Godzilla

Ben’s Review of Godzilla

Once again I was able to doop my wife into thinking we were heading to a garden nursery but instead took her to see Godzilla.  But I was wary about seeing our fat lizard friend.  History shows again and again that Hollywood can screw a large monster movie.  But why hasn’t the monster movie worked?  Well basically the formula has been very uninspired.  The 1998 Roland Emerich version of Godzilla followed the same recipe as Titantic and Pompei which is have a lot of death, destruction, and special effects and an ending where the government somehow stops the monster.  Last year’s disappointing Pacific Rim failed to deliver.  Even the original Jurrasic Park, while visually stunning, had basically no plot.  Peter Jackson’s King Kong might have been the closest we have come to something believable but even that really did not go anywhere.  So why try this again?  If there is any hope for society it may reside in the fact that the movie going audience requires more than just wanton death and destruction.  With failure of Pacific Rim and RIPD audiences to make a profit, this might show that the movie audience is not willing to drop $10-$17 to go to a theatre unless there is something behind the death and destruction.  The Dark Knight Trilogy showed us that you can make a believable, albeit dark, superhero movie.  The Avengers showed us that you can make supernatural flick that is funny but not goofy.  This brings us to the latest version of Godzilla.  Warner Bros. has decided to abandon the fat guy in the rubber suit and Roland Emmerich and instead attempt to have a believable Godzilla movie.  But can a balance be struck for supplying a plot and still providing enough special effects to make the IMAX price worth it?

The movie begins with Brian Cranston’s character, (I don’t remember his name so let just call him Walter for now) working as nuclear engineer at a Tokyo nuclear plant with his wife Julliette Binochette who is a nuclear engineer type person.   A strange earth shaking anomaly occurs.  Walter notices that this seismic activity is not consistent with the patterns of an earth quake and, being the brave man he is, allows his wife to check this out.  This anomaly destroys the nuclear power plant and kills Binochette.  An area of Tokyo, including Walter’s house, is quarantine because of nuclear contamination   Fast forward 15 years and Cranston is now unemployed and labeled lunatic because he believes that it was something other than an earthquake that destroyed the nuclear power plant where he used to work.  Cranston’s son, fresh off his stint in the military and posing for Calvin Klein, is forced to go to Tokyo and bail his father out of jail for trying to get back into the ruins of the nuclear plant.  After the son bails him out, Cranston convinces him to enter the radiation quarantine zone where his former house was located.  Upon entering the quarantine zone Cranston and son discover the truth which is that it was not an earthquake that caused the destruction of the power plant but something else. Something that has been awakened and is now looking to feed. What is this something else?  Is it Godzilla?  Rodan?  Mothra?  That guy that ate all the hot dogs but the lost the American guy who ate all the hotdogs?

This Godzilla succeeds where other versions of Godzilla failed by deciding to have a plot.  Is this great plot on par with The Dark Knight or Schindler’s List?  No.  But it does attempt to give a plausible explanation why Godzilla and some other creatures exist and why they are destroying cities.   The destruction is not gratuitous and no portion of this movie is done in a tongue and cheek way that makes goofy.  This is probably what would happen if there was a Godzilla type issue today.  This Godzilla has a story line that develops through the entire movie and gives the audience something to be interested in and not just senseless destruction and national monuments falling apart.  Oh and if you are going to dump $17 on IMAX this movie delivers.   This movie takes a while to get going but once it does look out.   This movie is exciting, scary, but not disturbing or overly dark.  What I really enjoyed is that the destruction in this movie occurs in places other than New York. 

I give this movie four Fukishyma cover ups out of five.

Something Extra/Spoiler Alert- Warner Bros. has excercised its options for two sequels so make sure and save your 3d glasses for 2016.

Elisa's Review of "Godzilla"

“Godzilla” is exactly the type of movie that inspired the “Movies I watch with my Husband” blog, in that my husband knew there was a script three years ago, probably knew the director, and knew what the release date would be six months ago. In contrast, I thought I had already watched the most recent “Godzilla” remake. When I protested sitting through another recent reincarnation, the husband was puzzled. “You know, the one with Jack Black,” was my clever response. “That was “King Kong,” he replied. 

My loud miserable sigh and whining was not enough to deter the husband to dragging me to the IMAX 3D Theater, the one with terrible concessions, on a Sunday afternoon. I am just thankful the responsibilities of work did not allow us to attend the Thursday night special release. There was a line 40 minutes before a Sunday matinee. A line full of Geeks, and there I was holding our place in line with them, while the husband bought the crappy popcorn. I do not mean to offend the Engineers, IT specialist, or any other the other nerds and geeks in the world that I love more than anyone. But—this was not a line where anyone was wearing a button-down shirt, a baseball hat—or deodorant.  

This movie review is short on the review and heavy on the “Seriously???” complaints. I am an honest movie reviewer:  I slept through the first 40 minutes. We went to 7:30 a.m.  Mass. I wish I had slept longer.  Despite waking up after “plot development” I understood what was happening through my 3D glasses. A giant Chinese monster was crossing the Pacific Ocean to attack another giant monster.  Predictably, the US military was tracking Godzilla through the ocean with a lot of big boats. What happened next was actually devastating: Godzilla destroyed Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach and most of downtown Honolulu. Next, Godzilla destroyed Las Vegas, not as pretty as Hawaii, but sad for the naked dancers and Elvis impersonators. Finally, he destroyed San Francisco, with the predictable demolition of the Golden Gate Bridge. Not creative Hollywood.  Of course a military hero and an Olsen twin helped save the day.

This movie was not good. There was nothing surprising, interesting or unique. It was a sub-par “Monster Movie” and I think that is what the people wanted. Just not the wife.

 

Star Trek: Into Darkness

Ben’s Review of Star Trek: Into Darkness

4 years ago JJ Abrahams did me a big favor.  You see I have always been a Star Trek fan and have seen all of them, including the Next Generation movies.  My wife did not share my passion. She’s more of a Sweet Home Alabama person.  It took me two weeks to convince my wife to go see Star Trek but she wife finally agreed to go and I was very worried.  If this movie stunk, I would never hear the end of it and, worse yet, would not be able to choose movies to see for a long time.  The Star Trek franchise had too many movies, too many shows, and with movies. These next generation movies tried very hard to create their own villains and story lines that they lost several fans who simply did not want to get to know someone new.  So enter JJ Abrahams who waited seven years after the last Generations movie and was supposedly going to do a prequel that was following in the footsteps of Star Wars and the Batman Reboot.  Instead, JJ presented an origins story of the characters of Star Trek that was a sequel to the previous movies.  The beauty of Star Trek is it did not require that the viewer know anything about the previous movies or television shows, while at the same time rewarding those diehard fans who were steeped in Trek lore.  The best part of 2009’s Star Trek was that it was cool. The technology was cool, the characters were cool, but most importantly, the story was cool.  Not geeky, not goofy, not severely complicated but cool.    My wife was in and I was able to choose movies going forward.  So, after pulling off this creative and worthwhile reboot of the Star Trek franchise, what would Hollywood want?  A sequel to the sequel of course.

This sequel did not come immediately.  The usual formula is that a sequel comes within two or, at the latest, three years after the original movie.  Also, ever since Star Wars, everything has to be a trilogy. This creates a problem because, like Pirates of the Caribbean or the Matrix movies, the second movie is just one very long and complicated set up for the third movie.  Like Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Rises, JJ waited four years to write the sequel. The result was Star Trek: Into Darkness.  But are there new ideas to be had?  Would the Abrahams formula sputter out?  Could the sequel possibly compare to the original… well… sequel?  Is the almost $16 IMAX 3D ticket price worth it?

Into Darkness, finds Captain Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, Scotty, Checkov, and Sulu doing what they do best which is trying to pull off an impossible mission under impossible circumstances.  The assignment is to stop a Volcano from killing a planet without letting the indigenous people know what was happening.  The crew of the enterprise stops the volcano but not before revealing the Enterprise to the indigenous people during the process of saving Spock’s life.  Spock, claiming he cannot lie because of his Vulcan heritage, submits a report detailing the event and as a result Kirk is demoted to first mate and Spock is reassigned to another ship.  Meanwhile a mysterious figure helps a member of Star fleet cure his child’s sickness but in return this Star Fleet member commits an act of terrorism against the federation.  Kirk is given back commission of the Enterprise with the sole mission of chasing the down the mysterious figure onto the volatile Klingon planet of Kronos and killing this person without the Klingons finding out. When arriving at the Klingon planet not everything is what it seems and the mysterious figure holds a secret that may completely change the face of the federation.  So what was this mission successful or a waste of $33 at the movies?

Go see this movie now!!!  JJ Abrahams’ background is not in Sci Fi movies.  He was most famous for writing and directing the television show Felicity and the Harrison Ford sob fest Regarding Henry.  He ventured into the action genre with television shows like Alias and his take and Mission Impossible III.  What this gives the viewer is a person who is much more interested in the characters and the story then whether the phasers have the right triggers or Enterprise deck has the correct scanners.  This movie, once again, is smartly written, well performed, and only requires that the viewer has seen the previously film.  Oh, and if you are a lifelong fan, you are once again rewarding by recalls to previous Trek references but in a very believable presentation.  This movie is over two hours but it moves along at a lightning quick pace and is full enough action, comedy, scifi, decent acting and PLOT to make this work.  This movie stands on its own and is not one big set up for a third movie, although a third, fourth, or fifth would be welcomed. All movies should have this level of care put into them.  Go see this movie in an IMAX 3D theatre.  Well worth it.

I give this movie 5 Tribbles out of 5.   

Elisa’s Review of “Star Trek Into Darkness”

Until the release of the 2009 reboot of the Star Trek movie franchise, I hated everything Star Trek: the endless TV shows, the movies, the ships, Khan, Klingons, Deep Space, everything about the Star Trek franchise just seemed too complicated for me. Mostly, I hated Star Trek because it was not Star Wars. I understood how “Star Wars” worked, but “Star Trek” was just a weird show without Harrison Ford or Muppets.  Even though so much of Star Trek is a huge part of pop culture, I was intimated.  After a huge protesting fit to the Husband’s request to watch the new 2009 Star Trek movie, I was turned.  While not a Trekkie, I was sucked into the madness.

We watched the movie on a Saturday afternoon, hoping to avoid the sugared-up children and obnoxious teenagers that liter comic book movies.  We paid the premium to watch the movie in IMAX 3D. It was totally worth the $16 per person ticket: no one pays $16 a ticket to hear their child scream during the movie, and the special effects “were totally awesome.” The movie was action-packed and had a great story line that will show well in regular theaters and flat-screen 60-inch televisions, but the experience of watching the incredible graphics, and feeling the sound, is what a theater-movie-experience is all about.  The opening scenes may have been made just to convince the audience the ticket price was money well-spent.

Apart from cosmic explosions and panicked-teleporting, the writing of the movie captures the essence of the beloved characters and their reincarnation through Chris Pines (Captain Kirk), Zoe Saldana (Uhura), and Zachary Quinn as Spock keep the hard-core Trekkies happy while hooking a new generation of fans. I am holding back from writing a play-by-play of the plot, for a few reasons. First, I really do not know enough about traveling into Space, beaming-up, and physics to adequately describe what happened during the film. Second, there is a big reveal during the movie that is a pretty big deal, and I do not want to blow it in this review. While I do not feel ‘Tekkie’ enough to properly discuss the plot in Sci-Fi terms, ultimately, the movie is about the relationships of these characters that are more than 30 years old, their interactions, nuances and dedication to their peaceful “mission to explore strange new worlds.” Whether you know enough to laugh with Doctor/Bones McCoy when exclaims “Dammit I’m a doctor,” or you have no idea what that means, but you recognize the trumpet fanfare introduction of the theme song, as Captain Kirk gives the purpose of the USS Enterprise, you will find something to connect to the Star Trek contribution to Americana.

Pitch Perfect

Elisa’s Pitch Perfect Review

The girl-powered Glee-fueled ensemble cast of Pitch Perfect seemed like the ultimate payback after a summer of superheroes and action flicks.  I was skeptical the “funnier than Bridesmaids” hype would fall flat and that once again, the best lines were in the previews.  However, I had no idea how funny  watching  a seemingly hot blonde projectile-vomiting could be until Pitch Perfect.

 Anna Kendrick (known to many in her role as Jessica in the Twilight franchise, and to those of us who are not vampire believers, as "that girl"in the George Clooney film Up in the Air) stars as brooding and unhappy college student Beca at the fictional Barden University.  Forced to attend college for free (her father is a professor at Barden) instead of following her dream to be a Club DJ in Los Angeles.  Beca is less-than-happy to be a college student instead of spinning with Samantha Ronson.  Her father bargains with her to stay in college, join some clubs and make an effort.  If Beca still hates school, he will finance the move to LA.

 In a “Porkies”-esque dorm shower scene, Beca "runs into" Chloe, co-captain of The Bellas, an all-ladies a capella group at Barden. Chloe is convinced Beca's shower singing is talent enough to help the faltering Bellas. Thinking this will appease her father and get her a ticket to LA, Beca accepts the invitation.

 Turns out, Beca enjoys singing and using her DJ mash-up skills to transform The Bellas'  uptight “Ace of Base” style into a happy Breakfast Club sing-a-long. For The Breakfast Club purists, there is quit a bit of the Saturday School favorite referenced in the movie, not in a complete rip-off of the classic in the style of the films Easy A, or Perfect Score, but more of a tribute to the overly-praised John Hughes film.      Side Note—Was I the last person on Earth to know the “Breakfast Club” de facto theme song, “Don’t you (Forget About Me)” was originally offered to Billy Idol? Actually, it was first offered to The Fixx, then Bryan Ferry, and then Billy Idol. All declined, and the song was a huge hit for the Scottish punks Simple Minds.

 While there are many obvious comparisons to “Glee” this is not a college cast rip-off of the Fox show. Thankfully, the singing was kept to scenes for a cappella rehearsal, except for one tragic bus scene, and not to move the plot along. Rebel Wilson, known as the lazy wonky British roommate in Bridesmaids ups the raunchy factor as “Fat Amy”and saves the movie from being another Hollywood formula. She kept the husband laughing, and he seemed pretty interested in the shower scene. There was no eye-rolling, or loud sighs. Ladies, this is a movie your husband will like, and you can leverage

 for your next movie choice--i.e. "Honey, you liked Pitch Perfect, remember? You will love Les Miserables."

Ben's Review of Pitch Perfect

So after a summer of forcing my wife to sit through flicks about superheroes, aliens, coke sniffing teddy bears, and scary fairy tales, I was informed it was pay back time in the form of Pitch Perfect.  Pitch Perfect, looking to capitalize on the success of shows like “Glee” and the NBC powerhouse “Smash” presents the trials and tribulations of Glee competitions at the college level and what is required to compete.  Having to watch this movie looked suspiciously like all kinds of come upance for forcing my wife to wait in line for tickets to the Avengers or watch 14 hours of college football last Saturday.  But would I run out screaming half way through or possibly want to go camping with one of my best friends in the mountains without our wives…. not that there is anything wrong with that! 

Back to Pitch Perfect.  The movie opens with the finals of the collegiate a cappella competition where the Barden Bellas of Barden University are set to take the stage and attempt to out sing their rival Barden University group from Barden the Treblemakers.  Just when it looked like the Barden Bellas might finally win, a very unfortunate accident occurs and the Bellas will have to wait another year to try to win the national a cappella competition.  Fast forward to the next year where the Bellas are attempting to recruit new members during freshman orientation. Recruiting however, is more difficult the in previous years because of the manner in which the Bellas lost during the a cappella competition and the way the Bella’s  previously treated several people who wanted to join their group.  This forces the Bellas to abandon trying to find pretty girls who can sing and start looking for anyone who can possibly carry a tune.  Enter Beca, played by Anna Kendrick, an aspiring DJ who has been forced by her professor father to go to Barden University instead of pursuing her dreams of being a DJ in LA because she can attend Barden for free.  Beca is a wiz at mashing up tracks but never really had an interest in singing.  However, Bella member Chloe, played by everyone’s favorite wall flower Brittany Snow, thinks that Beca has the ability to sing and bring a new look to the Bellas.  The Bellas also recruit a group of less than aesthetically perfect singers to round out the group, including Tasmanian transfer student Fat Amy, played by Bridesmaids scene stealer Rebel Wilson, to try and win the a cappella national champion.  But will this rag group be able to come together and pull off the seemingly impossible? Can the Bellas scoff in the face of tradition and bring a new feel to a cappella singing?  Can a movie about a singing competition really take an hour of fifty-two minutes to play out?  Tom Selleck is an attractive man….

Guys, has your girlfriend and/or wife left the room?  Really? Good.  This is the perfect movie to fake out your wife with to make up for any sort of hunting expo, monster truck rally, or fantasy football draft party that you forced her to go in the past year.  First, this movie is not a musical.  Let me repeat this for you, Pitch Perfect is not a musical.  Second, this movie has a very good sense of humor about itself in that all of the characters realize that a cappella competitions are not cool and are in fact pretty ridiculous.  Think of this movie as Major League meets Best in Show.  Third, this movie has actresses that are legitimately hilarious.  Most movies rely on smartass component to get their female characters over by having some woman who has runway model looks making snarky sarcastic comments instead of truly being funny.  Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, and scene stealing Hana Mae Lee as the soft spoken Lilly are self deprecating and laugh out loud funny.  Great, albeit brief appearance by Elizabeth Banks and John Michael Higgins really move this movie along.  The idea for Pitch Perfect is not new but Pitch Perfect does a great job presenting the underdog movie in a way that has not been done before and definitely worth the $10.

I give Pitch Perfect 3.8 pitch pipes out of 5.

*Hang in there guys, new Bond, Diehard, Thor, Lone Ranger, and Captain America are all on the way.