Storks (2016)

Tags

Animation, Comedy, Family, Fantasy

 

I wrote to the storks with a simple request,
A baby, just one, and I wanted the best.
I wanted him perfect, no colic or crying
Or being a pest by not always complying.
And potty-trained too, with no changing a diaper,
And energy neither too boring or hyper.
And give him a lovable heart of pure gold,
To love me, respect me, and care when I’m old.
So when there’s a well-behaved angel on earth
In stock, send at once. (So much simpler than birth!)

And what did those long-necking lummoxes send
But a baby like so many others to tend?!
Since he first arrived, he’s incessantly cried
And stunk before I even brought him inside.
And all the bird left me was this little note:
“We’ve tried to match most of the wishes you wrote.
But you should just know that the son you desired
Has years of hard work of assembly required.”
____________________

MPAA rating: PG

Storks didn’t look all that impressive when it came out last year, just another maverick animated film struggling to reach even DreamWorks quality. When I actually gave it a chance, though, it turned out to be a pleasant surprise, more humorous and heartwarming than I would have guessed, and a solid if hyperactive cartoon that the Warner Animation Group (who also produced The Lego Movie) can be proud of.

There’s no denying that the premise of Storks is a bit gonzo, making an entire, half-baked plot out of the myth of storks delivering babies, which I can only assume was invented so parents could appease their kids’ curiosity without broaching the birds-and-bees speech. In this world, storks have switched from baby delivery to package delivery (after all, someone says, “there are other ways of making babies”), after an incident left them unable to deliver young Tulip to her family. Tulip (Katie Crown) grows up as a ward of the storks’ Amazon-like company called Cornerstore.com, and, after she impetuously activates the abandoned baby factory and creates a little girl, she and the corporate ladder-climbing Junior (Andy Samberg) try to deliver the baby to her family without alerting their authoritarian boss Hunter (Kelsey Grammer).

The storyline is loose and frenetic, with enough rapid-fire jokes that the plot often seems like just an excuse to string together random gags. The upside is that many of these gags are actually funny, particularly a baby-loving pack of wolves who somehow manage to morph themselves into vehicles to give chase. While the action draws inspiration from the likes of Monsters, Inc. and Shark Tale, the constant jokes keep it fresh, and things move along at a pleasant clip. Most of the voice actors do good work as well, especially Katie Crown, whose exuberance makes Tulip a lovably upbeat character. The animation is also quite good, easier on the eyes than the hyper-detail of The Lego Movie and occasionally stunning with the bigger set pieces.

That being said, there’s bound to be a joke or two along the way that falls flat, and some do. The worst, though, is the character of an attention-seeking pigeon (Stephen Kramer Glickman) who tries desperately to be integral to the plot, such that the writers obviously thought he was hilarious. Yet his awkwardness is so aggressively unfunny that it drags the film down every time he appears onscreen. If ever there was a side character that needed to be rewritten or cut altogether, it’s the pigeon.

Overall, though, Storks was a fun watch with some surprising heart. Despite the innate weirdness of the whole storks-making-babies thing, there are some touching moments and themes, like the value of spending time as a family and achieving a sense of belonging, with some familiar overtones of Meet the Robinsons thrown in. In addition, I liked that there was a subtle, though probably unintentional, pro-life sentiment in how Hunter and Junior refer to the infant as “it” to avoid a connection while Tulip insists on calling it a baby. Storks may be too hyper and scattershot to win any awards or popularity contests, but it’s an amusing jaunt of absurdity.

Best line: (Hunter) “Look at that sunrise. How can you not look at it?”   (Junior, trying to humor his boss) “If I go blind, it’s worth it!”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
491 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: The Big Chill (1983)

Tags

Comedy, Drama, VC Pick

Death follows life follows death once again,
In a cycle we all must confront now and then.

The drama of death, though it separates souls,
Can bond those remaining, for closeness consoles.

And close are the mourning, their lives put on pause
To sing the dead’s praise and forget all his flaws.

To gather in grief, though a hard gift to give,
Reminds us that death can impel us to live.
____________________

MPAA rating: R

This review has been a long time coming, yet another of my VC’s favorites that I’ve been in no rush to revisit simply because my enthusiasm for it doesn’t come close to hers. According to her, The Big Chill ranks among her top 50 movies, and while it never approaches that kind of preference for me, I understand why she and many others consider it one of the best ensemble films ever made.

The Big Chill has two undeniable strengths that any movie would be proud to get right: a brilliant cast and a fantastic soundtrack. The story of seven former high school friends reuniting over the suicide of one of their own seems like a heavy setup, but there’s an abundance of humor and charm to accompany the mortality worries and mid-life crises. Everyone’s bound to have a favorite character, most likely the always appealing Kevin Kline or mustached Tom Berenger or even Jeff Goldblum as the kind of neurotic bloviator he plays so well. Glenn Close, JoBeth Williams, and William Hurt all have their endearing moments as well, some more low-key than others, as does Mary Kay Place, whose character sees the occasion as a chance to beat her biological clock and get pregnant by one of her old buddies. A younger Meg Tilly joins them too as the girlfriend of their dead friend Alex, played by Kevin Costner, even though any scenes with Costner recognizable were cut.

While I had trouble keeping up with everyone’s names (like the fact that there was a character named Meg but not played by Meg Tilly), the chemistry shared by everyone on screen was distinctly felt. Staying in the same house over the weekend and sharing each other’s grief only served to reawaken the natural connections they shared back in the good old days, and it’s no small feat that the actors themselves seemed to exemplify the same kind of relationships. Whether they’re goofing around in front of a video camera or engaging in surprisingly bitter arguments, they’re friends to the end, with an easy-going rapport that never feels contrived, buoyed by writer-director Lawrence Kasdan’s perceptive script and adlibbed moments from the talented cast. I especially liked a time lapse scene of the various characters waking up at different times and drifting into the kitchen throughout the early morning quiet, punctuated by a great punchline.

And then there’s the soundtrack, again ranking among the best out there. Serving as reminiscences of their glory days and sometimes oddly fitting complements to particular scenes, the likes of Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Three Dog Night, and The Temptations periodically liven the mood. The early funeral procession is especially memorable, accompanied by the Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” as is the classic kitchen scene with everyone dancing to “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg.”With all that in its favor, I can honestly say that I enjoyed most of The Big Chill, but the film’s resolutions started to lose me. By the end, the characters start pairing off in ways that try to skirt the issue of marital fidelity, and the solution to Mary Kay Place’s sperm hunt is both affectionately sweet and downright uncomfortable. It’s the kind of cinematic choice that easily engenders differing opinions on whether it’s right or wrong, but I can’t condone it personally. This conclusion and the intermittent profanity may cause The Big Chill to lose some of my esteem, but its talented ensemble of stars that were still rising at the time still make it worthwhile. Ensembles of this caliber are rare these days, and despite a few moral qualms with the plot, I see why my VC is so fond of this character-focused blend of nostalgic fun and drama.

Best line: (Michael, at Alex’s wake) “Amazing tradition. They throw a great party for you on the one day they know you can’t come.”

Rank: List Runner-Up

© 2017 S.G. Liput
490 Followers and Counting

 

 

 

VC Pick: Moonraker (1979)

Tags

Action, Comedy, James Bond, Sci-fi, Thriller

(Best sung to “Moon River” because, as Bond says at the end, “Why not?”)

Moonraker,
Where did you go wrong?
You started off so strong, and yet….
Your sense of humor
Became a tumor
When Jaws in his folly
And Dolly first met.

Filmmakers
Learned from your mistake:
Don’t go, for humor’s sake, too far.
It’s just not the same James Bond style,
Veering juvenile.
Still you make me smile,
Moonraker,
Low bar.
___________________

MPAA rating: PG

I certainly hope it’s mere coincidence that Sir Roger Moore died not long after I watched Moonraker, especially considering that I saw Rogue One the day Carrie Fisher passed. This had better not be a trend for me. Moonraker is easily Moore’s weakest outing as Bond (though also his highest-grossing), but my VC enjoys it and I thought it appropriate after seeing his name in the headlines for the last time recently.

Like most other entries in the franchise, Moonraker follows all the familiar story beats of Bond surviving enemies, confronting a clearly shady industrialist with an accent, seducing beautiful fellow agents, and narrowly saving the world. This installment, though, was clearly meant to capitalize on the growing public interest in space and science fiction, since Moonraker was released just two years after Star Wars and incorporated space shuttles into the plot, predating actual shuttle flights by a couple of years.

Moonraker benefits from the natural charm of Moore, who remains my and my VC’s favorite incarnation of Bond himself, and the explosive escapes and elitist villain played by Michael Lonsdale are perfect fits for this kind of movie. There’s even a nice bit of continuity in the return of the seemingly unkillable henchman-for-hire Jaws (Richard Kiel), who previously appeared in The Spy Who Loved Me. For most of its runtime, Moonraker is an all-around solid Bond flick and then…oh, where to begin?

I never minded the campier elements of Moore’s Bond and always thought he found the right balance of humor to match the debonair action, like when he and Jaws merely smile at each other every time they face off. Yet Moonraker takes it too far, extending beyond good fun into unabashed parody. Whose idea was it to give Jaws a random pig-tailed girlfriend named Dolly and back their love-at-first-sight gaze with the theme from Romeo and Juliet? Likewise, I was willing to stomach the villain’s Noah’s Ark-style space station, but I was left speechless when the U.S. sends a shuttle to investigate and a host of space-suited astronauts quickly engage in a laser battle. Really??? Sure it looks impressive for the time and even earned an Oscar nomination for Visual Effects, and I realize Star Wars was popular, but this is just ridiculous!

I’m not alone in rolling my eyes at the absurdity of Moonraker’s second half, and mixed reviews at the time thankfully led future writers to reel in their overactive imaginations to more reasonable levels of silliness. Even so, Moonraker remains as entertaining as its Bond brethren in most other respects with some impressive stunts and an excellent score by John Barry, and its outlandishness somewhat works as a so-bad-it’s-good advantage. As long as you aren’t looking for Bond to be grounded in reality, it’s a campily fun episode, and Moore, as always, looks like he enjoyed himself as Bond. Even in his weaker efforts, he’ll always be the best Bond for me. RIP, Roger Moore.

Best line: (Drax, with typical Bond villain panache) “Mr. Bond, you defy all my attempts to plan an amusing death for you.”

 

Rank: Honorable Mention

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
485 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Funny Lady (1975)

Tags

Biopic, Comedy, Drama, Romance

It’s easy being funny
When you’re wallowing in money
With your sweet and faithful honey
Waiting lovingly at hand,
But when assets aren’t as runny
And the outlook’s less than sunny,
Not as much is fun or funny,
As the jokers understand.

Though life enjoys unveiling
Every foible, flaw, and failing,
Making efforts unavailing,
One’s good humor perseveres,
So while waiting, maybe wailing,
For a way to smoother sailing,
It’s important and unfailing
To keep laughing through the tears.
____________________

MPAA rating: PG (PG-13 is better due to language)

When I first saw Barbra Streisand’s Oscar-winning performance in Funny Girl, I wasn’t aware she had reprised the role of Fanny Brice in Funny Lady seven years later. It took my VC to suggest seeing this less prestigious follow-up, and honestly it proves that Hollywood’s fondness for unnecessary and unsatisfying sequels is nothing new.

Following the sad conclusion of Funny Girl, where Brice’s marriage to Nicky Arnstein (Omar Sharif) broke up amid financial tension and scandal, Funny Lady sees Brice solid in her stardom but struggling for work like everyone else due to the Great Depression. Enter James Caan as smooth-talking songwriter and showman Billy Rose, whose ego dwarfs Fanny’s diva mentality to the point that he advertises her as part of his new show without even asking her first. Annoyed but somehow charmed, she agrees, and their working relationship gradually turns to romance.

I can’t say that Streisand and Caan aren’t good in their roles, but they had hardly any chemistry, in sharp contrast to Sharif’s allure in the first film. Fanny’s songful suggestion that her second relationship is better thus feels hollow when their bond seems founded on the fact that they can simply yell at each other without either taking it personally.

I suppose Funny Girl’s tragic romance had more impact because it was preventable, torn apart by Nicky’s pride opposite Fanny’s success; here, Billy Rose’s huckster personality seemed inevitably fated for marital friction and infidelity, and it’s no surprise when things fall apart again. Worsening matters is Fanny’s confrontation with her first husband (Sharif returns), where she confesses to starry-eyed naiveté in the face of his selfishness. It may be true, but it’s not empowering as she intends it to be; instead, it’s sad that all of her romances were doomed from the start, robbing her of even the memory of a happy love life.

Aside from Streisand’s intermittent comedic skits, what makes Funny Lady watchable is the musical numbers, though there are far fewer show-stopping numbers than the first film, and none are as memorable as “People” or “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” In fact, it’s ironic that the best number goes not to Streisand, but to Ben Vereen as one of Fanny’s vaudeville cohorts, an exuberant rendition of “Clap Hands! Here Comes Charley!” that made me wish the rest of Vereen’s performance hadn’t been cut out before release. I’m actually rather surprised the film earned five Oscar nominations, including Cinematography, Score, and Original Song. If you enjoyed Funny Girl or are a fan of Streisand or Caan, Funny Lady may be worth your time, but don’t expect a feel-good classic.

 

Rank: Honorable Mention

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
482 Followers and Counting

 

Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart (1985)

Tags

Comedy, Drama

Mothers are ours from the start of our lives,
The source from which much of our own self derives.
Our culture and friends,
Open doors and dead ends
May shape who we are,
But their impact depends
On the person who held us and taught right from wrong
And lived an example both tender and strong.

All moms are different; some dote, some oppress.
Some pick you apart; some are quick to impress.
And some are so dear,
Sharing each joy and fear,
That it’s hard to conceive
Of a day or an eve
Without her near-eternal, maternal sunshine.
It’s those we love most and why I so love mine.
_____________________

MPAA rating: PG

A very Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there and to my own in particular. Hi, Mom! I’ll admit I picked this film to review today due to its maternal themes offering an excuse to write the above poem, but I do wish it were a better film overall for Mother’s Day (certainly not on par with Wolf Children, which was my Mother’s Day review last year). I watched Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart with my mom, hoping it would be an understated gem, and while it’s definitely understated, I wouldn’t go so far as to call it a gem, despite its 100% Rotten Tomatoes score.

Dim Sum focuses on the uneventful lives of the Chinese-American family of Geraldine Tam (Laureen Chew), who cares for her old-fashioned immigrant mother (Kim Chew; I’m still not sure if the actresses were actually related). Her mom seems content with her quiet life but is always encouraging Geraldine to get married, and her goading grows fatalistic as Mrs. Tam enters the year it was foretold she would die. While I’ve seen the film described as a comedy, the chuckles are few and far between, but Victor Wong adds some genial charm as Mrs. Tam’s barkeeper brother-in-law.

Events move along with a snail-paced eye for detail, particularly the unique blending of American and Chinese culture, such as changing from shoes to slippers at the front door. Since she mainly interacts with her close-knit Chinese friends, Mrs. Tam strictly speaks Chinese, while Wong’s more outgoing character freely converses in English. This contrast extends to the generational divide between Geraldine and her mom, as evidenced in a scene of Mrs. Tam’s mahjong club of women friends, followed by an identical game in English with their second-generation daughters.

I have no doubt that Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart is a realistic glimpse of Chinese-American life in San Francisco, and director Wayne Wang’s fondness for it is felt throughout. However, the extended scenes of little happening grow boring after a while, and the slightly heartwarming but open-ended conclusion doesn’t quite make the watch worthwhile. My mom did get a nostalgic kick out of some extremely ‘80s moments, like a mention of Betamax, but the strongest point I got from Dim Sum was when Mrs. Tam has a health scare. Since Geraldine never learned her mom’s traditional Chinese recipes, Uncle Tam mourns the classic dishes that will inevitably be lost forever. It’s a relatable and sobering reflection that transcends culture, since my own mom also wishes my grandmother had shown her more of her home cooking before she died. Luckily, my mom has written down and taught me many of her own recipes, so at least I won’t be left without the re-creatable memory of her food. Even if Dim Sum drags with its tranquil restraint, at least its “Little Bit of Heart” feels genuine.

 

Rank: Honorable Mention

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
482 Followers and Counting

 

Good News (1947)

Tags

Classics, Comedy, Musical, Romance

I’ve good news and bad news for those still alone,
Who pine for somebody to love as their own.
The good news is that there is someone for you,
Who’s hoping there’s someone for them to love too.
They’re out there, out somewhere, far off or close by;
You’re made for each other, as tales testify.

The bad news is that things may get in the way,
Like not recognizing true romance at play.
In not waiting long enough, you might pick wrong,
And they may do likewise, not where they belong.
Beware the missed moments and chances you shirk;
Your own asininity may be at work.

So keep an eye out for that promised soul mate,
And you may have good news to soon celebrate.
___________________

MPAA rating: Approved (an easy G)

After enjoying the compilation of classic MGM musical numbers in That’s Entertainment! and its Part II, I had to satisfy my curiosity over at least one of the featured films that caught my eye. The educational setting and youthful dance scenes of Good News made me think of it as a forerunner to High School Musical, and indeed that’s what it is. Just as Grease predated High School Musical, Good News anticipated Grease, and its romantic entanglements backed by buoyant musicality are still entertaining all these decades later.

While those later films were set in high school, though, Good News takes place at Tait College, the kind of carefree movie college where studies take a backseat to parties and football games. Peter Lawford plays the ever-confident athlete Tommy, while June Allyson fills the role of the mousy school librarian Connie, both of whom discover each other when Lawford’s smitten hotshot tries to impress the gold-digging it-girl, played by Patricia Marshall. The wholesome interactions between romance-seeking students brought to mind the original Archie comics, even incorporating a jealous bully named Beef (as opposed to Moose) who makes up part of an adjacent love triangle.

The story may remind you of many imitators since, but Good News is good clean fun, though I understand it’s a remake of a racier Pre-Code version from 1930. The best part is clearly the musical scenes, many of which feel like lesser-known classics, like “The Best Things in Life Are Free” or “Lucky in Love,” which benefits from the smooth voice of Mel Tormé.  Between the lyrical cleverness (“The French Lesson”) and the exuberant dancing (“Pass That Peace Pipe,” which was nominated for a Best Song Oscar), Good News has tuneful talent and charm to spare.

Best line: (Tommy, when chided on speaking French) “Guess I can’t help it, Poochy. Language comes easy to me. I’ve only been in class five days, and already I speak like a native. I don’t know of what country, but, uh, like a native.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
480 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Twins (1988)

Tags

Comedy

If I were a twin, I’d be half of a pair,
Beside myself always, with one me to spare.
We’d wear the same clothes, and without a reveal,
We’d simply switch places whenever we feel.

We’d play mirror games in the door to our room
To see who’d be first to stop copying whom,
And, asked if I had any sibs of my own,
I’d say “I don’t think, but I do have a clone.”

When I stubbed my toe, we would both feel the pain,
As if we’re connected by waves of the brain.
So, happy or sad or aware of a threat,
Our emotions would match like a Gemini set.

That’s how it would be, if I did have a twin,
But I don’t have anyone that close of kin.
I can’t help but wonder what life I would share
If someone like me had been half of a pair.
_____________________

MPAA rating: PG-13

After thirty straight days of NaPoWriMo without touching one of her picks, it’s time to set things right with my faithful Viewing Companion, so I’ll be reviewing three of her chosen movies this month. The first is Twins, the 1988 odd-couple pairing of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito, which she chose in response to continued rumors that there will be a sequel called Triplets, co-starring Eddie Murphy of all people.

It’s an absurd notion that Schwarzenegger and DeVito could be brothers, much less twins, but the film knows it and sidesteps the stigma of being unrealistic with a fictitious genetics experiment that involved six fathers and produced one perfect specimen (Schwarzenegger) and one, um, imperfect side effect (DeVito). Where Eddie Murphy will fit in, I don’t know. Since the flawless Julius Benedict is raised on a utopian island, he only learns of his brother as an adult and searches for him, only to discover short Vincent is a two-bit criminal on the edge of a dangerously profitable scheme.

What Twins most reminded me of was 1999’s Blast from the Past, which I also saw and reviewed for the first time recently. Both Brendan Fraser in that film and Schwarzenegger here are clean-cut golden boys raised in isolation, and their first exposure to the big bad world (at age 35 in both) finds humor in their geeky fish-out-of-water charm and naïve misunderstandings of slang. But whereas Fraser was looking for love, Schwarzenegger’s Julius only cares about finding and helping his brother, from saving Vincent from vengeful loan sharks to encouraging that both of them find their long-lost mother (Bonnie Bartlett, whom I recognized from St. Elsewhere).

Twins isn’t quite a constant laugh riot, and its minor classic status owes more to its stars and its age than anything else; but it features a wealth of amusement, thanks to the interplay of DeVito’s comic experience and Schwarzenegger’s surprising capacity for humor—surprising because I believe this was his first entirely comedic role after years of building his action-hero reputation. Schwarzenegger even gets some wink-wink nods to his other films, from his action roots to a line that I think was reused in Batman and Robin. I also liked how the story morphs into a road trip movie, similar to that other 1988 film about someone discovering he has a brother he never knew about. Also along for the ride as joint love interests are the lovely Kelly Preston and Chloe Webb, whom I best know as that crazy alien abduction lady on Venkman’s TV show in Ghostbusters II.

Though Twins is one of the lesser classics from director Ivan Reitman, there’s enough buddy humor from the silly premise alone to make it worthwhile, and it actually finds a good deal of heart in Vincent’s realized desire for a family after growing up an orphan. I shudder at what convolutions Triplets may take to wedge in a third absurd sibling, but Twins fulfills its preposterous concept with light-hearted fun.

Best line: (Julius) “Actually, I hate violence.”   (Vincent) “But you’re so good at it!”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
479 Followers and Counting

 

About Time (2013)

Tags

Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance

(Today’s final NaPoWriMo prompt of the month was for a poem about something that happens over and over. Following the theme of this time-travel charmer, I applied that to the hypothetical potential of living life repeatedly.)

 

Days and weeks and months repeat,
The same in name but each one new,
But wouldn’t it be quite the treat
To start them over and redo?

When in the mood for favorite foods,
Just think back to your grandest meal,
And when your second course concludes,
You’re free for thirds whene’er you feel.

When life becomes mundane or glum,
Just jump back to your fondest thrill,
A theme park ride or concert’s thrum
Or Wordsworth-worthy daffodil.

And how sought-after to rewind
To change regrets to words unsaid,
Slips untripped and frauds declined,
And dominoes unplummeted!

The twists and weaves of life one-way
Are seldom smooth to navigate,
But wouldn’t life, upon replay,
Have less distress to complicate?
___________________

MPAA rating: R (except for 5 F-words, there’s little reason this couldn’t be PG-13)

Rachel McAdams must have a thing for time travelers. Only four years after playing the titular Time Traveler’s Wife opposite Eric Bana, she again fell in love with a man possessing inherent time-traveling abilities, this time Domhnall Gleeson, in 2013’s About Time. Whereas the first film was bittersweet drama, About Time takes its subject in a lighter rom-com direction; for instance, the time-jumping ability that was random and uncontrollable in The Time Traveler’s Wife is little more than a super-powered perk in About Time, an inherited trait for only the men in the Lake family.

When Tim Lake (Gleeson) is called into his father’s study on his twenty-first birthday to be told a family secret, I can think of many worse revelations than being told you can now travel back along your own lifetime. Being rather awkward, one of Tim’s first thoughts is to win himself a girlfriend with his newfound ability, and after a less than successful attempt with the lovely Margot Robbie, he moves to London and seeks out his soul mate. All of this is done with a delightful comedic touch that makes Tim and his eccentric family feel real and lovable, and when Mary (McAdams) comes on the scene via a winsomely literal “blind date,” it’s clear from the first moments that love is inevitable…as long as time travel doesn’t get in the way.

I can’t remember the last time I was so thoroughly charmed by a movie. Well, maybe I do; it was probably La La Land, which is a more prestigious film all around, but both of them left me smiling and touched in a way most modern films don’t anymore. The repartee and chemistry between Tim and Mary put them up there with my favorite screen couples, even apart from the time travel aspect, which often adds some comedic wish fulfillment, undoing those little gaffes we all want to live over. In addition to Gleeson and McAdams, Bill Nighy delivers both warmth and pathos as Tim’s more experienced father, and his fellow Pirates of the Caribbean bad guy, Tom Hollander (almost unrecognizable with a beard), is likably sardonic as Tim’s first London friend.

As much as I loved it, I won’t claim that About Time is without flaws, such as a poorly explained revision that Tim performs when one of his time-altering good intentions goes awry. Likewise, I’ve heard a common complaint that the film doesn’t follow its own time travel rules and pays less attention than others of its genre to continuity and the butterfly effect. Yet, even these issues that would normally annoy me (like in The Lake House) couldn’t detract from a highly enjoyable romance or its bittersweet denouement. It’s a smartly written and delightful story worth going back in time to watch all over again.

Best line: (Tim) “There’s a song by Baz Luhrmann called ‘Sunscreen.’ He says worrying about the future is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life will always be things that never crossed your worried mind.”

 

Rank: List-Worthy

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
477 Followers and Counting

 

Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)

Tags

Comedy, Drama

(For today’s NaPoWriMo prompt, we were to take a specific noun from a favorite poem and write a new poem inspired by it. I decided on Bliss Carman’s autumnal “A Vagabond Song,” specifically the word vagabond in the final line.)

 

We vagabonds sadly are rarer these days,
And nature’s beseeching has grown ever thinner.
She prays the same plea that once clouded men’s gaze,
But now only coaxes the set-in-their-ways
And the restless, romantic, unruly beginner.

The vagabonds dare where the rest stay at home,
For all the wide world is their chosen abode.
In life, let their hearth be wherever they roam;
In death, let the sea be their vast catacomb,
For no destination is end to the road.

The world calls us fools from their stolid safe spot,
But valleys and hills are the best way to cope
With life’s many miseries. I hear them not
When a waterfall’s all that’s within my earshot.
They may mock our style, but envy our scope.

Heed not the vain whispers of schedule and stress
When catching the call of the wilds beyond.
The creeks and cascades, while awaiting a yes,
Will yet preserve peace for the wide wilderness,
For the lucky old fool and the young vagabond.
_____________________

MPAA rating: PG-13

Based on the book Wild Pork and Watercress, Hunt for the Wilderpeople from New Zealand director Taika Waititi is an excellent example of one of those hidden gem movies that you might only learn about from a movie blogger singing its praises. It’s a quirky little film that more often than not allows “quirk” to equal absurd charm rather than mere weirdness, and not since Up has the kid/old man dynamic worked so well. (There’s even a scene where a boy calls “ca-caw” to an old man on a porch. Coincidence?)

The film starts out suspiciously like an obscure Irish film I saw a while back called A Shine of Rainbows. Like the orphan boy in that movie, young troublemaker Ricky Baker (Julian Dennison) is taken in by a remote couple made up of a doting “Auntie” (Rima Te Wiata) and her surly and distant husband Hec (Sam Neill). After his new mother helps him feel at home, she sadly dies, leaving Ricky to form a grudging relationship with “Uncle” Hec instead. Beyond this point, though, the film goes in a wholly different direction from A Shine of Rainbows, sending Ricky and Hec out into the wooded wild, where a misunderstanding makes them fugitives and subjects of a national manhunt.

It’s a fine line between Ricky being obnoxious or just a normal kid rebelling against an unforgiving world, but Julian Dennison treads it quite well, especially with someone of Sam Neill’s caliber to rebel with. Neill elevates the whole movie, despite having undergone a Jeff Bridges-style transformation into a grizzled mountain man, and the development of the mismatched pair from tolerating each other to respecting and even loving each other is entirely natural and endearing (and uses haiku). Rima Te Wiata is also a great presence early on as Ricky’s foster “Auntie,” whose forced attempts at making him feel comfortable pay off with time.

The film’s offbeat sensibilities extend to its cinematography and music as well. The soundtrack blends folk, electronic, and even some kind of strange opera, and the camerawork is exceptional, as when a time-lapse is replaced by a spinning continuous shot that seamlessly switches from scene to scene while musically backed by Leonard Cohen. As we all know from The Lord of the Rings, New Zealand also boasts some truly spectacular scenery, which the film flaunts in glorious fashion. I was reminded too of Babe in how events were labeled like storybook chapters. Its unique style certainly made me wonder how Waititi will shake up the MCU by directing Thor: Ragnarok later this year.

With the sweet satisfaction that this film left me, I struggled on how exactly to rank Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Ultimately, it does have its downsides, mainly in its quirkiness not always working to its advantage. Several scenes meant to be funny just come off as odd, such as a man’s obsession with selfies or a priest’s rambling sermon, and I can see its style not being for every taste. Yet much of the humor did make me laugh, such as the Terminator references and Rhys Darby’s backwoods nutcase Psycho Sam, and I still found Hunt for the Wilderpeople to be a rewarding experience and very close to being List-Worthy, a hidden gem that deserves to be found.

Best line: (Ricky, reading his uncle’s wanted poster) “’Faulkner is Cauc-asian.’ Well, they got that wrong because you’re obviously white.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
477 Followers and Counting

 

Starter for 10 (2006)

Tags

Comedy, Drama, Romance

(Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt was to employ Skeltonic verse, or short lines with rapid-fire, tumbling rhymes, which are always fun.)

 

A know-it-all
With quick recall
Will stand tall
Next to egos small
Because he knows
The stuff that goes
Toward beating those
On trivia shows,
Like sporting pros
And ratios,
Obscure logos
Of studios,
And poems and prose
And names of clothes
And things that few
Would say they knew
Unless they too
Enjoyed a clue
Or fact review
Like me and you;
At least I do.
__________

MPAA rating: PG-13

Every now and then, there’s a movie that just appeals to your interests specifically, and Starter for 10 appealed to mine. I had heard this British film starring James McAvoy had something to do with trivia, in this case the University Challenge TV show of the 1980s, and within the first few minutes, I felt this was a film for me, thanks to my personal love for shows like Jeopardy! Now I just had to hope the rest didn’t ruin it, and despite some inconsistencies along the way, it was an enjoyable little film all the way through.

Many people have fond memories of those ‘80s films full of stars before they were famous, you know, Stand By Me, The Outsiders, Taps, Red Dawn, and the like. But it makes sense that other generations would have the same kind of films, and Starter for 10 is one for the 21^st century, even if it’s set in the 1980s. As McAvoy’s trivia-crazed freshman Brian goes off to college for the first time, I was surprised at how many actors I recognized. His two mates at home are Dominic Cooper and James Corden, while his two potential love interests at college are Alice Eve and Rebecca Hall, not to mention Benedict Cumberbatch as the uptight captain of the University Challenge team, again playing someone who believes himself to be the smartest person in the room. I was actually chuckling at their very presence together after seeing them all in the franchise films that have since earned them greater recognition (Eve and Cumberbatch in Star Trek into Darkness, Cooper and Hall and Cumberbatch in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Cumberbatch and Mark Gatiss in Sherlock). I never expected to see a fight between Howard Stark and Doctor Strange, much less for Stark to win while Professor X watches in horror. It’s like a huge retroactive crossover! Or not.

Aside from the pleasure of seeing these young stars in their early roles, there are a lot of worthwhile themes here, ranging from infatuation and responsibility to academic honesty and learning from personal mistakes. Brian’s experience at college felt very realistic, both for good and ill, such as how he suddenly absorbs all manner of liberal causes and how the drama of college itself can often get in the way of one’s education.  The humor can be hit-and-miss at times (one “meet-the-parents” scene was very awkward), but it made me laugh more than most comedies these days, further helped by a strong ‘80s soundtrack, most of which I’d never heard before. (I’m not too familiar with The Cure; sorry, Britain!)

I suppose I especially identified with Brian himself, and along with Shizuku from Whisper of the Heart, he’s probably the movie character in which I most see myself. He’s committed to being as clever as he can, learning things like literature, history, and why people like jazz. (Just watch La La Land for that answer.) He finds more excitement in the mental stimulation of a trivia challenge than a pointless drinking party, and through his interactions with his mother, friends, and girlfriends, he’s still trying to figure himself out and overcome his mistakes. McAvoy is a great fit for him, even if he desperately needs a haircut, and the rest of the cast help give potentially shallow characters more depth than expected and match the early talent that would eventually make many of them household names. Similar to 2015’s Paper Towns, Starter for 10 has its imperfections and clumsy moments, but it’s a charming film that I connected with and which left me smiling by the end.

Best line: (Brian’s mom) “The people who really care about you don’t mind if you make mistakes. It’s what you do next that matters.”

 

Rank: List-Worthy

 

2017 S.G. Liput
477 Followers and Counting