Ant-Man and the Wasp

Fun. Not profound, to be sure, but certainly an entertaining piece of popcorn cinema. It's also an object lesson: when the first in this series came out, I was certain that it was a bridge too far for the Marvel milieu. Not so; this line of the story has its own niche--humor driven, narrowly focused (a family, instead of the world or universe)--and, so long as they keep the pseudo-scientific hooey to a minimum, entertaining instead of eye-rolling. Not bad for a minor, never-heard-of-it-before character and storyline. It helps, too, that the cast--leads and supporting actors alike--play their parts nearly perfectly; the right people are plugged into the right roles, and that creates plenty of leeway with the audience. The implication: keep things fresh, and fun, and light, and perhaps fantasies of an MCU in perpetuity may be possible--whether its focus characters are big or small.

The Hateful Eight

It’s Tarantino, so you know what that means. Again, if you’re a wilting flower or a pearl-clutcher, you should probably avoid watching this one. Indeed, even the rough characters among us might find some of the contents presented here a tad difficult to take. So you’ve been warned. On the plus side--if the foregoing can be said to be a negative--there’s some very clever storytelling here, and a sharp mind might spot a few things before any reveal actually comes, which is always entertaining. And the look of the movie rivals the cinematography of just about any other film I’ve seen in a long time. I can’t say there’s a particular moral to be had here, beyond perhaps ‘don’t go looking for trouble’; but maybe, just maybe, you can say the good guys won in the end. You’ll have to be the judge of that--if you can stand all the rough stuff.

Django Unchained

Is it wildly entertaining? Yes. Does it have all the layers you’d typically expect from a Tarantino movie? Sure. Will you think about it for quite some time after you’ve watched it? Of course. Is it a great movie? Well...Perhaps we’re grading on too steep a curve; maybe Q is the victim of overly lofty expectations. Hard to say, but while I did like this film, I wouldn’t say it’s quite up to snuff for such an audacious and ambitious director. There’s lots to like--the performances by Waltz and Jackson are marvels--but you can’t help but think that, in practical terms, most of the second half of the film doesn’t make much sense. Certainly you should see it; just don’t elevate it into the pantheon.