Transcendence

So it seems that it is only a matter of time before technology completely takes over the world, huh? Yeah, Terminator 2: Judgment Day predicted it years ago! More and more though, that prediction is becoming frighteningly true with our reliance on all technologies from smart phones to iPads to all those new-fangled gadgets (I'm not a techie). Ripped apart critically last year, 2014's Transcendence tries to explore that premise.

A brilliant intellectual with quite a following -- some good, some bad -- Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) has long wondered about the potential of artificial intelligence. One of his theories has that A.I. eventually growing to the point that it supersedes all human intelligence (his Transcendence theory) and then who knows what will happen? It is a theory that produces quite a counter, people scared of that potential, people who pull off an assassination attempt on Will because of what he might be up to. As he slowly dies from radiation poisoning, Will begins to work with his wife, Evelyn (Rebecca Hall), and a friend and associated, Max (Paul Bettany), about uploading his consciousness into a potentially thinking computer that will act as his brain and be that missing link in human intelligence turned into A.I. Max sees the potential but also the inherent threat in what they're doing. Evelyn on the other hand, simply wants to preserve her husband in whatever way she can. What will become of this potentially world-altering scientific development?

Talk about a movie that you think 'What could have been.' I loved the idea of 'Transcendence,' what first-time director Wally Pfister and writer Jack Paglen are going for. The execution at times, falls a bit short. For what they set out to do, this is a scenario that at times feels rushed, feels goofy, feels like we're missing something. There's some plot holes I feel an 18-wheeler could drive through comfortably. How does the government not realize what Will's A.I. is doing? How does no one notice millions and millions of dollars changing hands on Wall Street? If the answer is 'Will's A.I. stopped the passing of knowledge,' that's just not a good reason. In a way I can't put my finger on, there's something missing from this tech thriller. It's something that stops it from truly being all it can be. The Marines!

Now that said...I enjoyed this flick. I didn't love it, but whatever. Reviews were universally negative, and 'Transcendence' did struggle in theaters, especially in the U.S. There's an impressive cast put together, and Pfister's background is working as cinematographer on Christopher Nolan's Batman movies so we see some familiar faces in that case. If it doesn't develop as well as it should, so be it. I was intrigued by the premise, the build-up and even if there are holes along the way, I was entertained throughout. It gets goofy -- downright goofy, even stupid -- in the final act but I was invested in it to the end...even if it uses one of those ominous final shots that feature a twist that makes literally NO SENSE. That's for you to decide though. Feels like a lot of folks really disliked this one, but there's enough positive going on to give it a mild recommendation.

Johnny Depp has been in a rut for a couple years now so give him credit here for taking a unique, out of the ordinary lead role. It's not really a SPOILER, but his Dr. Caster is dead 30 minutes into the movie only to see his brain and consciousness uploaded into a computer. In just about every role he's in, Depp -- say whatever else you want -- is a likable on-screen presence. It's a solid part, his monotone delivery as A.I. Jack adding a creepy dimension to the second half of the flick. What is the A.I.'s goal? Is it well-meaning or is there a darker intent? The answer in the end surprised me for sure, but Depp is one of the best parts of the movie. Hall is very good too as his wife, Evelyn, working as the audience is to try and figure out what her husband (or at least her husband's mind) is up to.

Who else to look for? There's some solid names if not necessarily well-written parts, several sticking with Pfister from the Batman flicks. I thought Bettany was good if underused as Max, a researcher who immediately sees the threat of uploading Will's mind who also possibly maybe probably has a thing for Evelyn. Also look for Cillian Murphy (FBI), Morgan Freeman (necessary wise older man role), Kate Mara (cute extremist who hates technology), Cole Hauser (mean-looking army officer), and Clifton Collins Jr. (dupe for Will's ever-building power).

As I look back on 'Transcendence,' I'm remembering all those goofy moments that could have used a little more development, a little more time to breathe. The story has a ton of potential, maybe enough to justify a two-part miniseries that could have explained the science in more depth. As is though, it's a slightly above average technological thriller. Worth a watch/rent.

Transcendence (2014): ** 1/2 /****

Pacific Rim

I saw the trailer for 2013's Pacific Rim and didn't have any screaming interest to see it this past summer. While it looked cool, I thought it looked like a hybrid Godzilla-Cloverfield-Transformers movie. I liked all those movies in one way or another, but something just hit me funny. It earned decent reviews and made some solid cash, but it took a couple positive reviews from folks I usually agree with to sell me on it. The main reason they liked it? Just a good, old-fashioned movie intended to be eaten with a big tub of popcorn. The verdict? Read on.

In 2013, Earth is under attack, immense, truly enormous creatures called Kaijus from another dimension that travel to our planet from an interdimensional portal on the floor of the Pacific Ocean. The creatures wreak havoc, mankind responding with Jaegers, equally huge humanoid war machines piloted by two human pilots. The Jaegers hold back the other dimensional creatures, but years pass and the Kaijus become bigger, faster and stronger to the point they're almost impossible to defeat. When the creatures start coming through the portal quicker and quicker, mankind becomes desperate, turning to an impenetrable sea wall to stop the creatures. While the wall is constructed, the Jaegers must mount one last stand, the unit's commander, Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba), limited to his last four war machines. He turns to a former pilot, Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam), to pilot one of the machines, but is it too late to save Earth?

Director Guillermo del Toro has said in interviews that his intention here was to make a tribute-like movie to horror and sci-fi creature flicks from the past. It's supposed to be big, fun, action-packed and entertaining, the perfect summer movie. Unfortunately, I think del Toro and screenwriter Travis Beacham just try to do too much in a 132-minute long movie. 'Pacific' is fun and dumb and goofy and exciting, but there's pilots, commanders, rival pilots, pilots who have daddy issues, science issues, tech issues, a pilot who wants a woman as his co-pilot but she's got some traumatic issues from her past affecting her, a black market dealer with golden shoes, and scientists who are more obnoxious than as funny as I'm assuming they were intended. It tries to please everyone and got taken down a notch or two in the process.

What is no doubt the best thing going here is the CGI, the visual look of the movie. It's good and bad, but more on that reasoning later. The Kaijus are something to behold, each of them with a distinct visual look, like a crossbreed between Godzilla and the gnarliest reptilian monsters you've ever seen. Their background isn't explained much unfortunately, but we know with each passing attack, the interdimensional creatures seem to have evolved into one indestructible being after another. How to do battle with them? Machinery, technology and in some cases, pure guts. The Jaeger fighters look like Transformers meet the Iron Giant, but with human pilots directing them. Each of these immense humanoid creatures has a personality of their own, typically reflecting the personality of the pilots inside, but also their own unique visual appeal. The CGI is incredible to watch. It's seamless, pretty much flawless. It looks real, not like something created on a computer.

But here I sit, the same problem I had with the Transformers movies. The CGI and the technology are ridiculous to watch, truly ridiculous. The advances in technology are remarkable, especially considering where computer-generated special effects were just 10, 15 years ago. Is it actually too good? It gets to the point that the battles between the Kaijus and the Jaegers become too muddled, too busy, too detail-oriented. Most of the fights take place at night, either in water or in congested, poorly lit cities so the battles become incredibly difficult to watch. On a simpler level, they get repetitive. Yeah, I know the pilots are human. Yeah, I realize the Kaijus are trying to annihilate Earth, but seeing one fight after another between the warring sides gets old. Sure, a Jaeger picking up an immense freighter and trying to beat the crap out of a Kaiju with it is cool, but these epically staged battles lose some of their effectiveness when we see the battles over and over.

Where I was encouraged was del Toro's decision not to cast any huge stars in this movie...at all. No A-listers in sight here, not by a long shot. The always criminally cool Idris Elba is the best performance here (and the coolest character name) as Stacker Pentecost, the driven, nearly obsessed Jaeger commander attempting anything he can that would turn the tide, his "We're cancelling the Apocalypse" speech a highlight. Hunnam is more hit or miss with a cool idea for a character, but something's missing. I can't decide if it's bad acting or just a bad part, the subplot with hopeful co-pilot Mako (Rinko Kikuchi) lacking any energy or originality at all. Always Sunny star Charlie Day and Burn Gorman are cast for some laughs as a scientist duo searching for clues to take down the Kaijus, but the attempts at laughs are pretty painful. Max Martini and Robert Kazinsky are a father-son duo piloting the most powerful Jaeger while Clifton Collins Jr. plays a control room tech. Ron Perlman hams it up as Hannibal Chau, the world's leading black market dealer in Kaiju parts.

I keep coming back to something, a thought I usually don't associate with fun summer blockbusters. I'll give this one a slightly positive review, but it could have been a movie of a really good to great to near classic movie. Directing the film, del Toro set out to make a fun movie. Is it weird then to say there was potential on display here for a possibly really smart, even intelligent film? Space portals open up all sorts of doors about the immensity of space. What could be out there? What could be trying to destroy us? Why are they doing so? How does mankind respond? Hunnam's Raleigh explains it all in an interesting, well-told monologue over the movie's first 15 minutes. There just could have been more, SO MUCH MORE. The same from the human perspective. We see the heroic Jaeger pilots become genuine celebrities. How about the Drift technique, linking 2 pilots together through their thoughts and past? It's a brilliant concept that isn't fully explored. I don't know if I've written a review for a movie wanting it to be smarter, to embrace its intelligence, but here it is. Pacific Rim is good but it could have been great, and that's the most disappointing thing.

Instead, the explanations and scene-to-scene transitions are rushed and muddled. The two comic relief scientists manage to mind-drift with the Kaijuis and somehow learn EVERYTHING about them in seconds. I'm not buying it. Things happen because the story requires it far more than I'd like. The Jaegers seem to have one weapon that handles the Kaijus effectively, but Raleigh completely forgets to use it in battle...until he needs to remember. If he remembered earlier, then there'd be no battle! The same goes for the finale, certain characters surviving because....well, because they survive. I liked this movie, but I wanted to love it. Too bad.

Pacific Rim (2013): ** 1/2 /****

Tigerland

One of the more controversial movies to come out about the Vietnam War, Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket is a divisive movie among fans because of its makeup.  It is two radically different halves of a story, the first being boot camp for a company of Marines, the second following one main character as he's shipped overseas to fight in Vietnam.  I like both halves, but many fans/critics maintain that the boot camp first half is far and away the better half (I tend to agree).  So why not make a whole movie about the boot camp aspect of being a soldier preparing for Vietnam?  That's 2000's Tigerland.

Director Joel Schumacher is known more for his ability to make the big, booming, heartless blockbuster than a documentary-like portrayal of a true story (sort of).  But in a departure from his usual, Schumacher turns in a winner with a vastly different style.  Telling the story of an American platoon of soldiers training at Fort Polk in Louisiana, Tigerland feels like a documentary made in the 1970s.  He films with handi-cams that does produce some stomach-turning editing -- hold the camera steady for God's sake! -- but also uses a filter that gives the movie a retro, even fuzzy look at times.  The end result though is that you feel like you're there with the soldiers as they struggle with the reality that in a few short weeks they'll be fighting in Vietnam.

It's 1971 at Fort Polk in Louisiana, and a platoon of American soldiers is just eight quick weeks away from being shipped to Vietnam.  The officers and NCOs push them to their limits to prepare them for the hell they will fight with in Vietnam, but nothing can really prepare them for what awaits.  Among this platoon is Jim Paxton (Matthew Davis), a Northern college student who volunteered in the army where most were drafted, and Roland Bozz (Colin Farrell), a rebellious Texan doing everything he can to get kicked out of the army. The two very different soldiers have a completely opposite viewpoint on the war, but they share a common goal in just wanting to survive.  But as big a troublemaker as he is, Bozz is seen by his superiors as an ideal leader.  Looming ahead though is a week-long trek to Tigerland, a camp meant to simulate Vietnam and all its horrors.

First off, this is not a Vietnam movie like Platoon or Apocalypse Movie where combat and jungle fighting dominate the story.  Tigerland is about the training plain and simple.  Vietnam is only an idea, a place none of these young men have ever been yet.  It's a refreshing change of pace though because the Viet Cong and NVA aren't the enemies here.  It is the infighting that takes place among a melting pot of American soldiers from a laundry list of backgrounds and experiences.  These are 18 and 19 year old kids getting ready to fight in a very unpopular war and are very much aware of that.  By 1971, the backing of the war had taken a huge turn to the negative in public sentiment. Going to fight a lost war where chances of survival are slim? I'd be pissed too.

I was worried early on that the pretentious, cliche-filled story was going to be more than a little boring to watch...again.  I'd seen this movie before.  Thankfully, Schumacher establishes all these well-worn, known cliches and builds on them.  We see characters that we know from other movies, but he doesn't stop there, allowing us to get to know these individuals rather than resting on the audience being comfortable with what they've seen before.  Some of the supporting characters include Thomas Guiry as Pvt. Cantwell, a father of four with a schizophrenic wife, Clifton Collins Jr. as Miter, the appointed platoon guide who begins to crumble under the pressure, Shea Whigham as Pvt. Wilson, a soldier dripping with hate, and Russell Richardson as Pvt. Johnson.  The training officer and commanders include Nick Searcy, Afemo Omilami, and James MacDonald.  

Still a relative unknown in the United States when he made this movie, Colin Farrell is the hands down breakout star.  I've long been a fan of Farrell as an actor, but this might be his part overall role.  He creates a mess of a character in Roland Bozz, a soldier who you find yourself rooting for almost in spite of him at times.  A loner, a rebel, Bozz does anything he can to fight the system and push the limits.  He is an idealist who opposes the war but not for anything far-flung ideas or principles.  He just thinks it's wrong what one human being can do to another.  Doing his best to get kicked out of the army, Bozz ends up getting a leadership role.  All his objections aside, Bozz is a natural leader who gains the respect of his fellow trainees, but that doesn't mean he's still not looking for an out.  His character gets all twisted around into making decisions that obviously impact him, but all those around him.

The highlight of the movie was the last 25-30 minutes, the actual trip into Tigerland, a portion of the Louisiana swamp serving as a testing ground for what Vietnam will be like. The trainers are recent vets of Vietnam -- Cole Hauser impresses as a sergeant just days removed from a tour -- who know they're fighting a losing battle but nonetheless have a job to do in training these green soldiers. The movie's more startling moments come to the forefront here as the trainees are pushed to their limits and respond accordingly.  The ending does supply a bit of a surprise and is both appropriate and frustrating.  You'd like closure as to what happens, but it's just not in the cards.

Tigerland <---trailer (2000): *** 1/2 /****

The Last Castle

In about a year and a half or so I've written over 350 reviews while trying to cover a wide range of movies and actors from all sorts of different genres.  Some names come up more than others, but I feel really bad about missing one in particular, the always cool Robert Redford.  In 350-plus reviews, I didn't do one Redford movie. It wasn't an intentional slight, and all I can come up with is that I've tried to review movies I haven't seen in the past.  Looking at Redford's filmography, I've seen about half so that explains it to a certain point.  So anyways, here goes, a Redford review starting with 2001's The Last Castle. 

One of the biggest stars of the 1960s and 1970s, Redford has stepped back from the limelight over the last 15 years, content to direct more than act while also organizing the annual Sundance Film Festival.  At 74 years old, he is one of those few actors you could really call a 'movie star.' He has aged gracefully without any sort of controversy or media event to scar his career, and he is as cool as ever.  In 'Castle,' he was making his first on-screen appearance in three years, and even though Redford is typically strong in the lead, the movie just can't sustain any sort of momentum before derailing in the final act.

A decorate army general, Lt. General Gene Irwin (Redford) has been court martialled and sentenced to serve a 10-year team in a military prison.  It is a maximum security prison full of the dredges from all the armed forces with a brutal commander, Colonel Winters (James Gandolfini), in charge, doing his best to remain order while also having some fun at the prisoners' expense.  Early on as he begins to serve his sentence, Irwin is content to sit back and let the days go by.  But soon enough, he sees Winters for what he really is; a sadistic commander watching over his prison like a puppetmaster, making the prisoners do things for his entertainment.  Irwin refuses to go along with what he sees and puts a complicated plan into action for ousting Winters.

Prison or P.O.W. movies have a popularity all to themselves, and because of that there's a tried and true formula to follow.   'Castle' does deviate from the formula in one big way; the prisoners aren't trying to escape.  As military criminals, they realize to a point where are they really going to go?  So with any escape plans out the window, the story settles into a battle of wills between two type-A personalities, Redford's Irwin and Gandolfini's Winters.  While obviously not as good a movie overall, the dynamic here reminded me of The Bridge on the River Kwai with the struggle for power a key ingredient to the story.

At the age of 65 making this movie, Redford looks like he's about 45, maybe 50 if you push it.  Since he started directing movies in the early 90s, he's acted less so it's always good to see him in front of the camera.  As Lt. General Irwin, he's clearly the more sympathetic character.  We find out midway through the movie why he was court martialed and therefore why early on he just wanted to do his time and avoid any of the politics of a general being in a military prison.  Seeing Winters play his mind games with prisoners and generally manipulate the facility for his enjoyment finally pushes Irwin too far, including one incident with a marine (Clifton Collins Jr. in a great supporting part) where unnecessary violence is taken to a new level by the commandant.

Right in the middle of his huge success as part of The Sopranos, Gandolfini does his fair share of scenery-chewing as the prison commander.  He butts heads instantly with Irwin when he overhears a comment about his military antique collection and it goes downhill from there.  What works so well with this dynamic is the egos involved.  Both men want to prove they're better than the other, even when the situation is escalated to a whole new level.  I'm not a huge Gandolfini fan, but he is a really fun actor to watch.  Also in the cast is Delroy Lindo as General Wheeler, an old friend of Irwin's suspicious of what's really happening in the prison, Mark Ruffalo as Yates, a prisoner no one likes who may or may not be playing both sides, and Steve Burton as Capt. Peretz, Winters' aide.

Through the first hour of 'Castle,' I was liking where the story was building to if not loving it.  After that, the whole movie rolls over a land mine, derails, hits a wall, whatever you want to call it.  Pushed too far, Irwin -- a master of command and strategy -- leads a coup from inside the prison against the heavily outnumbered guards.  On a purely action scale, the last half hour is everything you could ask for.  But from where the story is coming, it comes out of nowhere with no warnings or explanations which would have helped fill in some holes.  It's just a weird ending that made me realize what a weird movie this was as a whole.  Take away the performances from Redford and Gandolfini, and this movie is pretty bad in a cartoonish way.  Go figure.

The Last Castle <----trailer (2001): **/****

The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day

In a perfect example of how strong DVD sales can give a movie a second chance, 1999's The Boondock Saints made less than $20,000 in a very short theater run only to become a cult hit on DVD.  But success came at a price with a 2003 documentary that showed director Troy Duffy's meteoric rise to success and fall from grace.  Duffy fell completely out of the limelight and didn't make another movie for 10 years until the studios finally asked him to make a sequel for the Saints, 2009's The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day.

The original is actually a mess of a movie that works because of all its goofy action, cheesy one-liners, and characters that were surprisingly sympathetic.  It was a formula that worked so Duffy repeats it with his sequel.  Not 'repeats' like he continues where the 1st movie left off, but 'repeats' like scene-for-scene with the same humor and action.  With 10 years to work on a sequel and script, this is the best he could come up with?  As a huge fan of the original, this sequel comes across as boring, been there and done that, and generally pretty lazy.  The two vigilante brothers cleaning up society's trash worked smoothly the first time around, but not for a second go-around.

It's been eight years since brothers Connor (Sean Patrick Flanery) and Murphy (Norman Reedus) killed a Boston mafioso in a courtroom full of witnesses with their father, Il Duce (Billy Connolly).  Dubbed 'the Saints,' the trio escaped to Ireland where they tend a small sheep farm, but news reaches them that a priest in Boston was killed in a manner suspiciously similar to how they dispatched their victims.  So either some one is trying to frame them, or two, lure them back to Boston.  No matter the reason, the Saints return to the states with Romeo (Clifton Collins Jr.), basically a Mexican gangster, joining them.  They set their sites on Concezio Yakavetta (Judd Nelson), the son of the mafioso they killed years before.  But not so fast, the Feds get called in with Special Agent Eunice Bloom (Julie Benz) leading the investigation.

I don't even know where to start with this one.  With a few very small exceptions, nothing really works here.  Two of the original's best characters aren't back -- one died in the first movie, the other makes a very small, very pointless cameo -- but instead of bringing in some new, interesting characters, Duffy creates new versions that are almost identical.  Collins Jr. is funny enough although he's trying too hard as Rocco 2, I mean Romeo.  He acts crazy and bugs out his eyes after every line.  As for Benz, she's the student of Agent Paul Smecker (Wilem Dafoe, he makes the cameo) and basically channels his ability.  Easy on the eyes, but not on the ears, Benz has an accent like nails on the chalkboard and comes across as more annoying than cutesy.

That's not to say they're the ones to blame.  With the brothers, whole scenes are duplicated from the original to show off their dynamic.  The most obnoxious one has them getting into a fistfight right before a hit attempt that of course, goes perfectly even if it wasn't drawn up that way.  Their lines are nothing more than a series of one-liners that don't do much at all, my favorite being Reedus' "Let's do some gratuitous violence."  It doesn't make sense, and haha, we get it, you're addressing us as fans.  And completely unrelated to story or character, as Connor, Flanery doesn't look quite right -- something's going on with his eyes and face.  Connolly is a bright spot as he was in the original, and we do see some great background with him as to how he became the notorious killer Il Duce.

Connolly's subplot is the worthy part of the story, including his relationship with his former partner who eventually turned him in.  SPOILERS STOP READING IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW THE TWIST SPOILERS  The partner, now all grown up, is setting up the brothers to get a crack at Connor and Murphy.  In what should have been a cool part, Peter Fonda plays the Roman, an aging gangster trying to right wrongs he's done.  Connolly and Fonda have a great scene together near the finale, but it's undone by a really stupid action scene to close out the movie.  And the capper, Il Duce gets knocked off.  Not cool at all, but it does go along with my "the coolest character always gets whacked" theory.  END OF SPOILERS

The action especially is pretty disappointing, looking more like PG-13 shootouts than the R-rating it was given.  Instead of improving on the top-notch, highly stylized action of the original, Duffy does the same exact thing in terms of storytelling.  Set-up is introduced, fade to black, aftermath, FBI agents analyze scene, and Benz's Bloom explains what happens inserted into the scene.  It was cool the first time, especially with Dafoe's famous "THERE WAS A FIREFIGHT!" line, but it's dull here.  As a comparison, watch Benz inexplicably dressed up as a cowgirl in a similar scene. (SPOILERS watch it HERE).  The finale too disappoints mostly because by then the story is a complete mess and makes no sense.  If that's important to you.

For every good moment here in the sequel, they're undone by many more moments that fall flat on their faces.  Awkward unnecessary nudity, some horrific choices in soundtrack playing over the countless montages, and not more than an ounce or two of originality.  The Boondock Saints was a surprise hit, and it seems Duffy tried to do exactly the same thing with his second feature film.

Of course, the final scene is actually pretty cool, and leaves the door open for a third movie.  As much as I loved the first one, I can't help but hope that they decide to let a sleeping dog lie.  Who knows what went wrong?  The tone's too jokey where the original was mostly serious, and the humor falls flat.  There's also countless flashbacks as if to point out, 'hey, remember how good the original was?'  It needlessly calls attention to what could have been. This sequel was awful.

The Boondock Saints II: All Saint's Day <----trailer (2009): */****