Director: Duncan Jones
Writers: Charles Leavitt (screenplay), Duncan Jones (screenplay)
Stars: Travis Fimmel, Paula Patton, Ben Foster, Dominic Cooper, Toby Kebbell

Synopsis: As an Orc horde invades the planet Azeroth using a magic portal, a few human heroes and dissenting Orcs must attempt to stop the true evil behind this war.

[/info]

In a world full of superheroes films and Star Wars, which pander to fans while building a world simultaneously, Warcraft ambitiously deviates from that model thinking of the fans first and foremost. If you are not familiar with the Warcraft property, there’s a good chance you will be completely lost with this film. There is no exposition and the film tosses the audience right into the thick of the Warcraft world as transitions happen almost immediately.

The film opens with a shot of the Orcs world dying, leaving them desperate to find a new home. After their leader Gul’dan (Daniel Wu) finds a portal to a new world, Azeroth, the Orcs prepare for war and transition to this new world. Soon after, the humans of Azeroth find out the hard way what the Orcs are capable of and it leads to some major conflict and a fight for survival. It didn’t take long for Durotan (Toby Kebbell), chieftain of the Frostwolf clan, to realize that Gul’dan was a problem and that something needed to be done if both the Orcs and humans were going to both survive.

To outsiders, Warcraft does very little to engage you within the first ten minutes. However, fans of the property will recognize immediately what is happening and it’s obvious that is who Duncan Jones has in mind. Warcraft is a film designed to 100% speak to audiences who love Warcraft, know this world really well and will instantly engage with these characters. It is clear that Jones understands the Warcraft mythos and he evocatively builds a world that leave fans in awe. It may be a naive approach to disregard the general audience but Jones’ ambition and willing to embrace his approach will reward fans of the property. However, Jones and screenwriter Charles Leaviatt are not completely blind to Warcraft outsiders. Jones and Leaviatt smartly center the story of Warcraft around family and the idea of fighting for family. So, as an outsider of the property, you may not understand exactly what is happening but everyone will sympathize with the idea of family. The execution of that idea may be messy but it is moving enough to satisfy both fans and outsiders of the property alike.

The major reason that pathos is felt is because of Toby Kebbell, who gives a riveting motion-capture performance. If you’re Andy Serkis, you better keep an eye out because Kebbell is not far behind you when it comes to motion-capture performances. Between Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and now Warcraft, Kebbell has supplanted himself as one of the best working today when it comes to mo-cap acting and utilizing the technology. It’s pretty incredible what Kebbell brings to Durotan and how he depicts familial identity and parental sacrifice in this film. Those notions are viscerally felt and is easily the best thing about Warcraft. Daniel Wu and Robert Kazinsky also give engaging mo-cap performances.

On the flip side, the human characters of Warcraft are rather dull and disappointing. Paula Patton and Ben Foster in particular are really bad, which is disappointing since both actors are capable of being great. None of the “human” character performances are great but the rest are serviceable. Travis Fimmel is the best of the them and somewhat of a highlight here. The human characters suffer more from a script perspective, rather than an acting one.

Overall, Warcraft won’t break the “video game movie curse” that has plagued the genre since its inception but it does introduce a world and characters that will resonate with fans. And this fight for survival, that is rooted in familial identity and the sacrifices we make for our families, is enough to engage anyone interested in the film, regardless of your experience with the property. Ramin Djawadi’s score is also worth noting and a major reason for the film’s emotion being felt. Warcraft is certainly scatterbrained and the film’s priorities are arguably in the wrong place at times but you can’t deny the meticulous craftsmanship that Jones displays. I’ve never played Warcraft but if I had, this would have been a more fun experience. As it is, despite its flaws, it still did enough and fans will surly have a great time.

Overall Grade: B-

[divider]

Hear our full review on Episode 173:

[divider]

Director: James DeMonaco
Writers: James DeMonaco
Stars: Frank Grillo, Elizabeth Mitchell, Mykelti Williamson

Synopsis: Two years after choosing not to kill the man who killed his son, former police sergeant Barnes has become head of security for Senator Charlene Roan, the front runner in the next Presidential election due to her vow to eliminate the Purge.

[/info]

The Purge series, which started in 2013, has been a sort of guilty pleasure for me because the main premise of the films has been intriguing. If you are unfamiliar, The Purge is an annual event that runs for 12 hours on March 21 to 22, from 7 p.m. until 7 a.m., during which all crime is legal (including murder), and all police, fire, and medical emergency services are unavailable. In the first two films, high ranking officials are given immunity from being disturbed. The Purge (2013) was pretty decent, but I hated The Purge: Anarchy (2014).

The biggest issue I have had with both films have been useless and annoying characters that were plagued by a weakening plot. To date, the most annoying character I have ever seen in a movie was Cali in The Purge: Anarchy. Cali was one of the good ones, so I knew that she would never die as I was hoping, especially with Crossbones protecting her. The Purge: Election Year corrects all the issues of the previous films.

Leo Barnes (Frank Grillo), two years after the events of the last film, is now working as head of security for U.S. Senator Charlene Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell), the front-runner in the next U.S. presidential election. Roan lost her family in a Purge event 15 years earlier and is vowing to end the annual purge, which is strongly opposed by government leaders. For the first time in Purge history, no one has immunity, and can you guess who the prime target is? Sadly it’s not Cali from the previous film; it’s obviously the senator. The plot is pretty similar to the last film as we have Barnes and company battling to survive the night.

This time around director/writer James DeMonaco makes very simple changes in the same plot that makes a world of difference. Barnes is joined by other characters, but now the characters are much stronger, more developed and add something to the team. The script can go in so many directions with a film centered around violence, but the fact that Roan wants to end the purge makes for an intriguing target and creates a conflict that makes sense.

I hate sequels because I think most of the time they are unnecessary. I think having the first two films differ from each other was a bad idea because we never knew how the characters in the first film changed after the events. Having a direct sequel to Anarchy, we already know how the events affected Barnes, and we can cut the back story. DeMonaco does an excellent job introducing new characters and provided just enough about them that we want to root for them. The Purge: Election Year is the first time I have rated the third installment of a film series higher than any others.

The Purge: Election Year is a successful sequel and is proof that the director corrected mistakes from the previous movies and ended up with a rewarding cinematic experience.

Overall Grade: B

[divider]

Hear our review of The Purge: Anarchy here:

[divider]

Director: Rebecca Miller
Writers: Rebecca Miller, Karen Rinaldi (story)
Stars: Greta Gerwig, Ethan Hawke, Julianne Moore, Travis Fimmell

Synopsis: Maggie’s plan to have a baby on her own is derailed when she falls in love with John, a married man, destroying his volatile marriage to the brilliant Georgette.

[/info]

I’m not terribly familiar with Rebecca Miller’s other films, such as The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, The Ballad of Jack and Rose or Personal Velocity, but they are more serious, emotional dramas from what I know about them. Meaning, Maggie’s Plan is Miller’s first foray into the comedic realm, and while she doesn’t 100% stick the landing, she mostly gets it right. It doesn’t hurt either when your star is Greta Gerwig, who is the queen of indie comedies, especially when they are set in New York as we see in Maggie’s Plan.

Maggie (Greta Gerwig) works at a small college in an administrative position, “a bridge between art and commerce,” as she puts it. And while she has a good job, her life isn’t where she wants it to be. She yearns to be a mother. However, that’s a problem when you can’t hold down a long-term relationship, so she is seeking a sperm donor. After some debate with her friend Tony (Bill Hader), who is against the idea, she settles on an old college friend in Guy (Travis Fimmel), who was a math whiz but has decided instead to be a top tier pickle farmer. Well this plan of hers is interrupted by John Harding (Ethan Hawke), who works at the same school as Maggie and the two start to develop an unexpected romance. However there is a problem; John is married. His wife Georgette, who also works in academia, is pretty successful but it comes at the cost of their marriage fizzling out. To give more details away would be doing you a disservice but let’s just say, the relationships between Maggie, John and Georgette gets rather interesting. And let’s not forget, Guy also appears at some point later in the film too.

The screenplay on the surface may seem trite but it’s actually smart and viscerally honest as it relates to how people react to one another. Sometimes, it is a little too honest when it comes to that idea and character reactions in Maggie’s Plan. The film also flips expectations on their head as far as romantic-comedy tropes go and it takes some rather clever turns near the third act. The dialogue is snappy and witty with some great humor thrown in as well.

Of course, it’s really the performances that make this film, which are so charming and magnetic. Gerwig plays a character that may seem a bit familiar if you’ve seen her in other Noah Baumbach films but she owns the role. She impeccably treads this line of competence, or the lack thereof, and stability, all qualities that make Maggie fun and engaging. Gerwig is simply the rhythm of Maggie’s Plan and she is the heart of the movie’s charm.

Ethan Hawke is equally as charismatic and wonderfully chews on intellectual and philosophical dialogue, a skill set that he maneuvers perfectly to never feel too distant from the audience. I mean, he is an expert in the field of “ficto-critical anthropology” after all, so he needs to be smart. However, Hawke reminds us that he is also human and full of emotion like everyone else. Like Gerwig, Hawke perfectly treads that line and makes the character compelling and sympathetic.

The unsung hero of the film though is Travis Fimmel as Guy. Here is a guy, no pun intended, who is smart (again, he is a math whiz and successful business man) and full of genuine reaction. He is a gentleman who just wants to do right by Maggie. He may be a bit socially awkward but you can tell there is honesty behind Fimmel’s eyes that speak to the heart of this film thematically. And huge credit to the screenplay and Miller’s direction for keeping much of Guy’s history mysterious. There is earned ambiguity behind his character that shines through in Fimmel’s performance. There is a scene halfway through where Guy runs into Maggie on the street, and near the end of the scene there is a close-up on Fimmel’s face that speaks a thousand words and is one of the best moments in 2016 when it comes to film. He is a true highlight of Maggie’s Plan.

Most of the problems of Maggie’s Plan lie in a few awkward transitions, which probably come from a lack of experience in the genre on Miller’s part, and also Julianne Moore’s performance. I love Moore as much as everyone else but her over-the-top, eccentric performance is rather jarring and doesn’t tonally fit with everything else. Additionally, the writing of her character is rather thin, making it harder for Moore to make Georgette feel fully fleshed out. Most of the writing and directing of this film is pretty good, but you can tell that Miller is dipping her toes into comedic waters and it made for a few slip ups.

Overall, Maggie’s Plan is a solid film full of alluring characters and a story that does surprise you in certain regards. It’s a fun experience and one that I can fully recommend that you check out.

Overall Grade: B+

[divider]

Hear our full Extra Film review here:

[divider]

Director: Whit Stillman
Writers: Jane Austen (based on her novella “Lady Susan”), Whit Stillman
Stars: Kate Beckinsale, Chloë Sevigny, Xavier Samuel

Synopsis: Lady Susan Vernon takes up temporary residence at her in-laws’ estate and, while there, is determined to be a matchmaker for her daughter Frederica — and herself too, naturally.

[/info]

When it comes to Jane Austen, it often feels like people either love her work or don’t care for it at all. Rarely have I seen the middle ground in my experience with her. Regardless of what you may think of her, the fact is, she can be pretty dang funny and director Whit Stillman certainly brings that to life in Love & Friendship. Stillman was nominated for Best Original Screenplay back in 1991 for Metropolitan, so it’s no surprise to see that the screenplay for Love & Friendship is the film’s strength, alongside superb performances.

Due to recent changes in her life, Lady Susan Vernon (Kate Beckinsale) temporarily takes residence at her in-laws’ estate, which comes at quite the surprise to her family at first. Soon after arriving, Frederica, Lady Susan’s daughter, joins them and you can soon tell that she would rather stay with her grandparents than with her mother. However, that doesn’t stop Lady Susan from pursuing her goal of playing matchmaker for Frederica, who wants nothing to do with what her mother is up to. Simultaneously, there’s a romance that blossoms for Lady Susan in the process, which complicates matters further and it all leads to some rather interesting situations.

While that synopsis seems rather trite, Stillman’s writing is actually quite refreshing. The screenplay is hysterical and interweaves both satire and genuine character development in a way that is pretty charming. Austen’s commentary on English society in the 1700’s and how relationships worked back then is not only funny, but it’s also smart. There’s some great questions brought up about gender roles, women’s placement in men’s lives and how silly the stereotypes were back then. Ironically enough though, some of that satire is just as prevalent today, sadly. In some ways, Love & Friendship was Jane Austen’s version of The Lobster.

Stillman’s writing certainly makes those themes felt throughout the movie but his direction is wonderful as well. The art direction is beautiful and juxtaposes the satire of the film really well. You are immediately supplanted in 1700’s England with lush cinematography that is aesthetically very pleasing to look at. The costumes, buildings and ambiances are authentically lucid. Stillman also implements some meta techniques to introduce the characters and setting, which felt very Deadpool-esque and was also quite funny in execution.

All of that said, you can’t talk about the film Love & Friendship and not mention Kate Beckinsale, who is as endearing as ever. The funny thing about that, as compelling as Lady Susan Vernon is to watch, she’s actually the best movie villain we’ve possibly seen in 2016. Forget Apocalypse, forget Shredder and Krang, forget Lex Luthor, forget Gul’dan, Lady Susan is the best movie villain we’ve seen this year. The way she uses charm and beauty to connive and manipulate is incredible. Lady Susan may not want to take over the world like the aforementioned villains but she is determined to get her way and isn’t concerned with who she hurts in the process. Don’t get it twisted, she is not a saint or a hero. She isn’t evil per se but that doesn’t mean her actions are good either. You are not going to be rooting for her at the end of this film. That said, she is still captivating to watch and holds a lot of the root to this film thematically regarding gender roles. And Beckinsale brings all of that out in Lady Susan in such engaging fashion.

Love & Friendship won’t be a film for everyone. The dialogue used here is exactly what you think of when someone says the words “Jane Austen” and it will be jarring initially. However, once you settle into the film, it’s easy to track and the story takes some fun and humorous turns that you can enjoy. The performances all around are great. Tom Bennett steals every scene he is in as Sir James Martin, he is just a riot. Morfydd Clark is also worth noting here too. The only major issue with the film is the movie’s third act, which does meander a little bit and the final scene abruptly ends without tying some things up smoothly. Outside of that, the film is a joyride that I’d recommend.

Overall Grade: A-

[divider]

Hear our Extra Film review here:

[divider]