Zootopia 2

It's been nearly a decade since we were introduced to Zootopia. But for bunny cop Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and fox con man Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), it's been at least a week. Maybe more. Where has time gone? Let's find out in Zootopia 2.

Since we last left Judy and Nick, the two of them have now become partners in the Zootopia Police Department. But after a week, their teamwork leaves much to be desired. After a Cowboy Cop chase, Chief Bogo (Idris Elba) assigns them to partners' therapy. Judy, however, is much more interested in investigating the snakeskin she found during the chase. Reptiles haven't been seen in Zootopia ever since it was founded a hundred years ago. It just so happens that the city's "Zootenial" Gala is close at hand.

At the party, Milton Lynxley (David Strathairn), the richest cat around and descendant of the town founder, unveils his ancestor's journal. Our heroes crash the party just as Gary De'Snake (Ke Huy Quan) swipes the book. Judy and Nick are mistaken for Gary's partners-in-crime and go on the run. As they get on the case, they not only discover a conspiracy dating back to the town’s founding but mend their troubled partnership. That’s pretty much it.

Unlike the last film, which had seven writers, this film only has one: co-director Jared Bush. The narrative quality is consistent, even if it shows slight redundancy. While Judy and Nick spent the first movie working out their differences, this one still has them working out their differences. Shouldn't they have done all that after everything they've been through? I'm a bit bemused by Nick bringing up his "unresolved childhood trauma," which the first film painfully elaborated in flashbacks, as if it was something new. It's somewhat funny at times, but it's also noticeable. Maybe I'm reading too much into it, as I did with the "animal stereotypes" in the last film.

Still, just like last time, Judy and Nick make for a great pair. You'll be laughing with them and feeling for them as their friendship is tested. Judy's carrot recorder, which helped solve the last case, is just as relevant here. Gary's innocent personality is delightful; the same goes for Nibbles (Fortune Feimster), a chipper beaver podcaster, who helps solve the case. The new mayor, Brian Winddancer (Patrick Warburton), is pretty entertaining, especially when he fights the Lynxleys. Milton Lynxley makes for a formidable new villain, but his two oldest kids, Cattrick and Kitty (Macaulay Culkin & Brenda Song) are forgettable. You might not even recognize the new cast until you look them up; I didn't even recognize Jean Reno in a dual role as a pair of goat cops.

Another thing I can appreciate is its mystery plot. Why does Gary need to be smuggled into Zootopia? Why aren't snakes allowed in Zootopia? Why does Gary need the book? What are the Lynxleys hiding? It's pretty exciting as every question lingers in the back of your mind. You'll be rewarded with plenty of shocking twists, especially Gary's personal connection to Zootopia's history. Just as shocking is the surprise co-villain, whose reveal is quite a gut-punch; fortunately, the finale makes a fool out of him.

What else can I say about it? The technical artistry looks as good as it did nearly ten years ago. Zootopia's regions look great, the character designs look lovable (even the villains), and the animation is still impressive. The action scenes are impressive, especially when it finds time for a parody of The Shining! Michael Giacchino adds yet another fine score to his resume. I suppose I can talk about the puns, from the "Burning Mammal" festival to Duke Weaselton's (Alan Tudyk) bootleg DVDs. They're pretty funny. Flash (Raymond S. Peri), the speed demon sloth, is the film's one-scene wonder. I think that's it.

Chances are, Wicked: For Good and Zootopia 2 will be competing heavily for your family's time. There's no harm in making time for both; I sure did these past few days. They’re not just entertaining; their allegorical stories feel especially relevant in today’s world. Still, Zootopia 2's shorter length and lighter atmosphere might give it an edge. I'll leave it to you to decide if and when to see them. It's getting late, so that's it for now.

Wicked: For Good

Who's ready to get Wicked again?

Last year, Wicked's expanded first act proved wonderful for the box office. We now have the second act, Wicked: For Good, ready to send its Broadway fanbase, casual filmgoers, Oz fans, and every combination thereof, back on the Yellow Brick Road. Let's see what they'll find.

Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo) has now fully embraced her unwanted destiny as The Wicked Witch of the West. By that, I mean that she's actually fighting against the Wizard of Oz's (Jeff Goldblum) oppression of Oz's animal population. Meanwhile, Glinda the Good (Ariana Grande) is pushed into an arranged marriage with Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey), who actually loves Elphaba. 

There’s a lot of stuff that happens here. Elphaba tries to reconcile with her sister, Nessarose (Marissa Bode), but that ends badly. Elphaba considers joining the Wizard, but that ends badly. Fiyero and Elphaba have a secret affair, which, you guessed it, ends badly. It gets complicated when Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) brings along a certain farmgirl from Kansas and her little dog, too. Still, Glinda and Elphaba try to save their once promising friendship.

I haven't seen the stage musical - I wish I did - but I've heard it said that its second act isn't as good as the first. Of course, all of Stephen Schwartz's popular songs have already been handled, which are reprised in the opening medley. But more importantly, we not only have the plot points I mentioned above, but the fates of Fiyero and Boq (Ethan Slater) to consider. Most productions tend to tell all of that in about 55 minutes! Maybe the filmmakers were on to something when they split it into two movies. Yes, I was skeptical when they announced the split, but its profound finale justifies it. It's quite a technical and emotional achievement.

With the fun songs over, we now get to the more dramatic ones. There's not a false note from Grande and Erivo as their characters are put through the ringer. Both of them get new Oscar-Bait songs, "No Place Like Home" for Elphaba & "The Girl in the Bubble" for Glinda; I prefer the latter over the former. Even as they fight, particularly in a weirdly silly brawl, you'll still hold out hope that they'll reconcile, which they do during the titular song. I surprisingly sympathized with Nessa, who turns out to be a deeply insecure control freak. She makes that clear during her powerful song.

Let's talk about the villains. You'll loathe and admire this Wizard for his casual callousness. Yes, he's got one of the score's lightest songs, Wonderful, in which he almost wins Elphaba over. But he also thinks that locking up sentient animals and depriving them of speech is a good thing. What redeems him is his how he processes one last bombshell: no words, spoken or otherwise. His devastation maybe the best bit of acting of Goldblum's career. Yeoh gets her best moments as Morrible when she gets to overact, even a little.

We now get to Dorothy and her friends. We never get to see her face, save for a few glimpses, but we hear her quite a bit. She's played by Bethany Weaver, and she's fine in the role. The Tin Man not only proves to be heartless, but ruthless, when he rallies the Ozians against Elphaba. He and the Scarecrow are marvelous feats of costume design and practical makeup; you'll have to see them for yourselves. And finally, we have the Cowardly Lion (Colman Domingo), whose ungratefulness towards Elphaba's kindness is surprisingly understandable.

Since both parts were filmed together, Jon M. Chu retains pretty much everyone on the technical side. Visually speaking, it's pretty much the same as last time, though Oscar winners Nathan Crowley and Paul Tazewell's new designs are still cool. Besides the Scarecrow and Tin Man's designs, we now see Fiyero's abandoned castle, Elphaba's own castle and the Deadly Deserts outside Oz. What makes me prefer The Girl in the Bubble is how it follows Glinda in and out of every mirror in sight. You'll have to see this amazing feat of cinematography and editing for yourself. The expanded score by Schwartz and John Powell accentuates the magical action quite nicely. Still, a few moments have the score overpowering the dialogue, especially during the beginning.

I don't know if I've been changed for good by this two-part musical. But I've had as much fun with Wicked: For Good as I did its predecessor. It's thankfully shorter than its predecessor, at 137 minutes, so it doesn't overstay its welcome too much. If anything, I hope that if Hollywood will learn all the essential lessons the next time it does this again. Maybe not, but it's worth a thought. I think I said enough.

Frankenstein

Who’s ready to meet the real Frankenstein? I don’t mean the numerous parodies, kid-friendly and not, but Mary Shelley’s actual tortured monster. Are you ready? Well, keep waiting, because this ain’t it.

That’s not to say Guillermo del Toro’s version of the story is awful — far from it. It’s just that Shelley could articulate ideas in print that film has historically struggled to capture. It's especially evident with the monster himself, here played by Jacob Elordi, whom she described as a creature of "horrid contrast" whom Dr. Victor (Oscar Isaac) created in a deliberately vague manner. Sure, CGI could replicate the uncanny valley of this description, but this makeup team creates an otherworldly, yet stunning, creature.

Anyway, I have to get to the movie, which, like the novel, begins at a North Pole. There, Captain Anderson (Lars Mikkelsen) and his crew take the half-dead Victor aboard. The Doctor recounts his life story as his creature demands his maker. Traumatized by his mother, Claire's (Mia Goth) death in childbirth with his brother William (Felix Kammerer), Victor devotes his life to necromancy. The scientific community shuns him, but rich man Henrich Harlander (Christoph Waltz) agrees to write him a blank check. It just so happens that Harlander's niece, Elizabeth (also Goth), is William's fiancée.

After much effort, Victor finally creates his homunculus. Elizabeth bonds with the unsightly creature, whom Victor chains up in the sewers beneath her uncle's castle. Victor, meanwhile, declares the experiment a bust because of the monster's limited vocabulary - he can only say Victor's name. He blows up the castle. At this point, The Creature—credited simply as such—tells Anderson how he survived and wandered the world looking for a purpose in life, or, failing that, an end to it all.

While most adaptations emphasize a "don't play God" moral, this one interestingly amends that to "don't play God if you don't want to do all the work." Yes, Victor breaks his back setting up his necromantic experiment. Yes, he puts his foot down when Harlander springs an unpleasant caveat at the worst possible time. But he's not that interested in nurturing or educating his creation. In fact, he blows up the castle even after The Creature says more than just "Victor." It's not just impatient, it's callous, and of course there will be consequences. That moment, and one last conversation between Victor and William, cement the former as the real monster of the tale.

That's not to say Victor is completely unlikable. We can already tell he's been punished enough when Anderson brings him aboard. We'll just have to watch how he got there over the course of two-and-a-half-hours. Initially, his self-ego can be quite charming, and even hilarious when others put him in his place. That lasts until he brings The Creature to life. We can sympathize with him being mistreated by his emotionally sterile father (Charles Dance), but not with him mistreating his own son. The consequences for Victor are brutal. But after everything, it's still moving when Victor and his creature reconcile. 

Elordi wonderfully conveys the creature’s soul beneath all that makeup. It’s hard to feel nothing when he realizes his own maker deemed him a mistake. Not only that, but because of his insane healing factor, he’s a mistake that can’t be undone. His misery turns to rage, and that rage gets violent. Still, a blind man (David Bradley) proves to be a better father than Victor, and if not for his violent death, he could’ve turned the creature’s life around. It's quite nice seeing them interact before the wolves show up. Anyone only familiar with the blind man with the Young Frankenstein parody, where he's played by the now-deceased Gene Hackman, are in for a surprise.

Waltz is also charming as Harlander, whom you wouldn't suspect had any ulterior motives until he springs them on Victor. Goth is fine as Claire, but she's even better as Elizabeth, whose complicated relationship with Victor is dynamite. She shares better chemistry with the creature than she does with William (Kammerer is just fine in the role). On the technical side, Del Toro's usual craftsmen - costume designer Kate Hawley, cinematographer Dan Laustsen, production designer Tamara Deverell and composer Alexandre Desplat - once again work wonders in visualizing their director's gothic aesthetic. The CGI is often obvious, including the aforementioned wolves, but it's still effectively gruesome.

I could have seen Frankenstein last month when it played in theatres. But, as usual, I waited until it premiered on Netflix, which it actually did about two weeks ago. I may be late for the fun, but it's still fun, nonetheless. As the year winds down, and the days get longer, this new Frankenstein might just suit the mood. It might make for an interesting double feature with last year's Nosferatu, but I've got a better idea in mind.

It will take a while, but I suggest double featuring this Frankenstein with The Bride!, Maggie Gyllenhaal's take on Bride of Frankenstein, which will come out in March. But if you can't wait, just sit back and chill with the film you can watch now. It's a long movie, but it's worth every minute. 

Now You See Me: Now You Don't

 For my next trick, I'm going to tell you about Now You See Me: Now You Don't. I reviewed the first film over a decade ago, but for some reason, I skipped out on the second one in 2016. What did I miss?

Much like The Four Horsemen of the previous films, Charlie (Justice Smith), Bosco Leroy (Dominic Sessa), and June Rouclere (Ariana Greenblatt), stage Robin Hood-heists in the guise of magic shows. Not only that, but they digitally co-opt the Horsemens' likenesses for their heists. After one such heist, the trio are approached by J. Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), one of the actual Horsemen, for a mission.

Their mission, that they choose to accept, is to purloin the "Heart Diamond" from South African criminal tycoon Veronika Vanderberg (Rosamund Pike). They'll have to join up with the other Horsemen - Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson), Jack Wilder (Dave Franco), and Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher) - to pull this off. This will actually be The Horsemen's first heist in years, but Veronika plans to make it their last. Oh yeah, and somebody's also blackmailing her. That's about it.

For years, I mistakenly believed that Isla Fisher had been replaced by another actress as Henley in the second film. That other actress, Lizzy Caplan, actually played a different character, Lula May, who shows up well into this film. She makes a memorable entrance by freeing three of our heroes from a French police station with a surprisingly gruesome trick. Not only is her eccentric personality entertaining, but so are those of our heroes. It's fun to watch them show off, explore a chateau full of trick rooms, or simply enjoy some downtime. You'll just have to roll with some of the past plot points they bring up. 

One past plot point, the return of Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), is a bit hard to take in going blind. In the first film, he was a magic debunker targeted by the Horsemen. In this film, he and the Horsemen are on friendly terms. Not only that, but he's part of "The Eye," a secret society of Robin Hood Magicians introduced in the first film. What happened between movies? Obviously, another movie that you'll have to watch to know. That aside, he's got some great chemistry with the combined Horsemen, and his death is a surprisingly effective gut-punch.

As I watched this film, I recalled being amazed twelve years ago by the Horsemen pulling off their tricks, escaping peril and seeing how they did it. I'm pleased to say this film has that same level of panache. Sure, some might not see the fun in these narratively invincible heroes. But I see the fun in seeing what kind of tricks they'll pull out of their sleeves. The final heist, for example, is an elaborate stunt involving a stolen racecar, a pretend trip to the desert, and a bullet-catch trick, among other things. The visual effects team's own magic is spectacular, especially in a oner full of the combined Horsemen pulling off multiple tricks. Production designer David Scheunemann's greatest achievement is the chateau, especially its Escher house of mirrors! 

And finally, we come to Veronika, who makes for a good villain. Yes, she's got an odd accent, which had me wondering if the character was supposed to be Dutch. Yes, she revels in being politely condescending. But that's not what makes her truly memorable. Those would be when our heroes, particularly Merritt and the mysterious blackmailer, get under her skin. You'll almost want to pity her in those moments. But by the end, you’ll remember why she’s the villain. Her mysterious blackmailer, meanwhile, turns out to be the most improbable character in the cast.

Now You See Me: Now You Don't, as a whole, is pretty improbable, but it's also pretty fun. Just don't think too much of it, and you might be amazed as 113 minutes disappear. You've got your choices this holiday season, and I think this one makes for a dazzling choice. Let's see what some of the other choices are.

I think I said enough.

The Running Man

 Hey there! You made it!

Yes, it's finally time to give you the rundown on The Running Man! You might remember it as Arnold Schwarzenegger's other big film of 1987, but do you also remember that it's based on a Stephen King novel? As I previously mentioned, he wrote the book under his pseudonym Richard Bachman, which the first film credited him as. This time, he has his own name on the credits, while co-screenwriter Michael Bacall is credited twice (long story). Let's see what Bacall and his collaborator - director Edgar Wright - do with the material this time.

The original novel is set this year, so we can assume this film is set even further. In its crummy future, average citizens live in poverty, an evil Network runs the country and lethal game shows dominate the air. The Network's signature show is The Running Man, where contestants try to survive a month while being pursued by Network "Hunters." Viewers can also cash in if they turn in the "Runners" - or kill them. The Grand Prize for the Runners is a $1 billion.

Our hero is Ben Richards (Glen Powell), who has been blacklisted from most viable professions due to "insubordination" (translation: sticking his neck out for his fellow man). His daughter, Cathy, is chronically sick, while his wife, Sheila (Jayme Lawson), is overworked at a shady joint. So, he tries out for the Network and gets picked for The Running Man. Once he goes on the run, he and his fellow Runners are depicted as hardened heels. But eventually, he soon becomes the face of a growing anti-Network movement. He just wants to survive, but soon figures he might give the public what they want...

We barely get any exposition, but the existence of "New Dollars" has us wondering what happened. I mean, is inflation even worse? It doesn't take long before Ben gets going, but we can easily sympathize with his family's situation. We even open with him as he brings Cathy along as he pleads for a job back. It's not to guilt his heartless supervisor, but to remind him to check his temper. That's enough to get us on his side during his run. Midway through, the plot stops by at freedom fighter Elton Parrakis's (Michael Cera) place. His backstory is equally funny and not, but any sympathy for him goes out the window when he grabs the Idiot Ball just to have a go at the Network. As confusing as that moment is, at least this film's revised ending leaves us on a far-less sour note than The Long Walk's. 

What else can I say about Ben? Well, for one thing, Powell has fun whenever Ben takes up a disguise. He outwits the Hunters as a priest, while he has moustache trouble as a businessman! For another, Ben gets involved in one exciting battle after another during his run. We get a buggy filled with dynamite, a round of Metal Gear in a hostel, and a battle aboard a plane! One of the Network's other shows, Speed the Wheel, which is essentially death by hamster wheel, even foreshadows the plane battle during a question! His traveling companion, Amelia Williams (Emilia Jones), gets some good chemistry with him, even if she shows up well after an hour into the film!

Yes, Ben is a good hero, but he has even better adversaries. Dan Killian (Josh Brolin), the show's producer, is so casual in his loathsomeness, particularly when he breaks some devastating news to Ben near the end. He never even loses his cool until everything finally falls apart. His lead Hunter, McCone (Lee Pace), is a perfectly vicious heavy who lives up to his hype. Still, one can somewhat sympathize with his own backstory. Finally, we have Bobby T (Colman Domingo), the show's host, who gleefully dehumanizes the Runners on-air. But he's so fun to watch doing so, and it helps that he, unlike Killian, has standards. I'll just say that Domingo ought to have more roles where he gets to go all in.

Who else do we have? We have Ben's fellow runners, Jenni Laughlin (Katy O'Brian) and Tim Jansky (Martin Herlihy), who get along rather well with Ben during their short time together. When we next see them outside the studio, they're dead. Tim gets undone because he's an idiot, while Jenni's overconfidence deals her a bad hand (at least she goes down fighting). On the technical side, we get some excellent production designs for this futuristic world. A few highlights include the Network HQ, the main setting of Co-Op City, and even a dilapidated Derry (with no Pennywise!). There's also a pretty good score by Steven Price, but I'll especially remember the opening credit track. Is it just me, or do the opening bars sound like Frère Jacques on a kazoo? I think that's it.

The Running Man may not be as outlandish as its cinematic predecessor or Wright’s usual filmography, but it's still an entertaining action thriller. Some moments could have been written better, like the quick ending, but I’ll give credit to the parts that worked. Once this and The Long Walk both come to home media, I'd imagine they'd make for a rather interesting double feature. You can check this out at your own pace; I've got some more films to run off to.

Nuremberg

Over sixty years ago, Judgment at Nuremberg - in both Abby Mann's teleplay and his screenplay for Stanley Kramer's film - offered a fictionalized look at the Nuremberg trials following World War II. We now have a new film chronicling actual people and events in the actual trials, whose eightieth anniversary arrives next week. This is Nuremberg.

Upon Nazi Germany’s defeat in 1945, Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe), Hitler’s right-hand man and an architect of the Holocaust, willingly surrenders to the Allies. A few months later, Göring and a few of his fellow Nazis are about to stand trial at the city of Nuremberg. Back then, trying someone for crimes against humanity was new territory for the judicial system. The Allies would rather skip the trial and go for the punishment, but head prosecutors Robert H. Jackson (Michael Shannon) and Sir David Maxwell-Fyfe (Richard E. Grant) would still like to give the Nazis some chance.

Psychiatrist Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) is sent over to evaluate the prisoners. He wants to know what makes the Nazis tick, which draws him to the affable Göring. His superiors are worried that his judgment is being compromised. It's not help by the fact that Kelley really wants to write a book about his experiences (director James Vanderbilt uses a different book, Jack El-Hai's The Nazi and the Psychiatrist, for the basis of his screenplay). But fortunately for them, Kelley's relationship with Göring evaporates once he realizes the extent of the Holocaust. That's basically it, and it takes 148-minutes to tell it. 

Much like Judgment at Nuremberg, the screenplay works as a bit of allegory. As Göring justifies his atrocities by basically saying "they let us do it," you might think of a certain modern administration - who shall be nameless - and their actions. Its thickest allegory comes at the epilogue, when we learn that Kelley killed himself after his warnings that "it could happen here" were ignored. It's also surprisingly funny, particularly with its love of the Gilligan Cut gag. For example, a character worries that the Russians won't join the Tribunals; one cut later, and "we've got the Russians on-board!" The film exposits the other defendants' crimes through faux newsreels; Rudolf Hess (Andreas Pietschmann), Hitler's other right-hand man, gets the silliest one. You'll just have to see it for yourself.

As Kelley, Malek is rather smug as he confidently confides with a reporter (Lydia Peckham) that he can deal with the Nazis. He's not entirely wrong, as he gets Göring talking in English with a timely insult. Meanwhile, he altruistically bonds with Göring's wife and daughter (Lotte Verbeek & Fleur Bremmer), and is really distraught when the Allies apprehend them. His best piece of acting comes after he angrily confronts Göring after he views footage of the concentration camps. 

And then, there is Russell Crowe as Herr Göring. When we first meet him, he’s anything but a heartless, unfeeling monster—instead, he’s rather cordial and big fun personified. Don't worry, as that polite image starts to evaporate after the concentration camp reels. He insists he never meant for the "Final Solution" to happen, but he doesn’t seem all that remorseful about it, either. It especially doesn't help his case when he claims that the footage was staged. Fyfe even uses Göring’s lack of remorse against him during his cross-examination. Crowe does a spectacular job layering the depths of Göring's evil, and it should be a performance that gets him back into the Oscar race.

Most of the supporting cast is fine, though they do get a few big moments to shine. I already mentioned Fyfe's climactic cross-examination, but Sgt. Howie Triest (Leo Woodall), Kelley's initial interpreter, gets one of his own earlier. There, Triest reveals his hidden German Jewish heritage to Kelley, who has just been benched for insubordination. We feel the weight of his every word as he describes how he was personally affected by the Holocaust. That moment motivates Kelley to get back into the fight. Among the co-defendants, Julius Streicher (Dieter Riesle), the chief propagandist, stands out for how he utterly crumbles at the end.

What can you expect from the technical crew? Well, you can expect a perfectly gloomy world as visualized by production designer Eve Stewart and cinematographer Dariusz Wolski. Of particular note is how we see the Palace of Justice repaired in short order for the Tribunals. It's kind of impressively, really. Bartholomew Cariss's costume designs are adequate, but Jackson's blue suit really stands out in this literally gray world. Finally, we can thank Tom Eagles for those clever editing gags, and Brian Tyler for the perfectly somber score. I think I said enough.

Yes, Nuremberg is a long movie, but it's shorter than Judgment at Nuremberg's three hours. It probably didn't need to be too long, but at least it had a great ensemble and dialogue to keep my attention. It can be entertaining, but it's also very sobering, and I think I already said why. It's worth checking out any time, even well after November, and especially after the Academy Awards. Still, I'll understand if you prefer something else this holiday season; you have your choices.

Predator: Badlands

Who's ready for the other hunt?

You may recall that I reviewed Predator: Killer of Killers when it debuted on Hulu last summer. You may also recall that I said another Predator movie, Predator: Badlands, was coming from the same director, Dan Trachtenberg, in the fall. Guess what? It's fall! They're back, this time on the big screen! Let's get to the review!

The Predators, officially called the Yautja, don't like anybody. According to the opening text, they are "Prey to none. Friend to none. Predator to all." One of them, Njohrr (Rueben de Jong), doesn't even like his own son, a "runt" named Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi, who also dubs daddy dearest). Dek wants to prove himself by hunting the Kalisk, a functionally immortal super beast, on the death planet Genna. Njohrr, instead, orders Dek's big brother Kwei (Mike Homik) to kill him. Kwei rockets Dek off to Genna, which prompts the old man to kill Kwei instead.

On Genna, where almost anything can kill you, Dek finds half of the android Thia (Elle Fanning). Thia, and her twin sister Tessa (also Fanning), were part of an all-android team sent by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation to find the Kalisk. She promises to help him find the Kalisk if he can help her find her other half. They meet "Bud" (Rohinal Narayan), an odd gremlin/ape critter, as well as the Kalisk itself. Dek soon goes from wanting to hunt to wanting to save the Kalisk when Tessa shows up.

So, what kind of world is Genna? Well, our first glimpse of it sees one beast after another getting munched on by something bigger. Past that, we have grass as sharp as blades, sentient snake vines, exploding berries, and the nigh-invincible Bone Bison. Many of these hazards are as surprising to Dek as they are to the audience - especially the berries! The highlight, of course, is the Kalisk, who can survive just about anything and everything Dek does. More than a mindless beast, the Kalisk is a wholly sympathetic creature on its own. The visual effects team, as well as production designer Ra Vincent, do a pretty good job creating this strange new world.

Dek is the first Yautja to carry a movie, and he does it pretty well. It's easy to get behind him as we learn about his complicated family life, which becomes more so during the credits. Kwei, who isn't long for this movie, has a decent relationship with Dek, and his death is a good motivator. We're all for Dek to become a worthy Yautja, even if it's not to his father's brutal standards. It's quite intriguing to watch him, whose cinematic predecessors prided themselves as the ultimate warriors, struggle with his environment. It all pays off when, after Tessa confiscates his gear, he creatively compensates with the environment. His digital face is mostly seamless, even if it's a bit obvious around the mandibles.

Things get livelier once Dek's traveling companions enter the picture. Thia is, perhaps, one of the most delightful chatterboxes in film history, and I don't mean it sarcastically. Bud, meanwhile, is an entertaining critter. It's fun to watch their chemistry together, but it becomes compelling once Dek realizes Bud's connection to the Kalisk. Tessa and Thia are another good cinematic double-act, even if most of their screentime has Fanning interact with a double filmed from behind. Tessa is a bit cruel, but compared to Weyland-Yutani and Njohrr, she's pretty difficult to hate. Still, the final battle between Clan Dek and Tessa - the latter in a mega Power Loader - is a pretty cool finale.

What else can I say about it? As cool as the action is, it can get sometimes overwhelming as it rushes through one battle after another. Alan Silvestri's famous theme isn't around, but Benjamin Wallfisch & Sarah Schachner give us a neat score of their own. Finally, some of the niftiest effects are used for both halves of Thia, especially when Dek wears her like a backpack. I think I said enough there. 

Predator: Badlands does a good job humanizing Hollywood's most famous space hunters. I mean, aside from mimicking their prey in the first movie, this is the first time I know of that they actually speak their own language. You won't be lost in this 107-minute jungle, even if you daze off during a set piece. The plot is that simple to follow. I'm already interested in seeing Dek's surprise visitor in person in a new movie. And then, maybe a Xenomorph or two. It might happen if enough people set their laser-sights on this movie.

I think that's it.

Hedda

Last summer, fans of the pseudo-zombie movie 28 Days Later finally got a new sequel with 28 Years Later, both directed by Danny Boyle. In just a few months, Nia DaCosta continues the story with another sequel, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.

In the meantime, you can check out DaCosta's take on Henrik Ibsen's celebrated antiheroine, Hedda Gabler, on Amazon Prime. Let's see what I thought about Hedda.

There's no concrete year of its setting, but it's obviously a few decades since Gabler's 1891 premiere. Here, we find Hedda (Tessa Thompson) in England, having just returned from her honeymoon with her scholarly husband, George (Tom Bateman). Between the honeymoon and their new house, the Tesmans are very much in debt. But there's a big party tonight, and George hopes to use the occasion to butter-up his chums into giving him a big professorship. George hopes that Hedda won't do anything drastic ...

Among the guests are Eileen Lovborg (Nina Hoss) and her new lover, Thea Elvsted (Imogen Poots), both of whom are acquainted with Hedda (Eileen especially). Eileen is now George's chief academic rival, who hopes to secure her professorship with a "revolutionary" manuscript. Basically, Hedda decides to push Eileen off the wagon, away from Thea, and out of George's way to secure her future. Oh look, something drastic is about to happen!

Previously, Hedda's been played by the likes of Glenda Jackson, Cate Blanchett, Ingrid Bergman and Fiona Shaw. I've read the play in college, but I haven't seen any of those prior performances, not even Jackson's Oscar-nominated take, so I can't compare them to Thompson's. Her Hedda swings from desperation to sociopathy without a moment's notice. One minute, she's overwhelmed by the stress of her married life; the next, she remorselessly nudges Eileen to suicide. It's not that easy to sympathize with her, though Thompson is still compelling in either of Hedda's moods. Her ambiguous end will leave you a lot to think about.

Hoss, who also played Hedda on stage, is simply dynamite as Eileen, a rewrite of the play's Ejlert Lovborg. Once she first arrives, she exponentially struggles under societal pressure to stay "on the straight and narrow." She knows that any slip-up will ruin her reputation several times over. Once Hedda covertly steals the manuscript, Eileen becomes a pitiful drunken mess and knows it. Throughout the film, you can feel her internal pressures rise with Hedda and Thea, which makes most of her poor judgements tragically understandable. Still, the same ending provides a bit of hope for her.

Bateman and Poots are fine in their roles, so who else do we have? For starters, Kathryn Hunter shows up as George's Aunt Bertie, who has a pretty amusing, yet overlong monologue at the halfway point. We also have Nicholas Pinnock, whose villainous Judge Brack helps us pity Hedda at the end. There's also Jamael Westman, whose David is involved in an amusing side-plot with Professor Greenwood (Finbar Lynch). He's also involved in Eileen's attempted suicide, though it's edited and filmed so haphazardly (by Sean Bobbitt & Jacob Schlesinger) that it's kind of confusing to watch. It's pretty surprising, considering how a prior fake-out was perfectly unnerving. The production and costume designs are fine, but I was more wowed by Hildur Guðnadóttir's intense score.

Hedda's various tweaks to its presentation didn't bother me. What slightly bemuses me is its moral whiplashes, though maybe I missed a few things along the way. As I said before, Hedda isn't an easy character to like, and Thompson gets that point across rather well. Check it out if you're curious. Unlike its cast, you'll survive a few hours in Hedda's world. I think I said enough.