I, Robot - A Retro-Review-

     Once again I'm bringing you faithful readers a film I didn't catch for one reason or another. I, Robot was made in 2004 and I didn't see it then, but I was probably doing something really important. *sigh* (cut to me crying at the end of my bed with my head in my hands. But thats another story!)

     The good news is that bringing this film to you now feels like perfect timing because it deals with some very relevant themes. In fact, although this flick was a financial success I think it was ahead of its time. Here's why;

THEMES DEALT WITH IN I, ROBOT

1: How the human race is neglecting the planet and ultimately the human race itself.

2: Prejudice and the definition of 'slavery'. 

3: The 'Right To Choose' debate; ie; What defines 'life'?

Now first of all if anyone is concerned about the film's assertion that we'll be living with intelligent robots in 31 years let me point to the work being done by Honda of Japan. I specifically point to ASIMO. Google it. As incredible as it is it'll set your mind at ease in the wake of this movie. Think Reality is to White as Fiction is to Black. Honda's robots are really fucking cool, but when you see them in action... you got nothing to worry about. 

Here's the poop:

Will Smith plays Detective Spooner from future Chicago's homocide department. He distrusts all robots. This is Smith in typical trademark glib, cooler-than-thou mode, and buff beyond all necessity! He hates robots and dammit if he's old fashioned, he'd rather have his grandma cook for him than some bastard old robot! Well now he lives in a society where robots are as common as iPods! But unlike iPods they follow three basic rules: 

1: Never Harm A Human

2: Obey any order given by a human unless it violates rule no. 1

3: Protect yourself at all costs unless it violates rules 1 or 2.

Well it just so happens his life was saved by a robot and he dreams of it nightly. 

So why the animosity? 

Well, the creator of the newest and best generation of robots (and indeed the father of all modern robotics) has committed suicide and as his last act summoned Spooner to the scene. 

From here an excellent line is delivered by the deceased creator, Dr. Alfred Lanning (the great James Cromwell), to Spooner when he says, "Everything that follows is a result of what you see here." 

This is the first piece in the foreshadowing puzzle that plays out through the entire film! Clues are dropped constantly, and I suspect this wasn't a directorial choice because they felt like they were meant to be more subtle than they were, but worked out to be more significant than they were intended!

From here Spooner investigates the scene and quickly finds a robot among the good doctor's things which doesn't want to comply to the usual commands. A suspect is identified, but wait; is it possible for a robot to violate the 3 laws and kill a human?

Aha! 

You'll have to find out for yourself!

But not without me paying tribute to a film that made this one possible:

Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey

Obviously a much more subtle meditation on the theme of man-made creations gone wild, Kubrick's film elevated the genre of science fiction and made it an acceptable mainstream subject. 

And keep in mind these facts you nerds: 2001 was made in 1968, the screenplay written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke in 1965.

I, Robot is an original story very loosely based on several short stories of Isaac Asimov.

Available on DVD everywhere

Hancock -A Movie Review-

As superhero movies become an accepted and even critically acclaimed genre more each day one has to take a step back and marvel at the reception received by Hancock. So many elements of this film are questionable, and I wonder 'what if'?

Hancock is a black superhero. Many would say 'It's about time!'. Sure! He also just happens to be an alcoholic who sleeps on park benches. And he has a sarcastic attitude. Fair enough. He also solves crimes but in his drunken process also destroys as much as he saves! Oh yeah, he has no recollection of who he his or where he's from.

Well one day Hancock meets Ray, who helps to reestablish Hancock as a proper hero and not just a drunken "asshole"; a label Hancock despises. 

Through rehabilitation Hancock becomes the hero Ray imagined and all is right with the world... until...

NO SPOILERS here, but suffice it to say there are a few fun twists! Hancock learns a little more about where he comes from and why he lost his memory 80 years ago. Oh, did I mention that he's immortal?

I'm really liking the seriousness with which Hollywood is treating superhero stories these days. Thank Tim Burton and Jack Nicholson for that! Beyond the camp there are some great character studies and this, at times, is one. 

John Hancock is conflicted. He doesn't know who he is or where he comes from. He rebels against the society he tries to rescue because rescuing is all he knows how to do, but he knows nothing of his society. He's lost. He finds guidance in Ray.

Here's the Poop:

I'm finally gonna retire my distaste for Will Smith. He, yet again, turns in an incredible performance. (See Happyness and I Am Legend.) He could have been glib and goofy as Hancock but he plays it real, and by real I mean like a real person, not a cartoon. The laughs come from the writing, not Will trying to be funny. 

Jason Bateman is typically good. I don't know how he manages to not be a huge star but he's able to carve out a career playing buddies and foils. His starring turn in the great television show Arrested Development (where he's first paired with Theron) not withstanding, he should be bigger than he is. His screen presence is undeniable. Maybe he should have a chat with Seth Rogen's agent! (they have mutuality in Juno and Forgetting Sarah Marshall! I'm just sayin!)

Charlize Theron is good as Ray's conflicted wife... but why is she conflicted... OOOHHH!

I've read a lot of shit about how this movie switches tones midway and then swings back but honestly I think it works. I liked the switch! I think it injected something new into the story and made this more than a superhero movie. 

In fact I pity the remake director. He's (or She's, but hopefully He's :)) gotta give us an equally complicated film with more action and somehow make these characters as relevant to each other as they were here. 

Good luck, unnamed director! (Unless it's Peter Berg, in which case I say "Just don't fuck it up!")

In regards to why I wondered at Hancock's reception? It was a financial success, fair enough. I just found it interesting that in order to get peoples attention it had to be about a black superhero who was an alcoholic loser. Would he have been as interesting as a rich playboy? 

Hey, maybe I'm the racist!

Look for Hancock at your local 2nd run theatres, or on DVD November 6th.

 

Wanted -A Movie Review-

Wanted is a big budget, high concept, well-planned but not so well written way better than average reworking of the Matrix, but sexier and quicker. 

Does that do it for you? 

How about the fact that Angelina Jolie is sexier than since her animated version in Beowulf? Not enough?

How about that the action sequences are funner than your best shoot-em-up fantasy times ten?! 

Still?!

How about the fact that it doesn't stop from beginning to end and if you need to stay up cos you have, like, a test tomorrow or a really big presentation and you need something more than Redbull to keep you awake all you have to do is rent Wanted and you'll be wide-a-fucking wake till the cows come home!

It's just good action!

Here's the Poop:

James McAvoy is a douchey accountant who one day realizes he's the descendant of an ancient line of assassins. Angelina tutors him in the ways of action-film killing and he excels! Yay! Until his life is on the line, and he has to put all his doubts behind him and fight for his life!!!!! Can he live up to his destiny? Oooooh! Let's watch!

The action sequences are so totally kick-ass! The fights rock! Angelina is sexier than she's ever been, and in the third act even James McAvoy reveals an incredible body! That aside, the performances are really good! Thats what saves this script-thin movie. Anyone who loved the Matrix will draw some comparisons but this movie stands alone in it's ability to deliver! It borrows but it pony's up the dough. What the fuck do I mean by that? Um... I guess Wanted asks for an Action Movie loan and the Matrix co-signed... 

Anyway, see Wanted! Despite the fact that I feel like I haven't heard much about it it got great critical reviews and made a shitload of money! 

Rottentomatoes.com places it at 73%. Not bloody bad!

See Wanted on DVD December 2!

Chapter 27 -A DVD Review-

Here is an independent film that you may not have heard of. This small production about the murder of John Lennon was brought to a tiny, mostly negative audience first at Sundance in 2007 and soon-after Berlin, finally premiering to North American audiences in March of 2008. The DVD was released in September of '08.

Chapter 27 is an interesting little film. The subject matter almost guarantees it an audience and yet it was a financial flop, taking in barely more than $56,000; enough to pay off my debts but not enough to make the investors very happy. I hope meeting Jared Leto was worth it! (Whoops, he was one of the producers!)

The Poop:

Chapter 27 follows Mark David Chapman (Leto) over the course of the three days prior to his infamous murder of icon John Lennon. 

Leto gained 65 pounds to transform himself from the skeletal pseudo punk-rock star wannabe we love from the magazines into the shlubby loser psychopath we always knew he could be. In this case, Mark David Whatsisname. 

Mark arrives in New York with the sole intention of meeting John Lennon armed with nothing but a book (The Catcher In The Rye), a gun, a few crazy, disembodied voices, and a dream. While hanging outside the Dakota Hotel with all the other groupies he meets Jude, played by Lindsay Lohan (we learn her name when her friend calls "Hey, Jude, are we going?" Hey Jude, get it?).

The film is a character study, approached from the outside but allowing us glimpses of the inside of Chapman's deranged mind. From the outset we are told through Leto's narration as Chapman that his past and the abuses of his parents is inconsequential to the story. We are told to focus on these three days knowing nothing (if, like myself, you are uninitiated). 

Leto plays Chapman as a self-pitying loser with a fascinating commitment that goes beyond his almost contrived weight-gain. I mean, it's impossible not to be fascinated by how fat he is compared to his usual skeletal appearance; completely unlike Robert De Niro in Raging Bull in which case a normal guy gained a few pounds. This is like Trevor Reznick becoming the world's fattest man at the circus. It's too obvious! However I'll say this; he is fascinating to watch! His portrayal, whether faithful or not is riveting most of the time. Leto, despite his silly public persona is a fantastic actor. This is a saving grace since he carries the film from the first frame to the last. He does a great job of keeping you interested in what this Chapman dude is gonna think or do next. 

Lindsay Lohan plays an interesting but ultimately unnecessary plot device called Jude. It's a shame cos Lohan is effective in her tiny role. 

And here is where I state, once again, for the record; despite her fucked up personal life as the press sees it, Lindsey is a talented actress. There I said it. Again. She's good. She just needs material challenging enough to make her really work hard. This wasn't it. This was practically a cameo. 

The actual murder was downplayed cos apparently the focus was meant to be on Chapman which is fine. He came, he waited, he killed. No answers are given to those who want answers. See this film if you just want to gain a little knowledge about what kind of guy Lennon was dealing with. 

I liked it. I don't know why Chapman did what he did. I don't know why humanity destroys the best of itself. What I do know is I'll never hang out waiting for an autograph because no signature in the world will make me a better person, and no book will ever sum up my life that I myself haven't written. 

This was three days in the life. You'll learn nothing. You'll just watch and feel how you feel. It's worth the 84 minutes. Lemme know in the comments if you disagree.

Available on DVD mostly everywhere.

Oscar is coming... look busy!

The date has been set; February 22, 2009!That's the day we'll learn which films campaigned hard enough to be recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Okay, clearly the Oscars are no yardstick by which to measure the merits of current films, but they usually get the popular ones right (although I loved No Country For Old Men, last year's Best Picture winner, I thought There Will Be Blood was one of the best films I'd ever seen! Daniel Day Lewis was acquitted by his win for Best Actor!).

However, soon enough we'll have our nominees for 2008 and aside from Heath Ledger's almost guaranteed (and more than well-deserved) posthumous nod for The Dark Knight I have no idea who to root for. 

Could Robert Downey Jr. see recognition for his awesomeness in an action flick like Iron Man? Sadly, prolly not. 

Will Woody get director props for Vicky Christina Barcelona? Mmm, again, sadly, prolly not. But then again...

What have you seen in the last year that deserves to be awarded?

Lemme know. 

I'm lost so far.

But then again I still have a lot of movies to see.

johnny