The House with a Clock In Its Walls

John Bellairs' novel The House with a Clock In Its Walls has a high reputation in kids literature. That's what I'm told. I never grew up with the novel or its sequels. But I'll know it exists after its film version.

The film is directed by Eli Roth, best known for grizzly horror films such as Hostel and Cabin Fever, and who did this year's ill-received Death Wish remake. His first family friendly film stars Lewis Barnavelt (Owen Vaccaro). Recently orphaned, he's sent to New Zebedee, Michigan in 1955, to live with his uncle Jonathan (Jack Black). Mrs. Zimmerman (Cate Blanchett), Jonathan's neighbor, frequently visits them. One night, Lewis finds out that the house is alive and Jonathan is a Warlock. Lewis begs his uncle to take him on as his apprentice. He does.

The house was owned fellow Warlock Isaac Izard (Kyle MacLachlan), who hid a clock somewhere in its walls before he died. Jonathan suspects it's ticking down to the end of the world. So he, Zimmerman and Lewis have to find it before it's doomsday. Their deadline gets shorter when Lewis accidentally raises Izard from the dead.

The cast is fine. Vaccaro's Lewis is an average kid hero, but he's still likable. Black and Blanchett are good verbal sparring partners and allies. Their zingers are funny, but it's easy to miss the "friendly subtext." MacLachlan's Izard was a capable undead villain. Izard's wife, Selena (Renee Elise Goldsberry) spends most of her time disguised as other characters; her time as herself is too brief. Perhaps the best acting came from Sunny Suljic's Tarby Corrigan, a rotten kid who "befriends" Lewis. Tarby's nice guy act was very convincing.

The technical stars of the film are production desinger Jon Hutman and the visual effects crew. The titular house is spooky and alluring. Its sentient chair and topiary Griffin were great comic relief. Smaller details like the menagerie of clocks adds to the house's appeal. The titular clock is a marvelous CGI creation. The film's use of magic, save for some rough spots, was also great.

But they're not the only ones who excel. Marlene Stewart's colorful costume designs are as appealing as the sets. Zimmerman's purple wardrobe is the highlight of her work. Roger Stoffer's cinematography sets the family horror mood well. The makeup team render some creepy villains in Izard and the demon Azazel. And finally, there's a delightfully spooky score by Nathan Barr.

The House with a Clock In Its Walls is a good preparation for Halloween. Perhaps too good; scenes like Azazel's scene make one question the PG rating. A few silly moments bring on the mood whiplash hard. Its story is somewhat familiar but you'll get invested in it. You won't get lost in this House if you don't know its literary pedigree. At least it doesn't set up a sequel it thinks it'll get.

The Predator

The Predator has come a long way since he fought Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1987. Shane Black, who played The Predator's first victim in that first film, occupies the director's chair in The Predator. He and co-writer Fred Dekker (The Monster Squad) create a fun action film that has no time to bleed. Even when it does.

Army Sniper Quinn McKenna (Boyd Holbrook) has a problem. A Predator attacked him and his men one night. Quinn stole some of the Predator's gear and mailed it to his estranged family. But stuffy Agent Traeger (Sterling K. Brown) put him in an insane asylum to keep him quiet. He meets a bunch of "Loonies" who become his new pals. Meanwhile, the Predator is kept under surveillance in a lab.

Quinn's son Rory (Jacob Tremblay) finds the Predator's gear. He tinkers with it and accidentally alerts a second, much-larger Predator to his location. The "Ultimate Predator" wants the gear bad. Quinn and The Loonies drive by the lab just as the first Predator breaks free. Naturally, the first Predator wants his gear back bad. Quinn and The Loonies team up to save Rory before one or both Predators make a trophy of him.

The film runs by nicely, but not smoothly, at 107 minutes. A few action scenes, including the first Predator's escape from the lab, are strong set pieces. But the film jumps from scene to scene abruptly a few times. Traeger's first scene just ends a few minutes after he shows up. The first Predator's ship plummets at day then crashes at night. And a major plot point should've been done a lot sooner than the last scene. At least the story and its ideas are comprehensible.

The cast is good. Quinn is a fine action hero, but Rory is even better as a lead. Casey Brackett (Olivia Munn), a teacher who gets caught up in the mess, is a capable action heroine. The Loonies have un-PC banter but they're a likable and sympathetic bunch of rogues. Nebraska (Trevante Rhodes) and Coyle (Keegan-Michael Key) & Baxley (Thomas Jane) are the best of the wild bunch. Traeger is capable as a stubborn agent, but his demise was too sudden. Keyes (Jake Busey) was a great minor character who should've had more screentime. And the titular Predators were formidable presences here.

There's quite a bit to admire on the technical side. The scene jumping not withstanding, the editing was good. The creature effects were great. The first Predator's practical effects are as strong as they were in '87. You can hardly tell the Ultimate Predator is a CGI creature. The Ultimate Predator's Predator Dogs are more obvious, but they're still cool. Their technology was impressive. Henry Jackman's score is memorable and Alan Silvestri's themes from the first film are welcome. The sound design was perfect.

Much of The Predator's problems were due to studio interference. But they're easy to overlook thanks to its strong first half and fun cast. That escape scene left an impression as strong as a Predator's laser blast. I'm now interested in seeing an unedited version on home video.

Crazy Rich Asians

Crazy Rich Asians debuted a few weeks ago, but I've only now seen it this week. The film version of Kevin Kwan's novel deserves whatever praise it gets. It's a funny and endearing romantic comedy. It's a great way to start the fall.

Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) is an economics professor at NYU. Her boyfriend, Nick Young (Henry Golding), is the heir to Singapore's largest real-estate empire. Rachel is unaware how "crazy rich" Nick is. He invites her to fly to Singapore with him for his best friend, Colin's wedding. Rachel gets to meet Nick's family, including his mother, Eleanor (Michelle Yeoh), who sees her beneath her. The cultural differences between Rachel and the Youngs are vast. She'll have to assert herself to stand a chance.

Director Jon M Chu and screenwriters Adele Lim and Peter Chiarelli make the film's two hours worth it. Its story elements are familiar but you'll be invested in their outcome. It's especially so with Rachel and Nick's temporary break-up and ultimate reconciliation. They're endearing leads and their struggles are understandable. You'll be pleased when they assert themselves. Mahjong plays a part in the resolution, though you might get lost if you're not familiar with it.

The supporting cast makes it better. Yeoh's Eleanor is a strong antagonist; she's harsh, yet warm matriarch, and her motives are understandable.  Her handling of some racist hotel clerks is a masterstroke. Lisa Lu is a good presence as Nick's stern grandmother, Shang Su Yi. The standouts are Awkwafina as Rachel's best friend Peik Lin, Ken Leong as her father, Wye Mun and Nico Santos as Nick's Cousin Oliver. They're great comic relief and moral support for Rachel. Gemma Chan is also great as Nick's cousin Astrid, who's essentially the tritagonist of the story. So many names, so little space for the SAG Ensemble nomination it deserves.

Its technical merits are crazy rich for $30 million. The production design gives us many extravagant mansions, a serene beachside resort and the elaborate wedding. You wouldn't know, unless you were told, that its London and New York scenes were filmed in Malaysia. The cinematography by Vanja Cernjul gives us an appealing look at Singapore. Brian Tyler's score is good, while the soundtrack is a great collection of Chinese and English songs.

I don't go to many romantic comedies. So Crazy Rich Asians is one of the best I've seen. Its themes are universal and its ensemble cast is wonderful. It's a feel-good movie that needed to be made. See it as soon as possible. It's that good. It has me curious how they'll handle the inevitable sequel, China Rich Girlfriend, considering how this film's source ended. It'll be interesting, that's for sure.