Far from the Madding Crowd

Thomas Hardy's literary romance Far from the Madding Crowd took its title from a line in Thomas Gray's poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard. And now, a third Thomas, Thomas Vinterberg, is the latest to visualize Hardy's novel on-screen. I'd paraphrase Gray if my viewing experience was bleak. But it was not.

Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan) just inherited her late Uncle's farm.  A destitute farmer Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts) becomes her new farmhand. Oak is attracted to Bathsheba, but she doesn't want to settle down. Her neighbor, the older gentleman William Boldwood (Michael Sheen), also wants to marry her. She meets Sergeant Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge) and thinks he's the one. But really, Troy's not much of a Gentleman. How will Bathsheba find happiness?

That's the basic story.

The four main characters make it work. Bathsheba is an independent woman; when she does marry, it's not because she has to, but she wants to. Her main suitors, Oak and Boldwood, are willing to concede to another if Bathsheba wants another. Troy just seems perfect for Bathsheba. They're all portrayed as sympathetic people. Eventually, Boldwood gets desperate and Troy throws his audience empathy out the window.

Cinematographer Charlotte Bruus Christensen captures some excellent views of the English countryside. Her work combines wonderfully with editor Claire Simpson in the story's classic scene where Troy woos Bathsheba with swordplay. You'll remember it as much as the novel's readers did. 

Overall, Far from the Madding Crowd is an involving adaptation of the famous story. You'll be invested in the fates of its four leads and supporting characters throughout the 119 minute run-time. That's the most important thing for a cinematic re-incarnation.

Tomorrowland

In the spirit of Disneyland's 60th anniversary, Disney brings its parks' signature Tomorrowland to the screen. The end result is a well-meaning film which trips over its logic.

Casey Newton (Britt Robertson) is seemingly the only optimist on Earth. There's doom and gloom everywhere she looks. She spends her nights sabotaging the demolition of Cape Canaveral's launchpad. One such attempt gets her arrested. But when she's released and gets her belongings, she finds a pin that she's never seen before. 

Once she touches the pin, Casey finds herself in a futuristic Utopia, Tomorrowland. But only for a moment. She wants to find out more. Her quest lands her at the home of genius Frank Walker (George Clooney), who once lived in Tomorrowland. Now he's a jaded loner counting down the days until all of humanity's woes destroy the world.

But Frank discovers Casey's powerful optimism. They decide to save the world by going to Tomorrowland. Futuristic pessimists block them at every turn. Frank's un-aging friend Athena (Raffey Cassidy) is there to help them.

Director/Co-Writer Brad Bird's sci-fi adventure is a visual experience. Tomorrowland itself is a CGI extravaganza with impressive vehicles, robots and other contraptions. As photographed by Claudio Miranda, the characters look like they're actually there. Michael Giacchino brings another memorable score to highlight its futuristic optimism.

It's 130 minutes, but it sure takes its time. For instance, it took about an hour before Casey met Frank. This meant they had to get through Tomorrowland quickly. Its opening delightfully broke the fourth wall as Frank and Casey blundered through their narration. But most of the film lacked that energy. The main villain's motivation was hard to grasp. It was hard to sit through it.

Tomorrowland's technical achievements keep it from becoming a total loss. You'll get your moments of theme park fun. But if you want more consistency, an actual theme park might suffice. 

Mad Max: Fury Road

Thirty years after he went Beyond Thunderdome, cinema's favorite Post-Apocalyptic survivor Max Rockatansky is back. This new entry, Mad Max: Fury Road, brings series creator George Miller back in charge. This time, however, Tom Hardy takes on the role that made Mel Gibson famous.

Mad Max still wanders post-apocalyptic Australia in search of peace and quiet. He's promptly captured by the goons of local bad guy Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne). Max is made into a human blood bag for aspiring goon Nux (Nicholas Hoult). Needless to say, Max doesn't like his situation one bit.

Joe's trusted servant, Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron), drives off with his "wives." Joe and his convoy of freaks give chase. Max is forced to go for the ride. When he and Nux catch up to Furiosa, they find themselves forced to help them on their quest.

You don't need to crash course on Mad Max to prepare for Fury Road. It's a largely standalone piece. There are references to his tragic back-story as told in the first film. But they won't leave you in the dust. Certain plot points from this film, however, zipped by me too fast.

Even with 3D, digital photography and some CGI, Mad Max's aesthetics barely changed. The costume and makeup designers visualized a wide array of freaks and goons. These freaks drive an equally freakish array of vehicles, including one converted to have a rock'n'roll stage! Their future world is a colorful post-apocalyptic desert. The visual experience was like watching a Live-Action rendition of the 1980's anime Fist of the North Star (itself inspired by Mad Max).

You might get better mileage from Fury Road if you're a fan of the older films. For me, it was OK. The purposely minimalist story made the two hour run-time seem longer than it was. Max's withdrawn nature pushes him into the background and lets the other characters lead. Surprising for a film called Mad Max...

Maybe I should get to watching the older films post-haste.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

After their first big get-together, Earth's Mightiest Heroes have found a way to top themselves. That way is to just add more to their cinematic universe. The end result is called Avengers: Age of Ultron.

The cinematic Marvels open the film by raiding the remnants of Hydra, itself the remnants of the Third Reich. Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr) leaves with the scepter that the Asgardian villain Loki used in the last film. He and Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) use its gem to complete the AI Ultron, "a suit of armor around the world" guarding humanity against Alien threats.

Ultron (James Spader) gets second thoughts about his mission, gives himself a physical form and sets out to eradicate humanity. Naturally, the Avengers aren't pleased with what Iron Man did, especially not Captain America (Chris Evans). But Tony's loyal AI, JARVIS (Paul Bettany), maybe a big help to stop the cybernetic villain.

Once again with writer/director Joss Whedon, The Avengers have another Marvelous cinematic adventure. There's plenty of quips and banter from the characters even during battle. They even have time to develop characters outside of battle, especially Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and newcomers Pietro (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen). It was a good mixture between story and action.

There's plenty of on-screen action waiting for you on either 3D or Flatscreen formats. There's much to behold from the opening assault on the Hydra base to the Hulk and Iron Man fight. There were a few obvious CGI shots, but those were the minority. One particular character appeared to be a motion-capture creation, but he was really a mix of that and prosthetic makeup.

The film fits so much in its 141 minute time-frame. How much time it devotes to its story elements may make or break the film. For example, the re-emergence of Hydra was the key sequel hook of Captain America: The Winter Soldier and they're taken out in the first half-hour. Whedon's original cut was much longer; perhaps we'll see that on home media.

But what we got on-screen was a fun summer movie. Avengers: Age of Ultron is style and substance rolled into one. Even if it's not like the original film, this sequel is still an amazing cinematic adventure.

Be sure to stay to the mid-credits to see the set-up for the two-part sequel, Avengers: Infinity War, set for release a few years from now.