The Magnificent Seven

It's one thing to remake a classic movie; it's another to remake a classic remake of a classic original. The Magnificent Seven, the old west transplant of Seven Samurai, is the film updated here. I haven't seen either original in their entirety to know if the new one lives up to them. But these new Seven get the job done.

The evil Tycoon Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard) has the town of Rose Creek under his thumb. He and his hired thugs open the movie by burning a church and killing some naturally-angry townsfolk. One of said townsfolk was Matthew Cullen (Matt Bomer), whose wife, Emma (Haley Bennet), decides to stand up to Bogue. She just needs some hired guns.

Warrant Officer Sam Chisom (Denzel Washington) is the first of the seven. Gambler Josh Faraday (Chris Pratt), Confederate Vet Goodnight Robicheaux (Ethan Hawke), Robicheaux's knife-throwing partner Billy Rocks (Byung-hun Lee), desperado Vasquez (Manuel Garcia-Ruffo), mountain man Jack Horne (Vincent D'Onofrio) and Comanche Brave Red Harvest (Martin Sensmeier) are the other six. The Magnificent Seven prove themselves capable of handling Bogue's men the first round. They have to rally the townsfolk to join them when Bogue returns for round two.

The screenplay by Nic Pizzolatto and Richard Wenk was realized by director Antoine Fuqua. It's a script that knows how to introduce characters. You'll get the gist of a character within seconds. It's especially so with Bogue, who introduces himself immediately as the type of scum you want to throttle through the screen. The Seven, meanwhile, are a likable wild bunch. While the plot is relatively thin, these on-screen personalities make the 133 minutes worth it.

There's also great work behind the scenes. The production and costume design make this a suitably gritty western. The makeup effects render the actors into a variety of wild west types and give them creepy wounds. The sprawling cinematography of Mauro Fiore is as impressive as early widescreen works. The editing is great except in the final battle, where it was hard to process the images. There's also a good sound design. 

The score marks the final work of James Horner before his untimely death last year. The end result, completed by Simon Franglen, is an unforgettable soundtrack. It's both gritty and heroic at the same time. Its rendition of Elmer Bernstein's theme from the original film is a great way to start the credits.

The Magnificent Seven delivers some great Wild West action. Any cliches it employs don't overwhelm it. It's just a well-made summer blockbuster for Fall. This is the kind of movie worth seeing on the big screen. It stands proudly alongside its famous predecessors just fine. 

Snowden

His story was already documented by Laura Poitras in Citizenfour, but director Oliver Stone still dramatized Edward Snowden's life in Snowden. The end result probably won't change your opinion about the subject. But I thought it was involving.

Poitras herself appears in the movie, portrayed by Melissa Leo. Here, she and Guardian reporter Glen Greenwald (Zachary Quinto) interview Snowden (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) in Hong Kong. Snowden tells them how he came to work for the US Government's surveillance programs. His government work changes him from eager patriot to disillusioned contractor. So now, Snowden has decided to tell the truth.

Greenwald and fellow Guardian reporter Ewen MacAskill (Tom Wilkinson) are ready to send the story to print. But their editor is reluctant to do so. Meanwhile, there's the real possibility that the US Government already after Snowden will come for the reporters. They'll have to keep deep undercover to break the story.

Stone and Kieran Fitzgerald's screenplay melds together Luke Harding's book The Snowden Files and the roman-a-clef, Time of the Octopus, by Snowden's lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena. The story jumps back-and-forth in time from Snowden's Hong Kong interviews to his early years in the Government. This makes the 138 minutes a bit slow especially since a few scenes look like the end but are not. The central argument may boil down to "surveillance is wrong," but the intricacies of surveillance may give you something to think about.

Levitt was a good choice for Snowden. He looks and sounds the part of a withdrawn computer nerd. He gets to open up as the movie goes on and he becomes a conflicted human. We get to understand his problems despite any existing viewpoints. The last scene is made more poignant when Levitt is replaced midway by the real Snowden. Amongst the supporting cast, Shailene Woodley was great as Snowden's girlfriend, Lindsey, and Nicolas Cage was welcome as his mentor, Hank Forrester. 

Snowden makes for a fine modern history lesson. Or it may already confirm what its audience already knows. It all depends on how much you know about the story. I thought it did its best to chronicle the humanity behind its subject. That reason makes it good for a recommendation.

Sully

I don't care what Superman says about air travel. I still don't like to fly. It's game over if I get in a crash. Game over. Maybe I won't be worried if someone like Captain Sully was on board. But enough about me, let's talk about Sully.

By the time Sully opens, Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger (Tom Hanks) has already pulled off the Miracle on the Hudson. But he's haunted by nightmares of what could have happened. The NTSB isn't convinced that Sully's maneuver was necessary. Their simulations say Sully could have landed in a nearby airport without difficulty. For this, they plan to hold a hearing. And it may ground Sully forever.

The affair puts Sully's career in retrospective. From trainee to fighter pilot ... though it never explains how he started flying commercial. The Miracle on the Hudson also unfolds through flashbacks following Sully and his co-pilot Jeff Skiles (Aaron Eckhart), various passengers and the first responders. Those who were there agree that Sully's maneuver was necessary. Now they'll have to convince the NTSB.

Clint Eastwood realizes Todd Komarnicki's script (from Sully's memoir, Highest Duty) into cinematic form. The result is good but not perfect. The Miracle on the Hudson plays out three times, but it could have been edited into one. After all, some scenes repeat in those flashbacks. The film's conflict is Sully's looming showdown with the NTSB and his nightmares. It's like an hour-long movie stretched out into 96 minutes. A few more scenes with Sully pre-Hudson would have been nice.

The film stays in flight because of the cast. Hanks makes Sully an affable person and calm pilot. He lets us into both Sully's personal and professional lives. We admire and emphasize with him as he confronts the aftermath of the Hudson. Eckhart is also good as Skiles, who helps ease Sully's pain with warm humor. He even delivers a memorable quip for a closing line. Other memorable supporting roles come from Laura Linney, as Sully's wife, and Patch Paragh as air traffic controller Patrick Harten,

Guiding the film through friendly skies is the technical crew. The air disasters, both real and nightmare, were realized perfectly by the visual effects team, sound designers and editor Blu Murray. Cinematographer Tom Stern's best work is visualizing the frigidness of the Hudson on that day. The music by Christian Jacob and the Tierney Sutton Band is low key and memorable. The story and tone are subdued and the crew did wonders to realize it.

Sully is an admirable story of a real-life hero. A good cast makes the flight worth it. It just needed some more relevant details to zoom past the turbulence. A few dramatic liberties were taken, particularly with the NTSB, but I've seen worse. I think this is one of Eastwood's best films in a long while.

Florence Foster Jenkins

It may astound some people to know, but folks love certain entertainment personalities for their utter lack of talent. People like "Romeo" Coates, Ed Wood, Amanda McKittrick Ros and the most likely subject of Meryl Streep's 20th Oscar nomination, Florence Foster Jenkins. And it certainly earned that likeliness.

"Lady Florence," as she is called, is a wealthy patron of the New York music scene. She used to be a pianist until syphilis damaged her. She's now an occasional singer. As America fights in World War II, Florence decides to do her part and go full time singer. Her husband, St. Clair Bayfield (Hugh Grant), and coach, Carlo Edwards (David Haig), sing her praises. But the public realizes how painfully funny she is.

Her pianist, Cosmé McMoon (Simon Helberg), is flabbergasted at her singing, but he comes around when she decides to perform at Carnegie Hall. Less supportive is Earl Wilson (Christian McKay), the stubborn critic of the New York Post. St. Clair decides to silence the naysayers for the good of Florence. 

Lady Florence, as played by Streep, is the reason to see this. She may wildly overestimate her talent, but it's out of goodhearted naivete and not egotism. She dedicates her Carnegie Hall show to American Servicemen to inspire them. She's likable and cordial to everyone she meets. That gets her on the audience's side right away.

Her singing is painful without exaggeration. And that's the point. Her first singing lessons hit every note like a dying bird scratching a chalkboard. And it's hilarious without overdoing it. A recording of the real Florence plays during the credits and it's just as painful as the film's version. A real powerful moment comes when Florence hallucinates herself competently singing on stage.

There's also some great technical work to envision 1944 New York. My favorite aspect, other than the sound, is Danny Cohen's cinematography, which gives the night bold primary colors. The production and costume design were also cool. The makeup designs, especially for Streep, complete the period look. There's also another catchy Alexandre Desplat score to listen to.

Florence Foster Jenkins is a good biopic for an astonishing real-life figure. It's another showcase for Meryl Streep and a highlight for everyone else. While the ending may seem to Hollywoodish, it actually has basis in reality. I was shocked to realize it. But even if it was Hollywoodish, this biopic is a fun history tour of New York.

Kubo and the Two Strings

Laika continues its spooktacular filmography with Kubo and the Two Strings. This marks the directorial debut of its CEO, lead animator and producer since Paranorman, Travis Knight. And it's another marvelous directorial debut.

In Ancient Japan, young Kubo (Art Parkinson) lives in a cave with his catatonic mother. By day, Kubo entertains the nearby village with his living origami animated by his shamisen. By night, his mother is well enough to tell him the stories of his father, the samurai Hanzo. Kubo's grandfather, the Moon King (Ralph Fiennes), took his left eye when he was born. So Kubo has to hide at night or risk becoming all blind.

Kubo stays out late one day and meets his twin aunts (Rooney Mara), who both want to take him to the Moon King. Kubo's mother drives them off with all of her magic; when he wakes up, Kubo meets a Monkey (Charlize Theron) in a frozen wasteland. Monkey was a wooden charm brought to life by Kubo's mother. Her job now is to help Kubo find the pieces to Hanzo's magic armor. A giant Beetle (Matthew McConaughey) joins them on their quest.

The screenstory, by Shannon Tindle, Marc Haime and Chris Butler, is a simple quest story. But it's the characters that make it work. Our hero is likable, his companions are fun and the Sisters are creepy. There were some genuine plot twists concerning Monkey and Beetle. The Moon King doesn't show up until late in the film and it's in a dream. He makes for a memorable villain in-spite of his minuscule screentime.

Kubo's introduction warns us, "If you must blink, do it now." Otherwise, we might miss all of the incredible animation. The puppet characters and sets have wondrous designs. They perfectly capture the anime aesthetic in stop-motion form. The best set piece involved a skeleton demon, whose puppet was 18-ft tall. You can see the animators working on said demon during the credits.

Kubo and the Two Strings offers much to listen to. There's an unforgettable score from Dario Marianelli, the best piece being Kubo's shamisen music. There's an assortment of strong sound effects for monsters and weapons. So even if you blink, you won't miss the ambiance.

Kubo and the Two Strings shows, once again, that stop-motion is alive and well. It's a meaningful story of life, death and beyond, as well as forgiveness and remembrance. Don't let the spookiness scare you. It's a great family film and an unforgettable take on the hero's journey.

Ben-Hur

The 1959 film of Ben-Hur wasn't the first, nor the last version of General Lew Wallace's novel, but it's the most famous. One of the biggest film spectacles ever, it won Charlton Heston his only Oscar and put him in the most famous chariot race in movie history. It broke budget, box office and Oscar records for a reason. That's a lot to live up to for director Timur Bekmambetov's take on the story.

Fortunately, this film stands on its own legs just fine.

Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston) is a Jewish prince with an adopted Roman brother, Messala (Toby Kebbell). Messala feels overshadowed by his adoptive family, so he joins the army and rises in the ranks. Meanwhile, Judah weds Esther (Nazanin Boniadi) and encounters a certain carpenter from Nazareth (Rodrigo Santoro).

One day, the Ben-Hur house watch a military parade pass by, where a Zealot tries to kill Prefect Pontius Pilate (Pilou Asbæk). Messala forces a confession out of Judah and throws him to the Galleys. Judah spends five years in chains until he escapes during a nasty naval battle. Judah is found by the Shiek Ilderim (Morgan Freeman), a man who knows chariot racing. Judah also likes chariot racing, so he trains under Ilderim to one day race Messala.

And they do...

Screenwriters John Ridley and Keith Clarke do a lot to trim the story down. The 1959 film runs 212 minutes while this one runs 123. The results are acceptable, but not perfect. The pacing for the first 40 minutes or so is sluggish. It improves just in time for the climactic chariot race. The overall story and character relationships are at least coherent, even if a few details are lost in the circus. The point of the classic story is present in this version. 

One name not lost in the circus is Jesus Himself. Santoro plays Him as a humble man who can stop a crowd by being there. He demonstrates it so well when He gives Judah water. His presence maybe brief, but you won't forget it.

It took three editors, including Dodi Dorn, to construct the story. They prove that the PG-13 rating isn't a detriment to movie violence. The wartime violence is brutal as are the racing accidents. Some of the violence provides some unintentional humor; I'm thinking of the Galley foreman who commands the slaves to keep rowing when he's covered in flaming oil. The pacing could've been handled better, but I've seen worse. The chariot race made it all worth it.

Ben-Hur is a decent redo of a cinematic milestone. You'll get your money's worth if you're in it for the action and adventure. Look elsewhere if you want a well-developed Tale of the Christ. While some might find this film pointless, it's at least a good incentive to check out a previous version. It just goes to show you can't fight a movie idea.

Pete's Dragon

Pete's Dragon was one of those older Disney films I wasn't raised on. I heard of it but I never saw it in full. But I did see its cinematic update, Pete's Dragon, and it's a cinematic update which justifies itself.

Young Pete is the sole survivor of a car crash which killed his folks. He's saved from a pack of wolves by a giant friendly dragon he names Elliott. Years later, Pete (Oakes Fegley) is a feral child living with Elliot. Forest Ranger Grace Meacham (Bryce Dallas Howard), her fiance Jack (Wes Bentley), and his daughter Natalie (Oona Laurence), find Pete and bring him to civilization. Elliott sets out to find him. Jack's brother Gavin (Karl Urban) wants to find Elliot too. Grace's father (Robert Redford) is glad that the Dragon he saw years ago is real.

That's about it for plot. But that's not bad.

David Lowery (Ain't Them Bodies Saints) and his co-writer, Toby Halbrooks, completely rewrite the old story for their film. No musical numbers, no comically abusive step-families or comical villains. It has Pete, a Dragon who turns invisible, a kind old man and his daughter and that's about it. The tone is closer to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial than Mary Poppins or Bedknobs and Broomsticks. That and Elliott's un-cartoony redesign might alienate fans of the original. But it didn't alienate me.

That's because there's a fine cast of characters. Pete and Elliott's endearing friendship drives the plot. They're both likable and believable characters even if one of them is CGI. The same goes for Pete's new human family. Even the villain, Gavin, is sympathetic. Their actions keep the audience attentive for 102 minutes.

Once again, Elliott is a great CGI creation which looks real at times. His greatest achievement is his sounds, You'd think it's entirely sound effects, but the main element is voice actor John Kassir. The end result sounds like a genuine animal. The cinematography by Bojan Bazelli brings out the visual best in Elliott and his environments, while Daniel Hart's score sets the majestic tone. There's also a nice collection of songs on the soundtrack.

The only real flaw in Pete's Dragon is a few unexplained things, like Elliott suddenly growing weaker near the end. What caused it? His bond with Pete? Heartbreak? But that's a minor issue in the grand scheme of things. Pete's Dragon is sure to become as memorable as the original. It's one of the best films in a mostly average summer.

Suicide Squad

DC's do-gooders had their turns, but it's now time for the evildoers to shine. The Suicide Squad is the Justice League by way of The Dirty Dozen. Sounds appealing? The end result is flawed but still entertaining.

Intelligence officer Amanda Waller's (Viola Davis) world is populated by costumed heroes and crooks, some of whom have superpowers. Waller decides to assemble a team of such distinguished characters to carry out Black Ops jobs. She goes with the crooks, namely accurate assassin Deadshot (Will Smith), deranged ex-psychiatrist Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), remorseful pyrokinetic ex-gang member El Diablo (Jay Hernandez), loose cannon thief Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney) and the aptly-named Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). They'll get some clemency for good behavior. Col. Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman) and his bodyguard, Katana (Karen Fukuhara), will force their compliance.

One of Waller's subordinates, Dr. June Moone (Cara Delevingne), is the host of a demon called The Enchantress. Waller wants to use her for her "Task Force X," but The Enchantress has other ideas. She and her brother, Incubus, take over Midway City and set out to bring on the Apocalypse. The Suicide Squad's first assignment is to neutralize the demonic threat. If they're not careful, it could be their only assignment. Things get more convoluted when Harley Quinn's lover, The Joker (Jared Leto), decides to get involved.

Writer/Director David Ayer has made a genuine live-action comic. It's full of bright colors and extravagant characters ... and jammed pack with info dump. The Squad is introduced with profile segments detailing their histories and their quirks. The text info often appears faster than anyone can comprehend it, while the flashbacks slow the film down a bit. They eventually introduce Slipknot (Adam Beach), a climbing guy who bites it in his only scene. The army guys who assist the Suicide Squad seem extraneous.

I smell some missed opportunities with the plot. What's so Black Ops about their deal with The Enchantress? Why does it have to be only supervillains? The Enchantress and her stock-issue scheme are what Superheroes excel at stopping.  And isn't it ironic that The Enchantress went rogue right when Waller recruited her for the Squad? That means Waller is the source of the Squad and their problems. Weird, huh?

It's the cast that keeps the movie from sinking. The Squad, especially Boomerang and Harley, are a likable bunch of scoundrels. We know they're bad and they know it too, but their quirky personalities make them fun to watch. Them discovering their inner good guy was compelling even in the disjointed plot. I mean, Deadshot picks a bad time to second guess his career (when he's about to finish off Incubus). The Joker is underutilized but he's still his reliably sadistic self.

The crew are the real stars of the picture. The makeup work perfectly realizes the film's colorful characters, from the tattooed criminals to grungy clowns. You won't forget the looks of these characters. Also in play is Oliver Scholl's production design of the destroyed, desolate Midway City and Roman Vasyanov's nighttime cinematography. Those work great together. Steven Price did the score, but you'll notice the old standards, like Bohemian Rhapsody, much more.

Suicide Squad needed a better narrative to ascend to greatness. A narrative that's cohesive and logical but not condescendingly easy. Its cast of characters make the film worth it, though. Hopefully, they'll have a better movie next time. Hopefully.

Jason Bourne

We thought Matt Damon and his superspy cinematic alter-ego Jason Bourne were done. But since director Paul Greengrass decided to go for round three, Damon is ready to be Bourne again. This time, the character is the title, so here we go.

Our man Bourne is living off the grid since he quit the CIA. It wasn't the friendliest of resignations; he exposed some Black Ops secrets and made the CIA angry. Meanwhile, his lone CIA friend Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles), is digging up dirt on a new Black Ops program, Operation Iron Hand. She also finds out about the incident that prompted Bourne to join the Black Ops program Treadstone. She gets Bourne to meet her in Greece so she can disclose it.

CIA director Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones) wants to keep the truth under wraps. So he sends a guy known only as "The Asset" (Vincent Cassel) to go after Bourne. The Asset, who has a grudge against Bourne, takes out Parsons instead, so now Bourne's got a grudge. Meanwhile, Dewey is essentially strong-arming social media wiz Aaron Kallor (Riz Ahmed) into giving him intel. Kallor wants out, but Dewey won't let him. Bourne's umpteenth quest for the truth across Europe takes him to Las Vegas, where Dewey plans to end his contract with Kallor by force.

Greengrass and his newly promoted co-writer, editor Christoper Rouse, expand Bourne's story with more revelations than ever. The first three movies were about him finding the truth about his past; this one is about the truth behind the truth about his past. New converts will accept it at face value, while longtime fans will frown at the truth pileup. At least Jason Bourne doesn't leave new converts locked out for the first 30 minutes. It has enough detail to bring them up to speed on the story.

Not much has changed for Bourne since 2007. Our hero is still the same tough and stoic superspy. He still has to face a government conspiracy. And he gets into car chases. The head of said conspiracy, Dewey, is a serviceable cold bureaucrat. Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander), the new sympathetic CIA agent, made for a more interesting character than Bourne. Christian Dassault (Vinzenz Kiefer), the hacktivist who inadvertently gets the ball rolling, is barely a presence. The Asset is a capable villain with a sympathetic motivation who loses sympathy when we find out his full connection with Bourne. These characters leave a wide web for our audience to travel through.

Rouse's editing is a double-edged sword. It works when he builds some tense action scenes from cinematographer Barry Ackroyd's work. It doesn't when he cuts before the audience can process the action. This makes for an only serviceable action film. But the cinematography is special. The cities Bourne visit look their greatest at night. It's especially so when Bourne chases Asset across Vegas; you can see the whole city clearly.

So where does Bourne go from here? The Bourne Ultimatum should've closed the book that Jason Bourne added new pages too. What other Black Ops conspiracies are tied to Jason Bourne's life? Hopefully, whatever the answer is won't be so convoluted as this one, or worse, hideously retcon the first few films. Make the wait worthwhile.

Star Trek Beyond

Captain's Log, Stardate I don't know and I don't care anymore. We now have a new Star Trek movie, Star Trek Beyond, which now makes thirteen in this 50 year old franchise. It's a good present for the anniversary.

Captain James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) is halfway through his famous Five-Year Mission to explore the universe. The Enterprise sets port on the elaborate space station Yorktown. There, Kirk hopes to find some purpose in his life now that he's outlived his father, who died in Star Trek's opening scene. Meanwhile, Mr. Spock (Zachary Qunito) mourns himself from the future (Leonard Nimoy). That's when Kalara (Lydia Wilson) shows up.

Kalara's crew is stranded on planet Altamid, so the Enterprise sets out to help. They're greeted by the evil Krall (Idris Elba), who wrecks the Enterprise and takes a good chunk of the crew prisoner. The main crew is scattered across the planet they now want off. Mr. Scott (newly promoted co-writer Simon Pegg) meets Jaylah (Sofia Boutella), who has a way off the planet, the wrecked USS Franklin. They'll have to get going to stop Krall from using a MacGuffin weapon to wreck Yorktown.

As JJ Abrams left this Sci-Fi galaxy for another, Justin Lin sits in the director's chair. This couldn't be more different from the The Fast and the Furious franchise, but the results are still good. Pegg and co-writer Doug Jung give the Enterprise crew some time in the limelight and a formidable villain to face. Krall turns out to have more depth than he appears; you'll easily understand his motivations and goals. There were some issues with the story (Why does Krall need the MacGuffin when he has nigh-invincible ships?), but they were minor. The rapport between the crew made it worthwhile.

The visual aesthetic makes it another fun trip across the universe. The visual highlight is Yorktown, which is what a space-station by Escher would look like. That's the best I can describe it. It looks like a nice place to live. Meanwhile, Jaylah's hologram generator had several great uses, including camouflage and an army of Kirks. The starships, from the Enterprise to Krall's swarm, were great designs. And space hasn't looked this colorful since the poster to Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

There's a wide variety of exotic Aliens created by Makeup man Joel Harlow. Krall's makeup takes him across three different appearances, each progressively less Alien. One of the best designs was a redshirt (in blue) with crab-legs on the back of her head. The shriveled corpses of Krall's victims were also convincing. This is the kind of work that makes me wish Oscar's makeup category would expand to five nominees.

Star Trek Beyond is another great adventure with the classic crew. It's got a nice balance of action, humor, pathos and logic in one space-adventure. I definitely want to see this crew again, but it'll be weird without Anton Yelchin (Chekov), who died in a freak accident last month. Hopefully, they'll make a smooth transition in the next installment. What'll that be like?

Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters is and forever one of the 80's greatest cinematic legacies. Its sequel, Ghostbusters II, was less so, but that didn't stop fans from wanting more. A video game reunited the Busters in 2009 and come 2014, such a reunion ain't possible anymore. Apparently, neither was recasting, which is why Columbia and Director Paul Feig started the franchise anew with a new team. This cinematic restart is also called Ghostbusters.

Dr. Erin Gilbert (Kristen Wiig) is a respected professor at Columbia University approaching tenure. But when a book she co-wrote, Ghosts from our Past, resurfaces, her academic future goes bleak. She gets asked to check out a haunted house thanks to the book, so Erin drags her co-author Dr. Abby Yates (Melissa McCarthy) and Yates' tech savvy colleague Dr. Jillian Holtzmann (Kate McKinnon) along. The trio get laughed out of their jobs, so they go into the paranormal investigation business. They get a fourth Buster, Patty Tolan (Leslie Jones), and a handsome doofus named Kevin (Chris Hemsworth) as their receptionist.

A janitor named Rowan North (Neil Casey) decides to bring on the apocalypse. His endgame is to draw in malevolent spirits to wreck New York and bully its people. Only the Ghostbusters, publicly dismissed by frauds by the Mayor (Andy Garcia), have the tools and the talent to postpone doomsday.

Let's get some issues out of the way. If they're dismissed as frauds, how are they supposed to have a business? Will they end up as Men in Black, shutting away the supernatural from public eyes? Or are they Spider-Man, hated by the media but loved by the public? What're they supposed to do? They didn't even have a plan to contain captured ghosts. A minor character from the start was funny, but grew annoying as his scene went on. Maybe the sequel will improve things.

Its cast keeps it from being "a disaster of biblical proportions." Wiig and McCarthy are likable as unlikely scientists; their arc to overcome their insecurities was a engrossing one. Jones, as Patty Tolan, isn't as loud as the advertisements suggest, and is instead, a formidable Buster. McKinnon makes for a fine scene-stealer as the giddy and eccentric Holtzmann. Casey, as Rowan, makes for a perfectly creepy villain. Hemsworth stands out best as the stupendously too dumb to live Kevin. There were even fun cameos by certain stars of the original film.

The technical department also delivered the goods. The Ghostbusters' equipment, whether redesigned classics or new gear, was pretty awesome. Their proton streams looked cool now as they did in 1984. The ghosts, who were created with or enhanced by CGI, were legitimately creepy. They can make a scene creepy by not being there, something the opening scene establishes. Slimer, the franchise's signature ghost, was the best of the bunch. Rowan's final ghost form was cool, especially the smaller cel-shaded version he assumes before going large. Those looking for a supernatural spectacular will get it.

Ghostbusters stands on its feet alongside the classic original. It's not perfect, but it's still funny and exciting on its own merits. It's not a chore to sit through; I never checked my phone clock once. It makes Bustin feel good.

The Secret Life of Pets

I first saw the trailer for The Secret Life of Pets a year ago and saw it again throughout the year. Did I see the movie already? That's what it felt like. When the second trailer hit, I thought maybe I did. But let's see why that is...

Max the Dog loves his human, Katie. But Katie brings home Duke the big mutt. Max doesn't like Duke and Duke doesn't like that Max hates him. The next day, Duke drags Max into an alleyway, where mean cats steal their collars. Duke and Max get snatched by Animal Control and are saved by Snowball the Rabbit. Snowball is an abandoned pet who seeks to conquer the world with his Army of Misfit Pets.

Max and Duke quickly make enemies of Team Snowball and go on the run. They go to Brooklyn and bond during their incredible journey. Meanwhile, Max and Duke's pet neighbors, led by Gidget the White Pomeranian, set out to find them.

The premise, particularly Duke and Max's rivalry, makes it sound like Toy Story with Pets, and I thought it was once I saw the second trailer. But The Secret Life of Pets is not a direct copy of the older film. The characters and situations are developed differently in both films. Duke, as we find out, has a rough backstory hiding behind his lovable face. Buzz Lightyear didn't know he was a toy at first but Duke knew what would happen if he went back to the pound. So he is desperate to stay.

The film breezes along nicely during its 90 minutes. It's barely under the ten minute mark before Duke shows up. Max and Duke's adventures are quick and fun escapades for the kids. Snowball and his Pets aren't the threats they want to be, though they do impede Max twice during the climax. Still, there is a greater threat on the horizon: the possibility our heroes' owners will come home before them. What then?

The movie is set in an appealing rendition of New York City: bright, colorful and clean. I was surprised to find out the decent score was by Alexandre Desplat; I didn't recognize his musical style. The supporting animals come in many fun shapes and sizes. Their antics will certainly entertain the kids. As for me, Leonard the rocking poodle was awesome (too bad he doesn't speak). The film would've been better if we didn't first see many gags a year in advance.

The Secret Life of Pets is an appealing matinee for kids and fine for adults. There's no bite in their bark. Let's be grateful their bark wasn't any quieter. The fun starts off with Despicable Me's Minions in an amusing new short, Mower Minions. The film itself has a sneak-in ad for Illumination's next feature, Sing. That's on top of the more overt trailer you'll inevitably see.

The BFG

Roald Dahl had a way with words. Such words included Nibbleswicke, Gobblefunk, and the all important Scrumdidlyumptious. Dahl wrote books of these words, one of which was The BFG. It already received visual life in 1989 with an animated TV-movie. Now, it's received cinematic 3D life courtesy of Steven Spielberg.

Sophie (Ruby Barnhill) is a London orphan under the barely-there Mrs. Clonker's thumb. One night, just after three, she stays up and sees a giant. The giant snatches her up and takes her to Giant Country. The Big Friendly Giant (Mark Rylance), aka The BFG, gives dreams to people. His neighbors, who have such appealing names as Fleshlumpeater (Jemaine Clement), Bloodbottler, Bonecruncher, Gizzardgulper, Manhugger, Childchewer, Meatdripper, Maidmasher, and Butcher Boy, are much bigger than him. Therefore, they bully him.

The neighbor Giants smell Sophie, a "human bean," around the BFG. They eat "beans," so that's bad news for Sophie. Sophie implores the BFG to stand up to the bullies, but he won't. Perhaps some royal assistance is required...

The screenplay marks the final work of Melissa Mathison (ET: The Extra-Terrestrial), to whom the film is dedicated to. The sentimental mood is there, emphasized by an appropriate John Williams score. The plot is slow and questionable. The Giant took Sophie because she saw him. Even if someone believed her about Giants, she didn't know where they lived. Sophie was right. The story establishes the Neighbor giants as bullies, but their "bean eating" is regulated to offscreen villainy. That kind of lowers the threat level.

What makes the film work are its protagonists. Sophie knows what to do even if odds are against her. The BFG is a likable fellow full of amusing malapropisms, compassion and shyness. Their interactions bring out the best in them. It helps that a capable crew blended them together. The Giants were created with motion-capture; they look and feel as real as CGI humanoids can be. Production designers Rick Carter and Robert Stomberg created sets which convincingly blend real and CGI elements. You'd think the BFG's home was all CGI until you see otherwise. Anything less would've made Sophie and BFG's rapport fall apart at the seams.

The most amusing bits come when our heroes meet Queen Elizabeth II (Penelope Wilton) herself. The Queen's dry humor was most welcome and her breakfast with Sophie and the BFG was a great character set-piece. The Corgis were great just for being there.

The BFG is a good blend of Spielberg's sentimentality and Dahl's quirky humor. You won't be overwhelmed by either aspect during its 117 minutes. The characters will help you get through the slow pace. It's a real Whoopsey-splunkers time at the movies.

The Legend of Tarzan

I already looked at Edgar Rice Borough's second most-endearing creation, so now it's time for his most-endearing creation. Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, cinema star for almost 100 years. Here he is again with The Legend of Tarzan.

Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgård) was the Lord of the Apes, but now he's John Clayton, Earl of Greystoke. King Leopol of Belgium invites John to check out his "colony" in the Congo. George Washington Williams (Samuel L. Jackson), sharpshooter and doctor, convinces John to say yes. Jane (Margot Robbie), Lady Greystoke, comes along too.

The King's invitation is a trap. The evil Leon Rom (Christoph Waltz) wants to bring Tarzan to Chief Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou) who wants Tarzan's head. In exchange, Rom will get all the diamonds he wants. But Rom also wants slaves, something Williams wants to thwart. Lord Greystoke himself can thwart the villains if he becomes Lord of the Jungle once again.

David Yates, of the last four Harry Potter movies and its forthcoming prequel, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, occupies the director's chair here. There's plenty of swinging and jumping across the Jungle by the apes and Tarzan. The cinematography by Henry Braham includes some formidable shots of Rom's opening confrontation with Mbonga's tribe. The apes are pretty good CGI creatures. The climactic stampede was a cool sequence.

But standing in its way is its development. It tells Tarzan's familiar origin in flashbacks spread across its 110 minutes. The Apes aren't given much development, except for his adoptive mother Kala and brother Akut. They're just there. Chief Mbonga and his tribe could've used more scenes to develop their grudge against Tarzan. Their first scene is their meeting with Rom, the second is where Tarzan fights Mbonga and tells them Rom is bad. The film's pacing is slow and its plot is thin. And I swear I could see the seems in some green-screen shots. It was hard to stay invested in all the tree-swinging.

The Legend of Tarzan tries to update its character to the 21st century, but this results in a typical blockbuster with style over substance. Everything old is still old in this installment. But I hope Fantastic Beasts will do better; at least JK Rowling herself did its screenplay.

Independence Day: Resurgence

Love it or hate it, Independence Day is one of the 90's greatest cinematic legacies. A massive alien invasion and an endearing cast of characters made for one enjoyable blockbuster. A possible sequel floated around Fox for years like a paper UFO on a string, but now it's an actual sequel. This is Independence Day: Resurgence.

The movie and its characters mark 20 years since a brave Apple Mac Laptop, some fighter jets and a few humans defeated the evil "Whatchmacallit" Aliens (real names not told). Earth rebuilt itself with technology pilfered from the downed Alien Ships. There's now a global defense force, Earth Space Defense, protecting the planet. Everything is better than ever. But former President Whitmore (Bill Pullman) and former cableman Dave Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) believe the Aliens will one day try round two.

A ship much larger than the first film's Mothership shows up on the Fourth of July. On it is the "Whatchmacallit" Queen and she has vengeance on her mind. The Queen plots to mine Earth's core and suck it dry. A squadron of ESD fighter pilots, led by Dylan Hiller (Jessie Usher), stepson of the late Steve Hiller (Will Smith, from part one), face her head-on. Meanwhile, a giant Sphere, a survivor of the Aliens' previous conquests, comes into the picture. The humans must keep the Sphere from the Queen to save their planet and the universe.

The film also marks the reunion of director Roland Emmerich, and his co-writer/producer Dean Devlin, who went their separate ways after The Patriot. They're two of five writers credited on the screenplay. Like the first film, it juggles multiple storylines centered around the Alien Invasion. It's mostly fine, though there's a salvage crew that could've used more development. It was also nice that the film expanded the scope beyond not just America, but Earth, with the Sphere. The storyline does rush at times, but surprisingly, the pacing was pretty good. It felt like under two hours when it was two hours!

The characters, both old and new, were also good. The best new character was Floyd (Nicolas Wright), a pushy accountant who proves capable in a shootout. Dylan's fellow pilots, including Jake Morrison (Liam Hemsworth), were a nice bunch of characters. Brent Spiner's return as quirky Dr. Okun, who was seemingly killed by a captive Alien in the first film, surprised some people. But I was surprised that the late Robert Loggia cameoed as General Grey, for I didn't recognize him with his white hair. Judd Hirsch, as David's father Julius, looks about the same as last time. Hirsch's presence was welcome as he had the best quips and quotes.

The visual department certainly delivers the "boom." The new spaceships,Terran vehicles and rebuilt cities were awesome designs. The Aliens were perfectly rendered in CGI and composited well. The Aliens' touchdown provided as much destruction as the first film. I also find it funny that the White House, whose destruction was the first film's money-shot, was barely touched this time. It was made for $200 million versus the first film's $75 million and it shows.

Independence Day: Resurgence is a visual experience well-worth the big screen. Who knows if it'll be an endearing classic like its predecessor, but right now, it's a good summer blockbuster. The film ends with an obvious direction for part three and for that, it has my curiosity and attention.

Finding Dory

Hi, I'm Jethro! I write about movies. Several, in fact! Wanna know who had a movie once? Dory. That Pixar fish. She was just a side character in Finding Nemo, now she...

Hi, I'm Jethro! I had a movie once. Several, in fact! Wanna know...

Hi, I'm Jethro...

Wait, I didn't have a movie. Anyway, here's what I thought about Finding Dory.

Dory the Blue Tang lived with her parents, Charlie and Jenny (Eugene Levy and Diane Keaton), and "short term remember-y loss." One day, Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) gets lost from her parents. She can't remember why and, eventually, forgets them. She eventually runs into clownfish Marlin (Albert Brooks), helps him find son Nemo and...

Lives with them for a year.

She suddenly remembers her past, particularly something about "the Jewel of Morro Bay, California." She darts off to find her parents with Marlin and Nemo swimming close behind. Said "Jewel" is Morro Bay's Marine Life Institute. There, Dory gets lost, gets tagged and sent to quarantine and finds herself about to get shipped off to a Cleveland aquarium.

A chamelonic "septopus" named Hank (Ed O'Neil), wants to go to Cleveland, and he needs Dory's tag for it. He agrees to help her for his own means. Naturally, Dory's memory loss drives him nuts. Meanwhile, Marlin and Nemo navigate the Institute to find Dory.

Dory's memory loss, a source of humor in Finding Nemo, is played more seriously here. It opens with Dory playing with Mom and Dad, and suddenly, she's lost. Nothing funny about that. She inadvertently irritates sea-life around her and gets into trouble. But the whole point of the movie is her finding that her problem doesn't make her bad. And that's a good thing.

There's a good mix of new and old characters swimming around. Marlin and Nemo are, of course, the most active old characters. Marlin is still over-cautious, while Nemo is his voice of reason. Their trek through the institute was a fun one made great by their finding Dory. A blind whale shark, Destiny (Elizabeth Olsen), and migraine-addled beluga, Bailey (Ty Burrell), make for a fun pair of supporting characters. A pair of Sea Lions, Fluke and Rudder (Idris Elba and Dominic West), were also fun, but I don't get why they don't like a third sea lion, Gerald (He's odd-looking, but not actively annoying).

As with Nemo, Dory provides some amazing imagery. The ocean looks great, the Institute's exhbits look great and the sea-life is unique and colorful. Hank's chameleonic powers are a great effect. The climactic chase was silly, but it was fun. Thomas Newman once again sets these images to his music. The end result makes Dory a more memorable experience.

Is it better than Finding Nemo? I don't know, since it's been a long time since I saw it.  But I do know that it's a worthy Pixar follow-up. It's a compelling story which simply doesn't rehash Nemo's plot. If it does recycle anything from Nemo, it's its ability to make you care about fish. It certainly makes up for John Carter, which was Director Andrew Stanton's previous work, that's for sure.

As usual, Pixar has another appealing short opening the feature. This is Piper, the story of a sandpiper chick's adventures on the beach finding oysters. It's just as memorable as the movie that follows.

Love and Frienship

Lady Susan was both Jane Austen's first big novel and her last; she wrote it in her teens, but it wasn't published until over 50 years after her death. To make things weirder, director/writer Whit Stillman's film version, Love and Friendship, takes its title from an earlier Austen work (though it was spelled Love and Freindship).

The Lady Susan Vernon (Kate Beckinsale), recently widowed, is "the most accomplished flirt in all of England." She stays with her sister-in-law, Catherine (Emma Greenwell), until her latest scandal blows over. There, she hopes to arrange a match for her daughter, Frederica (Morfydd Clark), and one for herself. Her match for Frederica, Sir James Martin (Tom Bennett), is a babbling doofus. Frederica's eyes are on Catherine's brother, Sir Reginald DeCourcey (Xavier Samuel), and so are her mother's. Like any Austen piece, a comedy of manners ensues.

The film emphasizes the comedy, instead of the romantic, in romantic comedy. The opening scene, set to Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary, has Lady Susan and Frederica depart their prior, blubbering hosts, for the in-laws. The characters get a title card introducing themselves. A few cast members over-act unlike any Austen adaptation before. There's Lady Manwaring (Jenn Murray), wife of Lady Susan's prior fling, who acts like a spoiled child. Sir James, meanwhile, is such a doofus that you love him and hate him.

If only Bennett got to play Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice...

The Lady Susan gets her own paragraph. Beckinsale plays her as a desperate Mrs. Robinson. She wants anyone rich enough for her and Frederica. But she repulses people due to her elitism. And yet, she charms the audience with her sharp wit and romantic desperation. She's the kind of character whose actions you condemn, but her social situation you cannot. The credits plug its novelization, "in which [she] is vindicated."

Love and Friendship, like any Austen adaptation, is well-dressed, well-designed and well-photographed. But this isn't a conventional Austen adaptation. It's more Tom Jones than Gone with the Wind. It makes for a decent 92 minutes of silly period comedy.

Warcraft

I have not played any incarnation of Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft video games, but I played a lot of Army Men. So that was strike one against me going into the former's cinematic rendition, Warcraft. But, no. That says more about the film than me. I think.

Draenor, the home dimension of the brutish Orcs, is doomed. Their evil warlock chieftan Gul'dan (Daniel Wu) discovers another world where they can live in. This realm is Azeroth, home to humans, dwarves, elves, mages, etc. Gul'dan is adept at The Fel, a brand of dark magic which feeds on life force, with which he opens a portal to Azeroth. He and a small band go through and they plan to bring the rest.

Naturally, the Orcs' resettlement plans involve killing and looting. So good King Llane (Dominic Cooper) and his brother-in-law, Sir Lothar (Travis Fimmel), set out to stop them. One Orc, Durotan (Toby Kebbell), doesn't want to make war, so he might help. Another Orc, Garona (Paula Patton), joins the humans' side. The good mage-in-training Khadgar (Ben Schnetzer) also helps. And the Guardian Medivh (Ben Foster) is supposed to be on their side, but really?

Anyone with a working knowledge of Warcraft lore will understand this unquestionably. Everyone else is sure to have a lot of questions. A lot of core concepts aren't given proper exposition. A lot of characters give too much exposition. It's like David Lynch's Dune, but I didn't have a theater-issued pamphlet to give me a rundown on the lore.

The characters themselves are incredibly stiff. Sir Lothar, the sarcastic one, is the only human with a semblance of personality. Durotan, his Orc equivalent, doesn't have much screen-time with him. Garona is the one with the best character arc. She works to gain the respect of the humans, but is convinced by King Llane to throw it away. That stinks. But the writing is so muddled that it's hard to feel sympathy for the named and nameless characters who bite it. The best laugh of the movie was seeing an actor billed as "One Take Charlie." That actor, by the way, is a sheep. It makes sense in context.

I've seen a few reviews compare this to Battlefield Earth, the famously inept sci-fi film. But Warcraft has one thing that Battlefield Earth doesn't: competent production values. The Orcs, except for Garona, are rendered through motion-capture; the end result is some of the most impressively rendered CGI ever. You'll think that the Orcs are real actors. The spells and kingdoms were also dazzling. The production, costume and makeup design do a great job of rendering the games' Tolkein-esque world. I'd say these values were Oscar-worthy if not for the movie they were used for. And that's a shame.

Warcraft would be a good video game movie if not for the Dune Syndrome. As it turns out, two hours and three minutes is not a good length for a cinematic crash course. You'll do fine if you read up on it before hand. Then again, a few re-writes would've sufficed. If the worst game movies are like watching someone else have fun, this is like you watching them have no fun.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows

Everyone's favorite terrapin crime-fighters are back for another cinematic adventure. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are the same giant, color-coded reptiles that producer Michael Bay and director Jonathan Liebesman re-introduced in 2014. Now with Dave Green in that director's chair, the guys are back for round 2.2 in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.

Leonardo (Pete Ploszek), Donatello (Jeremy Howard), Raphael (Alan Ritchson) and Michelangelo (Noel Fisher), are still the Ninja Turtles. They defeated the Shredder (Brian Tee) but gave the credit to newsguy Vern (Will Arnett). Raph is bitter with the arrangement; Mikey wants to make a public debut and Leo tries to reel them in. Meanwhile, Don and April O'Neil (Megan Fox) suspect scientist Baxter Stockman (Tyler Perry) of something devious. They're right; Stockman has a teleporter which he uses, along with some Foot Soldiers, to bust out Shredder from a prison convoy.

Shredder winds up on the Technodrome, where he meets the evil Krang (Brad Garrett). Krang wants to come to Earth and Shredder wants some Turtles dead. They team up. Shredder gets some Purple Ooze which he uses to make his personal mutants, Bebop (Gary Anthony Williams) and Rocksteady (Sheamus). The Purple Ooze can also, probably, render the Turtles human. The Turtles almost break apart because of it. But the Turtles will have to settle their differences if they want to keep Earth intact.

About a month or so after the last one, I considered it a footnote in the franchise. "Oh yeah, that happened." I thought. But this entry is a step in the right direction.

Our heroes themselves are how you remember them. Leo's the stern leader, Raph is the tough loner, Don is the nerd and Mikey's the dude. Their unique personalities and familial bond is what makes the film work. The Turtles and their dynamic were the last film's best part and they didn't forget that here.

The film continues its predecessor's use of motion-capture mutants. The designs for the Turtles and their sensei Splinter were tweaked to keep them down the Uncanny Valley. But they still look like plausible real world mutants. The new characters, overall, look like their cartoon counterparts come to life, which should please some people.

What else? Shredder, like the last film, isn't much of a presence except on principle. Meanwhile, Bebop and Rocksteady were a fun pair of musclebound henchmutants. Newcomer Casey Jones (Stephen Arnell) makes for a good, quirky vigilante. The action scenes were fun and the humor isn't childish. In fact, its sense of humor was legitimately funny.

This entry is worth remembering, for better or worse, than its predecessor. There is some substance to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, and it isn't just "stuff fans like." It's substance that keeps you going for the 112 minutes it's on.

X-Men: Apocalypse

Oh, I remember when I had a movie. It was three months ago and it was awesome! It had guns, violence and X-Men! Now the X-Men are back on big screens with their ninth overall funfest, X-Men: Apocalypse! In 3-D!

Deadpool, how did you get back in here?

I let myself in. Now, if you excuse me I have a movie to summarize.

But...

Stop me if you heard this one. Big bad guy gets shut away dozens of hundreds of years ago. And he comes back to life in modern day. And by modern day, I mean 1983. And this guy wants to rule the world. Classy.

OK, the fill in gaps bad guy is (looks at notes) En Sabah Nur (Oscar Isaac), the world's first mutant. He was the big blue cheese of Ancient Egypt until he got dethroned and entombed. Insert nameless cultists who bring him back to life in 1983. The first thing he does is hire four mutants to be his Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Those are Storm (Alexandra Shipp), Psylocke (Olivia Munn), Angel (Ben Hardy) and, back again, Magneto (Michael Fassbender)! They're gonna take over the world, of course!

Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), who almost caused the bad future in Days of Future Past, but stopped Magneto from doing the same ('tis complicated), is in the movie too! And so is Cyclops (Tye Sheridan) and Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) and Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee) and Quicksilver (Evan Peters) and Beast (Nicholas Hoult) and ...

What're they all doing in the movie?!

Being awesome. But that's beside the point. 

En Sabah Nur wants to spread his word and he thinks Professor X (James McAvoy) is the guy to do it. The X-Men, Mystique included, want to keep the Earth intact, so they oppose him. Simple.

OK, outside! (Shoves Deadpool outside)

But I wanna review it! (Door slams on Deadpool) Ow.

It sounds convoluted, doesn't it? But what saves the film is its characters. The above mentioned characters each have time to impact the plot or make an impression. Quicksilver and Nightcrawler are welcome comic relief, Cyclops and Jean Grey find time to develop a good relationship, while Magneto's storyline is genuinely emotional. En Sabah Nur was a serviceable bad guy. And finally, Professor X and Mystique's stances on Mutant civil rights are understandable. It even finds time for humor. Jubilee (Lana Condor) gets promoted from background mutant to speaking role, but she was under-utilized.

Quicksilver, who was under-utilized in Days of Future Past, has a bigger part here. He has two scenes to showcase his powers, both of which were funny and awesome. The visual effects department once again visualizes a nifty array of mutant powers. The production designers' best work is En Sbah Nur's pyramids, each in Ancient and modern times. The makeup effects create some nifty hairdos and blue mutants. Still, some characters who should be almost 50 (i.e. Magneto and Professor X) don't look the part.

X-Men Apocalypse is nowhere near as cataclysmic as Fantastic Four, but it may inspire bad memories of X-Men: The Last Stand. The mutant characters and their action kept me interested for 144 minutes. We can hope some "pointless" bits in this one will pay off in later installments. Fox can have the franchise as long as it knows what it's doing.

Alice Through the Looking Glass

What was my life like six years ago? I had two dogs. I moved to Modesto. I watched movies on the big screen. One of those many was Tim Burton and Disney's take on Alice in Wonderland, one of the last movies I saw that predated this blog. And now, Disney hopes moviegoers will go down the Rabbit Hole again for Alice Through the Looking Glass.

Tim Burton left Alice Kinsleigh (Mia Wasikowska) a triumphant woman. She slew the Jabberwock, saved Wonderland (aka 'Underland), and asserted her independence in the normal world. Burton gave the director's chair to James Bobin, who opens with Alice in trouble. Alice is a sea-captain commandeering her late father's ship on a voyage to China. On her return voyage, she boldly outwits Pirates during a storm.

Back in London, Alice finds herself under the employ of the snobbish Lord Hamish Ascot (Leo Bill). Ascot, the man whom Alice left at the Altar to go down the Rabbit Hole, orders her to give up her ship or her house. Alice promptly takes a third option: follow the Butterfly Absolem (Alan Rickman) into a mirror that takes her back to Wonderland.

The Mad Hatter (Johnny Depp) is off the deep end, even for him. He's convinced that his family, who were vaporized by the Jabberwock, are still alive. His despair is literally killing him. So Alice goes off on a quest to find MacGuffin #1951, which the movie calls the Chronosphere, to retcon the tragedy. Time himself (Sacha Baron Cohen) gives chase, while the Red Queen (Helena Bonham-Carter) wants some vengeance. Time itself, meanwhile, goes out of whack. And Alice's Adventures in Time make things worse.

The change in directors is noticeable right from the start. The film's color palette is brighter than the first film's. Its sets are a lot easier on the eyes than the first film's Oscar-winning production design. Whether it's digital, real or real with digital enhancements, the work by production designer Dan Hennah amazes through out. Costume designer Colleen Atwood, who won the first film's other Oscar, comes back for the sequel. Her work is made more splendorous than usual thanks to the color palette.

While some may appreciate the new color palette, others may still accuse the film, like its predecessor, of putting style over substance. I found some substance that kept me through its 116 minutes. Danny Elfman's score is another memorable entry for his filmography. Alice's Wonderland friends, specifically the Cheshire Cat (Stephen Fry), are funny and charming in their own weird ways. The Red Queen is given a sad backstory that makes one actually pity her. While Time himself is initially presented as an over-the-top villain, we see why he's actually necessary for universal functionality. It also helps that he's a likable antagonist.

Alice Through the Looking Glass was a pretty good belated sequel. The whimsical characters and tone are intact even with the new color palette. It's bound to please fans of the first film and infuriate the non-fans just the same. I find it better than the first film thanks to the aforementioned stuff. And even if Alice's adventures are done, Disney's fairy tale re-does aren't yet over. Their latest re-do, Beauty and the Beast, comes next March.

The Nice Guys

Don't let the name fool you. The Nice Guys aren't nice ... especially not to bad guys and each other. So don't expect anything placid from this movie. You can, however, expect a bizarre movie to get smarter by the minute.

It's 1977, and Holland March (Ryan Gosling) is a neebish PI who works any case he can in L.A. One day, old Mrs. Glenn (Lois Smith) gives him the case of her niece, Misty Mountains. Misty ... an actress of "high renown" ... drove her car through a house and died. But Mrs. Glenn is convinced Misty is still alive and one Amelia Kutner (Margaret Qualley) can prove it. Amelia is missing and Holland has to find her.

But Amelia doesn't want to be found. So she gets her own hired hand, the brutish Enforcer Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe), to drive away Holland. It turns out that some shady people want to find Amelia too. So Jackson and Holland join forces to find her first. Their trek down Hollywood uncovers a conspiracy involving Detroit automakers and a Political Protest Porn film.

(There, I said it. Porn. Alliteration is funny.)

Director/Co-Writer Shane Black, creator of the Lethal Weapon movies, brings another winning movie duo together with Crowe and Gosling. Their chemistry as they go from reluctant partners to willing ones is what makes the movie work. Gosling gets the best comedic moments while Crowe gets the best action. Meanwhile, Angourie Rice, as Holland's daughter Holly, makes for a great straight man and morality chain for the two of them.

About the story. It's like Abbot & Costello were in a film noir and the Hay's Office was asleep. The slapstick is hilariously brutal and John Boy (Matt Bomer), the film's main henchman, is legitimately threatening. Misty's death is all kinds of wrong but her last words make sense later on (it's the name of the MacGuffin movie). Amongst the family friendly laughs, there's one with coffee, another with a protest and a dream with a giant bee. The mystery story surrounding it all is a masterful one.

It's also a winner in technical aspects. The production and costume design are another vibrant representation of the 1970's. Joel Negron's editing legitimizes the humor, action and suspense. There was also a nifty original score, one provided by David Buckley and John Ottmann. There was barely an old standard in hearing range and it was cool for it.

My only issue, a minor one, is that the film should have been a few minutes shorter. Other than that, The Nice Guys runs smoothly for 116 minutes. It's an entertaining action comedy with a capable plot and great characters. It's the kind of movie that makes you want more like it. I do.

The Angry Birds Movie

It's the game almost everyone's played in one form or another. And now, Angry Birds has its own movie, "creatively" titled The Angry Birds Movie. The end result is one of the better video game adaptations out there.

Red (Jason Sudekis) hates his life on Bird Island. And yet, he's a party clown. At least he was, until he botches a gig and gets sentenced to anger management class. The class is hosted by Matilda (Maya Rudolph) and attended by Chuck (Josh Gad), Bomb (Danny McBride) and Terence. Matilda's goody-goody attitude makes Red feel lousier.

A ship of green pigs drops anchor on Bird Island - specifically on Red's house. Their leader, Leonard, brings the birds good tidings and gifts, like a slingshot. But that doesn't make Red any happier. Red's distrust is confirmed when he discovers Leonard and the Pigs are after the Birds' precious eggs.

And so, Red and his flightless neighbors must aim and shoot at the Pigs to get them back. And thus, I have described the entire movie.

The best thing going for it is its artistry. The animation, character detail and scenery are pretty good. I didn't mind that the characters now have limbs; the birds are still unique and the pigs are still green. Chuck's speed effects were pretty fun. This was pretty artistic for a budget of around $75 million.

It's story isn't as jumbled as Ratchet & Clank', but there are some issues. The film's 97 minutes are slowly paced; the first two paragraphs of my summary are about the first hour of the film. Red has a legitimate grievance with the Pigs that no one cares about. Then Red turns into the Chicken Little who really saw the sky fall. The toilet humor wasn't something I cared for, especially since one gag was unreasonably stretched out. Fortunately, the climactic assault on the Pigs was the best part.

The voice cast makes the most of their characters. They make their characters all lovable, even the bad guys. Special mention goes to Terence, whose deep growls are by Sean Penn, whose casting might be the film's best surprise.

The search for the great video game movie continues. But for now, The Angry Birds Movie, adequately fits the niche for video game movies. It could have been better, but let's not imagine how it could get worse.

Captain America: Civil War

The Star-Spangled Man is back for his third solo movie. This is Captain America: Civil War, which shares its subtitle and themes with one of Marvel's most infamous comic story-lines. The end result is one of Marvel's best cinematic outings.

Captain America (Chris Evans) and his Avengers thwart the supervillain Crossbones (Frank Grillo) from stealing a bioweapon in Lagos. Crossbones has an explosive surprise for Cap but Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) puts a lid on it. Unfortunately, she accidentally sends it at a nearby building. That incident finally inspires the UN to draw up legislation to regulate our heroes. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is all for it, but Cap is not. The meeting where the legislation is to be ratified goes south when somebody adds a truck bomb. The most high profile casualty is King T'Chaka (John Kani) of the African nation of Wakanda.

Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), the Winter Soldier, is the prime suspect of the incident. Captain America knows of Bucky's brainwashing, so he isn't convinced of his old buddy's guilt. Tony and the UN are convinced. So that leaves the Avengers choosing sides. Meanwhile, Col. Zemo (Daniel Brühl) of Sokovia (site of Age of Ultron's climactic melee) seeks to wreck the Avengers even further. Perhaps T'Challa (Chadwick Boseman), the new king of Wakanda and the superhero Black Panther, can solve it.

Its premise of a superhero brawl and themes of superhero accountability and oversight will make one compare this to Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. It's just like that earlier movie if it was done more coherently. That's because screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely give both sides believable motivations. They have good points to make about their positions. They both believe they're correct while the audience ponders which one "really" is. It isn't conflict for the sake of conflict.

The film's new characters are memorable. Col. Zemo is one of Marvel's best cinematic villains, or maybe the best. He's not a superhuman, but he is dangerously intelligent. All Zemo has to do is make arrangements and watch some fireworks. Black Panther has the most compelling arc; it gets him from a vengeful warrior to a rational bringer of justice. Its most anticipated new character is Spider-Man (Tom Holland), whose wisecracks were welcome and acrobatics were Amazing.

Marvel fans expecting cinematic action and wisecracks will get their money's worth. Captain America: Civil War is a meaningful cinematic showdown that makes its 144 minutes memorable. Its consequences can't be undone with a magic reset button. Our heroes will be back together for the two-part Avengers: Infinity War, so we know they'll reconcile. But how?

Its prerequisite mid-credit and end-credit scenes give screen-time for Black Panther and Spider-Man, both of whom will have Marvel solo movies in the next few years.

Ratchet & Clank

One's a feline alien, and the other's a robot. Together, they fight Galactic crime. They've done it on Playstation games since 2002. And now, Ratchet & Clank are together on the big screen. It's an admirable adaptation of a video game, though nothing Oscar-worthy.

Ratchet the Lombax (James Arnold Taylor) is a mechanic on Planet Veldin. He's the only Lombax on this side of the galaxy, or perhaps ever. Employed and raised by Grim (John Goodman), Ratchet wants to leave the planet and join his heroes, The Galactic Rangers. What luck that they have open tryouts on Veldin just now. But he's immediately rejected by the Rangers' egotistical doofus commander, Captain Qwark (Jim Ward). So it seems Ratchet has to resign himself to mediocrity. It's not like adventure will fall out of the sky...

Oh wait, it does.

The evil Chairman Drek (Paul Giamatti) wants to make his own ideal planet. He sets out to build it with the help of his De-Planetizer space-station. But since it, well, blows up planets, The Galactic Rangers set out to stop him. But not if Drek and his War Bots can stop them first. A glitch results in one War Bot that's small and nice. This "defect" is Clank (David Kaye), and he escapes termination from Drek's henchbot, Victor Von Ion (Sylvester Stallone).

Back to the second paragraph...

Clank crash-lands on Veldin and is found by Ratchet. Ratchet and Clank join forces to stop the War Bots from killing the Rangers. They become instant celebrities, which threatens Qwark's stardom. That gives Drek some ideas on how to deal with the Galactic Rangers.

The plot sounds like a lot of animated movies. But its sense of humor saves it from banality. The captions which introduce a new location come with a joke ("Cue Bad Guy Speech in 3 ... 2 ... 1" took me by surprise). There's also a few bits of slapstick and referential humor here and there. Game fans are sure to find delight in the game references; meanwhile, I found Ratchet's Ranger crash course funny as Qwark gets exhausted by the weapon screwups. But the villains provide the best humor. In particular, the games' longest-running foe, Dr. Nefarious (Armin Shimerman), makes for a delightfully over-the-top scientist.

The problems come with the story. Its 93 minute runtime is paced both exceptionally fast and exceptionally slow. A certain character turns evil, realizes he's been betrayed, and is still evil until Ratchet tells him not to be (Was something jumbled in writing?). Ratchet gets blamed for the first attack on Drek going south for reasons that weren't adequately explained. Although they were voiced well, the characters felt too one-dimensional at times.

Like any good video game, Ratchet & Clank looks good. The animation and scenery is detailed and colorful. The character designs are good updates of the original PS2 designs. The new characters fit right in with established favorites. This was great work for a $20 million movie.

For all of its faults, Ratchet & Clank at least attempts to make a story out of a video game. It wasn't a great story, but it's the thought that counts. Newcomers to the franchise won't get lost in the shuffle. Longtime players will also find some fun out of it. Perhaps the great Video Game movie will come. But we'll just have to wait at its now loading screen.