REVIEW: Queen of Earth

MOVIE
Queen of Earth

CAST
Elisabeth Moss,
Katherine Waterston

RATING
NR

RELEASE
August 26, 2015 (NY/VOD)

DIRECTOR
Alex Ross Perry

STUDIO
IFC Films

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 30 minutes








STARS
*1/2











REVIEW:

Every once in a while, there is a movie that comes out that I simply can't understand why other people enjoy it.  "Queen of Earth" has a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes and has received constant praise from fellow colleagues of mine.  I wish I could see what they see in this indie drama-thriller.  The movie comes to us from writer/director Alex Ross Perry, who made a movie last year called "Listen Up Phillip" that I never got around to seeing.  Elisabeth Moss from "Mad Men" plays Catherine, a damaged woman who is dealing with her boyfriend breaking up with her and, soon after, the death of her father.  She ends up staying with her best friend Virginia, played by Katherine Waterston from "Inherent Vice," at her lake house for some much-needed relaxation.  From there shenanigans ensue, and the realization that they've been drifting apart for so long slowly comes crawling upon them.

I'll give the movie some credit and say the acting was fine, and the cinematography is solid.  Having said that, every single character in this movie is so unlikeable, and not in a fascinating or entertaining way.  Every single character in this movie, and the cast is very small mind you, are absolute swine.  The things they say were so vile and irritating that I could believe that the dialogue came straight out of their asses.  Not to mention, at times it seemed like the characters had bipolar disorder in which their moods and attitudes change so abruptly.  To be fair, a portion of the movie is told through flashbacks, but even when it's in the modern day setting everyone's emotions were all over the place.

It's fine when movies try to have flawed and unlikable characters in a psychological storyline.  Llewyn Davis in "Inside Llewyn Davis," for example, was a flawed individual who clearly wasn't a great guy, yet was constantly captivating to watch thanks to great writing and a great performance to go with it.  The way this movie showcased its characters felt very pompous and melodramatic in my eyes.  There are also points where it's hard to get a grasp on what's real and what's happening inside someone's head.  Again, movies can make wonders doing this, but here it felt like a desperate attempt to show off the "talents" of the writer/director and be super artsy.

The editing is very odd at times, particularly with its absurd fetish to cut to black.  Random and awkward scene cuts also seem to be this movie's best friend.  Alex Ross Perry can direct a movie fine,  and I'm sure his other movies are good (hopefully), but this film's screenplay felt so grim and so full-of-it that I kept getting more and more frustrated as the movie went along.  Not to mention, it seemed like there were moments that were supposed to be funny, but rather these parts came off as awkward and bizarre.  I got sent a screener for this movie a while back and watched the movie via my laptop.  Despite the movie being only 90 minutes long, it took me 2 and a half hours to sit through this.  That was mainly since I kept pausing it in order to process what the hell I was watching and control the slow-rising rage boiling inside me from this.

As I said before, I'm in the minority in regards to this movie.  If you're a fan of the films of Alex Ross Perry, then chances are you will like this.  If you like psychological studies of really unlikable characters, again you may like this.  "Queen of Earth" just wasn't my cup of tea, for lack of a better term.  Then again I did enjoy such critically panned films as "Pixels," "A Million Ways To Die In The West," and anything else that can come to mind, so my opinion may not be just on this.  If you want to see the movie, go ahead and see the movie.  You may enjoy it, and I would be really happy about that.  People shouldn't go into movies expecting them to suck.  That might explain why I enjoy so many movies and dislike so few of them.  Sadly, this is one of those few I dislike.  In my eyes, "Queen of Earth" is a self-absorbed, vile and overly-artsy indie that feels like it's saying and doing more than it is.

MINI-REVIEW: Turbo Kid

MOVIE
Turbo Kid

CAST
Munro Chambers,
Laurence Leboeuf

RATING
NR

RELEASE
August 28, 2015 (LIMTIED/VOD)

DIRECTOR(S)
Anouk Whissell,
François Simard,
Yoann-Karl Whissell

STUDIO
Epic Pictures Group

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 33 minutes







STARS
***3/4









REVIEW:

Films like "Turbo Kid" scream "cult status" simply by their existence.  This particular film, brought to us by French-Canadian filmmaking group RKSS, takes place in a post-apocalyptic version of the year 1997.  In this world, water is scarce, and survival is everything, a la "Mad Max: Fury Road."  Munro Chambers plays a loner kid who, while trying to survive, also happens to be a big fan of the comic book hero Turbo Rider.  After meeting up with the eccentric Apple, played by Laurence Lebeouf, "The Kid" ends up discovering equipment that will allow him to become just like the Turbo Rider.  Using these powers for justice, The Kid plans to stop the maniac running the town, played by Michael Ironside, before any more damage can be done to others.

Aside from obviously paying homage to "Mad Max" with its post-apocalyptic water-scarce desert setting, the filmmakers behind this also show a true love for 80s exploitation/Grindhouse movies and the use of practical effects.  In fact, this has some of the goriest and most inventive deaths in any movie to come out this year.  Even if Gore isn't your strong suit, most of, if not all of the blood and guts poured out of victims and onto the screen are played for laughs.  These three filmmakers clearly show a passion for what they're making, and it's obvious from every scene that they're having a blast every second of the way.  Aside from the pacing being off at times, this is an insanely fun homage to campy 80s movies.  Imagine if the apocalyptic setting of ‪"Mad Max‬," the quirkiness of ‪"Scott Pilgrim vs. The World," a hypnotically synthetic 80s-esque soundtrack, and the ultraviolence of an exploitation film were all thrown into a blender; this is the protein shake that would come oozing out.  Grab a bunch of friends together along with a giant tub of popcorn and experience this retro indie as soon as you can.  "Turbo Kid" might not be for everyone, but it's hard to deny how inventive and ridiculous this movie is overall.

MINI-REVIEW: Straight Outta Compton

MOVIE
Straight Outta Compton

CAST
O'Shea Jackson Jr.,
Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell

RATING
R

RELEASE
August 14, 2015

DIRECTOR
F. Gary Gray

STUDIO
Universal Pictures

RUNNING TIME
2 hours 27 minutes






STARS
***3/4












REVIEW:

Musical biopics are something of a common trend now.  There are memorable ones, like "Walk the Line," and more forgettable ones, like "Get on Up."  It seemed almost inevitable that a musical biopic about N.W.A. would come our way, especially since Ice Cube and Dr. Dre have been talking about making this for a while.  Well now, we have it, and it's appropriately given the title "Straight Outta Compton."  For those who don't know, the group N.W.A. was famously made up of the lyrics of Ice Cube, the production of Dr. Dre, and the rapping swagger of Eazy-E.  These three men made headlines throughout their careers together, causing much controversy in the government just as much as on the streets.  Their mission was to tell it as it was, and songs like "Straight Outta Compton" and "F*** The Police" surprisingly still hold up to this day, especially considering the recent events to have happened in this country.  While one might expect that the film would have ended the moment N.W.A. broke up, director F. Gary. Gray decided to keep the story going.  While that makes the film nearly 2 and a half hours long, it continues the story that manages to stay fascinating and bittersweet come the film's conclusion, depending on how you see it.

The three leads playing Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, and Eazy-E, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Corey Hawkins, and Jason Mitchell are all pretty damn great in the movie.  Each one adds a sense of depth and reliability to their characters and make them all very engaging to watch.  The style of the movie itself is gritty and realistic, giving the audience a rough "slice of life" and showing that the late 80s and early 90s though the culture has changed, are shockingly similar to things that happen today.  F. Gary Gray was something of an ideal choice to direct this, as his visual flare and his previous experience with Ice Cube help him tell a great story altogether.  The film as a whole drags at times, and there are certain elements that could have been cut out, but as a whole "Straight Outta Compton" is a strong, gritty, and entertaining look into the cause, effect, and aftermath of one of the most controversial musical groups in history.






PREVIEWS YOU MAY SEE:

The Green Inferno

The Hateful Eight

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Creed

Crimson Peak

Ride Along 2

The Night Before (Red Band)

Hitman: Agent 47 (Red Band)

REWIND REVIEW: Mistress America

MOVIE
Mistress America

CAST
Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke

RATING
R

RELEASE
August 14, 2015 (NY/LA)

DIRECTOR
Noah Baumbach

STUDIO
Fox Searchlight Pictures

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 25 minutes







STARS
****









REVIEW:

"Mistress America" re-teams Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig for their third time over the course of five years.  Regarding tone and characters, this is very similar to "Frances Ha," though this one is miles better in my eyes.  "Mistress" is about a young college freshman in New York, played by the adorable Lola Kirke, who ends up under the wing of her eccentric and outgoing soon-to-be stepsister, played by Gerwig.  Being a college freshman in Brooklyn myself, this story really connected with me on many levels.  In many ways, I could see myself in the shoes of Kirke's Tracy, being alone and unfamiliar to this world far bigger than she might have anticipated.  At the same time, I could see myself in Gerwig's Brooke, having the passion of pursuing large dreams and attempt to make the world around her, well, her bitch.

Not only is the movie relatable and poignant, but it's also extremely funny.  This film may have the most consistent amount of laugh-inducing jokes in a movie all year.  Baumbach and Gerwig go back to the roots of the old-school screwball comedies of the 1930s-1950s with its jokes.  In fact, there are so many jokes thrown in per minute that it's kind of hard to get them all on a first viewing.  That's how funny this movie is.  The second half of the movie alone, which mostly takes place in one setting, has more laughs than any other comedy to have come out this year, and maybe even last year too.  It might just be that I love this type of humor, but I was laughing hard consistently.  If you're not a fan of old-school humor and are more a fan of shock-humor or really raunchy jokes, then this might not be the film for you.  There are some raunchy jokes here, but they don't make up the movie's entire sense of humor.  Take that for what it's worth.

Greta Gerwig as always shines and gives a lively and energetic performances, making herself out to be the next big indie "it" girl of the modern era.  Lola Kirke, whose most known role prior to this film was a small role in David Fincher's "Gone Girl," is also quite terrific in this movie.  She has this lovable "girl next door" look and attitude to her performance, which is enhanced by an adorable little lisp she has.  However when she brings on her sex appeal in certain scenes in the movie, my god does she bring it.  I can honestly see Kirke becoming something like the next Shailene Woodley or Jennifer Lawrence if the right cards are handed her way.  These two have terrific chemistry together, which work even better when they're in scenes with their fellow cast mates.  The second half, in particular, is where every single joke hits hard, every performance is great, and every bit of dialogue entertains.  I'm not going to spoil exactly what goes down during this section of the movie, but when you see it, you'll know what I'm talking about.

In case you couldn't tell, I love this movie.  Every note in this movie hit with grace to me, and for 84 minutes I was under complete control of Baumbach, Gerwig, and co.  Not only is this a great comedy and a relatable story about adjusting to a new life in a new place, but it's also a rather beautiful story of two strangers whose bond becomes bigger than the one that their parents are about to share together.  We have all had that special friend who not only shares common interests but just simply "gets" you.  They understand how your mind works and want to follow every move you make or help you on the path of righteousness.  This bond is what Brooke and Tracy share in this movie, and in my eyes, it's the best love story of 2015.

Because of school, and laziness, to be honest, this review has been in the draft stage for the past few months, so sadly this can't be experienced in the theater at this time.  However, it did just come out on Digital HD and should be on DVD very soon.  Do yourself a favor and just see this movie.  It can be with friends, family members, people you don't know, or even just yourself.  Either way, this is a movie that deserves to be seen before the year runs out.  "Mistress America" is a sharply written, expertly crafted, and perfectly paced comedy that has the funniest and possibly most relatable dialogue and story this year has seen.

ME WITH THE CO-WRITER/DIRECTOR OF 

"MISTRESS AMERICA," NOAH BAUMBACH, AFTER A SPECIAL SHOWING OF THE FILM ON 

AUGUST 21, 2015!!!!

REWIND REVIEW: While We're Young

MOVIE
While We're Young

CAST
Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts

RATING
R

RELEASE
March 27, 2015

DIRECTOR
Noah Baumbach

STUDIO
A24

RUNNING TIME
1 hour 37 minutes






STARS
***3/4










REVIEW:

In between working with his co-writer/female lead/muse Greta Gerwig, filmmaker Noah Baumbach made a little film called "While We're Young."  This is the story of a married couple in their 40s, played by Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts, who begin to feel full of life and youthful again after befriending a younger and more free-spirited couple played by Adam Driver and Amanda Seyfried.  It's easy to pass this off as yet another movie that has people reminiscing about the "good ol' days," but Baumbach takes this concept and adds in a surprisingly relatable story-arc about people striving to make it to the top no matter the cost.  The script is well-written, Baumbach's direction is on point, and every actor delivers a strong performance.  Adam Driver in particular steals the show in every scene he's in.  If you haven't seen "While We're Young" yet, then definitely seek it out and give it a watch.  It is slow and weak at times, but everything great about this movie makes up for that.