but also quite arguably a superior sequel to what was already a sci-fi masterpiece. However, this is where things start to get… complicated, since the ending of Terminator 2 was very much a conclusion to the story of the Connor family and their efforts to stop a self-aware artificial intelligence system from starting a nuclear war. And yet, a third Terminator film, Rise of the Machines, ended up getting made in 2003 without any involvement from James Cameron that straight-up retconned its predecessor’s ending. Despite this, however, the film managed to be a decent enough hit with both critics and audiences and ended up spawning its own sequel, Terminator Salvation, in 2009. However, in contrast to its immediate predecessor, Salvation was both a critical and commercial disappointment, most likely due in large part to the controversial decision to opt for a lighter PG-13 rating. To make matters worse, the film’s main production company, The Halcyon Company, ended up filing for bankruptcy two years later, effectively nixing any plans for a follow-up within the context of this current continuity.

Thus, the series ended up getting a major reboot in 2015 with Terminator Genisys. While the film would ignore the events of Terminator 3 and Salvation so that it’d be more in line with Cameron’s films, it would also make the bold move of setting up its own continuity by establishing an alternate timeline a la the 2009 reboot of Star Trek. But just like Salvation’s decision to be a PG-13 rated film, this alternate timeline plot did not go over well with fans of the franchise. This, along with other highly criticized aspects of the production that range from the second trailer’s reveal of its biggest plot twist to the widespread mockery of the ‘unique’ spelling of the Genisys subtitle, ultimately led to the film being yet another disappointment for both critics and audiences. And while the film wasn’t necessarily a commercial underperformer like Salvation (at least in terms of worldwide box-office since it didn’t do so well here in the U.S.), it was once again decided to cancel any follow-ups that would maintain its continuity. Thus, this brings us to what is now the third major attempt at continuing the franchise after Terminator 2, Terminator: Dark Fate. Like Genisys attempted to do before it, Dark Fate, directed by Tim Miller as his first directorial effort after the first Deadpool back in 2016, ignores the events of the most recent films in the franchise to be a clear-cut sequel to Terminator 2. And yet, perhaps this film’s biggest coup was securing the involvement of not only James Cameron as a writer/producer but also Linda Hamilton as the series’ iconic female lead, Sarah Connor. As a result, this does help the film succeed in several ways that the previous films didn’t despite being one of the most egregious examples in recent memory of ‘been there, done that’.

It was in 1995 that Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) and her son John managed to destroy all evidence of the artificial intelligence system known as Skynet to prevent it from wiping out over 3 billion lives via a nuclear holocaust on August 29th, 1997, a date that would’ve become known as ‘Judgment Day’. And yet, even after all these years, that hasn’t stopped Sarah from continuing her efforts to hunt down any of the machines known as Terminators that arrive from the future to eliminate those who stand in their way. Sure enough, in 2020, a young factory worker from Mexico City named Daniella ‘Dani’ Ramos (Natalia Reyes) finds herself being hunted by Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna), an advanced Terminator model who can separate itself into two autonomous units. At the same time, Grace (Mackenzie Davis), a cybernetically-enhanced soldier, is sent back in time from the year 2042 to protect her, with Sarah soon joining the fight as well. It is through Grace that Sarah and Dani learn that, despite the former’s successful destruction of Skynet, a new A.I. system known as Legion ended up taking its place as the catalyst for nuclear Armageddon. And just like how Skynet sent numerous Terminators back in time to kill their greatest enemy, John Connor, Dani is now Legion’s primary target due to her playing a pivotal role in the rise of the future human resistance. Thus, Sarah, Grace, Dani, and eventually an aging T-800 unit that goes by the name ‘Carl’ (Arnold Schwarzenegger) band together to combat what is easily the most dangerous adversary that any of them have ever faced before.

A lot has been said about why the last three Terminator films haven’t been as well-received as the first two, and it could be argued that this was primarily due to some of their ‘questionable’ ways of trying to continue the story. This includes everything from Terminator 3’s implication that the events of Terminator 2 only delayed the inevitable incident that was Judgment Day to Genisys’ decision to flat-out ignore the events of the first two Terminator films in favor of its new alternate timeline that turned John Connor into an antagonist. Dark Fate manages to avoid this, for the most part (aside from maybe one key moment at the very beginning that radically changes the franchise’s dynamic), by maintaining a ‘back to basics’ approach with its narrative. However, there is one notable downside to this since Dark Fate ends up having quite a lot in common with its predecessors when it comes to the plot. Granted, I’m usually not one to ding a film for being ‘derivative’ since I know that it’s hard to be ‘truly original’ nowadays, but Dark Fate literally has the exact same plot as most of the other films in this series save for Salvation and Genisys. A Terminator is sent back in time to kill a target who becomes a major threat to them in the future while another being (usually someone who’s either partially or fully cybernetic) is sent back as well to protect the target. At the very least, director Tim Miller always keeps things moving thanks to the film’s rapid pace even if that doesn’t allow for a lot of moments to take a breather… that and the finale ends up feeling a bit too overlong.  

Right from the moment that the film’s first promo image was released, it was made perfectly clear that Terminator: Dark Fate was primarily going to revolve around its trio of female leads, and sure enough, they’re arguably the best part of the film. Obviously, it all begins with Linda Hamilton’s heralded return to the franchise as Sarah Connor for the first time since Terminator 2 (or Terminator 2 3-D: Battle Across Time if you want to be specific). Prior to this, the character was unceremoniously killed off-screen in Terminator 3, reduced to a voice cameo in Salvation, and was recast twice, with Emilia Clarke taking on the role in Genisys and Lena Headey playing the character in the short-lived TV series The Sarah Connor Chronicles. But now the original Sarah Connor is back in triumphant fashion as Hamilton seamlessly slips back into the role with ease, once again finding that perfect mix of sardonic snark and devastating emotional pathos that defined her iconic turn in the role in Judgment Day. Meanwhile, Mackenzie Davis and Natalia Reyes are both excellent as well in what could best be described as this film’s ‘Kyle Reese’ and ‘Terminator 1 era Sarah Connor’, respectively. Davis’ Grace immediately establishes herself as a formidable action heroine while Reyes shines in what will surely be her breakout role thanks to her wonderful handling of Dani’s character arc where she transitions from an unassuming ‘nobody’ to a far more confident leader. But, of course, you can’t have a Terminator film without Arnold Schwarzenegger, and while he technically doesn’t show up until the second half of the film, Dark Fate does give him one of the most interesting characters he’s ever played in this series as we learn that this T-800 unit has a ‘very specific’ bit of history with Sarah. Finally, to close out the main cast, Agents of SHIELD breakout star Gabriel Luna also does an excellent job as the new main antagonist Rev-9. Like Grace and Dani before him, Rev-9 is admittedly best described as ‘this film’s T-1000’ given the many similarities that he shares with Robert Patrick’s iconic antagonist from Judgment Day. Still, Luna’s take on the character perfectly syncs up with the characterization that Patrick went with as the completely unassuming cybernetic being who could impeccably transition into his real identity as a stone-cold killer in the blink of an eye.

I’ll openly admit that I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from Dark Fate going into it and that had a lot to do with my overall experience with the Terminator franchise. Obviously, I love the first two films just as much as everyone else, but at the same time, I’m not afraid to admit that I do like some of the sequels. I think that Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines isn’t as bad as it’s often put out to be, and as long-time visitors of this site may recall, I was one of the rare people who gave a genuinely positive review of Terminator Genisys back in 2015. Heck, it even managed to make my Top 10 that year. As such, there was legitimately a part of me that hoped that they would try to do a follow-up to Genisys but perhaps manage to secure the involvement of James Cameron (since he did go on record stating that he did like the film) so that it could be a lot better. Obviously, though, that didn’t end up being the case, and instead, Cameron and Tim Miller decided to truly take the series back to its roots, for better or worse. In other words, Terminator: Dark Fate does indeed feel like the legitimate follow-up to Terminator 2: Judgment Day in terms of both its story and action beats. However, with that said, the film is somewhat hindered by the fact that it arguably tries a bit too hard to be like Cameron’s Terminator films to the point where it straight-up rehashes their plots practically beat-for-beat. And yet, despite how much it stringently adheres to the franchise’s long-running formula, the triumphant return of Linda Hamilton in the role of Sarah Connor is ultimately enough to make Dark Fate one of the better entries of this series. Let’s just hope that if any of these supposed sequels that Cameron has been teasing end up getting made, they try to do something a little different next time.

Rating: 4/5

Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019) review

In 2014, Disney released their then-latest live-action remake of one of their animated classics, Maleficent. The film served as a reimagining of the studio’s 1959 film Sleeping Beauty, but as the title suggests, the focus was shifted from the titular ‘Sleeping Beauty’ AKA Princess Aurora to its iconic villainess, Maleficent. However, instead of just simply maintaining the character’s villainous nature from the original film, Maleficent ended up going a radically different route and turned the character into a tragic anti-hero whose actions served as an act of revenge against those who wronged her while also forming a genuine mother-daughter relationship with Aurora. As you might have guessed, this new characterization didn’t exactly go over well with everyone, thus contributing to the film’s overall mixed reception. And yet, that didn’t stop it from being a massive hit at the box-office where it grossed over $758 million worldwide, effectively continuing the financial hot streak of Disney’s live-action remakes. Thus, half a decade after the original’s release, the ‘Mistress of All Evil’ (and yes, I will use that title in this instance even though this version of the character isn’t a villain) is now back in a new film, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, albeit with a notable change in director. Whereas the first film served as the directorial debut of production designer Robert Stromberg, this film is directed by Joachim Rønning, who’s fresh off directing the fifth Pirates of the Caribbean film with long-time directing partner Espen Sandberg (though, to be clear, this one is Rønning only). And while Mistress of Evil does continue to go with its polarizing heroic rendition of its main character, those who were fans of the first film will find this to be yet another solidly entertaining dark fantasy all bolstered once again by Angelina Jolie’s truly excellent turn in the title role.

It has been five years since the powerful Dark Fey Maleficent (Angelina Jolie) saved Princess Aurora (Elle Fanning) from the death-like sleeping curse that she had inflicted upon her as a baby due in large part to the motherly affection that she had developed for the young Princess. Since then, Aurora has dutifully served as the ruler of Maleficent’s kingdom, the Moors, and on one faithful day, her dashing suitor Prince Phillip (Harris Dickinson, taking over for Brenton Thwaites from the previous film) asks for her hand in marriage. Despite Maleficent’s objections over this due to her own past experiences with love, Aurora convinces her to travel to Phillip’s home, the Kingdom of Ulstead, and meet with his parents, King John (Robert Lindsay) and Queen Ingrith (Michelle Pfeiffer). However, this doesn’t end up going very well as Maleficent soon begins to feel threatened by Ingrith, especially after she claims that this union will result in her becoming the mother that Aurora ‘never had’. Thus, when Maleficent lashes out at this remark in a manner that seemingly curses King John into a perpetual sleep like she did with Aurora, she becomes vilified by Ingrith, who promptly begins to mount an all-out war against the Moors. During this time, Maleficent also ends up coming across other Dark Feys, led by the duo of Conall (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Borra (Ed Skrein), who find themselves in disagreement over this impending conflict. Whereas Borra is hellbent on wiping out humanity to save their kind, Conall believes that Maleficent’s the only one who can use her powers to unite the two sides.

One of the things that these Maleficent films have always excelled at is their phenomenal production design. Sure, just like practically every other recent live-action Disney remake of the past few years, they mainly utilize CG to craft their environment and the non-human creatures that inhabit it, but they still succeed immensely when it comes to bringing the truly unique fantasy world that they’ve created to life. Plus, when compared to the ‘arguably a bit too dark’ aesthetic of Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland (not counting its follow-up Alice Through the Looking Glass since it did, at least, brighten things up considerably), these two films manage to achieve a good mix between dark and atmospheric and bright and colorful. But just like the first film, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil stumbles a little when it comes to its story. While it does notably have the benefit of not having to adhere to any specific bit of source material since it obviously did the whole Sleeping Beauty arc in the previous film, everything here is still rather basic in terms of plot. But perhaps the most disappointing aspect of this film is that there aren’t as many scenes with Maleficent and Aurora together, which I only bring up because the whole mother-daughter relationship between them was very much the heart of the first film. Thankfully, they aren’t separated for the whole film and the biggest scenes that directly involve the two of them are easily amongst its best moments. Plus, despite boasting a longer runtime than its predecessor (Mistress of Evil runs a little under two hours whereas the first was only an hour and a half long), the film still retains the solidly breezy pacing that served the first film nicely.

But, of course, the biggest highlight of these films is the continuously excellent work by Angelina Jolie in the title role. Even if you aren’t a fan of how these films eschew Maleficent’s villainous characterization from the original Sleeping Beauty, there’s no denying that Jolie perfectly nails the role in every possible way. She obviously has the look down, excellently maintains the character’s classic mannerisms, and in the context of these films, has a solid on-screen camaraderie with Elle Fanning that impeccably illustrates the strong relationship between Maleficent and Aurora. It is this relationship that has arguably made Fanning’s take on Aurora superior to her animated counterpart, and this is well-reflected in the sequel thanks to a noticeably matured turn from Fanning performance-wise. Another key returning player from the previous film is Sam Riley as Maleficent’s raven confidante Diaval, and while the character does get somewhat sidelined in the same way that the film doesn’t have a lot of scenes between Maleficent and Aurora, Riley still excels at making Diaval a fully endearing sidekick. Speaking of sidekicks, the film also makes the wise decision to downplay Aurora’s three pixie caretakers; Knotgrass (Imelda Staunton), Thistlewit (Juno Temple), and Flittle (Lesley Manville). In retrospect, I admit that I may have been a bit harsh on these three in my review of the original Maleficent back in 2014, but I still stand by what I said about how they ended up being one of the weaker aspects of that film due to them being portrayed as far ditsier than their animated counterparts. Sure, the trio of Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather had their silly moments (e.g. their squabble over the color of Aurora’s dress), but the first Maleficent arguably went a bit too far with their humor in its attempt to show that Maleficent was a far better caretaker for Aurora than they were. Thankfully, that’s not as big of an issue this time around because while these three do still maintain their bumbling personas, they don’t play as big of a role in the story this time.  

There is one notable change regarding the returning cast of characters, however, as Harris Dickinson takes over the role of Prince Phillip from Brenton Thwaites due to scheduling conflicts for the latter. Thankfully, this change doesn’t affect the film in any notable way as Dickinson has solid chemistry with Fanning and it also helps that Phillip has a larger role in the story this time (even if it’s still a generally minor supporting role) whereas Thwaites’ Phillip only appeared in two major scenes near the tail-end of the previous film. As for new characters, the biggest addition, of course, is Michelle Pfeiffer as Phillip’s mother and, subsequently, the film’s main antagonist, Queen Ingrith. And while it would’ve been nice to have some more scenes where Pfeiffer and Jolie interact with each other directly (if only for the opportunity to see more of these two iconic actresses together onscreen), Pfeiffer brings a great commanding presence to the role that fits nicely with the backstory and motivations that she’s given. Finally, closing out the new cast of characters is the duo of Chiwetel Ejiofor and Ed Skrein as Maleficent’s fellow Dark Feys Conall and Borra. Both are natural fits in their respective roles, with Ejiofor being the noble leader and Skrein being the fierce warrior. However, you may be surprised to learn that Ejiofor doesn’t factor into the film as much as its marketing may have implied to the point where Skrein arguably ends up having more screen-time than him.

As I’ve been alluding to throughout this review, the overall reception of these Maleficent films is primarily dependent on one’s views of their radically different portrayal of the title character. Thanks to her role in the original Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent has consistently been regarded as one of the greatest villains in a Disney animated film. In contrast to that, the Maleficent films make her the main character of the story and portray her in a generally more heroic manner. Thus, if you’re not a fan of this characterization, you’re better off sticking with the original Sleeping Beauty and various other bits of Disney media that maintain her villainous status; in fact, you’ll probably wonder why this sequel decided to go with the Mistress of Evil subtitle even though it isn’t an accurate descriptor for this iteration of the character. But for those who were fans of 2014’s Maleficent, you’ll be pleased to know that this film does continue to maintain many of the aspects that made its predecessor such a big hit with audiences. Its visual effects and production design are still second to none, Angelina Jolie continues to prove why she was born to play the title role, and it’s easy to appreciate these films’ commitment to their female-led narratives. The only major downside to this film is that it doesn’t provide as many heartwarming moments between Maleficent and Aurora as there were in the first film, which is why I admittedly wouldn’t call Mistress of Evil a ‘superior sequel’. Ultimately, though, this does not prevent the film from being yet another solid live-action outing from Disney.

Rating: 4/5

Gemini Man (2019) review

For the past few decades, Ang Lee has consistently been one of the most prevalent filmmakers in the industry. After making it big in his native country of Taiwan with a pseudo-trilogy of films known as the Father Knows Best trilogy that explored the clashing of generational ideals, Lee transitioned to Hollywood and would go on to helm several critically acclaimed films. This includes, among others, the Emma Thompson-penned adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, the groundbreaking martial arts flick Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and the emotionally devastating romantic drama Brokeback Mountain. However, in recent years, Lee’s films have become defined by their attempts at breaking new ground in the medium of film. This arguably all began with his 2012 outing Life of Pi, which was one of the biggest hits of that year and touted for its impressive visual effects. Four years later, Lee took on his next project, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, which became notable for being the first film shot at a frame rate of 120 frames per second, five times more than the industry standard of 24 frames per second. However, this method proved to be difficult to present in theaters, which meant that only a select few could present it in its intended format (120fps in 3D at a 4K resolution). But now Lee’s back with his newest attempt at a film shot at such an astoundingly high frame rate, Gemini Man, and while its script doesn’t exactly match the aspirations of its technical aspects, it still manages to be a decent little action flick that also serves as a fascinating experiment for its technology.    

After years of being one of the top assassins in his field, Defense Intelligence Agency operative Henry Brogan (Will Smith) decides that the time has finally come for him to retire. However, not long after leaving his old life behind, Henry learns from his old colleague Jack Willis (Douglas Hodge) that his last target wasn’t a global terrorist as he was originally led to believe. Instead, he was a scientist who was working on a secret black-ops project known as ‘Gemini’, and as a result, Henry learns that he’s become marked for death by his superiors, specifically Gemini’s director Clayton Varris (Clive Owen). This, in turn, forces him to go on the run with fellow DIA agent Dani Zakarweski (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), who also becomes a target due to her interactions with Henry. Eventually, Henry finds himself pursued by Gemini’s top asset and is surprised to find that this mysterious agent acts a lot like him while out in the field. Sure enough, Henry ultimately discovers that this agent, named Junior (also played by Smith), is his younger clone and has been raised by Varris to be the ultimate assassin without any of the emotional baggage that had led to his retirement. Thus, as Henry and Dani fight to stay alive against Varris’ forces, they must also try to convince Junior of the ulterior truth behind his existence.

The first thing to talk about when it comes to this film is its ambitious 120fps format since I was lucky enough to be at a theater that could present it as such, albeit at a 2K resolution instead of 4K. Sure enough, that difference in frame rate is noticeable as soon as the film begins… which also means that it’s quite distracting at first when you’re seeing images that move much faster than what you’re normally used to when watching a film. As such, I can see why some feel that this format hinders the classic cinematic feel and makes films look like soap operas in the process, especially whenever an in-camera transition like a zoom-in/zoom-out is used. At the same time, though, it does live up to its claim of producing a highly crisp image quality that, in turn, also lends itself nicely to 3-D. This is especially apparent in the film’s action sequences, which are enhanced considerably by their crystal-clear cinematography. However, this primarily applies to any action sequence set during the day since, aside from the finale, most of the nighttime action sequences are severely hindered by some incredibly hasty editing. As for the film itself, there’s admittedly not much to talk about as this is very much one of those middle-of-the-road action flicks with a decent enough premise but also minimal plot and character development. After all, it is worth noting that this film has been in the works since 1997, with the likes of Joe Carnahan and the late Tony Scott attached to direct it and stars like Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise, Mel Gibson, and even Sean Connery being approached to headline it.

Ultimately, Will Smith ended up being the one to headline this film, and despite its shortcomings, he’s easily its biggest highlight thanks to his solid turn in the dual role of Henry and Junior. Of course, to have Smith properly portray the latter, the film goes the same route as several recent Marvel Studios films by de-aging him with CG and motion-capture technology, and for the most part, the visual effects for Junior are solid. It also helps that Smith manages to establish a solid distinction between the two, with Henry being the disenchanted veteran forever hardened by his experiences in the field and Junior being the wet-behind-the-ears rookie who gradually begins to experience moments of pure emotional turmoil despite being a clone. Everyone else in the cast is solid as well even if they don’t have as much to work with by comparison. Mary Elizabeth Winstead, for example, is a solid foil to Smith as female lead Dani, who thankfully isn’t just limited to a straight-forward ‘love interest/damsel in distress’ role since she does get to partake in several of the film’s action sequences. Backing the two of them up is Benedict Wong as Baron, an old ally of Henry’s; sure, the role is your standard best friend archetype, but Wong makes the most out of what he’s given. The same applies to Clive Owen as main antagonist Clayton Varris; it’s as basic of a villain role as you can get but at the same time, the character does manage to form a fascinating father-son relationship with Junior.

Gemini Man notably served as my first major experience of seeing a theatrically released film that was shot and presented at a high frame rate. As you might have guessed, I didn’t see Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk in theaters, and even if I did, odds are that it wouldn’t have been at the full 120fps format since only a few theaters in the country could present it as such. However, I still remember when Peter Jackson did something similar a few years back when he filmed the Hobbit trilogy at 48fps, double the industry standard. Plus, unlike Billy Lynn, I was near a theater that could show these films in their intended format. And yet, while I did have the opportunity to see the first Hobbit film, An Unexpected Journey, in the 48fps style, I only ended up seeing it via the traditional 24fps format in IMAX 3D. Regardless, the film’s use of a high-frame-rate proved to be highly controversial, and as a result, this experiment arguably fell by the wayside once The Desolation of Smaug and Battle of the Five Armies rolled around as their 48fps screenings came and went with little to no fanfare. Thus, while I’m not going to outright dismiss the concept entirely, it’s still very much an inherently flawed method of filmmaking as it provides some of the most crystal-clear images ever put on film… while also making films look rather cheap in the worst possible ways. And yet, the irony of Gemini Man is that this whole discussion behind its ambitious high-frame-rate is far more interesting than the film itself. Sure, Will Smith is genuinely excellent in his dual leading roles and, at the very least, the film is a decent little popcorn flick, but at the end of the day, that’s all that Gemini Man has going for it, really.

Rating: 3/5

Joker (2019) review

In the world of comics, Batman has always been one of the most prolific superheroes to come from the DC Comics Universe. Likewise, many would agree that he also boasts one of the greatest collection of supervillains AKA his ‘rogues gallery’, which is easy to see why when you have classic figures like Mr. Freeze, Two-Face, and Poison Ivy as part of this illustrious group… and yes, that’s just to name a few. However, when it comes to the Dark Knight’s definitive archnemesis, that honor goes to the one and only Clown Prince of Crime, the Joker. The Joker made his debut in the first issue of Batman’s original comic book series (which, for the record, does not count the Dark Knight’s official debut in Detective Comics #27) in 1940. And while it was initially planned to have the character killed off in that same issue, Whitney Ellsworth, DC’s editor at the time, overruled the decision, effectively allowing the Joker to become one of the most recognizable characters in all of comics. Since then, there have been numerous takes on the character though they all maintain the same general concept of a man who dresses like a clown and is a full-on murderous psychopath. On the big screen, actors like Cesar Romero, Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger have all brought their own unique takes on the role to great success, with Ledger even winning a posthumous Oscar for his work on 2008’s The Dark Knight. In the world of animation, Mark Hamill’s critically acclaimed turn as the character in the iconic Batman: The Animated Series (plus later appearances in other forms of media, including the series’ 1993 feature-length spin-off Mask of the Phantasm and the Batman: Arkham video games) is often cited by fans as quite arguably the best on-screen interpretation of the character.

But now a new Joker is looking to make a name for himself in the pantheon of legendary Joker performances via the character’s first-ever solo film, simply and appropriately titled Joker. However, as cliché as it may sound, it should be made clear that this is not your typical comic book film. To the uninitiated, this may just seem like the newest installment of DC’s current film franchise, the DC Extended Universe. However, the fact that this one doesn’t star Jared Leto (who, of course, played the character in 2016’s Suicide Squad) in the title role proves that this isn’t the case. Instead, it’s Joaquin Phoenix who headlines this new project under the direction of Todd Phillips, who’s best known for his work on comedies (even though he’s recently gone on record stating that he doesn’t do those anymore for reasons that I won’t be getting into here) like the 2003 cult classic Old School and the 2009 smash hit The Hangover. It’s been said that this film is meant to be the first installment of a new line of films from DC that revolve around their characters and yet are not connected to the DC Extended Universe. Running under the label of ‘DC Black’, these new films would give filmmakers a chance to do more experimental takes on what is easily the biggest film genre there is without having to connect them to other films or set the groundwork for sequels. In other words, there’s been a lot said about Joker and how it could potentially impact the superhero genre going forward, and yet, despite a genuinely dedicated performance from Joaquin Phoenix, Joker isn’t exactly the game-changer that it aspires to be.

On the seedy streets of Gotham City in 1981, a man named Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) can never seem to catch a break. Stuck in a dead-end job as a party clown and afflicted with a condition that causes him to laugh at inopportune moments, Arthur spends most of his time looking after his mentally and physically ill mother Penny (Frances Conroy). At the same time, Arthur also aspires to become a stand-up comedian like his idol, talk show host Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro). However, his first stand-up appearance doesn’t go very well and, to make matters worse, it ultimately becomes the butt of all jokes when Murray plays clips of it on his show. This, in turn, paves the way for even more bad things happening to Arthur. He is informed that he won’t be getting any more of his medication due to citywide budget cuts and ends up getting fired from his job when he accidentally drops a gun that was given to him by a co-worker during one of his gigs. And when he ends up reading one of the letters that his mother has been writing to her former boss Thomas Wayne (Brett Cullen) to ask for his help in getting the two of them out of their current life predicament, Arthur discovers the potential connection that he has to the billionaire. Thus, as his life continues to get more chaotic with each passing day, Arthur starts to embrace his dark side as he prepares to get revenge against all those who’ve wronged him. In the process, he even ends up inspiring a citywide revolt via his clown persona as the disgruntled citizens of Gotham start to fight back against the corruption in their city.   

If anything, Joker does deserve a lot of credit for how it genuinely delivers on its promise of not being a typical comic book film. Unlike most films from this genre, Joker doesn’t feature large-scale action sequences or flashy visuals. Instead, it’s a more traditional drama inspired by the likes of Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, which makes a lot of sense when you consider that it was nearly produced by Martin Scorsese before he had to back out due to other commitments. This is also one of those films that rely on a slow burn narrative that, in this instance, is based entirely around Arthur’s descent into madness, and overall, it’s one of the better-handled aspects of the film since it’s properly maintained throughout without having to come at the cost of decent pacing. It also helps that the film sports some excellent cinematography from Todd Phillips’ frequent cinematographer Lawrence Sher and an appropriately sinister score by Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir. However, the film’s promising start ultimately paves the way for an extremely underwhelming finale that doesn’t even come close to being the intensely disturbing conclusion that it was seemingly building towards. In fact, without directly spoiling anything, one key action that Arthur does before the finale is the pinnacle of this film’s disturbing content. Plus, despite all the claims that this wasn’t going to abide by the superhero genre’s usual tropes, the film’s conclusion ends up shoehorning in what is quite arguably the most recognizable plot thread from the Batman mythos. Seriously, I don’t even need to mention what it is here because let’s face it, you already know exactly what I’m talking about.

At the very least, the film does manage to serve as a solid showcase for the genuinely superb performance by Joaquin Phoenix in the title role. While there is a lot to be discussed when it comes to how effective the film truly is at portraying people with a mental illness, Phoenix commands the screen and succeeds in crafting a character who effectively evolves from a sympathetic punching bag to a terrifying monster. However, because this is one of those cases where he’s always the primary focus of the film, everyone else in the cast gets far less to work with by comparison. Robert De Niro’s Murray Franklin is a prime example of this because no matter how much the film pays homage to The King of Comedy (in which De Niro played Rupert Pupkin, an obvious precursor to Arthur), De Niro isn’t in the film as much as you may think for a character that plays a pivotal role in Arthur’s downfall. The same goes for Brett Cullen as Thomas Wayne, whose role in the film is even smaller than De Niro’s and ends up going exactly as you’d expect for the father of Bruce Wayne (played here by Dante Pereira-Olsen in a small handful of scenes). But the one who gets it the worst is Zazie Beetz as Arthur’s neighbor Sophie, who ends up being his love interest… and that’s literally her entire role in a nutshell. And once the film gets to a major twist surrounding her relationship with Arthur, she’s out of the film completely. As such, Frances Conroy is technically the real female lead of the film as Arthur’s mother Penny, and she’s great in the role thanks to the solid mother-son relationship that she forms with Phoenix that undoubtedly gets tested when some of her dark secrets are revealed.

It goes without saying that Joker has been one of the most talked-about films of 2019. Many are predicting that this film could be a major game-changer for the superhero genre and even a potential frontrunner at this year’s Oscars. At the same time, though, it’s also amassed quite a lot of controversy due to the fear that it will inspire acts of violence in the real world. However, I ultimately find myself comparing it to another controversial film, 2014’s The Interview. Both films attracted some considerable controversy before their release to the point where things nearly got violent… and yet are so underwhelming that it makes you wonder why these were the films that nearly got folks riled up in the first place. Case in point, as much as Joker claims to be a fresh, new take on the superhero genre, it’s more like a hodgepodge of elements that were lifted from other, more successful films. Its dark and gritty take on Batman’s iconic nemesis doesn’t feel that far off from what Christopher Nolan and Heath Ledger did more than a decade prior with The Dark Knight. And as much as the film acts like it isn’t going to follow the usual narrative structure of other superhero films, it still feels the need to crowbar in the one Batman trope that anyone familiar with the character’s comic backstory will see coming more than a mile away. Sure, it does have the benefit of a terrific performance from Joaquin Phoenix in the title role, but all in all, Joker is a film that talks a big game but ultimately doesn’t have one.

Rating: 2/5