REVIEW: Muppets Most Wanted

MOVIE
Muppets Most Wanted

CAST
Ricky Gervais, Ty Burrell,
Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy

RATING
PG

RELEASE
March 21, 2014

DIRECTOR
James Bobin

STUDIO
Disney

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 52 minutes






STARS
***3/4









REVIEW:

Who knew that in this day and age a sequel could not only be as funny as its predecessor, but also as clever and as self aware at the same time?  That is what has happened here in the case of "Muppets Most Wanted."  Literally the opening musical number of the film acknowledges that sequels are usually made when studios want money, and how most of the time they're not as good as the original.  From there on is a series of hard-hitting jokes, entertaining as heck (gotta keep it PG for the kids out there) characters, and hilariously unexpected cameos that'll have you rolling depending on how well you know your celebrities and your iconic Muppet characters.  "Muppets Most Wanted" is one of the rare sequels that defies all expectations and creates a smart, self aware, and downright hilarious movie that is equally as good, if not better, than its predecessor.

Thanks to the events in the previous Muppet movie, The Muppets are back on top and better than ever.  Now it looks like for this ragtag team to do the next logical thing, and that is to go on a world tour.  Being managed by Dominic Badguy, (not pronounced the way you think) The Muppets embark on a worldwide tour to present their show to the people of planet Earth.  As this is going on, our beloved Kermit the Frog is switched with his identical double Constantine, who is know as the world's deadliest frog.  With Kermit in a Russian jail under false accusations and Constantine filling in for Kermit, it's only a matter of time before someone realizes that Kermit is not Kermit, right?

What makes me love movies like the "Muppet" movies is the fact that they are so self aware.  Screenwriters James Bobin and Nicholas Stoller, who also wrote the previous Muppet movie, have made a film that acknowledges exactly what this is: a sequel that's been made because the studio thinks it will make money.  The film even goes on to acknowledge the stupidity in itself by referencing not just the previous Muppet films, but even the older classics from the 70s and 80s, a bold move on Stoller and Bobin's part.  Songwriter Bret McKenzie once again brings his A-game with some entertaining and genuinely good songs as "We're Doing A Sequel," "The Big House," and "Interrogation Song."  Every song in this film had me tapping my feet and keeping the biggest smile on my face constantly.  Heck, that was actually me during the entire duration of the film.  When a movie is able to pull that off, you know you're seeing something special taking place before your eyes.

The acting in the film surprisingly is great and really adds something to the movie as a whole.  Ricky Gervais is extremely entertaining as Dominic, managing to spew out some really funny jokes.  Tina Fey seemed like she was going to be awful in the film, but in fact, she's extremely funny.  From the moment she's introduced, she constantly entertains and grabs many laughs out of you.  As for Ty Burrell, I seriously think they should reboot the "Pink Panther" franchise with this guy as Inspector Clouseau, because his French accent is dead on.  In fact, Burrell's performance might have been my favorite of the leading three, mainly because of how hilarious and well-versed he was in the movie.  Adding to the cast is a whole slew of celebrity cameos, which are all extremely funny and entertaining, despite some of them being extremely predictable.  The entire cast here knew what they were dealing with when it came to making a "Muppet" movie, and for that alone, they should be applauded.

In my opinion, The Muppets are the perfect set of movies to watch as a family.  They have the slapstick humor and the colorful characters for the kids, and they have the intelligently written jokes, shockingly hilarious cameos, and surprisingly clever storyline to entertain the adults.  Speaking as someone who isn't the biggest fan of sequels being made to really great films, I must say that the people behind "Muppets Most Wanted" knew exactly what to do in order to make an entertaining, self-aware sequel that will surely make people laugh a lot.  Because of that, I personally feel that this is a superior film to the 2011 "Muppet" movie.  The opinion might be controversial, but see the film for yourself before you judge.  "Muppets Most Wanted" is smart, hilarious, completely self aware, and the best family movie of the year thus far.




PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

Paddington

Islands of Lemurs: Madagascar

Annie

Rio 2

Planes: Fire & Rescue

Maleficent

Bears

REVIEW: Divergent

MOVIE
Divergent

CAST
Shailene Woodley, Theo James

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
March 21, 2014

DIRECTOR
Neil Burger

STUDIO
Summit Entertainment (Lionsgate)

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 20 minutes






STARS
***1/2








REVIEW:

Shailene Woodley is seriously becoming Hollywood's newest, and possibly biggest, "it girl," of this generation.  After her star turning performance in Alexander Payne's "The Descendents" and her radiantly sweet performance in last year's indie gem "The Spectacular Now," Woodley is now starring in a series of book-to-film adaptations that are sure to appeal to the devoted fan bases, and hopefully even the mainstream audiences of the world.  First up on her 2014 slate is the adaptation of "Divergent," the first in a three book series of the same name.  "Divergent" is set in a dystopian version of Chicago where people are divided into five sections, or "factions," in order to maintain a system of control.  The lead protagonist, Tris, finds out that she doesn't belong into one single faction, otherwise known as being a "divergent."  Being a divergent threatens the system that is in place, and Tris is considered to be a danger because of this.  The only way for her to possibly survive is to blend into one of the factions that she is qualified in and hope that she can successfully get past the system and live a normal life.

To start off, the acting in this movie is surprisingly really good. Shailene Woodly continues to impress the living hell out of me, further proving that she has the absolute potential to be this generation's Julia Roberts or Kate Winslet. Speaking of Kate Winslet, she's pretty good here, despite probably being the weakest performance in the cast if I must say. I mean, she is menacing and a solid villain overall, but I felt that she was too calm at times and sort of seemed like she didn't want to be there. As for the male actors in the film, Theo James, Miles Teller, and Ansel Eglort are all really good and very engaging in the scenes they're in. Overall, the acting is very solid, with very few mediocre performances to be found here.

Director Neil Burger, best known for films like 2011's "Limitless," has crafted a well-directed moive that may be his best directorial effort to date. I loved the way he saw these characters and the situations they all get into, particularly the scenes where Tris is being tested mentally. Also thriving with talent in this film are the screenwriters, Vanessa Taylor and Evan Daugherty, who successfully manage to adapt this book into a entertaining and captivating 2 and a half hour movie. Frankly, most of the credit should go to author Veronica Roth because it's her book and her ideas that have been adapted to the big screen, but still, Taylor and Daugherty have done a great job bringing the book "Divergent" to the big screen. Hell, even the film's soundtrack, which consists of music from Zedd and Ellie Goulding, fits the film and adds a sort of hypnotic feel to the movie. Overall, the people working behind this movie have really done something special and have made a great start to a potential series that could rival "The Hunger Games."

Coming in as an outsider to the books, I have to say that I was completely taken by surprise with this film.  This could be a bias opinion because I have an insanely huge crush on Shailene Woodley, but that's beside the point.  I honestly feel that critics were too harsh on this film and were expecting something along the lines of the "Hunger Games" movies. From the well-executed story to the hypnotically great soundtrack to director Neil Burger's fantastic execution, "Divergent" is a 2 and a half hour dystopian adventure that fans of the books will adore, and outsiders to the series should give a chance and come in with open arms. There might be some problems here and there, like the pacing for the film being all over the place and Kate Winslet's subpar performance, but those are things that don't take away from the overall film whatsoever. I, for one, cannot wait for the film's sequel "Insurgent" to come out because I'm extremely anxious to see where this story goes next.




PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

The Giver

Jupiter Ascending

The Purge: Anarchy

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

The Fault In Our Stars

The Quiet Ones

Draft Day

REVIEW: The Grand Budapest Hotel

MOVIE
The Grand Budapest Hotel

CAST
Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori

RATING
R

RELEASE
March 7, 2014 (LIMITED)

DIRECTOR
Wes Anderson

STUDIO
Fox Searchlight Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 39 minutes






STARS
****








REVIEW:

To say that Wes Anderson's style of film-making is unique is merely an understatement.  From films like "The Royal Tennenbaums" to more recent fare like "Moonrise Kingdom," Anderson has shown his distinct style to the general masses, and the overall response is pretty positive.  In his latest directorial effort "The Grand Budapest Hotel," Anderson gives audiences his most inventive and possibly his most ambitious project to date.  And at the same time, it's also the best movie he's made in his nearly 20 year long career.  "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is wacky, shocking, hilarious, and the must see indie release out there right now.

The year is 1932, and Monsieur Gustave H. is the head concierge of The Grand Budapest Hotel.  Joining the staff of the prestigious hotel as a Junior Lobby Boy is a young immigrant by the name of Zero Moustafa.  Gustave is best known by all as the man that all of the elderly women who reside at the hotel swoon over, so much so that many of the ladies are in love with him.  Gustave happens to take a particular interest in Madame D., who has just been found murdered in her home.  In her last will, Madame D. left Gustave a prestigious and priceless painting known as "Boy With Apple," which enrages her son Dmitri and causes him to believe that Gustave murdered Madame D.  Ensuing after that is an uproarious, bonkers, and crazy madcap adventure of laughs, shocking moments, and some incredible performances.

So many actors shine brightly in this movie that it's almost hard to remember all of those who are in it.  However there can only be a select group of actors who steal the show, and in the case of this movie, the show-stealers are Ralph Fiennes and Tony Revolori.  Both actors give hilarious and just flat out entertaining performances that are so hard not to love watching.  Other actors who perform exceedingly well include Adrian Brody, Willem Dafoe, and Jeff Goldblum, who are all equally fantastic and equally hilarious as well.  Many of the other actors, like Bill Murray and Owen Wilson, have relatively small roles; but they're still incredibly entertaining when they are on screen.  No bad performance is present here, however the two actors you'll be talking about with those around you once the film ends Ralph Fiennes and Tony Revolori.

Wes Anderson's style has always been quite unique, and it is only further shown in this film.  From the ever-changing aspect ratios to the incredible set designs, Anderson has a very distinct and gorgeous way of looking at the world.  Every one of his films only brings us further and further into his psyche, and I love being able to constantly explore it.  Plus, the script is also very unique in terms of its dialogue, it's shockingly dark ways of moving the story along, and the way the story itself is being told. Think of "Inception," but the dream worlds are represented as different time periods in this flick.  If you're not a fan of Anderson's style, then you may not like this movie.  If you do, though, then you are in for one hell of a movie experience.

"The Grand Budapest Hotel" is unlike any movie Wes Anderson has done in his career, and that's mainly because of how ambitious it is in terms of its storytelling techniques.  This is one of those films that will appeal to those who seek a darkly comedic, off beat, and insanely quirky movie, aka a fan of Wes Anderson's movies.  If you're looking for the movie that will make you a fan of Anderson's work, I'm not sure that this is the one to bring you in, as it is very weird and quirky throughout the 99 minute runtime.  However, if you're willing to take the chance and experience this flick on the big screen, then you may be in for one hell of a treat.  "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is a dark, off beat, hilarious, and ambitious movie that I haven't been able to stop thinking about ever since it ended.  This is definitely my favorite Wes Anderson movie so far, and I cannot wait to see what his strange and quirky little mind thinks up next.





PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

Nymphomaniac Volume I

The Lunchbox

Le Week-End

Dom Hemingway

Belle

REVIEW: Cheap Thrills

MOVIE
Cheap Thrills

CAST
Pat Healy, Ethan Embry

RATING
NR

RELEASE
March 21, 2014 (VOD/LIMITED)

DIRECTOR
E.L. Katz

STUDIO
Drafthouse Films

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 27 minutes






STARS
***1/4







REVIEW:

There are some sick people in this world, in case you didn't know.  There are those who torture helpless individuals either for the sake of doing it or just to have some type of feeling come out.  With the new dark comedy "Cheap Thrills," a married couple offer two estranged friends the chance to win up to $250,000 if they obey every one of their fun "bets."  At first, it's all fun and games, like drinking a shot and stuff like that.  However, each bet gets crazier and more twisted as the dollar offer goes up.  The big problem I had with this movie is that the characters, particularly the leads played by Pat Healy and Ethan Embry, got incredibly mean spirited and quite sadistic, which is nothing like how their characters started out with.  Plus, I honestly felt that the film was too shocking and too repulsive at times, especially as a dog lover.  If you see the movie, you'll understand that last statement.

Having said all of the negative stuff, I still found "Cheap Thrills" quite entertaining.  The performances are solid, particularly from David Koechner and Sara Paxton, and the story itself is quite interesting.  In a way, it reminded me of "God Bless America" in the sense of how the entire movie was a dark and twisted satire on people and what they will do for money.  I wouldn't say you should seek this film out, because it's either something you'll love or something you'll hate.  If you love darkly comedic and insanely shocking thrillers, then chances are you'll have a ball with this.  I'm glad I saw it, but chances are that I probably won't see it again willingly.  "Cheap Thrills" is crazy, shocking, and appalling at times, but those are the things that make the film worthwhile in the end.

MINI-REVIEW: McCanick

MOVIE
McCanick

CAST
David Morse, Cory Monteith

RATING
R

RELEASE
February 18, 2014 (VOD)
March 21, 2014 (LIMITED)

DIRECTOR
Josh C. Waller

STUDIO
Well Go Usa Entertainment

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 36 minutes







STARS
*1/2





REVIEW:

I'm still in shock that "Glee" star Cory Monteith is gone from this world.  He truly was a talented actor who was only starting to show his real chops when he passed last year.  The last film he shot, McCanick," only further showcased his talents and kept reminding me how tragic it was when he died.  Unfortunately, the final result of this movie isn't anything great.  There may be some things that are redeemable in it, like mostly the performances from Cory Monteith and David Morse, but the film overall lacks in a well-written script, developed characters, and a well-executed story.  "McCanick" may be Cory Monteith's last movie, but it honestly isn't really worth anyone's time at the end of the day.

What really drives the film downhill is how the titular character is written.  While David Morse does a fine job emulating this layered cop character, the way he's written is so overbearing and so irritating that you really can't side with him on any of the decisions he makes.  Instead of coming off as a devoted cop, the character of McCanick comes off as an obsessive and annoying character who I personally didn't care for all that much.  The problem with Cory Monteith's character, despite a really good performance, is that you never really know what to think of him, whether it's in the flashbacks that are scattered throughout the 96 minute duration or in the brief sections that take place in the present.  Plus the story itself feels like it's trying to have these inventive and clever twists, when in the end they come off as feeling forced and derived.  This honestly could have been a solid, if not, inventive cop story, but screenwriter Daniel Noah clearly missed the mark here.

I honestly feel that "McCanick" could have been a really strong crime drama with a well-layered story and some great performances.  Unfortunately, the overall ingredients in the soup are lacking in an inventive structure, strong character development, and some strong character-driven moments.  I admire the fact that the entire film takes place over the course of one day, and that I honestly didn't see the final 20 minutes coming, but that doesn't make an entire movie worthwhile.  It's seriously a shame that Monteith never got to expand himself into some bigger indie dramas where he could have really shined and possibly gone onto an Awards path.  He honestly deserved a better project to be apart of if he knew this was to be his swan song.  But unfortunately, this is the movie he had to go on.  Despite some solid performances and a better than average third act, "McCanick" isn't worth your time and will most likely be forgotten very soon.

MINI-REVIEW: Mr. Peabody & Sherman 3D

MOVIE
Mr. Peabody & Sherman

CAST
Ty Burrell, Max Charles

RATING
PG

RELEASE
March 7, 2014

DIRECTOR
Rob Minkoff

STUDIO(S)
DreamWorks Animation,
20th Century Fox

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 34 minutes





STARS
***3/4







REVIEW:

While "The Lego Movie" was funnier and more original, "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" had more heart in it and served as a great history lesson for young kids.  Based on the Peabody segments from the "Rocky & Bullwinkle" TV show from the 60s, this film tells the story of the world's smartest dog, Mr. Peabody, and his adopted son Sherman traveling through time and fixing mistakes that were made in the past.  Despite not being pparticularly excited for this film, I was still interested in it considering that DreamWorks hasn't let me down in several years.   Needless to say, I had a lot of fun with this movie.

Mr. Peabody was born and grew up as an orphan due to no kids wanting to adopt him.  Since nobody ever adopted Mr. Peabody, he decided to get an education and live life his own way, soon going on to become the world's smartest dog.  However, Peabody was missing something in life, and that something was Sherman, whom he legally adopted when Sherman was an abandoned baby in a box.  7 years pass, and Sherman makes an enemy in the form of Penny on his first day of school.  As circumstances unfold, Sherman accidentally takes Penny back in time using Peabody's time machine called the WABAC.  Peabody and Sherman then must go back to other time periods with Penny to fix any type of damage they might have made in order to prevent any major events, and even the universe, from changing.

From the stellar voice acting to its crisp and beautiful animation, "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" suceeds at being an entertaining and sweet animated movie, as well as a great film for kids to see if they want to learn about their history.  I had such a fun time watching this despite some of the flaws that were present here, including some predictable moments here and there.  Ty Burrell is superb as the voice of Mr. Peabody, as are Max Charles, Ariel Winter, and Patrick Warburton to name a few.  In all honesty, I'd rather see a sequel to this film than "The Lego Movie," and the reason for that is because I feel that this film could explore more parts of history and succeed at making them entertaining segments to watch.  As crazy as I may sound, I personally think that "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" is the sweetest, most charming, and most entertaining kids movie out there right now.




PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

Annie

Paddington

Muppets Most Wanted

The Boxtrolls

Planes: Fire & Rescue

How To Train Your Dragon 2

Rio 2

REVIEW: The Wind Rises

MOVIE
The Wind Rises

CAST
Joseph Gordon-Levitt,
John Krasinski

RATING
PG-13

RELEASE
February 21, 2014 (NY/LA)
February 28, 2014 (WIDE)

DIRECTOR
Hayao Miyazaki

STUDIO(S)
Touchstone Pictures, (Disney)
Studio Ghibli

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 6 minutes






STARS
****









REVIEW:

Hayao Miyazaki has made a name for himself as the grandmaster of anime films, with films like "My Neighbor Totoro," "Howl's Moving Castle," and the Academy Award winning "Spirited Away" all under his belt.  Now, the legendary filmmaker has decided to retire after several decades in the business.  Before he called it quits, though, his latest, and final film, "The Wind Rises," made its splash on the festival circuit last September.  After an Oscar qualifying run in November and a few more appearances at film festivals, "The Wind Rises" has finally been let out of the cage, now with an English dub consisting of the voices of celebrities like Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Emily Blunt, and Martin Short, to name a few.  And needless to say, it was worth the wait for this flick, as "The Wind Rises" is a quiet, gorgerous marvel of an animated film.

SYNOPSIS: (From the film's official website)
Jiro dreams of flying and designing beautiful airplanes, inspired by the famous Italian aeronautical designer Caproni.  Nearsighted from a young age and unable to be a pilot, Jiro joins a major Japanese engineering company in 1927 and becomes one of the world’s most innovative and accomplished airplane designers, earning the respect of prominent industry greats, including Hattori and Kurokawa The film chronicles much of Jiro’s life, depicting key historical events, including the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, the Great Depression, the tuberculosis epidemic and Japan’s plunge into war. Jiro meets and falls in love with Nahoko, and grows and cherishes his friendship with his colleague Honjo. 

Without a doubt, this is some of the most beautiful animation I've ever seen a film.  Every shot, every landscape, and every moment captured in this 2 hour flick is a work of pure art.  There is one shot involving the main love interest Nahoko crying that I swear might have been the single best animated shot I have ever seen, period.  It told so much without saying much, and I personally loved that.  There's another scene involving the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 that was also quite breathtaking to watch.  The list of incredible scenes and shots goes on and on, because the movie itself looks that good and just has the sense of enveloping your eyes and mind into this realistic world of anime.  The American voice cast compliments the gorgeous imagery here, but the real star of this film is the incredible work done by Miyazaki and his Studio Ghibli.

The irony of this film is that it is based on the life of a real man, Jiro Horikoshi, yet it is animated and fully of mystical imagery.  And yet, that works to the film's benefit.  The story and the script on their own are really good, but putting this animation on top of all of that really has an effect on the overall experience.  If this film was live action or CGI, chances are it wouldn't have had the same effect as it does with anime.  This film could have only been done, and succeeded as well as it did, in Japanese animation.  Some may not be into the mouths not fully syncing up to the English dubbing, but in the end, you get invested in the animation, the story, and these characters who you grow to love over the course of 2 hours.

I'd argue that this was the animated film that should have won at this past Academy Awards.  Don't get me wrong, "Frozen" was a great film and I'm glad many fell in love with it, but I don't completely get why it has become this huge cultural phenomenon of some sort and people calling this Disney's best work of the past century.  Even though this was only distributed by Disney and not fully produced by the Mouse House, I wish that the honchos over there had given this film more of a push, because I honestly think this could have won a lot of awards.  I honestly cannot find a single flaw present in this film, and would really need to see it again to fully process in my mind what I had seen, because the first experience was so overwhelming and so captivating.  "The Wind Rises" is a journey of the mind and soul, and is, without a doubt, the best animated movie I have seen so far this year.  And if really is the last film of Hayao Miyazaki's long career, then he sure as hell ended on a beautiful high note, as his swan song is simply incredible.



PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

The Boxtrolls


The Amazing Spider-Man 2


Million Dollar Arm


Bears