LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND (2023)

August 18, 2023

Greetings again from the darkness. Alien invasion movies have long been a favorite of science-fiction filmmakers, as well as platform for those who strive to caution us to our societal missteps and wrong choices along life’s muddy path. Within the past couple of weeks I watched JULES (2023), a cute, heart-warming story about an alien who crash-lands in Pennsylvania and is cared for by Ben Kingsley’s character. Going back further we have the thoughtful ARRIVAL (2016), the outlandish MEN IN BLACK (1997), the precious E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (1982) from Spielberg, the frightening ALIEN (1979) by James Cameron, the often-re-made WAR OF THE WORLDS (1953), and the classic FORBIDDEN PLANET (1956). Of course, this is but a tiny portion of the complete list, but it gives some idea of the long-lived fascination.

Writer-director Cory Finley has become a rising star with the devilishly entertaining THOROUGHBREDS (2017) and BAD EDUCATION (2019). For his third feature, he has chosen to adapt MT Anderson’s 2017 novel, and in the process delivers a hit and miss commentary on the human race. Artwork is creatively utilized to provide the timeline and backstory of how the technologically advanced aliens invaded and began rule the planet. It takes us to the year 2036, five years after “First Contact.” It’s here where we find the Campbell family: mother Beth (Tiffany Haddish), son Adam (an excellent Asante Blackk, “This is Us”), and daughter Nathalie (Brooklynn MacKinzie). Beth is a former lawyer, unable to find work and struggling to make ends meet for the family. Adam is the main feature here, as a high school student who is exploring his talent as an artist, while also falling for new girl Chloe (Kylie Rogers, “Yellowstone”) who is homeless with her dad (Josh Hamilton) and bitter brother Hunter (Michael Gandolfini).

The aliens, known as Vuvv, have their own scratchy language, and the appearance of slimy loaves of bread with four paddle legs and two caterpillar eyes. As a species, they are mesmerized by human romance, and the newest Courtship Broadcast they follow is “Adam and Chloe in Love.” The two teenagers gain a following, which means money for their families. However, since much of the movie is spent harping on the evils of capitalism, the two soon find themselves being sued by the aliens for misrepresentation, putting themselves and their families at risk. A particularly creative solution to the problem finds one of the Vuvv moving into the home and attempting to emulate sitcom family life as seen on “The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet” (personally I would have preferred “Leave it to Beaver”).

This is not one of the post-apocalyptic films that have become so popular. Rather it’s social commentary that doesn’t dig very deep and sticks to the easy targets. There are a few doses of clever humor, including a SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION shot in a golf course sandtrap, and a school lunch menu that includes Saturn sliders and Moon nuggets. Adam’s story is one of a young man striving to maintain his sense of self despite other-worldly obstacles. The lessons are clear in that money can’t buy happiness, but even that lesson doesn’t prevent us from wanting satire to go a bit deeper with its commentary … warbling music (Michael Abel) isn’t quite enough. Although this film isn’t at the level of his first two features, filmmaker Cory Finley will surely deliver future projects that inspire thought and soul-searching.

Opens in theaters on August 18, 2023

WATCH THE TRAILER

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Posted by David Ferguson

EASTER SUNDAY (2022)

August 5, 2022

Greetings again from the darkness. Director Jay Chandrasekhar and co-writers Kate Angelo and Ken Cheng have crafted a tribute to the Filipino community, paying homage to family bonds and the culture. The obvious comparisons here are CRAZY RICH ASIANS (2018) and any number of Bollywood movies offering insight and a peek behind the curtain of Indian families. As global societies continue to disburse and intertwine with various races and cultures, it only makes sense for us to gain more understanding of each other … and what better way than through comedy?

In the film, real life comedian Jo Koy plays fictional comedian and aspiring actor Joe Valencia. Joe moved to Los Angeles, away from his Bay area family, to pursue a career in entertainment. It’s been a struggle, and he’s best known for a beer commercial where he looks into the camera and says, “Let’s get this party started, bayBee!” One of the recurring gags is how so many either recite the line to him, or plea with him to do so. Up for a big role in a TV pilot, Joe once again lets down his high school aged son, by attending an audition rather than a parent meeting at school. Junior (Brandon Wardell) is struggling a bit with his grades at the prestigious prep school he attends. See, Joe’s career as an actor might not be rolling, but his ex-wife is a powerful attorney married to a professional athlete.

The real fun begins as we see the tension between father and son on the road trip they make to join the rest of the family for Easter Sunday … an important day for Filipinos. Along the way, we experience two more of the film’s running gags: Joe’s mom (Lydia Gaston) pressuring him not just to show up, but to not be late, and Joe’s agent (played by director Chandrasekhar), whose use of ‘entering a tunnel, so I’ll be losing the connection’ is his standard way of ending a conversation when he’s done. Once they arrive, we get yet another running gag – the ongoing sister rivalry between Joe’s mom and his Tita Theresa (Tia Carrere). It’s a quick trip for Joe and Junior, but it’s filled with family drama, Joe’s impromptu stand-up in church, a love interest for Junior (Eva Noblezada), a run-in with a former lover (Tiffany Haddish) for Joe, a questionable business investment between Joe and his cousin Eugene (Eugene Cordero), a confrontation with a local gangster named Dev Deluxe (Asif Ali), and an all-in family karaoke song. There is even a Lou Diamond Phillips tie-in that adds a touch of class.

The writers and director have worked mostly in TV to this point, and that is just too obvious. A TV sitcom style rarely succeeds on the big screen, and though we do get some laughs, there is an amateurish feel to the proceedings. On the upside, some insight into Filipino culture is welcome, I now know Manny Pacquaio’s birthday, and it was my first exposure to “Hype Truck!”

Opens in theaters on August 5, 2022

WATCH THE TRAILER

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Posted by David Ferguson

THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT (2022)

April 21, 2022

Greetings again from the darkness. Calling all Nicolas Cage fans! Put the bunny back in the box and get ready for the most fun you’ll ever have with Nicolas or Nic or Nick or Nicky. And if one Cage isn’t enough for you, you’re in luck. This film has Nicolas Cage playing the (somewhat) fictional Nick Cage, and Nicolas Kim Coppola (Nicolas Cage’s birth name) playing imaginary alter-ego Nicky, a younger version of Nicolas Cage from the WILD AT HEART era who spends the movie constantly reminding Nick that he’s a movie star.

If you can’t make much sense out of all that, don’t worry, writer-director Tom Gormican and co-writer Kevin Etten have created a film that is sure to strike a chord with Nicolas Cage fans. What we see is a parody going meta in a surreal way. Very few get to star in the tribute to their own legend, but that’s what happens here. Nicolas Cage goes ‘inside baseball’ on the career of Nicolas Cage … only he does so as struggling actor Nick Cage, an actor so desperate for “the role of a lifetime” that he improvs a reading for director David Gordon Green (Cage’s director on JOE) in the parking lot of Chateau Marmont.

Having been kicked out of his rental after falling behind $600,000 in rent, Nick agrees to take a humiliating job pitched by his agent, Fink (Neil Patrick Harris). For one million dollars, he is to fly to Mallorca and hang out at the birthday party of rich super fan, Javi Gutierrez (a terrific Pedro Pascall, “The Mandalorian”). The twist here is that CIA agents played by Tiffany Haddish and Ike Barinholtz suspect Javi of being a notorious gun dealer who has kidnapped the young daughter of the Catalonia President. Spy-type shenanigans ensue as Nick and Javi develop a bromance that finds the two new buddies writing a film script together. And if that’s not quite enough subplots, you should know that Nick is at a breaking point in his relationship with his ex-wife Olivia (Sharon Horgan) and teenage daughter Abby (Lily Sheen, real life daughter of Michael Sheen and Kate Beckinsale).

The zaniness includes nods to more than a dozen Nicolas Cage movies, and much of the fun is derived from recognizing these. Easter eggs are everywhere for fans, and Nic expertly plays Nick (and Nicky) as a loving tribute to the characters we’ve seen in so many iconic films over the years. Additionally, on screen love is provided for the 1920 classic, THE CABINET OF DR. CALIGARI, as well as the more recent gem, PADDINGTON 2 (2017), making this a tribute to cinema lovers, Nicolas Cage fans, and comedies in general. I will admit to disliking director Gormican’s 2014 movie, THAT AWKWARD MOMENT, so much that I hoped he was done as a filmmaker. It turns out, he’s back (and much improved) … not that he ever went anywhere.

Opens in theaters on April 22, 2022

WATCH THE TRAILER

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Posted by David Ferguson

LIKE A BOSS (2020)

January 9, 2020

 Greetings again from the darkness. It’s no secret that all movies aren’t made to appeal to all movie goers. Even for someone like me who watches an average of 5 movies per week, there are going to be some that are simply not in my wheelhouse. In the case of this latest from director Miguel Arteta (BEATRIZ AT DINNER, 2017), it seems to have been formulated as a “Girls Night Out” treat … a sub-genre with a track record of success.

Although I’m not the target market, I’m not precluded from commenting on the film and making observations. It merely means I’ve watched the movie from a different perspective than many paying customers will. So let’s start with the positives. The cast is excellent. After being wasted and miscast is last year’s disappointing THE KITCHEN, Tiffany Haddish is cut loose and allowed to do what she does best – searing one-liners peppered with raunchiness. Rose Byrne has long been what was once called a comedy “straight man.” Of course that term is no longer used, but I’m not sure what today’s acceptable terminology is. The simple fact is, very few people are as brilliant as Ms, Byrne at playing off an acid-tongued comic. She is a rare talent. As for Salma Hayek, her body of work (and Oscar nomination for FRIDA) speaks for itself.

Mia (Ms. Haddish) and Mel (Ms. Byrne) have been friends since childhood, and are now roommates, best friends, and business partners at the beauty/cosmetic company they founded. The creative and shoot-from-the-hip Mia and the pragmatic and meticulous Mel are personality opposites to the point that Mel has been reticent to explain their serious financial woes to the always upbeat Mia. When cosmetics tycoon Claire Luna (Ms. Hayek) makes an offer to save the struggling company, Mel welcomes the financial relief, while Mia senses trouble.

As you would guess, Mia is right … Claire Luna has darker motives, and soon she is driving a wedge between the two partners and friends. The talented supporting cast includes: Jennifer Coolidge, Billy Porter (who manages to remain flamboyant while being subdued for him), Ari Graynor (“I’m Dying Up Here”), Jessica St. Clair, and Karan Soni (DEADPOOL) as Claire’s assistant. There is also a cameo near the end for those who enjoy a bit of friendly comedy.

Danielle Sanchez Witzel, Adam Cole-Kelly, and Sam Pitman combined on the story and script, and have inserted a few gags that play to the strength of the cast – pot smoking ghost peppers, and boyfriend humor are all at play, and balanced by the strength of female friendships. The business side is so cartoonish (especially Ms. Hayek’s character) that it will likely somewhat offend anyone who actually runs a business, but the raunchy humor and overly emotional character reactions will likely satisfy the intended audience.

watch the trailer:

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Posted by David Ferguson