Barbie

 

Score:  A-

Directed by Greta Gerwig

Starring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon

Running time: 114 minutes

Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  Barbie is, yes, about the toy doll, but it's not your average brand cash-in, thanks to a top filmmaker in Greta Gerwig and stars like Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling.  It certainly knows how to have fun, creating a colorful, lively Barbie World filled with cheery Barbies and Kens.  But Gerwig and co-writer Baumbach have a clever script that somehow connects the surreal with our everyday world.  It's a blockbuster for (just about) all ages - enjoy!

In a parallel universe, Barbies rule a pink, magical world, loving life with Kens at their side.  One day, however, Stereotypical Barbie (Robbie) finds that her happy routine has been interrupted by disturbing thoughts and feelings.  After visiting the outcast "Weird" Barbie (McKinnon) for advice, she decides to go to the real world to find the source of the disturbances.  There, she and Ken (Gosling) find a drabber and far different society.  They can't simply go home, though: Barbie must learn how to address her new feelings and figure out how to reconcile two seemingly opposite worlds.

Barbie is a very fun and funny movie that also has overt but appropriate and striking empowerment themes.  The first thing to almost pop off the screen is the movie's visual flair, a true summer movie if I ever saw one.  The Barbie World is garishly colored, but there are few computer effects and so the physical sets make it feel both more grounded and incongruous (in a good way).  Barbie World truly comes alive during a handful of musical scenes, adding to the happy tone.  The talented writers Gerwig and Baumbach thread the needle with their humor, anticipating the audience's awareness of the absurdity of the premise and seeming to play it at face value but with subtle nods/winks at the ridiculousness.  In Barbie World at the beginning, Barbies and Kens speak and behave like you'd imagine that "living" toys might, in their perfect yet simplistic world.  Then, transitioning to the real world, there's equal humor in these toys' "fish out of water" experiences.  Robbie and Gosling are great fun as the co-leads.  Robbie has to do more of the dramatic heavy lifting (though she has plenty of fun in the first third of the film) while Gosling - appropriately subordinate as Ken - gets to let loose a bit more, but still brings more depth than expected to the role, too.  Ferrell and McKinnon are hilarious, of course, and on the other end, Ferrera, as the one average person, brings real strength in a key if somewhat surrogate-like role.  It's not all fun and games in a suitably fantastic plot, though.  Director and writer Gerwig seizes the opportunity to really dig into what Barbie represents in the real world, and how that plays out in gender dynamics.  She keeps most of it directly connected with the humor - Gosling/Ken's amazement at the power of patriarchy and its... horses; "brainwashed" Barbies being literally woken up by the enlightened Robbie and Ferrera while the Kens are distracted.  But there's also a sweet, earnest moment with Barbie's human creator, and a happy but not so tidy ending.  All this in a well-paced, two-hour package!

***

Having enjoyed Ladybird, I knew Barbie had potential, coming from the same talented filmmaker in Greta Gerwig.  It's turned out to be quite the cultural phenomenon, though I can't say I'm too plugged in to all of that.  What I do know is that the movie is strong summer entertainment, and something much more appealing to, frankly, women, than most blockbusters - but as I can attest, absolutely fine for men, too!  Hollywood desperately needs to make more films along these broad strokes - we need them to bring people of all ages, stages and backgrounds into the movie theater, not just those like me who love superheroes and action.  Whether that happens or not is an open question, but in the mean time, make sure to go and enjoy Barbie!

* By Carolina Cinemas, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=72508674

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning-Part One

 

Score:  A

Directed by Christopher McQuarrie

Starring Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg, Ving Rhames, Rebecca Ferguson, Esai Morales

Running time: 164 minutes

Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  Tom Cruise returns to his spy agent role Ethan Hunt for a seventh time in Dead Reckoning - Part One, and he - and the movie - are as good as ever.  It's long, but packed with both great action and intriguing personal battles more intense than before.  Whether the stunts are actually bigger than ever is debatable but they are at least as entertaining, and the direction and writing maximizes its impact with good variety and pacing.  This is a must-see summer blockbuster for all.

Ethan (Cruise) is faced with perhaps his least-possible mission yet: battling not just crafty human foes, but also a menacing AI program gone rogue.  Developed by the Russians, "the Entity" quickly grew beyond the bounds, and control, of its creator, leading to an international race among the world's powers to try to seize control of the dangerous software.  Realizing the Entity is too dangerous to be allowed to survive as a pawn in the intelligence wars, Ethan decides to destroy it, but to do so he'll need to recover the literal key to the program.  Teaming up with old friends Luther (Rhames) and Benji (Pegg), as well as new allies, Ethan must find the key before it slips out of his - and everyone else's - grasp forever.

Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning (Part One) is another exemplary installment of the nearly thirty-year-old franchise, as Cruise & Co. somehow continue to push the boundaries of practical action stunt work but also ground it in rock-solid storytelling and characters.  I have to begin with the action, since it's the main draw, even though it's not the only good thing going.  The variety, creativity, and sheer intensity are brilliant, and director and writer McQuarrie does a great job of building it up gradually throughout the film to a fantastic finale.  It actually starts rather slowly - no big, pre-credits set piece like in Bond movies.  Instead, we get a pretty direct picture of the stakes of this new mission and the ominous AI, or "Entity".  It's not too subtle, but you'll be grateful for that later.  The first great action scene is more like MI's classic stealth and deception setup, as Ethan attempts to make a quick switch with an unsuspecting target at an airport while also evading agents who are after him.  It mixes in so much yet seamlessly, from humor, to "plan B, C, & D" improvising, to dark hints of the Entity's power.  Next up is a car chase through Rome that vaguely recalls the one from MI-Fallout, yet it is both just as good as and utterly distinct from that one.  I particularly appreciated that, for all Ethan's talents, the chase is also filled with goof-ups (from both good and bad guys); and his pairing with a skilled thief - but a newbie to multi-party, full throttle urban chases - provides humor and grounding.  The final act on a train is much slower and longer, but does not feel drawn out at all, thanks to its split into multiple, distinct sub-scenes.  This is where we get the big stunt of the film, Ethan's jump off a cliff on a motorcycle which you've probably seen part of in previews - it's another great moment for MI.  A desperate scramble for survival at the very end might even top that cliff jump, but I won't spoil it here.

MI-Dead Reckoning Part One is, just like its title, quite long, at two hours and forty five minutes.  A good portion of this is the action described above, but there is plenty else going on that, as with any similar franchise worth watching, is also engaging.  Although the movie starts in fairly un-MI-like style with its overt description of the Entity and its capability, the rest of the movie slides easily back into the series' penchant for duplicity and work in the shadows, both seen and implied.  And the characters playing this all out are equal to the task, thanks in no small part to the film's continuation of previous stories and themes.  Tom Cruise as lead IMF agent Ethan Hunt is still on top of his game - certainly in the action scenes, where he is utterly believable and still runs like a man on, well, a mission - but also in the quieter in-between scenes; Ethan has both softened, showing increased affection for his friends, but also deeply troubled by his foe here.  Atwell (new) and Ferguson (returning) are tremendous as well, every bit Cruise/Hunt's equal in the field but utilizing very different styles to do so.  They are strong, independent characters yet their complex relationships with Hunt help shed new light on him, too.  Morales is a chilly and effective presence as main baddy Gabriel - cool, competent and fearless.  But there are also plenty of sheer fun roles, starting with Hunt's loyal partners Luther (Rhames) and Benji (Pegg), as good as ever.  Returning Alanna (Kirby) is still snarky fun and Pom Klementieff (Guardians' Mantis) is a riot as a psycho terminator.  All these vivid characters give the plot and action much more meaning; the AI "takeover the world" might feel a bit distant, but the battle to control or destroy it brings out very personal and ruthless stakes.  Some of Hunt and Co.'s old tricks are breaking down in this new digital era, whether because AI co-opts or disrupts them, or they simply stop working.  One thing's for sure, though: this Mission Impossible works at least as well if not better than ever.

***

Mission Impossible was one of the films I was counting on this summer, similar to my expectations for any new Pixar film - and just like Elemental last month, it came through brilliantly.  To provide another comparison, even though this is a part one-of-two movie, there is no feeling of letdown at the end, only excitement for what's next, like in Avengers Infinity War.  Let's keep it going: Mission Impossible is absolutely one of the great action movie franchises of all time, right there with James Bond.  Two other recent, "mini-franchises" are also great, in Matt Damon's Bourne movies and Keanu Reeves's John Wick (I saw the fourth movie this spring - I haven't written my review yet but I will!).  I find it more and more difficult to enjoy other action movies now, as they almost always pale in comparison to these fantastic series.  Next up is quite a change of pace - Oppenheimer - and after that, I really have no idea.  Until next time!

* By Deadline, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73287380

The Flash

Score:  B

Directed by Andy Muschietti

Starring Ezra Miller, Michael Keaton, Sasha Calle

Running time: 144 minutes

Rated PG-13

Long Story Short:  The Flash gives the spotlight to a lesser-known member of the Justice League, and the result is a solid, entertaining film that rises above many others by simply not trying to do too much.  The action truly is a draw here, entertaining and not simply an obligatory spectacle.  The multiverse pops up yet again here, as does time travel, but there are enough fun characters to get through it easily enough.  No prior superhero knowledge required: recommended for any looking for a nice action blockbuster.

Barry Allen, aka The Flash, is a member of the Justice League of superheroes, including Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman.  Like several of his companions, Barry has suffered a tragedy: his mother was murdered when he was a teenager, and his innocent father was framed for the crime.  Using his powers of incredible speed, Barry one day discovers that he can literally run backward in time, giving him a temptation too good to resist.  However, Barry soon finds, as all time travelers do, that interfering with the past can have both subtle and major consequences - and far beyond that of his own family.

The Flash is a fun superhero movie, better than it probably even should have been considering the circumstances.  The circumstances are these: it is one of the last DC superhero films in the studio's years-long, elaborate (and decidedly mixed-results) plan that already feels stale; and its plot heavily involves the very well-worn themes of the multiverse and time travel.  Those factors certainly weigh on the film to some degree, but it also overcomes them surprisingly well.  The multiverse aspect here at least feels (relatively) contained, and allows for neat alternate superheroes (more later).  Time travel tropes are present as well, but it allows the film to explore Barry's character in a more interesting way than most DC films.  One of the best parts of the film - and, frankly, why most people would want to see it in the first place - is the action.  For a nearly two-and-a-half hour superhero film, it's kept to a modest three main set pieces; and crucially, they each feel more intimate and less numbing than much superhero action has become (even from Marvel).  The first showcases the Flash's extraordinary speed, but for the purpose of rescue, and humor, rather than battle (plus cool cameos from his Justice League partners).  The second and third are darker, more brutal scenes, but not overly so; they allow for more vulnerability in the heroes than usual and so feel more tense and intriguing.

The characters in The Flash are middling: not Marvel-level quality, but more interesting than those from many DC movies.  Ezra Miller's Barry leads the way, and in fact, we get a double dose via a younger version who shadows the "present day" version for most of the film.  Nothing too deep here, but at least you get a better feel for Barry as a human being and not just the hero.  Batman and Supergirl get little background but are still fun.  Having Keaton back in the cape and cowl just brings a fond smile, and Calle brings a mood of foreboding to Supergirl that fits Krypton's fate (and the likely fate of her alternate-Earth).  Although in smaller parts, we also get a number of people from Barry's normal life including his parents, of course; a brief romantic interest; and even roommates.  Along those lines, The Flash also benefits from a pretty solid script, mostly shying away from the ponderous and more toward humor (actually funny humor, mostly, and not nakedly poor attempts at it).  Like the action, the story feels contained - so despite being another link in a multi-year chain of Justice League superhero movies, it doesn't bring the sense of a necessary or even inevitable sequel.  There are other limitations, such as the little we have to go on the alternate superheroes, and an eyebrow-raising side plot to transfer the Flash's powers.  But there are no truly fatal flaws: this is an easily enjoyable superhero film.

***

The Flash was better than I expected and, believe it or not, is so far my favorite superhero movie of the year, besting Marvel's two offerings.  I was already a bit more familiar with this comic book character than usual, though, since I watched the first five seasons or so of The CW show about him.  That familiarity ended up being both a pro and a con, I think, so probably a wash in the end.  I did like the show quite a bit, so I'd recommend checking it out on Netflix if you're interested.  There are two more movies I'm eagerly anticipating this summer - Mission: Impossible #?? and Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer - but hopefully there will be some other good ones to come along.  Although I've mostly enjoyed a summer full of familiar brands (e.g., Pixar) and sequels, I'm looking forward to something fresh.  Until next time!

* By Warner Bros. Entertainment - http://www.impawards.com/2023/flash_ver6.html, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=72998005