Jack and Jill
Plot: Adam Sandlers plays twins Jack and Jill Sadelstein. Jack is an ad executive with a beautiful wife, Erin (Katie Holmes), and two children, Sofia (Elodie Tougne) and Gary (Rohan Chand), who is adopted. When Jill comes to visit for the holidays, she causes Jack much stress. When Al Pacino begins falling for her, Jack tries to hook them up so Al will do a commercial for him.
Review: Adam Sandler mocked movies such as this in “Funny People”. The ones where comedians would take outlandish plots such as a Merman or becoming a baby again. Sure, he wasn’t known for high-class material (“Punch-Drunk Love”, “Spanglish” and “Reign Over Me” withstanding), but he didn’t go too far out for laughs. He certainly wasn’t dressing in drag for a cheap gimmick.
That is, until now. With a paycheck of twenty million dancing in his face, I guess he couldn’t resist putting on the makeup. He never seems happy when playing Jack and I’m not accounting that with acting. He may put on a spirited performance (I’m using that term loosely) when portraying Jill, but seems downright embarrassed when in his normal attire. Not that I can blame him.
I tried to go into “Jack and Jill” with an open mind. Though the plot sounded horrendous, it was possible the film could have been at least mildly enjoyable. I expected “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan” to be terrible, but thought it was decent. I personally find Adam Sandler funny when doing the right project. This just isn’t it. There’s nary a laugh in sight. Only fart jokes, “dude looks like a lady” comments and a strange running gag of Gary taping things to himself reside here.
The only time I laughed was when Al Pacino, playing a caricature of himself ala Neil Patrick Harris in the “Harold and Kumar” movies, was on screen. Even then, I wasn’t laughing hard. The man works so hard to make the material work. He just can’t seem to do so. There’s a running gag in the film where him doing a Dunkin’ Donuts commercial is beneath him. I think the commercial would have been better than this.
Final Rating: D-
Outrage
Plot: The Sannokai and Ikemoto families have worked together in peace, thanks to the bosses, Sekiuchi (Kitamura Soichiro) and Ikemoto (Kunimura Jun). When the Murase syndicate, led by Murase (Ishibashi Renji) cause trouble, all three gangs engage in an all out war. Otomo (Beat Takeshi), Ikemoto’s subordinate, is handed the task of handling the situation.
Review: “Outrage” is a violent and bloody film. That’s Takeshi Kitano’s goal. Simply to entertain the audience. Give them a serviceable plot to encapsulate the violence. Then let all hell break loose. It doesn’t happen as often as I’d like, but when it does, it delivers.
Fingers are severed, faces are slashed, ears are impaled and gun wounds are a many. Most of the violence is sprinkled throughout the story. We’re treated to little nuggets of joy until the final twenty minutes, which is where the glorious coup de grace plays out. Just when you think it’s done, Takeshi pulls you back in.
As I mentioned earlier, the plot is serviceable. It’s nothing to get excited about and can sadly drag in spots. There are times where I felt the action and story could have been tighter paced. Takeshi tends to let the dialogue heavy scenes linger longer than they should. The only saving grace of this is that, when the action hits, it’s delicious!
Final Rating: B-
The Debt
Plot: In 1965, three Mossad agents (Jessica Chastain, Sam Worthington, Marton Csokas) apprehend Nazi war criminal, Doktor Bernhardt (Jesper Christensen). Thirty-two years later, the truth is threatened to be revealed when a book detailing the mission is published. Rachel Singer (Helen Mirren) and Stephan Gold (Tom Wilkinson) fight to protect their names.
Review: John Madden has a good handle on the tension and action in “The Debt”. He tells the story in flashback style, which I felt was unnecessary. Outside of one key scene, it could have been told straightforward. Start with the three agents’ mission, then move on to their current dilemma in present time. Though this bothered me, both segments delivered.
It’s hard to decide which one fared better. Initially, my pick goes to the mission itself. It’s filled with terrific tension and stellar action. Jessica Chastain knocks one out of the park, as per usual. Sam Worthington and Marton Csokas pale in comparison to her. Marton holds his own, but Worthington, as per usualy, is relatively bland. He has one riveting scene with Jesper Christensen, but that doesn’t last long.
In the present story’s defense, we have Helen Mirren and Tom Wilkinson doing what they do best; commanding the screen and delivering outstanding performances. These are two actors who can do their jobs in their sleep. “The Debt” is no different. I just feel their segment would have benefited from not being undercut by flashbacks.
The flashbacks may get in the way, but the story itself is still good. Great performances, for the most part, and strong direction and writing (by Matthew Vaugh, Jane Goldman and Peter Straughan) make this a compelling watch. It’s approach may have lost me in spots, but it’s still a solid thriller at the end of the day.
Final Rating: B
Megan is Missing
Plot: In 2007, Megan Stewart (Rachel Quinn) and Amy Herman (Amber Perkins) vanished. Through the use of found footage and news reels, we are shown the events leading up to their vanishing and the disturbing fate they end up enduring.
Review: I have a problem with films like “Megan is Missing”. I feel they’re cheap, despite their attempts in visualizing torture and using it as a warning of sorts. For Michael Goi’s film, his message is on the dangers of the internet and how someone you think you know can be somebody completely different. There’s nothing wrong in approaching this topic. Many films in the past have done so, with quite a few of them being successful. This film is not.
The reason others are successful is because they refrain from showing the torture. I know Goi’s intention was to portray the disgusting actions in order to disturb the viewer. He does so, but in a cheap and forced way. We know that abuse and rape is disturbing and wrong. We don’t need to see it to believe it. Showing us proves the lack of faith in the viewer.
The best way to make this material work is to not show the torture at all. Build up to it, then cut away when the events begin. The most I feel you can use to get your point across is sound bites. That way the viewer has to hear the agony and use their imagination. This is more effective, as the viewer will be disturbed and not want to visualize the event, but almost have to. That’s a legitimate scare.
Goi does build up to the heinous event. Through the use of video calls and video diaries, he creates two teens in Amy and Megan. Amy is a sweet, unpopular girl who is best friends with Megan, the popular, yet abused girl who sleeps with men in hopes of finding one that will truly love her. They’re built up adequately, but don’t have a good payoff to make their plight work.
Final Rating: D
No Matter What
Plot: When his mother goes missing, Joey (Matt Webb) and his best friend, Nick (Waylan Gross), set out to find her. Along the way, they encounter crazed neighbors and get into all sort of trouble, naturally.
Review: You can tell this is Cherie Saulter’s directorial debut. That isn’t meant as an insult. It’s a mere observation on how she handles the plot. Like a lot of first timers, she moves at a methodical pace, sometimes a bit too slow for her own good. This is better than other directors who zoom through each scene in rapid succession.
The gradual pace does capture the quaint, realistic approach that Saulter’s aiming for. In adventure dramas such as this, the story seems to rush by and the characters continually make mistakes. That’s not the case here. The characters may make mistakes, but they contemplate them beforehand. Joey and Nick being fifteen helps make the mistakes more plausible and less grating. The prologue to their mistakes is unhurried.
Matt Webb and Waylan Gross, who are making their acting debuts, aren’t as noticeably amateur. Though it doesn’t take long to discover this is their first time, they’re both very comfortable in front of a camera. They never show signs of shyness or trepidation. They never wink at the camera or goofily command it. They act as if the cameras aren’t on them and act like average fifteen year olds. Their relationship with one another and the conversations they have (from school to comic books) are typical for their age.
The film’s low key demeanor can be it’s downfall. There are times when Saulter should have sped the pacing up a bit. Quite a few scenes dawdle for too long and never feel like they’re getting to the point. The likable leads do their best to keep interest during these moments, but aren’t trained enough yet to do so. Once the pacing does pick up, “No Matter What” is a marginally warming film.
Final Rating: B-
Conan the Barbarian
Plot: Conan (Jason Momoa) sets out to avenge the death of his father, Corin (Ron Perlman). It’s taken him many years to track down his father’s killer, Khalar Zym (Stephen Lang). Him and his daughter, Marique (Rose McGowan), killed his father in front of Conan’s eyes when he was a child. Getting entangled in the mess is Tamara (Rachel Nichols), who has the pure blood that Zym’s wife had. Naturally, her and Conan fall in love.
Review: This new adaptation of the “Conan the Barbarian” comics may not be the most faithful, but it’s a helluva lot of fun! It’s a bloody hack and slash action film that is filled to the brim with creative and outrageous action sequences. Marcus Nispel never focuses on the dialogue too much. He lets the characters speak and move to the story along, then inserts another action scene for good measure. He finds a good balance.
The dialogue itself can be cheesy, but that’s part of the fun. It’s harder to type them out, as I wouldn’t be giving them justice. My favorite line, “I don’t like you anymore”, is fantastically cheesy only because of the way Zym says it. The line itself is adequate. The way Lang emotes it is amazing.
The special effects are splendid, for the most part. A few of them are shoddy, such as a few of the decapitations. Others look crisp, so it’s not a recurring issue. The sand monsters and giant snake that Conan does battle with look astounding.
There will be many who will find issue with “Conan the Barbarian”. Some will find it laughable and too bloody for their tastes. Others won’t like the admittedly sub par adaptation of the comic. Others will complain about the length. I myself thought the hour and fifty minutes zoomed by and that the gore-filled action was satisfying.
Final Rating: B+
Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey
Plot: Narrated by Whoopi Goldberg, the life of famed puppeteer Kevin Clash is detailed. From his childhood fascination with puppetry due to programming such as “Sesame Street”, to his humble beginnings as a teenager weaving puppets for a local television shot, to the meteoric rise as being the puppeteer of Elmo, one of the most famous “Sesame Street” characters of all time.
Review: The best thing about “Being Elmo” is Kevin Clash himself. Not because of his success, but because of who he is and what he represents. He’s the outcast child who stuck with his dream and made it work. The kind man everybody loves who embodies what a good human being should be. A man living out his dream thanks to sheer grit and determination.
This film isn’t about Elmo. It’s about the man behind Elmo. The one doing the voice and operating the puppet from the sidelines. The man who took what was a throwaway character and turned him into a pop culture phenomenon. All he had to do was look inside himself, as well as his parents, and find the true joys life and encapsulate them into a fuzzy character.
Seeing the amazement in his eyes and voice when discussing his life is the most wondrous thing about Constance Marks’ documentary. The fact that this shy child who sat in awe in front of the television watching “Sesame Street” is now one of the big guns on the show (he acts as not only Elmo and other puppets, but the show’s director, producer, etc.). It’s heartwarming to watch and instills confidence in those looking to achieve their dream as well.
Final Rating: A