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Stardate 8.8.2016.a: Film Review - Suicide Squad (2016) Delivers despite A Bit of Clunk

8/8/2016

 
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Let’s get this out of the way right up front: “Is Suicide Squad as bad as the critics and online media sites have reported?”
 
The short answer: absolutely not.
 
A bit longer answer: Clearly, someone is showing favoritism to ‘All Things Marvel’ by continuing this campaign to trash the greater DC Universe of films.  While healthy competition is always good for the marketplace, it’s very clear that someone somewhere somehow is trying to orchestrate the failure of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Aquaman, and more.  While the (ahem) Self-Important Online Intelligentsia Community would have you believe that they’re only doing what’s best in seeing these movies so that you don’t have to, it’s hogwash.  Go see Suicide Squad and make up your mind for yourself as that’s exactly what they don’t want you to do.
 
Full disclosure: I’ve always been more of a DC guy than a Marvel guy.  I read my first comic books in 1970 (I kid you not), and – while I can admit that I thought Spider-man and the Fantastic Four were pretty cook – the Marvel stable of characters just didn’t interest me as much as did DC’s.  I guess my young mind saw that Batman had a mission – a life’s pursuit – and Superman stood for something.  This isn’t to say that Marvel’s heroes lacked any substance; rather, they seemed more interested in what I’d say are personal interests than they were professional ones.
 
After all, “saving the day” isn’t only about “saving the day.”  How one does it, why one does it, and what it means beyond an act of heroism helps define not only the man or woman completing that awesome feat but the greater world OUT THERE.  Batman willfully and deliberately surrounds himself with a veritable asylum full of psychopaths, and – like it or not – that tells me more about the world he’s only one part of than it does about him.  Sure, these are narrative tricks … but they still count for something.
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Suicide Squad was and remains a title that didn’t exactly tickle me pink, but that didn’t keep me from checking out the film adaptation on the day of its release.  To be frank, I (like so many others) bought into the film’s marketing campaign: this one definitely hit all of its marks in terms of ratcheting up the interest, so it’s no surprise that the first weekend box office numbers broke all previous records.  Actors Will Smith and Margot Robbie have proven themselves bankable commodities, and preview audiences had been hawking the flick’s praise for months.  Count me in.
 
Government strategist Amanda Waller (played by Viola Davis) has a grand vision: she sees a day when the world’s superheroes might turn on mankind, leaving the United States completely unprepared to defend itself and the American public from the likes of Superman or any other meta-human.  So to prepare for that eventuality, she devises Task Force X – a roster of villains she believes can be co-opted to fight for the side of good in exchange for ‘time off’ their sentences.  When an all-new menace rears its ugly head, her first bench of anti-heroes including Deadshot (Smith), Harley Quinn (Robbie), and leader Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman) are sent in to do what no one else can: stop the Enchantress (Cara Delevingne) from destroying the planet.
 
The good, the bad, and the ugly regarding Suicide Squad is that it covers an awful lot of miles before the big finish.
 
Written and directed by David Ayer, Squad has a veritable slew of characters it has to introduce – several of which including truncated ‘origins’ – as well as laying out a story about how it all came together.  And with so many newcomers to the greater DC Cinema Universe clearly not everyone gets the kind of coverage perhaps deserved or maybe even warranted in a tent-pole release of this sort: an attempt of lesser ambitions probably would’ve cut the Squad in half and given each baddie a bit more to do, but Ayer keeps his foot on the accelerator at all times, even at the expense of some probable smaller moments that may’ve contributed greatly to Waller’s arc.  The Joker (Jared Leto) makes several small(ish) appearances, and the only one really of substance so far as this viewer was concerned was during Harley’s origin sequence; otherwise, he’s only a guy trying to get his gal back – a nice touch but somewhat inconsequential when compared against the stakes for the planet.
 
Still, what Ayer does well here works to great cinematic effect.  Flag and Deadshot spend a chunk of the film at odds, and Smith and the always reliable Kinnaman were perfectly cast as enemies willing to ‘play nice’ with one another when circumstances demand.  Robbie plays a pitch perfect Quinn, and the camaraderie between her and her various teammates has a welcome comic book flourish.  Action sequences have a solid workmanship approach with Ayer (thankfully) backing up the camera (unlike other directors do these days) to show the range of combat, giving viewers a greater sense of what’s happening without sacrificing the pace of the action.  Clearly, there’s a sense of greatness here, and while it may not all come together seamlessly I’d argue that it’s entertaining enough to carry the start of a new franchise if not launch several of these Spandex-clad folks into their own series of films.
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I had a few problems with Squad despite all of the fun I had with it.  First, I never quite understood what Enchantress’s greater “beef” with our world was, so much so that she wanted it destroyed.  Granted, she didn’t wish to be on Waller’s leash as it were, but I think the script had opportunities to give this more discussion that it just didn’t take.  Second – and others may differ with my assessment here – there really wasn’t much of a logical “first mission” to Waller’s team.  Instead, there was a crisis, and the good government steward merely didn’t let a crisis go to waste, using it to prove the point that Task Force X could and would be a viable secret weapon.  Lastly, Ayer didn’t handle the film’s tone consistently: the first quarter of the feature almost feels like a different film – a flashy, hyperkinetic potboiler where Waller introduces these villainous heroes to another government suit over dinner.  After this protracted sequence, these narrative tricks vanish and are never seen again, leaving me to wonder why the director used them in the first place.  They’re “nifty,” I guess; and perhaps they’re a throwback to something from the comic … but they felt a bit out of place to me.
 
Over the weekend, much ado has been made online about how Warner Bros. ‘tinkered’ with the release: I’ve come to understand that the theatrical cut released to the masses is not the same one which apparently tested through the roof with audiences.  While many of the professional entertainment writers have used this to justify that the studio just didn’t know what they were doing with the property, I’m left to wonder, “Why in the name of Grodd would you do that?”  That’s like hiring Michael Jordan and asking him to let somebody else shoot the ball, isn’t it?  If you had something that was aces, then it defies logic to not give the people want they want.  I can’t help but ponder whether or not my few gripes are better handled in this alternate cut … and maybe that version will see life again when Squad inevitably hits video, and I can do some comparison.
 
In the meantime, I’m left with what I’ve seen.
 
As much as others have apparently hated it, I had fun with so very much of Squad.  I’ll give you that a few scenes may not have had as much impact as perhaps Ayer or Warner Bros. intended, and I’ll even give you that certain lesser elements of the plot could’ve used a bit more exploration; but this film is far from the failure it’s been painted to be.  It’s lean and efficient.  It boasts some big performances, especially a ‘Hail Mary’ one from Smith, who I but thought his time in the spotlight was fading.  Squad offers up a solid beginning – a first step into a world where anti-heroes might just be the best mankind has to save us from ourselves.

Stardate 8.4.2016.a: Buckaroo Banzai Is Here to Save The Day!

8/4/2016

 
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Meh.  There are some films whose magic just escapes me.  Generally if it's a cult flick, a SciFi flick, or some other property that's been strongly recommended to me by friends or family, I'm inclined to check it out ... and -- if it's one which somehow transcends the barriers of popularity normally imposed on features by time and space -- I may even check it out a second time should I wish to understand more of what I've missed.

Such is the case with The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension.  Released back in 1984, I did see this one theatrically.  And when it first streeted on home video I watched it a second time ... not because I was dying to see it again but because -- as I said above -- the magic never quite tickled me pink.  I couldn't say why exactly, as I thought all of the performances were good and the story mildly intriguing.  For some reason, it just never struck a chord in me the way cult flicks sometimes do, and we find ourselves where we are today.

In any event, I received an email notice about the fact that the good ol' Buckaroo was making another appearance in the retail market, this time coming from the fine, fine folks at Shout(!) Factory.  In the past few years, they've done an incredible job bringing some of the more obscure titles from cinema's past to life for new worlds and new civilizations (namely, today's consumers); and I have nothing but die-hard respect for companies engaged in such commercialism.

There's a grand review on this new release over at DVD Savant (one of the sites I follow and whose opinions I respect), and -- if you're interested -- here's the link to make a purchase of it at Amazon.

​As always, thanks for reading ... and live long and prosper!

Stardate 8.2.2016.a: Film Review - Vice Is Purely Predictable A.I. Fluff

8/2/2016

 
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​As a lifelong Science Fiction enthusiast, I occasionally catch myself going a bit too easy on films of this genre.  Much of this is owed to the fact that I do so very much love the ideas that typically populate the good SciFi flick that I’m personally willing to swallow anything which looks, tastes, and sounds like worthwhile entertainment.  Naturally, I think this tendency is common across aficionados of any particular class of film (horror fans tend to do the same with horror releases; Western fans tend to do it, too, with Western releases; etc.), and I’ve often said that’s why capitalism has rewarded us with the (ahem) Syfy Channel in its current state … that being it doesn’t quite run a lot of legitimate Science Fiction but rather invests plenty of capital in watered down fantasy, occasionally spruced up wrestling shows, and more Sharknados one can shake a real tornado at.
 
Because SciFi fans have grown accustomed to accepting less, industry suits are all too happy to finance budget schlock like VICE, the kind of thing that ceased being original in the mid-1970’s and instead tries to capture magic by blending up elements of every Artificial Intelligence story that’s come down the pike ever since.  This isn’t to say that I didn’t have a little bit of fun watching it; I did, but it’s the kind of fun the ‘Adult Me’ can now comfortably admit feeling dirty over.
 
VICE begins with a commercial from cyber-industrialist Julian Michaels (played with smug acclaim from Bruce Willis).  He’s built a modern day ‘vice’ empire (see how that works?) by cornering the synthetic human market with a single purpose: he offers customers for a high price the chance to play out any depraved impulse on these faux people arguing that they’re not victims since they get rebooted at the end of every business day.  Enter the hero: tough, sarcastic, and embittered police detective Roy (Thomas Jane) thinks Vice is contributing to real societal decay, and he’ll stop at nothing to take down Michaels and his army of goons if it’s the last thing he does!
 
It might all sound clichéd, but that’s only because it is: anyone who has seen Michael Crichton’s Westworld (1973) knows how this is all going to end.  (I have seen it, and – rest assured – I wasn’t surprised in the slightest.)  Also, there are strong similarities between these concepts and themes that audiences have already been treated to in Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (1982), Bicentennial Man (1999), Steven Spielberg’s A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), Caradog James’ The Machine (2013) Alex Garland’s Ex Machina (2015), or any number of episodes dealing with Commander Data aboard Star Trek: The Next Generation.  VICE’s script from Andre Fabrizio and Jeremy Passmore even dumbs down the science – perhaps they didn’t have the budget? – using healthy bits of exposition (characters ‘explaining’ the premise) in lieu of ramping up anything remotely original much less interesting.

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Now, take note: cliché-ridden scripts don’t necessarily mean the totality of the ideas are bad, as can be clearly evidenced by AMC TV’s recently Americanized remake of the Swedish original, Humans.  In that television program, the characters – both human AND synthetic – are given a wealth of challenges they face, both domestic and (ahem) artificial.  The writers there were able to take a tried-and-true concept – the use of robots to improve the quality of life – and elevate even the most mundane situation by exploring that fateful collision where intent meets results; everyday situations like grieving over the loss of loved ones were imagined from both human and synthetic perspectives, and audiences were (once again) captivated by what a real world we could find when Artificial Intelligence becomes a household commodity.  In VICE, it’s all about … well … the vices.
 
How do we know?
 
Well, in the film’s conclusion, the synths are allowed to experience a kind of freedom, but it isn’t one that’s legitimately won and awarded to them by their own devices; instead, it’s the same old “let’s upload a virus” solution audiences have been asked to swallow ad naseum.  The humans are given a dose of their own medicine, and it’s a cure best administered in fisticuffs.  One sin answers another sin, and the cycle will inevitably begin again, assuming that there’s a sequel in the offing.  (The flick closes with a subtle hint, but methinks the box office returns of this feature will probably keep a follow-up forever in development.)
 
None of this is to say that VICE is as awful as it could have been.  Director Brian A. Miller certainly has some chops with camera trickery, and the performances – while all largely predictable – work only so well as they’re needed.  No one in front of the camera or behind it really went the extra mile, and that’s why I’d honestly suggest that this is the kind of fare that plays just fine on Syfy Saturday night.  But as a big budget feature?  There just isn’t enough here.
 
VICE is the kind of film that gives Science Fiction its bad wrap.  Were it the first flick of its kind to deal with artificial intelligence gone awry in the future just days beyond the present, then maybe – maybe – it would’ve had a chance to give audiences something to think about of substance.  However, as the story suffers from a very heavy “been there done that” vibe, it all ends up exactly where one expected … mostly ‘cause that required no real input from anyone, screenwriters included.

Stardate 8.1.2016: Trinity Seven Is A Magical Anime

8/1/2016

 
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Confession time: I’m not a huge fan of anime.  Oh, I’ve watched a fair share of it, but most of what I have sat through are titles strongly recommended by friends (whose tastes I know by experience align with my own) OR specific titles forwarded to me by distributors I have a relationship with over the years.  I haven’t found too many of the stories personally interesting; sometimes this is just the nature of this particular type of storytelling, which oft times relies on either characters too goofy for their own good, a dramatically hyperactive style of animation, or frenetic narrative trickery that leaves me cold.
 
However, every now and then, I stumble upon a release that embraces anime’s conventions as well as it rises above them, and I’m happy to say that’s the case with Sentai Filmworks’ latest: TRINITY SEVEN.
 
(NOTE: The following review will contain minor spoilers necessary solely for the discussion of plot and/or characters.  If you’re the type of reader who prefers a review entirely spoiler-free, then I encourage you to skip down to the last three paragraphs for my final assessment.  If, however, you’re accepting of a few modest hints at ‘things to come,’ then read on …)

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​From the product packaging (edited): “Things have been looking sunny for Arata Kasuga lately.  Unfortunately it’s been the wrong sun in the sky, and the mysterious Breakdown Phenomenon that accompanied it has destroyed his town and stolen his beloved cousin Hijiri, leaving Arata in a fantasy world of his of his own creation! …”
 
There’s more (plenty more), but I’ll leave it at that.  What there is doesn’t exactly spoil any of the details – in fact, it essentially clarifies how Arata enlists the aid of a secret magic school and its seven beautiful mages – in his quest to undo what’s been done to that wide, wide world around him; and – in very traditional mythic structure – the ladies properly educate the hormone-driven youngster both into the ways of magic as well as the ways of the heart as he promptly kinda/sorta falls in and out of love with each of them (to a degree) but mostly intentionally or accidentally takes advantage of his circumstances to get in a good groping or two along his path.  (As Stan Lee said, breasts – like comic books – are better when in hand.)
 
By definition, Arata is captured as the quintessential teenager.  He can’t quite control his appetite for the opposite sex, and – though he never acts with any malice toward them – he still can’t quite keep his hands to himself.  However, he eventually manages to contain his urges (except for those positioned more for comic relief than anything else), and he finds there’s a greater horizon (and reward) out there if and when he can control the magic running through his veins.  Underneath that clumsy, sarcastic teen is a young man whose heart is necessarily pure, as a—when confronted by dark forces – he strives to stay focused on doing what he must to save his newfound friends.
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Similar to the world of Harry Potter, TRINITY SEVEN takes a fairly long time to actually set all of its respective pieces in motion: the first four episodes were a bit slow, but then the series kicks into high gear once there’s a central enemy to occupy more of the storytelling.  Magic here isn’t just mystical for magic’s sake; there’s an entire mythology to each of these characters and their place in this world, so be prepared for more than a little déjà vu as you get to know them.  Once the ladies get further fleshed out (pun intended), SEVEN feels much more natural and is far more interesting.  Rest assured: it does take time, but you’ll know it when you know it.
 
Still, I wasn’t all that won over with where all of it ended up.  Without revealing too much, I thought that certain elements of the climax were easily predictable (sometimes that’s the curse of properties requiring vast set-up), and – with a title like TRINITY SEVEN – methinks most folks will understandably predict that only by coming together can this fearless team accomplish the goals the story lays out for them.  It would’ve been nice for a curve ball sailing in during that last confrontation; but the storytellers do redeem themselves (just a bit) with a coda that portends a future for these warriors as their great adventure is clearly just beginning.
 
Along the way, be prepared to be reminded of other properties – like the aforementioned Potter universe as well as a strong resemblance to THE MATRIX trilogy.  While not everything gets tied up perfectly in a bow, there’s enough magic here to make for some exceptional entertainment and enough laughs to tide you over until the recently announced big budget film adaptation gets wrapped and released.
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​Trinity Seven (2014) is produced by Seven Arcs.  DVD distribution (stateside) is being handled by Sentai Filmworks.  As for the technical specifications?  The sights and sounds are extremely high quality, though I’ll admit I had some difficulty understanding the ‘Demon Lord’ personae when he spoke (subtitles would’ve helped in that sequence).  But the animation?  That’s absolutely top-notch material.  If you’re looking for special features, there are some alternate openings/closings as well as some other promotional bits regarding similar titles available from the distributor: not much, and I (for one) would’ve liked something of substance (call me old-fashioned).
 
RECOMMENDED.  I’ve never been a huge fan of anime, but I have to admit that TRINITY SEVEN pulled me in: it’s an effective combination of teen(ish) romance and fantasy, and it’s all delivered with such gusto (and with relative restraint from some of what makes anime so easily mocked by those who don’t watch it regularly) that I found it hard not to enjoy so much of it.  Granted, it’s still anime … so you can look forward to more than a fair share of amply-endowed young lasses who conveniently find themselves clothing-challenged on several occasions, as well as a young hero who can’t quite keep his mitts off of the nearest breast.
 
In the interests of fairness, I’m pleased to disclose that the fine folks at Sentai Filmworks provided me with a Blu-ray of Trinity Seven by request for the expressed purposes of completing this review; and their contribution to me in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion of it.
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