The Lego Ninjago Movie

Apparently, The Lego Batman Movie wasn't enough Lego silliness for one year. We now have The Lego Ninjago Movie to deal with. Lego Ninjago, if anyone wants to know, is Lego's Ninja Superhero brand best known for its Cartoon Network TV show, Lego Ninjago: Master of Spinjitzu. A movie was perhaps inevitable when The Lego Movie became a thing. It's not awesome but it's still cool.

The evil Lord Garmadon (Justin Theroux) wants to take over the city of Ninjago for some reason. The Secret Ninja Force, a team of color-coded ninjas with giant mechs, opposes him every single time. Lloyd (Dave Franco), the Green Ninja, is Garmadon's son. Everybody in town knows about Lloyd's relationship to Garmadon and hates him for it. At least not the highly-visible secret ninjas, their Master Wu (Jackie Chan), and Lloyd's mom (Olivia Munn).

One day, Garmadon finally overpowers the highly-visible secret ninjas and takes over Ninjago. Lloyd uses the forbidden "Ultimate Weapon" to stop him. All that does is summon a non-Lego cat named Meowthra whose destructive playfulness makes things worse. The ninjas are without their mechs and Garmadon's sitting pretty. Oh yeah, and Lloyd also reveals his true identity to Garmadon and rejects him.

So Wu and the ninjas go on a perilous journey to find an "Ultimate, Ultimate Weapon" to deal with Meowthra. Garmadon tags along too to provide some villainous assistance. And also to mend (somehow) his relationship with his son. It's just as weird as it sounds.

I can already see a lot of work went into this movie by the credits alone. There are three directors credited, a whopping ten people worked on the screen story and screenplay and five people were the editors. The Lego Batman Movie had one, five and three people in those positions. So how did all those cooks do in this kitchen?

There are plenty of funny bits in the movie. Garmadon's idea of firing employees is to shoot them out of his volcano fortress. The Ultimate Weapon that summons Meowthra is clearly a laser-pointer. The townsfolk's' ostracizing of Lloyd gets ridiculous with a cheerleader chant that goes Platinum. Master Wu himself is also a master of funny and awesome. Meanwhile, Lloyd's relationship with Garmadon is a strong dramedic parody of the same sort we saw in works like Star Wars. It was funny to see Lloyd's attempt to remind Garmadon it was his birthday end in failure multiple times. It was nice to see them bond when they escaped Garmadon's former minions (long story). Overall, the humor still works.

What about the weak spots? The other highly-visible ninjas, Kai, Cole, Nya, Zane and Jay, are just there. They have some personality quirks, such as Zane being an obvious robot, but are kind of flat compared to Lloyd. The only lesson they learn is to use their elemental powers more and not their mechs. On the other hand, it was awesome when they finally started using their elemental powers. The ultimate lesson about finding "a new point of view" or something felt sort of rushed. It was admirable but I've seen that sort done better.

There's much to admire on a visual scale. The Lego figures and their environments are still fun and colorful. The elemental powers were also nicely realized. The best visual effect was Meowthra herself, played by two real cats named Pearl and Ruby, who were green-screened into the Lego world. Meowthra was apparently played by a CGI cat in a few shots but I couldn't tell which ones. She looked seamless all the way through.

The Lego Ninjago Movie makes for a nice Fall family movie. It's not a surefire Oscar-contender but it's still an entertaining 101 minutes. Let's not imagine how this could be worse. It's a good matinee as you wait for some of the bigger films of the fall. I can name many of them now...

It

It's...

Either Monty Python's Flying Circus or one of the best horror movies ever. Or the set up of a silly joke.

Stephen King's iconic novel It already saw cinematic life in the form of a TV miniseries in 1990. It had Tim Curry as the most memorable monster clown since The Joker but some felt It could've been better. And now, with Bill Skarsgard in those demonic clown shoes, It has and will be done better. We'll discuss the "will" later after we float down to the summary.

It's 1988 in Derry, Maine. Bill (Jaeden Lieberher) makes a paper sailboat for his brother, Georgie (Jackson Robert Scott). Georgie enjoys it until it sails right into a storm drain. Pennywise the Dancing Clown (Skarsgard) leers out of the storm drain to give it back. But Pennywise is the It of the story who takes a bite out of Georgie and drags him into the sewers.

The next summer, Bill is downtrodden as summer approaches. Perhaps Georgie's alive? He wants to find out. He and his friends, Richie Tozier (Finn Wolfhard), Eddie Kaspbrak (Jack Dylan Grazer), and Stanley Uris (Wyatt Oleff) are harassed by psycho bully Henry Bowers (Nicholas Hamilton) and his gang. They're also harassed by Pennywise, who takes the form of one's deepest fears before devouring them. Our heroes are joined by Beverly Marsh (Sophia Lillis), Ben Hanscom (Jeremy Ray Taylor) and Mike Hanlon (Chosen Jacobs) to make The Losers' Club.

The Losers must band together to take out Pennywise before it does. Its easier said than done since Pennywise can appear before them anytime It wants. It knows how to push their panic buttons. It's time for the Losers to push Pennywise's panic buttons.

The original novel was over 1,000 pages and jumped back and forth in time. This movie only deals with the Losers' Club as kids, while the sequel will have them fight It as adults. The end result is a clear story as realized by director Andy Muschietti. It can easily stand on its own even as the film proclaims itself "Chapter One" by the end credits. It goes from terrifying to moving to hilarious and it still feels like the same movie.

The Losers' Club makes for a great bunch of characters. They're all likable and empathetic kids who have to face the horrors of their town by themselves. Richie the class clown gets the film's best lines and laughs. They all get awesome moments as they stand up to their fears. A few choice moments include the "apocalyptic rockfight" (as the book called it) where they stand up to Henry and his gang and their final takedown of Pennywise.

What about Pennywise the Dancing Clown? Skarsgard dances off with the show. He's darkly funny and legitimately threatening at once. He's a lot less verbose than past versions of Pennywise which only helps his creep factor. Strong makeup effects by Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff Jr. create Pennywise and a few of his incarnations. Good CGI creates a few more incarnations and enhances some of the practical ones.

There's a great technical crew making the film float. The first balloon goes to composer Benjamin Wallfisch's unforgettably eerie score. Like the film itself, it can go from soft and comforting to loud and terrifying. The next balloons go together to cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung, editor Jason Ballantine and the sound designers. They know how to set the mood for any scene. They can set up the horror, execute it or do the same for a good joke. As mentioned before, the visual effects and makeup crew deserve their praise.

It deserves its planned sequel. The film is an engaging 135 minutes which balances its moods perfectly. Be warned that it's legitimately scary. The Losers' victories make it more than worth it. While it's obvious Pennywise isn't done yet, you'll anticipate the final showdown rather than feel obliged to come back. That "Chapter Two" is set to come in the next few years. I'm ready.

Logan Lucky

Steven Soderbergh decided to leave the feature film industry after the Liberace biopic Behind the Candelabra. But he decided to give screenwriter Rebecca Blunt her lucky break and produce her heist comedy, Logan Lucky. Yeah, more on her later.

Jimmy Logan (Channing Tatum) is a construction worker who gets laid off from his job at the Charlotte Motor Speedway due to his bum knee. His brother Clyde (Adam Driver) lost his lower arm in Iraq and now sports a prosthetic hand. There's supposedly a curse on the family that gives them bad luck. Jimmy's luck is about to get worse when his ex-wife (Katie Holmes) plans to move away with their daughter, Sadie (Farrah Mackenzie), and new husband (David Denman). Jimmy decides to do something about it by cooking up a scheme to rob the speedway's vault.

The Logans recruit convicted safecracker Joe Bang (Daniel Craig) for the scheme. Joe's brothers Sam and Fish (Brian Gleeson and Jack Quaid) and the Logans' sister Mellie (Riley Keough) join in. Their heist coincides with a big race on Memorial Day. A few of the participants have their doubts about the heist. So how will the brothers pull it off?

There is speculation that "Rebecca Blunt" is actually a pseudonym, presumably for Soderbergh's wife, Jules Asner. What is known is that Soderbergh edited and photographed the film under his own pseudonyms, Mary Ann Bernard and Peter Andrews. David Holmes, who is not a pseudonym for anybody, composed the fine soundtrack. Ain't that something?

The film gets going quickly in its 119 minutes. The heist is ready to go before the hour mark. There's plenty of entertaining gags which come out of the crew's relative inexperience. Meanwhile, a prison riot hinges on the last few A Game of Thrones novels, which have yet to be published. The film finds ways to keep things interesting after the heist. There's a strong moment when Sadie sings "Country Roads" at a Beauty Pageant when Jimmy arrives. There's a comically serious FBI agent (Hilary Swank) who investigates the crime; why wasn't she in the movie more?

The cast was great. They were likable Southern folks. Daniel Craig was especially awesome in an atypical role as the comically serious Joe Bang. The Logan brothers were a compelling duo. The supporting cast was populated by plenty of big names. There's Seth MacFarlane as a pompous British businessman, Dwight Yoakman as the overwhelmingly incompetent prison warden and Sebastian Stan as a harried NASCAR driver. They're all a memorable bunch of characters.

Logan Lucky is a nice film for the last days of summer. It's a good take on the heist movie that Soderbergh did so well with Ocean's 11. A few plot elements get abruptly driven off the road during the denouement but its amiable atmosphere speeds through. See it before it gets driven out of theaters.

The Dark Tower

The Man in Black fled across the desert and Jethro, lacking a map, got lost in the process of following him. But he didn't have it as bad as most critics who climbed The Dark Tower. This is the cinematic realization of Stephen King's epic fantasy novels. I think 95 minutes is too short a realization.

So what did Jethro learn from this? There's a Dark Tower in the land of Mid-World that holds up all the worlds of the multiverse together. Walter Padick (Matthew McConaughey), the evil Man in Black, wants to destroy the Tower so he and his fellow demons can destroy the universe. But he needs a child with immense psychic energy to bring down the Tower. Roland Deschain (Idris Elba) is the last of the knightly order of Gunslingers tasked with defending the Tower. Walter killed the other Gunslingers, including Roland's father. So Roland wants revenge.

Everybody got that?

Jake Chambers (Tom Taylor) sees this epic battle of good and evil in his dreams. Jake also has special psychic powers and Walter knows it. He sends some demons over to fetch him but he escapes. Jake finds his way to Mid-World and meets Roland. Roland has some misgivings but lets Jake tag along. He'll soon have to choose between vengeance and nobility when Walter closes in on Jake.

The three main characters are pretty well-defined in their roles. Roland is a heroic knight who lost his way, Walter is evil incarnate and delightfully smug and Jake is the kid at the center of it all. The screenplay makes them and their situations basically defined and comprehensible. I'm sure there was much more depth in the books but that's what we have here. (I mean, why does it have to be a psychic kid who has to bring down the Tower? The why is never explained.) There are a few funny moments from Roland's first encounters with Jake's Earth. That's a good thing.

The creature designs were pretty nifty when you can make them out. It's one of those movies that goes for dark cinematography and quick editing on action scenes. One cut to black was so abrupt I thought the projector stopped for a bit! The sound design was suitably creepy and the visual effects were adequate. The makeup work for Walter's minions was also good.

The Dark Tower is an acceptable dark fantasy film but it could've been better. An hour longer or several movies longer or a TV show like Game of Thrones. But 95 minutes is short not sweet. But at least it's not dreadfully incomprehensible or boring like Warcraft. Its greatest sin, if any, was that it was basic. Hopefully, someone does better the next time they set Roland and Walter and the others into motion.

Detroit

After two consecutive films about the Iraq War, director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal go back in time to another historical event in American history. This is Detroit and where's Robocop when you need him?

The film opens with the police raid on the blind pig that sets off the 12th Street Riot. The National Guard and the Army are brought in when local government fails to keep the peace. One night, the Dramatics, an R&B group, sees their first stage performance cut short by the rioting. Their bus trip out of town is cut short by more rioting and they head off to the Algiers Motel. They meet a few new characters, including Carl (Jason Cooper), who has a starter pistol in hand. He prank shoots another guy then shoots at some troops he sees from a window.

The cops mistake the starting pistol for a legitimate sniper attack. They trace the gun fire to the Algiers and raid the place. A racist creep named Krauss (Will Poulter) is the officer in charge. He and his fellow officers won't rest until the gun is found. They'll use psychological and physical torture of all means to get their shooter. The incident leaves three of the Algiers guest dead and a bad spot in American history.

The raid on the Algiers is the film's most arduous experience. It kicks off at about the fifty minute mark and goes on for almost an eternity. The officers, among other aggravations, take a guest to a secluded room and pretend to shoot them. It gets taxing after the umpteenth time of this. I wondered aloud at one point "how much more of this?" There is next to no relief, which I'm sure is the point, and they really nailed it in. The torture scenes in Zero Dark Thirty were much shorter but you got the point.

Please note: The film admits to partaking in dramatic license because the actual facts are sketchy. I'm not making that up. I summed up their disclaimer. Anyway...

The only relief comes when a kindly national guardsman liberates one of the guests from the "death game." He's later found by another cop who takes him to the hospital. There is humanity.

Let's discuss the villain. Will Poulter as Krauss is unlikable from scene one to scene last. His only ounce of humanity comes when he reacts in horror to his partner botching the "death game" by killing a guest ... then he loops it around by planting evidence and shooting another guest in cold blood. I dislike this character.

The best I can say about the acting is that I saw them as characters. A few standouts include Mitchell, Algee Smith as Larry, lead singer of the Dramatics, John Boyega as Dismukes, a security guard who gets involved in the mess and Anthony Mackie as Greene, a Vietnam vet. You really feel for them as the injustices unfold. A few might question why none of the guests came clean about the starter pistol. But perhaps they know the cops won't believe them because they're them. I'm sure it's a persistent sentiment today.

The technical side deserves some credit. Editor William Goldenberg builds up the tension from the very beginning. Together with cinematographer Barry Ackroyd, his work really emphasizes the claustrophobia of the Algiers incident. Sound designer Paul NJ Ottosson does a great job in creating the urban chaos. James Newton Howard's score is strong and the old standards on the soundtrack are memorable.

Detroit is a film that may take time to invite a second viewing. It's technically proficient and deeply resonant, but its centerpiece segment is unendurable by design. It would've been better if the aftermath of the Algiers incident wasn't essentially breezed over in the last part. How did it impact the city other than one more Kangaroo Court? It feels much longer than 143 minutes.

Dunkirk

The evacuation of Allied soldiers in the harbor city of Dunkirk, France was an amazing feat of military strategy. It was a plot point in Atonement and it's the plot of Christopher Nolan's latest epic, Dunkirk.

Nolan's screenplay divides the story from three fronts. They unfold in a non-linear fashion and without the aid of extraneous dialogue. The plot is pretty comprehensible except for reasons I'll get to later on.

1. THE MOLE. Privates Tommy (Fionn Whitehead) and Alex (Harry Styles) are among the many British troops stranded in Dunkirk. Commander Bolton (Kenneth Branagh) is supervising the evacuation on the stone pier, the "mole" of the title. U-Boats and the German Air Force surround them. They need help.

2. THE SEA. Mr. Dawson (Mark Rylance) is here to help. He's one of many mariners who've set out to deliver the troops their salvation. His son, Peter (Tom Glynn-Carney), doesn't think they have a chance and teenage George (Barry Keoghan) is here for the ride. They save a shell-shocked soldier (Cilian Murphy), who's really desperate not to go back to Dunkirk.

3. THE AIR. British pilots Farrier (Tom Hardy) and Collins (Jack Lowden) are here to provide some air support. They'll have to do what it takes to make sure the evacuation succeeds.

The film runs at a surprisingly short 106 minutes considering its scale. But it makes every minute count. Its opening scene shows the eerie desolation of Dunkirk as photographed by Hoyte van Hoytema. The production design is also praiseworthy. The ocean scenes are also spectacularly filmed. Its sound team follows tense silence with piercing sound effects. It also helps that editor Lee Smith paces the action wonderfully. And finally, Hans Zimmer's score is another memorable soundtrack.

What gripes exist? There's one and that's the non-linear structure. It can really throw off viewers as they try to piece together the plot. You really don't know how the pieces go together until the end. I'll give you a hint: "The Air" storyline unfolds in an hour before the ships come in. You might end up drawing your own wild conclusions before the finale. I know I did. Fortunately, as with Nolan's other works, this is a problem that can be fixed with repeat viewings.

Which performances stood out in the shifting crowd? Rylance as Mr. Dawson was the best of the bunch. He has to convince his son and himself that going to Dunkirk is the right thing. Another highlight was Gibson (Aneurin Barnard), a British private with a secret. Both Hardy and Lowden were also great in their fronts. There's also a welcome cameo from Michael Caine as the radio communicator to Farrier and Collins.

Dunkirk is another movie that deserves to be seen on the big screen. You can see it regular, IMAX or on 70 MM film if you live close enough. Whatever format you choose will do the spectacle just right. It's both an outstanding war movie and an outstanding summer blockbuster. It truly feels like an event movie rather than an every week occurrence. But see it in on the big screen.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

This post was previously published on July 26th, 2017 at 12:40 am. It was inexplicably flagged for sensitive content on February, 12th, 2017. Why? I'm re-editing it to see if it will make it better.

One's a space cop and the other's a time-displaced peasant girl. Together, they fight cosmic crime. They're Valerian and Laureline, the eponymous stars of Jean-Claude Mézières and Pierre Christin's space opera comic book opus. Its trippy visual style has influenced other sci-fi works such as Star Wars and The Fifth Element, the latter of which had Mézières as a concept artist.

And now, the director of The Fifth Element, Luc Besson, brings the space-faring duo to the big screen for the first time in Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets. It's a pity that it might be the only time given the way the box office is looking so far. A few story details are hard to follow, but its wackiness makes it a winner.

The film starts with the history of Alpha, the eponymous City of a Thousand Planets, as it grows from a humble Earth space station into a massive intergalactic colony. 400 years later, special agents Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) maintain peace in the universe for the Intergalactic Human Federation. Their latest mission is to go to an inter-dimensional mall called Big Market and confiscate a rare creature called a Mül Converter. These critters shed copies of what they eat.

After a narrow escape, the duo heads off to Alpha to deliver the Converter to Commander Filit (Clive Owen), who we find out too early isn't a nice man. He oversaw an earlier space battle which nuked Planet Mül, the Converter's home world, into oblivion. The survivors want their Converter back, so they crash a meeting and take the Commander captive. Our heroes, who don't know he's a creep yet, head into the heart of Alpha to rescue him. What starts off as a simple rescue mission ends with the revelation of a sinister conspiracy.

So, what about Besson's screenplay? It crams in a lot of intergalactic exposition that flies by pretty quickly. The worst offenders are the numerous aliens whose names you'll spend a while to learn. Our heroes' backstories are more comprehensible in comparison. The film also impedes its mystery plot by telegraphing its twists ahead of time. Its first scene is of Mül just before the end. Commander Filit spends an early scene torturing a Mül survivor. You can pretty much tell why they attacked the meeting. But their end game was a nice surprise.

Let's talk about the direction. The tone circles around from serious to cartoonish, though not in the same scene. The Mül apocalypse is tragic even without some initial context. Our heroes' escape from Big Market ends with their bestial pursuer falling back to earth like a Looney Toon. It at least knows what it wants to be when it wants to be. The silly scenes in particular were actually entertaining.

What about its characters, whether alien, human, digital or real? DeHaan is a capably smug Valerian, while Delevingne is a capably serious Laureline. Their chemistry isn't outstanding, but it gets the job done. The best character is the shapeshifting dancer alien Bubble (Rihanna), who is unfortunately taken out of the movie far too soon. Ethan Hawke and Alain Chabat provide one-scene comical wonders to the mix. Commander Filit makes for a brutal villain with almost sympathetic motivations.

The film's technical marvels are plentiful. The production, costume, makeup, and alien designs are just as elaborate as those in The Fifth Element. The CGI, cinematography by Thierry Arbogast and editing by Julien Rey complete the film's visual life. Alexandre Desplat's score and the sound design add the aural touch to the film's universe.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets is a delightfully weird space odyssey which is mildly hampered by its clunky exposition. It's a trip that's unlike a lot of summer films out there these days. But this deserves to be seen on the big screen first. Its 137 minutes will go by quick if you're in the right mood.

War for the Planet of the Apes

It's time to go ape again. Fox's rebooted apes are back again for their trilogy-capper, War for the Planet of the Apes. It's a way to go for these darn, dirty apes.

Caesar (Andy Serkis) and his clan of intelligent apes are still fighting armies of angry humans. One army, Alpha-Omega, even has turncoat apes in its ranks. One night, Alpha-Omega pays an unwelcome visit to Caesar's home base and their leader, the Colonel (Woody Harrelson), kills Caesar's wife and eldest son. Caesar decides to get back at the Colonel while the apes trek to a safe haven in the desert. A few apes join Caesar on his quest.

The brain-boosting virus that enhanced Caesar and the apes now has the opposite effect for humans. One such victim is Nova (Amiah Miller), a human girl they adopt into their clan. An eccentric chimp hermit, Bad Ape (Steve Zahn), leads them to Alpha-Omega's base. The Apes are there, prisoners of the Colonel, who demands they build him a wall without food or water. Caesar has to stand up to the Colonel to get his Apes out of there before Alpha-Omega's human enemies do (long story). But he worries about succumbing to the dark side like Koba (Toby Kebbell), the vengeful ape who haunts his dreams.

The motion capture effects continue the visual standard of the series. The apes still don't look out of place interacting with real people and environments. Their textures are indistinguishable from real apes. Each individual ape stands out even in a crowd of 50 chimpanzees or gorillas.

While some may wonder if this will finally get a visual effects Oscar for the new, improved Apes series, my question is "will this get an Oscar nomination for something beyond visual effects?" There's much to admire in the technical department. The sound designers crafted a bunch of fierce Ape screams and shouts, explosions and other powerful sound effects. Michael Giacchino has another memorable score, one which starts off with an eerie rendition of the Fox fanfare. Michael Seresin's cinematography and William Hoy & Stan Salfas' editing also enforce the moods. The production design is also awards worthy.

The acting also works, again. The motion capture apes feel as alive as the humans who played them. It's especially so with Caesar, who struggles to do the right thing throughout the movie. Zahn as Bad Ape provides much needed comic relief with his odd quirks. So what about the human villain? Harrelson's Colonel does some vile things but his last moments leave him a pitiful wreck. That's quite an accomplishment.

War for the Planet of the Apes is advertised as the finale of this rejuvenated story. It ends on such a strong note that you'll wonder where they'll go from here. I'm kinda into seeing a redo of the original Planet of the Apes with the new trilogy's motion capture apes. But how will they work stuff like time-travel into this setting? I hope whatever they do has the same story quality as this trilogy did. That's what helped it earn its second cinematic life.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

So The Amazing Spider-Man wasn't amazing after all.

Sony's second attempt at a Spider-Man film series short-circuited after two movies. So they worked out a joint custody agreement with Marvel Studios for a new cinematic life. Their newest webhead appeared in the form of Tom Holland in a glorified cameo in Captain America: Civil War. He returns in his latest solo movie, Spider-Man: Homecoming.

The aforementioned Civil War had Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) recruit Peter Parker to help him bring in Captain America (Chris Evans) and his fellow rogue Avengers. Peter starts the film by vlogging about his adventure, which includes getting a new high-tech suit from Tony. He goes back to Queens after the ensuing battle physically roughs him up. He still wants to be an Avenger but Tony doesn't think he's ready. He'll have to be a local "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man" for now.

Meanwhile, salvager Adrian Toomes (Michael Keaton) finds his business threatened by Tony's new Department of Damage Control. He decides to sell his souvenirs from superhero battles on the black market to pay the bills. He even fashions a winged suit from alien technology to become The Vulture. His workers accidentally draw Spider-Man's attention and he decides to deal with them before they cause trouble. Tony, meanwhile, tells Peter to stop before his recklessness causes trouble. After all, Peter's got a lot to deal with in Home and High School. What if the wrong people knew who he was?

Six writers, including director Jon Watts, worked on the screenplay. The end result is still a comprehensible teen superhero story. Peter's upcoming Homecoming dance is just as important as stopping the Vulture. We even see that these plot threads are closer than we realize at the end. There's even a few great gags ranging from a series of corny Captain America videos to Spidey's far-too effective suit. It's barely interested in setting up the next installment but its last scene is an hilarious game-changer.

This version of Spidey is still as delightfully enthusiastic as in Civil War. His wisecracks are as fun as always and his desire for respect is understandable. Then again, starting a fight in a populated ferry wasn't a wise choice. He still learns from his mistakes which earns the audience's respect. Jacob Batalon provides great comic relief and battle support as Peter's best bud, Ned Leeds. Michael Keaton makes for a formidable villain with understandable motives as The Vulture. Among the supporting cast, highlights include Tony Revolori as Peter's High School nemesis, Flash Thompson, Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, Jennifer Connelly as Peter's suit AI "Karen" and Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan.

The technical Marvels work their magic once again. Spidey's web-swinging is still cool after all these years. His youthful inexperience comes into play a few times as it adds to the tension. This is best exemplified in the rescue scene atop the Washington Monument. The Vulture's demonic suit adds to the character's ferocity. His gang's weaponry melds great CGI and sound design together. Michael Giacchino's score is a nice listen and its highlight is its rendition of the 1967 Spider-Man cartoon theme. Only the climactic fight with The Vulture was a bit hard to follow but the rest of the movie was nicely edited.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is a fresh start to a new Spidey cinematic life. It doesn't have the baggage of an oft-told origin story or a convoluted story wrapped in conspiracies and sub-plots. It gets things moving for a nicely paced 133 minutes. It's an exciting, funny, and meaningful superhero adventure that's sure to leave you excited for, not resigned to, Spidey's next adventure.

Its prerequisite mid-credit scene does hint of future villains for Spidey to face. The end credit scene is one more for the Captain America running gag.

Baby Driver

I'm sure a title like Baby Driver makes one imagine a few possibilities. Who'd ever imagine that the end result is an action thriller? Or one of the best original summer films from a major studio in years?

"Baby" (Ansel Elgort), as he's known, is the getaway driver employed by Atlanta crime boss Doc (Kevin Spacey). His parents were killed in a crash which left him with tinnitus, which he drowns out with music. But he can still evade the cops like the best drivers. Baby proved his worth by stealing from Doc, which is why he works for him. The debt is now paid and Baby can go straight.

Baby meets a waitress, Debora (Lily James), with whom he plans to head out west. Unfortunately, Doc abruptly renews Baby's contract for a Post Office job. His crew includes the psychotic Bats (Jamie Foxx) and married crooks Buddy (Jon Hamm) and Darling (Eiza Gonzalez). Baby looks for his exit from the underworld while Bats' attitude derails the operation.

Writer/Director Edgar Wright and his crew never slow down during the film's 113 minutes. The film's action is edited by Jonathan Amos and Paul Machliss in-tune with a collection of standards and Steven Price's original score. The car chases zoom with clarity and style. The dramatic revelations hit like an oncoming semi. Cinematographer Bill Pope gets points right off the bat for filming in Atlanta and in locales I recognize, like my Alma Matter, Georgia State University. The cinematography itself exemplifies the moods from dread, to action, to even the scale of the city spectacularly. The sound designers make Baby's tinnitus loud and clear; it especially affects him in the climax.

There's not a single miscast character here. Elgort is a great lead as Baby and James is fine as Debora. Spacey is threatening as Doc, but we see he legitimately cares about Baby. Foxx and Hamm are formidable villains, the latter even more so in the climax. Amongst the supporting cast, there's Brogan Hall as Doc's surprisingly polite nephew Samm, CJ Jones as Baby's deaf foster father Joseph and Paul Williams as an arms-dealer called The Butcher.

Baby Driver finds time for a few fun laughs in all the excitement. It's still a serious story with an off-beat title. It works because its lead is likable, his goals are understandable and the screenplay knows how to raise the stakes. The final resolution is sweet and satisfying. What's more to say. Apparently, a lot, since there's already talk of a sequel. Let's hope that a potential next one is just as memorable and stylish as this musical caper.

Despicable Me 3

Gru and his yellow Minions have returned for more animated mayhem in Despicable Me 3. This installment shows that this franchise hasn't lost its touch after seven years. 

Gru (Steve Carrell) and his wife, Lucy (Kristen Wiig), are agents of the Anti-Villain League. The biggest thorn on their side is Balthazer Bratt (Trey Parker), a former child actor who never outgrew his kid supervillain role from his 80's show, Evil Bratt. Gru and Lucy stop Bratt from stealing a large diamond, but he gets away again, which gets the two fired. All but two of the Minions walk out on Gru when he won't turn bad again. Bratt also makes off with the diamond in another heist. Gru also finds out he has a long-lost twin brother, Dru (also Carrell), who's a seemingly wealthy pig farmer in Freedonia.

Dru levels with Gru when they meet. Their late father was a legendary supervillain and Dru wants Gru to teach him the tricks of the trade. Gru decides to bring Dru along to steal back the diamond from Bratt. Gru wants to bring back the diamond to the Anti-Villain League and get his and Lucy's job back, but Dru doesn't know that. Bratt wants to use the diamond to bring one of his TV plots to life. The Minions get in their own adventures. What's a Gru to do?

Its story goes along nicely for 90 minutes. The writers find time for the characters to have their own adventures. Whether it's Lucy asserting herself as an adoptive mother, Gru and Dru bonding as brothers, or youngest daughter Agnes looking for a unicorn, the subplots are simple and to the point. There are some questions, like why the Minions walked out now instead of earlier, but they're minor.

Carrell has great chemistry with himself as Gru and Dru. They're both distinctive characters that have an actor between them. The Minions, who are still indistinguishable as usual, pull a catchy rendition of I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General at one point. Bratt is an entertaining villain who gets serious at the end. Of all the returning cast members, it was great to hear Julie Andrews as Gru and Dru's mother.

The visual design is still bright and colorful. Bratt's gadgets are a delightful array of weaponized 80's items, like a sonic keytar, a dye-pack rubix cube and an army of living dolls. My favorite bits are the scenes of Evil Bratt, complete with extensive special effects failures. Heitor Pereira and Pharrell Williams' score and the sound design is also appealing. 

Despicable Me 3 is still a nice summer matinee. It's fun, exciting and even meaningful. I just wonder what they'll do after the ending they pull. It's an unexpected twist except that it's not. But it's a way to go.

Transformers: The Last Knight

Everyone's favorite Robots in Disguise are back for another pyrotechnic display from Michael Bay. This is Transformers: The Last Knight, allegedly Bay's last film in this franchise. It's got more of the same from this franchise and director. It may or may not break the film as usual.

Autobot Leader Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) left Earth at the end of the last film, Age of Extinction, to meet his makers. He meets one of them, the evil Quintessa (Gemma Chan), on the remains of the Transformers' world, Cybertron. She tells him he can help her restore Cybertron if he gets her staff. She can use her staff to drain Earth's energy. A bit of brainwashing later and "Nemesis Prime" is ready to help...

...with an hour or less remaining in the movie.

The rest of the movie deals with Cade Yeager (Mark Wahlberg) as a fugitive savior of the fugitive Autobots. While scouring the remains of Chicago, devastated in Dark of the Moon, he finds a plucky survivor, Izabella (Isabella Moner) and a Transformer who gives him an unusual talisman. This gets the attention of the Transformer Cogman (Jim Carter), who summons Cade to meet his master, Sir Burton (Anthony Hopkins). The talisman is a relic from an order of Cybertronian Knights who served Camelot and Quintessa's staff was Merlin's staff. It also transpires that Earth is more than meets the eye. Only a descendant of Merlin can wield the staff and save the Earth from Quintessa.

The film mercifully scales back the franchise's escalating runtimes. It's 149 minutes, a minute shorter than the second movie, Revenge of the Fallen. Although it's shorter, the film's screenplay misses a few marks. I already mentioned how "Nemesis Prime" takes forever to show up oppose the Autobots and friends. It takes less than that for him to turn good. Izabella, meanwhile, is out of the picture for a good chunk of the movie despite being heavily featured in the trailers. She is a strong character in her fairly limited screentime, though. Let's not forget how Cade could've prevented a few conflicts if he showed the Cybertronian Knights his talisman.

The supporting cast gets some stuff right. Merlin, played here by Stanley Tucci, is portrayed as a drunk and a charlatan plagued by self-doubt who begs the Cybertronian Knights for help against overwhelming odds. His cameo was the best thing about the movie. Cogman and Burton were entertaining and endearing old folks, and never overstayed their welcome. The new Decepticon warriors were entertaining, even if most of them bit the dust after a scene or two. It's always something to see Barricade, the one Decepticon who won't die, prowling around.

The franchise continues its technical standards ten years on. The Transformers still look and move like real robots. They seamlessly transform into actual vehicles and other CGI-creations. Quintessa is an eerie CGI creation as is her gestalt henchman, Infernocus. The sound quality is as loud and forceful as always, though thankfully my screening didn't dial it up exponentially. The various locations, from London to Cybertron and the Knights' ship, all looked great when rendered by cinematographer Jonathan Sela. The crew hasn't lost its touch or its power yet.

The TV commercials are making it out like it's the last one ever. But it's not. There's a spin-off with the Autobot Bumblebee next year and an official sixth film the following year. The end credits even show a blatant sequel hook. They've got a lot of plans with this franchise even as the reviews get worse and worse. As for me, the film is fine as long as you don't think about it too much. I just hope that whoever takes over from Bay does more to fuel this franchise's spark.

OK, rolling out now.

Cars 3

Who knew there was still life in these Cars?

The Cars movies lacked the critical motor backing Pixar's usual output (Cars 2, even more so), but they still made money. So the inevitable Cars 3 was bound to drive in. It's finally happened. The final product is surprisingly the best of the mostly OK franchise.

Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) is still the top race car of the Piston Cup circuit. Jackson Storm (Armie Hammer) is a new racer driving up to steal Lightning's thunder. He and a new bunch of race cars have the technical know-how to zoom past the old guard. So the old guard quickly retire, but not Lightning. One race against Storm ends in disaster for Lightning.

Lightning decides to get back to work once he gets well enough. He goes to a new training facility where cars like Storm get their simulated know-how. There's also some personal input provided by trainer Cruz Ramirez (Cristela Alonzo). His new sponsor, Sterling (Nathan Fillion), sees no future in Lightning's racing career, but sees one for him in advertising. Lightning decides to stake his career on his next race. Cruz is appointed to help him, but Lightning helps her realize her own racing dreams.

This marks the directorial debut of Brian Fee, a Pixar Storyboard Artist since Cars. Its story is a good one. Lightning's struggle to stay relevant is an understandable one. After all, what does an "old car" do after so many years? That's reflected in his flashbacks with his mentor, Doc Hudson (Paul Newman, via archive recordings). He finds it rewarding to do what Doc did and train the next generation. That's a great resolution. There's also a prevalent moral that technology is no replacement for real world experience (see Cruz's first time on the field).

Are there issues with the story? Yes, but probably minor. Jackson Storm isn't seen again after the final race. I would've wanted to see some resolution to that guy. And my suspension-of-disbelief nearly cracked when Lightning and Cruz tracked down Smokey (Chris Cooper), Doc's own mentor. Smokey is still alive when most comparatively aged humans aren't. How old are the characters? 

Cars 3 continues Pixar's standards of technical excellence. The car characters look realistically shiny and chrome. Their environments are equally photorealistic; the training facility is a real masterpiece of production design. The sound design and editing are suitably intense and clear. Composer Randy Newman's recognizable score is a good listen and a nice fit for the action.

Cars 3 relates themes universal for both humans and anthropomorphic cars. Its themes may sound overtly familiar, but it gives them some new spins. The new spins help make the final race a satisfying trilogy capper. It's also a good warm-up for Pixar's Thanksgiving offering, Coco.

The proceedings begin with Pixar's latest short, Lou. This one finds the animate contents of the lost-and-found box in an Elementary School dealing with a bully with kindness. It's another fun and emotional story even if you can't make out what Lou really is.

The Mummy

INT. MUSEUM - ANCIENT EGYPT WING

JETHRO walks around when he finds a MUMMY walking around.

JETHRO (nonplussed): Mummy, may I say something?

MUMMY: Yes, you may.

JETHRO: Rita Repulsa was scarier than you.

The Mummy chases him around. Jethro gives him the slip. The Mummy goes back into his sarcophagus.

JETHRO: Something like that.

Universal Studios went back to its ghoulery of monster movies for its latest financial crutch franchise. They've rebranded their classic ghouls and ghosts under the name Dark Universe. Their first resurrected ghoul is The Mummy, which already has a Brendan Fraser film series in distant memory. What does this have to make it a series? I don't know.

So the mummy herself is Princess Ahmanet (Sofia Boutella) of Egypt. She was supposed to be the next Queen, but when she got a baby half-brother, she went all familicide. She also sold her soul to the god Set, who gave her a MacGuffin dagger to use to give him a human host. She got mummified alive and buried in Mesopotamia under ancient lock-and-key before she could use it, though.

Eons later, Mesopatamia is Iraq and a drone strike opens up Ahmanet's tomb. Treasure Hunters/Mercenaries/Thieves/Scoundrels Nick Morton (Tom Cruise) and Chris Vail (Jake Johnson) called the air support during a brutal firefight. Nick breaks Ahmanet's seal while archaeologist Jenny Halsey (Annabelle Wallis) explains the unorthodox tomb preparation. They load up the sarcophagus on the next cargo plane out of Egypt. On the flight, a zombie Vail goes stab-crazy while a murder of crows wrecks the flight. Nick gives Jenny a parachute out while he goes down.

Nick's still alive. He's now psychically linked to Ahmanet because he broke the seal. Her endgame is to use him to be Set's human host. She sets out to drain the life force from folks in the meantime. She also wants that dagger back. Jenny's part of a monster hunting organization that can stop The Mummy. It's called Prodigium and its leader is Dr. Henry Jekyll (Russell Crowe).

Alex Kurtzman, co-writer and/or producer of many a blockbuster, such as Transformers and Ender's Game, gets to direct one of his own. It's not, however, his directorial debut; that honor goes to the box office dud People Like Us. Let's get that misconception out of the way.

The writing is credited to six people, including Kurtzman. It shows. Our main heroes are respectable, albeit forgettable character types. Vali gets to be Nick's decaying ghost buddy, an idea one's sure to recognize from An American Werewolf in London. Really? The Mummy herself is explained as a tragic figure, but is shown doing nothing but evil. Dr. Jekyll is the best character but only because he's unintentionally hilarious when he finally turns into Mr. Hyde. The story these characters take part in is interesting, albeit somewhat muddled, contains a few moments of astounding idiocy and its constant action is more routine than anything.

The visual effects and makeup department was fine here. Their best work took Ahmanet from a decayed mummy to an undead human. I couldn't tell if her zombies were by makeup or CGI, so that's good fx work there, I guess. The sandstorm across London was pretty nifty too; the sound design helped get its point across. Ahmanet's prison tomb was a good work of production design. Brian Tyler's score conveyed an eerie, epic tone quite well. The technical people did well even if the story didn't.

Universal already has Bride of Frankenstein and The Invisible Man to go next in its Dark Universe. They'll have to give their revamped monster movies more spark of life if they want audience involvement. That's supposing The Mummy doesn't derail the franchise from the word go. It's an average summer blockbuster worth only a matinee. That's also supposing you want to see it. Or not.

Captain Underpants

When Stan Lee introduced Spider-Man in 1962, he referred to superheroes as "long underwear characters" who are a "dime a dozen." I ask these questions. Who wears long underwear anymore? And I'm not sure underwear is kinda accurate.

But leave it to Dav Pilkey to create a literary hero who actually fights in his underwear, Captain Underpants! This incredibly silly concept is now a Dreamworks feature, Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie.

George Beard (Kevin Hart) and Harold Hutchinson (Thomas Middleditch) love to amuse themselves and their classmates at the dour Jerome Horwitz Elementary School. Their best mediums are pranks and comics. Their top creation is Captain Underpants, whose choice attire should be obvious. Their excessive pranks irks the ill-tempered Principal Krupp (Ed Helms) to no end. So he decides to end it all by putting the boys in separate classes. As a last ditch effort to stop him, George pulls a 3D Hypno Ring that he got out of a cereal box on Krupp. The Hypno Ring actually works.

The boys realize that Krupp resembles their creation and promptly make him Captain Underpants. Their real life super hero is a super pleasant nuisance who causes more trouble than he realizes. They can change him back with water, and revert with finger snapping, but why bother? Krupp will just split them up. They'll just have to find a way to keep their problem under control. But he'll be useful when the new science teacher (Nick Kroll) decides to take over the world by sucking the laughter out of it.

Director David Soren co-wrote the screenplay with Nicholas Stoller. The toilet humor might bury this premise under most interpretations. But not this one. The film is loaded with several sly meta-jokes, sight gags, slapstick, running gags, action scenes ... and profound messages. Yes, messages. To wit, kids must have fun and friendship in their lives or they'll be miserable adults like Krupp and the science teacher. The science teacher's motivation is to avenge the mocking of his name, Professor Poopypants. It does make one think of the real life stigma of having a "unique" name.

The voice cast also sells it. Ed Helms is great as the maniacal Principal Krupp and the pleasant Captain Underpants. Hart and Middleditch make for a likable pair of karmic tricksters who get in way over their heads. Kroll's Professor Poopypants makes for an entertaining villain; he discusses the brain in overly-long nonsense terms, badly denies being a secret supervillain and is legitimately threatening when he shows himself evil. Jordan Peele also stands out as Melvin Sneedly, George and Harold's grade school nemesis and the Professor's laugh-resistant assistant.

It's a miracle that this movie cost $38 million considering the cost of animation and movies and animation movies these days. The movie's colorful animation is a 3D translation of the original books' art style. The film also has comic book scenes in 2D animation in that same style. It even has an imagine spot with sock puppets! There's even a scene presented in flip book form, which the books called "Flip-o-Rama," which our heroes admit is a cost cutting measure. The changing art styles help cement the film's wacky nature. The unusually good sound design made it a nice aural experience.

Don't let the wacky title throw you off. Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie is the smartest dumb movie of the summer. It knows how silly it is and lets the audience have fun with it. There's much to think about after its 89 minutes are done. I saw it on flatscreen matinee, but it's worth any price. That's how good it is.

Wonder Woman

Batman v Superman's biggest cinematic folly was putting its eggs in one basket. Everybody in DC comics crowded into what was supposed to be a simple Superman sequel. But Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) made a significant impression despite her fleeting presence. She made more of an impression in her own movie, also called Wonder Woman. Let's see why.

Diana is the princess of Themyscira, the secluded island of the Amazons. They defend humanity from the manipulations of violent beings like Ares, the God of War. Her aunt, Antiope (Robin Wright), trains her in combat against the wishes of her mother, Queen Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen). Meanwhile, World War I is happening, and pilot Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) is on the run from the German Empire. He crash lands at Themyscira and Diana fishes him out. His story of "the war to end all wars" leads Diana to suspect Ares is behind it all. So she arms herself and goes with Steve to London.

The evil General Ludendorff (Danny Huston) and his top scientist, Dr. Poison (Elena Ayana), have developed a super-advanced mustard gas. Steve has Poison's notebook with her formula. Diana has her eyes on Ludendorff, believing he is Ares incarnate. Steve and Diana head off to face Ludendorff's threat. They'll have to hurry as the Allies are drawing up the Armistice of Compiègne.

Director Patty Jenkins (Monster) works from a script by Allan Heinberg, who co-wrote the screen story with Zack Snyder and Jason Fuchs. It's a story that doesn't drown itself in CGI action or prioritize the upcoming Justice League movie. It's got action scenes, yes, and its framing device shows present-day Diana in touch with Batman. But the story is engaging and comprehensive.

Gal Gadot herself is engaging as Diana. She wants to do the right thing and is capable of doing so. Her not being allowed to frustrates her and the audience. We also feel her disillusionment with the world when she experiences war for the first time. It's also entertaining to see her experience contemporary life for the first time. Her relationship with Steve is also endearing.

And for the rest of the cast. Chris Pine is funny and serious and excellent as Steve. The same goes for his crew, Sameer (Saïd Taghmaoui), Charlie (Ewen Bremner) and Chief (Eugene Brave Rock). Lucy Davis is good comic relief as Etta Candy. The Amazons, especially Nielsen and Wright, were great. Huston and Ayana were strong villains, though her resolution was kind of abrupt. David Thewlis also made an impression as the kindly Sir Morgan, a man who's got more than he lets on.

The technical crew was also full of wonders. Production Designer Aline Bonetto and Costume Designer Lindy Hemming realize the various settings, such as Themyscira, London and the Western Front perfectly. Dr. Poison's partial face mask is a creepy sight. I don't know if that counts as costuming or makeup, but as for the makeup/hairstyling, it also works for the setting. Cinematographer Matthew Jensen gives each setting the appropriate color scheme. Edtior Martin Walsh makes the battle scenes comprehensive and forceful. The score by Rupert Gregson-Williams is also memorable and it makes good use of Diana's leitmotif from Batman v Superman.

Wonder Woman never loses sight of its goals during its 141 minute runtime. It's ultimately about Diana rising above the cruelty of reality with love, not hate. It does the world's best comic book super heroine proud. Her next appearance in Justice League is definitely anticipated now. And you might see a fleeting trailer of the biopic of her creator, William Moulton Marston, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women, which doesn't have a release date yet.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales

Jack Sparrow ain't retired. He just biding his time. After numerous production snags, Johnny Depp's swashbuckling alter-ego is back for another 3D adventure, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. It's more of the same yarns of swashbuckling supernatural shenanigans, for better or worse.

Our favorite Captain Jack is down-and-out after he and his crew botch a bank robbery. He's so glum that he barters his magic compass for a bottle of rum. The Compass doesn't like Jack giving it up so easily and releases his greatest fear. Said greatest fear is a crew of ghostly Spanish Pirate Hunters captained by Armando Salazar (Javier Bardem).

Meanwhile, Jack runs into Henry Turner (Brenton Thwaites), whose father Will (Orlando Bloom) is the cursed captain of the cursed Flying Dutchman. Henry wants Jack to help him find the Trident of Poseidon, the MacGuffin that can undo the Dutchman's curse. An astrologer and horologist, Carnia Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), has a map to the Trident. Salazar wants the Trident to enact his undead vengeance on all the Pirates of the sea. Salazar ropes Jack's frenemy Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) into service to find Jack and the Trident. And some Navy jerks want it too.

It's a convoluted plot, that's for sure. But you'll be shocked to know that it runs for just 129 minutes. The directing duo of Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg (Kon-Tiki) keep things going quickly. It almost never drags its feet. It also helps that Captain Jack's antics are still amusing as always. We also have a memorable villain in the ghostly Captain Salazar. The supporting cast is a good bunch, even if some of their characters are superfluous.

There are questions that may make or break it. I've got a few. The film says Salazar is Jack's greatest fear. But how can that be if Jack can't remember his name? Why are the Navy guys in the movie if Salazar takes them out before they even see the Trident, and therefore, not an overall threat? I must also question when this film's supposed to take place, considering the guillotine's just been invented. It's still a wonder that it's nowhere near the elephantine 168 minutes of At World's End.

Its set pieces aim to top each other in rapid succession. There's Jack's opening bank robbery, which goes from robbing a bank vault to robbing the actual bank building. There's the daring double-execution save of Jack and Carina by Henry. All of it ends with the mainly undersea battle for the Trident. Salazar and his crew are realized by creepy CGI. The undead sea creatures are just as creepy. The physical makeup equally beautifies and uglifies the cast with ease. Paul McCartney's cameo was barely recognizable because of it.

Dead Men Tell No Tales promises to be the last of Captain Jack's big-screen adventures. But there's always talk of a sequel and the end credit scene hints at a long lost character's return. What more can there be? This movie ended what At World's End "started." I'm not holding my breath for Captain Jack's return. At least we have a decent matinee on our hands to get summer moving. It's not revolutionary but it's not dreadful.

Alien: Covenant

.....................................................................................................

I made sense out of Prometheus then and now. But I'm aware then and now that not everybody did. Among the many complaints was that it didn't make up its mind if it was an honest prequel to Alien. 

For the sequel, the 2010 to Prometheus's 2001, its franchise intentions are a lot clearer. Once again directed by Ridley Scott, this is Alien: Covenant, a film whose answers are surprisingly not underwhelming.

The starship Covenant is on a voyage to the planet Origae-6. Their seven-year ETA is wrecked by a solar flare which kills a few personnel by cryotube malfunction (like the captain, cameoed by James Franco). Good thing the android Walter (Michael Fassbender) doesn't need hypersleep or he wouldn't be around to get up the rest of the crew.

Naturally, the crew doesn't want to go back to hypersleep. So when they pinpoint a new world to colonize that's even closer, the new captain Oram (Billy Crudup) orders full-speed ahead. Daniels (Katherine Waterston), the terraforming expert and the late captain's wife, is skeptical about the new planet. But everything's fine down there. Except for the organisms that infect live humans with vicious monstrosities.

The landing crew is decimated by the "Neomorphs" until they're saved by the android David (also Fassbender), last survivor of the Prometheus. Their new world was that of the "Engineers," the creators of the human race. David's been tinkering with their technology to create his own perfect organism. His crowning achievement is the Alien itself, the "Xenomorph." The survivors of the Covenant must work hard if they want to live.

The characters are a mixed bunch. On the one hand, some characters, like the dead captain, barely get development (or none) before they bite it. They get more in some scenes featured in the trailers, but not in the film itself. On the other hand, the characters we know the most are great. Tennessee (Danny McBride), the pilot, is the best of the humans with great lines and development. Daniels is a capable action heroine as much as Ellen Ripley in the classic tetralogy. Michael Fassbender has great chemistry with himself times two and the rest of the cast. Strong CGI (except one smudgy spot) helps him converse whole scenes with himself.

And the monstrosities themselves? Scary. They're both visualized by great motion capture work. The Neomorph makes for a great new addition to the movie monster Parthenon. The Xenomorph don't show up until the last fourth or so of the movie. They won't disappoint. Yes, there's two of them. The extra one nearly took a point off for me for ending fatigue until I remembered Alien and Aliens.

It's another technical achievement from Scott. The great production design by Chris Seagers visualizes such eerie locales as the Engineers' capital and David's lair. The Covenant itself is a nice ship on par with the Ares of The Martian until things go south. Dariusz Wolski's cinematography and the effects which visualized those locales was also excellent.  The costume and makeup design also get their jobs done. Editor Pietro Scalia builds up the relentless suspense with ease. Jed Kurzel's score mixes some of Prometheus's and Alien's tracks, often overshadowing his own. His best composition accompanies the debut of the Neomorph.

Alien: Covenant's answers may not be for everyone. Its horror isn't for everybody. I got through both those parts OK. I found a fascinating theme about a creation destroying its creator emerging. Add the film's quoting Ozymandias, and I think David's future isn't as secure as he thinks. I want to see if I'm right about it. It was a 122 minute sci-fi horror film that never bored me. The next installment is apparently coming within two years from now. And I'm already ready.

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

There's always room for King Arthur in Hollywood. His last screen appearance was a same-titled 2004 dud about the "real deal." I vaguely remember it being drab. Guy Ritchie's reinvention, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, is slightly more memorable for its oddities. But at least it resembles the myths more than the "real deal."

The evil Vortigern (Jude Law) hates his good brother, Uther Pendragon (Eric Bana), king of Camelot. So he cooks up a scheme with the mage Mordred and some Sea Hags to dispose of the Royals. Uther's son Arthur gets away and is found by some Londinium ladies. Years later, Arthur (Charlie Hunnam) is a rowdy guy with equally rowdy friends. They rough up bad guys, like the Viking who roughed up Arthur's adopted mother. But the Viking was a guest of Vortigern. Uh, shackles...

When the Sword in the Stone is discovered, Arthur is last in line to pull it out. Arthur gets in front and the sword, thus proving him the Once and Future King. But the sword is too powerful for the untrained mind. So a mage (Astrid Berges-Frisbey) frees Arthur and gets him to Sir Bedivere (Djimon Hounsou). Naturally, they're here to help him control the sword and cut down Vortigern. Arthur has his doubts.

As with Ritchie's last film, The Man from UNCLE, there are four writers on the story/screenplay. You'd think there'd be a few dozen more. It throws a lot of questions around in quick succession. What's the deal with the Sea Hags? How come this human/mage war the intro text exposits is barely explored? Is Vortigern a power-hungry psycho or a remorseful man putting up a tyrannical front? The film's editing style overwhelmed its attempt at cohesive storytelling. Arthur's growing up montage went by faster than a speeding bullet. A few other scenes zig-zag in time in rapid succession. 

The film's best characters were the Sea Hags themselves. OK, they're called the Syrens. They're the most bizarre part of the film as they're equal parts creepy and unintentionally funny. They only really appear in one scene and I wish there was more. The human characters were uninteresting standard action characters. Except maybe Vortigern, but that's because he occasionally turns into a demon knight that looks like Skeletor. There was nothing wrong with them as a whole, but nothing special either.

The film's best visual effects, other than the Sea Hags Syrens, were the beyond skyscraper-sized war elephants in the prologue. Yes, this sounds like the Mumak, but they're still terrifying monstrosities. Their roar is simply astounding. The action scenes are pretty good when you can tell what's going on. Unfortunately, the opposite happens a lot. Camelot itself is recreated with fine sets by production designer Gemma Jackson. Annie Symons' costume design complements the gritty fantasy tone well. The same goes for the makeup work. 

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword hopes to be the first of a six-film series. They forgot to make an engaging first installment. Its heavy style over substance makes the 126 minutes tough to sit through. It's one thing to reinvent a story that's been done for ages. It's another to make that reinvention something worth watching. Let's hope the next person who pulls King Arthur back to the screen have a great idea in mind.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Marvel's mightiest rogues are back. The Guardians of the Galaxy have more space to explore and beats to jam to. Once again with James Gunn writing and directing their adventure, they're here in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

So the Guardians of the Galaxy now work as heroic mercenaries. Peter Quill/Star Lord (Chris Pratt), Rocket Racoon (Bradley Cooper), Baby Groot (Vin Diesel), Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Drax (Dave Bautista) open the film by slaying an inter-dimensional monster. The "Abilisk" was after the Anulax Batteries, the power source of the snobbish, chrome Sovereign race. Nebula (Karen Gillian), Gamora's estranged evil sister, was also after the batteries. The Sovereign proudly hand Nebula over to the Guardians once they deal with the Abilisk. Rocket helps himself to some of the batteries and the Sovereign notice. Their drones shoot up the Guardians' ship and make them crash on another planet.

The Guardians meet Ego (Kurt Russell), the Avatar of a living planet and Star Lord's mysterious father. Ego and his ward, Mantis (Pom Klementieff) take Star Lord, Gamora and Drax to visit himself, while the others repair the ship. Unfortunately, the B-Team is found by the Ravagers, Star Lord's old space pirate crew. Fortunately, Yondu (Michael Rooker), the Ravager captain and Star Lord's stepfather, is a cool guy. But the Ravager Taserface (Chris Sullivan) isn't and mutinies with Nebula's help.

Meanwhile, the A-Team is living nicely on Planet Ego. But Gamora realizes something's amiss. Ego's up to something with Peter and the Guardians will have to join with their new allies to stop it.

It's a busy plot but it's not incomprehensible. You'll remember everybody and their part in the story. They're all a fun bunch of galactic misfits and deities. They have deep issues, whether it's with family or their stolen stuff, to work out during the film's 135 minutes. And it's a funny and compelling ride. Best of all, the film knows how to bring even the smallest plot points full circle. Even a funny jab from the first movie takes on a dark meaning.

Let's expand on the characters. The established Guardians are great; their chemistry and characterization worked here as the last movie. Yondu is still a cool old guy. Nebula's a sympathetic character even if she's quite antagonistic. Kurt Russell as Ego seemed like a cool old guy until we find out his secret. Mantis is endearing. Sylvester Stallone made a welcome cameo as the Ravager Starhawk. And who can forget Marvel's fowlest character, Howard the Duck, who has a nice background cameo in one scene? 

And Stan Lee was there too.

The technical Marvels deliver again as usual. There's a wonderfully eclectic bunch of Aliens and Planets created by the Production Designer Scott Chambliss and Visual Effects department. Ego himself is a visual Marvel; wait till you see inside him. Costume Designer Judianna Makovsky dresses the galaxy in a wonderfully fancy display. The Makeup department standout with the chrome Sovereigns and Ego's rugged appearance. The music, whether Tyler Bates' score or the old standards, is pretty good.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is just as funny and exciting as the first movie. The story makes it a meaningful ride through the cosmos. Once you're done, you'll want more. Sure enough, they'll be back for Avengers: Infinity War next year and the inevitable Vol. 3 sometime soon.

The film gives us five prerequisite credit scenes. Two of them expand on Lee and Stallone's cameos, two more are funny bits and another promises another foe for the Guardians on the pipeline.

Smurfs: The Lost Village

The last time I smurfed out a Smurfs movie, I don't remember smurfing liking it. So what smurfed my attention back to the land of little blue people? A new smurfing direction for one thing! Whereas the last two Smurf movies mixed live-action and animation, Smurfs: The Lost Village is completely animated. And surprisingly, this exceeds any smurfy expectations.

This smurffest reiterates how Smurfette (Demi Lovato) was created by the evil Gargamel (Rainn Wilson) and turned good by Papa Smurf (Mandy Patinkin). Everything's smurffing great in Smurf Village for everybody but Smurfette. They've all got clearly defined smurffing personalities but her. So she explores the wall surrounding this Forbidden Forrest. She finds someone roaming around. That someone drops a Smurf Cap of a different color, which means there's more where that came from.

That's great news for Gargamel, who wants all their Smurffin essence for himself. So Smurfette sets out with Hefty Smurf (Joe Manganiello), Clumsy Smurf (Jack McBrayer) and Brainy Smurf (Danny Pudi) to locate the other Smurfs to warn them about Gargamel. Strange creatures await them. A bigger surprise awaits them when they meet the new Smurfs.

What's there to smurffing like about it? The humor is nowhere near as obnoxious as The Smurfs 2. The characters were likable in their own ways. The voice cast characterize them pretty well (even if Gargamel's casting change needs some getting used to).The story went along at a mostly nicely paced 90 minutes. Should I say smurffing more? I think I should.

The visual department get some smurffing points. The animated environments looked good, but the floating river was awesome. The textures of the Smurfs' clothing looked incredibly real. The creatures the Smurfs meet were nicely designed. The Smurfs themselves are uniquely defined despite their chromatic similarities.

The story is where it nearly trips on its big feet. Our heroes have a mostly placid journey. The Floating River sequence was intense and a scene with neon bunnies was fun, but that's about it. Speaking of the main bunny, Bucky, what's up with him glowing neon even in daylight? Barely anything is a serious threat until Gargamel finally finds the hidden Smurf village. That is why I said it was  "mostly nicely paced." The climax hinges on Smurfette being invulnerable to Gargamel's magic due to her origin. And Gargamel so doesn't consider her a threat it's laughable. The last few minutes were emotional even if the outcome was obvious.

Smurfs: The Lost Village is a smurffin improvement over The Smurfs 2. It's not spectacular, but it's not spectacularly cringeworthy. It's a nice, quiet pre-summer matinee for the whole family. Or it's a nice, summer matinee provided you can find it still in the next few weeks. Given its slow reception at the box office, you might have the whole theater to yourself. 

I didn't.

The Fate of the Furious

Or, never count a franchise out prematurely...

The "last" installment of The Fast and the Furious franchise wasn't it. So there's another movie with Fast cars at Furious speeds. This installment continues those traditions along with its wildly-varying title system. This time it's The Fate of the Furious.

Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his wife, Letty (Michelle Rodriguez), spend their honeymoon in Havana.The evil hacker super-villain Cipher (Charlize Theron) blackmails Dom into her services. Dom runs Agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) off the road during a mission in Berlin and takes their prize: an EMP device. Hobbs gets disavowed and incarcerated, but is let out with Deckard Shaw (Jason Statham), the last movie's big bad. They and Dom's fellow racers have to stop Cipher from starting World War III. This will surely bring them in conflict with Dom.

And that's it for plot.

F. Gary Gray is the latest man behind the director's wheel, riding alongside screenwriter Chris Morgan. They continue the franchise's long tradition of wild car chases and stunts. It's most insane when Cipher and her goons set every car in Manhattan loose on a Russian diplomat's convoy. The climactic chase against Cipher's hijacked submarine was also spectacular. But the best bit is how Dom gets away from Cipher in the end.

Perhaps catching up on the previous installments is necessary this time. Part of the plot concerns Elena (Elsa Pataky), a character who first appeared in Fast Five, but I forgot about her till now. A few characters from the fourth movie, Fast & Furious, appear in key supporting roles. But I still remembered that the MacGuffin of Fast & Furious 6 was an EMP-Device like the one here. Huh. Fortunately, other details like Shaw's history with our heroes was properly explained.

But the cast still worked wonders. Johnson and Statham are just as efficient comedians as they are action stars. Some of the film's best laughs come from their hilariously over-the-top bickering. The other established stars are still a reliable crew as always. Cipher is so vile that the audience wants her dead. There's also a delightful cameo from Helen Mirren as Shaw's mother Magdalene. 

I won't guess if The Fate of the Furious really is the last one. Remember last time? The end leaves it open for yet another sequel. And they still make money. Anyway, it's a good pre-summer blockbuster. It gives the audience elaborate action and reasons to care about it. Let's hope that a prospective ninth movie won't make the franchise crash and burn. The ride's been good so far.

The Boss Baby

Marla Frazee's book, The Boss Baby, gleefully exaggerates the working conditions of new parents under demanding infants. Now they're corporate drones under demanding tycoons. That I can believe. Dreamworks' animated expansion of this story raises a lot of perplexing questions.

Tim Templeton (Toby Maguire) narrates the story of his childhood days. Seven-year-old Timmy (Miles Bakshi) is happy with his mom (Lisa Kudrow) and dad (Jimmy Kimmel). One day, mom and dad bring home a little tyke in a business suit. The new arrival bosses around the parents and leaves Timmy in the dust. He thinks the "Boss Baby's" business suit is weird. That's until he hears the little man talk.

The Boss Baby (Alec Baldwin) is an upstart executive at Baby Corp, an organization run by babies who act like adults because of their Secret Baby Formula. Their job is to make sure babies get lots of love and attention. But the evil Puppy Co. has been cutting in their love margin. That company's CEO Francis E. Francis (Steve Buscemi) has a deviously cute puppy in the works. Mom and Dad Templeton happen to work for Puppy Co. Boss Baby and Timmy will have to act like brothers to stop this evil plan. Otherwise, Boss Baby is out of a job.

A press summary of this bizarre story flat-out calls Tim an unreliable narrator. Timmy gets a few imagine spots of daring adventures that dissolve to reality. Is the whole movie an imagine spot for Timmy's promotion to big brother? The finale doesn't clarify what all the elaborations represented. Its last shot makes it look like some of it happened. So, what?

It still raises a disturbing, satirical point about people who view puppies as "accessories." No, not taking away all the baby love margin. It's the surplus. Francis E. Francis even unveils the new puppy like Steve Jobs would unveil his new Apple product. It's not explored all the way, but the inference is still there.

The voice actors make the story bearable. Alec Baldwin's clearly having fun as Boss Baby. He's the enthusiastic corporate raider we'd love to hate if he were any older. As he shows his sympathetic side early on, he becomes the corporate raider we'd love to admire. Bakshi is also perfectly cast as the over-imaginative protagonist. Buscemi's Francis E Francis, while delightfully evil, has an understandable backstory. Conrad Vernon is also great as Francis's henchman/brother Eugene.

So what about the technical work? Well, the colors and animation are good. The imagine spots provide some wonderfully bizarre visuals. Hans Zimmer and Steve Mazarro's score is lively and Cheek to Cheek is a nice leitmotif. The sound was OK, though one line sounded dirtier than what it was because it was barely discernible. It was nothing Oscar worthy, but it worked for what it was.

The Boss Baby's weird story may certainly entertain impressionable kids. They'll think about life's little mysteries years from now; adults will think about this film's mysteries once they're done. It's an OK matinee for a flatscreen showing. Just don't think about it too much. 

Ghost in the Shell

Masamune Shirow's cyberpunk manga opus The Ghost in the Shell took off once its anime film version premiered in 1995. There were anime follow-ups in television and theaters, but this latest incarnation, Ghost in the Shell, is live-action. It's a visual accomplishment but its story could've used fine-tuning.

In the not so distant future, humanity has upgraded themselves with technology. The evil Hanka Corporation have found a way to upload human minds (Ghosts) into androids (Shells). Their first creation is Major Mira Killian (Scarlett Johansson), sole-survivor of a terrorist attack. One year after the incident, she works for the counter-terrorism force Section 9 under Chief Aramaki (Takeshi Kitano). She can free-fall from buildings with ease, turn invisible and fight a room full of villains.

The android Kuze (Michael Pitt) sets out to kill Hanka officials. When Killian and her partner, Batou (Pilou Asbæk) investigate, she realizes her past isn't what it seems. Kuze has the answers to her hazy past. The evil Hanka head Mr. Cutter (Peter Ferdinando) decides to terminate her before she finds out.

Director Rupert Sanders works from a screenplay by Jamie Moss, William Wheeler and Ehren Kruger. It discusses profound themes such as reality and identity as much as its predecessors. How it chooses to discuss them may make or break the film. On one hand, there's a subplot about a garbageman (Daniel Henshall) who gets brainwashed into a Kuze sleeper agent. On the other hand, there's the revelation of Mira's true identity. The first bit is subtle and the garbageman is the best of the bit characters. The second is a bit extreme. These themes are sometimes blunted by the action, the overabundance of which blunts it even further.

How about the principal characters? Johansson is a compelling lead as Mira; she's believable as a cyborg struggling with her emotions. Her chemistry with Asbæk was fine. Speaking of which, Asbæk makes for a cool guy as Batou. Juliette Binoche provided warm moral support as Mira's chief scientist, Dr. Ouelet. Takeshi Kitano was great as Chief Aramaki. The other characters of Section 9 were just there and barely had much insight. Meanwhile, Pitt and Ferdinando were acceptable as the villains.

The technical areas are where the film impresses the most. The production, costume and makeup designers do a splendid job of recreating the source material's designs. The best accomplishments of the visual effects team are merging CGI-mechanical parts with real actors. How do they put on Batou's mechanical eyes? Mira's camouflage suit is another visual highlight. The giant holographic ads across the city were pretty nifty too. The worse effect was the obvious CGI "spider-fingers" on some random character. On the bright side, Jess Hall's cinematography really illuminate the city at night. Clint Mansell and Lorne Balfe's score is OK; not exactly memorable but not bad. Kenji Kawai provides the closing credits with a redo of his much more memorable opening theme of the first movie.

Ghost in the Shell is a movie with good intentions. But it struggles to balance its melancholic and choleric tendencies. It wants to have it both ways but it's struggling with its programming. Still, at 102 minutes, it wasn't really boring. If you want a great looking sci-fi movie, this will do fine. If you want a great looking, profound, sci-fi movie, you may want to wait for Blade Runner 2049.

Power Rangers

In 1984, businessman Haim Saban was introduced to the Super Sentai TV series in a Japanese hotel room. He thought the concept of rainbow-spandexed super heroes with giant robots punching rubber monsters was a good concept. He just needed to re-contextualize the action scenes with new material starring American actors. After years of rejection, his concept became a 90's cultural legacy: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.

It was a matter of time before Saban's low-budget concept became a big-budget reboot film. And with director Dean Israelite, the Power Rangers are back on the big screen for the first time since 1997. The end result is unlike anything you'd expect from the franchise.

Jason Scott (Dacre Montgomery) used to be a High School Football Star until a prank benched him in detention. He immediately befriends nerdy Billy Cranston (RJ Cyler), who invites him to explore the local quarry. Their trespassing attracts the attention of disgraced former cheerleader Kimberley Hart (Naomi Scott) and loners Zack Taylor (Ludi Lin) and Trini (Becky G). They soon find five glowing coins that make them stronger than before.

Further exploring leads them to a ship. They meet the ancient warrior Zordon (Bryan Cranston), who's now a face on a wall, and his robot helper Alpha 5 (Bill Hader). Zordon tells them they are the Power Rangers, who must defend Earth and its life-giving Zeo Crystal from evil. Rita Repulsa (Elizabeth Banks), the treacherous Green Ranger, has risen to take the crystal for herself. The Rangers have to become friends if they are to morph and take on Rita and her giant minion, Goldar.

The film spends a lot of time developing the Rangers' personalities and relationships. The cast succeeds quite well. We get to know them well beyond their chromatic arrangements. They behave like teenagers with attitude than paragons of virtue. Their problems are understandable. They only morph within the last half-hour; their chemistry makes it worth it.

What about the supporting cast? Banks is certainly a standout as Rita. She's delightfully hammy and legitimately creepy, sometimes in the same scene. Cranston is reliable as always as Zordon, who has an ulterior motive for training the Rangers. Hader was nice as the voice of the snarky, yet nice Alpha 5. David Denman is also great as Jason's father, Sam.

There's a lot of effort in this production. The Rangers' new armored suits are practical costumes with CGI enhancements. You'll be fine with them once you see them in action. The same goes for their Zords and their combined Megazord form. In fact, the best visual effect scene of the film was the Megazord rising from the ground. It helps a lot that the action is coherently strung together by editors Dody Dorn and Martin Bernfeld. Matthew J. Lloyd's cinematography is also great. Brian Tyler's score is also worth a listen.

Power Rangers is a good mix of seriousness and silliness. There's some minor story nitpicks but they're minor in the grand scheme of things. It's story is a lot more profound than what you'd might expect from the franchise. It's a good way to pass the time before the latest incarnation, Power Rangers Ninja Steel, returns from its hiatus this fall. Its mid-credit scene promises another ranger in the sequel.