Change Your Image
MrDrieco
Reviews
The Last of Us: Part II (2020)
Bad Writing.
Imagine watching Raiders Of the Lost Ark with the adventures of Indiana Jones and Marion Ravenwood...and then at the starting to watch the follow-up Temple of Doom. And in the first 20 minutes, Marion is forced to watch some character we don't know brutally murder Indy in front of her...and then the film's entire second act is about humanizing this character..That is The Last Of Us 2. it doesn't matter her backstory or gender...You've made a character we don't know irredeemable and expect us to care about them and their welfare? If I were playing as Abby, I'd walk into gunfire because we naturally hate her. I would do the same if Owen was the one who did the beating. This is just poor writing choices.
V for Vendetta (2005)
Forgotten
With the Oscar season here and the summer movie season fast approaching, I wanted to talk about a film I think fits into both. Now comic book films are usually shrugged off as just popcorn fluff. Most times, they are. To this day, however, there hasn't been a comic book film that has challenged me intellectually more than V For Vendetta. It is one of the most intelligently made, beautifully shot, well performed films of the genre. But sadly for some reason, it is FORGOTTEN.
V For Vendetta plot revolves around a knife wielding masked terrorist/freedom fighter trying to take down an oppressive British government in the not too distant future. I put terrorist/freedom fighter because the film blurs the line between the two. It makes you question the difference and presents the perspective of people on either side of the chaos. Some would argue that the character of V is clearly the hero and the government is bad. However, when you really get into the specifics of V's acts, it is hard to paint him as a true blue hero. Even an antihero for that matter. Robin Hood robbed from the rich and gave to the poor. V is out for vengeance, admittedly so. He kills in cold blood. He kills innocents. He kidnaps. He tortures. He does whatever it takes to accomplish his goals. You might say the ends justify his means, but his acts seen through a different spectrum can easily be construed as terror. That is why I love this film. It can be dissected and analyzed even to this day. The Avengers is my favorite comic book movie of all time, however, V For Vendetta is much meatier when it comes to substance.
Comic book legend Alan Moore is famous for angrily dismissing and disavowing any adaptations of his work. This is thanks primarily to the abysmal League Of Extraordinary Gentleman. I wish he'd take a slightly lighter stance on this though. It might be easy for me to say but, films aren't bad solely because the filmmakers take liberties with the source material. I detest Michael Bay's Transformer films and Marc Webb's Amazing Spider-Man not just because they changed things. I detest them because they are poorly written, horribly performed, lowest common denominator catering tripe. Their changes weren't done to add anything new or stimulating to the material. They were made for convenience sake. The same cannot be said for V For Vendetta. Yes, V is a warmer character in the film than he was in the comic book. However, I think that makes him even more complicated when compared to the coldness of his methods. Yes, the fascist vs. anarchist theme was more liberal vs. neo- conservatism. However, that is a lot timelier for today's political atmosphere and still has the nod to the fascist's ideas of purity from the comic book. My point being that the alterations made in V For Vendetta do not weaken it as a story. It merely updates it.
The Wachowskis, the source material meddlers in this case, exist in a weird place for me as a film fan. I was highly disappointed with their conclusion of The Matrix trilogy, but still respect the fact they always take crazy chances. They entrusted the directing duties to long time collaborator James McTeigue, while staying on to write and produce. However, their fingerprints are still all over this picture. Finding and concentrating on the heart of their cinematic worlds is a common Wachowski m.o.. Where a film like V For Vendetta could have just fallen into the basic action vehicle cliché, the Wachowskis don't let it. There are genuinely moving moments in the film that still stun me. The action scenes are terrific, but always serve as a tool to tell the story. Not the other way around.
Before The Dark Knight came along, V For Vendetta was my choice for best ensemble cast performance in a comic book film. Strange category, I know. However, it is always a relief and a thrill for me when I see great talent trying to do great work in a genre film such as a comic book movie. It thrilled me in History Of Violence, it thrilled me in The Dark Knight, and it thrilled me in V For Vendetta. It is still a common misconception that the genre should be treated the way Schumacher treated Batman. But there can be some amazing work turned in with the cape and cowl subset. For example, this is by far my favorite performance by Hugo Weaving. Yes, even more than his iconic Agent Smith. Odd, seeing as we never see his face and that he was a last second replacement for James Purefoy. Despite his Oscar, I'd put Weaving's V right up there with Ledger's Joker. To accomplish the subtleties of V's rage, anguish, humor and theatricality through an emotionless mask with only a voice is no small feat. Portman, who I've loved since Leon: The Professional, seems to be playing a stereotypical damsel at first. Much like she did in Thor. However, Evey has the strongest arc in the film. Her performance highpoint happens during the film's big twist. Her emotional journey during the four minute long scene hints at the Oscar caliber performance she had in her in the years to come. Other than the leads, you have stellar supporting performances from John Hurt, Stephen Fry, Roger Allam, and the unsung anchor of the film, Stephen Rea. There is absolutely no phoning it in here.
V For Vendetta doesn't get nearly as much love as it should. Even from it's creator. It seems to get misplaced amongst it's lesser comic book movie brethren For me, however, it is a film that shall never be FORGOT. Remember, remember...to watch it....then tell me I'm wrong.
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008)
My take on the pilot
I give this show an 8 for potential.
Now being a Whedonhead, there was no way I wasn't going support Summer(River Tam)Glau. She knows how to play unconventional characters so well. And if you've seen Firefly or Serenity you know that her odd comic timing is terrific. So as a Terminator(Terminatrix is a crappy term) I thought "Great Casting"
Add in Queen Gorgo from 300 and again I thought "Great Casting" She has Hamilton's attitude down.
Then I got to John and I said...meh. John NEEDS to butch up a bit. Furlong near the end of T2 was giving Arnold, Dyson, and his mom orders and was really the leader of that motley crew(Watch it again if you don't believe me)In the show he seems to have regressed. And he's not funny or a smartass anymore. He's just "ABC Afterschool Special" troubled all the time. The thing about the John character is that the audience has to like him and not want him to die. I understand the whole "This kid is a savior??" shtick but as I've stated earlier...he was showing glimpses of his leadership at the end of T2. Now that he's older he should be even more a leader. Not begging mommy to make the boogeymen go away like in this pilot. Could be the actor's fault...or the writing...I just hope they fix this in episodes to come.
Writing wise I like the idea...though its slightly a retread of T2. Now we don't know what type of terminator Cameron Phillips is. My bet is she isn't a reprogrammed Terminator from the future but a machine invented by the resistance from Skynet technology with super advanced human behavior capabilities. Probably made by FUTURE JOHN himself and modeled after his future lover or wife(Just an assumption of what I would do with that character. The shows writers can steal this if they want...just hire me) That would explain her realistic human interactions, the BLUE not RED eyes and readout screen, the fact that she doesn't kill without being instructed not to by John or Sarah...and the potato chip eating. If she was a reprogrammed Terminator she should have said something like "Another Option" or "Help" instead of the clunky and too humanly corny line "Hope" when asked what that plasma gun was.
If the writers can get an handle on the true voice of these characters this show could be terrific...POTENTIAL is something fleeting in the new shows coming out now...LIFE has it...BURN NOTICE has it...CHUCK lost it...HEROES is squandering it. LOST keeps gaining more of it. Whatever we do...we must WATCH...now a days its the only way shows can grow...lest they be canceled before they get off the ground...JERICHO, ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, KIDNAPPED, SMITH.
Anyway...thats my take...maybe you agree.
The Way of the Gun (2000)
My favorite movie of all time
"The Way of the Gun" to some people may just be an action piece puddled up by drama and really REAL issues like Redemption, Consequences, Trust and the differences between Bad and evil. I think it may be the purest form of a perfect action drama.
McQ makes the world its set even more realistic by making you quite unsure who the good guys are...in actuality there really aren't any...everyone here has done something unscrupulous at one time or another...the only ones who have embraced their "bad" are the two characters we follow: Parker and Longbaugh(brilliantly remade characters based on Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid).
McQ makes us see the story through their eyes(Mainly Parkers played by Ryan Phillippe) They are both Butch and Sundance in a more real underplayed way.
But they don't fool themselves about who they are and trick you into believing they are someone else(Good or holsom). They are the perfect guides into this world of shadiness, lies on top of lies and secrets. Lucus used the same technique in Star Wars A New Hope by having a story take place through the eyes of two inconsequential characters(R2 D2 and C3PO). A trick he picked up from the great Akira Kirowsawa.
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
The story of a woman becoming a surrogate mother for money to help out her aging criminal father(THE BAGMAN) and in turn finding love from the son of the very same man paying her is like...whew! It could be easily told through the eyes of the daughter or the doctor(Who McQ has said is the real hero of the story). But we see it through Benicio and Ryan. And its great.
Their chemistry is terrific. Their almost secret way of communication through glances, cryptic phrases and extreme situational teaching(Mainly Longbaugh teaching Parker never to trust anybody by setting Parker up to get killed a couple times:GUN IN DOCTOR PAINTER'S BAG & SHOTGUN IN THE HOTEL ROOM) They know each other so well they don't even have to say anything. That comes across on screen.
Benicio Del Torro owns his role and plays it so low key. There are scenes where he says nothing at all and conveys any and every emotion. This is one of Phillipe's better films, a best personally seeing as I wasn't a fan before this. After which case I was on a soap box shouting that he would have been great as Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels. James Caan is....James Caan...in a role I think must have been written for him...cool aging badass. Taye Diggs...though I hate him...is great in the film because this is one of the only times he doesn't play "Taye Diggs". He turns his warm sex symbol persona on its ear by playing a man of real menace in apathy.
And for those who have read long enough about me droning on about this films hidden dramatic elements...the action scenes are great. Some of the most realistic gunfights I have ever scene. Actors were all Navy Seal trained and took it almost too seriously.(Listen to the DVD commentary when McQ talks about Taye Diggs persistent on how he run down an alley with a shotgun in the correct hand or how the actors never put their finger on the trigger unless they were shooting.) The final gun battle goes down for me as one the greatest of all time set eerily in similar surroundings as "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" I dare you to find a better shoot out.
McQ and a Mr Tarantino fella are how got into writing. And McQ has some of the funniest and cool-as-hell one liners in this flick. Almost better than his previous film Usual Suspects. Watch The Way of the Gun and you will truly be seeing a hidden masterpiece.