Prisoners (2013)

It’s always a joy to find a tightly woven thriller like this one, centered on another emotionally intense performance from Hugh Jackman. Jackman plays the father of one of two kidnapped girls who takes action into his own hands to find them when it seems the police are letting their main suspect go. Jake Gyllenhaal plays the detective on the case. The mystery isn’t too hard to figure out but screenwriter Aaron Guzikowski gives the story enough layers to great doubt in what’s going on. Denis Villeneuve directs after making the Oscar nominated for Best Foreign Language Incendies. What else does this Canadian director have in store? I can’t wait. Grade: A-

Dexter (Season 8)

The writers of one of my favorite shows failed me. I can’t believe it. I had so much faith in them. I thought they had everything in place for an epic conclusion but instead was giving a head-scratching dissatisfying deflating mess. How is this possible? There is so much to hate about this last season, it’s hard to know where to begin. First we’ll start with what I liked about it. Bringing on board Charlotte Rampling as Dr. Evelyn Vogel, the inventor of Dexter’s Code, was a fantastic idea and I loved how she was used to bring Dexter and Debra back together. It helps too that she’s a wonderful actress. Bringing back Hannah McKay and having her and Dexter’s love story continue was a good move. It wasn’t going to have a happy ending but that’s as it should be. And that’s pretty much it. The rest of the season is so uneven and illogical that I still can’t believe it. In hindsight I know what the writers and producers
were trying to do but the result only spoils what was such a good show. Now when I tell people that they should watch Dexter I’m going to be conflicted. Sure watch this great show but don’t see how it ends because it sucks. If ever there was a way to force a production company to re-do a season of a show, this would be my choice. So disappointing. Grade: B-

Spoilers
Here’s a list of what I hated about this season.
1. The killing of Dexter’s sister. Dumb and pointless. She was the heart of the show and she needed to live on. I know the reason she was killed was to make the ending really tragic but it came across as forced and out of the blue. “Let’s kill Dexter’s reason for living so he can spend the rest of his life in pain and regret because that’s how he should be punished”. That’s why she was killed but I find that a lazy choice, personally.
2. Joey Quinn suddenly dumping Jamie and getting back together with Debra, who takes him back without a thought. The reason for this? To make it more tragic. His story would have meant something if he had remained faithful to Jamie. Tossing Jamie to the side like that was just mean and left a bad taste in my mouth.
3. Hannah McKay running away with Harrison. It’s not that she wouldn’t make a good mother, if there’s anyone out there who will protect him better it’s her, she’d kill to keep him safe. And being that she’s a killer, maybe she can raise him to not be one. (Maybe) But Harrison deserves to be with his half siblings Cody and Astor. He deserves to be with family instead of a woman he just met.
4. The moment Dexter decides not to kill. This is where the season really falls apart. I get it; I know what the writers are saying. Dexter realizes he doesn’t need to kill anymore, “See his transformation!” And with this transformation you punish him. The irony would work if set up properly but it’s just inconsistent with this character.
5. Horrible villain. Daniel Vogel starts off as a threatening character but in the end he’s just not the guy Dexter deserves to face at the end. He’s so forgettable, especially when you consider how this show started with the Ice Truck killer. Couldn’t they have made him scarier than any killer Dexter has faced so far? Pretty lame.
6. Rushed Writing. It felt so rushed at the end. “Quick, let’s end this thing so we can move on to our next project.” I’m sure this is an unfair criticism. I doubt the writers rushed it; I’m sure they spent long hours writing scene after scene but for me it didn’t feel they met their usual standards. The dialogue wasn’t as good as it had been in previous episodes and even the logic was off.
7. Dexter is alive. If you are going to have Dexter drive off on a boat into a hurricane, then stick to your guns. Don’t have him pop up in Alaska with a beard. Again I get what the writers were trying to do, but I felt Dexter should have just died. He should have died protecting the ones he loved. He’s our hero. He’s a serial killer but the writers don’t have to play moral god to their characters. I always thought Dexter either should sacrifice himself by turning himself in or died in a heroic way. Sure, all writers want to out think their audience and come up with an even better ending then what is expected but sometimes the expected is the ending of the story. This ending felt inorganic developed and false. I wouldn’t have wanted a happy ending but even a happy ending would have been better than what I watched.
How should it have ended given this Season’s set up? I personally would have switched Debra and Dexter destines. Dexter would have been the one shot and in the hospital to become a vegetable. Debra would have taken him out on a boat and she would have dropped him to the sea. Then she’d return to the main land to live being one of only a hand full of people who knew Dexter’s true crimes. Hannah McKay would have returned from Latin America and dropped Harrison off with his Aunt so she could reunite him with his family. The last scene could have been Debra and Hannah once enemies departing ways, the two women who loved Dexter. Still not a perfect ending but it would have been a lot more pleased.

This is the End (2013)

Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg co-write and direct an ensemble farce staring Seth, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson and Danny McBride as fictional versions of themselves who attend a Hollywood party that is interrupted by the apocalypse. It’s a meta-comedy that satires Hollywood culture, disaster movies, possession films and the end of the world. I loved it! It’s dark and strange and hilarious. Danny McBride steals the show, giving his typical laugh-out-loud jerk performance that he does so well. This is one of those films I can see watching over and over again. It’ll be interesting to see how it holds up years from now with future viewers who don’t know who these guys are and haven’t ever seen the Pineapple Express. I think it has some timeless moments but at the same time it is set in its time like a pop cultural time capsule. Grade: A-

Mitt (2014)

The title of this advertisement . . . I mean, documentary . . . could have been Nice Guys Finish Last. This film follows Mitt Romney trying to become President of the United States, first when he lost the nomination to McCain and again when he received the Republican Nomination only to lose the election to Obama. It’s supposed to be an inside look at the man and his family and it sort of is, but it’s completely void of any substance about his politics and why such a man should be the Leader of the Free world (just like his campaign). I like Mitt, or at least the way he represents himself, but I wouldn’t ever vote for him and nothing in this documentary changed my mind. Yet by reading the reviews on Netflix it’s clear that if Mitt had used this kind of approach to tell his story to the voting public versus attacking Obama he probably would have won. Maybe, maybe not, but as propaganda this film works wonders, as an actual documentary is full of holes. Obviously if you want to see a hard hitting honest look at Romney the leader with information and details on how he believes this country should be run then skip this one. If you want a warm and fuzzy look at a family man trying to run for office then you might find this enjoyable. I was entertained but not impressed and very much relieved he did lose. I can only hope after two failed attempts Mitt learned his lesson and doesn’t try again. Grade: B

Blue Jasmine (2013)

Woody Allen does it again, creating a wonderful dynamic film with skillfully crafted characters and a story with memorable emotional depth. It’s clearly a modern reflection by Tennessee Williams’ play A Streetcar Named Desire and proof one can use another artist’s work to create something new and completely relevant. Jasmine is a former spoiled rich house wife who must live with her lower-class sister, Ginger, after losing everything when her husband was arrested for fraud. Told out of sequence the audience gets to see a confident, clueless woman transform into a desperate and delusional mess. What helps make this already excellent film work as well as it does is Cate Blanchett. The entire cast is brilliant but she’s amazing. This 2014 version of Blanche DuBois is even more complex and monstrous, yet a heroine that I felt bad for even if I felt she got exactly what she deserved. The last shot of the film will stay with me for a long time. Grade: A-

The Great Gatsby (2013)

Baz Luhrmann is the cinematic lord of gaudy brilliance. And while gaudy might be considered a negative adjective, in this case it’s a celebration of melodrama and music and razzle dazzle spectacle. When you watch a film by Luhrmann, it’s clearly a Luhrmann production. Here he adapts F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel about a young WWI vet and college grad who becomes friends with a mysterious millionaire neighbor. I was never a fan of the novel but Luhrmann is the artist to make such a story work. Set during the Roaring Twenties, he clearly loves to juxtapose a romanticize time period with our current time. I really loved the look and feel of this movie and Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Carey Mulligan give strong performances. Their chemistry is electric on screen. The film’s only flaw is the pacing feels off. I think the issue is that there’s no real suspense. It starts off with lots of mystery but once we find out who Jay Gatsby is the drama’s purpose falters. This is a subtle error and doesn’t spoil the tragic beauty of the movie’s ending. Grade: A-

Spoilers:
Daisy is a bitch and Mulligan portrays her with great emotional honesty. But she’s still a bitch.

Cutie and the Boxer (2013)

Who said being an artist is glamourous? Japanese Ushio Shinohara lives a life that is part homeless man and part genius and it’s his younger wife Noriko that keeps everything together. I don’t really know if these two love each other but I suspect their marriage is based on a form of love and admiration. Noriko is the hero of this story for you really get a sense of her personality and the joy and terror it is to live with a maniac sweetheart like Ushio. It’s also a testament to the life of an artist and let’s be clear these two are artists, but no matter how creative you are or how many pieces of art you have created it’s not easy making money. My opinion on Ushio’s work is that it’s at times brilliant but also messy junk. How is it I can call it art and not garbarge? Because it so purely captures this man’s zany soul. Grade: A