Sunday, November 25, 2012

Flight - Review


FLIGHT
(2012 - November 2)
Drama
2 hr. 18 min.

Rated: R Intense action sequence, drug and alcohol abuse, vulgar language, sexuality and full frontal nudity. Common Sense Media says Iffy for 16+. Read More 
Grade: C
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writer:
John Gatins
Stars:
Nadine Velazquez, Denzel Washington and Carter Cabassa | See full cast and crew

A commercial airline pilot Whip Whitaker (Denzel Washington) has a problem with drugs and alcohol, though so far he's managed to complete his flights safely. His luck runs out when a disastrous mechanical malfunction sends his plane hurtling toward the ground. Whip pulls off a miraculous crash-landing that results in only six lives lost. Shaken to the core, Whip vows to get sober -- but when the crash investigation exposes his addiction, he finds himself in an even worse situation.
Like Rise of the Guardians, I had avoided seeing this film. Against my better judgement I decided I give it a chance after all I was pleasantly surprised by Rise of the Guardians. BIG mistake. The promos for this film basically consist of a 'bait and switch' scam. The trailers suggest a film about the heroics of a pilot who's plane crashes and the consequential investigation into the cause of the disaster that results in the death of both passengers and crew members. Yes, in fact, it is about that but the primary story is about drug and alcohol abuse, deceit, dysfunctional people and the scum that shield these jerks from culpability and personal responsibility. Granted he was not the cause of the accident, the accident did however bring to light his despicable selfishness and violation of the public trust that his job demands. His contempt for the passengers who pay his generous salary and put their lives in his drunken hands is appalling, yet director  Robert Zemeckis wants us to feel badly for him.



Watching Flight was as torturous as sitting through Leaving Las Vegas, more or less like watching the same film except set in the airline industry. If I'd wanted to see a film about immoral, vile, worthless, scumbags liars and their decisions of whether to go to AA or not, or blame others for their problems and the other scumbags that run interference for them (John Goodman follows up a particularly sleazy foul mouthed performance in Argo by going a step or two further in Flight) etc. etc. etc. I'd have sought out such a film. If I had wanted to see tasteless full frontal nudity (is it really necessary to hear the sounds of a woman on the toilet) I could have sought that out too. There is one particularly annoying and pointless monologue by a cigarette craving cancer patient (James Badge Dale), truly groan worhty.

The characters in this film are almost all unsympathetic, immoral or amoral, enabling, foul mouthed skanks. Why would I want to pay money to drag myself through the mud of their self-indulgent, egocentric, meaningless lives. The way the story plays out it's as if the plight of the poor, hapless, divorced, boozer, coke-head pilot is more important than the crash victims and their families who must deal with the lost lives of their loved ones...but noooo, poor Denzel, he has a DISEASE, he can't help himself, it's not his fault. Poor, poor Denzel. But wait, since he ultimately steps up to the plate at the last minute and does the right thing (much to the disdain of his friends and lawyer) all of his previous deceptions and efforts to avoid culpability is now to be forgiven and he can assume his role of the hero again.

Balderdash! Please spare me the P.C. sentimentality. Even if we consider the film for what it is. If we do want to see a film about the perils of substance abuse (Lecturing from Hollywood--now that's rich!). If we do think it can have a positive message and be a learning experience, a morality tale so to speak...why not make it so it can reach a younger audience where it would do the most good. That would merely require toning down the language and eliminating the absolutely gratuitous and pointless nudity and sordid sexuality. The film could then be given a PG-13 rating opening it up to a much broader audience, an audience that could learn something from the film's message before it is too late. My grade of a 'C' is probably generous but the acting is good and the air crash scene is quite compelling.

Plot
"Flight" tells the redemption story of "Whip" (Washington), a commercial airline pilot who pulls off a heroic feat of flying in a damaged plane, saving 98 lives on a flight carrying 106 people. While the world begs to embrace him as a true American Hero, the everyman struggles with this label as he is forced to hold up to the scrutiny of an investigation that brings into question his behavior the night before the doomed flight.
Cast
  Denzel Washington        Kelly Reilly         
 Whip Whitaker                     Nicole             
       Tamara Tunie        Brian Geraghty        Nadine Velazquez   
Margaret Thomason   Co-Pilot Ken Evans          Katerina Marquez
  John Goodman          Don Cheadle        Bruce Greenwood 
  Harling Mays                    Hugh Lang                Charlie Anderson

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Rise Of The Guardians - Review

Rise of the Guardians
(2012 - November 21)
Animation | Adventure | Family
97 min.

Rated: PG  Thematic elements and some mildly scary action
Grade: A-

Director: Peter Ramsey
Writers: David Lindsay-Abaire (screenplay), William Joyce (book)
Stars: Hugh Jackman, Alec Baldwin and Isla Fisher | See full cast and crew

Rise of the Guardians is an epic adventure that tells the story of a group of heroes - each with extraordinary abilities. When an evil spirit known as Pitch lays down the gauntlet to take over the world, the immortal Guardians must join forces for the first time to protect the hopes, beliefs and imagination of children all over the world. -- (C) Official Site 

After seeing the trailer for this film I was not excited about seeing it and avoided it until there wasn't anything else to see. I had read that the 3D version was worth the extra couple of dollars but I chose to see it in the regular 2D.

Will the children find Rise of the Guardians interesting? Definitely. Will parents be bored to death? I don't think so.

I was quite pleasantly surprised and I might, in fact, see it again in the 3D version. The animation in Rise of the Guardians along with Frankenweenie is probably the best of the year, perhaps the best in several years.
My main objection to this film is the banishment of any Christian relevance in the Christmas and Easter holidays in deference to the Hollywood pagan or humanist standards. This may leave you asking why does Santa have a Russian accent and why are his arms covered with tattoos and why is the Easter Bunny a six-foot tall Australian, but those are conundrums that you can discuss with your children. Those questions aside there is plenty of fantasy, adventure, tension and drama in The Guardians, and yet it still employes plenty of values, morals and life lessons in its story like loyalty, friendship, working together, discovering your purpose in life and so on, plus there is the Tinkerbell like mystery of 'Do yo believe in fairies?'. The film is based on "The Guardians of Childhood," a series of books by William Joyce.
Rise of the Guardians is a little bit like The Avengers, sort of a Hall of Fame band of children's Super-Heros. It is bursting with childhood icons like Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, the Sandman, Jack Frost and the Man in the Moon. This film is action packed with some mild violence revolving around the scary 'bad guy' Pitch Black a.k.a. the Boogie Man.
Pitch takes the dreams of children, left by the Sandman, and turns them into nightmares with his cavalry of wispy, menacing stallions. I would suspect that some of these scenes will seem more intense and frightening for the little ones in the movie's 3-D version. It includes some taunting language like "coward" and "selfish" and "go suck an egg," and includes the death of some characters. Whether they personally believe in these characters or not, kids will root for the Guardians as they fight the forces of chaos and despair.

Plot
Don't want to give anything away so we'll keep it brief and generic. Jack Frost loves creating fun for children. He is especially proud of 'Snow Days' when kids get a break from school and can play in the snow and have snow ball fights (some parents may be unsettled by the direct hits to the head some of the kids take). Suddenly Jack is captured and delivered through a portal to Santa's kingdom when an evil specter called Pitch Black becomes bent upon taking over the world by inspiring fear in the hearts of kids everywhere. Jack was summoned because the Man in the Moon has told the existing Guardians that Jack Frost has been chosen to join them, they must convince him to take up the cause before Pitch can snuff out the light of hope in every child of the world, but Jack isn't sure he wants to be a Guardian. The Guardians are a band of superheroes, who possess their own special powers. They must now join in opposition of a common foe, and they need Jack. The Guardians must heed the call and combine their powers to defeat Pitch and protect the world from his campaign of fear.
Cast
Jack Frost (voiced by Chris Pine), a carefree immortal figure who creates winter fun for children who don't really believe in him. Pitch Black (Jude Law) rallies his nightmare forces to cause worldwide despair and make children stop believing in the Guardians of Childhood: Santa Claus (Alec Baldwin), the Easter Bunny (Hugh Jackman), the Tooth Fairy (Isla Fisher), and the Sandman.
   Chris Pine   Hugh Jackman   
Jack Frost     Easter Bunny
    Isla Fisher     Jude Law  
    Tooth Fairy    Pitch Black
   Alec Baldwin    Sandman
   Santa
Jamie Bennett (voice)