“Shaft” is the current 2019 version of the continuing story of John Shaft that was started in 1971. “He’s a complicated man – But no one understands him but his woman” – you know, the theme song by Isaac Hayes. Well then, “Shaft” later appeared in 2000, when Samuel L. Jackson took over the main role from Richard Roundtree. Read more
“The Secret Life of Pets 2” is very similar to the first movie in this series (the first one was just named without the “2”). It has mostly the same animated characters, and (mostly) the same actors doing the vocal work of those characters. The same cheerful animation style is used to tell a cute and engaging story about several pets who live in New York City. Read more
“X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is, well – of course – an X-Men movie. That brings with it all excitement (or baggage) that you think of for an X-Men movie. It is part of the new-ish iteration of X-Men, begun in 2011 with “X-Men: First Class”. These are the younger versions of the special Mutant superheroes, including Professor X, Magneto, Beast, Raven, Storm, Cyclops and others. If you are not enamored with X-Men, then your interest level might have already peaked. But since X-Men might perhaps now have a better future integrated with other Marvel superheroes, the outcome may not be “Dark” after all…
Professor X is Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) run a school for the special children in the Mutant community. The Mutants are now well-respected and a big part of the world’s crisis management. Since the ‘bad’ Mutants, led by Magneto (Michael Fassbender) have been self-isolated, there is a peace between the Mutant groups. But when a space rescue mission goes really bad, Mutant Jean Grey (Sophie Turner) takes on some uncontrollable powers. There is concern that Jean is not doing that well. Her fellow Mutants are really upset, including Raven (Jennifer Lawrence), Hank McCoy/Beast (Nicholas Hoult), Scott Summers/Cyclops (Tye Sheridan) and Ororo Munroe/Storm (Alexandra Shipp). Jean Grey finds out some things that Professor X has hidden from her since she was a child. She leaves the school and wanders aimlessly.
Jean Grey is being watched by an alien being who has taken over a human form. Vuk (Jessica Chastain) knows that Jean Grey’s new powers are what her race needs to survive, so they will be able take over the Earth. So, the human-looking Vuk and her followers are traipsing around to get Grey and take over her special powers. Jean Grey leaves Professor X but she soon tracks down Magneto. He and his group of hardened Mutants live alone on a deserted island. She finds out that her powers overpower even Magneto, so she leaves him. The military and government agents are after all the Mutants now that Jean has fought and killed a fellow Mutant. Jean Grey has left a path of destruction in her path.
The Mutants are all captured in New York. They are placed in confinement on a train to a Colorado holding facility. But the alien forces, led by Vuk, are ready to attack the train and take over the Mutants. When they get to Jean Grey, they plan on draining all her special powers and destroying all the Mutants. Then they will be free to take over the Earth and wipe out mankind. But will the Mutants still have enough Mutant powers to make “The Last Stand” and avoid an “Apocalypse”? When the “Days of Future Past” are gone by, will the X-Men still be up in the “First Class”? Even when the train is attacked, and many people are killed – will it still be a statistical fact that train travel is by far the safest mode of transportation?
This group of X-Men Mutants has produced some very enjoyable movies lately. Staring with “First Class”, and then “Days of Future Past” – the writing and acting was very enjoyable. The next one was “Apocalypse”, and that one dropped a little in quality. But X-Men has returned to the upswing with “Dark Phoenix”. Of course, being a Superhero/Mutant type movie, it might not be your cup of darjeeling. But the ensemble cast is up to speed, and the production values are really good. There are some really creative fight sequences, and the movie moves along at a quick pace. There a few high points: the acting of Sophie Turner as Jean Grey, the acting of James McAvoy as Professor X, and the acting of Michael Fassbender as Magneto. Some points not as well-developed: Jessica Chastain as the alien Vuk is off-putting, the tragic death of a very popular Mutant is quickly passed over, the choppy editing of the fight sequences. Also, the most glaring missing item – Wolverine!
“X-Men: Dark Phoenix” is ready to establish a new common ground for all of the Marvel characters into a more fully-integrated Marvel Universe.
“Aladdin” is a new Disney live-action adaptation of the original Disney 1992 animated movie. The story is the ultimate in wish fulfillment, after all – who couldn’t use a Genie that can grant you three wishes? But the very successful animated version had several things going for it. There was a great story. There were great songs. And it had the great vocal talent of Robin Williams. With the updated version, it has two of those three.
Aladdin (Mena Massoud) is a ‘street rat’ in the desert city of Agrabah in a vague Mid-Eastern country. He is thief and a street hustler, making friends of the other poor folks in town – all while avoiding the palace guards. His little helper monkey Abu is with him everywhere. He runs into a person pretending to be just another poor beggar. But she is really Princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott) who can never escape from the palace to see the people in the street. She is saved by Aladdin from a dangerous situation, and he goes with her to the palace.
Later that night Aladdin sneaks in and finds Jasmine with her loyal servant Dalia (Nasim Pedrad). But he is captured by Jafar (Marwan Kenzari), the trusted consultant to the royal Sultan (Navid Negahban). Jafar and his equally evil parrot Iago find that Aladdin might be the one to get a special Lamp out of the Cave of Wonders. This Magic Lamp is said to contain a Genie, one that can grant three wishes to the owner of the Lamp. Aladdin is able to get the Lamp, and it is almost stolen by Jafar.
Aladdin finds the Magic Lamp does hold a Genie (Will Smith). He is all Big and Blue and he is waiting to take Aladdin’s order. He tricks the Genie to get them all out of the Cave, including a new member of the group – a Magic Flying Carpet. Aladdin does not want much, but he does want to meet and impress Princess Jasmine. Maybe if Genie turns Aladdin into a Price, then he could have a chance. Sure thing, he becomes Prince Ali, from Ababwa. The Sultan is very impressed, as well as all the people of Agrabah. But Princess Jasmine thinks that something is a little off with this new Prince. Jafar knows it is Aladdin and he begins scheming about how to seal back that Lamp.
Dalia is impressed with Prince Ali’s man-servant, who is actually Genie. Genie also becomes smitten with Dalia, so they both want Ali and Jasmine to get something going. But Jasmine thinks Ali is holding a secret, so he takes her on the Magic Flying Carpet to see the world, a ‘Whole New World’, that is. But before Aladdin can confess who he really is, Jafar decides to eliminate him form the picture. Genie is able to save Aladdin, as another wish gets used up. Aladdin had promised to use his final third wish to set Genie free, but that might not happen.
Jafar become more evil and more powerful, as he takes over from the Sultan. Hes has grabbed the Magic Lamp and he is now in control. Genie is no longer able to help Aladdin, so Aladdin and Jasmine might as well call the whole thing off. But does Aladdin have the street smarts to convince a powerful sorcerer like Jafar that he could become even bigger and more powerful? Could that be a way out for everyone?
This version of Aladdin has a nice cast and it redoes all of the great songs from the original animated version. There is even a new song for Princess Jasmine – one that gives her a stringer voice in her situation. Will Smith seems out-of-place at first as Genie. But within 15 minutes he takes this version of the Genie and makes it fit with his charm and sassy attitude. Naomi Scott has a very soaring voice that works wonders with her Jasmine songs. Mena Massoud is also charming as Aladdin and has a good voice.
Guy Ritchie as the director and co-writer is used to movies that have a rougher edge. His family-friendly version still has a couple of his visual traits (super slo-mo camera work). But most of the dirty and gritty features of his other films are glossed over with wild and bright costumes and bazaar scenes. The big musical numbers have a wild and over the top feel, like a cross between a Vegas show and Bollywood.
Remakes are becoming a big thing at Disney Studios, but rather than getting “A Whole New World”, this one just serves up “A Whole Lotta Sameness”.
Sometimes, a movie based on a true coming-of-age drama based, on the life of a writer or a director, can be beautiful and moving. But then could also end up like “The Souvenir”, which has a fine setup – but totally misses the execution. When the main character is there in place as a stand-in for the writer/director, you can feel that the message should be delivered thoughtfully. However, here the cast is excellent – but the story meanders and drips out so slowly and in such a convoluted manner that you might kick yourself to stay focused. The level of the actors is so high that they deserve to tell a soaring tale, yet they are given very limited story that barely keeps any interest.
Julie (Honor Swinton Byrne) is an English woman in her young 20’s. She is working to strike out on her own, using her skills in photography to get into film school. She has some very loving parents, including her mother Rosalind (Tilda Swinton). Julie has a boyfriend who is much older than she is. Anthony (Tom Burke) is somewhat charming and he has a broad education. But he has many woeful character traits. He works for British government in a high position. But he has left his wife, and he cheats and steals. The worst part is that he has a heroin addiction. Julie tries to see past all the bad stuff, and she accepts him with all his flaws.
They are together is a small flat in town. Anthony has strange hours for work and many times goes abroad. Julie is attending school and working on film project. She wants to make a documentary of a now defunct ship-building operation in a nearby town. How has the shutdown of the plant affected the people that remain? But when she has lunches with Anthony and diners with her parents – she is at a loss of words about how to describe her project. Mother Rosalind thinks that Julie could do much better for herself, by getting into a better school and finding a boyfriend who is not as unpredictable.
So, Julie attends school and meets with Anthony from time to time. They take a trip to Venice. But the little apartment also gets robbed one day. And then later Julie finds a shady character hanging out in the flat, waiting for Anthony. This other guy was looking to score some heroin, and he wants to get some from Anthony. Julie chases him out. But she is worried that Anthony is hooked up in something that is really bad. Anthony is defiant, but later on, he succumbs to the addition more and more. He is on a final downward spiral, and even Julie’s help will not save him. Julie works and struggles to get her documentary completed. Rosalind stops over quite often to see if there is something she can do, or if she can loan her some cash.
The resulting movie is a repetitive series of little scenes from Julie’s life. It is all well and good. But there is nothing compelling or nothing that drives any of the characters. So, the result is two hours of inaction that lead up to a non-conclusion. People pass into the Julie’s life, and people pass out of it. She does not take a hard stand much of anything. Even when Anthony is abusing his situation and taking advantage of Julie – she does not do anything. She remains a passive observer of her own life. This is far from a dramatic, edge-of-your-seat immersive experience. You just sort of see what is happening. The direction is such that the movie becomes a meandering stream of random events.
The acting of Honor Swinton Byrne (as Julie) and Tilda Swinton (as her mother Rosalind) is very believable. But of course, Tilda Swinton is the actual mother of Honor Swinton Byrne, so that is a little like typecasting. Tilda is highly respected and accomplished actor. It seems like her daughter, Honor, will be quite capable of following along that path that her mother has opened for her. Tom Burke has a very difficult role, since he is playing a charming cad who is on a downward slope. He just keeps getting worse and worse, as his character gets consumed by his addition. But it does not help that he is basically a ten-pound sack of manure out in the sun for several days…
When you participate in something meaningful, you might want to bring home a little reminder of what you accomplished. But when it comes to seeing this movie, you might pass on the chance to pick up “The Souvenir”.
In the Phoenix area, this movie will open exclusively at the Harkins Scottsdale Camelview…
“A Dog’s Journey” is a new feature that is a direct relative to ‘”A Dog’s Purpose”. The central theme of both movies is a secret ability for canine companions that have a reincarnation method to take an immortal soul into the bodies of various puppies. These dogs live with their owners, but they remember the commands from prior owners. Such as, in “Purpose”, a young dog knows to find his first owner (a young boy), and he gets back to him when the little boy is now a man. In “Journey” that older man gives the old dog a final command to watch out for his granddaughter.
Ethan (Dennis Quaid) and Hannah (Marg Helgenberger) live on a Michigan farm with their dog Ethan calls him ‘Boss Dog’ (voiced by Josh Gad), but the dog’s name is Bailey. Ethan was the young boy who turned into an older man, and a series of dog’s all held the soul of Boss Dog. And in the prior movie, Josh Gad said endless cute things when he gave the various dogs an inner voice. Now they live on the farm with their daughter-in-law Gloria (Betty Gilpin). Her husband was killed in an accident just before her little daughter was born. Ethan and Hannah really love their granddaughter CJ, and they want to help Gloria.
Gloria is succeeding at being the Worst Mother Ever, but she gets tired of Ethan and Hannah trying to help. She takes CJ and leaves to live in Chicago. Ethan knows that the old dog Bailey does not have any more time in this world. So he gives ‘Boss Dog’ a new command – Watch over little CJ wherever she is on the world. In a few years, ‘Boss Dog’ shows up in a little puppy named Mollie. Even a little girl dog needs to have a Josh Gad voice, ya know. Grade school aged CJ (Abby Ryder Fortson) finds Mollie and adopts her new friend. She keeps Molly from her mom, Gloria, at least for a while.
Molly does her best to help CJ growing up strong. She tries to steer CJ to be with her school chum Trent (Ian Chen) and away from away from loser boyfriends. Molly even learns a useful skill; she trains to have an ability to detect the smell of cancer in a patient. But one day Molly dies, and CJ fights with Gloria so much that she decides to move out. Now much older, CJ (Kathryn Prescott) is now out of school, and she lives in New York City. Again, she gets her share of loser boyfriends. But one day she finds that an older Trent (Henry Lau) has also moved just down the block. Boss Dog had spent some time as a large dog in Pennsylvania, but now he knows it is time to move on.
Boss Dog winds up as a little stray in New York City. He meets up with CJ all over again. But now he is a little dog named Max, so CJ has now idea that the voice of Josh Gad is floating around in Max’s head. Max knows that he know has his true purpose, to keep CJ safe in the world. But Max remembers things as his time as Molly and the things she learned. So he is worried when he discovers that Trent has that weird smell like cancer. Trent needs treatment, and his current girlfriend cannot handle the pressure. She bails and leaves CJ to take care of Trent.
Trent gets better and soon CJ hears from her distant mother Gloria. She has been getting better and wants to be a part of CJ’s life. CJ and Trent discover some old letters with the address of an old Michigan farm. Could it be that farm that CJ barely remembers? What if her grandparents, Ethan and Hannah, still are there? What would it like to go back home? Boss Dog knows, because he has done it before in the lives of multiple dogs.
“A Dog’s Journey” is wonderfully creative way to show that the bonds between a dog and its owner can become inseparable. Even if it is nothing but wild speculation, it has a nice reassuring feel to the continuity. There is no way to now what a dog might be thinking, so the goofy dialog that Josh Gad has each of the many dogs is just perfect. Sometimes the dog might be thinking back to a prior life and an important commitment. But he could just as well be thinking about bacon. The overall effect of the story could bring a few sniffles, especially if you have ever really cared for a dog – and then have a dog go out of your life.
This is very wholesome movie that should give you all the feels. All the animals are very cute and cuddly. Even when they get a big wide-eyed face with an especially goofy grin. And here I am referring to Dennis Quaid, as well as most of the dogs. This movie is almost daring you not to like it. That is one bet that I do not want to take.
So you might as well go to the movie theater. Sit. Stay.
“John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” is further look into the violent and bloody world contained in the ‘Extended John Wick Universe’. This is where hand-to-hand combat is on steroids, and where beatings, stabbings and shootings have been given growth serum, and where the over-the-top violence has been ‘Turned Up to 11’ (to paraphrase “Spinal Tap”). In other words, it is a beautiful ballet of bullets, bloodshed, and battles. In the previous two movies, John Wick has delivered an action-packed and stunt-driven extravaganza of fights and chases. Based on the internal logic where a secret society of assassins live and work in our world – yet they are apart from reality. Now with Chapter 3 – the Wickian wave is cresting over the mere movies that have a few stuntmen. This is Zen Level pure action and adrenaline, perfected to its finest.
John Wick (Keanu Reeves) finds himself at odds with controlling leaders of all the assassins, the group called the High Table. Wick had broken the rules, because he shot and killed a member of the Table in a place called the ‘Continental’. This is a luxury hotel and safe space in downtown New York. It is run by Winston (Ian McShane) who is an old friend of Wick’s. Winston and the concierge at the Continental – Charon (Lance Reddick) – gave Wick a head start. But Wick now has a bounty on his head of $14 million. Anyone who gives Wick any help will pay the price. Wick turns to an old mentor, the Director (Anjelica Huston). Wick has an item that he can use to trade for safe passage to Morocco.
In Casablanca, Wick finds another old partner named Sophia (Halle Berry). John Wick holds a ‘marker’ that forces the other person to help out in time of need. Sophia and Wick approach a member of the High Table. Wick asks if there is a way to get back into the good graces. He is ‘excommunicado’ and he might be able to meet with The Elder (Saïd Taghmaoui). But Sophia and her attack dogs come under attack, along with Wick, so there is a massive fight in the bazaar. Back in New York, The Adjudicator (Asia Kate Dillon) comes to anyone who helped Wick. She speaks for the High Table, and she will extract a High Price. She visits Winston at the Continental. She talks with the Director and extracts a price. She also finds the Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) – who had supplied Wick with a weapon. Each one that she meets must vow a fidelity to the High Table.
The Adjudicator also finds a special assassin named Zero (Mark Dacascos). He is given the task to hunt down John Wick and apply a permanent resolution to Wick’s bounty. Wick comes back to New York, but he must personally kill Winston to earn his forgiveness. Zero and Wick find each other, and the fur begins to fly. Wick finds Winston, and Wick decides to press pause on the “Killing Winston” part of his punishment. The High Table is ready to take down Wick, Winston, Charon and Zero – who are all hanging out in the Continental. Wick has a small request (“Guns. Lots of Guns”), and Winston might be helpful in that area. So, the High Table sends a SWAT team to the hotel to take care of business…
John Wick has now had a total of three movies. All have been directed by Chad Stahelski and written (at least co-written) by Derek Kolstad. Stahelski is a former stantman himself, and he did much of the stunt work for Keanu Reeves in “The Matrix”. They have a solid core foundation to come up with the most intense sequences of fighting and mayhem that has ever been put down on film. Add to this Ian McShane and Lance Reddick (who have been in all three films) and there is an easy understanding between the actors and stunt people and the director that makes impossible action scenes come to life. The result is a mind-blowing visual overload that will not let you look away.
Naturally, a movie like this might too violent or over-the-top for many people. There are some who cringe at seeing guns and cannot stand the casual use of firearms as weapons. But should you find yourself wanting to see expertly done action and stunt-work, then “John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum” will be the mother’s milk of murder and mayhem. So, if you are not a sad-sack, pajama-wearing granola-munching peacenik – then grab yourself a Red Bull Slushie and put your brain and hold for couple of hours. It will be worth it…
“All Is True” is a love poem, neh – a Love Sonnet – to the veritable Bard of Stratford-on-Avon. Yes, William Shakespeare is in his retirement years. He is spending these years not at Sun City West playing golf, but instead puttering around in his garden bemoaning his deceased son. His long-suffering wife and his two daughters are beset with Old Will’s presence after many, many years. For all those years, he has been living in London – writing and directing at the Globe Theater. But when it burns down, his whole life is put in disarray, and he retreats back to his humble abode. It is actually a pretty nice estate, because he has spent years being the world’s most successful playwright and poet. His patrons have lavished Shakespeare with enough to make his life very comfortable in his sunset years. Now, if he could only stop driving his family crazy…
William Shakespeare (Kenneth Branagh) has returned to his hometown, back from being a major success in London. The theater that he had founded has burnt to the ground, and he no longer has any reason to be there. He gets back to his wife Anne (Judi Dench) and his daughters. Susanna (Lydia Wilson) is married to a Puritan, so that means she is not happily married. Daughter Judith (Kathryn Wilder) is unmarried and is considered an ‘old maid’ with a tart tongue and a shrewish attitude. Will is back and he really starts to think about his son, Hamnet. He had died nearly two decades ago, while William was in London making the theater magic happen. Shakespeare did not allow himself to grieve properly, and now the loss of his son hits him hard. That was his family legacy, in his passing down of the family name to continue the Shakespeare greatness. With his daughters, they will not retain the family name, so there is a possibility that the Shakespeare line will be snuffed out.
Wife Anne has had many years to mourn her son and will not accept that hubby Will is just now getting around to it. After all, when Hamnet died, Will was consumed with the hustle and bustle of the Globe Theater. He was too busy writing “The Merry Wives of Windsor” at the time and could not get back to see Hamnet laid to rest. Now, Shakespeare has remnants of letters and poems created by Hamnet when he was younger, and alive. There was a rough but noticeable talent in his writings, and William is mourning the loss of not only a son, but the one who could have carried on the new family tradition. But Anne is stoic and steadfast, and she knows whatever secrets that Hamnet held are also dead. Judith has some shocking news for her father, and he does not know how to begin to understand what happened, and how his son died.
During this hubbub, there is a visit to the estate by an old friend and very wealthy patron of William Shakespeare. The Earl of Southampton (Ian McKellen), who is a noble by birth and a scoundrel in nature, comes to meet his favorite British poet and playwright. The Earl never needed to put on airs or persuade people to respect him. It was his due by his heritage. Shakespeare, on the other hand, was humble and born into poverty. His father was involved in scandal and he was frowned upon. So, Shakespeare has worked mightily to polish the family name. But both of his daughters have brushes with bad reputation and gossip. So, the cycle starts over once more. When the Earl of Southampton finally leaves William to his situation, he wishes him well. He wants him to remain true to his recent work in London as a genius, and not wallow in the backwater tides of the local countryside.
Kenneth Branagh plays his man-crush William Shakespeare with an intensity and a ton of prosthetic makeup. He does wind up looking like the historical portraits of The Bard, so it is a fitting appearance. Branagh really loves him some Shakespeare. So much so that he lives to direct movies adapted from Shakespeare, or star in movies adapted from Shakespeare – or mostly star in and direct movies that are adapted from Shakespeare. Branagh finds a suitable match with Dame Judi Dench playing Anne Hathaway, the woman who married William Shakespeare. These two are wonderful on-screen and play well against each other. Along with the cameo role of the Earl of Southampton, Ian McKellen has a twinkle of mischief in his eyes as he builds up and berates Shakespeare. They also are great in the same scene.
In Phoenix, playing exclusively at the Harkins Scottsdale Camelview.
“Pokémon Detective Pikachu” is positioned to become this generation’s version of “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?”. But that is a beautiful thing, actually – because instead of marvelous world where ‘Toons’ and humans interact, in this movie the humans and various Pokémon coexist. It makes for a movie version of “Pokémon Go”, where a rich and full array of Pokémon characters are found in the cinema world.
The colorful and exotic ‘pocket monster’ creatures are rendered as normal as traffic cones and neon signs. There are plenty of those there, also – because the movie takes place in Ryme City. This paradise of Pokémon and human interaction is threatened by some mysterious events that are taking place. There is a plot to uncover and a missing detective to locate, and who better to take on that task but Pikachu? The small furry little Pokémon Detective is in a tough spot and could use a little help. There are clues to trace and adventures to be had…
Tim Goodman (Justice Smith) is a young son of a Ryme City Detective, Harry Goodman. There was an attack on Harry’s car, and he is presumed dead. Tim gave up on his dreams to be a Pokémon trainer years ago, so he goes back into Ryme City to try and get closure. He goes and meets his dad’s old boss, Detective Yoshida (Ken Watanabe). Everyone else in Ryme City has been connected to a Pokémon and has one for a friend and companion. But Tim has never found one that bonded with him. He visits is dad’s place and runs into Detective Pikachu (voiced by Ryan Reynolds).
There is some reason that Tim and Pikachu can hear and understand each other. Pikachu has lost his memory, but soon determines that he was Harry Goodman’s partner – up to the point where he disappeared days ago. Pikachu is still aware that there is a sinister plot that is on the move, but he has forgotten all the details. The mastermind behind Ryme City is Howard Clifford (Bill Nighy) who has created this perfect paradise for Pokémon. But his dedication to the task has led to a debilitating disease, and now he is bound to a wheelchair. He and his son run the media conglomerate, and there is young associate intern (that is: unpaid blogger) who sniffing out a big story.
Lucy Stevens (Kathryn Newton) and her sidekick Pokémon Psyduck meet up with Tim and Pikachu. Together they find that some awful things are about to happen in Ryme City. Bouncing from place to place and gathering more information about a mystery drug that make Pokémon go crazy; Pikachu, Tim, Lucy and Psyduck get closer to the evildoers. But they also get deeper and deeper into trouble. They find an ancient Pokémon called Mew Too that might hold the key to the mystery or might be the top bad dude on his own. There is a connection to Mew Too and the disappearance of Harry Goodman, and a connection getting closer between Pikachu and Tim.
When there is a final confrontation, everything turns out not quite the way that it seemed before. There are some tricks that were being played, and some folks are not as clean cut as they first appeared. Tim and Pikachu find that the Pokémon who are drugged and turn violent are not doing it on their own. There was some foul play and with the group catching the bad guys, all will be put back in order. Lucy gets noticed for all of her fine work, and Detective Yoshida gets a resolution to a mysterious case of Harry Goodman’s car crash. Detective Pikachu is ready to get back to work, and Tim might have a new career. But will all the Pokémon of Ryme City still be working with all the humans in harmony?
This is a delightfully fun movie that matches a reluctant hero (Tim) with a helpful, if sarcastic, sidekick (Pikachu). Justice Smith does a compelling job as Tim, and he is curious, yet halting in his discoveries. He is unsure of himself and why he is not able to bond with a Pokémon like everyone else. But then he meets up with Pikachu and things turn magical. Ryan Reynolds is playing the voice (and the facial expressions) of Detective Pikachu – this works in a charming manner. His dialogue is witty and sometimes slapstick. Reynolds gets just the right tone for the little yellow fuzzy Detective, and he makes it shine.
The computer graphics to design and render Detective Pikachu (and really all of the Pokémon) is very sharp and clear. Each of the little (and not so little) Pokémon characters has a distinct personally and sweet goofiness of their own.The story plays second fiddle to the spectacle of scores and scores of Pokémon living a city that is a cross between “Babe: Pig in the City” and “Blade Runner”. There is a futuristic atmosphere along with large portions of whimsy and frolic. Everyone there sees no problem having a Pokémon as a guide and companion. “Pokémon Detective Pikachu” brings everyone’s favorite Pokémon to the big screen in a big way…
“Tolkien”, is about the famous fantasy author (who would make sure you know that the right way to pronounce his name is “Toll-keen”) and how he grew up and learned to value “fellowship”. John Ronald Reuel Tolkien has a rough start in life, with a dead father, and soon also a dead mother. He and his younger brother became wards to the Catholic Church, but because of a forward-thinking priest, Tolkien gets a classical education and gets into Oxford. But after being sidelined with World War I, he gets to marry his true love. He gains stature as a Professor at the college, and eventually writes some very large books. But ‘The Hobbit’ and ‘Lord of the Rings’ do not make a big dent in this movie, because it ends about the time that he starts on them…
Young J.R.R. Tolkien and his mother and brother are helped by the parish priest Father Morgan (Colm Meaney). He makes sure that they have a home after their father passes away. But soon after his mother is also gone, and the two boys are put into a nice foster home. Tolkien at first finds it hard to make friends, but he soon makes several lifelong friends. When he grows up Mr. Tolkien (Nicholas Hoult) is able to get into Oxford. He knows a fellow orphan in his foster home named Edith Bratt (Lily Collins) and believes that she will be the love of his life. Tolkien and his chums have raucus talks and arguments about deep subjects. They form a “fellowship” of sorts, and hold fast to be true to each other. Edith also becomes a part of his life, and when he enters college, his grades suffer.
Oxford is ready to pitch Tolkien out of school, because he is not living up to the highest of standards. But he happens to meet Professor Wright (Derek Jacobi) who is a specialist in languages. Tolkien manages to convince the Professor that he has the same love of language and for the origins of speech. He is able to impress the Professor with some made-up languages that Tolkien created for his own writing. Tolkien is able to thrive in the new class setting, and he and Edith are very happy. He feels that the world is ready for a new saga that is a great and as far-reaching as the opera Wagner created “The Ring Cycle”. But before that can happen, World War I breaks out. Tolkien and his three friends are signed up and enlisted in a short time.
Tolkien spends time at the front in Somme. In the trenches, he puts all of creative spirit on hold. The War is horrible, and he sees many people injured and killed. Tolkien is infected with trench fever, and he spends time searching for one of his friends on the front lines. With his feverish mind, he looks out on the No Man’s Land area and imagines what the fight between good and evil might look like. Shadowy black wraiths hover over the battlefield, as armored knights gallop in the dead trees out on the landscape. Dragons roar across the sky as thunderous booms rain down on the broken land. Tolkien is seeing those images that he would eventually put down onto paper in his later books.
Nicholas Hoult does a very decent job in portraying Tolkien, and he does the man justice. He shows a lot of compassion and smarts as a young brilliant writer. But he and Lily Collins do not have a lot of energy together in their scenes. The story is a bit of a see-saw back and forth from Tolkien’s war time activity, to a flashback set of sequences of his prior life.
