Isle of Dogs

Score:  B

Directed by Wes Anderson
Starring Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum
Running time: 101 minutes
Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  Isle of Dogs is the latest film from acclaimed indie auteur Wes Anderson, with a premise more standard and family-friendly than usual.  There's quite a line up of voice actors in this stop-motion animated film, featuring Bryan Cranston and (all too briefly) Edward Norton, Bill Murray and other veterans.  It's definitely a Wes Anderson film in all the ways that entails, so guide your decision to see it on that.  If you're new to him, give it a try if you're in the mood for quirky.


In a future version of Japan, pet owners are horrified when a flu virus and related maladies infect the entire dog population of the nation.  Apparently determined to prevent its potential spread to humans, but thinly concealing a more sinister plot, Kobayashi declares that all dogs are to be banished to the deserted "trash island".  One victim of the deportation is Spot, the beloved dog of Kobayashi's nephew, Atari.  He sneaks to the island to find his companion, but first runs into another pack of dogs, each formerly from disparate locations, led by Chief (Cranston) and Rex (Norton).  As the group works its way through Trash Island - and hoping Spots is even still alive - the secret plot back on the main land is well under way.

Isle of Dogs has a tremendous list of voice actors, including many Wes Anderson regulars as well as a number of Japanese actors, too.  The only major human role is Atari, the young boy searching for his dog.  Koyu Rankin speaks his native Japanese, which is not captioned, but it doesn't really matter; the character is mostly a plot device, important mostly for his relation to the dog characters.  Bryan Cranston is the true lead, a stray dog called Chief.  He's a good choice, not just because his voice is distinctive and recognizable, but because he shows here just how versatile it can be: from low and gruff, to hoarse and excited, even at times to smooth and seductive.  His "pack" is full of other great voice actors - it's a shame that they get as little screen time as they do - in Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, and Bob Balaban.  With amusing backstories and personalities, they are the most entertaining element of the film.  There are many other, smaller roles, notably Greta Gerwig as an exchange student-activist and Scarlett Johansson as a pure-bred love interest for Chief.

Isle of Dogs is a pleasant enough film, featuring its nutty premise and striking stop-motion animation, in Wes Anderson's unique style (with all its pros and cons).  If you have seen other Wes Anderson films, you'll know what to expect stylistically.  If not, a quick primer: it's quirky.  Although they don't take themselves too seriously, they're also sneakily sophisticated.  Humor abounds, usually tongue-in-cheek but sometimes more directly goofy (which Dogs tends toward).  The stories move along familiar tracks, yet at a unique pace and emphasizing different beats and turns of events than other films do.  Thus, the silly if structurally-familiar premise of Isle of Dogs seems well-suited for Anderson's style, although he plays it more conventionally than I expected.  The search for Spots becomes a story of Chief learning to bond with a human companion, which plays out in fairly standard fashion.  There is also significant attention given to the human scheming on the main land, some of which is clever but ultimately not as fun as the dogs themselves and unnecessarily complicates what should be a simple story.  As mentioned, I wish we got to spend more time with the pack of dogs, not just Chief: this could have helped with simplifying the story more (yet also room for more character interactions) and giving more time to the most entertaining elements.  The animation of the film is superbly done, so there's always something interesting to see on screen, and the soundtrack also sets the mood nicely and fits the tone.  Yet for its varied pleasures throughout, I found myself shrugging at the end, with neither a strong emotional connection nor an interesting plot pulled together from the disparate elements.

***

Isle of Dogs is a fine film, but it depends on what kind of film you're in the mood for - and what mood you're in in general - whether or not to recommend it.  There's also the Wes Anderson element; if you are a big fan, I think you'll find more of what you like here.  Personally, I'm not sure I'll be going to see any more of his films in the theater.  They are decent to good films, and definitely offer a change of pace, with a feel and certain elements you won't find anywhere else.  But I think home viewing - when I'm in the mood - will suffice for me, as I'm pretty neutral on the overall viewing experience of his films.  Again, if you're an Anderson fan, I think you'll enjoy it (it's also family-friendly, for parents looking for something a little more involved) - and if you're an Anderson newbie, well, proceed with caution.




By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=53476946

Pacific Rim: Uprising

Score:  B-

Directed by Steven S. DeKnight
Starring John Boyega, Scott Eastwood, Charlie Day
Running time: 111 minutes
Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  While Oscar-winning Guillermo del Toro is no longer in the director's chair, the follow up to 2013's surprisingly good Pacific Rim is also a pleasant enough surprise - for a sequel.  There's also no Idris Elba, but Boyega and co-star Spaeny offer a little flavor, and the script and plot are just enough to hold it together.  The action is what you go for, though, and no expense is spared here.  Worth it if you've seen the original, otherwise take a pass.


It is ten years after a team of commandos, piloting building-sized robots known as jaegers, stopped a monster (kaiju) invasion of earth.  The coasts of the Pacific Ocean are littered with the wreckage of the jaeger-kaiju war, and many are forced to live off selling and using the scraps, like former jaeger pilot Jake (Boyega).  Jake is the son of deceased war hero Stacker, and so, after getting caught stealing jaeger scrap with fellow nomad Amara (Spaeny), he is offered the chance to rejoin the military as a trainer.  While the kaiju threat seems quelled, the Shao Corporation with the help of Dr. Geiszler (Day) have developed a new fleet of drone jaegers, making Jake's days as a trainer appear numbered.  However, the alien threat has merely been building up again in the shadows, and before long earth is caught off guard by a new threat, one that calls Jake and the jaeger fleet back into action.

Pacific Rim: Uprising has a decent cast that shines here and there, and features mostly new faces but a few returning from the original film.  John Boyega takes the lead here as Jake, the new version of disillusioned jaeger pilot brought back into the fold.  He's about as good as the first film's Charlie Hunnam, and certainly presents a striking contrast to his role in Star Wars (and I don't just mean the English accent here).  Particularly early on, he does a good job of showing Jake as a hardened scavenger, dismissive of the legends he has direct links to.  Inevitably he becomes more the typical hero type, but he is perfectly watchable in the role.  Fellow drifter Amara, played by pop star Cailee Spaeny, also brings some welcome attitude, forming good chemistry with Boyega early with a tough demeanor.  Charlie Day has the biggest part of the returning players, and brings a bit of comic relief and nuttiness again (along with his partner in the lab, Burn Gorman).  After that, the film sputters in coming up with interesting parts.  Scott Eastwood is dull as dirt as Jake's old co-pilot, and Jing Tian, essentially China's "emissary" to Hollywood blockbusters, is just a plot filler.  Rinko Kikuchi, who did such as nice job as Mako in the original, is disappointingly left out to dry here.

Pacific Rim: Uprising isn't great, but it's entertaining; acceptable as a follow-up to the first film, and better than the average blockbuster sequel.  Pacific Rim in 2013, thanks to the direction of Guillermo del Toro, showed that a movie about giant fighting robots actually can be both exciting and also not mind-numbing.  The sequel is a few steps down from it, but it shows a similar fighting spirit and energy.  There are certainly some plot holes (or at least head scratchers) here, but the overall idea is solid, providing a workable structure.  The script and dialogue, never a focus in these films, is actually not too bad; at least, I found myself cringing at corny/badly delivered lines far less often than expected.  There is some attempt at digging into characters' backstories, like the original did well, but it comes out flat and is (wisely) soon abandoned and makes way for the main attraction: the action.  Even having seen several (*gulp*) Transformers movies before it, the original made the large-scale, (obviously) CGI-heavy action feel fresh and even tense.  Well, it's not as fresh or tense here, but the sequel makes up for it not just by ramping up the amount, but also not allowing any one battle go on too long.  The variety is good, too: there's a light, amusing chase sequence at the beginning, and an impressively done, everything-but-the kitchen-sink climax as jaegers valiantly fly into the buzzsaw of a "mega" kaiju.  Everything is paced pretty well, not just the individual action scenes, and the run time of under two hours is judicious.

***

While I'm trying to reduce the number of blockbuster sequels I see in the theater, I wanted to give this one a try thanks to the original's success, and it shows Hollywood may be making a little progress in this area.  Certainly, if you haven't seen the first film, I wouldn't bother with this one.  The sequel's not overly bogged down by plot- or character ties to the original, but there are so many other action films out there that work better overall.  If you have seen the first, though, this is worth a try - either in the theater, to enjoy the impressive effects, or at home.  With a decent premise and enough enjoyable characters, there is enough supporting the main attaction - robot vs. monster mayhem - to warrant a viewing.



By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=55354828

Ready Player One

Score:  B+

Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Mark Rylance
Running time: 140 minutes
Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  Ready Player One is a full-throttle return for Steven Spielberg to his famed roots as a filmmaker of adventure.  While stuffed with references to dozens of past, popular film icons, the movie is actually forward looking in creating a stunning virtual world that looks slick and fantastic and still recalls the excitement of an Indiana Jones.  The characters are mostly beside the point, but it dabbles with some interesting themes and is ultimately a very entertaining time.  Recommended.


In 2045, the world has become overcrowded and depressed, with the exception of one oasis - OASIS, a virtual reality of endless possibilities that countless people inhabit for much of their waking lives.  In addition to the program's overall attractions, its designer, the deceased Halliday (Rylance), created a challenge which will grant the winner control and ownership of OASIS.  Many individuals, such as orphaned Wade (Sheridan) and Samantha (Cooke), become obsessed with the challenge - for various reasons - as well as a powerful video game company, IOI, and its CEO Sorrento (Mendelsohn), who seeks to transform and monetize OASIS.  Despite using a virtual army, it is not IOI but rather Wade (known in the OASIS as Parzival) who unlocks the first of three keys to the challenge, by delving into Halliday's past.  Wade becomes a hero in OASIS, but only shifts the competition into an even higher stakes race to complete the challenge as Wade realizes how important this virtual world has become in the real one.

Ready Player One has an interesting, capable cast, though one lacking any standouts.  Young Tye Sheridan is the lead as Wade/Parzival, and he is just fine but also entirely unremarkable.  It's not all his fault, as the film focuses more on story than character, but much of the time he truly does seem like an avatar in the film, an active participant but also hollow.  Olivia Cooke brings more spark to her part, Samantha/Art3mis, aided by more flavoring provided to her character by the script.  On the surface she is positioned as a somewhat stereotypical female companion, but her acting - sharp, vivid and consistent, in both virtual/vocal and real-life modes - and the script push her well past that.  Ben Mendelsohn is very good as the villainous Sorrento; he has emerged recently as a go-to actor in such roles, but he provides great nuance.  Through everything from a partial lisp to his strategy to win the challenge, he manages to produce perhaps the most well-developed and interesting character in the film.  In a sort of Jobs-Wozniack parallel, Mark Rylance and Simon Pegg are very entertaining as the co-creators of OASIS, both important to the plot but also fascinating in their roles in the culture and corporatization of gaming.  There are a few other small roles - most notably a funny henchman for Sorrento voiced by T.J. Miller - but there's either not much to say or too much to give away about them.

Ready Player One is a very enjoyable adventure movie, one that also touches on some interesting themes relevant to the contemporary world, if only partially.  The first thing that jumps out at you and stays with you afterward is the impressive technical achievement.  I feel like it's pretty hard to impress me with pure CGI at this point, but this film does it: the combination of the crisp detail of the images with the ridiculous scale and intensity of the action on screen leaves you exhilarated (particularly in a bonkers, no-holds-barred race through a T-rex and King Kong-inhabited NYC).  This visual feast is paired with a theme of nostalgia - the citizens of 2045 eagerly embrace countless "vintage" icons, from the DeLorean to Master Chief, all in the same chaotic symphony.  Most filmmakers would likely have their film swept into a numbing abyss by all of this, but of course, Spielberg is not your average filmmaker and he manages (and showcases) it with ease.  The world of 2045 - real and virtual - is shown and explained in an efficient prologue that flows seamlessly into the main story.  That situation, an overpopulated world in which the weary masses flock to a virtual world to escape the despair of a world polluted by inequality and neglect, is an eerily believable cautionary tale for life outside the theater.  Ultimately, Ready Player One focuses much more on the adventure elements, and so some great potential is left on the table - such as exploration of Wade's "real" life, and thus this future world - and cliched elements spring up, particularly around IOI, in order to save time.  But it's an intriguing enough premise to maintain your mental (not just sensory) attention, and it's also helped tremendously by Mendelsohn's presence.  We come back full circle, too, as Wade's digging through Halliday's history provides a lighter review of gaming history, to balance the heavier outlook on our future.

***

Ready Player One is a movie to be seen in the theaters, a solidly made, highly entertaining (and original) kind of film that is becoming less common.  It also shows Spielberg not only still has his fastball working, but also does just fine in a less familiar environment - tech heavy, both in the creation and basis of the movie.  Despite being well over two hours, the pacing is quite good, thanks again to Spielberg's not allowing the action and visuals to drown out the story.  I could see another version of this film - or even a sequel, which I'm usually hesitant to suggest - focusing more on the real world and its relationship to OASIS.  In fact, I think a TV show could be a great idea.  But it is what it is.  While it limits the exploration of its own premise, Ready Player One is still a good movie, and well recommended for a night at the movies.




By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=54626052