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| Courtesy of Warner Bros. |
(Rated
PG-13 for extended sequences of intense fantasy action violence, and
frightening images.)
The
cast: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, Richard Armitage, Luke Evans, Orlando
Bloom, Evangeline Lilly, and a host of others.
What
it’s about: The final chapter in this overlong trilogy picks up with the dragon
Smaug’s attack on Lake Town. In the aftermath, the multitude of characters
introduced in the previous six hours set their sights on the creature’s
treasure. When Thorin Oakenshield (Armitage) succumbs to “dragon sickness” after
he’s exposed to the vast riches, it’s up to Bilbo Baggins (Freeman), Gandalf
(McKellen), Legolas (Bloom) and other good-hearted folks to prevent all-out war
between races and defeat an army of orcs interesting in killing everybody.
The
good: It’s finally over! A bloated story that should’ve been no more than a
pair of two-hour movies comes to a solid conclusion because Peter Jackson
finally decides to focus on the heart of J.R.R. Tolkien’s 300-page story. Bilbo
– you know, the guy the trilogy is named after – finally gets something
memorable to do in his own story, and the film is infinitely more interesting
as a result. The performances are good, even when the actors are tasked with
delivering some of the corniest dialogue I’ve ever heard. Also, I can now say
I’ve seen an eagle drop a grizzly bear into the middle of a battle and watch it
rip an orc apart. So that’s nice.
The
not-so-good: As always, Jackson relies far too much on video game-level CGI
instead of going with practical effects. At no point was I ever emotionally
invested in the battles, because I wasn’t rooting for characters. Instead, I was
always cognizant of the fact that I was watching millions of pixels move around
on the screen. It also seems like a mistake for Jackson to force the saga to
act as a bridge to the events of his previous Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Tolkien wrote the texts for distinctly different audiences, and to force them
into the same world does a profound disservice to both. It’s also the reason
the story is roughly four hours too long.
Grade:
B-
 |
| Courtesy of Columbia |
Annie
(Rated
PG for some mild language and rude humor.)
The
cast: Quvenzhane Wallis, Jamie Foxx, Cameron Diaz, Rose Byrne and Bobby
Cannavale.
What
it’s about: This remake of the Broadway classic tells the familiar story of a
foster kid (Wallis) who dreams of a life better than the one she has with her
awful caretaker (Diaz). She gets that opportunity when a New York City mayoral
candidate (Foxx) takes her in as a way to boost his sagging poll numbers. What
begins as a cynical ploy turns into a relationship that could improve both of
their lives.
The
good: Foxx seems to be actually trying for the first time in ages, throwing
himself into the role and conveying a real transformation over the course of
the film. The father-daughter relationship between him and Wallis feels
genuine, and he exhibits believable chemistry with Rose Byrne, wonderful as
always in the role of Stacks’ vice president and de facto conscience. Wallis is
fine in the title role, though nowhere near the powerhouse she was in “Beasts
of the Southern Wild.” The hip-hop infused updates of “It’s the Hard-Knock Life”
and “Tomorrow” are solid.
The
not-so-good: Pretty much everything else. As the trailers foreshadowed, Diaz is
flat-out terrible. It’s not really miscasting (she has played convincing
villains in the past) as much as indescribable overacting. She’s in a
completely different movie than everyone else and, as a result, the flick comes
to a dead stop any time she’s onscreen. The music is distractingly
overproduced, likely because most of the cast (despite their good intentions)
can’t carry a tune.
Director
and co-writer Will Gluck seems to have no love for the source material (he
insults the traditional depiction of Annie in the first scene), or musicals in
general, based on the halfhearted way he stages the performances. Instead of
choosing between a non-singing version or embracing the source material’s
campiness, Gluck decides to straddle the fence. As a result, the material seems
schizophrenic and ashamed of itself.
Grade:
C+
 |
| Courtesy of The Weinstein Company |
Snowpiercer
(Rated
R for violence, language and drug content.)
The
cast: Chris Evans, Jamie Bell, Tilda Swinton, John Hurt, Octavia Spencer and Ed
Harris.
What
it’s about: In the near future, scientists attempting to stop global warming
inadvertently freeze Earth instead. All of humanity is wiped out, except for
the few remaining souls who live on a giant train known as the Snowpiercer.
It’s a microcosm of the planet’s suffocating class system: those at the front
of the train live a luxurious life of designer drugs and gourmet food. Life
gets worse the further back you go. For those in the tail section, existence is
bleak and cruel. However, Curtis (Evans) has big plans to bring change to his
fellow passengers. He orchestrates an uprising with help from his mentor
(Hurt), and soon the downtrodden are racing their way to the engine in an
effort to take control.
The
good: Snowpiercer is currently streaming on Netflix Instant, so it’s easy to
find. The international scope of the film is staggering: visionary Korean
director Bong Joon Ho (who co-wrote the screenplay with Kelly Masterson) adapts
a French graphic novel using fantastic actors from America, England and Korea. The
result is one of the best apocalyptic stories in recent memory, an allegory for
several global crises currently happening simultaneously. It has a lot of
interesting ideas about climate change, income inequality and a system that
requires revolution to exist, but it never preaches to viewers. Instead, it
uses those ideas to weave a fanciful, brutally violent and often darkly funny
tale.
The
eclectic cast is one of the film’s biggest selling points. It’s interesting to
see Evans playing a much different, far more conflicted hero than Captain
America. Spencer is great too, taking full advantage of getting to be an action
star in an industry that doesn’t typically think of her for such roles. Harris
gets a wonderfully bleak monologue at the end of the movie, and works as the
counterweight to Hurt’s equally compelling character. But it’s Swinton who
steals the entire movie with a performance that should put her in the running
for Best Supporting Actress. In just a small amount of screen time, she creates
a fascinating, witty villainess.
The
not-so-good: Bell gives his all as Curtis’ protégé, but it’s clear the role was
written for somebody about 10 years younger. The miscasting is jarring enough
to take viewers out of the movie while they’re trying to do the math. While the
depiction of the train’s vastly different cars is visually stunning, there are
still elements of the film that are hampered by the limited budget. There are
some digital effects shots that look downright cartoonish.
Grade:
A-
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