"The Revenant" Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

                 "The Revenant" is a film directed Alejandro González Iñárritu about the legendary mountain man Hugh Glass, portrayed by Leonard DiCaprio. In the opening scenes Glass and his son Hawk (Forrest Goodluck) escape an Indian attack with a few members of their hunting party. As arrows fly from every direction, the men load as many animal pelts as possible onto a river boat and push off down the water. As the “scout” for the group, Glass suggests they ditch the boat and move up on land. The captain of the outfit, Andrew Henry (Domhnall Gleeson) supports the decision despite backlash from a brutish hunter named John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy). During the trek, Glass scouts ahead of the others and is surprised by a mama grizzly bear that mauls him beyond recognition. Somehow he survives and is left in the care of his son, Fitzgerald, and a teenager named Jim Bridger (Will Poulter) while the rest of the hunters move on to safety. Fitzgerald quickly gets antsy, and tries to suffocate Glass who seemingly agrees to the idea. However, Hawk interrupts the execution and confronts Fitzgerald who promptly stabs the young man to death while Glass, whose throat has been slashed by the bear, lies on a stretcher completely helpless. Ultimately, Fitzgerald hides Hawk’s corpse and dupes the kind-hearted Bridger into leaving Glass behind by falsely telling him of an impending Indian ambush. The rest of the movie is devoted to Glass and his journey back from being left for dead.

            Iñárritu’s style of filmmaking is simply captivating. His signature whip-pan movements and long takes immerse the viewer into the wild. In dynamic scenes such as the one where the hunters are attacked by Indians and shortly after when the bear horrifically mangles Glass, Iñárritu manages to create a sense of omniscience and simultaneously, total clarity. With “The Revenant” Iñárritu has made a film that looks painfully real; the wind and ice seem to bleed through the screen. It is Iñárritu’s first film since "Birdman", which won him Academy Awards for best picture and best director. In many ways, "The Revenant" seems to be the antithesis of "Birdman". This film isn't confined to a city and a dialogue heavy plot; instead the story occurs in a place that seems a million miles from civilization. Every shot reveals nature in its most raw form. From the streams to the trees to the vast mountainous landscapes, "The Revenant" is truly mesmerizing and beautiful.

             Despite superb filming, intuitive directing, and powerful acting, “The Revenant” falls short because there simply isn’t much to think about upon the film’s conclusion. While Glass’ journey is intriguing, his motivation to survive culminates in a bleary final scene in which he finds that revenge is in God’s hands and not his own. “The Revenant” is much more of a visual experience than a thought-provoking film. It’s hard to glean any meaning from watching a groaning, bloody pulp of a man crawl his way through the snow for two and half hours. If anything, “The Revenant” succeeds most in presenting the American West as a harsh environment inhabited by even harsher people.

          There are a few flashbacks that provide some context for Glass’ identity, but nothing concrete. In truth, very little is revealed about any of the characters. The main villain is John Fitzgerald. Tom Hardy probably didn’t have to spend too much time getting into character because Fitzgerald is equally rambling and incoherent as was Max Rockatansky, who Hardy portrayed this past summer in “Mad Max: Fury Road”. Unlike Max, however, Fitzgerald is singularly selfish and unlikeable. He spends the majority of the film stomping around and grunting racist comments about Indians. Poulter shows more depth as Jim Bridger, who is truly conflicted over leaving Glass out in the wilderness to die, but never gets enough screen time to fully develop. DiCaprio turns in an incredible performance as Glass, but does far more suffering than speaking. 

          There is a scene early on in the film where Glass excruciatingly drags himself along the ground gripping handfuls of dirt and snow that scrape against his flayed fingers. After consoling the frozen corpse of his son, Glass manages to crawl into a clearing onto the edge of a cliff revealing a vast and gorgeous valley below. This scene captures the essence of “The Revenant”.In a place dominated by violence and gore there is also tremendous beauty. The film is hard to watch, but there are often moments where you just have to sit back and appreciate the way the camera moves and the striking imagery it reveals. With “The Revenant”, Iñárritu proves his mastery of filmmaking while DiCaprio proves his depth and breadth as an actor. While a lack of narrative and meaning hold “The Revenant” back from greatness, the film overcomes it’s plot deficiencies through outstanding imagery and a masterful display of directing and acting.

"Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens" Review

OP-ROB RATING: STARTER

“Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens” is the latest installment of the “Star Wars” movie franchise conceived by George Lucas. The series opened in 1977 with “Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope”.  Being part of the most famous movie series in film history, “The Force Awakens” has received a considerable amount of hype over the past few years, ever since its official announcement in 2013. The man in charge of living up to this tsunami of expectation is director J.J. Abrams. Fortunately, Abrams is no stranger to this type of pressure, he handled “Mission: Impossible III” in 2006 as well as “Star Trek” and “Star Trek: Into Darkness” in 2009 and 2013, and received critical acclaim for his work with the treasured franchises. With “The Force Awakens”, Abrams has once again employed his ability to craft a blockbuster that appeals to old and new fans alike.

             As the iconic opening credits explain so well, the Galactic Empire has fallen and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) has disappeared. The power vacuum created by the Empire’s demise has been filled by the equally sinister “First Order”. Combatting the First Order is the “Resistance” led by General Leia Organa (Carrie Fisher). In the opening scene the best fighter pilot in the Resistance, Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac), is on the arid planet of Jakku looking for a map that leads to Luke Skywalker. Dameron finds the map, only to be ambushed by stormtroopers of the First Order.  To ensure the map’s safety, Dameron stores it in his droid, BB-8, who escapes the stormtrooper attack and rolls off into the desert. BB-8 is fortuitously scooped up by a “scrapper” girl named Rey (Daisy Ridley), who quickly learns the droid’s story. Meanwhile, Dameron is taken prisoner by the First Order and interrogated by Kylo Ren (Adam Driver), a dark lord with extraordinary force powers. Ren obtains knowledge of BB-8 from Dameron and informs the First Order of the droids importance.

            In the midst of this opening, Rey emerges as one of two main protagonists, the other being a stormtrooper known as FN-2187 (John Boyega). During the village attack on Jakku, FN-2187 witnesses a fellow stormtrooper and presumably a friend die in thick of the fight. The dying stormtrooper reaches up to FN-2187 and in doing so wipes some blood onto the clean, white helmet. This simple detail marks an otherwise anonymous stormtrooper, and shows a glimpse at actual blood, something rarely seen in the Star Wars universe. In this brief moment of foreshadowing we are introduced to FN-2187, or “Finn”, as he is later known in the film. Finn makes it out of the battle alive, but emotionally disturbed and disillusioned with the First Order. Post-interrogation, Finn breaks Dameron out of the war cruiser and together they steal a “TIE Fighter” which they crash-land back on Jakku. Through a series of events Finn eventually links up with Rey, and their adventure begins.

            Knowing the high-stakes, Abrams doesn’t venture very far off of the battle tested Star Wars formula. Summarily there is a “Death Star”-like threat to the galaxy that must be stopped; Rey and Finn are the main heroes; Kylo Ren is the lead villain. While it is Rey, Finn, and Ren that drive the story’s narrative, there is a slew of supporting characters both new and old. Princess Leia returns as General Leia Organa, Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) also make substantial contributions to the new adventure. Other characters include General Hux (Domnhall Gleeson) who runs the more technical side of the First Order, much like General Moff Tarkin (Peter Cushing) did in the original trilogy; in addition, the appears the mysterious Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis) who resembles Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid) from both of the older trilogies.

             “The Force Awakens” is a passing of the baton from one era to the next. It pays homage to an older, much beloved series while spreading seeds for the new generation. This strategy keeps the film relevant to both seasoned fans and people seeing “Star Wars” for the first time. It's also what holds “The Force Awakens” back from being truly great. The film is caught in between two visions, and can't live up to either. The older characters are less potent, and the new ones are not well developed. Abrams devotes too many scenes to old characters that don’t necessarily contribute to the story, and wastes dialogue on references to previous films in order to generate laughs or strike a sentimental note. The biggest disappointment of the film is Kylo Ren. I was expecting an intimidating, formidable foe but instead saw a spoiled, insecure, little punk. While I respect Abrams more humanistic approach to creating a villain, Ren just cannot be taken seriously. In more than one scene he reacts to bad news by throwing a hissy fit and slashing up expensive consoles with his fancy lightsaber like a toddler. On the light side, the strongest assets of “The Force Awakens” are both Rey and Finn. Daisy Ridley and John Boyega bring a level of emotion to their respective characters that is seldom seen even in the original trilogy.

               While the film isn't groundbreaking on its own, it certainly shows great promise for the future. Rey and Finn are both extraordinary heroes that I'll look forward to seeing more of. Now that older characters have been dealt with, the story can move on into a world of endless possibilities. While Abrams first Star Wars outing feels a bit stuck in the past, it sets an exciting precedent for subsequent films. 

"Creed" Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

“Creed” is the newest installment of the “Rocky” series, which it reflects in many ways. However, this time around Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) is old and in very poor health. He doesn’t throw a single punch. If the title of the film isn’t clear enough, the main focus is on Adonis “Donny” Johnson/Creed (Michael B. Jordan), the illegitimate son of the great Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). For those that haven’t seen the films, Apollo was one of Rocky’s greatest rivals and friends who died in the ring before his son was born. In the opening scenes we are introduced to the rowdy, troubled little boy named Adonis who is spending his time in a youth penitentiary when Mary Anne Creed (Phylicia Rashad), Apollo’s widow, shows up to take in the young boy as her own. Donny then grows up in the Creed’s L.A. mansion and despite an education and a great job, opts to pursue a career in the ring as a boxer.

In most ways, “Creed” is similar to any other “Rocky” movie. The main hero is introduced with challenges and obstacles that he must overcome. There is a love interest fulfilled by a musician named Bianca (Tessa Thompson).  There are training montages and a culmination scene in the same spirit as the very first “Rocky”. Ultimately Donny ends up in the ring with a formidable fighter named “Pretty Ricky” Conlan (Tony Bellew) and must face everything he has learned and struggled to achieve. While all of these events may seem cliché and boring, “Creed” finds ways to become unique and take on a name of its own.

A defining hurdle that Donny must jump is his own privilege. Unlike most fighters, he has come from considerable wealth and opportunity. When he first shows up to a gym in Philadelphia, the trainer belittles him by giving him the nickname “Hollywood”. Even after proving his toughness with a solid victory against a hardened Philadelphia fighter, Donny still faces the challenge of earning the name Creed. Another key plotline is that of the old hero, Rocky Balboa. Rocky has finally hung up the gloves and is even reluctant to enter a boxing gym before Donny is able to convince him to become a trainer. Seeing the Italian Stallion so beaten down is quite sobering, but it confronts an actuality that the previous “Rocky” film, “Rocky Balboa” vehemently denied.

“Creed” excels under the direction of Ryan Coogler, who has worked with Michael B. Jordan before on the film "Fruitvale Station". Some of the most exhilarating shots in the film come in the big fight with Conlan. Instead of randomly circling the fighters, Coogler sets the camera over the shoulder of the man with the upper hand in the fight.  It goes from Conlan to Donny and back again throughout much of the boxing match. In "Creed" the ring feels more brutal than in previous "Rocky" films, with shots of blood splashing the mat and deep gashes being sealed up. The streets of Philadelphia also come to life in a way that showcases the reality of the city. There are scenes with dirt biker gang’s in the road; in another scene Bianca takes Donny to a local cheesesteak dive. Without romanticizing anything Coogler manages to bring authenticity to the story. Knowing the grit of the streets and the brutality of the ring is crucial for Donny to become a Creed. It is also necessary to the viewer in order to be fully immersed in the story.

The weaker points of "Creed" are in the storylines involving his mother and his girlfriend. Rashad gets maybe ten lines as Mary Anne Creed, and she essentially disappears after the first scene only to return when watching the big fight from her home in L.A. Bianca also feels dispensable to the story. Even though her character is intriguing, she doesn't add to Donny's character like Adrian (Talia Shire) did for Rocky in the first film. She basically serves as the token love interest and little else. While both of these roles were convenient for the story, their lack of purpose takes away from the final product.

Despite a relatively long run time of 133 minutes “Creed” keeps an impressive pace. The film builds steady momentum and the final fight is truly thrilling. In an ending scene that is both original and sentimental, “Creed” finishes on very strong footing in lieu of a few missteps here and there along the way. While "Creed" is not necessarily anything new, it manages to shake up an age-old story enough to bring new sparks to the narrative. With a powerful soundtrack and convincing performances from both Jordan and Stallone, "Creed" is a winner, even if by split decision.

"Spotlight" Review

OP-ROB RATING: LEGEND

“Spotlight” is a film directed by Thomas McCarthy about The Boston Globe’s investigation of sex abuse within the Roman Catholic Church in and around Boston. Within the Globe, the particular investigative team is called “Spotlight” and is led by Walter “Robby” Robinson (Michael Keaton). Michael Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo), Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams), Matt Carroll (Brian d’Arcy James), and Ben Bradlee (John Slattery) make up the rest of the investigative team. In the opening scenes these characters roam about the busy office of the Globe working on finding a new topic that deserves Spotlight’s attention. Their choice is essentially made for them when the new editor of the Globe, Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber), pushes Robby to investigate the Catholic Church and the possibility of a sex abuse scandal involving more than a few rogue priests. As a new editor, a Jew, and a non-Bostonian, Baron is not the most popular man in the office at the beginning of the film. Despite a fair amount of pushback, Robby and his team reluctantly begin work. Within the first couple weeks of investigation, the Spotlight team discovers that they have stumbled upon something far bigger than expected. As each reporter discovers more bad priests, more victims, more cover-ups, and more excuses, the story might risk losing focus. However, in “Spotlight” McCarthy sticks to the actual reporters, as each is affected by the investigation in different and profound ways.

“Spotlight” deals with such horrific issues that it is often hard to watch. In one scene where Sacha interviews a survivor, she explains that he must give more detail than simply saying, "molested". For the sake of her story she needs to know exactly what happened. Many of the interviews with victims are disturbing and gut-wrenching. As the film reveals, many of the individuals who are molested by priests go on to lead abject adult lives filled with emotion instability, drug addiction and sometimes suicide. The scenes with survivors revealing sickening details are tough to sit through, but even tougher are the scenes where the bigger picture is revealed. The revelation that it is not just “a few bad apples” in the priesthood is the hardest to stomach. A watershed moment in the film comes when an expert reveals to the Spotlight team that extensive research indicates that 6% of priests are involved in pedophilic activity during their careers. After hearing this statistic the team simply sits in shock; so does the audience.

The most impressive aspect of “Spotlight” is the simplicity of the film. Most scenes are presented an unloaded frame, with people simply speaking to one another. Characters talk to each other and McCarthy allows them to act instead of constantly cutting to close-ups or ramping up a shot. While all of the performances are excellent, the very best are delivered by Stanley Tucci as Mitchell Garabedian and Mark Ruffalo as Michael Rizendes. Garabedian is an explosive lawyer for those affected by pedophile priests. He is a man who knows just how horrible the situation is and how evil the are actions to cover it up. Rizendes is one of the reporters on the story, and the investigation pulls at him the most visibly. As a lapsed Catholic, Rizendes explains in one scene how he thought that he would always return to the faith. Even though he was no longer a practicing Catholic, the fact that it was still there for him was important, and what Spotlight has discovered has destroyed any possibility of return to the church. As Rizendes finishes his thought, he explains to Sacha that it’s a “shitty feeling”.

  I had seen the Alex Gibney documentary “Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God” before seeing “Spotlight”, so I was pretty familiar with this widespread problem. Gibney’s documentary is quite good, but it gets so wound up in the overall spectacle of the scandal that it feels somewhat detached. “Spotlight”, however, is anything but distant. The dialogue is intuitive and stimulating. Each progression of the story is pointed and concise. While the issue of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church is a major theme of the film, “Spotlight” is focused on the courageous men and women who brought it to light. While it is certainly not a film that I would watch for enjoyment, “Spotlight” is a superb work of film, and vitally important as a topic of contemporary society.

"Spectre" Review

OP-ROB RATING: BUST

When Daniel Craig was first cast for the role of James Bond, a great many people swore he was too short, too coarse, and too blonde. Ian Fleming probably rolled over in his grave when the decision came out. However, with "Casino Royale", Craig not only proved he deserved to be 007, but also added an unprecedented level of depth to the storied character. With uneven storytelling, "Quantum of Solace" took a step back from the excellence of "Casino Royale", but Blonde Bond came surging back to life under the direction of Sam Mendes with “Skyfall” in 2012. Now, in what may be his last outing, Daniel Craig is back in the new film “Spectre” with Mendes again directing.

Picking up from "Skyfall", Bond is still trying to stop a secretive web of enemies, meanwhile trying solve mysteries from his past. Starting off in Mexico City and bouncing from there to London, Rome, Austria, Tunisia and back to London, Bond picks up clues and ultimately comes face to face with his most powerful opponent yet. This villain is his estranged step brother, Ernst Blofeld played by Christoph Waltz. "Spectre" is a quite beautiful and stylish affair. The locations shot in the film are striking, with the snow covered Austrian mountains, the streets of Rome and London, and the sandy desert in Tunisia. Even the polluted streets of Mexico City look terrific. Bond and his main female companion in the film, Dr. Madeleine Swann (Lea Seydoux) can be observed wearing fine designer clothing looking like they just stepped out of a photo shoot with Vanity Fair.

“Spectre” is visually tantalizing, however the story that unfolds is far less exciting than the visuals and the action scenes.  Unlike its predecessor, "Spectre" opts for the typical Bond formula. There are several sexual encounters, a brutish henchman, an evil lair, and a cerebral super villain. Sam Mendes includes some nice throwbacks to the old Bond films, but the story lacks any real substance. The most confusing aspect of "Spectre" is the main love interest, Dr. Madeleine Swann. Bond and Swann meet briefly and inexplicably fall in love after a few short scenes, but the relationship is never developed/explained. Another shabby piece of "Spectre" occurs when Bond is subjected to torture by tiny needles that literally do nothing. In the very same scene the “super smart” Blofeld makes the boneheaded mistake of not confiscating Bond's watch which any old bloke knows can just as easily blow up as tell the time. If that’s not baffling enough, Bond manages to shoot down a helicopter with one nicely placed bullet from his Walther PPK pistol. These things cross the line and make “Spectre” feel more like a satire about spy films rather than a serious Bond film.

The funniest and most memorable scene in the movie happens when Bond confronts a mouse that scurries into his hotel room in Tunisia. Sitting, slouched in a chair drinking a Heineken, Bond points his pistol at the rodent and asks, "Who sent you? Who are you working for?" Besides the humor, this is one of the few scenes where Bond becomes human. He's just a guy drinking beer and having a little fun. It's this more relatable side of Bond that made Craig a game changer. When the hero has “Everyman” qualities it makes his story more believable and realistic to the viewer. This same idea can be seen in "The Dark Knight" when the mighty Batman strains in his office chair trying to stitch his own shoulder up. Unfortunately, "Spectre" misses the opportunity to reveal more of the character of James Bond, and opts for cheap thrills and a rickety storyline resulting in one of the biggest disappointments this movie season.

"Steve Jobs" Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

       The most recent biopic of the Apple icon Steve Jobs is directed by Danny Boyle (“Slumdog Millionaire”, “127 Hours”) and written by Aaron Sorkin (“The Social Network”). The film is simply titled, “Steve Jobs” and stars Michael Fassbender in the lead role. The majority of “Steve Jobs” takes place in three, approximately one-hour windows in 1984, 1988 and 1998, right before the launches of the Macintosh 128k, the NeXT Computer and finally the iMac. The theme of chaos before each launch is crystallized when Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) sighs and tells his colleague and confidant Joanna Hoffman (Kate Winslet), “It’s like five minutes before every launch everyone goes to the bar and then tells me what they really think of me.” Several flashbacks are sprinkled throughout the film, including the iconic founding of Apple in Jobs’ parents’ garage in Los Altos, California, as well as the “firing” of Jobs after the commercial failure of the Macintosh.

       Within the scaffolding of these three major events, "Steve Jobs" narrows in on three different relationships, each of which reveals a definitive piece of the main character.  These three people are John Sculley (Jeff Daniels), the former CEO of Apple; Steve Wozniak (Seth Rogen), a fellow co-founder of Apple; and Lisa Brennan (Perla Haney-Jardine, Ripley Sobo, Makenzie Moss), Jobs’ daughter.

         The Sculley and Jobs relationship is one of rival ideologies. Sculley is trying to run a company the produces some form of profit, while Jobs is more focused on what he believes to be the future. Jobs’ ideals are made clear through his unrelenting devotion to a “closed system”, denying customization of the Macintosh, NeXT and iMac computers. Sculley understood at the time of the Macintosh’s release, that a closed system fatally inhibits sales. This is just one of the many examples of Jobs’ futuristic vision getting in the way of immediate financial success of the earliest Apple computers.  (You say “one of many examples” – are there others in the movie?)  In the scene where Jobs is voted out by the shareholders in an ultimatum, Jobs exclaims, “I sat in a garage and invented the future because artists lead and hacks ask for a show of hands."

            Another major facet of the film is Jobs’ friendship with Steve Wozniak. Throughout the film, Wozniak seeks recognition from Jobs for his part in starting the company as well as creating the Apple II computer. The Apple II was the company’s first commercial product that had been funding the Macintosh. Jobs had very little to do with its design and function and refused Wozniak a public acknowledgement at the launch of the Macintosh in ‘84. Before the launch of the NeXT, Wozniak and Jobs have a heated conversation in the orchestra bay of Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco. At this point in the story, Jobs has gained incredible fame and is recognized as a genius while Wozniak remains unknown. Feeling slighted, Wozniak lashes out at his friend saying, “You can’t write code. You’re not an engineer. You’re not a designer. You can’t put a hammer to a nail. I built the circuit board… What do you do?” Boyle and Sorkin uncover another piece of Jobs’ persona when he responds, “I play the orchestra. And you’re a good musician. You sit right there (pointing to an empty chair). You’re the best in your row.”

            Finally there is the relationship between Jobs and his daughter, Lisa Brennan. In 1984, Jobs refuses to acknowledge any relation to the little girl, citing a “twenty-eight percent chance” that her father could be any man in America. In the scene before the iMac launch in 1998, it is revealed that Jobs has refused to pay Lisa’s college tuition fees. This aspect of Jobs’ life is the most complicated and raises the most questions about his moral standing and legacy. However, in the film’s dramatic culminating scene Jobs seems to come to terms with his daughter and they share a tender moment together.

           "Steve Jobs" presents a muddled picture of a man most people want so desperately to celebrate and admire. The facts of the film have been hotly disputed by Jobs' former friends, colleagues and family. However, in a biopic such as this do the details matter as much as the attitude? Every human being who has had the opportunity to use an Apple product is aware of Steve Jobs' brilliance and innovation. What Danny Boyle and Aaron Sorkin have done with "Steve Jobs" is make us aware of his complexity. Whether or not the drama is 100% accurate, "Steve Jobs" is an immersive and intriguing exploration into the character of the most influential businessman of the past five decades.

"Sicario" Review

OP-ROB RATING: LEGEND

In Mexico, Sicario is a word for hitman, it is also the title for Denis Villeneuve’s latest film. The majority of “Sicario” takes place in arid places where law and order has dried up along with the water. Kate Macer (Emily Blunt) is an FBI agent specializing in kidnappings who has just led a raid on a house in Arizona filled wall to wall (literally) with bloody corpses. The raid also resulted in the untimely death of two police officers. In order to exact revenge on the men responsible, she agrees to get onboard with a Department of Defense joint operation with Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) and his steely eyed colleague Alejandro (Benicio del Toro). A complete outsider to the inner workings of the cartel, Kate asks Alejandro if there is anything she should know, his response is, “You’re asking me how a clock works. For now let’s just keep an eye on the time.” The first stop for the group is in El Paso, Texas, where they link up with a team of Delta Force soldiers and a few Texan Deputies. Before she has time to think, Kate is strapped into a bullet-proof vest and driven across the border into Ciudad Juarez where she gets her first full dose of harsh realities surrounding the Mexican cartel.

Silence is the defining element in “Sicario”. The majority of the film is accompanied solely by diegetic sound, loud noises are sparse in between conflicts. As a result, moments of gunfire sound louder, and feel more intense. The background music in the film comes from the award-winning composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. Denis Villeneuve only cues the music when a scene is being built up. The moments of greatest suspense occur when people are allowed to just stare at each other, or sign a piece of paper in complete silence. This style of filmmaking is such a far cry from most action movies released today that are so noisy in their entirety, and boy is it refreshing. The quiet scenes allow time to think about the potent message that “Sicario” delivers.

In a scene near the end of the movie, a group of soldiers (including Kate, Matt and Alejandro) descend a hill into hostile territory. The silhouettes of armor clad operatives get consumed by the blackness against the backdrop of a beautiful desert sunset. As far as the audience is concerned, there are two worlds that exist in “Sicario”, one is defined by law and procedure, and the other by competition and havoc. Each has a measure of justice that must be exacted. “Sicario” brings into question the means by which order is achieved in the darkness.

Josh Brolin turns in a familiar performance as Matt Graves, a smug Texan reminiscent of Llewelyn Moss from the Coen Brothers’ masterpiece “No Country for Old Men”. Benicio del Toro is equally convincing as Alejandro, a poised assassin with knack for interrogations and a surprising amount of depth. Emily Blunt delivers an inspired performance as an embattled idealist. Her character, Kate, must either come to terms with unforgiving realities or cling to her principles in the face of certain death. One of the secondary characters in “Sicario” is a corrupt Mexican cop named Silvio (Maximiliano Hernández). In most action thrillers, Silvio wouldn’t have a backstory, he would simply serve his role as a nameless bad guy. In “Sicario” however, Silvio is not only given a name but also a home, a wife and a son. The audience is given a window to see what his life is like in the small town of Nogales. For a movie essentially titled “hitman”, this complexity is surprising. “Sicario” is a complex, intense, and culturally important film that isn’t afraid to test the boundaries of the war on drugs. It is the best film I have seen so far this year.

"The Martian" Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

         Mark Watney, played by Matt Damon, is an astronaut who has been left stranded on Mars. His crew presumed that he died during the storm that curtailed their mission. However, Watney has survived and now must find a way to live four years on a planet with harsher conditions than any on earth. Why four years? That is when the next mission to Mars is set to land. Back on his home planet, NASA must deal with the public reaction to the news of a dead astronaut. After some satellite pictures reveal movement near the HEB (the crew’s temporary base on Mars), NASA realizes that Watney is still alive, and the plans regarding a possible rescue mission are set into motion.

        Throughout the film there is the contrast between relative simplicity of Watney’s survival on Mars and the politics of governmental agencies on Earth. Watney must solve complex problems in order to obtain simple necessities like food, water, and heat. Down on earth, the President of NASA, Teddy Sanders (Jeff Daniels), and his team have to juggle the possibilities and consequences of saving Watney. A failed mission costing more lives could jeopardize the future of space travel; a successful mission could secure it. With the whole world watching on network news, NASA must perform a daring rescue; the only question is whether it will be completed in time to save Watney.

            Not as fantastical as “Interstellar” and not as simplistic as “Gravity”, “The Martian” finds a spot somewhere in between. Despite what the title may imply, there are no aliens in the movie. There are no unheard of planets or ridiculous time travel theories. “The Martian” devotes itself to science, and the celebration of intellect. Watney must find ways to subsist in a shelter built to last less than three months, figure out how to contact NASA, as well as grow food on a planet with no water. As Watney jokingly records on a monitor, “I’m going to have to science the shit out of this!”

        Despite Watney’s dire circumstances, “The Martian” is a surprisingly lighthearted affair. The film is laced with jokes, and Watney is undyingly optimistic. It is this levity that makes “The Martian” so much fun to watch, and distinguishes it from other recent space movies.  Notwithstanding this, I will have to say that there is one sequence in “The Martian” that is so similar to one in “Gravity” that there may be some copyright infringement lawsuits on the horizon for director Ridley Scott. However, despite this one oddly similar scene, the overall tone of this film is completely different.

             Many of the characters, with the one exception of Teddy Sanders, mirror the optimistic spirit of Watney. Vincent Kapoor (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and Mitch Henderson (Sean Bean) are both NASA experts who carry the slogan “no man left behind” and fight against the doubts regarding a risky rescue mission. This sentiment is shared by Watney’s crewmembers that include Beth Johanssen (Kate Mara), Rick Martinez (Michael Pena), Alex Vogel (Askel Hennie), Chris Beck (Sebastian Stan) and the captain of the crew Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain). Other noteworthy characters include the nervous wreck NASA PR director Annie Montrose, played by Kristen Wiig, Zhu Tao (Chen Shu) an engineer for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Richard Purnell (Donald Glover) a college aged wiz with an innovative idea for a rescue.

            “The Martian” is a welcome return to space for director Ridley Scott, whose last space movie, “Prometheus”, came with great promise and little satisfaction. What’s proved in “The Martian” is that simplicity is the key. Scott manages to get the audience enthusiastic about the farming of potatoes, and the inner workings of a government agency. Behind the strong lead performance of Matt Damon there need not be any encounters with slimy, hostile aliens or a jump through a black hole. Farming potatoes in a space base on a planet with no water is challenging and exciting enough. “The Martian” is an enthralling story of human perseverance and triumph of intelligence; such a quality of film seems “extra-terrestrial” at the movies these days.

"The Visit" Review

OP-ROB RATING: BENCH

M. Night Shyamalan must have some deep seeded fears and insecurities when it comes to the elderly. As it turns out, so do many other younger people. In his new movie, “The Visit”, Shyamalan plays to these inhibitions. Paula Jamison (Kathryn Hahn) hasn’t seen her parents since the day she stormed out on them and ran off with her boyfriend. Now several years later, her boyfriend has bailed on Paula and their two teenagers, Becca (Olivia DeJonge) and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould). Out of the blue, Paula’s parents have reached out and asked to meet Becca and Tyler. Tentatively, Paula has agreed to put the two on a train to rural Masonville, Pennsylvania to stay with her estranged parents for a few days. Hence we have “The Visit”.

The grandparents are John and Doris Jamison, (Peter McRobbie and Deanna Dunagan), and at first, they come off as a caring and simple old couple looking to start a relationship with their grandchildren. They greet the kids at the train station and head out to their old farmhouse all set for a week of bonding. A commanding feature of the film is that we see the tale unfold “found-footage” style. Becca, while only fifteen, has decided to shoot a documentary about the visit, hoping that the footage can provide some sort of healing “elixir” to her family situation.

Things start off well, however it is as early as the first night that the kids get their first dose of “old people” weirdness. Becca ventures out of her room past curfew seeking a late-night snack, and instead stumbles upon Doris who is pacing around beneath the staircase vomiting ferociously. Things get stranger the next day when Tyler explores a shed only to discover a massive pile of soiled diapers. When the kids tentatively ask about these occurrences John dismisses Doris’ episode citing the flu, and simply that “she’s an old woman”. Doris covers for John’s collection of diapers telling Tyler that he has “incontinence” and is embarrassed about it.

Shyamalan does well playing with the audiences feelings about old people. In general we understand how they can sometimes be sickly, or in some way a little strange albeit very warm and caring. The oddities of the story are believable enough within an old person stereotype right up until Shyamalan lays down his “twist” and all the eerie episodes makes sense. Shyamalan utilizes the “first-person” view to increase suspense, and make the scenes feel more enclosed and claustrophobic. While “The Visit” is a vast improvement compared to Shyamalan’s notorious streak of bombs including “The Happening”, “The Last Airbender” and “After Earth”, it still isn’t in the same ballpark as his earliest films due to the duo of ghastly teenagers played by DeJonge and Oxenbould and a weak supporting narrative.

Becca comes off as a hormonal dilettante and Tyler as a wannabe version of Soulja Boy, although he fancies himself more in the realm of Tyler the Creator. The fact that Becca finds it appropriate to make a documentary about first meeting her grandparents is ridiculous, and she extinguishes any likeability she has by saying things like “don’t touch it, let it swing naturally” when recording a shot of a swing. Tyler is equally unpalatable with his self-proclaimed rapper name “T-Diamond Stylus” and nauseating rhymes.

Behind the sturdy horror plot, Shyamalan inserts a “coming-of-age”/redemption element that never really secures footing. Somehow Becca and Tyler must face their demons regarding their absentee father and throughout the horrific unfolding of events in “The Visit”, they both find themselves. This ramshackle backstory is clichéd and ultimately an excuse for a sickening final act.

There are flashes of the genius that directed “The Sixth Sense” and “Signs” in several scenes throughout “The Visit”. These moments of true suspense and surprise are encouraging indications that Shyamalan may be returning to form. However, “The Visit” was equally as annoying as it was enthralling, and only noteworthy because of its director’s recent flops. 

"No Escape" Review

OP-ROB RATING: BENCH

The new thriller, “No Escape” opens with a bloody political assassination, perpetrated by rebels in red bandanas. Forget any explanation for this startling tip-off to the movie, because the director, John Erick Dowdle, winds back the clock a few hours and puts us on a plane with Jack and Annie Dwyer (Owen Wilson and Lake Bell) and their two daughters, Beeze and Lucy (Sterling Jergins and Claire Geare). This happy family of four is headed to Southeast Asia, where Jack has been hired as a water valve engineer by a water company called Cardiff. On the flight, Beeze drops her beloved stuffed animal below her seat where it is picked up and returned by Hammond, a mysterious guy with a tiger tooth necklace played by Pierce Brosnan. Upon arriving to the airport, Hammond helps the Dwyers’ navigate through the masses of Southeast Asians and even shares a bumpy bus ride with them to the Imperial Lotus Hotel, where they all happen to be staying.

Despite excellent reviews on Trip Advisor, the Imperial Lotus Hotel turns out to be not so imperial in its accommodations. Nothing in the room works, the concierge is utterly unhelpful, and Jack can’t get his hands on a U.S. newspaper that isn’t three days old. Perhaps he should have done a smidge of research before uprooting his family and moving to a country in Southeast Asia that is festering with poverty and clearly has an unstable government. However, we are not left any time to think about how absurd Jack’s situation is. Just as he begins to dig into his stale USA Today, hordes of feverishly mad Asians in red bandanas swarm the streets and he must escape back to the crummy hotel.

Jack pilots himself back to the Lotus as if he was a local and makes it just in time to get his family to the roof of the building. From this point the movie simply goes into one narrow and improbable escape after another. This formula is not uncommon, and has been used in gripping films such as Gareth Evans’ “The Raid: Redemption” and Alfonso Cuarón’s “Gravity”. In “The Raid”, Evans fills the space between his close calls with bone-crunching fist fights, Cuarón opts for insightful character development. In “No Escape” the filling is far less inventive. Jack tosses his daughters off of a roof and bludgeons a man to death with little contemplation, yet when there is a lull in the action he has an untimely panic attack in a far less intense situation. When the odds of survival are low enough, Dowdle employs Hammond, who pops into the movie at various moments just in time to shoot all of the bad guys. Between these less than thrilling sequences we are given motivational pep talks on family survival from Jack and Annie.

Hammond serves up the most pathetic piece of “No Escape”, when he reveals the reason for the government overthrow. Cardiff, the water company that hired Jack, is run by heartless capitalists who have been exploiting the ambiguous country of its labor and resources for years. Hammond explains how Cardiff moves into the region promising clean water facilities, and lures the common people into crippling debt in order to pay for the water. Now that Dowdle has proved his sentiment for poor Southeast Asians, he gets back to the poor Southeast Asians mercilessly trying to kill the rich white people.

True to its title, “No Escape” offers no escapism. The film seems to be running on fumes from the opening scenes. Owen Wilson and Lake Bell are admirable victims, yet there is nothing resembling an interesting plot to support them. It is hard to feel suspense when the basis of the situation is half-baked and Pierce Brosnan is always on deck to neutralize the threat. Owen Wilson and Lake Bell should know a late-summer dud when they see one, after an experience abroad like “No Escape”, they might do their research next time.

"The Man from U.N.C.L.E." Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

“The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” is the type of movie you go into expecting nothing. Guy Ritchie hasn’t directed anything in the past decade that has lived up to the distinctiveness of his first two hit films, “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “Snatch”. The film’s two stars, Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer, aren’t exactly known for their exceptional acting but rather for their good looks. We’re talking about the star of “Man of Steel” and “The Lone Ranger” here, to put things in perspective. Rounding out the low expectations is the fact that this movie is based off of a TV series from the 1960s under the same name. However, Ritchie knows his cards and doesn’t try to bluff. He knows that he is dealing Henry Cavill and Armie Hammer, not theater experts like Michael Fassbender and Benedict Cumberbatch. Recognizing the capacity of his leads, Ritchie injects his subject material with lively screenplay and whole lot of style. The result is a surprising revival of a well beloved series.

The film opens with Roberta Flack’s “Compared to What” paired with a sparky montage of Cold War headlines and news reels and then immediately sends the audience to 1963, in the divided city of Berlin, Germany. Napoleon Solo (Henry Cavill), is an American agent tasked with extracting a woman named Gaby Teller (Alicia Vikander) from the communist side of the wall. Solo, an ex-army officer turned professional thief is the Americans top secret agent, serving his government in the field in order to avoid doing time in prison. Illya Kuryakin (Armie Hammer) is a freak athlete with a chip on his shoulder, and the Russians’ top secret agent. He is waiting for Solo on the other side of the wall with the sole mission of stopping him. Little do these two rivals know they will be forced into partnership by their governments in a joint U.S.-Soviet joint mission to save the world from a nuclear attack.

The aforementioned woman Gaby Teller, happens to have a father by the name of Dr. Udo Teller (Christian Berkel) who is a nuclear scientist with the ability to develop nuclear bombs with drastic simplicity. His knowledge could be utilized by any country or criminal organization in order to create a nuclear bomb. To the superpowers’ great dismay, Dr. Teller has gone missing, and is suspected to have been abducted by a radical faction. Ironically, Dr. Teller’s disappearance has forced the Americans and the Soviets to pool their resources in order to keep nuclear power amongst themselves. In order to find the doctor, Solo and Kuryakin are tasked with going undercover with Ms. Teller in order to link up with her estranged Uncle Rudi (Sylvester Groth) who may know his whereabouts.

Like many spy films, there are plenty of twists and turns throughout the story. What separates “U.N.C.L.E.” from any other movie of its category is how Ritchie incorporates snappy dialogue and an energizing attention to detail. One of the most appealing aspects of “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” is Ritchie’s use of humor. There is a competitiveness between Solo and Kuryakin that provides several laughs, each trying to prove his country better with their respective nifty gadgets and nuanced fighting techniques. The levity in the dialogue prevents “U.N.C.L.E.” from taking itself too seriously. However, Ritchie also flashes a dark side at several points during the film. In one scene a torture specialist describes his disturbing childhood and delight in working in demented laborites for the Nazis during World War II. There is a nice balance to the film that keeps it light, but packs a punch when needed.

One of my favorite scenes came near the end of the film when Solo and Kuryakin are involved in the raid of a compound. Instead of wasting ten minutes documenting each and every stage of the raid, Ritchie compacts it into a one-minute sequence. Using sliding split screens to quickly flash through each stage, Ritchie saves time and creatively cuts through what would have been a long and boring scene.

At the beginning of his career, Guy Ritchie achieved validation by masterfully capturing the grittiness, absurdity, and humor of the underground criminal world of urban England. It has been a long time since Ritchie’s first two films, and he has since picked up a taste for finer things. While “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” doesn’t have the brains of a Le Carre novel or the gravitas of a 007 flick, it is refreshing and fashionable spy thriller that breaks the mold in its competitive genre.

"Straight Outta Compton" Review

OP-ROB RATING: STARTER

“Straight Outta Compton” is a biopic directed by F. Gary Gray about the infamous rap group, N.W.A. Gray’s first priority in “Straight Outta Compton” is introducing each member of the group. Eazy-E (Jason Mitchell) is presented in a high-octane scene staged in a crack den. Ice Cube (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) makes his first appearance in a prolonged and equally intense scene on a school bus where he is jotting lyrics in a notebook looking at what is going on all around him. Fittingly, we first meet Dr. Dre (Cory Hawkins) lying on his bedroom floor, jamming out to records with some headphones on. MC Ren (Aldis Hodge) and DJ Yella (Neil Brown Jr.) both appear in club scenes non-central to their own characters.

As we follow the group’s rise to fame and subsequent implosion, we get to see how the album “Straight Outta Compton” came into being with several scenes in the studio. We get a glimpse of the group’s hectic life on tour involving run ins with the police as well as hotel room shenanigans with topless women and plenty of guns. Another major component is the presence of Jerry Heller (Paul Giamatti), the group’s controversial manager. As a result of contract disputes and weak friendships, N.W.A. crumbles and the film breaks into three different storylines. One is that of Ice Cube and his solo career. Next is that of Eazy-E and his relationship with Heller and ultimately his life-ending battle with AIDS. Lastly is the story of Dr. Dre and his relationship with Suge Knight (R. Marcos Taylor) and Death Row Records. MC Ren and DJ Yella simply fade into the background.

“Straight Outta Compton” is entertaining, well acted and interesting enough to land on as a random movie while flipping channels. But a greater meaning is missed, and vital questions left unanswered. Gray chooses to take many different paths, and by doing so, commits to none of them. The story of N.W.A. can’t fit into two-and-a-half-hours; there are simply too many important characters. Gray explores two of them with extreme brevity, and gives the audience just a taste of what happened to the three more prominent members. In all reality, this topic should have been documented in a miniseries if the goal of giving each character his due was to be fulfilled.

Some of the most important events were left half-baked. Ice Cube releases two solo albums in what seems like five minutes, while Suge Knight bursts onto the scene as an unknown to the audience. In an instant Eazy-E loses what seems to be all of his money, and his trust with Jerry Heller is shattered over reasons that are barely referenced and never fully explained. I still don't know what the hell-er happened!

Gray is at his best in the opening scene introducing Eric “Eazy-E” Wright rolling into a crack den to collect on some unpaid debts. At this point Eric is a drug dealer, and this is simply part of the job. The location of this scene is Compton, an area in Los Angeles known for its poverty and crime. For the viewer, this house is a nightmare; a dilapidated shack filled with sweaty drug addicts, graffiti and empty 40s. For Eric, this apartment is commonplace; it is part of his reality. In many ways this particular scene feels bigger than itself. There is an atmosphere of desperation and frustration in the house, and more broadly in the streets of Compton. Gray manages to establish Eazy-E as a character, while showing us the overall surrounding.

A prominent element in the film is the tumult in and around Los Angeles during the time period. There a several scenes depicting police brutality, unfair arrests and mounting tensions. Gray also chooses to show footage of the Rodney King beating and the subsequent trial and riots that followed. N.W.A. was the voice of one side of these events, yet the narrative never explores the bigger picture.

In this iconic photo from the riots in Ferguson, Missouri you can clearly see a group of police officers taking aim at a black man with his arms up. Also in the photo is a subtle, yet powerful indication of the influence of N.W.A., the lyrics "Fuck tha Police" spray-painted onto a mailbox in the background. No matter where you stand on race issues, no matter your political beliefs, one thing is undeniable: N.W.A. struck a note of frustration that is still prevalent today. Their lyrics are a testament to their "reality” and they still echo. It is unfortunate that "Straight Outta Compton" settles for amusing yet unfulfilled storylines instead of tapping into the soul of the same nightmarish realities that haunt America today.

"Trainwreck" Review

OP-ROB RATING: ALL-STAR

           “Trainwreck”, the latest film from Judd Apatow, is the story of a woman who believes that monogamy isn’t realistic. This woman is Amy Townsend (Amy Schumer), she works as a writer for “s’nuff”, a trashy men’s magazine located in NYC; and what seems to be most nights she parties at bars and clubs, usually ending up in a random man’s bed. But don’t be fooled into thinking that Amy is being taken advantage of, because she is completely in control of her lifestyle. Her routine is this: get manageably drunk at the bar, go home with the sexiest guy, have whatever kind of sex feels right that night, and never ever sleep over once it’s done. For Amy, this works perfectly. She never has to call the guy again and she always gets exactly what she wants. All this seems to be very satisfying for Amy, that is until she meets Aaron Conners (Bill Hader), a sports medicine doctor, and her entire belief system is turned on its head.

            “Trainwreck” is the first movie directed by Judd Apatow starring a female lead in Amy Schumer. Amy Schumer also wrote the screenplay, her first ever for a movie. For all those irregularities, “Trainwreck” doesn’t feel all that different from Apatow’s earlier films, “Knocked Up”, and “The 40-Year-Old Virgin”. Though it doesn’t break new barriers or rewrite the rules of comedy, the film is laugh-out-loud funny, incredibly vulgar, and in the end, very tender and thought provoking.

            Amy Schumer takes on the all-important job towing the line between being funny and disgusting. “Trainwreck” is filled with everything from dirty tampon jokes to a scene where Schumer’s character describes fishing a marooned condom out of her vagina to a group of stunned housewives. Some of the more inappropriate scenes are a little uncomfortable to watch, but like all good comedies the punch line is frequently worth the pain. Bill Hader also delivers a great performance as the innocent and sincere sports medicine doctor. While I don’t completely understand his desire for the “trainwreck” of a human being that Schumer portrays, his body language and thoughtful dialogue in the film make it very convincing.

            For the most part, Apatow focuses on developing the characters of Amy Townsend and Aaron Conners, however there are a slew of noteworthy supporting characters. Brie Larson plays Amy Townsend’s sister who has chosen a more responsible lifestyle by getting married and having a child. The scenes between the two sisters often feature tension and provide opportunities for Amy to mature and strive for resolution. An equally compelling foil is the Townsend’s father, Gordon (Colin Quinn). The opening scene of the film is actually dedicated to Mr. Townsend telling his children about why he and their mother are getting a divorce, ultimately leading to him explaining that monogamy isn’t realistic. The dynamic between Mr. Townsend and Amy is one if the most interesting parts of the movie. At s’nuff magazine, Tilda Swinton plays Amy’s eccentric boss who represents the corrosive personality that the early version of Amy is on the road to becoming.

            Of all the best parts of “Trainwreck” one particular role stands out from the rest, this is LeBron James. In the film, LeBron plays a close friend of Dr. Conners and is featured in significant portion of the film. LeBron looks right at home on screen, and his scenes were by far the most enjoyable. In one hysterical scene LeBron and Dr. Conners discuss the difference between Cleveland and Miami, LeBron wryly states, “There is no difference.” While LeBron still has a quite a few years to play basketball, his performance in “Trainwreck” should afford him the opportunity to “take his talents” to the silver screen as a second career.

            Despite the overall quality of the film, there are many scenes that seem unnecessary, and sometimes too obscene to have any positive effect. One particularly unfunny scene occurs when Amy goes home with a sixteen-year-old intern from her office. They have a strange sexual encounter that is gross, weird, and worst of all just not clever in any way. There are also many lewd quips delivered by Schumer that feel forced, and are often not at all amusing. Finding a balance in a raunchy comedy like “Trainwreck” must be incredibly challenging, however striking that perfect chord is vitally important to making an all-time-great. “Trainwreck” doesn’t quite make the leap, though it will find its place as an often revisited, hugely entertaining comedy that often has a sweeter side than the initial behavior of its main character might suggest.

"Amy" Review

OP-ROB RATING: LEGEND

             “Amy” is a documentary directed by Asif Kapadia, the same man behind the award winning film "Senna". The documentary masterfully unfolds the heart-wrenching story of the late singer, Amy Winehouse, and does so with great reverence toward the artist, and more importantly the person.

            Much of the documentary is focused on the music of Amy Winehouse. The lyrics to her songs are displayed on the screen in subtitles of her own handwriting. Kapadia makes sure the audience realizes just how reflective Amy’s music was of what was going on in her life. Listening to one of her songs is akin to delving into the private diary of a troubled girl. We see her life story through home movies and the lens of the paparazzi; her music provides the narrative.

            What I found most moving about Amy Winehouse was her unconditional love. Love for a husband that introduced her to toxic addictions, squandered her money and left her repeatedly for another girl. Love for a father that, at the very least, was too busy enjoying and insuring Amy’s financial success, to care for her physical and emotional wellbeing. Love for a series of managers and promoters that would go so far as to put her on stage wasted rather than cancel a show.

When I initially saw the trailer for “Amy” I had my doubts. I thought to myself, “Well its great that she had this sweet side, but what about the partying and the bawdy image she made for herself? Isn’t that her fault?” After seeing “Amy” I can say that the self-destructive behaviors and bad-girl brand may have simply been byproducts of the people around her. Perhaps none of those things were done out of selfishness, publicity or personal pleasure. As Kapadia would have us believe, Amy Winehouse sought only to love those around her and it was her unrelenting investment in those she loved that ultimately killed her. He illustrates a very convincing argument.

 The start to Amy’s downward spiral came when her true friends left her side. These friends included her former manager Nick Shymansky and two of her childhood girlfriends, Juliette Ashby and Lauren Gilbert. Throughout the entire film it is clear that these three individuals were the only people that loved Amy with no strings attached. Why she distanced herself from these people is a question that the audience is left to explore. Perhaps Amy Winehouse's greatest flaw was her inability to identify the people who were truly good for her until it was too late.

One important revelation I gained from the film was just how emotional Amy Winehouse was as an artist. The words in her songs were written in blood, and I can only imagine how painful it was for her to perform them sometimes. One of the more tender scenes in the documentary comes when Amy starts recording with one of her music idols, Tony Bennett. In this scene Amy is nervous, sober, and at her very best as a singer. She botches the first take on a duet with Bennett, but after the living legend offers some gentle words of encouragement, she rises above and beyond the occasion.  Although “Rehab” was the song that put Amy Winehouse on every front page in America, she was a jazz singer at heart. The music of Amy Winehouse wasn’t meant for massive crowds or wild music festivals, but instead for small venues where people could quietly listen and experience the clarity of emotion that beamed through her music. The scene with Bennett affirms her rightful place in jazz music, as Bennett himself later said, "the great ones that are very talented know just how to turn jazz singing into a performance that's unforgettable. And Amy had that gift."

 In one of the final scenes Amy is booed off the stage at a show in Belgrade; a show she was forced into by her management. In the all of the disappointment and calamity in the crowd, there is also a sense of spectacle. As if the sight of Amy stumbling around in sheer drunkenness were entertaining. For many people, this will be the Amy Winehouse that is remembered, a considerable talent that succumbed to substance abuse and pursuit of celebrity in the public eye. That is why I am glad that Asif Kapadia was able to provide a different view of Amy Winehouse in “Amy”. Instead of looking at the glitz, lunacy, and horror of Amy’s short stint at the top of the music world, he focuses on her time before the spotlight. When supportive and loving friends surrounded her, a time when she played her music for small crowds who were awed by her performances.

For those who decide to see “Amy”, a new person with a familiar face will emerge to be remembered . A woman so brilliant at singing that she ranks among the most gifted to ever pick up a microphone; a kind, yet haunted soul who gave her all for those she loved. 

"True Detective" Season 2 Episode 1 Review

OP-ROB RATING: STARTER

An avid “True Detective” fan told me that while he was excited for the new season, Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson just couldn’t be beat; Detective Rust Cohle and Marty Hart were simply too perfect, and even the most impressive cast and new story wouldn’t match the previous season. Season 2 premiered last night, and it confirms what my friend pointed out and what many would agree with: “True Detective” will not be the same.

            Episode One, “The Western Book of the Dead”, takes place in several cities in Los Angeles County, California; most prominently “Vinci” City and focuses on four different main characters. Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn) is a real estate entrepreneur and a white-collar criminal, although we have reason to believe he has had a more hands-on, violent past. Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell) is a police detective within Vinci City. As apparent from episode one, Velcoro was once an honest lawman but has sunken into depression, alcoholism, drug abuse and corruption after a family tragedy. Detective Ani Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams) is a similarly dark character. She isn’t corrupt, but may be an alcoholic and most certainly has family issues that contribute to her lone wolf, detached attitude. Finally, Officer Paul Woodrugh (Taylor Kitsch) is the cleanest of the bunch. He is dedicated to a fault, yet is clearly troubled by his past. His bodily scars and ex-military history are good places to look for his current post-traumatic symptoms within the show.

            These dark characters are all drawn together through the disappearance and murder of the Vinci City Manager, Ben Caspar. This particular character is not actually shown on screen with a pulse, however we can put together that he is involved with Mr. Semyon in orchestrating a sketchy, California railway deal. His disappearance causes issues for Semyon, who must convince investors of the proposition’s adherence with the state government.  Velcoro is assigned to investigate Caspar's disappearance by his commanding officer. When Velcoro searches Caspar’s house he finds a disheveled residence filled with pornographic artwork, sex toys, and a very creepy, Aleister Crowley inspired costume. Caspar’s body turns up on the side of the highway propped up on a park bench. The man to stumble upon him is none other than Paul Woodrugh, who pulls off onto the side of the road during an intense motorcycle ride in the pitch black of the night. He reports the corpse to the police; the episode ends with Velcoro and Bezzerides at the scene of the discovery.

            The episode is filled with a lot of character development. Much of which is dark and depressing. The plot moves fast and the viewer is challenged to catch every little shard of information that comes flying across the screen. The characters all seem to struggle with deep-rooted, emotional issues that will define the tone of the show.

            The creator and writer of “True Detective”, Nic Pizzolatto, knew what my friend knew. Any follow up to McConaughey and Harrelson would be a disappointment. Pizzolatto himself grew up in and around New Orleans; the first season of “True Detective” was so natural and automatic that any kind of extension would seem artificial and forced. For that very reason, Pizzolatto has decided to take the show on a veritably different path. The first episode features a similar opening to the old season, as well as the familiar panning landscape shots, except now the camera peers over Southern California instead of the Louisiana bayou. This new setting in California provides a fresh canvas, and the new characters are different colors for him to paint. I don’t know how the rest of the season will turn out. But after one episode I can say for sure that Pizzolatto’s writing is just as dark as before, the acting is just as good and the plot is far more cerebral. In all, “True Detective” is back and it’s a whole new ordeal. I can’t wait for the story to unfold.