The Amazing Spider-Man 2

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
Directed by Marc Webb.

Continuing on with the really really late movie reviews...

I'm not going to say much about this one, because most of my feelings about it have been expressed by other people and I just don't feel like thinking about the movie very much.

I really like Andrew Garfield. He's a great actor and does very well portraying Peter Parker. And I love the on-screen chemistry between him and Emma Stone. I know about some of the things that happen in the comic canon (in a general sort of way), so I knew that she would die eventually, and that scene was well done and dramatic and painful just like it should have been.

But they fucked up the rest of the movie. You don't get over that kind of trauma in a five minute "seasons changing" montage. The audience doesn't. The character shouldn't. And dealing with it this way completely undermines the emotional weight of the characters death. And then to end the film with a completely back to normal Spidey? A happy, funny, sarcastic Spidey just like the one we met at the beginning of the film? Where's the character development? He should be angry, depressed, pissed-at-the-world Spidey. He should still be mourning at the beginning of the next movie so he can feel conflicted when he starts to fall for MJ and those emotions will actually feel genuine for the audience. I even think that Gwen's death should ultimately lead Peter to become a bigger risk taking Spidey. And Amazing Spider-Man 3 should end with the death of Peter Parker.

But that's just my opinion.

3 out of 5 stars.
Viewed at LOOK Cinemas Prestonwood in Dallas, TX on May 5, 2014.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

Just saw Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit…

It definitely had potential. The acting was good enough for an action popcorn flick and it had some nice set-pieces.

What disappointed me the the most was the writing. As an origin story, the prologue felt rushed, jumping from one event to the next. I understand the importance of showing how Ryan went from being a PhD student in Economics to joining the Marines to being recruited by the CIA, but I feel it all could have been done in a more cohesive way.

I was also very disappointed by Keira Knightly’s character. She performed it well enough, but what should have been a complex, intellectual, independent female role devolved into a typical action film damsel in distress. Her character had good moments, such as pushing Ryan to be more than his injury and debating Russian poetry with Kenneth Branaugh, but the rest seemed like a totally different character. The scene where Ryan reveals to her that he is in the CIA, which was probably meant to be a touching scene where she finally believes that he isn’t cheating, actually brought laughter from the audience — including myself — because of how ridiculous her reaction was.

I would like to see more of Pine’s Jack Ryan, but any sequels would have to do a much better job of honoring Tom Clancy’s work.

3 out of 5 stars.

Viewed February 8, 2014 at LOOK Cinemas Prestonwood in Dallas, Texas.

The Family

The Family (2013)
Directed by Luc Besson.

Luc Besson's films definitely have a style of their own, whether he is behind the camera, the pen, or both. While The Family fits in pretty well with the Transporter and Taken franchises, I found it much too unapologetically violent. And, to put it frankly, I didn't much care for the film.

There were some things I did like about it though. Robert De Niro did very well as the quirky ex-mobster turned writer, and his bromance with Tommy Lee Jones' perpetually exasperated Agent Stansfield was my favorite aspect of the film. Michelle Pfeiffer also performed well as the eccentric mob-wife, but beyond those three, I didn't find the other main actors (or perhaps their characters) very realistic.

The daughter, for instance, spends most of the movie kicking ass. But one glimpse of the spectacled teacher and she's so helplessly in love that she almost commits suicide when he doesn't give up his goals of being a teacher after knowing her for about a week. She says it's true love. I say it's unreasonable, poorly written, and undermines her strength as a character. And though she and her brother grew up with the mob, I find it hard to believe that they are as universally adept with firearms as the final showdown makes it seem.

But the film's biggest offense was that it failed to make me care about the characters.

What did you think about the Manzonis?

3 out of 5 stars.
Viewed September 17, 2013 at LOOK Cinemas Prestonwood Dallas, TX.

The Bourne Legacy

The Bourne Legacy (2012)
Directed by Tony Gilroy

How can you have a Bourne film without Jason Bourne? That was my main concern before seeing Legacy. Luckily the film did a good job of establishing how Jeremy Renner's Aaron Cross fits into the Bourne mythos.

Unfortunately, that is one of the few things that the film did well. I think JRen did a good job bringing Cross to life and Rachel Weisz portrayed Dr. Shearing's emotional state quite beautifully, but the rest of the characters felt stiff and underdeveloped. The most disappointing character for me was Edward Norton's Eric Byer. Almost every word that came out of Norton's mouth made me cringe, and I couldn't tell if it was due to bad writing, bad delivery, or both.

I'm not even going to try to explain how I feel about the worst part of the film: the end. The overall structure of the film was acceptable, but the ending was nonexistent. Perhaps it is meant to suggest that Cross and Shearing (and Bourne by extension) are doomed to live forever on the run? Or perhaps the writers just couldn't think of an ending that would cement the transition into the next Bourne film.

I have an idea! What if after Cross and Shearing made their escape on the boat, they discovered that they were being followed by another boat. As it approaches, Cross ninja jumps onto its deck, only to be attacked by.....Jason Bourne! They fight for a moment, until Bourne easily knocks Cross unconscious.

Cut to black.

Roll credits.

Even though Legacy wasn't everything I hoped it would be, I'm still very excited to see JRen and Matt Damon on screen together. How excited are you for the continuation of the Bourne franchise? Or are you secretly hoping Legacy will be a big enough bomb to sink the ship? Share your thoughts below!

3 out of 5 stars
Viewed August 27, 2012 at Denton Movie Tavern in Denton, TX

Dark Shadows

Dark Shadows (2012)
Directed by Tim Burton

In its opening weekend, Tim Burton and Johnny Depp's eighth collaboration made only $29 million, which makes it the eleventh biggest opening weekend of 2012.  In its defense, not even a Norse god can stand up to the Avengers.  Any chance of Shadows making a profit on its $150 million budget was swallowed up by Disney's fifth billion dollar film.

I haven't seen its source material, but Burton's film, especially the performances in it, does a good job of evoking the style of a 70's cult classic.  The film is cheesy, over the top, and funny.  Depp expertly channels the essence of the vampire-out-of-water, yet is able to maintain his humanity through his onscreen chemistry with all of the adult female characters.  That man is a ladykiller, even after being dead for 196 years.  How does he do it?

However, I found part of the performances to be quite distracting.  I will preface this by saying that I adore Helena and Eva, but their American accents left much to be desired.  Beyond this fact, the performances were spot on, even though the camp was so thick you could smell it.

The final word: If you're a big fan of Tim Burton you've probably already seen it.  If you aren't you should be, so catch a matinee showing for a fun time and some good laughs.

3 out of 5 stars.
Viewed May 15, 2012 at Mt. Pleasant Cinema 6.