The Quirky Charm of ASTEROID CITY

 Writer/Director Wes Anderson (The French Dispatch) brings his unique, auteur style to (for him) a new genre, science fiction, and the results are a reasonable treat for fans.

Set up in acts like a Shakespeare play with a narrator (Bryan Cranston), the film switches back and forth with a setting in the Cold War in 1955 and centers on a southwestern town, Asteroid City, the site of an ancient meteor crater where nearby, atomic bomb tests and police chases are routine. There, an assortment of characters including a photographer (Jason Schwartzman) and his kids, their patriarch (Tom Hanks), a mysterious actress (Scarlett Johansson), a scientist (Tilda Swinton), a motel manager (Steve Carrell), and a host of others intersect in a myriad of subplots that revolve around a celestial commemoration that turns into something out of this world.  The ensuing repercussions result in a frenzy and chaos that affects everyone there, and the question is, ‘what will happen next?’

This is a light comedy in the guise of science fiction where snappy, stream of consciousness dialogue keeps the narrative humming along, and moments of quirky humor derive from the situations and interactions. Structurally, the shifting between the play and the film story doesn’t quite work and tends to be a bit confusing (while non-fans might find it tedious).  It’s best not to try to make sense of it all and just go along with Anderson and his impressive, all-star cast who are obviously having a ball.  The production is impressive with its fluid camerawork, set design, and costumes (which vividly recreate its period setting).  It’s a good ride while it lasts, but when it ends, this tasty, fluffy dish leaves little in the way of substance (though it’s still better than most films).

***1/2 of ***** stars (for Anderson fans)

Playing with Fate in THE FLASH

 

The DC Extended Universe has had occasional hits (Wonder Woman) and misses (Suicide Squad), and with The Flash, a long gestating project, it has one of the better films that also resets all of DC.   

As a member of The Justice League, Barry Allen AKA The Flash (Ezra Miller), who continues to fight crime and save people from disaster, is haunted and traumatized by the death of his mom and the imprisonment of his dad when he was a child. He contemplates using The Speed Force to travel back in time through multiverses to initiate a minor act to save his parents, but as Bruce Wayne AKA Batman (Ben Affleck shines) warns, there can be potentially, enormous consequences. Sure enough, Barry ends up in a world where people and events are completely changed or even absent.  General Zod (Michael Shannon from Man of Steel) makes an appearance, ready to decimate Earth, but there is no Superman to save it or even a Flash! However, there is a Bruce Wayne AKA Batman (Michael Keaton), who is the last hope. Can Barry and Wayne save humanity and even help restore his timeline?

While it doesn’t quite stick its landing, what does come across are Miller’s heart, Sasha Calle’s effective debut (as Supergirl) and Keaton reminding us he is a great Batman.  Hopefully movies take a break from multiverse themes, as featured in recent, popular hits (Spider-Man: No Way Home) and Oscar winners (Everything Everywhere All at Once), but enough already!   Well-paced at 144 minutes, it’s a wildly ambitious adventure, full of surprises and humor, and despite a couple of plot holes, for those that are true fans, this one is good fun complete with numerous cameos (some obscure) and Easter Eggs (with one end credit scene). 

**** of ***** (for hard core fans)     Going forward the rating system will be based on ***** stars

Actress with a Touch of Class

 

British actress Glenda Jackson has passed at 87. Her career began in the sixties and encompassed stage and screen.  She won an Oscar for Women in Love and repeated with another Oscar in A Touch of Class. Other notable films included Sunday Bloody Sunday, Mary, Queen of Scotts, Hedda, Hopscotch, and her biggest box office hit, House Calls. She also won three Emmy Awards. She devoted much of her career to British politics serving in Parliament and later returned to acting winning a Tony Award as recently as 2018 for Three Tall Women. A thespian to the end, she just finished filming The Great Escaper (with Michael Caine) to be released posthumously.

Versatile Actor on Stage and Screen

 

Emmy nominated actor, Treat Williams, has passed at 71. This veteran on stage, TV, and film made a big impression in support in The Eagle Has Landed and then became a star as lead in the film version of the musical, Hair.  He worked steadily on stage in Grease and in films like 1941, Once Upon a Time in America, Deep Rising, and perhaps his best film, the Oscar nominated  Prince of the City.  He appeared in many TV shows starring in Everwood, The Late Show (Emmy nominated role), the TV version of A Streetcar Named Desire, and the Emmy winning series Drug Wars: The Camarena Story. He was widely respected and beloved by fans.

Popular New Age Pianist

Grammy Award winning pianist George Winston has passed at 73. A pioneer in New Age music, his style also encompassed other styles including classical.  A mainstay for the Windham Hill label, his trio of albums, Autumn, Winter Into Spring, and his smash hit, December, a holiday favorite, would cement his reputation. He sold over 15 million albums and later worked with Meryl Streep who narrated The Velveteen Rabbit. I saw Winston decades ago at the Kennedy Center and he also included a bit of Charlie Brown music.

SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, a Superior Sequel

When Sony Pictures launched their Marvel film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, it was universally lauded and won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.  Could a followup match the energy and creativity of the original?  Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse exceeds all expectations with a complex story and cutting edge animation. 

What began as the multiverse in the previous film, now has Gwen Stacy (voiced by Hailee Steinfeld) AKA Spider-Woman on an alternate Earth reconnecting with Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) AKA Spider-Man while a new villain, The Spot, emerges and becomes a powerful adversary. When Miles explores the other Earths, he discovers a shocking truth that not only alters his view of the multiverse and his existing relationships, but an imminent threat to his loved ones.  Can he save his family as the fate of the universe hangs in the balance?

The film overflows with dazzling visuals and layered subplots that may warrant repeated viewings.  The animation bristles with vibrant colors and heightened realism, enriching the film’s intricate action scenes that become populated with ‘amazing’ permutations of Spider-Heroes.

This was made with reverence and love by comic book fans for comic book fans complete with Easter Egg references throughout.  The relationships are well developed and form the backbone of a sharply written, heartwarming narrative filled with humor and pathos.  Main themes encompass personal loss, friendship, and family as it expands on what it means to be a hero and the concept of destiny and the consequences of one’s actions.  The climax elevates the stakes exponentially, and it all ends on a cliffhanger (not unlike what The Empire Strikes Back did for Star Wars) which ends a satisfying mega-adventure and paves the way for a grand finale next year. (There is no post credit scene.)

**** of **** stars

Prolific Songwriter Broke New Ground for Women

 

Oscar nominated and two time Grammy Award winning songwriter Cynthia Weil has passed at 82. With her husband Barry Mann, she wrote popular songs that were covered by top artists including Lionel Richie, Barry Manilow, Dolly Parton, and so many others. Her songs are legendary like On Broadway, Just Once, You 've Lost That Lovin' Feelin,  Make Your Own Kind of Music, He's So Shy, Don't Know Much, Here You Come Again, Through the Fire, Somewhere Out There, and so many more. An inductee to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, she was a trailblazer for female songwriters. 

THE LITTLE MERMAID Is Now Bigger Not Better

 

Rob Marshall (Chicago, Mary Poppins Returns) has become the ‘go to’ director for movie musical adaptations, and he does a solid job with the live action version of the animated classic, The Little Mermaid.

Eric (Jonah Hauer-King), the seafaring son of a local queen, yearns for adventure and discovery when his ship sinks, and he is saved by a mermaid named Ariel (Halle Bailey) who becomes enamored with him much to the disapproval of her father, King Triton (Javier Bardem), who rules the undersea kingdom. When Triton’s jealous relative, Ursula (Melissa McCarthy), offers Ariel a proposition to be with Eric, it comes with an enormous price and threatens to upend both the surface and undersea worlds.

Bailey, a delight, is impressive as the title character and possesses a remarkable singing voice while McCarthy is perfectly cast in a juicy, villainess role as the scheming Ursula. The diverse cast is enhanced by computer generated, talking sea creatures like Sebastian, Flounder, and Scuttle who are endearing, funny, and wonderfully realized. (Please give these critters their own movie.)

This won’t supplant the original animated classic and could have benefitted from a leaner running time than its 135 minutes. The film works with a broad canvas of a colorful, lavish production enhanced by underwater visual effects (which nearly overwhelm the climax).  With additional, new songs, it inherits the previous film’s proven score and most of its songs including an impressive version of the classic, Under the Sea, all of which are well integrated into the narrative, never feeling forced. 

There is a lot to like here as it is engaging throughout. (It would also be interesting to see Marshall do an original, animated musical.)  Bigger is not necessarily better but good enough.

*** of **** stars (add ½* for Disney fans)

The Queen of Rock 'n' Roll

 

Legendary singer Tina Turner has passed at 83. Starting out in the late 1950s with Ike Turner led to hits like their 1970s smash cover Proud Mary and eventually, decades later, The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. However, she escaped the abuse of her former husband in the 1970s and struggled to reinvent herself.

The result was a triumphant comeback led by MTV and the blockbuster solo album Private Dancer with hit singles like What's Love Got to Do With It? She has sold a staggering 200 million records in her career and garnered 8 Grammy Awards. Her concerts amassed as many as 180,000. She sang the title tune for the Bond film Goldeneye and even acted in the classic Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. She was one of the We Are the World singers and was a highlight of Live Aid with Mick Jagger. 

I saw her perform in the 1980s at the old Capital Centre with Glenn Frey as her opener. She was dynamic and a force of nature. Like her song, she was Simply the Best.

An All Time Football Great

 

Football legend Jim Brown has passed at 87. This civil rights advocate was a standout in several sports. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame and later the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was a three time MVP and won a championship with the 1964 Cleveland Browns and was a Pro Bowl selection eight of his nine years. When he switched to a successful movie career, he was at the top of his game owning most rushing records. His per game lifetime average of 100 yards or more per game has never been matched.

He made over 50 films including the classic, The Dirty Dozen, Ice Station Zebra, 100 Rifles ( with Raquel Welch), and later Mars Attacks!, and Any Given Sunday. An all time great.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 and a Grand Finish

 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 concludes a trilogy of a ragtag bunch of heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This is writer/director James Gunn’s poignant end to an adventure that has this team assembled one last time.

Peter (Chris Pratt) still mourns the loss of his Gamora (Zoe Saldana) as the Guardians have built a community in Knowhere which comes under attack leaving Rocket Raccoon mortally wounded.  Desperate to save him, the Guardians (including an alternate Gamora, Mantis, Drax, Nebula, and lovable Groot) must find a mysterious adversary, the High Evolutionary, (a villain whose horrible, genocidal experiments give the film a dark, grim tone), who holds the key to Rocket’s past and his survival.  It also means the Guardians must band together and risk everything to save their friend.   

The Guardians, a group of misfits, have become a family who squabbles and loves one another, but this is Rocket’s story which serves as the film’s core as it reveals his traumatic past.  The film, which stands apart from recent Marvel titles without the constraints of a multiverse plot, encompasses several story arcs as each major character evolves significantly and has an opportunity to shine; (we would follow these beloved Guardians anywhere.)  Defying expectations, new characters are introduced and beloved ones depart. 

The film has moments of bravery, sacrifice, and loss, and benefits from imaginative, otherworldly visuals and creature designs right out of a Tim Burton nightmare.  There are better Marvel films but few that touch the soul like this one, and no one taps into sentiment like Gunn who balances action (especially a stunning, continuous shot of a hallway battle accompanied by one of many pop tunes), drama, and humor and sets up his audience for several memorable, emotional payoffs. (There are two end credit scenes.)

**** of **** stars (for Guardians fans)

BOOK CLUB: THE NEXT CHAPTER Brings the Gang Back

 

The women are back in Book Club: The Next Chapter, a sequel to Book Club with virtually all major cast members (Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Candice Bergen, and Mary Steenburgen), director Bill Holderman, and cowriter Erin Simms returning. The result is an entertaining adventure that breezes into the summer movie season.

A quartet of friends, bonding over their love of books, have stayed in touch and shared their personal lives amid quarantine and in person.   This sisterhood plans an impulsive trip to Italy to celebrate an impending wedding.  Guided by their reverence to the book, The Alchemist, their travels take unexpected twists and turns from Rome to Venice and finally Tuscany where new friends are made and old faces make surprise appearances as their journey leads to a momentous event.  Through setbacks and challenges, joy and sorrow, nothing will keep them down.  The thing that keeps them going is their love for one another and a bond that is ultimately unshakable and unbreakable.

This film is one of a growing subgenre in recent years focusing on older women (80 for Brady, Mamma Mia!) or older men (Space Cowboys).  At times it feels like a travelogue, and indeed, the gorgeous sights of the Italian landmarks and countryside are grand settings for a story laced with sentiment and humor.  Although saddled with dialogue that wreaks of a TV sitcom, it is overcome by the sheer star power and chemistry of these legendary actresses.

Saving the best moments for the end, the story does end on a sweet note.  This lighthearted fare is an excuse to see some classy veterans in fine form, and it would not be surprising to see how this easily leads to a third film in a satisfying series.

*** of **** stars