Tomorrowland

Don’t waste today on ‘Tomorrowland’

Thursday June 4, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

Disney’s latest sci-fi adventure, “Tomorrowland”, is a big, bad guilt trip. This preposterous tween movie’s premise is that we have no future if we continue to be negative. Positivity will save the day. Just believe in a future and all will be well. It’s pretty simplistic and definitely not a strong enough theme to support a 2 1/2-hour scolding.

Director Brad Bird and team have filled the screen with the most boring visuals and special effects. Lots of noise and fast movement assault our senses with no significant meaning. It brings to mind Macbeth’s famous line, “It is a tale full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” It is also a tale full of confusion. I really didn’t know what was going on. It made me wonder if the target audience would have the same difficulty.

“Tomorrowland” stars George Clooney as inventor Frank Walker, scarred by youthful rejection. We first encounter him as an optimistic boy (Thomas Robinson). He fails to impress the judges at The Hall of Inventions with his jetpack, which actually doesn’t work. However, the young Athena (Raffey Cassidy), feels it has potential. Somehow, her opinion has some weight. She is a bit of a mystery for most of the film until the final reel when she, who has not aged, reunites with the pessimistic adult Frank (Clooney). Then the lame mystery is solved, but still doesn’t explain her purpose.

At the center of this confusion is the feisty, optimistic Casey Newton (Britt Robertson). She discovers a pin from the 1964 World Expo that transports her to Tomorrowland when she touches it. She learns that the future is governed by Nix (Hugh Laurie) who is determined to destroy the negative present to ensure a positive future. Casey becomes convinced that the world needs saving from this lunatic. The odd thing is that “villain” Governor Nix is on the right side of the issues. He has proposed solutions to global warming, political and sociological unrest. So, if he lives in the future and cured these worldly ailments, then where’s the conflict? We are left with the message that the world needs more dreamers and that everyone should drink Coke – mucho product placement – and visit Disney World, especially Tomorrowland. This is a shameless overstuffed promo for Disney.

The performances lack enthusiasm, except for Cassidy as the enigmatic Athena. As for the direction and screenplay – Bird and crew may know what “Tomorrowland” is about. Perhaps they can film a tutorial and let us all in on the “fun.”

http://www.thesunnews.net/scene/749-Dont_waste_today_on_'Tomorrowland.html

Still Alice

‘Still Alice’ a devastating story of Alzheimer’s

Thursday May 21, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

At the center of this very sad tale is Alice. She is smart, strong, loving and lovable. She will break your heart. Her descent into Alzheimer’s is truthfully depicted. The drama is carefully measured as to avoid histrionics and theatrics. It is quite an achievement.

We watch hopelessly Alice’s unavoidable decline. Memory loss is a major symptom of Alzheimer’s and the most devastating. Alice experiences episodes where she doesn’t recognize her children and her husband. She also has bouts of disorientation – not knowing where she is. She goes out jogging only to find herself not recognizing the street or why she is there. It is harrowing, in its quiet way.

This is a powerful film. Is it entertaining? Well, not in the normal sense. Yet, in its authenticity, it is deeply involving. There is a stand-out scene with Alice lecturing as she bravely fights her limitations. It just may be the most moving moment in film this year.

Julianne Moore as 50-years-old Alice gives a quiet, subtle portrait of a vital woman knowingly facing this terribly cruel disease. Her intelligence in dealing day-to-day with strategies she devises for herself is inspiring. There is no implied light at the end of the tunnel here. We know, as does Alice, her story has a predictable, inevitable conclusion.

Alice – ironically a linqiustics professor – is prominent and accomplished in her field. She shares her life with an equally successful husband (Alec Baldwin) and three grown children. Her youngest daughter (Kristen Stewart), an aspiring actress, puts her career on hold to the barbed amazement of her siblings so she can be with her mother in her obvious time of need. Hunter Parrish, as Alice’s only son, also stands out. He puts credence to the old Stanislavski proverb, “There are no small parts, only small actors.” With very few lines and screen time, Parrish fashions an emotional portrait of a loving son hit hard by his mother’s struggle.

“Still Alice” is a film that’s difficult to recommend. I’m glad I saw it but, frankly, I wouldn’t see it again. Its realness is its strength and its weakness. It is just too depressing.

The movie’s authenticity may, in part, be due to the sadly fascinating fact that “Still Alice” was co-written and directed by Richard Glatzer, who was suffering from another terminal neurologic disease, ALS, during the filming. This was his last film before his death in March of this year.

“Still Alice” has been re-released due to Moore’s Oscar win as best actress. This was a movie that very few people saw the first time around, but the audience has grown.

I think the most important message I took away from this film was how necessary efforts are to find a cure for Alzheimer’s. This disease, like this movie, does not have a happy ending.

http://www.thesunnews.net/scene/360-'Still_Alice_a_devastating_story_of_Alzheimers.html

Eyes Wide Open - A Commentary

Eyes wide open: Rediscover classic film

Wednesday April 22, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

For movie-lovers, this is the golden age. Not necessarily because movies are better but that they are so abundant. And with abundance come choices and so many wonderful ways to access this great art form.

I love movies – new, old, short, long, intimate, epic, black and white, color, Cinemascope, 3D – so many bad flicks but so many good ones, too.

You can go the conventional route and catch the latest releases at your local Cineplex. You can rent or buy the movie of your choice on DVD. Television and the Internet offer plenty of options from On Demand, premium channels and streaming.

And then there’s another option – my favorite – Turner Classic Movies. Bless TCM. Bless Robert Osborne – TCM host, guide and film expert. While I’m at it – Bless Thomas Edison and the Lumiere Brothers.

I pick movies the way I pick books. One of my favorite “libraries” is TCM. I adore this television network. It isn’t nostalgia that beckons me to this channel. It’s an aesthetic. TCM, like a library, has the good the bad and the interesting.

Today on TCM I watched a series of short Lumiere films – movies from the 1800’s! Two of them were in color. What an experience. Viewing movies from two centuries ago was like a visitation from Marley’s ghost – chilling, thrilling and a little scary but also a kind of spiritual experience.

I recently watched “Giant’ with Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean and Rock Hudson. It was fabulous. I was astounded to realize what a great actress Taylor was, in her prime. I was surprised at how good Hudson was and how bad the forever young Dean could be. “Giant’s” director George Stevens was a revelation.

Another surprise was the phenomenal performance by a young and very beautiful Natalie Wood in “Splendor in the Grass.” Warren Beatty made his movie debut in “Splendor” and was pretty stunning – all the earmarks of a screen star. Directed by Elia Kazan, Wood’s heartbreaking performance was never equaled by her.

TCM is a treasure trove of great 20th Century “literature.” Yes, TCM also shows bombs but viewed as history, these bombs blow away many of today’s hits – you know – like the repulsive “Hangover” movies, the stupid Jennifer Aniston romcoms, the grating Adam Sandler indulgences, the smarmy Paul Rudd buddy flicks, the recent spate of senior citizen romantic comedies starring the likes of Diane Keaton, Alec Baldwin, Meryl Streep and Robert Dinero.

I am not saying old movies were better than today’s efforts. I am saying that today’s garbage is smellier. In an attempt to be real, many movies have given up wit, true humor and poetic vision. That said, today we have Ang Lee, Spielberg, Scorsese, Danny Boyle et al making very good movies. There is much to enjoy and savor today, but ah - yesterday’s Bette Davis, Kazan, Garland, Cagney, Charles Laughton, Montgomery Clift, Geraldine Page, Ava Gardner, Kim Novak, William Inge, Hepburn, David Lean, Brando, Coppola, Lumet, MGM musicals and that marvelous roaring lion and so on.

But I don’t have to dwell in a nostalgic mist. I just turn on TCM and catch a dream – eyes wide open.


    http://www.thesunnews.net/scene/227-Eyes_wide_open_Rediscover_classic_film.html                                       

American Sniper - Rating 3 Suns

'American Sniper' is heartbreaking to watch

Friday March 13, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

HAMBURG— I do not understand the controversy surrounding this film. “American Sniper” is a straightforward movie about a reluctant war hero. Chris Kyle is a Navy Seal sniper with an uncanny talent for accuracy. He is so proficient that he gains the title “legend” from his peers. What he does is not pretty. But war is not pretty. He is good at what he does. Often, he must make the difficult decisions. Aiming his gun at the enemy, which sometimes includes women and most horribly, children, are his most disturbing decisions. It is heartbreaking to watch. These scenes are harrowing and will very likely cause you to have conflicting feelings. But this is why Kyle is a hero. How many people could perform such a duty and hold on to their sanity?

As portrayed by Bradley Cooper, Kyle is a sympathetic character. His demeanor is very much like his director’s persona – Clint Eastwood. Cooper is masterful. Eastwood’s direction is sturdy and penetrating.

By the way, “American Sniper” is a true story set in Texas and Iraq. It is compelling and ultimately quite sad. Kyle’s fate is tragic and unfair. Unblinking in its narrative, we are shown battles and skirmishes with Kyle’s sniping as the main tactical maneuver. These are the scenes that are most wrenching.

We are given some relief from the war zones with family scenes back home in Texas, when Kyle is on leave. These scenes are fraught with great love but laced with unnerving anxiety. We know he will return to Iraq, culminating in four tours with the Seals.

So, if this film is to be believed and I have no reason to feel otherwise, Kyle was a hero. He was a decent man with a deadly talent that served his country. The devastating details of his life make him even more heroic, in my opinion. The so-called “controversy” regarding this movie is lame and insulting.

My one quibble with American Sniper is its failure to deal head-on with the final chapter of Kyle’s story. I would have preferred the film to include a dramatization of a key incident. The impact could have been stunning. Nevertheless, its final denouement still packs a punch.

In the supporting cast, Sienna Miller as Kyle’s wife, Taya, delivers a beautifully realistic performance. Taya is torn between her desire for domestic stability and her necessary support for her husband’s duty. As their marriage progresses, they have children and a seemingly normal life – except for his long departures when he must leave to serve his country. Her demands for this normal life are thwarted by his need to serve and the Seals’ need for his special ability.

The look of the film is rather mesmerizing. Eastwood shoots his war scenes so honestly. He forces us to be witness to what war is really like. There is one scene shot in a sand storm that is brilliant in its unnerving aspect.

American Sniper is not your glossy Hollywood war film of yesterday. And Bradley Cooper is not John Wayne. This is an engrossing story about true commitment, a believable victory and gritty honor.

American Sniper is currently in theaters.


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Into The Woods

The Sun movie review: ‘Into the Woods’ is a magical trip

Monday February 23, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

Four suns.

“Once Upon a time in a far off kingdom” ... and so it begins. “Into the Woods” they go to reverse a bitter witch’s curse. What a musical fantasy delight this movie is; A story that works on several levels jam-packed with life lessons for adults and children alike.

The songs weave a spell of intrigue. The characters – all from different fairy tales – converge in a clever plot, which involves coming together for a common good. Of course, as they meet in the woods, conflict and peril unfolds everywhere.

The plot is set in motion when a baker and his wife are visited by their neighbor, an angry witch who has been cursed with ugliness by her mother due to past deeds involving a garden, the baker’s father and other dark secrets. In retaliation, she has rendered the couple childless. They never knew of this wicked spell. Due to the actions of the baker’s absent father, the witch stole the baker’s baby sister and raised her. He did not know he had a sister – Rapunzel.

As the story unfolds, Cinderella, her stepmother and stepsisters, two Prince Charmings, Little Red Riding Hood, her granny and the wolf, Jack of the bean stalk and two furious giants fill out the cast of characters to take the audience on an exciting and haunting journey. The goal is to reverse the curse and bring on a “happily ever after” ending for everybody, including the witch.

Well, we get that happy ending in the middle of the movie! But wait – you know the old saying “Be careful what you wish for?” The second half of the story deals with discontent and payback. Having upset the tranquility of the giant’s kingdom, Jack is wanted as retribution. So, back into the woods this collection of fairy tale characters go to hide young Jack and plot their defense against the angry giant. The scenes of blame and accusation, of hurt and loss, of sweet lessons learned, are wondrous.

Directed by Academy Award winner, Rob Marshall (“Chicago”), Into the Woods has his stamp of luscious visuals and wit. The cast is perfect. What a treat to have a musical where everyone can actually sing. No talk-singing or trick techy nonsense to disguise a star’s lack of musicality. Meryl Streep as the witch is a revelation. We all know what a great actress she is. Her singing in “Mama Mia” didn’t even hint at the tremendous power and dramatic force she delivers in song. Also outstanding is Lilla Crawford as Little Red Riding Hood and Daniel Huttlestone as Jack. Surprising in their own right are performances by Emily Blunt, Chris Pine and James Corden.

Broadway’s genius composer Stephen Sondheim has never been properly served in movies – until now. His philosophy, humor and humanity displayed in his clever lyrics, plus his beautifully unique melodies, have had a difficult time in past transfers to film. This time, they got it right.

“Into the Woods “is currently in theaters.

http://www.thesunnews.net/news/383-'Into_the_Woods'_is_a_magical_trip.html

Annie

The Sun movie review: Updated ‘Annie’ falls flat

Thursday February 5, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

One Sun

Little Orphan Annie, Daddy Warbucks and Sandy the dog started out as comic strip characters in the Great Depression. Vastly popular, this comic strip brought optimism to a bleak period in our history. Annie, the eternal optimist with the big round eyes and big red hair has never left us. She has seen the lights of Broadway in what has become a classic musical. Filmed in 1982 with a star-studded cast and then again as a television special, also with a star-studded cast, Annie and friends continued to gain admirers.

Now, a newly reimagined “Annie” has hit the silver screen with a thud. This lackluster production has subtracted everything from the original that was charming and relevant. Not only have the characters been changed and renamed – except for Annie, of course – but the classic score has been so altered that the songs are unrecognizable. I am not a purist, but this is ridiculous.

The updated plot revolves around Annie who, in this version, is no longer an orphan. She is now a foster child. Annie pines for her biological parents, as in the original. She shares a cramped bedroom with several other foster children – all girls under the supervision of mean Miss Hannigan, dreadfully played by Cameron Diaz. On her daily excursions in looking for her parents, she encounters Mr. Stacks, a cell phone tycoon with political aspirations. For some stupid reason, he takes our little waif into his home for media coverage, in hopes it will soften his public image and get him elected as mayor. Annie goes from Hannigan’s dreary New York City tenement to Stacks’ high-tech penthouse. Of course, the predictable happens, as lovable Annie melts Mr. Stack’s cold heart. Along the way, we are assaulted with the worst musical numbers I have ever witnessed on screen. Lacking production value and with the most awkward staging, the songs fall as flat as the performances.

The cast appears clueless. The performances are so weak as to be nonexistent. To be fair, the actors, all good in other movies, have apparently been left to their own devices without any direction. Produced, written and directed by Will Gluck, this vanity production is so wrongheaded. What a missed opportunity to bring this delightful musical to a new generation. Jamie Foxx seems to be sleepwalking through his part. Rose Byrne, as his assistant and long suffering secret admirer, is zombie-like, in this flattened-out film.

The usually wonderful Bobby Cannaval is awful as a crooked opportunist. Quvenzshane Wallis as Annie has energy to spare and too many smiles to bare. She’s cute, is the kindest thing I can say for her performance.

With songs like the iconic “Tomorrow” plus “Hard Knock Life” and “Maybe” so unrecognizable in their updated treatments, one wonders why Gluck and company were inspired to remake “Annie.” Did they think they could improve on an already good thing with newly written, extremely inferior songs? Or did they believe they could make it better by adding a superfluous car chase?

To see “Annie” at her best, check out the 1982 film version, directed by the great John Huston starring Carol Burnett and Albert Finney, or the 1999 TV film directed by Rob Marshall starring Cathy Bates. These are available on cable and streaming on syndication services.

There is also a national tour of the stage play coming our way this year. All three options are better bets, to see “Annie” in all her rightful glory.

“Annie” is currently in theaters.

http://www.thesunnews.net/scene/516-The_Sun_movie_review_Updated_'Annie_falls_flat.html

The Imitation Game

‘The Imitation Game’ is second to none

Friday January 23, 2015 | By:Tony Baksa |

Four Suns.

“The Imitation Game” is a true story about an unsung hero starring Benedict Cumberbatch. Fans of PBS’s stylish delight, “Sherlock Holmes” will be familiar with the quirky Cumberbatch. He couldn’t be more perfect as Alan Turing, the young genius mathematician who, with a support team, was instrumental in ending World War II. Over a span of two painstaking years, this dedicated team worked to crack the Nazi code “Enigma.”

This well-crafted movie takes us through this process in a most entertaining way. It is more than a tale of code-breaking. It is a dramatic look at teamwork and love. But mostly, it is a character study of a genius misunderstood and egregiously underappreciated. Turing performed heroic work in decoding the Nazi machine and saving thousands of lives. It has been estimated that breaking this code shortened the war by two years. This decoding allowed Britain to know Germany’s tactical moves. It should also be said that Turing actually laid the foundation for the modern day computer. He truly was an extraordinary mind.

So why was Alan Turing not celebrated or decorated? Why did he receive such punishing treatment from England? The main reason was because Turing was gay. This brilliant young man’s contribution has been buried away from history books and school curriculum for 50 years. England finally recognized his achievement in 2012 – too late to alter the devastating outcome of a life sadly abused by a harsh society.

Director Morten Tyldum has gathered an impressive ensemble of actors. Keira Knightley is charming as the only woman on this team who shares a strong bond with Turing. Charles Dance and Matthew Goode also turn in strong performances as Turing’s commander and teammate. However, it is Cumberbatch that steals the show. He has become adept at portraying outsiders and superior intellects with such humanity and charisma.

The Imitation Game works on so many levels. It is a spy thriller. It is suspenseful. It is a love story. It is a social document. It is history. First-time screenwriter Graham Moore and the creative team deserve accolades. The history of the world is filled with untold truths and unsung heroes. Race, gender, sexuality and religious taboos have kept the facts hidden, in many cases. The Imitation Game is a step in the right direction. Due to the appalling neglect of such an important historical episode, The Imitation Game – movie and book – should be required viewing and reading until the time comes when Turing’s story is justly included in our history books and lessons.

 The Imitation Game is currently in theaters.

http://www.thesunnews.net/scene/533-'The_Imitation_Game_is_second_to_none.html