July was downright boring. I saw Spider-Man: Far From Home. And that's it. And it was fine. And that's it. (Read my review here.) And I got really bored and frustrated of this year's movie selection and am on the verge of going to see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood even though I don't care for Tarantino movies typically.
But August. August looks good. August looks like it might begin turning 2019 around. It's going to need more than one solid hit with me in order to do that in the span of 31 days, and that it just... might... have. (Or maybe it's just wishful thinking and some super solid trailers.) Now let's see if I'll even go see more than one in the span of 31 days!
What looks good to you this month? Did I leave anything out?
Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
In theaters August 2nd; PG-13
Is that really its title? Why can't it just be Hobbs & Shaw?? Someday I'll be in the mood for dumb, ridiculous, over-the-top buddy-cop action. And when that day comes I'm sure this will be just the ticket. But I've never been much for the F&F franchise and even within that neither Hobbs nor Shaw ever had much impact as characters. When I do see this, I will be most excited to see Vanessa Kirby. Then Idris Elba. And THEN The Rock and Jason Statham.
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
In theaters August 9th; PG-13
Goosebumps for kids grown up? It is based on a series of books after all, which inspires confidence that it could be more than a throwaway creepy summer flick, but it is also compiling all the stories into one film it seems? Which could cheapen it. This is one I probably won't be watching unless it gets great reviews.
The Peanut Butter Falcon
Limited release on August 9th; PG-13
Shia LaBeouf goes on a road-trip to help a runaway with Downs become a wrestler. With Dakota Johnson. Yep. This could easily turn into one of my favorite movies of the year if it plays its cards right -- like it seems to be. The feeling I get watching that trailer is the same the trailer for The Way Way Back gave me, and that's one of my all-time favorite films. It looks so pure and sweet and full of adventure and to be about uplifting things like love and friendship -- how could it not be appealing?
Blinded by the Light
In theaters August 14th; PG-13
Continuing the trend of apparently pure films with uplifting messages comes this movies about a Pakistani-British teen who falls in love with the music of Bruce Springsteen in 1987. I LOVE this trailer, and what the movies seems to be saying about the universality of music (and within that, art in general and the way it can connect beyond culture lines) -- especially great American rock from the 80s, haha! I hope it's sappy and wears its heart on its sleeve. The sappier the better.
Where'd You Go, Bernadette
In theaters August 16th; PG-13
Richard Linklater's latest is based on a novel, and stars Cate Blanchett. It has all the earmarks of something that should be good, but I'm stuck. I can't get over the hurdle of "Cate Blanchett Plays a Normal Person." Don't get me wrong she's one of my favorite actresses. It's just hard for me to buy her as an every-woman, even done up with plain clothes and hair -- she's still exceptional. It's weird. I'll still keep an eye on this for later.
Ready or Not
Limited release August 21st; R
A stylish-looking horror comedy in which Margot Robbie's doppelganger (Samara Weaving) is the new bride of a member of a uber-rich family who have a tradition in which they kill all new brides as some kind of bizarre ritual sacrifice. A killer game of hide and seek in a wedding dress! With in-laws from hell! Also with Adam Brody who is great. I get a feeling I'm going to like this one.
(This is a red-band trailer that contains violence and language.)
Brittany Runs a Marathon
Limited release August 23rd; R
This looks like a cute comedy/rom-com. It's nice to see a movie where the character's physical improvement isn't all about just being more attractive. Here it's about being healthy, and valuing yourself and you life. I'm not sure it can be a great film on that great idea alone, (it should still be funny and honest and put together in a quality, entertaining way) but it is off to a good start.
Showing posts with label Jason Statham. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jason Statham. Show all posts
Thursday, August 1, 2019
Wednesday, September 5, 2018
The Meg
Some spoilers.
One of the most enjoyable, and definitely one of the most confident shallow copies of Jaws out there, The Meg makes sure to circumvent expectation in search of unexpected, uncharted waters, but winds up intentionally swimming around a few things that would've been useful along the way.
This CGI fest of a monster movie does its best in the beginning to do "the Spielberg" and refrain from showing the shark. We don't get our first glimpse until the very end of the first act. And I suppose this movie is evidence that even though Steven himself did "the Spielberg" accidentally due to his malfunctioning Bruce, that's not the only variable that makes for masterful suspense in a film.
Both movies start with the titular shark causing a death that the lead knows about. Where The Meg loses footing is it then cuts over to its other characters who are unaware of potential danger. We know they're in danger, but they don't -- and I guess that's important to transferring suspense to the audience. There's even a plot point where the lead (Jonas, Jason Statham) has tried to tell others that there's "something" out there, but he's written off as crazy. Compare that with Chief Brody, unsure and worried, trying to keep his town safe while not stepping on toes. One is clearly more effective at producing a tone of dread.
Still The Meg deserves props for giving character any attention in the first place. Jonas has his issues to work through, though they're mostly perceived issues in the eyes of his peers not true faults. Still he gets to prove himself. And I genuinely wanted things to happen between him and the secondary lead Suyin (Bingbing Li) who has a cute and feisty daughter for some instant and effortless additions of charm, humor and stakes. But the best of the lot was Rainn Wilson's nerdy billionaire who funds the ill-fated deep-sea research center. The town mayor, if you will, and Wilson gave an unnecessarily good and nuanced performance.
As things roll along a parallel to Jaws' final chase pops up in the middle, with a tagging, shark-diving, attempting-to-poison sequence, that ends in the killing of a shark, but the wrong shark. As in Jaws, relief is temporary, but I'm wondering why that was included at all, as it divides the movie's attention between two indistinguishable monster-villains. The second one is bigger, sure, but they're both Megalodons, so.... they're both massive. The difference between a massive 50-foot shark and a massive 70-foot shark isn't very much when everything's underwater, hard to see, and made out of computer pixels. As a result, things never get personal without one clear thing to fear.
With a desire to be more of a clear-cut action blockbuster type flick, this movie forgoes the horror killings of The Boy Who Wants To Go Swimming, and The Dog, but for some reason the characters still have parallels. The Meg does pick off a number of supporting characters, but it feels arbitrary in its choosing. The boisterous action is where the movie shines. With memorable sequences involving the shark-cage, the beach (where Meg drags floating docks around in lieu of yellow buoys) and the end sequence that goes over-the-top in a fun way. Oh and Jonas swimming with the shark in order to tag it was both amusing and probably the tensest scene the movie had.
Those moments were exactly the type of fun ridiculousness you'd expect from a Jason Statham movie about an overgrown shark. But those moments are surprisingly few and far between, and what takes its place isn't worth the trade-off. Character plots that take too much time to not go anywhere meaningful, and attempts at tension-building that falls flat five times to every one time it works. The best I can say for it is that the dumb fun works when it's there, for those who go in for Fast and Furious type antics underwater. I do. And the Jaws references are impressively earned, though it sidesteps copying anything Jaws did that would have lent much needed gravity.
Does a Jason Statham underwater Fast and Furious installment featuring prehistoric sharks really need gravity? Well, I personally don't think so. But the movie spends way too much time attempting it regardless, with results equal to if they'd thrown a few tidbits in here and there between action beats. If they honestly wanted character there's easier and more effective ways to get it done. All they end up with is a laboriously rendered semblance, and semblances are easy to recognize but not exactly involving, and involment is the point of putting character development in your story in the first place.
The movie knows what it is: A massive blockbuster flick about a massive shark that might've delivered mass thrills, but instead whittles them down, trading in longevity for mass appeal and mass safety. It's only disappointing because they knew exactly what they were doing and still did it anyway.
One of the most enjoyable, and definitely one of the most confident shallow copies of Jaws out there, The Meg makes sure to circumvent expectation in search of unexpected, uncharted waters, but winds up intentionally swimming around a few things that would've been useful along the way.
 |
| The Meg is the definition of the adage, "bigger isn't always better." In this essay I will... |
This CGI fest of a monster movie does its best in the beginning to do "the Spielberg" and refrain from showing the shark. We don't get our first glimpse until the very end of the first act. And I suppose this movie is evidence that even though Steven himself did "the Spielberg" accidentally due to his malfunctioning Bruce, that's not the only variable that makes for masterful suspense in a film.
Both movies start with the titular shark causing a death that the lead knows about. Where The Meg loses footing is it then cuts over to its other characters who are unaware of potential danger. We know they're in danger, but they don't -- and I guess that's important to transferring suspense to the audience. There's even a plot point where the lead (Jonas, Jason Statham) has tried to tell others that there's "something" out there, but he's written off as crazy. Compare that with Chief Brody, unsure and worried, trying to keep his town safe while not stepping on toes. One is clearly more effective at producing a tone of dread.
 |
| Good cast. Very large. Lots of red-shirts. |
Still The Meg deserves props for giving character any attention in the first place. Jonas has his issues to work through, though they're mostly perceived issues in the eyes of his peers not true faults. Still he gets to prove himself. And I genuinely wanted things to happen between him and the secondary lead Suyin (Bingbing Li) who has a cute and feisty daughter for some instant and effortless additions of charm, humor and stakes. But the best of the lot was Rainn Wilson's nerdy billionaire who funds the ill-fated deep-sea research center. The town mayor, if you will, and Wilson gave an unnecessarily good and nuanced performance.
As things roll along a parallel to Jaws' final chase pops up in the middle, with a tagging, shark-diving, attempting-to-poison sequence, that ends in the killing of a shark, but the wrong shark. As in Jaws, relief is temporary, but I'm wondering why that was included at all, as it divides the movie's attention between two indistinguishable monster-villains. The second one is bigger, sure, but they're both Megalodons, so.... they're both massive. The difference between a massive 50-foot shark and a massive 70-foot shark isn't very much when everything's underwater, hard to see, and made out of computer pixels. As a result, things never get personal without one clear thing to fear.
 |
| More like The Megs, plural. Misleading title. |
With a desire to be more of a clear-cut action blockbuster type flick, this movie forgoes the horror killings of The Boy Who Wants To Go Swimming, and The Dog, but for some reason the characters still have parallels. The Meg does pick off a number of supporting characters, but it feels arbitrary in its choosing. The boisterous action is where the movie shines. With memorable sequences involving the shark-cage, the beach (where Meg drags floating docks around in lieu of yellow buoys) and the end sequence that goes over-the-top in a fun way. Oh and Jonas swimming with the shark in order to tag it was both amusing and probably the tensest scene the movie had.
Those moments were exactly the type of fun ridiculousness you'd expect from a Jason Statham movie about an overgrown shark. But those moments are surprisingly few and far between, and what takes its place isn't worth the trade-off. Character plots that take too much time to not go anywhere meaningful, and attempts at tension-building that falls flat five times to every one time it works. The best I can say for it is that the dumb fun works when it's there, for those who go in for Fast and Furious type antics underwater. I do. And the Jaws references are impressively earned, though it sidesteps copying anything Jaws did that would have lent much needed gravity.
 |
| If facing down an aggressive 70-foot shark doesn't cut it, you have some problems with your movie. |
Does a Jason Statham underwater Fast and Furious installment featuring prehistoric sharks really need gravity? Well, I personally don't think so. But the movie spends way too much time attempting it regardless, with results equal to if they'd thrown a few tidbits in here and there between action beats. If they honestly wanted character there's easier and more effective ways to get it done. All they end up with is a laboriously rendered semblance, and semblances are easy to recognize but not exactly involving, and involment is the point of putting character development in your story in the first place.
The movie knows what it is: A massive blockbuster flick about a massive shark that might've delivered mass thrills, but instead whittles them down, trading in longevity for mass appeal and mass safety. It's only disappointing because they knew exactly what they were doing and still did it anyway.
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