Thursday, May 8, 2014

A Nerd 5 Review: The Amazing Spiderman 2

The Good: Overall I can’t say there’s too much to like about Marc Webb’s follow up to The Amazing Spiderman; I can say that it’s not all bad and even fun, at times. What works about this film is its sense of nostalgia, the suit is closer to the comics then it’s ever been, Peter Parker himself is very reminiscent of the comic character fans have grown to love, finally this film is uniquely a Spiderman film, not a generic superhero.

Andrew Garfield is a good Spiderman, but not the best Peter Parker. He really understands the duality of the character, his moral struggles and his need to do the right thing while still struggling with the characters selfish teenage nature. Garfield is great at delivering the one-liners his fight scenes need to stay fresh. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have the same grasp on the character when out of costume; Garfield just can’t quite be the nerd Parker needs to be. But, this is the good section so let’s talk about what makes the non-web-slinging scenes work, Emma Stone. She is a nearly flawless Gwen Stacy; Stone is an actress that can raise the level of any script she works with and that’s certainly the case with Stacy. One of the most tragic and iconic characters in the Marvel universe is brought to life with grace, glamour, humor, compassion by Stone (and it doesn’t hurt that her chemistry with real life boyfriend Garfield is off the charts.)

A final shout out goes to the city of New York; it’s very common for a film to set in NYC, but not very often is the city featured as beautifully as it is here. Amazing Spiderman 2 really takes it time in showing us all sides of the big apple, from beautiful skylines to dark allies and from quite moments in the cement jungle to terrifying crowd scenes straight out your worst nightmare.  

The Bad: Sadly, the bad outweighs the good for this not-so-amazing sequel; diving deeper into what doesn’t work with Spidy misadventure we find the rest of the cast, director and writers. Above I mentioned both Garfield and Stone as giving good performance and creating good characters. That is sadly where it ends. I can’t say that any of what Jamie Foxx (Electro), Dane DeHaan (Harry Osborn), Paul Giamatti (The Rhino), Colm Feore (Donald Menken), and Sally Field (Aunt May) bring to the screen is worth the price of admission. All the characters except for Parker and Stacy feel extremely one-note, they serve a purpose to the plot, but not a purpose to the film; it’s hard to care about characters like these. However, even the best of actor can only do so much with a poor script.

Alex Kurtzman, Robert Orci, Jeff Pinker, and James Vanderbilt are the scribes behind this logjam of ideas. Woven into the piece are at least 4 messy, undeveloped subplots that could have easily been their own film. There is simply not time to deal with all of Peter’s daddy issues, all of Harry Osborn’s daddy issues, all of Gwen’s daddy… well you get my point. Besides everyone having enough glitches to keep Sigmund Freud in business for years, the characters are make giant logic leaps and assumptions that leave gaping plot holes. On top of this *WARNING NERD RANT COMING* Amazing Spiderman 2 takes the heart and soul of Peter Parker and tosses it out the window. Uncle Ben gives Peter his drive, his purpose, his mantra “with great power comes great responsibility;” But with this series Peter is so caught up with his dead parents, Gwen’s dead father (Dennis Leary who died in the first film), and his never-ending string of dreadful father figures that he completely disregards the death and words of his Uncle Ben and makes the little spider-fan in me cry.

But I can’t completely lay the blame on the screenwriters because many of the films issues are a total team effort. What’s holding this film series back? Director Marc Webb is my current answer (which is sad because 500 Days of Summer – his one non-spidy feature length effort—is an amazing film). Amazing Spiderman 2 is inconsistently shot; it ranges between beautifully composed shots and shots that came straight from an iPhone (credit to Jeff for that analogy). Even in dialogue scenes it seemed the crew couldn’t be bothered to set up two quality shots, instead we get a film full of great mashed up with rushed and lazy. As if the lack of quality shots weren’t enough the film is all over the place in tone. Comedy and drama can be mixed beautifully, but here they are not. The film gives us some of the campiest moments in all of superhero film history mixed in with some of the heaviest and most daring moments in superhero film history and it simply falls flat.

I can’t leave this section without mentioning the atrocious score. This film might have received an overall higher score from me if it was not for the his mix of electronic sounds, orchestral tones and vocal whispers that motivate our villains (I’m not joking that happens)

The Random: Tying up a few odds and ends.
·         The film is up and down to say the least, but if you can make it to the final third it’s an enjoyable final 45 minutes.
·         We are clearly working towards more Spiderfilms, with Sinister Six being the end game. We may be in for a long ride with this franchise (which is solely around so that Sony can keep the property and not have it revert back to Marvel and Disney), but is it a good idea to wrap an entire franchise around the villains of the universe?
·         ***SPOILER POINT DON’T READ IF YOU’VE NOT SEEN THE FILM*** I’m kind of surprised by the internet’s reaction to the fate of Gwen Stacy. It’s a pretty basic storyline in the Spiderman universe; one of the most famous arcs in all of comic history is The Death of Gwen Stacy, so to see come to life on the screen was a joy, since it was the part of the film that worked the best. I know it’s a risk to kill off a main character, but this one should have been one that Spiderfans should have seen coming. ***END SPOILER SECTION***
·         The Amazing Spiderman franchise is 0 for 2 vs. Sam Rami’s Spiderman franchise, but they have some good pieces in place, Garfield being one of them, and it shouldn’t be too hard to be better than Spiderman 3… wait… maybe that’s all this franchise needed! Get past these first two films and really hit your stride.


Overall Rating/Recommendation: B-. Be like Peter Parker, save the world show up late, enjoy the end.

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Oscar Day Part 2: The 10 Best Films of 2013!!

This is probably my favorite article of the year to write. It takes a year to write, a year to view everything that will go in here. It’s a very personal, for many reasons, featured on this list are the the films that connect to me, that I find to be amazing films and reach far beyond what other films are trying for. These films have to say something, they give you a reason to connect with their character, story and visuals, and show that filmmaking is an art form not just a purely commercial endeavor, even if they were created in a high commercial arena.

2013 is a special year; it is a really good year for film. All of the films on the list are amazing and could be number 1 in a different year. But instead they make up one of the strongest top 10s that I have seen. On top of that, there is at least 10 other films that deserve to be on the list or talked about among the greatest films of year, but sadly there is just no room. The least I could do for these great films is list them here.

Number 20-11: 20. About Time 19. 42: The Story of an American Legend 18. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire 17. Much Ado About Nothing 16. American Hustle 15. The Way Way Back 14. Saving Mr. Banks 13. Dallas Buyers Club 12. The Wolf of Wall Street 11. Blue is the Warmest Color

Also at the end of the article is the list of all every 2013 film I’ve seen (a majority of them in theaters, thanks again MoviePass!), this year’s total is 125 films seen. And now without anymore here are my top 10 films of 2013

10. The World’s End – Edgar Wirght’s finale instalment to the Cornetto Trilogy starts out our top ten. This film is FUN from start to finish. Although not a box office smash hit The World’s End is the perfect example of what a summer blockbuster should be. Fun, touching, emotional, visually interesting, and well told. Wright and lead actor Simon Pegg took a lot of time and care with their script and together have crafted characters that are full developed and fascinating to watch. There is a surprising amount of depth to this picture, Wright and Pegg really found the perfect situation for their characters to learn, grown and thrive; everything on the screen happens for a reason which is far more than can be said about most summer films. Pegg stands out in this film; his performance is superb and finds the heart and honesty in this crazy sci-fi world. The World’s End is a good time, with crazy good fight chorography, cinematography, and all the spectacle you could ask for, it’s also the most mature film of the entire trilogy. The World’s End is a simply a good time at the movies.   

9. Fruitvale Station – First time director Ryan Coogler delivers a blast to your heart with Fruitvale Station. He tells the true story Oscar Grant and his fateful new year’s eve 2008 and allows the audience to feel and connect with this person, his family, and friends and why his life is the way that he is. An important film that speaks the continuing race relations and intolerance in America Fruitvale Station should be remembered and viewed for many years to come. Michael B. Jordan breaks out in this role, he’s not showy, he is perfectly playing a modern day everyman and has carved a well-deserved career out with this role.

8. 12 Years a Slave – A brutal yet brilliant film that shows American slavery in a way that we’ve never seen it before. Driven by director Steve McQueen’s stunning visuals, pacing and tone 12 Years a Slave is a powerhouse of a film. The entire cast delivers stunning performances and is never afraid to give there all in every moment. The only drawback to the film is that I never want to watch it again, that’s how brutal this film is. 12 Years a Slave is an important and great film.

7. Frozen – Frozen is Disney Animation Studios at their finest. Going back to their 90s roots creating a Broadway style musical pays off big time as Frozen is destined to become a Disney classic. Anna (Kristen Bell) and Elsa (Idina Menzel) lead this wonderful cast of characters and takes you on a wonderfully amazing and breath taking journey. One of the most beautifully animated films of all time also works on every level as a film.   

6. PhilomenaA film that came out of nowhere to take the world by storm, staring Steve Coogan and Judi Dench Philomena is a sweet and charming film that will knock you on for a loop when the film finally gets to the heart of the matter. Director Stephen Frears skillful balances comedy and drama with this film and earns every moment in the film. This true story is moving at every turn and a pure joy to watch.  

5. Her – This is a film that actually has something to say about the time that we live in. Spike Jonze’s Her asks real questions about our society, questions about where we are now and where we are going and I dares to ask them in a way that we can understand. Her is visually stunning, with some of the most meticulous and amazing production design, the best original screenplay of the year and some of the most best and most proactive acting directing of the year. Her is an amazing love story that will forever be etched into my mind.

4. Gravity – The biggest spectacle of the year is one of the best films of the year. An amazingly strong performance from Sandra Bullock is almost dwarfed by the size and scope of Gravity. Director Alfonso Cuaron breaks all kinds of ground with his latest film achievement, creating new technology for film, using existing technology in new ways, and creating a completely immersive experience. But what Cuaron does is not forget that he’s making a film, and a film has to have a story, which is what makes Gravity stand above other Hollywood blockbusters.    

3. The Spectacular Now Possibly the most overlooked film of the year, is a moving, emotional and honest tale of a broken teenager Sutter (Miles Teller) trying to figure out his place in the world and struggling to understand who he is. With amazing performances by the entire supporting cast and some of the best color saturation and cinematography of the year The Spectacular Now is one of the best films of this or any year. What makes this stand out from other coming of age films is its commitment to honest portrayals of teenagers, these are not stereotypes they are full on characters who happen to be teens. The Spectacular Now is simply spectacular  

2. Nebraska – A beautifully shot, hauntingly soulful, and familiarly awkward trip through the mid-west in the more then capable hands of Alexander Payne, Nebraska is a moving tribute to fathers and sons and family in general. Amazing performances, great direction, and bold choices in filming and production all around; Nebraska is a film that calls to be seen and deserves all the praise that is thrust upon it.    

1. Inside Llewyn Davis – I know when I saw the trailer that I was going to love the new Coen Brothers film, but I didn’t expect to it to move me in the way that it did. Inside Llewyn Davis is the best film of the year. It’s brilliantly put together from editing to sound design and soundtrack, from cinematography to costumes, from writing and directing to every moment of every actor on screen, this film is simply flawless. A gripping and moving tale of Llewyn’s struggle with his life and all the surrounding elements that are forcing him to question his entire life, played to perfection by Oscar Isaac. For many reason Inside Llewyn Davis is the hands down the best film of the year.   



Complete List of 2013 films I’ve seen, in chronological order. If the film has an * by then I saw it at home not in a theater.


Gangster Squad
Movie 43
Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters
Warm Bodies
The Last Stand
Identity Thief
Side Effects
Beautiful Creatures
21 & Over
Jack The Giant Slayer
A Good Day to Die Hard
Snitch
Phantom
Escape From Planet Earth
Quartet
Dead Man Down
The Great and Powerful Oz
The Amazing Burt Wonderstone
Admission
Tyler Perry's Temptation
Olympus Has Fallen
The Croods
G.I. Joe: Retaliation
Spring Breakers
42: The Story an American Legend
The Host
Evil Dead
The Place Beyond The Pines
Oblivion
The Company You Keep
Iron Man 3
Mud
The Great Gatsby
Peeples
Star Trek Into Darkness
Epic
The Iceman
Now You See Me
After Earth
Fast and Furious 6
The Sapphires
Drinking Buddies
This Is The End
Man of Steel
The Internship
World War Z
Monsters University
The Purge
Much Ado About Nothing
The Heat
The Lone Ranger
Despicable Me 2
Pacific Rim
Grown Ups 2
The Wolverine
The Conjuring
The Way Way Back
Turbo
Fruitvale Station
Let Me Explain: Kevin Hart
The To Do List
Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters
Elysium
We're The Millers
Lovelace
Kick-Ass 2
The World's End
The Butler
Planes
The Spectacular Now
Jobs
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
You're Next
Blue Jasmine
The Family
Prisoners
The Stories We Tell*
The Bling Ring*
The Kings of Summer*
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2
Don Jon
Rush
Runner, Runner
Gravity
Enough Said
Romeo & Juliet
Ghost Team One
Captain Phillips
Carrie
A.C.O.D
Machete Kills
Blue is the Warmest Color
All is Lost
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks*
The Fifth Estate
The Counselor
Twelve Years A Slave
Ender's Game
Thor: The Dark World
About Time
Free Birds
Dallas Buyers Club
Last Vegas
Six by Sondheim
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
The Day of the Doctor
Frozen
Philomena
The Book Thief
Out of the Furnace
Nebraska
Delivery Man
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
American Hustle
Inside Llewyn Davis
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
The Wolf of Wall Street
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Saving Mr. Banks
Her
August: Osage County
Lone Survivor
The Armstrong Lie
The Wind Rises
In A World…*

Happy 2013 at the movies and a great 2014!! See you this year at the movies!!

Oscar Day Part 1: The Heart and The Head

Welcome to the day of the Academy Awards!! This is the first of a few posts today, I am very much looking forward to tonight's ceremony and in order to prep for I am currently in the middle of a Best Picture Marathon! Having watched Lawrence of Arabia (1962) and Wings (1927), and now The Godfather (1972), with The Sting (1973), Mutiny on the Bounty (1935), and How Green Was My Valley (1941) -- side note I'm totally looking forward to seeing the film that beat Citizen Kane for best picture-- still to come. 

But this post is dedicated to my final Oscar predictions, my head vote and my heart vote.  The head is who I think will walk a way a winner this evening and the heart vote is who, out of the people nominated, I want to walk away a winner this evening. 

Enjoy this short post and I'll be back soon with my top 10 films of 2013!!

Head Vote
Heart Vote

Friday, February 28, 2014

Oscar Race: The 30 Acting Performances of 2013 PART 2!


Let’s Talk About Saving Mr. Banks

15. Emma Thompson – Saving Mr. Banks – Josh’s Wild Card Best Actress – Without any further ado lets jump right into part 2 of the top 30 performances of 2013 by talking about possibly the biggest snub of the year. Thompson gives one of the best performances of her long and storied career; as P.L. Travers Thompson finds a way to make one of the harshest and unforgivingly strict authors of all time and make her relatable and downright likable at times. We understand why Travers is the way she is through the eyes of Thompson. This film is one of the more touching and wonderful films of the year and it mainly hang on the shoulders of Thompson, a great performance from a great film and possibly the greatest family film of the year.

14. Colin Ferrell – Saving Mr. Banks – Josh’s Wild Card Best Supporting Actor – I’m as shocked as anyone that Ferrell is on this list. It was only last summer when I openly stated that he was a “film ruiner”, but shocker of all shockers here he is. He plays a character unlike anything I’ve seen him play before and really gives it his all. I’d love to see more performances like this one in Ferrell future; well rounded, fully formed and full of heart these are the characters I want more of.

The Cream of the Crop – A moment to discuss these next few performances as whole, they are called the cream of the crop because that’s exactly what they are, every choice was very difficult and all in all, all of them deserves an award but there can only be one…. highlander.

13. Michael Fassbender – 12 Years a Slave – Best Supporting Actor – Fassbender is amazing, he’s a star on the rise and an amazing actor to boot. As a vicious and borderline sociopathic salve owner Fassbender is brutal. He completely gives in to the character and the part, and is beyond fantastic in this role. The difficult part about this performance is Fassbender’s character is such a terrible, awful, gross human being that’s hard to really say that you enjoy watching him. So very good, so very talented, so very hard to watch.

12. Chiwetel Ejiofor – 12 Years a Slave – Best Actor – Speaking of hard to watch, Ejiofor is nearly perfect as Solomon Northup which is what makes 12 Years a Slave so difficult to watch. I’ve seen it twice, I’m not sure if I want to watch it again. Northup is such a good man in the worst situation imaginable, he manages to show the characters strength through his stoic and subdued nature; which is a masterful feat. If we didn’t care for Solomon then we wouldn’t connect with this film at all.
11. Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave –Best Supporting Actress – In terms of acting Nyong’o is the brightest of all the bright spots in 12 Years a Slave, that being said… awwww… crushing… soul dead… ughhh… Nyong’o kills me; you can’t help but feel for this woman as she deals with life. A life no one should have to live. Nyong’o plays this character with the innocents and strength and is simply spectacular.    

The One Where Josh’s Cheats Because it’s his Article and He Can Do What He Wants.


10. Melonie Diaz, Michael B. Jordan, Octavia Spencer – Fruitvale Station – Josh’s Wild Card Best Ensemble – The top 10 is starting with the best ensemble of the year, in one of the most overlooked films of the year. Fruitvale Station was the very early frontrunner of the awards season, sadly due to Hollywood politics and summer release date Fruitvale became lost in the shuffle. Even in this very strong year of lead acting performances, Michael B. Jordan deserves a spot in the final five nominees. On top of that, Melonie Diaz and Octavia Spencer could easily replace Streep and Roberts but sadly their names are not famous enough. This is the first film that made cry this year and one of the most moving and emotional films of the year, and a lot, A LOT, of that is because of this cast. If I had to pick one above the rest it would be Spencer as the matriarch of this family, but everyone is fantastic really showing the layers and depth of everyone in this story. Showing how people are not all good and not all bad, but that people are people and should be respected for that fact alone, Diaz, Jordan, Spencer and Fruitvale Station make a fantastic film from start to finish.

Let’s Talk About Excess

9. Leonardo DiCaprio – The Wolf of Wall Street – Best Actor – If you don’t see DiCaprio’s greatness in this film, you are blind. As fraudulent Wall Street broker Jordan Belfort DiCaprio is at some points comedian, some points scary sociopath and other points satirical mastermind. Never, never are you rooting for Belfort but you can empathies with what he’s striving for. This has been a controversial performance in a very controversial film (which is why I think DiCaprio will go home Oscar less, again.) What make this controversial is the accusation that The Wolf of Wall Street glorifies Belfort’s action, I say it indicts them. This is a moralistic tale and DiCaprio and director Martin Scorsese are pointing out the flaws and pitfalls of this terrible “bro” lifestyle. It’s really not their fault if bros idealize the character for the wrong reasons.


8. James Franco – Spring Breakers – Josh Wild Card’s Best Supporting Actor – The most polarizing film of the year. Even after several months and repeated views I still don’t know if Spring Breakers is good or bad, but I do know that James Franco as Alien is a genius. Alien is the embodiment of everything that is wrong with the American Dream version of spring break. But Franco losses himself in Alien and you totally forget that you are watching Franco. Taking many lines and scenes that would fall flat (or be borderline psychotic) and making them work to the nth degree. Franco is the reason to watch this film and should be nominated for supporting actor; in fact he should be the winner. I’d easily kick Cooper out of the category to put Franco in.  

The Extremely Amazing

7. Adele Exarchopoulous – Blue is the Warmest Color – Josh’s Wild Card Best Actress – A newcomer with something to prove. You may not know her name but Adele Exarchopoulous is someone who should be on American radars very soon. She gives and epic performance in an epic tale of discovering yourself. Following the character from ages 17-27 Blue is the Warmest Color is an amazing work film and work of art. Yes, the film is three hours long, but it needs every moment. I love what Adele brings to her character of the same name, she finds so many moments that fill you with joy, fill you with hope, fill you with pain, and fill you with despair. This character so perfectly encapsulates everything that this time in your life is about and Adele Exarchopoulous is perfection in this role.

6. Bruce Dern – Nebraska – Best Actor – As American as Apple Pie, Baseball, and Chevy, that’s Bruce Dern. Dern’s Woody Grant is a man with nothing lose as he goes on an adventure to find one million dollars. This is a story of fathers and sons and is one of the most touching and moving films of the year. A lot of that is Dern, he is ever-present in his portrayal of a man with dementia, who is reliving his past and sharing his life for the first time with his son. Dern knocks it out of the park with this role.   

5. Oscar Issac—Inside Llewyn Davis – Josh’s Wild Card Best Supporting Actor – Layered, emotional, driven, complex, believable, organic, melancholy, surreal, transcend, flawed, dark, funny, enigmatic, exhilarating and irresistible are all words to describe the over the moon amazing performance given by Oscar Issac at the title character of The Coen’s latest film. I have endless love and endless admiration for this performance. Truth be told, if I didn’t put the top four as my Oscar picks this would be number one.
The Group Known as the Best of the Best
            With this group there is specifically one from each category and the person who I would give the Academy Award to, if I had a vote. Based on who was nominated.

4. Judi Dench – Philomena – Best Actress – It is not a bold choice to say that Judi Dench is amazing and gives the best lead actress performance of the year. But she does, Dench is great in this role because she is playing a character I’ve never seen her play before. She shy and timid, firmly entrenched in the old world and old points of view. She’s sweet to an extreme and caring about all things and all people. As Philomena she makes the film work and her and co-star Steve Coogan are a dynamic team. Dench is wonderful and if she’s pulls the upset this weekend, I’d be thrilled.

3. Jared Letto – Dallas Buyers Club – Best Supporting Actor – Letto is a weirdo, Letto is also amazing as Reyon in Dallas Buyers Club. What makes this film work is the performances and how much you can connect to them. I was shocked with how much I enjoyed Letto in this film. A simple performance, played right at every note, and dealing with a hot button political issue in very good film with a very good performance is going to be more than enough for Letto to take home this award.   

2. Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle – Best Supporting Actress – I’m in love with America’s new sweetheart Jennifer Lawrence, and I’m not alone in this. Lawrence delivers the only true great thing in American Hustle, she’s honest and funny and heartfelt and crazy and a real human in a hyper stylized world. I’m banking on the fact that Lawrence will win back to back Oscars and continue down her path to take over Hollywood. She’s awesome, there’s nothing more to say about her.  






And now for Number 1!!!


The Year of McConaughey            

1. Matthew McConaughey – Dallas Buyers Club – Best Actor – Alright, alright, alright! McConaughey has brilliantly maneuvered his career back on track and 2013 is the culmination of all of his efforts. He’s a giant film star now taking roles that challenge him and show off his crazy skills. From Mud to The Wolf of Wall Street to Dallas Buyers Club McConaughey could have been nominated three times this year. In Dallas Buyers Club he shows us a completely transformative performance (and I don’t mean his weight loss) but we get to see a character challenge his ideals or what is right and what is wrong, he never shies away from any moment and never betrays his character. I would be shocked and more than a little disappointed if Mr. McConaughey doesn’t walk home with an award.