Crawl

Crawl (2019)

Starring Kaya Scodelario and Barry Pepper

Directed by Alexandre Aja

Written by Michael Rasmussen and Shawn Rasmussen

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 - Kill the Messenger

Kill the Messenger (2014)

Starring Jeremy Renner, Rosemarie DeWitt, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Oliver Platt, Ray Liotta, Tim Blake Nelson, Barry Pepper, Michael Sheen, Paz Vega, and Andy Garcia

Directed by Michael Cuesta

For full disclosure's sake, I nearly stopped Kill the Messenger at the forty minute mark, thinking that this true story about journalist Gary Webb's uncovering of CIA involvement in drug trafficking from Nicaragua to the US was a tad too slow moving and a bit too by the book in terms of the way it was handling Webb's investigation into the government conspiracy.  However, I'm actually quite happy I stuck it out because as the film progresses, it becomes much more than an investigative journey and instead begins to live up to its title as Webb (played by Jeremy Renner) becomes the target of news reports aided by CIA leaks (or lies?) that strive to bring him down by revealing secrets from his past.

The problem with Kill the Messenger is that the film's first half isn't all that interesting.  As Gary moves from location to location meeting a variety of characters uncovering minor details concerning the CIA's cover-up, the whole affair feels very rote and bland.  Fortunately, the change in tone in the second half works to the film's advantage creating a much more well-rounded character in Gary Webb who is essentially hung out to dry by his employers after the CIA and other media outlets go on a mission to discredit the reporter and the tiny newspaper for whom he works.

The performances here are all fine, but there aren't any real standouts which also doesn't help elevate the otherwise boring start to the piece.  In the end, Kill the Messenger tells an interesting story that I was certainly unaware of, but it doesn't quite elevate to a point of consistent interest.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Broken City

Broken City (2013)

Starring Mark Wahlberg, Russell Crowe, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Barry Pepper, Jeffrey Wright, and Kyle Chandler  

Directed by Allen Hughes

Broken City is one of those films that makes you ponder how in the world the producers snagged such big names to attach themselves to it.  It's not that it's mind-numbingly bad (although it certainly isn't any good), but it's so utterly generic that it becomes painful to sit through.  There's a corrupt [Republican] New York mayor up for reelection (Russell Crowe), his possibly philandering wife (Catherine Zeta-Jones), the good cop who's forced into doing bad things (Mark Wahlberg), the police chief who may not be running things by the book (Jeffrey Wright), and the upstart [Democratic] opponent who wants nothing more than to bring down his competition (Barry Pepper).  We've seen all these characters' stories before scripted, acted, and directed better, so without Broken City doing a thing to differentiate itself from its predecessors, there's little to recommend about it.

And with that, I'm pretty much done with this one.  However, I will add that as I was watching this, I came to the realization that Catherine Zeta-Jones probably should retire from acting.  I'm not sure she was ever all that good, but her Academy Award win at least gave her some respect from the public and from this blogger.  Perhaps that respect was ill-informed, however, as with last year's Rock of Ages (which garnered her a Worst Performance of the Year award) and this year's Broken City (and even Side Effects, a film that I truly liked, but found her performance lacking), she's more than proven that it may be time to snuggle up with her Oscar, spend some time with Michael Douglas, and bid the acting world adieu.

The RyMickey Rating:  D+

The Personal Canon - Saving Private Ryan

The Personal Canon is a recurring column highlighting my favorite films of all time.  While they may not necessarily be "A" rated, they are the movies that, for some reason or another, hold a special place in my filmgoing experience.

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Starring Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Jeremy Davies, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, and Matt Damon

Directed by Steven Spielberg

Damn you, Saving Private Ryan.  When the single tear rolled down my cheek after watching you on my freshly received Blu-Ray, I was cursing your name.  I remember back on your opening day on July 24, 1998, as a somewhat fresh high school graduate, I sat in a theater full of mostly senior citizens (of which I assumed some were veterans) for your opening show.  Even twelve years ago, I remember welling up as the credits began to roll.  And I was not alone in the watery eye department.  You worked your emotions on nearly everyone in the theater.  I'm more than happy to report that you still stand the test of time, providing an eye-popping, gut-wrenching, and awe-inspiring glimpse into the trials our soldiers tackled head-on in World War II.

No discussion of director Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan can be had without discussing the epic Omaha Beach D-Day battle sequence that opens the film.  A directing tour de force of the highest degree, Spielberg places us squarely in the action, not giving us a moment to breath for over twenty minutes.  In front of our very eyes, limbs are lost, explosions tear bodies apart -- loss of life everywhere.  The scene is relentless, unceasing, and as a viewer there is no greater desire for this assault (both physically and visually) to end. Emotionally, it's painful to watch.  Cinematically, it's brilliant.  Immediately, Spielberg has made us a soldier, shakily moving the camera as if we were standing on the beach witnessing the horrific chaos.  

By placing us in a soldier's shoes from the outset, we become one of the small battalion of men who go on a mission to search for Private James Ryan (Matt Damon) whose three brothers have been killed in various battles during the war.  Ordered from his superiors to find Ryan, Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) and a group of eight other soldiers trek across France looking for, as Capt. Miller perfectly describes it, "a needle in a stack of needles."  Along the way, smaller battles will be fought, soldiers will be lost, and the fear, pain, joy, and camaraderie are palpably felt by the viewer.

Even though the film is bookended by two intense, lengthy battle sequences, a huge chunk of the emotional impact the film garners is derived from the quiet moments.  Towards the beginning, there's a gut check moment in which Ryan's mother is given the news that her sons have died.  There is not a word spoken in the scene by anyone, but the emotional impact of John William's melancholic score and Janusz Kaminski's breathtaking Academy Award-winning cinematography (coupled, of course, with Spielberg's deft direction and stellar acting even from secondary actors) make this moment instantly memorable.  Another particular "calm before the storm" moment occurs prior to the film's final battle where the surviving soldiers sit around thinking about life at home.  As they boast about sexual encounters or discuss simply missing their wife's rose garden, these quiet, understated moments in Robert Rodat's script allow us to get to know our fellow soldiers, all the while amplifying the anticipatory tension of the inevitable impact of the forthcoming battles.

Of course, the emotional resonance wouldn't make much of a difference if the actors in the film didn't shape characters to care about, but that's not a problem in the slightest.  Some may think Tom Hanks is rather subdued as Captain Miller and while they wouldn't be wrong per se, the dedication of Miller to both his military career and his fellow soldiers is the greatest quality Hanks brings to the character.  While Edward Burns brings a sarcastic roughness to his Private Reiben, Jeremy Davies' Corporal Upham is just the opposite -- scared and meek as he faces his first combat experience (mirroring, perhaps, how we may feel were we in his shoes).  Adam Goldberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Barry Pepper, and Tom Sizemore each craft distinct characters which, to me anyway, is not an easy thing to do in war movies in which many of the physical characteristics of people are so similar.

Unlike some future films that will be a part of my Personal Canon, Saving Private Ryan was honored by many of the year-end awards bodies.  For what it's worth, it walked away with Golden Globes for Best Picture Drama and Best Director.  At the Oscars, the film was nominated for eleven awards, walking away with five for Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing, and Best Film Editing.  It did, however, lose the big Best Picture award in a memorable upset to Shakespeare in Love, a film I have grown to really enjoy in recent years (and, who knows...it may end up in the canon in time, I enjoy it that much).  But for it to beat Saving Private Ryan?  That's just crazy.  Granted, if Ryan has a fault it's that it runs on a tad too long, but it never feels like the nearly three hour film that it is.  Maybe folks in the Academy couldn't get past the intense opening reel (or maybe those infamous Weinstein brothers -- the producers of Shakespeare -- paid off a bunch of voters). 

I'm not afraid or ashamed to admit that Saving Private Ryan hits me in the gut and genuinely makes me well up.  I wiped away a single tear as the film concluded.  Yes, I knew how it ended, but this film fires on all emotional cylinders, rousing up pride for our country and our soldiers who helped shape this country into what it is today.  You ladies can cry over something like The Notebook, but give me a movie that, while perhaps sad, is about the joys of the brotherhood of man.  That's what gets to me and Saving Private Ryan fits the bill perfectly.

The RyMickey Rating:  A