by Josh Sewell
Longlegs
(Rated R for bloody violence, disturbing images and some language. Opens in theaters on July 12.)
The premise: In this horror film from writer-director Osgood Perkins, an FBI agent (Maika Monroe) uncovers a series of clues she must solve to catch a serial killer (Nicolas Cage) before he strikes again.
The verdict: For the first two-thirds of its running time, Longlegs is an effective thriller, paying homage to The Silence of the Lambs while putting its own supernatural spin on familiar true crime tropes. Monroe is terrific as the possibly psychic FBI agent on the trail of Cage’s bizarre serial killer, while Blair Underwood is effective as her gruff boss.
Unfortunately, everything goes off the rails in the last act. Perkins (son of horror legend Anthony) nails the moody, atmospheric nature of the material, but he’s the latest in a long line of directors who don’t know how to rein in Cage’s worst impulses. His character is creepy in small doses, but when the flick devotes long stretches to letting the notoriously over-the-top actor do his thing, the scares disappear fast.
The last bit of Longlegs also employs two of my biggest cinematic pet peeves. First, someone kills the narrative momentum by explaining everything in a long, silly monologue. Then, once-intelligent characters are suddenly forced to behave like idiots so the plot can move forward again.
It’s frustrating that such an intense and eerie movie loses all its power because of a few big blunders. Usually, I’m an anxious mess for a few hours following a horror movie screening. After Longlegs, however, I drove home in the dark and went to bed just fine.
Grade: C-
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F
(Rated R for language throughout, brief violence and drug use. Now available on Netflix.)
The premise: In the fourth installment of this beloved 1980s franchise, Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) returns to Beverly Hills after his estranged daughter (Taylour Paige) – now a criminal defense attorney – is threatened by masked assailants. To track down the danger, Foley teams up with a new partner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), as well as old pals Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and John Taggart (John Ashton).
The verdict: Despite a decades-long absence from the Beverly Hills Cop franchise, Murphy slips right back into the role of Axel Foley like no time has passed. Granted, he doesn’t run as fast as he used to, and his one-liners are a lot tamer. But that’s because the world has changed dramatically since he was a 22-year-old comedic genius who parlayed his stand-up career into global superstardom. Now that he’s a grandpa in his 60s, it would be weird if he hadn’t mellowed a little.
The plot of Axel F is bland and predictable, but nobody has ever watched these flicks for their riveting narratives or baffling mysteries. As with its predecessors, the new sequel rises and falls on the stars’ charisma and easy camaraderie. That’s where it really succeeds with help from fun, nostalgic performances by franchise regulars Reinhold, Ashton, Paul Reiser and Bronson Pinchot.
Newcomers Gordon-Levitt and Kevin Bacon are also clearly having a blast. The former doesn’t get much to do, but who wouldn’t want to hang out with Murphy for a few months and cash a big Netflix check? As for Bacon, Axel F and last weekend’s MaXXXine prove he’s still great at playing sleazebags. I appreciate the movie not trying to hide that he’s the villain; it’s obvious from the moment he shows up.
As for the story, mega-producer Jerry Bruckheimer clearly adheres to the philosophy of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The guy who helped another recent legacyquel, Top Gun: Maverick, become a worldwide smash essentially hired writers (Will Beall, Tom Gormican and Kevin Etten) to do a find/replace on the character names and locations of that flick. The same basic arcs and tropes apply.
Despite a lack of originality, the process worked. Netflix is bragging about massive audience numbers and Murphy recently announced a fifth movie is currently in the planning stages.
Grade: B-
Kill
(Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, grisly images and language. Now playing in select theaters.)
The premise: When soldier Amrit (Lakshya) learns his true love (Tanya Maniktala) is engaged against her will, he boards a train bound for New Delhi to stop the arranged marriage. But when a gang of knife-wielding thieves begin to terrorize everyone onboard, he must fight to save the innocent people around him.
The verdict: I went into Kill expecting Speed on a train, but it’s a far more brutal film. I didn’t anticipate how dark it would get or how high the stakes would become. Lakshya (astonishing in his debut) is a force of nature. He’s charismatic, it feels like he truly values his character’s relationship and – most importantly – he makes each of his many fights feel authentic.
Liongate recently announced they’re prepping an English language remake with the producers of John Wick, but I don’t see why that’s necessary. As with 2011’s Indonesian masterpiece The Raid (which has yet to see a U.S. remake despite many attempts), action transcends language.
Besides, if I’m being honest, our country’s lax gun laws will inevitably reshape the story. The biggest reason the fights in Kill are so suspenseful is there are almost no firearms on the train. For an American version, filmmakers will have to come up with an explanation for why everybody on board isn’t packing.
Grade: B+
(Rated R for bloody violence, disturbing images and some language. Opens in theaters on July 12.)
The premise: In this horror film from writer-director Osgood Perkins, an FBI agent (Maika Monroe) uncovers a series of clues she must solve to catch a serial killer (Nicolas Cage) before he strikes again.
The verdict: For the first two-thirds of its running time, Longlegs is an effective thriller, paying homage to The Silence of the Lambs while putting its own supernatural spin on familiar true crime tropes. Monroe is terrific as the possibly psychic FBI agent on the trail of Cage’s bizarre serial killer, while Blair Underwood is effective as her gruff boss.
Unfortunately, everything goes off the rails in the last act. Perkins (son of horror legend Anthony) nails the moody, atmospheric nature of the material, but he’s the latest in a long line of directors who don’t know how to rein in Cage’s worst impulses. His character is creepy in small doses, but when the flick devotes long stretches to letting the notoriously over-the-top actor do his thing, the scares disappear fast.
The last bit of Longlegs also employs two of my biggest cinematic pet peeves. First, someone kills the narrative momentum by explaining everything in a long, silly monologue. Then, once-intelligent characters are suddenly forced to behave like idiots so the plot can move forward again.
It’s frustrating that such an intense and eerie movie loses all its power because of a few big blunders. Usually, I’m an anxious mess for a few hours following a horror movie screening. After Longlegs, however, I drove home in the dark and went to bed just fine.
Grade: C-
(Rated R for language throughout, brief violence and drug use. Now available on Netflix.)
The premise: In the fourth installment of this beloved 1980s franchise, Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) returns to Beverly Hills after his estranged daughter (Taylour Paige) – now a criminal defense attorney – is threatened by masked assailants. To track down the danger, Foley teams up with a new partner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), as well as old pals Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and John Taggart (John Ashton).
The verdict: Despite a decades-long absence from the Beverly Hills Cop franchise, Murphy slips right back into the role of Axel Foley like no time has passed. Granted, he doesn’t run as fast as he used to, and his one-liners are a lot tamer. But that’s because the world has changed dramatically since he was a 22-year-old comedic genius who parlayed his stand-up career into global superstardom. Now that he’s a grandpa in his 60s, it would be weird if he hadn’t mellowed a little.
The plot of Axel F is bland and predictable, but nobody has ever watched these flicks for their riveting narratives or baffling mysteries. As with its predecessors, the new sequel rises and falls on the stars’ charisma and easy camaraderie. That’s where it really succeeds with help from fun, nostalgic performances by franchise regulars Reinhold, Ashton, Paul Reiser and Bronson Pinchot.
Newcomers Gordon-Levitt and Kevin Bacon are also clearly having a blast. The former doesn’t get much to do, but who wouldn’t want to hang out with Murphy for a few months and cash a big Netflix check? As for Bacon, Axel F and last weekend’s MaXXXine prove he’s still great at playing sleazebags. I appreciate the movie not trying to hide that he’s the villain; it’s obvious from the moment he shows up.
As for the story, mega-producer Jerry Bruckheimer clearly adheres to the philosophy of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” The guy who helped another recent legacyquel, Top Gun: Maverick, become a worldwide smash essentially hired writers (Will Beall, Tom Gormican and Kevin Etten) to do a find/replace on the character names and locations of that flick. The same basic arcs and tropes apply.
Despite a lack of originality, the process worked. Netflix is bragging about massive audience numbers and Murphy recently announced a fifth movie is currently in the planning stages.
Grade: B-
(Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, grisly images and language. Now playing in select theaters.)
The premise: When soldier Amrit (Lakshya) learns his true love (Tanya Maniktala) is engaged against her will, he boards a train bound for New Delhi to stop the arranged marriage. But when a gang of knife-wielding thieves begin to terrorize everyone onboard, he must fight to save the innocent people around him.
The verdict: I went into Kill expecting Speed on a train, but it’s a far more brutal film. I didn’t anticipate how dark it would get or how high the stakes would become. Lakshya (astonishing in his debut) is a force of nature. He’s charismatic, it feels like he truly values his character’s relationship and – most importantly – he makes each of his many fights feel authentic.
Liongate recently announced they’re prepping an English language remake with the producers of John Wick, but I don’t see why that’s necessary. As with 2011’s Indonesian masterpiece The Raid (which has yet to see a U.S. remake despite many attempts), action transcends language.
Besides, if I’m being honest, our country’s lax gun laws will inevitably reshape the story. The biggest reason the fights in Kill are so suspenseful is there are almost no firearms on the train. For an American version, filmmakers will have to come up with an explanation for why everybody on board isn’t packing.
Grade: B+
Reach out to Josh Sewell at joshsewell81@gmail.com
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