by Philip Benais

Thor: Directed by Kenneth Branagh; Starring Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins and Stellan Skarsgard.

The recent influx of Marvel comics films has been extremely beneficial to the comic book movie as a genre, which along with dramatic opuses like The Dark Knight and Watchmen have rescued the genre from the depths of Batman And Robin and Steel. While Thor certainly isn’t the best comic book film this year (I have a feeling that distinction will go to Captain America or Green Lantern) it’s a perfect example of a Saturday night popcorn film diversion. The effects are great, the acting is fairly decent and while it may not be as entertaining as the two Iron Man films, it all brings us one step closer to The Avengers movie by Joss Whedon, which no nerd can resist.

The story follows the adventures of The God Of Thunder himself (Chris Hemsworth) who is brash, arrogant and thinks he knows everything. On the day he is to be made king of Asgard by Odin All Father (Anthony Hopkins) The Frost Giants launch an attack to steal their precious relic of power. Thor brazenly decides to march into their territory and pick a fight. For his insolence, he is cast out of Asgard and banished to Earth. In Thor’s absence, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) begins to move against the crown and soon Thor learns the value of humility thanks to a woman named Jane (Natalie Portman) and must soon save Asgard.

Right off the bat, the best part of Thor is the special effects. During the scenes in Asgard, it truly felt that I was transported to another world and the suspension of disbelief was further aided by the appropriate balance of Olde English and Every Day English in the dialogue. Although I’ve never read the comics, Chris Hemsworth was appropriately imposing and surprisingly funny as Thor. Anthony Hopkins was also great as Odin, but personally I always envisioned Liam Neeson as Odin. Natalie Portman was satisfactory, even though her role felt somewhat bland. Surprisingly, there was less action in Thor than in Iron Man, which along with Robert Downey Jr. is why I can watch those films over and over. Thor on the other hand is reminiscent of The Incredible Hulk film with Edward Norton; it’s by all means worth the money and quite enjoyable, but ultimately more of a diversion than anything memorable. It’s fun, fast and you’ll love it. Higher praise for a popcorn film I could not give.

Rating: *** / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is one of our Interns, a 17-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

The Green Hornet; Directed by Michel Gondry; Starring Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Tom Wilkinson and Cameron Diaz.

Sometimes a superhero film doesn’t need to challenge our perceptions of right and wrong. Sometimes a superhero film doesn’t have to present a gritty crime caper with aspirations of Shakespeare. Sometimes, you just want to see something hilarious with lots of explosions. Green Hornet is that kind of film, a light and yet subtly made parody of the serious superhero film we’ve come to expect with the advent of the Nolanverse Batman and Zack Snyder’s Watchmen. If you’re expecting drama and nihilistic villains you need to look somewhere else. From the earliest previews I knew I would like Green Hornet, but I didn’t know that I would love it and that this dreadfully underrated gem would broach my favorite comic book films of all time. Simply put, Green Hornet is the perfect superhero comedy, a feat that has been attempted in the past but never managed to go beyond corny nostalgia. With this film, Michel Gondry has proven himself to be an auteur with a sense of humor, able to make compelling dramas but also step back and give us a fantastic action comedy, and more importantly a bang to start off the new year.

Green Hornet follows the story of Britt Reid (Seth Rogen), a reckless, fun loving playboy and son of the famous James Reid (Tom Wilkinson), newspaper mogul and publisher of The Daily Sentinel. Britt and his father have never seen eye to eye, but when James is found dead of an allergic reaction to a bee sting, Britt secludes himself. Eventually he meets Kato (Jay Chou) his father’s former mechanic and all-around human Swiss army knife. After some heavy drinking, Britt and Kato decide to head out on the town and commit a little vandalism. However, what starts as a childish prank quickly becomes a rescue and soon Britt has an idea; what if he and Kato became superheros? Disguised as villains, they could infiltrate the criminal underworld headed up by Chudnofsky (the brilliant Christoph Waltz) and rid the city of its’ scourge. Will Green Hornet succeed? How does lovely Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz) fit into this? Of course, my favorite question, why did the critical consensus for this film reek of snobbery?

Right off the bat, I was dismayed by the polarizing response that Green Hornet received from other critics, but when I saw it I didn’t see the horrible film they claimed it was, I saw a film that people really just didn’t know what to do with. How many superhero comedies exist? Not very many. What’s been the usual critical consensus for them? Hatred. Sure, it’s fine if superheros deal with rape and torture but the minute Gangster’s Paradise starts playing with Seth Rogen and Jay Chou singing along it’s a terrible film. What struck me even more is that even if we accept that Green Hornet failed at what it attempts to do, it was made in such a way that it not only makes fun of itself at every turn, but pokes fun of every other superhero cliche throughout the years.

Let’s be honest, Seth Rogen is not a superhero…but that’s what makes it so grand! Never in a million years would I have imagined him as an action star and a worthwhile character but lo and behold, he pulls it off. How about Christoph Waltz as the villain whose only gimmick is that he’s in search of a gimmick? Or Cameron Diaz as the seemingly usual female character who doesn’t end up with either of the main characters and by the end is irritated beyond all belief? These are ideas that most superhero films look over but Green Hornet has the capacity to take these ideas and not only be funny at face value but also be funny as a deftly made, possibly unintentional satire.

Jay Chou steals the show as Kato though, providing us with great laughs and incredible action sequences thanks to his martial arts skills and ‘Kato Vision’. The writing for the film feels like every superhero film and no superhero film simultaneously, a feat that only dumb luck could have accomplished. All of these elements combined with Michel Gondry’s distinctive visual style provide a great time at the movies. Maybe the fact that that’s all I expected from this film helped me enjoy it a lot more. Maybe since professional critics need to seem like legitimate cinema lovers they shun films like this for credibility. In the end though, this film gets my highest recommendation. Not in a high art sense, but in the same way I would recommend the original Highlander or Boondock Saints. It might be corny at times but Green Hornet backs it up with laughs, action and genuine entertainment. See it, love it, talk about it.

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

Season Of The Witch; Directed By Dominic Sena: Starring Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman and Claire Foy.

The story of Nicolas Cage’s career is certainly a tragic one; how he managed to go from Academy Award Winner to straight to DVD-quality schlock like this is a sob story for the ages. The turning point for me ultimately came in 2006, from Neil LaBute’s god awful Wicker Man remake. As atrocious as that film was, Nicolas Cage managed to cement himself in bad movie history. Along with John Travolta in Battlefield Earth and Eddie Murphy in Pluto Nash, Cage became one of the biggest laughing stocks in show business. To this day, the mere mention of ‘Not The Bees!’ has me keeling over in laughter. Naturally when Season Of The Witch came out, I was expecting another heavy hitting bad film. Since Cage has proven he’s diametrically opposed to acting in anything worthwhile these days, the least he could do is try and make the horrible films memorable.

Sadly, Season Of The Witch was no such film. Don’t get me wrong, it was still horrid but in the same fashion as the mind-boggling sequel Little Fockers. It’s made up of so much concentrated garbage that it collapses in on itself into a vast empty void of nothingness. Season Of The Witch isn’t a bad film you laugh at or even cringe at. When I sat in the theater I didn’t know how to express why the film was so bad. It has all the elements of a very bad film like third rate CGI, predictable plot twists, horrible quips etc. but none of the emotional resonance that other terrible films have. When you see a movie like Freddy Got Fingered for instance, the only sane response is to curse humanity for unleashing a foul plague like Tom Green, but in Season Of The Witch, you’re more likely to walk out saying ‘I don’t know what I just watched but somehow I feel very uneasy.’

Season Of The Witch follows two knights in The Crusades named Behmen and Felson (Nicolas Cage and Ron Perlman respectively) who desert their ranks after the slaughter of innocents. Some time later, they hitch at a nearby town that’s been stricken with the plague. Ultimately, they are conscripted into bringing a witch suspected of bringing about the plague to a monastery for trial. However, they soon discover that all is not as it seems as malevolent forces beyond their comprehension begin to move against them.

As much as this film was a true representation of the January Dead Zone, I did enjoy two aspects of it. The first being Ron Perlman; no matter what terrible film he finds himself in, I can always enjoy his cromagnum charm. The second being the very beautiful woman they found to play the witch in Claire Foy. Seeing her somehow ratcheted this film up a notch than it wouldn’t have been without her. Everything else on the other hand? Miserable, and when you think about it later you realize that throwing twenty dollars down the toilet would have been both a more productive use of your time and a better way to spend the money. The special effects are like a time capsule from 1999 that the director had no other use for. Then again this is the brilliant auteur that brought us such ‘classics’ as Swordfish and Gone In Sixty Seconds, both films made slightly better by beautiful women. (I sense a pattern…)

The script is essentially scratch and sniff Medieval fare with a twist of the Schwarzenegger vehicle End Of Days. This is a cliche film and it doesn’t care who knows it. Sometimes I don’t mind that if they know how to play that angle to their advantage and make entertaining B-quality fare, but in the hands of Dominic Sena and Nicolas Cage, it just becomes this year’s equivalent to Jonah Hex; short, unpleasant, haphazard and horrible beyond any kind of connection. My advice if you’re in the mood for a B-Movie is to rent something with Bruce Campbell in it. It won’t be the best film you’ve ever seen, but by golly will it be fun. If you’re looking for Season Of The Witch, stick to the Donovan tune and let Nicolas Cage fizzle out. It’s sad, but then again if I sealed my fate as an actor with paganism and misogyny, I’d have no one but myself to blame.

Rating: * / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

True Grit; Directed by Joel & Ethan Coen: Starring Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Hailee Steinfeld and Barry Pepper.

The Coen Brothers have directed some of the most influential films of modern cinema and regardless of what you may think of any individual film of theirs it quickly becomes apparent they are a force to be reckoned with. Naturally when I saw the previews for True Grit, I was very excited. After all, The Coen Brothers are responsible for one of my Top Ten Favorite Films Of All Time. (The Big Lebowski, which becomes even funnier when you know that I am an ordained Dudeist Priest) The question then becomes, how does True Grit hold up? I’m happy to report that even as their most streamlined picture, it maintains the quirky humor and razor sharp dialogue they became famous for as well as giving us wonderful acting all across the board.

The film centers around Mattie Ross, (Hailee Steinfeld) a 14-year old girl whose father was murdered by a drifter named Tom Cheney. In order to get the justice she seeks for her father, she employs Deputy U.S. Marshall Rooster Cogburn. (Jeff Bridges) Cogburn is described to Mattie as having ‘true grit’, but when she attempts to hire him, he refuses. After much deliberation however, he concedes and Mattie, Cogburn and a Texas Ranger named LaBoeuf (Matt Damon) set out to apprehend Cheney. (Josh Brolin)

The best part of True Grit by far is the emphasis on dialogue. In an age where character and story have become expendable, it’s so welcoming to see talented actors and actresses making the expertly crafted dialogue come to life. Jeff Bridges astounds as Cogburn, giving us a character that is both nuanced and yet accessible. (The true sign of both excellent acting and writing) Matt Damon also continues his recent trend of quality performances, but the real surprise is Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Ross. It’s very rare that not only such a young actress can dazzle us but in her first performance no less. Steinfeld is an actress with a very bright future and I can only say that I want to see more from her in the years to come.

True Grit is a picture that could have had a lot of things wrong with it; for one, it’s an adaptation which always has the potential to go south very fast and it is a very linear picture which may or may not work. In the hands of the production crew however, it becomes one of the best Westerns in years and a film I would recommend to movie lovers everywhere. If you’re in the market for something wonderful and intelligent, you can do a whole lot worse than True Grit.

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

Inception: Directed By Christopher Nolan. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Ken Watanbe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hardy, Michael Caine and Marion Cotilliard.

I’m not going to mince words here; if you haven’t seen Inception yet, go see if now. I mean it, it’s worth tracking down a theater to see this movie. No ifs, no buts, if you’re a lover of cinema and haven’t seen this masterwork you sorely need to. This is the kind of film that defines a director’s career. Francis Ford Coppola had The Godfather, Quentin Tarantino had Pulp Fiction, and now Christopher Nolan can stand tall and say ‘Yes, I AM the man who made Inception.’ This is the kind of nutty brilliance that you get when you take an idea like Andrei Tarkovsky meets The Matrix or Stanley Kubrick meets James Bond and manage to make it into a blockbuster film. It easily surpassed my already astronomical expectations and if you give it a chance, I’m sure you’ll love it too.

For those of you who don’t know, Christopher Nolan is the man responsible for some of the best films modern cinema has to offer, always bringing us challenging yet completely immersive films that this reviewer could never get enough of; I loved the mystery and excitement of Memento. I reveled in how well Al Pacino and Robin Williams counterbalanced each other in Insomnia. I was relieved at how dark and brooding Batman Begins was, getting rid of the sour taste of Joel Schumacher’s bat nipples and ice puns. I was emotional over The Prestige, and The Dark Knight? Hell, who didn’t enjoy that film? Now, I can safely say that Inception is his magnum opus; no matter the future, this will always be my standard for Christopher Nolan’s future films.

I fear that any explicit details I give would ruin the experience of this movie, so I’ll be sure to word this carefully; Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) is an extractor, someone who can infiltrate his target’s dreams and take any information he requires. After an extraction gone wrong with his Point Man Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) he is asked about the idea of inception from a shady businessman named Saito, (Ken Watanbe) an extremely powerful individual who asks the seemingly simple question ‘if you can steal something from someone’s mind, why can’t you plant something inside?’ After exhausting the point and finally claiming to be able to make Dom’s mysterious legal charges go away, Cobb reconsiders and assembles a new team for one last job before he can finally go home. The new team consists of Cobb, Arthur, Saito, a new dream architect named Ariadne, (Ellen Page) a forger named Eames (Tom Hardy, arguably the most enjoyable actor in the film) and a chemist named Yusuf. (Dileep Rao) The team will have to face seemingly insurmountable odds to plant the idea as well as dealing with Cobb’s ex wife Mal. (Played by the always stunning Marion Cotillard)

Many of you have guessed by now that Inception is not your typical summer fare; some people however were expecting something that you don’t have to think about, and they were severely disappointed.. One of the many brilliant things about Inception is that it treats the audience as if we have a mind; it doesn’t Michael Bay everything by throwing out explosions and busty women at us every five seconds like some summer blockbusters do; this is a film you’ll talk about and discuss, and if you see it with more than one person like I did all three times I watched it, it makes for wonderful post movie conversation. The notion of dreamscape in the film is explored in a more internally consistent way than most other films about questionable realities (save for Dark City, my favorite film of all time.) In Inception, the dialogue is handled in a way that feels natural, but also informative and the multiple levels of reality the characters function on at different times in the film can get a little confusing if you don’t pay attention, but that shouldn’t be a problem for most rational people.

As I’ve mentioned, the writing is a breath of fresh air. It’s not everyday that we see a big budget mainstream film that treats us as more than just amused by things that go boom and the talks in this film are pure Nolan; efficient, calculated but also very human and emotional. It’s a paradox for sure but it’s the mark of a truly great filmmaker. Make no mistake however the action set pieces are some of the best I’ve seen period; some of the extraordinary stunts, especially towards the climax of the film will have your jaw drop as your mind reels from all the poignant things going on. It’s a one of a kind experience that is further enhanced by the performances; Leonardo DiCaprio is wonderful, in a very vulnerable and saddened way and any scene with him and Marion Cotillard will make you run the gamut of emotions. Jospeh Gordon-Levitt is pitch perfect as the rigid Arthur, providing some of the films better moments with his deadpan humor. Nolan regulars Watanbe and Caine astound as Saito and Miles, Cobb’s father-in-law respectively, even if Caine has more of a bit part this time around. The scene stealer however, is Tom Hardy as Eames a wise cracking, cynical man after my own heart. Every time Hardy was onscreen I experienced everything from laughter to awe and with the rumors of Nolan adapting a Bond film, I wouldn’t mind seeing Hardy as the titular secret agent to save us from Daniel Craig…alas, I digress.

Christoper Nolan was quoted as saying that Inception harkens back to ‘that era of movies where you had The Matrix, you had Dark City, you had The Thirteenth Floor and, to a certain extent, you had Memento, too. They were based in the principles that the world around you might not be real,’ and every word of that quote is true. I don’t hand out five stars to films very often, especially Science Fiction films since as I mentioned my favorite film is a Sci Fi movie. Inception though, is an obvious exception; it stands tall with classics of the genre like Blade Runner and 2001: A Space Odyssey. Is it as good as Dark City in my mind? I won’t lie, it’s the closest a film has come since I saw Dark City all those years ago. I doubt I’ll find a film for the rest of year that’ll match up to this one. Am I a bit biased? Yeah, I admit it but with a film like this how could you not be?

Rating: *****/*****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac.

Read more of his work here.]

by Matt Marble

Most movie buffs think that Clint Eastwood was at his prime playing Dirty Harry or starring in one of his many “spaghetti” westerns.

But I think that Gran Torino proves that Eastwood is still in his prime, as both a leading Actor and Director.

He stars as Walt Kowalski, a retired autoworker and Korean War Vet, who’s not afraid to pronounce his hatred for…well everybody.

When a Hmong teenager tries to steal his mint condition 1972 Gran Torino, his temper flares. After the failed carjacking, the boy’s family insists that he repays Walt by working odd jobs. Over time, Walt gets used to the kid. A series of events lead to a very heartfelt and memorable climax.

In the beginning of the film, I was unsettled by the anger that Eastwood possessed for the Hmong people, but by the end, you can witness the transformation from angry old man to caring neighbor.

You don’t have to be a fan of Clint Eastwood to enjoy Gran Torino – just a fan of great storytelling…and remember, this film is rated R for a reason.

Gran Torino is playing at many local movie theaters; you can find movietimes here.

Here’s the trailer for the film, which was ranked #1 at the box office last weekend, as well as an AP feature on Eastwood:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: "Matt's Movies" is a regular movie-review column written by Matt Marble, a 17-year old student at Highline School District's Big Picture High School.

If you have a movie you'd like for him to review, please email him.

Look for more of his movie reviews and other articles soon on The B-Town Blog!]