Category: Movies

Is “Captain Fantastic” Fantastic?

Captain Fantastic film

The film Captain Fantastic (2016) is much better than one might expect.  Although a short description of the film sounds like a family television series, the movie rises above expectations so that the sum of its parts make it one of the more enjoyable movies of the summer.

Captain Fantastic, written and directed by Matt Ross, stars Viggo Mortensen as Ben, an idealistic father trying to raise his six children away from society in the wilds of Washington state.  As the movie opens, we learn that Ben’s wife is away being treated in a hospital.

Ben is serious about the education of his children, teaching them such activities as defending themselves with knives and rock climbing.  But he equally teaches them about politics, philosophy, and literature.  For example, the anti-capitalist family celebrates Noam Chomsky‘s birthday instead of Christmas.

As the movie progresses, word about Ben’s wife leads him and the children to go on the road. Some of the more humorous moments involve the family clashing with modern society.  Ben also clashes with family members, in particular with his father-in-law Jack, played by Frank Langella.

From a description, so much of the movie seems predictable.  But the movie works for several reasons.  First, the actors are outstanding.  Mortensen, of course, dominates the film.  But the actors playing the children do an excellent job of giving personality to the roles.  Actors Samantha Isler and George MacKay, for example, show that they have promising careers ahead of them.

Another reason the movie works is that the characters are three-dimensional.  Producers of movies like this one are often tempted to make the father character perfect, but Ben is far from perfect, just as Langella’s character is not all bad.

Captain Fantastic does not give a one-sided perspective.  Variety even argues that the film is both left-wing and right-wing.

I will not say more about the movie because it is better enjoyed without knowing too much about it.  It is not a big-budget summer blockbuster, but it is an enjoyable movie that may be under the radar.  Is Captain Fantastic fantastic?  I will have to think more about the question, but the movie certainly does restore your faith in small summer movies.

Rotten Tomatoes gives Captain Fantastic a 78% critics score and an 85% audience score.

What did you think of Captain Fantastic?  Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    “Star Trek Beyond” Gets Back to Basics

    The latest installment in the rebooted Star Trek films, Star Trek Beyond (2016), is a fun ride that helps get the series back on track although it does not reach the heights of most films in the original series.  If you have been following the reboot, you will probably enjoy the ride.  Still, you might feel like you wanted a little bit more.

    The Good

    Star Trek Beyond Review First, consider the good things about Star Trek Beyond.  The strength of the reboot has always been the actors selected to play the iconic roles.  With no exception, each of the actors in the main roles are reminiscent enough of the original actors while also bringing something new.

    Chris Pine, as Captain Kirk, builds on William Shatner’s swagger.  Similarly, Zachary Quinto perfectly evokes the late Leonard Nimoy‘s character.  Quinto adds a little more vulnerability to Spock in the alternate universe of the current films.

    Meanwhile, the actors in the other main roles have all been given moments to shine in the three movies.  The outstanding cast includes Simon Pegg, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, and Anton Yelchin, who recently passed away.  Pegg, who plays Scottie, co-wrote with Doug Jung the most recent film, which was directed by Justin Lin.

    As with the original series and films, I will continue to watch every Star Trek film with this cast.  The greatest enjoyment I get from the series is the interaction and relationships among the characters.

    The Not-So-Good

    Like many modern action films, Star Trek Beyond often relies too much on action in place of drama.  Some scenes seemed to drag on with dark CGI effects that at times seemed repetitive.

    Similarly, I was excited that Iris Elba was playing the villain in this film.  But for the majority of the time, he is buried in makeup.  Without spoiling anything, I wish the film would have made better use of this great actor by further developing his personal turmoil and making him more three dimensional.

    On the other hand, the reality of modern movies is that they overly rely upon action, partly to appeal to younger viewers and partly to appeal to international viewers.  That said, the movie does have good action scenes.

    How Does Star Trek Beyond Compare to Other Films in the Franchise?

    The first film in the rebooted movies, 2009’s Star Trek, was a wonderful re-introduction to the Star Trek characters.  That film, directed by J.J. Abrams and written by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, brought together this great cast.

    The 2009 movie also intelligently created an alternate universe for the characters. The plot twist that affects the entire series allows viewers to see the characters develop without us knowing their futures. Rotten Tomatoes gives Star Trek an excellent 95% critics score and a 91% audience score.

    The second film, 2013’s Star Trek Into Darkness, was a disappointment for many fans.  Into Darkness, again directed by J.J. Abrams, was written by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and Damon Lindelof.

    Fans had high expectations for Into Darkness once rumors leaked that the movie would feature the character Khan Noonien Singh.  The character had appeared in the original series.  More importantly, Khan was the villain in what many consider the best Star Trek film, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982).

    Into Darkness, for the most part, was fun.  Rotten Tomatoes gives Into Darkness an 86% critics score and a 90% audience score. But by the end of the movie, many Star Trek fans were disappointed or angry  The producers created a movie that tried to retread too much of The Wrath of Khan. Thus, it ended up being a somewhat ridiculous story instead of a tribute to the much better movie.

    Star Trek Beyond avoids the pitfalls of Into Darkness.  Instead of trying to rework another movie, it creates a new adventure for the crew of the Enterprise.  Some have noted that the new movie seems more like a television episode, and there is some truth to that.

    Star Trek Beyond takes a few nods at developing the depth of the characters and addressing larger issues.  It begins with Captain Kirk pondering the sameness of day-to-day life in space.  Similarly, Spock gets news that makes him reconsider his career choice too.

    But the movie does not do enough with these existential crises, perhaps reflecting modern worries that tend to focus on violence and terrorism.  Most of the movies in the original series did a little more with the characters (most notably Kirk’s aging in The Wrath of Khan).

    Star Trek Beyond instead hints at what might have been a better movie.  And there are some other deep themes regarding violence, isolationism, and collectivism bubbling around the seams.

    Conclusion?

    I liked Star Trek Beyond.  It featured some funny dialogue and great action scenes.  And one cannot resist the appearance of a Beastie Boys song fulfilling a role similar to a Slim Whitman song in Mars Attacks (1996).

    While I have high expectations for the Star Trek franchise that may be hard to meet, this movie still is a fun summer popcorn movie.  Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an 84% critics rating and an 85% audience rating. It was great to see the characters and actors together again. I can’t wait for the next film in the franchise.

    What did you think of Star Trek Beyond? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Best Movie Narrated By a Plastic Bag With the Voice of Werner Herzog

    Werner Herzog Plastic Bag

    I ran across this 18-minute film called Plastic Bag that Ramin Bahrani directed, wrote, and edited. Despite what you might expect from the title of the 2009 film, the movie is not about the recent environmental debate about plastic bags.  Instead, it is about what it means to be human.

    The gravity of the film’s themes is amplified by the narration of famous director Werner Herzog.  The addition of Herzog’s voice to anything makes it sound important.

    Open Culture reports that Plastic Bag was one of several films “released in the Internet Television Service’s Futurestates film series exploring ‘what life might look like in an America of the future.'”

    When he was asked to do the narration, Herzog recognized that the short film is about something more than a piece of plastic or arguments about plastic bags.  As he explained to The Guardian, “the movie’s about something else, something more … it’s about a journey.”

    The film reminds me of Steven Spielberg’s AI: Artificial Intelligence (2001).  Plastic Bag takes something non-human, and it discovers something human in the act of taking a journey to find meaning.

    You may find the existential movie funny. Or you may find it strange.  Or you may find it touching.  But Plastic Bag is worth a few minutes of your time.  Check it out.

    What do you think of Plastic Bag? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    “The Magnificent Seven” Trailer With Denzel Washington

    Magnificent Seven Trailer The new trailer for The Magnificent Seven (2016) has me cautiously optimistic that the movie will do justice to the very good original film from 1961. That movie starred Yul Brynner, Eli Wallach, Steve McQueen, and Charles Bronson. The new film also features a great cast, with Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Ethan Hawke, and Haley Bennett. From the trailer though, it looks like the movie is largely a Washington and Pratt show.

    Antoine Fuqua, who previously directed Training Day (2001) and King Arthur (2004), directs the new film. From the trailer, it seems he at least roughly follows the story of the 1961 film, which was directed by John Sturges. That film, in turn was based on the great Japanese film, Seven Samurai (1954), which was directed by Akira Kurosawa.

    The trailer shows a widow (Bennett) seeking help to get vengeance for her husband’s death. As in the original The Magnificent Seven, the new trailer indicates one thing leads to another, so that the rag-tag band of seven has to stand up against an army to protect a town. Check out the trailer below.

    The Magnificent Seven heads into theaters on September 23, 2016.

    What do you think of the trailer? Leave your two cents in the comments?

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    Why Is “Unchained” In the Title of “Unchained Melody”?

    unchained melody origins

    One of the great songs of the 1960s is The Righteous Brothers recording of “Unchained Melody,” a song that has been covered by many great stars, including Elvis Presley. But The Righteous Brothers were not the first to record the song. And why is the song called “Unchained Melody” when the word “unchained” occurs nowhere in the song?

    Although The Righteous Brother version was released on July 17, 1965, “Unchained Melody” had its origins decades earlier. Songwriter Alex North worked on the music in the 1930s, and at one time Bing Crosby turned down the opportunity to record an unfinished version of the song.

    The Movie That Gave the Song Its Name

    But North did not give up on the music. In the 1950s he and Hy Zaret were contracted to write a song for a prison movie. With Zaret adding lyrics to the music, the two came up with the completed song for the 1955 film, which was called Unchained. Hence, the song from the movie became known as “Unchained Melody.”

    The movie Unchained was about an inmate who struggles with the decision of whether or not to try to escape.  Todd Duncan recorded the song on the soundtrack and he appeared in the film as a prisoner singing part of the song.

    Duncan had the chops for the song.  He was the first black singer to join the New York City Opera when he performed there in 1945. Below is the clip from Unchained with Duncan singing “Unchained Melody.”

    The Righteous Brothers Hit

    Others recorded versions of the song before The Righteous Brothers. Performers who recorded “Unchained Melody” included bandleader Les Baxter, Al Hibler, and Jimmy Young.

    Of course, the version we know best is by The Righteous Brothers.  But the original recording did not include both brothers.  It featured only Bobby Hatfield and did not include the other “brother” Bill Medley.

    After the song was a hit in 1965, it once again climbed the charts in the early 1990s after it was featured in another movie, Ghost (1990). We should be glad that the song was first featured in Unchained. Otherwise, we would be calling it “Ghost Melody.”

    And that’s the story behind the song.

    What is your favorite version of “Unchained Melody”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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