To the Bone

To the Bone (2017)

Starring Lily Collins, Keanu Reeves, Carrie Preston, Lili Taylor, Alex Sharp, Leslie Bibb, and Liana Liberato

Directed by Marti Noxon

Written by Marti Noxon

***This film is currently streaming via Netflix***

Summary (in 500 words or less):  Artist Ellen (Lily Collins) enters an experimental treatment facility for eating disorders run by a doctor (Keanu Reeves) whose unique methodology proves difficult with which for Ellen to oblige.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials

Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015)

Starring Dylan O'Brien, Ki Hong Lee, Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Dexter Darden, Jacob Lofland, Rosa Salazar, Giancarlo Esposito, Aiden Gillen, Lili Taylor, Barry Pepper, and Patricia Clarkson

Directed by Wes Ball

I still stand by original notion that the overarching plot of the Maze Runner series is perhaps the most interesting of all the dystopian teen epics that we've seen over the past several years.  In the original film, a group of teens was thrown into a deadly labyrinth which, upon their escape, they discover was run by a group called W.C.K.D. in order to experiment on the young.  At the end of the first film, the surviving teens are helicoptered out of the maze facility presumably being taken to safety, however, as The Scorch Trials begins, we see that Earth as we know it is in shambles -- a desolate dust storm where the only survivors seem to live in a facility run by those who saved the kids from the maze.  The teens soon begin to realize that those who saved them may not be their saviors, but may in fact want to harm them.  Led by Thomas (Dylan O'Brien), the group manages to escape the facility, only to find a world overrun by zombies (yeah...) as they try to find safety.

The Scorch Trials starts out incredibly promising as, much like the teens, we in the audience try and determine who's good and bad.  Unfortunately, once the teens escape, the premise of the sequel begins to fall apart.  I mean, zombies?  Really?  Sure, the plot was already ludicrous with the whole maze and then a burgeoning conspiracy, but I had bought into the proceedings...and then you add zombies to the mix?  Ugh.  That said, if I were to remove the zombies from the equation, The Scorch Trials would've been equal to its predecessor.  Yes, it's the middle film of a trilogy so it's really just a stepping stone to the inevitable finale, but there was potential that was squandered with those damn zombies.  I'll still be there for the final movie as I still think the premise is unique enough to warrant its existence -- I haven't given up on the series like I did with Divergent -- but I must say I'm a little disappointed with this one.

The RyMickey Rating: C

Movie Review - The Conjuring

The Conjuring (2013)

Starring Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Lili Taylor, and Ron Livingston

Directed by James Wan

When Carolyn and Roger Perron (Lili Taylor and Ron Livingston) and their daughters move into a secluded farmhouse in the Northeast US, their hope is for a fresh start.  Little do they know that their house is haunted and the ghosts inside aren't exactly known for simply lurking.  No...these otherworldly beings are nasty creatures causing much havoc for the Perron family.  Desperate for help, Carolyn seeks out paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) who, upon entering the Perron home, realize that they've got quite a task ahead of them trying to exorcise these demons from the house.

Based on a true story (which you can believe or not depending on your predilections towards ghostly spirits), The Conjuring is a rather fantastic horror film.  Although rated R, I'm not sure there's a single curse word uttered throughout the movie and there's hardly any blood spewed either.  Instead, that "R" rating was garnered simply because of the mounting tension created by director James Wan.  Aided by a nice script from Chad and Carey Hayes, Wan keeps the film moving at a great pace, although he does allow the story to unfold naturally -- which some could read as meaning "slowly," but I felt was deliberately paced to increase the eerie mood of the piece as a whole.  Granted, there are moments towards the film's end when I felt the writers were getting a little "kitchen sink-y" in that they were seemingly throwing in quite a few classic horror clichés, but I still found myself on the edge of my seat for nearly the entirety of the final 45 minutes.

I've been a fan of Vera Farmiga for a while and she didn't disappoint here.  Farmiga along with her co-stars Patrick Wilson, Lili Taylor, and Ron Livingston all are much better than your typical "horror movie acting."  They're not acting in a horror movie -- they're acting in a movie.  There's a difference and their nuanced portrayals of admittedly not very complex roles is much appreciated.

Taking place in the early 1970s, The Conjuring certainly feels like an homage of sorts to some classic horror films of that era and I appreciated that it never oversold its somewhat simple story with bombastic special effects or outrageous gore.  Kudos to James Wan -- whose direction of the original Saw made me a little wary about checking this film out -- who's crafted a nice ghost story here that is well worth seeing.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+