Venom: The Last Dance

It’s actually pretty good when it’s trying to be funny. When it’s trying to be a straight action flick...it’s fairly standard action fare. Conclusion: the whole story arc probably should have leaned much more heavily on the comedy all the way through, instead of in just patches. But then again, I suppose hybridization is the point of the series. And after all, if we’re feeling generous, there is a certain amount of pathos in Eddie and Venom's putative final go-round—if it really comes to that (I have suspicions). Nevertheless, it must be said, there’s never any particular sense of stakes in this story...or anywhere in the series, if we’re being honest and looking at the big picture. And indeed, one strength here is that the picture isn’t actually that big; the running time is just around an hour and a half (brevity has been a strength of this franchise offshoot from the start). So, all in all, this movie is the usual mixed bag, as were its predecessors—no work of genius, but a perfectly serviceable piece of entertainment. It won’t actually get inside you, but at least that means it won’t eat your brain, either. You take what you can get. 

The Bikeriders

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage

Did you know that the human body is home to a whole environment of bacteria and other organisms as a matter of its regular bio processes? I note this here to assure you, reader, that I enter into this review without any particular biases against symbiotic organisms that would affect my judgment of this film and its characters. So, there’s that in its favor. Also in the movie’s favor is a mildly funny script that keeps things moving while delivering just enough solid wisecracks—mostly in the voice of Venom the symbiotic alien—to push the proceedings up just high enough to merit a recommendation, if not a particular rave. Tom Hardy is fine as the much put-upon Eddie, Woody Harrelson performs solid if not spectacular work as the antagonist, while the women and minor supporting cast provide adequate effort in filling out the scenes. Mostly, this flick is about the gooey guys underneath, and the CGI star mostly makes the movie an entertaining experience, if a bit light on any feeling of real consequences. You do get the sense, though, that this story, even with its already jokey and unserious attitude, still missed a lot of opportunities to score some major points with even more outrageous humor and/or visuals. Still, it’s better than it might have been, especially as a sequel to a movie about a relatively minor character in the overarching universe. This one’s hardly a classic, but if you’re in the mood for a decent film with a relatively brief running time—at an hour and a half, it gets in and gets out before it ever has a chance to get tedious—this flick checks the boxes.

Venom

Better than you think, probably, though not particularly profound or anything. What success lives here owes a lot to Tom Hardy, who does excellent work while teamed up with the titular CGI character. It really is pretty convincing that there are two characters at work in his scenes, even when he’s standing there by himself, and that’s something of note. And the action sequences are generally a hoot, so there’s entertainment there. Beyond that, the story seems to be a bit weird and off-kilter. A fairly lengthy diversion, from the start of the movie till about a third of the way through, really doesn’t add much to the tale; something more straightforward would have worked better. More welcome is the message--hardly original but worth repeating--about the potential villainy of certain among tody's tech moguls, a caution that should ring very true to viewers in this otherwise deeply fictional tale. I probably would be remiss if I recommended this flick for a download or anything like that—but if it shows up in your cable listings and you just feel like killing a couple of hours with simple popcorn entertainment…sure, sit back and relax. You may forget it, but you probably won’t regret it.

Dunkirk

Yeah, surprised me, too. But it turns out that the Bad Cat, apparently, is not a "moggie." Hence, patriotic exercises masquerading as a movie have little positive effect here. This is another example of "Saving Private Ryan" syndrome: "Let me throw a pastiche of combat scenes at you, which don't have any particular thread running through them other than their particular circumstance, and then I'll sit back and listen to your applause. Because, you know, War. And stuff." Narrative barely exists here; mostly, it's just an exercise in two hours of watching British guys sitting around looking mopey. And while certain creative liberties are to be expected in any movie, particularly a history of war flick, some of the license here borders on ridiculous. Day turns to night and then immediately back to day--the same day, apparently--again and again. And I'm pretty sure the same plane was shot down three different times. The movie drags, there seems to be little point (beyond setting up a Churchill oration book report), and the smart viewer's attention wavers to wondering how badly the British armed forces screwed up in allowing the situation to happen (and how incompetent the Nazis were in letting them get away). A major, major disappointment.

The Revenant

This ranks right up there with The Place Beyond The Pines as one of the grimmest movies I’ve ever seen, but in a very different way. There’s some rough stuff right from the start, and then it doesn’t get a lot better after that, at least if you’re the squeamish type. From the time the bear departs, you pretty much know how things are going to go, all the way through; which, I guess, means that it’s a tribute to DiCaprio’s fine performance that you stay interested all the way to the not-exactly-happy ending. (At least the film never pulls its punches, all the way through.) It also helps that the film looks fantastic, with lots of beautiful shots of stunning scenery. It’s definitely worth a look, but be sure you’ve got something handy to lift your spirits once you reach the end credits.

Mad Max: Fury Road

Talk about not taking the path of least resistance. This hyperextended action sequence--it strains the language to call it a story--can at least be said to be honest: it delivers exactly what you expect of a movie about everyone's favorite post-apocalyptic insane Australian, without any other promises. The delivery in this case is an almost indescribable orgy of mayhem--a breathtaking spectacle of violence that does provide a rush of visceral fun. On the other hand, there's a bit too much predictability here, not to mention a sense, when all is said and done, that there really wasn't much point to the whole proceedings. The same thing could have been accomplished, apparently, with a simple assassination. If you're the type who gets his jollies from this sort of craziness, then sure, this is the film for you. But if you expect a little more from your mayhem than just, well, mayhem...then there may be better things you can do with your time.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

See, here’s the thing about spies: if they’re doing their jobs right, you’re not supposed to know what they’re up to. Seems that the spies in this movie are on that ball--for a good stretch of the flick’s running time, I couldn’t tell what was going on. Despite that handicap, and almost in spite of itself, the film does eventually grow into an engrossing viewing experience. By the end, when Oldman’s George Smiley has worked through the problem, you care about how it all plays out. This is clearly not everyone’s kind of film, but if you’ve got a thing for the spy genre and a high tolerance for opacity, you might enjoy this one.

The Dark Knight Rises

A satisfying conclusion to Nolan's trilogy. Much more of a sequel to Batman Begins than its immediate predecessor--though that film has its impact here, too--this installment focuses strongly on the emotional life of its key characters, with heartening results when all is said and done. Even so, this is still a big, sweeping epic action hero movie, and it delivers the spectacle as well. One sour note: either I'm losing my hearing, or the sound mix was really poor (either in the theater or in the digital film; I couldn't particularly tell); either way, I could not hear far too much of the dialogue in the action sequences. There's also some muddle to the plot, especially early on, but a lot of that becomes clearer when you step back and look at the big picture. And this is, indeed, a big picture--and even worth the inflated ticket price of today's theater experience.

Inception

Christopher Nolan is rapidly rising up the roster of cinema's greatest directors, and here's another booster rocket for his rep. The plot and its execution may include more serpentine twists and turns than many audience members will tolerate, but the viewer who's willing to work a little is rewarded by the imaginative breadth of the vision and the deft execution applied to the visual presentation. How deep can you go indeed? If you're a sharp tack, take this plunge and you won't regret it.

Star Trek: Nemesis

This really and truly may be "it" for the franchise, and I can't say leaving off wouldn't be a bad idea. Nothing particularly memorable hits the screen here. In fact, it plays like a standard issue Star Trek movie, and that doesn't fly anymore. And, beyond the tired formula, it suffers in comparison with other recent sci-fi: too slow, plodding, unimaginative, and technically lagging. The only real benefit: seeing old friends, perhaps for the last time (at least in this context). For die hard fans, it's enough. Others can skip it.