Are you a 30-something parent? If so, you can safely ignore this review and buy your advance tickets for Wreck-it-Ralph when it hits theaters on November 2nd. Your kids will enjoy yet another Disney soon-to-be-classic, and you will have a great time with the subtle nods to your own childhood. If you're one or the other, but not both, read on.
The eponymous main character in Wreck-it-Ralph is a villain in the hit arcade game "Fix it Felix Jr." Tired of being ostracized by arcade character society for his inherent bad-guyness, Ralph goes on a journey to find respect and recognition as a hero, specifically by acquiring a medal of honor in the hot on-rails shoot-'em-up "Soldiers' Duty." Jumping from one video game to another, or "Turbo-ing," is a big no-no in arcade world, and so Ralph goes on a crazy adventure, where along the way he learns to love himself for who he is.
A cynic would call Wreck-it-Ralph little more than Toy Story with video games instead of toys, or Monsters Inc. with video arcade characters instead of monsters. That argument can certainly be made: Toy Story's influence, in particular, can be seen in the film's plotline, with its themes of self-acceptance. But, hey, if you're going to crib, crib from the best, right? Wreck-it-Ralph is still a ton of fun, with plenty of high adventure and a few decent laughs that will make kids and parents alike happy.
One special feature that Wreck-it-Ralph has over its predecessors are the arcade game references. Ralph is absolutely stuffed with references to arcade classics like "Q-bert," "Donkey Kong," and "Pac-Man." The references, however, are almost entirely on arcade games; younger gamers who started on the X-Box or PlayStation may feel left out, or at least not find the jokes as funny (there is, however, one Nintendo reference that was my favorite in the film, concerning the use of a certain cheat code as the combination to a vault). Also disappointing (but understandable, given the copyright headaches involved) is that Ralph and the worlds he has his adventure in are all "fake" arcade games, although they are clearly influenced by arcade classics.
Those caveats aside, Wreck-it-Ralph is another solid film in Disney's lineup. The CGI is decent, complete with nostalgic visual and audio touches to evoke the arcades of the 80's and 90's. Don't waste your money on the 3-D version, however, as I found it didn't add anything to the story or the experience. The voice acting is solid; this is one of the "voice acting jobs done right" where the actors where chosen for the characters, rather than shoe-horning big names into the film for easy advertising. Fans of the genre can and should flock to it; there is a lot to love.
4 out of 5 stars
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
The Master: A Not-so-Subtle Docu-Drama, Told a Little Too Subtly
The Master, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, is a very "hardcore" Paul Thomas Anderson film in that it is a very deftly told, character-driven drama that can be at times fascinating with its attention to detail, and at other times frustrating with the lack thereof.
The story is centered on Freddie Quell (Phoenix), an unstable World War II veteran. The horrors of war are the least of Freddie's problems: he carries a lifelong history of emotional instability and impulse control issues. By chance, Freddie wanders onto a ship owned by Lancaster Dodd (Hoffman), known more commonly as "the Master." Dodd is the founder of a philosophy that centers on the "freeing" of one's mind by aberrant forces. His technique has given him a large, cult-like following. The rest of the film revolves around Freddie and the Master's relationship; Freddie sees Dodd as the friend and father figure he never had, Dodd sees Freddie (or, more accurately, the possibility of Freddie's redemption) as the ultimate validation of his belief system.
If you pay any attention to Hollywood news, then it will be obvious to you from the start that Dodd's character is a more-or-less direct evocation of L. Ron Hubbard, the father of Scientology. This film neither villifies nor honors Hubbard; rather, this film is an exploration into what his mentality might have been. Anderson suggests that Hubbard, as human as the rest of us, was fallible, a quality that made him likable but within the context of a cult, dangerous.
This story is well-within the skillset of writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson, who has made a career of character-driven dramas such as this. When it works, as it did with 2007's There Will Be Blood, the film is captivating, drawing you into that bizarre world on the border of genius and madness that seems to be the hallmark of many an American hero. When it doesn't, you find yourself frustrated, because the film seemingly takes you to the edge of that wild place, then drops you off before crossing over. Such is the case throughout The Master. There are amazing, intense scenes showing the primal violence of Freddie and the magnetic charisma of the Master; then, the movie ends, and you realize you only got the slightest peek into the world of a cult founder and his disciples. We never get a greater sense of the world that the Master has created, or its past.
Although Joaquin Phoenix gives an amazing performance as Freddie, his character gets more screen time then he deserves. This approach worked in There Will Be Blood because the viewer stayed with the most interesting character, watching his rise and fall. In The Master, however, the most interesting character is not Freddie but Dodd. Anderson tries to show the charisma and character of Dodd through Freddie's eyes, an approach that, though not a complete failure, is woefully ineffective at selling the story. The rise and fall that we saw in that previous film is not present in The Master, ultimately making you wonder as you walk out of the theater what, exactly, you just watched.
Nevertheless, The Master is artful and interesting. It may be maddening when you think of how much more it could have been, but taken on its own merits, The Master is still a fine film. 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.
The story is centered on Freddie Quell (Phoenix), an unstable World War II veteran. The horrors of war are the least of Freddie's problems: he carries a lifelong history of emotional instability and impulse control issues. By chance, Freddie wanders onto a ship owned by Lancaster Dodd (Hoffman), known more commonly as "the Master." Dodd is the founder of a philosophy that centers on the "freeing" of one's mind by aberrant forces. His technique has given him a large, cult-like following. The rest of the film revolves around Freddie and the Master's relationship; Freddie sees Dodd as the friend and father figure he never had, Dodd sees Freddie (or, more accurately, the possibility of Freddie's redemption) as the ultimate validation of his belief system.
If you pay any attention to Hollywood news, then it will be obvious to you from the start that Dodd's character is a more-or-less direct evocation of L. Ron Hubbard, the father of Scientology. This film neither villifies nor honors Hubbard; rather, this film is an exploration into what his mentality might have been. Anderson suggests that Hubbard, as human as the rest of us, was fallible, a quality that made him likable but within the context of a cult, dangerous.
This story is well-within the skillset of writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson, who has made a career of character-driven dramas such as this. When it works, as it did with 2007's There Will Be Blood, the film is captivating, drawing you into that bizarre world on the border of genius and madness that seems to be the hallmark of many an American hero. When it doesn't, you find yourself frustrated, because the film seemingly takes you to the edge of that wild place, then drops you off before crossing over. Such is the case throughout The Master. There are amazing, intense scenes showing the primal violence of Freddie and the magnetic charisma of the Master; then, the movie ends, and you realize you only got the slightest peek into the world of a cult founder and his disciples. We never get a greater sense of the world that the Master has created, or its past.
Although Joaquin Phoenix gives an amazing performance as Freddie, his character gets more screen time then he deserves. This approach worked in There Will Be Blood because the viewer stayed with the most interesting character, watching his rise and fall. In The Master, however, the most interesting character is not Freddie but Dodd. Anderson tries to show the charisma and character of Dodd through Freddie's eyes, an approach that, though not a complete failure, is woefully ineffective at selling the story. The rise and fall that we saw in that previous film is not present in The Master, ultimately making you wonder as you walk out of the theater what, exactly, you just watched.
Nevertheless, The Master is artful and interesting. It may be maddening when you think of how much more it could have been, but taken on its own merits, The Master is still a fine film. 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Looper: You've Never Seen a Vicious Cycle Like This Before
Looper is one of those "surprise" films; a movie that you walk into with pretty modest expectations and walk out of completely blown away. It is easily one of the best films of 2012, and quite possibly one of the best sci-fi films to date.
Looper is the story of Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Joe is a "looper": a hitman in 2044 whose sole job is to execute people from the future who are sent back to his time. Things get complicated when Joe's next victim is himself (his older self is played by Bruce Willis).
Looper is the story of Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). Joe is a "looper": a hitman in 2044 whose sole job is to execute people from the future who are sent back to his time. Things get complicated when Joe's next victim is himself (his older self is played by Bruce Willis).
There's much, much more to the story than that, but I don't want to give any of the films many surprises and fine details away. One of the great things about Looper's story is the fine attention to detail given to the plot, the world, and the characters that inhabit it. This is not some cheap sci-fi CGI extravaganza that relies on action and visual wizardry to cover the gaps in plot or deficiencies in character. Rather, Looper represents the genre at its finest; compelling and fantastic, out-of-this-world, but still emotional and undeniably human. Calling Looper a time-traveling sci-fi film would be like calling The Dark Knight a superhero movie; accurate, perhaps, but also so much more.
Looper's excellent script is brought to life with excellent actors. 2012 is proving to be the summer of Joseph Gordon-Levitt; this is his third high-profile film this year (in addition to The Dark Knight Rises and Premium Rush), and all three films are excellent. Bruce Willis does an interesting "meta-acting job": his character is a life-long, career killer, and Willis himself has a long resume of portraying such characters. By tapping into this, there is a lot of authenticity to his performance; when he fights his way through a pile of goons, I can very easily believe that I'm watching a grizzled warrior dispatching younger foes with his decades of experience. Of particular note is Pierce Gagnon, who plays a small boy named Cid, whose future is of great importance to Joe. It's rare to find a child actor with enough range to be both cute and scary, and Pierce does both with natural aplomb.
There is very little that can be held against Looper, and most of that is a stylistic choice. Writer/director Rian Johnson depicts the world of Looper in a dark, gritty, film-noir style. This shouldn't be too unusual for fans of his previous films (particularly 2005's Brick), but moviegoers walking into this movie looking for light action/adventure may need to adjust their expectations. This film is more Blade Runner than Star Wars.
But, again, that is less a criticism and more of a description of this incredible film. Looper is a smart, exciting film, with enough gunplay for the action fan and enough philosophical quandry for the intellectual. The movie is an easy recommendation for anyone who loves going to the theater. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.
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