Hannah and Her Sisters

 Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

Starring Mia Farrow, Barbara Hershey, Dianne Weist, Woody Allen, Michael Caine, Carrie Fisher, Lloyd Nolan, Maureen O'Sullivan, Daniel Stern, and Max von Sydow

Directed by Woody Allen

Written by Woody Allen

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Star Wars: The Last Jedi

Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi (2016)

Starring Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Lupita Nyong'o, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Gwendoline Christie, Kelly Marie Tran, Laura Dern, and Benicio del Toro

Directed by Rian Johnson

Written by Rian Johnson

Summary (in 500 words or less):  The Star Wars saga continues in this eighth installment of the original series.  Here, Rey (Daisy Ridley) trains with a forlorn and unpleasant Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) on a secluded island where she tries to learn how to utilize the Force for good.  Meanwhile, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) is becoming more powerful among his ranks, utilizing his commanding of the Force to communicate with Rey to try and convince her that the Resistance headed by General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher) is a group she should want no part in.  

• I'm a relative newbie to the Star Wars films and I've yet to see Episodes I-III, but I wholeheartedly enjoyed Episode VII upon its release a few years ago.  The Last Jedi doesn't fare quite as well, but it still adds pieces to the overarching story that I found believable (even if several of the long-time fans were extremely disappointed).
• That disappointment stems from a development with Luke that many found antithetical to his character, but I found a welcome character trait that adds legitimate depth to his character.  Some found this plot twist casting quite a pall over this heretofore "flawlessy" good character, but I thought it worked quite well.
• Unfortunately, several other aspects of the film didn't work quite as well.  A ridiculous "space scene" involving Leia was laughable even for this Star Wars newbie.  Several characters introduced in the last film -- Finn (John Boyega) and Poe (Oscar Isaac) -- are given very little worthwhile to do and their subplots just unnecessarily pad the runtime.
• The final battle sequence is a powerful visual experience and ends things on an up note, but this film -- much like my apparently sacrilegious opinion of the original trilogy's middle film The Empire Strikes Back -- takes a downturn.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)

Starring Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Lupita Nyong'o, Peter Mayhew, Andy Serkis, and Domhnall Gleeson

Directed by J.J. Abrams
***viewed in 3D***

You must remember that I come at these Star Wars films as a complete novice, having only watched A New Hope a mere 30 hours ago for the first time as I type this.  And it's true that I've yet to watch (or subject myself to) Episodes I-III.  However, at this point in time, I'm going to just state the following:  Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens is, without question, the best Star Wars flick I've seen thus far (and likely the best that has been created if others' trashing of the newer trilogy holds true for me).  Nothing I've seen so far can compare in terms of story, acting, directing, and special effects (which, granted, have a leg up on the 1970s/80s predecessors in terms of capability).  It's a pretty darn good popcorn movie and while I certainly wouldn't consider myself a huge fan by any means, The Force Awakens has at least got me excited about what Disney has in the pipeline for this iconic series.

With the least amount of spoilers possible, the film opens with our typical scroll telling us that Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) has vanished and that a new villainous regime -- The First Order --has taken on the Empire's dastardly doings and will stop at nothing to find Luke whom they presume to be the last Jedi.  Now a general for the Resistance, Leia (Carrie Fisher) is desperate to find her brother and save the galaxy.  In an attempt to determine his location, Leia sends pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) to Jakku to do some research.  Poe's one of the good guys as is Rey (Daisy Ridley) -- a scavenger who may be a more important figure in the fight against evil than even she realizes -- and Finn (John Boyega) -- a Stormtrooper who sees the error of the First Order's ways and has a change of heart.  Our heroes along with returning favorites Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) set out to fight the bad guys, headed this time by Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis), General Hux (an over-the-top Domhnall Gleeson), and Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) who, like Darth Vader who came before him, carries off a black cloak and face mask complete with voice digitization quite well.

Director J.J. Abrams has created a film that obviously harkens back to the original trilogy, but also stands on its own as a jumping off point to further tales in the Star Wars landscape.  He eschews the light flares that he's been well known for (and well criticized for) as a director and has created a flick that looks beautiful.  The film moves along at a quick pace and although I still think, like its predecessors, some of the action scenes are a little muted in terms of excitement (light saber battles don't do it for me), Abrams has created a film that flows much better than those films that immediately preceded it.  (Although I will say Abrams only uses about two or three transitional scene-changing wipes.  I missed them a bit...)

It helps, of course, that the film is well-written, certainly with homages to the past, but standing on its own as well.  (Kudos to Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Arndt, and Abrams himself.) Filled with moments of wry humor and some taut drama, The Force Awakens doesn't really have wasted scenes which I feel hampered Episodes IV-VI a bit.  Abrams also, without a doubt, has found a cast that is quite adept, nicely walking a line between action, drama, and comedy without missing a beat.  With one exception in the aforementioned Domhnall Gleeson whom I usually really like but feel he was directed to go a bit manic, all of the newcomers were captivating, drawing me in to their own stories while also breathing new life into the stories of the "old regime" of Han, Leia, and Luke.

Rather nicely, Abrams doesn't overextend himself with the special effects.  Yes, there are a ton of them here, but they seem more natural and composed than the effects in IV-VI.  Obviously, this is partly due to advancements in technology over thirty years, but some of it also has to do with knowing the limitations of what looks organic onscreen and what doesn't and Abrams is right on target visually.  The addition of an incredibly amusing ball-shaped robot BB-8 - which most of the time is a practical and non-CGI effect - showcases the positive manner in which Abrams utilizes his visual effects to their fullest potential.

Needless to say, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens should not disappoint.  Fanboys should love the homages to the past, while non-fanboys should appreciate the new story lines that work surprisingly well.  This is a pretty great start to the reinvention of the Star Wars franchise.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie (Sort of) Review - Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

Starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Kenny Baker, David Prowse, Sebastian Shaw, Ian McDiarmid, Frank Oz, James Earl Jones, and Alec Guinness

Directed by Richard Marquand

And onto the final film of the original trilogy.  One that I've heard is the worst of the three?  We'll see about that...

2:15pm - A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

2:18 - It dawned on me that people stand on these docking bays with no oxygen masks or whatnot.  Is the atmosphere different in Star Wars' rendition of space?

2:21 - The Star Wars equivalent of the Wizard of Oz quartet arriving at the gates of Oz with R2D2 and C3PO arriving at Jabba the Hutt's.

2:27 - Dance party at Jabba's!  (With obvious precursors to Lucas's Captain EO's monsters.)

2:30 - Muppet Jabba reminds me of the trash monster from Fraggle Rock for some reason...But Muppet Jabba is so much better than computer animated Jabba that was in one of the scenes from Star Wars (which I assume was an add-on in the new addition).

2:35 - Okay, I'm seriously loving the wide array of Muppets and crazy costumed denizens of Jabba's court on display in this movie so far.

2:37 - Could that really be the first transitional wipe 22 minutes in or did I miss one?  #LovetheWipe

2:37 - "Sexy Leia" makes her appearance.

2:45 - An unfortunate pause in my viewing...

3:30 - And we resume...

3:33 - I'm not quite sure how Leia is exactly choking Jabba- his neck seems way too big for that to have been successful.

3:35 - And we bid adieu to Tatooine.

3:44 - Muppet Yoda is dead?  

3:46 - Thank God Luke and Leia only kissed passionately and nothing else.

3:52 - First light speed in Jedi!  (I think.)

4:02 - First Ewok!

4:03 - I'm sure much to the bane of every Star Wars fan, I'm finding this little repartee between Leia and the Ewok rather enjoyable.

4:05 - Kaleidoscope outward wipe -- there are not nearly enough wipes in this movie!

4:17 - Big dramatic moment for Mark Hamill with Carrie Fisher - finally some story/plot.

4:22 - And another dramatic moment for Mark Hamill and Vader - who knew Hamill had it in him?

4:42 - The problem with a lot of the action scenes in these Star Wars movies is that I find myself checking out because they seemingly go on too long with a very repetitive nature to them.  I mean, they're attacking the new Death Star again and it seems just like the first film.

4:43 - But at least they pepper in scenes with Palpatine ragging on Luke which I'm enjoying.

4:52 - Yet another amputation!  Lucas fetishizes amputations for some reason...

4:54 - After what feels like an hour, Luke and Leia finally take down the shield.  Finally!

4:56 - Luke and Darth Vader hug after Dad throws Palpatine over the edge, right?  For a touching Hallmark movie moment between father and son?  Oh, they don't?

4:58 - It just dawned on me that the Empire builds their massive Death Stars at incredibly rapid rates.

5:01 - So Luke's father is Uncle Fester from The Addams Family?

5:05 - A windshield wiper wipe?  That's a totally new one!  And I say once again that I missed the wipes in this one.  #WhereAreTheWipes?

5:08 - Seriously?  They added Hayden Christensen?

While it's not much better than A New Hope, I'm going to be totally sacrilege here and say that I enjoyed Return of the Jedi the most.  This film finally had some dramatic chops in the mix with the Luke/Leia and Luke/Vader/Palpatine scenes.  Costumed characters added some visual appeal and the conclusion -- though once again seemingly stretched ad infinitum -- proved satisfying.  Still, it has issues, one of which is that Empire and Jedi feel like they simply take some of the better aspects of A New Hope and just rehash them.  But, overall, Jedi ekes out a win over A New Hope.

All this being said, I don't understand at all why or how Star Wars carried on in its popularity over decades.  I understand people from the 1970s being in awe and I guess they pushed that fascination on to their kids and the never-ending cycle begins, but I'd much rather watch the Indiana Jones series than pop the Star Wars series in again.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie (Sort Of) Review - Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, David Prowse, Peter Mayhew, James Earl Jones, Frank Oz, and Alec Guinness

Directed by Irvin Kershner

And the saga continues with what I've heard is the best film in the series.  We shall see...

1:30am - A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

1:31 - Ooh...a remote ice world of Hoth is being promised in the opening scroll!

1:34 - Yetis!

1:36 - Yay!  Our first transitional wipe!

1:40 - And we have our first light saber amputation in this film...

1:42 - Diagonal wipe?  So many different kinds of transitions!

1:43 - It didn't even dawn on me that I hadn't seen Yoda yet, but ghost Obi Wan reminded me of his existence.

1:55 - What a difference three years (and presumably a lot more money) can make in terms of special effects and production design.  This film looks so much crisper and richly detailed.

1:59 - And the giant walking enemy weapon thing falls because of getting tangled in wire...I knew they should've just used regular tanks...

2:02 - C3PO's nervous hands-up shaking thing makes me chuckle...

2:10 - This asteroid chase scene is a tad bit too visually reminiscent of the Death Star action scene that ended A New Hope.

2:18 - Yoda and his broken English finally make an appearance.  And after a minute, I find myself pleasantly approving of the Muppet-like creature.

2:19 - Although, it's tough not to hear Fozzie Bear sometimes when Frank Oz speaks as the little green guy...

2:22- Han to Leia - "There aren't enough scoundrels in your life..."  I kinda dig that line...

2:31 - Hamill trying to do his best Tarzan impression as he swings on vines...

2:39 - "You must unlearn what you have unlearned."  That's some deep sh*t from Yoda.

2:41 - I understand that the film is trying to show us the trials of Luke learning how to control the Force within him, but I feel like the past thirty minutes of the film have been rather lethargic in terms of trying to move any type of story along.  I mean, what is exactly happening?  Vader is searching for Han and Leia, but he's not really doing anything except killing members of his fleet who fail him.  Han and Leia are feeling each other up, but beyond that they're not really doing much.  We're sort of at a dramatic impasse here.

2:50 - Black people do exist in space!!!

2:52 - Lando - single-handedly bringing back the Cape as a fashion statement! (I mean, Vader has one too, but it's not nearly as stylish.)

2:57 - The guys tossing around C3PO in the junk pile kind of remind me of the ogreish bankers from Harry Potter.

2:58 - Billy Dee with the sabotage!

3:06 - "I love you."  "I know." - Is it wrong that I wanted this exploration of Han and Leia's romance and their coy repartee explored a little more before they baked Han in carbonite?

3:18 - So far this conclusion is less entertaining than the original's.  Leia, Chewbacca, and Lando running around and shooting lasers and not doing much else.  Vader and Luke just swinging their light sabers around...blah...

3:20 - This series loves its amputations!  Luke is obviously using the Force to stop his arm from bleeding.

3:21 - And the pivotal "Luke, I am your father" moment.  I imagine the impact was quite strong in 1980 upon release.  For me, admittedly, the reveal was a foregone conclusion -- I just wasn't sure what film it was in.

3:22 - How did Luke survive that fall?  And where's the blood from his arm?  The heat from the lightsaber obviously cauterized the wound.

3:29 - It just dawned on me that there hasn't been a transitional wipe in over 90 minutes.  Bummer.

Isn't The Empire Strikes Back regarded as a better film than Star Wars?  Maybe I'm not thinking correctly, but despite a much more impressive look to the film, some significantly better written dialog, and actors who honed their craft a little better than in the original, the film itself doesn't really go anywhere and feels repetitive in parts.  I'm aware I'm hindered greatly by the fact that I knew the line "Luke, I am your father," and it's dramatic impact was certainly negatively affected, but Empire lacks a really engaging story.  Part of that, I assume is due to the fact that it's the "middle" piece of a trilogy, but after they left Hoth my interest gradually lessened only perking up in certain spots -- Yoda, Lando's sabotage.  Whereas I would watch Star Wars again, I wouldn't necessarily be rushing to watch The Empire Strikes Back.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie (Sort of) Review - Star Wars - A New Hope

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

Starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, David Prowse, James Earl Jones, and Alec Guinness

Directed by George Lucas

I have gone 35 years without watching any of the Star Wars films.  It was "my thing."  As a college student who graduated with a concentration in film, I made in known when asked that I'd never watched Star Wars. Whenever I said that, people were always blown away.

And now that Disney owns the franchise (and for another reason which I'm unable to currently reveal - edit: which is now "revealed" in the comments below), I had to give in and watch.  It is what it is.  There was no inherent opposition to the series...it's just that I'd waited so long, the "not watching" was more comedic than anything else.  

And now "my thing" is over.  Rather than write actual reviews of the series (and I'm only watching episodes IV-VI at the moment), here are my random stream of consciousness thoughts (not necessarily "reviews") that occurred while watching the film.  

10:00pm - A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

10:04 - I've always heard that Stormtroopers can't hit anyone...They're shooting people down in this opening scene, though!

10:05 - It's tough not to see Darth Vader and not want Rick Moranis to be under the suit.  (Go Spaceballs!)

10:09 - There was not much of a budget spent on casting these minor actors...Yikes!

10:15 - One of those robots in the robot dump looked like Wall-E!

10:16 - Oooh...a clock wipe to change scenes...

10:19 - Luke Skywalker's a whiny little runt here initially.

10:27 - Teen Idol Luke with the wind whipping through his hair as he stares at the two moons as the music swells...the gals all swoon...

10:29 - The hovercraft special effect was kinda cool.

10:35 - First lightsaber...and first mention of "The Force" - and, also, finally getting into some actual story after thirty minutes of what felt like nothing much...

10:41- I can't say that I'm too sad that Aunt Beru is dead as her acting skills left a little to be desired...

10:44 - The new CGI is so noticeable in this scene as they hovercraft into some town...it stood out to me right away...

10:46 - Chewbacca!  And droid racism abounds at the cantina!  And chopping off of legs!

10:49 - And Harrison Ford!  Showing more charisma onscreen in mere minutes than most everyone else other than the stoic Alec Guinness!

10:51 - Even I know about this infamous "Han Shot First" scene...

10:58 - First light speed!

11:00 - There's something to be said for villains who are able to implode an entire planet...

11:08 - "I sense something.  A presence I have not felt since...(trails off)..."  Some of Lucas's dialog...sheesh...

11:13 - We haven't had a wipe to change scenes in a long time!  I missed them!

11:14 - Chewy reminds me of a very hairy Rebecca Romijn as Mystique...

11:21 - Sure, it was kinda cool that something grabbed Luke in the garbage chute, but it just disappears?  "It just let me go?"  And all is good?  Why even add that?  Why not just have the chute start compacting right away which is tense enough...

11:30 - The Stormtroopers really are ineffective.

11:33 - I feel like I should be more affected by Obi Wan dying...but the scene feels so sillily thrown away.

11:37 - Honing beacon!  I should've seen that coming!  Intrigue!

11:48 - His name is Porkins!  Porkins?!?!

11:51 - This end action scene is actually surprisingly effective.

11:56 - At least Vader's a good shot to make up for the inadequacies of the Storm Troopers.

11:58 - "Remember...the force will be with you always."  (As a Catholic, every time I heard "The force is with you," I wanted to add, "And with your spirit.")

11:59 - One final wipe to change scenes!

12:01 - And a kaleidoscopic transitional wipe inward to end!

Listen, Star Wars isn't bad.  Were I an eight year-old kid watching this for the first time, I'd think it awesome.  As a thirty-five year-old adult, it's decidedly less exciting.  Yes, I can place myself into the time it was made and I'm able to recognize it's quality of special effects for the time, but Lucas does have some story problems.  Let's be honest with each other -- the first thirty minutes really goes nowhere as it rather lullingly starts off.

I'm gonna admit that I'm not quite sure I understand the huge fandom yet.  Maybe it will become clearer with subsequent films.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Sorority Row (2009)

Starring Briana Evigan, Margo Harshman, Rumer Willis, Jamie Chung, Leah Pipes, and Carrie Fisher
Directed by Stewart Hendler

First off, how weird is the placement of the ladies in the poster to the left? They're kinda sorta laying atop one another...just strikes me as weird.

Secondly, let me list a few of the character "names" from the credits: Bra-Clad Sister, Trampoline Sister, Amazed Senior Guy, Over-It Sister, Thwarted Guy, Already Drunk Sister, Slutty Sister, Hot Guy, Sea Pig, Naive Girl #1, Naive Girl #2, Stoned Dude, Wasted Guy. I'm guessing Slutty Sister is the chick who showed her boobs, but with the creative names above, why not just call her "Chick with Unattractive Bosom"?

The story here is simple...five sorority sisters decide to pull a prank on a guy by pretending that the guy date-rape drugged one of their fellow sisters to death. They drag the guy and the "dead" sister out to some dump where the guy, in a state of panic, actually kills the sister who was pretending to be dead. Desperate to keep things under wraps in order to save face and maintain a happy life, they decide to ditch the body in a giant hole in the dump. This being a horror/slasher flick, someone finds out about the crime and enacts revenge.

And most of that revenge is via shoving objects into girls' mouths...every sorority girl that died did so because of something being shoved into her mouth. The phallic/oral sex symbolism of this is not lost on me...why nearly everyone needed to die this way, I don't know; it becomes mind-bogglingly boring. Sure, the first kill was actually pretty nifty, but after that it just got old. None of the murders were remotely surprising...you could see a bunch of them coming from a mile away. And the reasoning behind the killer's motivation for this was ridiculously stupid.

That being said, there's something to be said for not being bored here...at times, I appreciated the odd shots that the director set up and the funky lighting and the grainy look. Then, at other times, I was frustrated by these same things.

Plus (and this'll sound completely sexist and awful), if you've got a movie about sorority girls, is it wrong to expect it to contain hot girls who aren't afraid to show some skin?

The RyMickey Rating: D