Batman has been, and continues to be controversial. Perhaps like his comic criticisms "Take off that mask" - "a vigilante" - the idea of a hero with a violent dark side makes him part hero and part villain.
The storyline here plays pretty straight to the origins in Detective Comics No. 27. Bruce Wayne takes the persona of Batman to avenge the deaths of his parents in the dark Gotham City. Crime runs rampant due to the insidious influence of the Joker, played somewhat ad libbed by Jack Nicholson.
At the time it was made, it was considered very dark, as compared to other movies. It's really somewhat cartoonish, with the Lost in Space special effects and the Willie Wonka-sets distinctive of other Tim Burton movies. It reminded me of another dark but comic 80s movie set in a dysfunctional NYC - Ghostbusters.
Kim Basinger does a good turn as Vicky Vale, the Lois Lane of Bruce Wayne's existence. Michael Keaton is servicable, better at Bruce Wayne than Batman. Of course this show is really Jack Nicholson's - as I recall, he had top billing on the movie - Nicholson** Keaton ** BATMAN.
The end scene running up a narrow square staircase is straight out of Vertigo - in fact it had a lot of common themes of secret identity, being another person and struggles of good v. evil. Guess who wins?
Kudos to the Paramount Theater in Austin for showing this as part of the Summer Classics series.
* * * of 4
Edge of Tomorrow
They say the hook of a movie is the first 20 minutes. But in this first 20 minutes, you're left scratching your head a bit. Better give this 40 minutes. The hook will set then.
Tom Cruise plays Major Cage an American officer assigned to Universal Defense. A great European War is unfolding against a faceless enemy from outer space. His UDF general orders him to combat, somewhat unwillingly. Amid the D-Day like horror, he discovers an unknown strength upon glimpsing the Full Metal Bitch, Rita, played by Emily Blunt.
Suffice to say without giving more away, Cage travels back in time and relives the moment. It's not quite so scary the second time. Rita is the Sgt. York of the UDF, a veteran whose courage under fire cannot be doubted. Between the 2 of them they've seen a weakness of the enemy that only they can exploit to win the war. But to get there requires a level of understanding that even they dont' know exactly how to achieve.
You'll note many different movie allusions here - and they're all good movies, so this does built in a positive way:
Inception - time travel, different level, video game progression
Saving Private Ryan - the aforementioned D Day scene
Alien - the faceless enemy, the strong female lead
Black Hawk Down - fighting the losing battle
Tom Cruise gets top billing but Emily Blunt is the real star here. She's no damsel in distress. In the future when wars are fought by both sexes, you'll want the Ritas on your side.
This one might be worth seeing a second time in 3D.
* * * * (increased from * * * 1/2 on second review)
Tom Cruise plays Major Cage an American officer assigned to Universal Defense. A great European War is unfolding against a faceless enemy from outer space. His UDF general orders him to combat, somewhat unwillingly. Amid the D-Day like horror, he discovers an unknown strength upon glimpsing the Full Metal Bitch, Rita, played by Emily Blunt.
Suffice to say without giving more away, Cage travels back in time and relives the moment. It's not quite so scary the second time. Rita is the Sgt. York of the UDF, a veteran whose courage under fire cannot be doubted. Between the 2 of them they've seen a weakness of the enemy that only they can exploit to win the war. But to get there requires a level of understanding that even they dont' know exactly how to achieve.
You'll note many different movie allusions here - and they're all good movies, so this does built in a positive way:
Inception - time travel, different level, video game progression
Saving Private Ryan - the aforementioned D Day scene
Alien - the faceless enemy, the strong female lead
Black Hawk Down - fighting the losing battle
Tom Cruise gets top billing but Emily Blunt is the real star here. She's no damsel in distress. In the future when wars are fought by both sexes, you'll want the Ritas on your side.
This one might be worth seeing a second time in 3D.
* * * * (increased from * * * 1/2 on second review)
The Fault in Our Stars
Take a great book - the rest is pretty easy. That's a good equation once you've got the book (e.g. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo). But when the book is quite suited for an English major, a little will be lost in translation. Still this was an excellent movie.
Shailene Woodley plays Hazel Grace, a young girl with cancer affecting her lungs. She's on a miracle drug that is keeping her alive, but at what price? She lives with her parents, is healthy enough to keep going, but lives her life with a sense of impending doom.
She meets Gus (Angus McWaters Augustus Waters) [played by Ansel Elgort] at support group which takes place in an Episcopal church - in the book they meet in the cross of the sanctuary - the literal heart of Jesus. They're attracted to each other as Gus is a handsome jock (pre cancer and the loss of a limb). Hazel tells him about her favorite book, An Imperial Affliction which is kind of a F.Scott Fitzgerald novel about a young person who dies abruptly. They bond over the book and seek to learn more together about the reclusive author now living in Amsterdam, Peter Van Houten.
They are young adults but they live a very adult life, with death a common but still not pleasant thought. So themes of Carpe Diem, young love, physical limits, spirituality, parents and the Meaning of Life are here.
* * * * of 4
7/02/2014 - saw it a second time!
Shailene Woodley plays Hazel Grace, a young girl with cancer affecting her lungs. She's on a miracle drug that is keeping her alive, but at what price? She lives with her parents, is healthy enough to keep going, but lives her life with a sense of impending doom.
She meets Gus (
They are young adults but they live a very adult life, with death a common but still not pleasant thought. So themes of Carpe Diem, young love, physical limits, spirituality, parents and the Meaning of Life are here.
* * * * of 4
7/02/2014 - saw it a second time!
Chef
A tasty treat from Jon Favreau, in a return to his Swingers writing roots. He basically invented Vince Vaughn, so this is Jon playing Vince. Lots of dialogue.
Favreau plays @chefcarlcasper, a celebrity chef in L.A. When he gets a bad review after being reigned in his overbearing owner, he has a epic meltdown, quits and is at loose ends. With the help of his supportive ex-wife Sofia Vergara (who've thought?), they head as a "family" to Miami to discover his roots.
When there, he obtains a food truck and seeks to patch up the truck and his career. His good buddy John Lezguiamo and his 10 year old son then get the band back together and they head out.
My favorite parts were the road trip to two of my favorite food destinations, New Orleans and Austin. As well as the character of @Twitter. It's about time we had a Twitter movie.
#ATX # NOLA #ElJefe # ScarJo #Downey #Guero #HomeSlice #CafeDuMonde #FoodPorn #TexasBBQ
* * * of 4
Favreau plays @chefcarlcasper, a celebrity chef in L.A. When he gets a bad review after being reigned in his overbearing owner, he has a epic meltdown, quits and is at loose ends. With the help of his supportive ex-wife Sofia Vergara (who've thought?), they head as a "family" to Miami to discover his roots.
When there, he obtains a food truck and seeks to patch up the truck and his career. His good buddy John Lezguiamo and his 10 year old son then get the band back together and they head out.
My favorite parts were the road trip to two of my favorite food destinations, New Orleans and Austin. As well as the character of @Twitter. It's about time we had a Twitter movie.
#ATX # NOLA #ElJefe # ScarJo #Downey #Guero #HomeSlice #CafeDuMonde #FoodPorn #TexasBBQ
* * * of 4
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