American Hustle

Expectations:
I'm sure that many people will disagree with me on the amount of praise that I allot to David O. Russell, but I must admit that I have definitely hopped aboard his bandwagon after two great successes in The Fighter and Silver Linings Playbook. In fact, Silver Linings was third on my list of best dramas in 2012, which I'm sure Mr. Russell considers a fine honor. He probably tried to send me a thank you note or email or something, but I'm just so busy and hard to get in touch with! Anywho... After seeing the vague, star-studded trailer for American Hustle and hearing the ample amount of praise that has led to its impressive 94% on the Tomatometer, I had high hopes for a film that I knew very little about. However, my high hopes were dulled by iffy expectations. To me, the trailer was scattered and made little sense, but I powered on, clinging to the fact that Russell, Cooper, Bale, and Lawrence thought the film was worth making.

Plot:
The thing that I LOVE about David O. Russell films is his ability to create dramatic films that feature some of the biggest laughs that you will find in any film of any kind. The Fighter was a great (true) story that featured great acting. Silver Linings Playbook was far from original, but the acting carried the film to an Oscar nomination. Unfortunately, the plot of American Hustle is not unique enough to carry the film by itself. Fortunately, like its predecessors, the acting carries the film farther than most any story could. If you saw Argo last year, you can understand how simply dramatic and nerve-wracking a spy/con film can be, and I promise that the unfolding of the plot, at the end of American Hustle, pales in comparison to many B-list PG-13 action flicks, much less the reigning Best Picture champion. This film is 100% carried by the great acting, which I will now take a moment to brag upon...

Characters:
Much of the drama/comedy mix of a Russell film is only possible because of the great actors that he is able to recruit and pick out for perfect roles. Without the great acting of Lawrence, Cooper, Adams, and Bale, Silver Linings Playbook and The Fighter are just mediocre mental illness and boxing dramas with awkward comedy mixed in. Sticking with the same acting crew, American Hustle featured an even better ensemble than last year's Playbook, in my opinion. Really, nobody was poorly cast, and it was hard for me to find something to criticize (acting-wise). However, I managed...

Negatives:
While the performance of Amy Adams may not be negative itself, its ability to meet my expectations was far from grand. After her great turn in The Fighter, I really thought Russell might bring out of Adams another Oscar-worthy performance, much like I believe he did with Bradley Cooper on his second go-round. Unfortunately for Adams, however great her performance as Sydney Prosser may have been, Jennifer Lawrence was there to outshine her, every single step of the way. For me, this result was unexpectedly negative.

Positives:
Looking back at my list of bests from 2012, the only category in which I question my choices is the category of dramatic actor, in which I named Bradley Cooper number one for his role in Silver Linings Playbook. I thought I might have been blinded by the humor that Cooper's character brought to a great film. However, after watching his character (Richie DiMaso) in American Hustle, there is no doubt in my mind that he can freakin act! In fact, it's going to be hard to keep him out of the top spot for a second straight year! Not only did his character offer up some of the funniest moments of 2013, but he also did a great job of connecting with me, on an emotional, dramatic level, which I was not expecting at all. As I said before, I didn't know what to expect with any of the characters in American Hustle, so I may have been blinded yet again, but hopefully not. On top of Cooper's great performance, Jennifer Lawrence was amazing as the wife of Christian Bale's Irving. Her character (Rosalyn) may have been a tad bit unnecessary, but the performance by Lawrence was extraordinary! I'll be honest... She didn't impress me nearly as much in Silver Linings, so she should definitely get some Oscar attention with this performance. On top of that, great performances by Christian Bale, Jeremy Renner, and Louis C.K. made this positive character section one of the largest in the history of average criticism! So, kudos to the marvelous cast!

Conclusion:
If you enjoyed, at all, the drama/comedy mix of David O. Russell's previous films, American Hustle is sure to please you. There is no doubt that I enjoyed the film, and I would definitely like to watch it again, so I can enjoy the comedy even more. Don't get me wrong... there is some real drama surrounding the hustle theme. But, if you don't take the film too seriously, there are so many greatly hilarious moments that I promise will blow you away. I could see how many of the jokes may miss with some people, so go in ready to laugh! Also, before you cheer on any single acting category on Oscar night, check out these fantastic performances. They are sure to please! As for David O. Russell... One of these days, he is going to put great acting and great story together, and, when he does, prepare for a best picture win. Mark my words! I give American Hustle 3.2 out of 5 stars.

Man of Steel

 

Expectations:
Admittedly, I know very little about Superman, as a comic character. As a kid, I did watch Lois and Clark with Dean Cain and, growing up, I watched a few seasons of Smallville. However, I don't think I have ever seen an entire Superman movie, and, honestly, I'm not a huge fan of the immortal super hero. The invincibility of Superman has always kept me from really caring what happened to him, because you know he is going to kick butt and survive (same goes for you, Wolverine!). Nevertheless, as an average movie viewer, just like you, my mind is quite vulnerable when it comes to good ad campaigns for films. In my opinion, even with the unnecessary Chrysler and Marines commercials, Man of Steel was advertised quite well, and I really loved the vague teasers that were first released last summer. Not only were the teasers intriguing, but I loved the darkness that felt similar to The Dark Knight trilogy. As I've confessed to you many times before, Christopher Nolan is one of my filmmaking heroes. Anything with the Nolan name attached to it will rob me of $8 and hopefully blow me away. So, with Nolan producing Man of Steel, my expectations and excitement skyrocketed. Even though he lacked the cajones to actually kill Batman in The Dark Knight Rises, Nolan knows what he's doing, and Zack Snyder has plenty of experience, although I hate 300.

Plot:
Going in, I was really thinking that I would get 20-30 minutes of Clark Kent's childhood, but, instead, there was a really long birth scene, which led straight to Henry Cavill as grown-up Clark Kent. Initially, I was disappointed about the lack of childhood, mostly because I wanted more Kevin Costner, who plays Clark's earth dad. However, in the end, as I was enduring the ten billion fight scenes, I was thankful that Kent's childhood did not linger on. Surprisingly, the biggest problem I had with the film was the fight scenes. The visual aspects of the flying and punching was really cool, but the results of one punch may send someone flying through ten buildings, while the next only sends them into the next room. The inconsistencies were quite annoying. Also, each of the ten billion big fight scenes felt like "the big one," which left me a bit disappointed when the final fight scene actually came. At that point, I was just ready for the fighting to end. But, I did enjoy watching the character grow, as the film moved along, mostly because Clark Kent was actually a really good guy with a great head on his shoulders. It was not the usual "I don't really know how to be a super hero" storyline.

Characters:
The focus of this film was on Superman close to 100% of the time, which is expected with the first film in any super hero franchise. Unfortunately, this focus takes away from the success of the villain and any other major characters in the film. Luckily, Henry Cavill was good enough to deserve 100% of the focus.

Negatives:
Let's start with the worst and work our way up... Laurence Fishburne's turn as Perry White, editor of The Daily Planet, was SOOOOO awkward and unnecessary. Will he be integral in the future films? Absolutely! Did he need to make an appearance in this film? Yes! But, that doesn't mean that we need to watch him try to pry some random coworker out of some rubble for like 20 minutes! It just frustrated me, if you couldn't tell. Next we have Lois Lane, played by Amy Adams, who didn't seem to have the spark that she really needs to have with Cavill's Superman. They randomly fell in love, as many super hero couples do, and it just didn't feel hard enough to conceive. It took poor Batman two films to get his girl, and then she quickly blew up. Finally, Christopher Meloni's Nathan Hardy was quite unnecessary as well. Sure, Superman needs to come alongside the military, but he doesn't need to become best friends with thirty different officers.

Positives:
As I've said already, Henry Cavill was great as Clark Kent/Superman, and I was pleasantly surprised. I really thought the filmmakers would go with a more well known actor, after Brandon Roth's failed attempt to revise the role in 2006, but Cavill was certainly the right choice. Kudos to whoever found him! I also enjoyed Harry Lennix's General Swanwick, who turned out to be the NECESSARY military connection that Superman needed, unlike Nathan Hardy.

Conclusion:
With the entire country's expectations as high as they were, I am very pleased that Man of Steel was able to succeed in meeting said expectations. While it didn't blow me away, it did leave me satisfied, and I never lost interest throughout the course of the film. Cavill was brilliant, and I hope he shows up in future non-Superman films. Even with the ten billion fight scenes, the focus remained on Superman, meaning that picking the right Superman was the key to making this film good enough... and it was good enough. The future of this film series could be very bright, if the action is contained a bit. If I were in charge, I would take the reigns away from Zack Snyder, but that probably won't be happening. Nevertheless, I will be watching the inevitable Man of Steel sequel/Justice League prequel, regardless of who is directing. I give Man of Steel 2.99 out of 5 stars.



The Muppets

Expectations:
I absolutely love The Muppets! I spent like a billion hours, as a child, watching Muppets Treasure Island over and over and over again. To be honest, I never thought there would be a large renewal of interest in The Muppets. The world revolves around digital everything, and Pixar has redefined PG animation. Who would have thought that a bunch of puppets could pull in almost thirty million dollars on opening weekend? Certainly not me. Regardless of my surprise, I had great expectations for The Muppets. Jason Segel is one of the funniest men alive, and Kermit is one of the wisest. That combo is destined for success, as far as I am concerned. So I figured it was "time to see The Muppets".....

Plot:
Well, amazingly enough, the storyline for the new Muppets was quite good. Segel did a great job of using the classic Muppet storylines, characters, and themes. Obviously, it is much easier to make a remake with puppets rather than people. You don't have to worry about finding the right actor. You just take them out of the closet and turn a camera on. The Muppets were trying to get back together, after having all gone their separate ways. It was very realistic. I'm just glad they didn't start at the beginning or just act like there was never any kind of break or anything. It was sort of goofy and kidsy, but that's what you have to expect with a show about puppets.

Best Scene: The singing of "Rainbow Connection" will make anybody smile.
Characters:
Gary, played by Jason Segel, and his brother Walter, voiced by Peter Linz, are the main characters in the story. The two head off to Hollywood with two very different intentions. Walter eventually sets the whole plot into motion, and his character was great in the lead. You really wanted his wishes to come true, even though he was only a puppet. Segel certainly wasn't his normal kind of funny, which absolutely dissapointed me. I know that he tends to be crude, but I believe they could have made him more funny and less serious/dorky, even without losing the PG rating. Amy Adams was a little annoying as the female lead, but that is her job. There were multiple actors who popped in for a scene or two, making for a very nice surprise. It's sort of hard to go wrong with puppets.

Best Character: I thought that what they did with Animal (voiced by Eric Jacobson) was absolutely brilliant. He was sort of recovering from his past, which certainly made for the most interesting plotline for any of the puppets.

Worst Character: I will never EVER say that Kermit the frog is the worst character in anything, but I really hated his storyline in this new Muppets movie. They made Kermit look weak and emotional, which is absolutely false. He is supposed to be the one who has it all together!!! You just don't know how much this pissed me off!

Conclusion:
I honestly did not care for this movie. Everybody I talk to says how much they loved it, which probably means that none of you will agree with me. Maybe my expectations were too high, or maybe I just loved Arthur Christmas too much to appreciate anything soon after. Nevertheless, that's my opinion. While I do like the traditional Muppet toons, I usually dislike movies with a lot of music worked into the story. The music certainly could have been the reason why I didn't fully appreciate the movie. I really didn't care for any moment when humans were on screen. The puppets were fantastic, but Segel and Adams just got in the way most of the time. Now that I have vented, I will give The Muppets 2.47 out of 5 stars.

Movie News for the Week of August 26, 2011

Just in case you missed it last week, movie news has moved to Fridays. So be on the lookout for great news to share with your friends each and every weekend.

Also, the first trailer for The Hunger Games will air this Sunday, during the Video Music Awards. Be sure you check that out!

1. A writer named Sean Hood has submitted a screenplay for yet another Rambo film. He reportedly had some help from Sylvester Stallone while writing the script, which makes this something that very well could happen in the near future.

2. The Last Exorcism, made for just $1.6 million, has grossed $67 million since last year, which means there imminently will be an sequel. Production for the sequel is set to begin in the fall, and yet another "Last/Final" movie has failed to wrap up a series (I'm talking to you, The Final Destination).

3. In an interview with Denis Miller, Dan Akroyd revealed that Ghostbusters 3 was definitely happening and hopefully will include Bill Murray, who hasn't been keen on making a third film. Akroyd said that the classic ghostbusters would be passing the torch on to younger stars. Also, Matthew Gray Gubler (Criminal Minds) was mentioned by Akroyd as one of the younger stars that he had in mind.

4. Chevy Chase announced this week that he has scripted a new Vacation movie, without the National Lampoon tag. The story would revolve around the original characters, who would jump off of their cruise ship, thinking that the boat was on fire. The Griswolds would wash up on an island, where good ol' Randy was left after a season of Survivor. Sounds like a funny plot to me.

5. While it has been known that a Popeye movie is on the way to the big screen, this week it was rumored that Jim Carrey will voice the sailor man. Also rumored, Amy Adams will voice the character of Olive Oyl.

6. Although very little detail is known at this point, it has been reported that the Scary Movie franchise will get a fifth installment. No actors or directors have been linked to the film, but the studio wants it out next summer. They better hurry up!

7. There will be an additional bonus when you go watch The Muppets this November. Disney announced this week that a Toy Story short entitled "Small Fry" will play before you see Kermit and crew return to the big screen.

8. Along with the Toy Story news, Pixar made even bigger news this week when they announced concepts for two new films. The first film will be out in November 2013 and will take place in a world where dinosaurs never became extinct. The second film will be out in May of 2014 and will go "inside the human mind." Both of these sound interesting to me, and I cannot wait to trailers.

This is a compilation video that somebody made, and it contains the 25 Greatest Unscripted Scenes in Film. Some of them really surprised me. I think it's definitely worth a look.