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Deadpool & Wolverine Review

With painfully few exceptions, Netflix’s Beverley Hills Cop: Axel F being among the most recent, legacy characters and legacy IPs, especially male or male-centric ones, have been kicked around and treated like family members that the big studios that own them are ashamed to acknowledge. So, when it was announced that The House of Mouse was going to bring back one of the most beloved comic/comic book movie characters of all time, featured in a film franchise known for its diarrhea and masturbation jokes, one could be forgiven for puckering up in some warm dark places.

Fortunately, the main duo’s affinity for the character shines through in scene after scene as Jackman’s dour Wolverine plays rage-filled ying to Reynolds’ neverending diatribe of sophomoric yang. This dynamic was attempted in Deadpool 2 with Josh Brolin’s Cable but fell flat due to a number of factors, Cable’s lack of character development chief among them. In Deadpool and Wolverine, the chemistry sings.

Whereas 2 sometimes felt relentless and chaotic, by keeping the focus tight on its two charismatic leads and infusing it with the perfect combination of heart, humor, and brutal violence, Deadpool & Wolverine effortlessly soars past the dreg that has become the MCU specifically and Disney programming in general.

Another shining star atop the film’s refrigerator art, as Wade and Logan go on a worlds-spanning adventure, good-naturedly harpooning many of the MCU’s blunders and missteps via The Merc with The Mouth’s signature meta-humor, the Deadpool & Wolverine delivers scene after scene of the best fan service ever put to film. Do not go hunting for spoilers, and hide your eyes from all of the marketing because D&W’s cameos are beyond next-level, and each one discovered before its time will rob you of much of the movie’s magic.

All of these warm and fuzzies aren’t just good but are dearly needed because the film’s plot is only slightly more undercooked than its villain. Played with aplomb enough to almost make up for being little more than a glorified plot device, Emma Corrin, best known for her role as Princess Diana in The Crown, manages to squeeze out and amplify both drops of character development written for her Cassandra. Performing real-life magic, she manufactures a three-dimensional performance virtually from thin air.

Ultimately, Deadpool & Wolverine is a savagely hilarious action-adventure comedy that relies on a lot of fun action sequences, tons of charisma, and gallons of chemistry between its leads. By the film’s end, your face will hurt from smiling.

WOKE ELEMENTS

It’s The 3rd One

• There’s a sprinkling of sacrilege that inches its way past modern cinema’s ubiquitous overuse of the Lord’s Name. This is why I didn’t endorse the film as Worth it.

It’s Only Gay If You Don’t Laugh

• The marketing campaign had some fans worried that Deadpool & Wolverine would lean hard into the bromance that Reynolds has been hinting at since the first Deadpool. However, the movie avoids this like the plague and instead dishes out a continual barrage of gay jokes that lampoon homosexuality rather than glorifying it.

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Longlegs

FBI Agent Lee Harker investigates a series of gruesome deaths connected to a mysterious figure known as Longlegs. As the case unfolds, unearthing evidence of the occult, Harker discovers a personal connection to the merciless killer and must race against time to stop him before he claims the lives of another innocent family.

Longlegs Review

Since their earliest days, horror movies have relied on a handful of essential ingredients to deliver their thrills and chills. From jump scares to disturbing imagery, the only thing that has changed is each film’s specific usage and the degree to which it relies on those ingredients. Over the last two decades, it seems as though the art of eliciting fear from audiences with subtlety and creativity has been largely lost, replaced by the current crop of genre filmmakers’ race to see who can be grosser and more explicit. Enter Longlegs.

With its minuscule budget and cast of unknowns, Nicolas Cage and Blair Underwood notwithstanding, Longlegs harkens back to the days when the cinematographer and score were more essential than gallons of dyed corn syrup and an FX budget to rival a small nation’s GDP. Despite the fact that the film is a little underdeveloped, with far too little Cage, and loses a bit of focus in the third act, by going back to the basics, Longlegs delivers a delicious ever-present tension as the audience sits on the edge of their seats waiting for the shoe to drop.

Its quintessential 70s horror chic cinematography, with long lingering shots framed ever-so-slightly off-center, and director Oz Perkins’s (son of Anthony Perkins – aka Norman Bates in Psycho) keen sense of timing are the film’s true stars. However, its classically understated vintage score and some surprising performances shine nearly as brightly.

Obviously, seeing Nicholas Cage as a demonic serial killer is Longleg’s big draw, and the only disappointing thing about his disturbing performance is its abbreviated nature. He’s one part creepy, three parts demonically terrifying, and all Nicolas Cage. That said, despite having a relatively underwhelming resume of which her turn as President Whitmore’s daughter in the critically panned Independence Day sequel,  Maika Monroe surprises as Agent Harker. With Cage only appearing briefly, the bulk of the film lies on Monroe’s shoulders, and she is more than up to the task.

Even though the outward trappings of her role as an FBI agent combined with the time period in which Longlegs is set, not to mention the film’s tone, understandably invokes parallels to Clarice Sterling and Silence of the Lambs, Monroe’s Harker is wholly its own creature. The actress beautifully portrays the socially awkward agent with a grounded sincerity and realism that precludes what could have easily been a caricature. As such, she is the perfect straight man to the film’s bizarre goings-on.

Unfortunately, Longlegs flounders a bit under the weight of its concept and what appears to have been very limited access to Nicolas Cage. As a result, everyone’s character development is fairly rushed, with Cage’s character suffering the most. It also suffers from a botched reveal of its twist in an unnecessary and redundant montage that’s overlong, overly expository, and completely robs the film’s final minutes of virtually all of its momentum.

In spite of this and a rushed two-dimensional relationship between Harker and a catalyst character, Longlegs dishes out a quick and fun fright night worth seeing.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Lady Cops

• Nitpickers might take umbrage with yet another “strong female” cop-like character leading a film. However, not only have there been female FBI field agents since the 70s, but Lee Harker is a socially awkward mess and not some unstoppable bad@$$ who was clearly written to be a man until studio interference. Her feminity actually adds a nice layer of vulnerability to the story.

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Twisters

After experiencing a brush with death, one-time storm chaser Kate Cooper will have to face the deadly storms that killed her friends if she hopes to overcome her crisis of confidence and develop a way to stop future twisters from taking any more lives.

Twisters Review

1996’s Twister was far from high-concept cinema, but it knew what it was and maximized what it had to offer to its fullest. Although billed as a “standalone sequel” to the original, Twisters is best described as a remake or reboot, as it is unrelated to the original except for a handful of Easter eggs. Like many other reboots, Twisters is comparatively weak sauce to that of its papa.

Even though there is no denying that Twisters’ special effects are significantly superior to that of the original, and those who see it in IMAX or XD will be viscerally rocked by the chaos of its digital storms, the fact of the matter is that this sequel/reboot/remake relies far too heavily on its technical superiority to carry the film.

The original filmmakers clearly demonstrated their understanding of the material by peopling their story with fun, if two-dimensional, characters and building a rudimentary but thematically identifiable narrative around the film’s action. Audiences had those for whom to root and root against and the film even managed to sprinkle in some emotional ambiguity with the love triangle between Bill Paxton’s, Helen Hunt’s, and Jami Gertz’s characters. In short, audiences were given a reason to care.

While those responsible for Twisters attempt to do the same, only Glen Powell’s perpetual wry smile gives any semblance of being an even marginally realized character. The rest of the cast are bland, interchangeable, and forgettable. Daisy Edgar-Jones plays the lead, Kate, who is an amalgam of Paxton’s “human barometer,” who has an almost 6th sense about the storms, and Helen Hunt’s character, who was singularly driven by an early tornado-related tragedy.

Jones gives a serviceable performance but is hampered by a paper-thin plot and a major character arc that is seemingly overcome after a good night’s sleep until it unnaturally pops back up 45 minutes later for some artificial second-act conflict. Of course, in true modern Hollywood fashion, that conflict is easily and almost immediately overcome after a bit of conversation.

The lack of conflict is arguably the Twisters’ greatest downfall. The original gave us a love triangle, two disparate teams competing for the same goal, and a single overriding goal driven by tragedy for which to cheer. While these were separate elements, each served to build up the others. This new film gives us overzealous YouTubers chasing the same storms as the protagonist but for clicks, and treats the scenes in which both are doing their thing as though one is in the way of the other. In reality, the giant storms are big enough for both of them, and neither is in the other’s way at all, giving the characters’ early animosity toward one an unnecessary and artificial flavor.

Although both films require truckloads of convenience, contrivance, and fuzzy physics to exist, You could almost believe that the events of the original were possible. Twisters takes it to a whole new level with Powell’s character’s truck, a truck driven into the heart of several tornadoes without getting even a pit in the windshield.

A modified RAM dually, it is virtually impervious to the finger-of-God-power of the film’s storms thanks to some one-inch steel reinforcement and a pair of hydraulic augers. These augers burrow two feet into the earth, anchoring the truck against winds that rip foundations from the ground. It’s a silly idea, but one that audiences could perhaps suspend their disbelief for if the rest of the film were any fun.

Unfortunately, even Twisters’ action, while technically sophisticated and realistic, is largely unimpressive thanks to a combination of the aforementioned lack of emotional connection to the various story elements and equally egregious pacing. What story there is flows at a glacial pace only to be interrupted by the occasional world-ending storm, which often feels like it is over before it begins.

Having not seen the original Twister since it came out in theaters (saw it at a drive-in), I streamed it last night on Max just to see if I was unfairly comparing this new iteration against the nostalgic warm and fuzzies. I am not. Do yourself a favor and save money on theater tickets and popcorn, get some dollar-store snacks, crank up the big screen, and rewatch the original.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Lip[stick] Service

• The film tries to play the “boys are easily fooled by pretty girls” cliché for about half a second, to the point that a song playing in the background says as much.
  • I didn’t ding it much because the boy in question was never fooled, not even once.

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Fly Me to the Moon

Fly Me to the Moon reimagines the Apollo 11 mission. Set during the first half of 1969, the movie follows an unlikely duo—a marketing maven and a NASA launch director—as they each race to the moon, one on a soundstage and the other from mission control.

Fly Me to the Moon Review

It took me a while to pinpoint exactly what’s wrong with Fly Me to the Moon. On it’s surface, it should be great. It’s a well-shot, well-paced piece that benefits from the incredible late 60s aesthetic. The problem(s) isn’t a lack of talent. The film has some heavy hitters in front of the camera. Scarlett Johansson is a pro with a career that spans three decades and boasts Academy Award-winning films, thoughtful indies, and, of course, billion-dollar franchises. Woody Harrelson always gives audiences something interesting. Channing Tatum, while best known for the Magic Mike movies and playing silly characters in comedies, is an underrated performer who nails what there is of his role in this film.

There are actually a couple of problems with the film. The first is one that seems to be a recurring theme in Hollywood these days: a lack of focus. It wants to be a delightful rom-com set in the between moments of one of the greatest achievements in the history of mankind, but it also wants to be a sincere tale of redemption for Channing Tatum’s character who feels responsible for the tragedy of the Apollo 1 mission. Simultaneously, it attempts to be a historical catalog of the bureaucratic hoops NASA had to jump through at the same time that they were putting together the world’s most difficult and important jigsaw puzzle. But wait, there’s more. Fly Me to the Moon desires to put a comedic spin on the long-running and ever-increasingly-popular conspiracy theory that the Moon Landing was faked. Finally, the film mostly wants to be a showcase for Scarlett Johansson. The lion’s share of its “action” consists of her briefly turning up the charm and fast-talking her way into and around various issues, which are then quickly wrapped up with seemingly little effort just in time for the next one. There are actually a few other subplots, but you get the idea.

Despite this lack of focus, arguably, the film’s greatest flaw is that for most of its runtime, it seems as though it is yet another attempt by Hollywood to deconstruct and denigrate yet another moment of American greatness, this time for some very cheap laughs (oh look at the flamboyantly gay primadonna director cliché – hilarious – in fairness, Lance Rash, best known as Dean Pelton in Community, is a film highlight). So, half of the audience is alienated, the ones old enough to remember a time before smartphones and feel a very real and very personal connection to what America used to be. The other half, the ones who have had their unearned and arrogant cynicism strobed into their brains as children, don’t care and aren’t given a reason to.

This is a real shame because there are moments in which one can see the movie that should have been, with a frightened government smack dab in the middle of the Cold War racing its arch-nemesis to the stars. Having already faced setbacks like losing to the Soviets with Sputnik and Yuri Gargarin, not to mention tragedies like Apollo 1, the government decides to make a clandestine production of the moon landing and cheat their way to winning the Space Race. When key characters at NASA get wind of this it becomes a mad dash to see who can get to the moon first, actors on a set, or Neil and the Boys. It practically writes itself.

Fly Me to the Moon may be worth a rent for a date night, but if you’re dead set on going to the theater, go see Thelma. You’ll be glad you did.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Not All Mary Sues Carry A Lightsaber

• Scarlett Johansson’s character has a tragic childhood but perseveres in her adult life thanks to having all of the moxie. She’s a fast-talking gal who can do just about anything the situation calls for, be it schmoozing senators, driving like a car Mario Andretti, or just living in a man’s world. All she needs to do to unlock her full potential is accept how awesome she truly is and be herself.
• There’s an early scene in which Scar-Jo’s character puts one over on some male automobile execs, making them look like misogynistic fools and her like the brilliant dame who can practically read minds. It’s all very cliché and predictable, and it’s been done better many, many times before.

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Thelma

When 93-year-old Thelma discovers that she’s been the victim of a phone phishing scam, she decides to take the law into her own wrinkled hands.

Thelma Review

Thelma’s first-time writer/director, Josh Margolin, weaves a tale grounded in the delicious and often ridiculous reality of the human condition. Superficially a parody of the modern action flick, with panache, heart, and humor, Margolin and company deconstruct the genre’s tropes to spin a tale that, at its core, is about the importance of feeling self-sufficient and how the slow deterioration of age can rob us of this. More importantly, Thelma is about embracing the reality of you and adapting to overcome our frailties rather than wallowing in them.

June Squibb, who also voiced Nostalgia in this year’s Inside Out 2, is superb as the titular Thelma. Her first leading role in a career spanning decades, her deceptively deep performance perfectly embodies the very ontology of “grandma.” She is sweet and loving, confused but not senile, feisty but not cartoonish. Her character is the perfect blend of excellent, sincere storytelling and an actress who is the embodiment of the character she is playing.

The story is straightforward and artfully simple, but Margolin’s direction and Squibb’s sweet demeanor and wonderful performance make it impossible not to fall in love with Thelma immediately. Subsequently, her vigilante quest for justice quickly feels as though it is your own. As the audience quickly latches onto Thelma, the electric current between the material, direction, and performance grounds viewers in such a way that they experience the same heart-stopping sensations as Thelma navigates seemingly mundane obstacles, as they would watching James Bond maneuver through a deadly laser maze, with the added benefit of being able to laugh at yourself for your investment in such absurdity.

Unlike in last year’s 80 for Brady, in which a group of elderly women shared one last adventure that relied heavily on convenience and unrealistic happenstance, Thelma is almost completely believable and all the better for it.

With a simple story made gripping thanks to a great mix of characters, perfect pacing, and great performances, Thelma is a delightful way to spend an hour and a half at the theater. It is absolutely Worth it.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Nothing

• Nada.

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Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot

Inspired by a powerful true story, Sound of Hope tells the tale of a small-town pastor’s wife igniting a fire in the hearts of their rural church community in Possum Trot, East Texas. Theirs is a mission to embrace the unwanted children in the foster system, the damaged young souls who have been thrown away. Against all odds, this modest village in the middle of nowhere adopts 77 of the most broken children and proves that with God’s love and a lot of prayer, the battle for America’s most vulnerable can be won.

Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot – Review

Some people in this world have harrowing tales of courage and bravery, and some whose selflessness and trust in Christ glorify the Lord so profoundly that their stories inspire generations. Possum Trot’s people are truly God’s children, and their good works surely please Him greatly.

After the disappointment that was the mishandled Sight, Angel Studios has redeemed itself with another powerful movie about the soaring heights of human compassion. Sound of Hope succeeds not only in subject matter but on all cinematic fronts. Every actor gives a present and natural performance while delivering economic and organic dialogue filtered through the relatable experiences of the character’s extraordinary times.

The result is that Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot is a grounded story that stays out of its own way. The filmmakers clearly understood the inherent power of this real-life drama, and they let it unfold like beautiful music, allowing it to envelope the listener with rousing peaks of optimism and the desperate isolation of fear and doubt only to soothe audience’s wounds with the depth of God’s love and the power of giving over to his will.

While it’s not without its flaws, for instance, the early narration is largely unneeded and a little heavy-handed, the flaws are nothing in comparison to what the filmmakers get right.

Sound of Hope will reaffirm your faith and move you to tears of sorrow and joy. More importantly, it will move some to action. Whereas Sound of Freedom taught us that God’s children are not for sale, Sound of Hope teaches that God’s love can change the world.

WOKE ELEMENTS

Zilch

• Woke free, and it feels so good.

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