Movie Review: Brave

The 13th feature film of Pixar Animation Studios, Brave, should prove very lucky rather than unlucky as it means Pixar is back on track with its original content.  Apart from Monsters University next year, the studio is back to concentrating on new stories to tell instead of sequels and prequels as that's where their strength lies.

Brave is the story of Princess Merida (Kelly Macdonald) who really yearns to be her own person and not have to live up to the expectations of a perfect princess of her kingdom DunBroch and especially her mother, Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson).  Merida excels at archery and has her own views even though it may seem selfish or immature to others.  It takes a life-changing incident for her to realize that sometimes compromises must be made.

This is the first princess story that Pixar has tried to tell and they have deviated a bit away from the Disney model of princess stories.  There is no Prince here coming to save Merida, she has to figure out how fix things herself.  But Merida and her family have a strong bond that is prevalent in all Disney family films.  Previously titled, "The Bear and the Bow", the film was to be directed by Brenda Chapman who had worked as co-director on The Prince of Egypt.  But midway through, she left the project and was replaced by Mark Andrews.  She would have been one of the few lone female directors in animation.  Jennifer Yuh Nelson (Kung Fu Panda 2) beat her to it.

I could tell where Andrews had his influence on the film, there are bit more of action sequences in chasing the bear and a bit of infighting amongst the clans.  But I'm so glad that the core of the story and film remains the relationship between Merida and her mother.  It's the very best part of the film.  Queen Elinor discovers what her daughter is capable of and Merida discovers, as it has always been evident to the audience, that her mother wants what is best for her.  When a witch's spell dramatically changes Elinor, they are forced to actually communicate and listen to each other and work their way back to being a regular family again.

The bonding sequences between mother and daughter are both funny and touching.  When Merida thinks her mother is lost forever, a tear (or two!) managed to sneak out.  Thank heavens for the clunky 3D glasses to mask them.  The movie looks gorgeous.  It really is an extended tourism ad for Scotland.  The animals, the giant bear Mordu and Angus the horse, are extremely realistic and in Mordu's case, very scary.  From fur on the animals to Merida's hair which is insanely curly with sunset colors that pop onscreen.  Amazing hair and fur!

I liked the little nod to Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli with the will o' the wisps which reminded me of the little spirits present in My Neighbor Totoro.  Her younger brothers Hamish, Harris and Hubert are triple terrors in the castle who bring a smile whenever they are onscreen.  I hope we'll be seeing them in a short again soon.

Which brings us to the short before the film, La Luna.  Nominated for the Best Animated Short this past February, La Luna, directed by Enrico Casarosa is beautifully told tale without much dialogue about the three generations who work together to take care of the moon.  Resident Pixar music director Michael Giacchino gives the score.  I love the idea of the short before the actual feature and I hope more studios besides Pixar pick up on it.  It's a great tradition.

Back to Brave, I think it's a worthy addition to the Pixar treasure trove.  I was extremely pleased to see so many boys also lining up to see what it being marketed as "Pixar's girl movie".   I don't think it really mattered to them.  So Princess Merida joins the rest of the Disney princesses and is the first princess to emerge out of Pixar but what audiences will take away is seeing Merida, the fearless and strong young woman who dares to believe in change.

PS: Stay tuned until the end for the lovely dedication to Steve Jobs and a post-credits scene.

Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman, Steve Purcell (co-director), Screenplay by Brenda Chapman, Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell and Irene Mecchi, Edited by Nicholas C. Smith, Music by Patrick Doyle.

Voice talents of: Billy Connolly (Fergus), Julie Waters (The Witch), Robbie Coltrane (Lord Dingwall), Kevin McKidd (Lord MacGuffin/Young MacGuffin), Craig Ferguson (Lord Macintosh), Peigi Barker (Young Merida)

Rating:  


Watch the film on Redbox here: http://www.redbox.com/movies/brave

Ready, Set, Bow!

Princess Merida from Brave

The hottest weapon in Hollywood that's making an old school comeback through several big blockbusters is the simple bow and arrow.  Typically used for hunting, the origins of the bow and the arrow can be traced back to the Paleolithic age (10,000-9000 BCE) around what is now Germany.  Many civilizations have the archery weapons present in their tradition of storytelling told through generations.  But the emergence of guns as weaponry made them outdated and old-fashioned.  Now it has become more of a recreational activity and has been featured on and off in the Summer Olympics since 1900.

Katniss Everdeen of The Hunger Games

It is also making a comeback in the movies.  Look around and many of the heroes and more significantly, heroines of these films are archers.  Katniss Everdeen, Clint Barton aka Hawkeye, Prince Arjun from the Mahabharata and in the Pixar film Brave opening today, Princess Merida are all picking up the bow and arrow to show their skills.  Before this, the most famous archer of them all was the legendary Robin Hood who had several Hollywood incarnations, animated and live-action.  The most famous Robin was, of course, Errol Flynn but we recently can recall Kevin Costner and Russell Crowe filling in those shoes as well.

Errol Flynn as Robin Hood

So, why the surge in archers?  It just boils down to timing.  The Hunger Games books have been out for years and the films that features all our protagonists have also been in the works for years.  It is extremely fortuitous that 2012 coinciding with the Summer Olympics puts the sport and bow and arrow in focus.  Not to mention the movies all released on top of each other and were huge blockbusters.

Clint Barton aka Hawkeye

The Avengers has made over a billion dollars worldwide and sits at #3 as the all time box office champ behind Avatar and Titanic.  The Hunger Games stayed atop the US box office for four straight weeks and made over $500 worldwide.  The sequel, Catching Fire, will release on November 22, 2013.  Brave too is poised to do the same from the first original content from Pixar since 2009.  The crew of Pixar actually went to the Scottish Highlands to research the authenticity in the scenes and some of the animators even took archery lessons to get it right.

Geena Davis

The sport will even welcome people who might not previously be inclined to it earlier.  Famously former actress and Oscar winner Geena Davis took up archery and even tried out for the 2000 Sydney Olympics.  This year's archery event will take place at the famed Lord's Cricket grounds in London from July 27-August 3rd where 128 men and women from around the world will compete for medals.  Archers from South Korea, USA and Italy have usually excelled in the sport.

Prince Arjun from Arjun: The Warrior Prince

2012 might as well proclaim itself the year of the bow and arrow.  The past few months have show how well these films have hit the target at the box-office.  It's certainly not because of the weapon they use but how the skill and accuracy employed by the bow and arrow so defines these heroines and heroes.  It becomes their second skin.  It publicizes the sport of archery and gives us characters to root for and admire.  Not bad for the simple bow and arrow.

Movie Review: 21 Jump Street

The best thing about 21 Jump Street is that is unlike other sequels and reboots, it doesn't take itself too seriously and is far away from being a clone of the TV series it is supposed to be based on.   In fact, as Deputy Chief Hardy (Nick Offerman) says early in the film, "We're reviving a canceled undercover project from the '80s and revamping it for modern times.  The people behind this lack creativity and they've run out of ideas, so what they do now is just recycle shit from the past and hope that nobody will notice".  That's stating the obvious.  The only thing that stays the same is the idea of police officers going to high school.

This film is surprisingly funny.  I had serious doubts about it initially but the film goes in with no expectations and doesn't stick to stereotypes and just makes fun of every character; it seems to do the trick.  Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) are two guys who were never friends in high school as they were polar opposites.  This leads them to become friends while they train to become cops.  One has the smarts and one has the brawn and they help each other out.  Eventually, after they graduate out the police academy, they are assigned to park duty on bikes.  It's not as glamorous as they expected.  'Where are the car chases and explosions?', moans Jenko.

Even when they do get their first arrest, they let the most of the culprits get away and forget to read the one they've caught his Miranda rights.  Out goes the case.  Schmidt and Jenko are sentenced to 21 Jump Street (which happens to be a Korean church), headquarters for the undercover school unit.  They have to join high school to find out who has been dealing drugs that left a young kid (Johnny Simmons) dead.  Their undercover assignment pairs them as brothers Doug and Brad who infiltrate the cool kids and the nerds to find out who's making and dealing the drugs on school grounds and get the supplier.

As they mess up everything else in their careers, they forget their identities and Schmidt becomes part of the popular kids who do drama and care about the environment.  Jenko becomes a science nerd and has AP Chemistry which he pronounces as "App Chemistry".  They both begin to experience a high school experience much different from the first time around.  I liked that many characters pointed out how they looked too old to be in high school, especially Jenko by referring to him as a 40 year old.

Of course, with the partying and extra-curricular activities that become a part of their lives, they have to pay attention to the reason why they are in high school in the first place: to find the suppliers of the drugs.  And it all goes down at the prom.  Where else?  Schmidt and Jenko finally get that car chases and explosions that they were waiting all throughout the film for.

21 Jump Street was a pleasant surprise and trust me, I didn't think I would like a Channing Tatum film this much.  He seems to be picking his roles more carefully now and comedy seems a good fit for him.  His character in the film is so taken aback when he realizes the social hierarchy in high school has changed and now the popular and cool kids are the ones he used to pick on and even blames Glee for changing perceptions.   His friendship with the science geeks was unexpected.  He shows actual growth from a dimwit to a cop who knows what he's doing.

 Jonah Hill, who literally dropped the weight of a whole another person before the film, is his usual funny persona that we've seen in previous films before.  But he's still adorably awkward in the action scenes which completely works for him.  Both Tatum and Hill were executive producers on the film.  The movie even includes cameos from a few of the original 21 Jump Street gang in Peter DeLuise, Holly Robinson Peete and Johnny Depp.  Yes, Johnny Depp!  His cameo is hilarious and unpredictable.  So, if you're looking for a foul-mouthed comedy that will make you laugh, look no further than 21 Jump Street.

Directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, Screenplay by Michael Bacall, Based on the TV series, '21 Jump Street' by Patrick Hasburgh and Stephen J. Cannell, Cinematography by Barry Peterson, Edited by Joel Negron, Music by Mark Mothersbaugh.

Additional cast: Brie Larson, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, DeRay Davis, Ice Cube, Chris Parnell, Ellie Kemper, Jake M. Johnson, Dakota Johnson.

Rating: 

Recommended Links: Maleficent, The Wolf of Wall Street and more!

(Photo: Entertainment Weekly)

• Entertainment Weekly has the first look and interview with Angelina Jolie as Maleficent in Disney's new feature film on the villain from Sleeping Beauty.   And the fairy tale trend continues.
• Could there ever be a Pixar film featuring Marvel characters?  John Lasseter says he would be open to the idea if someone approached him with a concept.  Someone needs to approach him!  
• Martin Scorsese's next film, The Wolf of Wall Street adds more names to its cast.  In addition to Scorsese regular, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Jean Dujardin, Jon Bernthal, Margot Robbie, Cristin Milioti (from Broadway's Once) and now Rob Reiner, who will play Leo's father, are all part of film due to release next year.  
• DreamWorks announces yet another feature, Happy Smekday!, in a press release.  The good news, it features Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory) as a lowly alien who has to go on the run with a teenage girl after he informs their mortal enemies that the aliens have chosen Earth as their hideout.  Oops!  The bad news, it also features Rihanna!  Happy Smekday! is based on the book by The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex and will release late 2014.
• Link of the day: Have a look at the behind the scenes photos of some of the iconic movies in Hollywood history.  If you wondered how did they film that, they've got snapshot of how it actually looked on set.  My personal favorites were The Avengers, Inception and of course, Jurassic Park.  

Movie Review: The Artist

I finally got around to watching The Artist as it releases on DVD.   When it was in theaters, I kept thinking I would catch it later choosing to watch The Descendants and War Horse instead.  Of course, everyone knows how the film was the big winner at this year's Academy Awards with wins in Best Picture, Best Director, Best Leading Actor, Best Score and Best Costumes.  It became only the second silent film after Wings to win Best Picture.

How is it possible that a silent film to have so much success in this day and age?  That too in black and white!  Its success is a testament to the fact that good storytelling should always prevail.   The Artist is the story of George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), a silent movie star with Kinograph Studios.  We see him in the opening sequences of a film-within-a-film escaping the clutches of some evil men with the help of his trusty dog, Jack (enacted by superdog Uggie), to save the damsel in distress.   Valentin seems to have it all on the surface.  Admiration of the people and the press, a successful career and a beautiful home.

While doing press for his new film, he has a chance encounter with a fan on the street when they bump into each other.  The fan is young Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo) who dreams of being an actress herself.  Her encounter with Valentin puts her on the front page of Variety with the headline asking, 'Who's that girl?' Both George and Peppy feel a strange connection to each other the first time they meet.  But she is just a lowly extra while he's the star of the film and also married.

But his marriage to his wife Doris (Penelope Miller) is unhappy as they barely communicate.  She sits around drawing funny mustaches and faces to his photos.  Meanwhile there a big change coming to the future of films.  Kinograph boss Al Zimmer (John Goodman) shows George a sound test they're working on as silent film will move to the talkies.  George doesn't take this seriously enough and laughs at the test, walking out.

George doesn't realize how dire the situation will turn for him.  There is no more work for him as Kinograph Studios stops work on all silent films.  George is defiant, choosing instead to finance and direct his own ode to silent films, Tears of Love.  He puts in all his money which is never a good sign.  Meanwhile, as George's life and career turns downhill, Peppy's life is on the upswing.

In a lovely montage, we see how bit by bit, role by role, she puts in the hard work that gets to the top to become Kinograph's top billed stars.  Peppy deserves all her success but she hasn't forgotten George and the chemistry they shared.  They meet at the studios and we see the difference in their status now.  George is on the lower step, on his way out while Peppy is placed above him.

Slowly but surely, this begins to affect George.  He loses all his money in the stock market crash and has to hope his film is a success.  It isn't.  Sitting behind her at the restaurant, he overhears an interview given by the new talkies star, Peppy Miller, where she says the talkies are the future and old must make way for the new.  He gets up and tells Peppy, "I have made way for you."  Peppy is stunned and sorry that she hurt George and vows to make it up to him.

But the downward spiral continues for George.  His wife leaves him and kicks him out of that beautiful home.  He is left with Jack and his valet/butler/driver Clifton (James Cromwell), both who can't see their master and friend suffering like this.  He begins to drink daily to drown his sorrows and fires Clifton who he can't afford to pay anymore.  In a fit of disgust and rage mixed with a lot of alcohol, he burns all his reels of his films right in his living room.  But fear not, as heroic dog Jack saves the day and his master.

When Peppy finds out about George's accident, she transfers him to her house where they reunite uneasily after all these years.  It is there that he learns that she has been his guardian angel all along always looking out for him.  He can't handle this and runs away.  At this point, I was hoping George would swallow his massive pride and look at the one good thing in his life.  Thankfully he does, but not before he hits rock bottom and steps away.  Dujardin enacts that last scene very well.

And finally, because of Peppy and her determination, she and George get their happy ending and we are briefly introduced to the world of sound before we say goodbye.  The Artist is charming and sweet tale that shows the price of changing technology can take a toll on people especially someone like George who defined himself as a silent film star.  But he too has to change with the times.

Michel Hazanavicius and his team have made a strong and solid film that changed all their careers.  The Artist is a film you'll be recommending to people.

Written and Directed by Michel Hazanavicius, Cinematography by Guillaume Schiffman, Edited by Michel Hazanavicius and Anne-Sophie Bion, Music by Ludovic Bource.

Additional cast: Missi Pyle, Beth Grant, Ed Lauter, Malcolm McDowell.

Rating: 

Movie Review: Mirror Mirror

Fairy tales never get old no matter what century it is.  At their core is a story which we never tire of hearing generation to generation.  Every couple of years, there seems to be a resurgence of them.  Cinderella had a popularity surge a few years back with Ever After, Ella Enchanted and A Cinderella Story and now it's Snow White's turn.  First there were the TV movies, the very well-received TV show Once Upon a Time now on air, and two Hollywood films on Snow White released within a few months of each other.

Mirror Mirror had the first advantage of an earlier release though it could not be more different in tone and presentation from its rival Snow White and the Huntsman.  Starting with the title which doesn't include Snow White's name, Mirror Mirror deals mostly with the Queen in the story and her tenous relationship with her step-daughter.  The Queen (Julia Roberts) starts off by telling us 'This is her story, not hers'.  That's what she thinks but we all know that won't be true by the end of the film.

The story of how the Queen comes to power is told with some clever and beautiful animation in the beginning but while the film is funny at times and looks gorgeous onscreen, it doesn't have that extra spark that was present in the opening sequence.  Snow White (Lily Collins) is hidden away from the kingdom by the Queen saying she's not quite all there.  Snow White is the actual heir and leader of the kingdom but the evil Queen makes sure she never gets her right.  She suppresses everyone and collects taxes from the already poor people of the kingdom for her own extravagant and frivolous purposes.

This status quo continues until Snow White's 18th birthday when she ventures out into the kingdom for the first time to find the state of the people in the kingdom.  She comes upon Prince Alcott (Armie Hammer) and his traveling companion who have been robbed and tied up by the seven dwarfs who surprised the pair on stilts.  He insists they were 'giants'.  Yeah, sure!  The Prince and Snow are instantly attracted to each other but they go their separate ways unaware that they will meet again.

The dwarfs their victims of their clothes too so the Prince has to present himself before the Queen only in his pants.  After a wonderful exchange, The Queen comes to realize that the Prince is the answer to all her problems.  He comes from a prosperous kingdom and marrying him can take care of her financial troubles and he certainly is easy on the eyes.  At the ball thrown in his honor, the Prince meets Snow White again and is surprised to know that she lives in the castle.  Snow White is discovered at the dance and taken away by the guards, the Queen orders her minion Brighton (Nathan Lane) to kill her by delivering her to the Beast in the woods.

But as the story dictates, Snow White will be spared.  She is told to run by Brighton and comes upon the seven dwarfs home and after much debate, they let her stay at home.  From there on is the leadup to the big clashup between the Queen and Snow White.  It was really easy to guess the big reveal at the end but the screenplay has some funny dialogues especially coming from Julia Roberts.  When the mirror taunts her for having wrinkles, she retorts, "They're not wrinkles, they're crinkles!"

This film is poles apart from Tarsem Singh's last film Immortals but it contains his trademarks of incredible detailed and visually stunning costumes (designed by the late Eiko Ishioka who has done all of Singh's films) and sets.  I'd be very surprised if it doesn't get nominated for an Oscar for Best Costume.  The real disappointment in the film is the character development for the female characters.  The Queen hates Snow White but she's not quite that evil, you know, evil with a capital E.  Snow White is timid all throughout the film and gets some spark in the last sequence, it's a little too late.  And the characters all speak as though they are from the 21st century who think they're in period piece.

Julia Roberts seemed to having a lot of fun with character who lost her English accent on and off in the film but it never seemed as if she posed a threat to Snow White.  Lily Collins looks the part but its Armie Hammer really throws himself into the role showing he can do comedy well too.  His transformation into puppy love for the Queen was truly amusing to watch. 

Mirror Mirror ends with a rollicking and fun Bollywood style end credits song by Lily Collins, 'I Believe in Love'.  The film begins and ends with strong sequences, the middle and the actual meat of the film needed more work.  Watch the film for its strong production values and stay for the bubbly, fun song at the end. 

Directed by Tarsem Singh Dhandwar, Screenplay by Jason Keller and Marc Klein, Based on the story by the Brothers Grimm, Cinematography by Brendan Galvin, Edited by Robert Duffy, Nick Moore, Dean Zimmerman, Music by Alan Menken and Costume Design by Eiko Ishioka.

Additional cast: Sean Bean, Mare Winningham, Jordan Prentice, Mark Povinelli, Joe Gnoffo, Danny Woodburn, Sebastian Saraceno, Martin Klebba, Ronald Lee Clark

Rating:

Movie Review: Big Miracle

Once in a while, it's good to watch a movie like Big Miracle.  Inspired by the true story of the very real Operation Breakthrough on the rescue of three California gray whales trapped within the ice near the North Pole, the film is not ground-breaking cinema nor is it something that everybody will be talking about.  Yet I look upon it as a slice of history in a time when there were no smartphones and no internet and yet this narrative became "the" story that moved the whole world no matter what language they spoke.

Adam Carlson (John Krasinski) is a reporter up in Barrow, Alaska in 1988 who's just waiting for his big break.  There's not a lot that goes on in Barrow, the opening of the Mexican restaurant Amigos is big news for the town.  He's hoping a story can get to the lower 48 reporting for the main channels.  One day, Nathan (Ahmaogak Sweeney), a young Inupiat boy who Adam mentors asks him to catch his cousin on the snowmobile for a story.  Since Adam had promised, he agrees.  While on the ice away from town, he catches on tape water being sprayed in the air from the ice.  They go to investigate and find whales surfacing to the water through a small hole trying to breathe.

After confirming that there are three whales trapped under the ice, two parents and their baby, the locals assess that there must around 5 miles of solid ice until the whales can reach the ocean.  They must to do something to help them otherwise they will perish.  Adam puts together his report on camera and sends it to the channel in Anchorage.  From there, the story gets picked up by NBC on Tom Brokaw's nightly show and everyone across America takes notice, especially Adam's ex-girlfriend Rachel Kramer (Drew Barrymore) who just happens to be an environmentalist and Greenpeace activist.

Rachel starts off the campaign to save the whales by appealing to the Governor of Alaska, any companies who could have equipment to break the ice for the whales to swim out.  One such company owner is J.W. McGraw (Ted Danson) who has won a grant to drill in Arctic ice for oil and owns a barge that go through the ice.  Mrs. McGraw (Kathy Baker) cleverly manipulates her husband to give his barge for the whale rescue effort.  Colonel Scott Boyer (Dermot Mulroney) of the National Guard and his men will use their powerful helicopters to drag the barge to Barrow.

Meanwhile, over in Barrow, journalists from all over the country descend to cover the piece which has nationwide interest even from President Ronald Reagan himself.  While everyone waits for the barge to break the ice, things begin to go downhill for the whale rescue.  The small hole, no matter how many times is made bigger, begins to ice over by the freezing temperatures.  The baby whale, affectionately nicknamed Bamm-Bamm, finds it hard to sustain breathing and has cuts all over his face.  His parents, called Fred and Wilma, try their best to keep him alive.

There is good news and bad news as couple of home entrepreneurs bring over their de-icing machines to help the effort and meanwhile the barge gets stuck in an ice pothole.  There might be no whale rescue after all.  The journalist who come from all over the world, including Channel 7 news reporter Jill Jerard (Kristen Bell), aren't that emotionally invested in the story like Adam, Rachel, Nathan, the Inupiat people and the town of Barrow.  They start creating little holes in the ice leading up to the ocean so the whales can resurface.

And when things begin to look extremely dire, as this has become a national and international crisis, a decision is made to bring in Soviet ice-breaker ship which many are opposed to.  People put aside their differences for the whales.  Of course, in a movie such as this, there is a semi-happy ending as two of the whales manage to swim out.  The rescue effort is deemed a success and the humans all go home happy and feel as though they've achieved something.

The film nicely incorporates actual news footage from that era with reports and press conferences by President Reagan, Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather and the late Peter Jennings.  There's even footage the sportscaster at the Anchorage news station, Sarah Heath sporting serious 80s hair, later known to the world as Sarah Palin.  Sportscaster? Who knew!

Maintaining its earnestness throughout, the film shows how if everyone comes together to put aside their differences and do something out of goodness of your heart, what a difference it can make.  Maybe that's why this story captured the imagination of a nation and later the world.  Sometimes after all the depressing and cynical things we see in our daily lives and on televisions, it's nice sit back to watch a story like this.  The aptly named Big Miracle is truly moving!

Directed by Ken Kwapis, Screenplay by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler, Based on the book "Freeing the Whales" by Tom Rose, Cinematography by John Bailey, Editing by Cara Silverman, Music by Cliff Eidelman.

Additional cast: Tim Blake Nelson, Stephen Root, Vinessa Shaw, John Pingayak, James LeGros, Rob Riggle

Rating: