 by Philip Price
Knowing nothing about it, the plot, or its characters “Mojave” begins and quickly takes on a sense of aimlessness. Like its Hollywood wasteland setting, the hopes and dreams of whatever writer/director William Monahan (Oscar winning writer of “The Departed”) aspired for this to be seems to get lost in the shuffle of the day-to-day, and the existing lives that thrive purely on indulgence and artificial and material accomplishments that never get around to tapping into their true desires. “Mojave,” while constantly striving to be more, ends up doing little more than wasting away and ultimately wasting our time. More than feeling like wasted time though, “Mojave” feels like a missed opportunity due simply to the talent involved. Not only do we have the on-fire Oscar Isaac and the legitimately talented Garrett Hedlund for Isaac to both verbally and physically spar with, but we also have the likes of Walton Goggins and Mark Wahlberg in supporting roles. I won't even harp on the fact Monahan has charismatic folks like Dania Ramirez, Matt Jones and Fran Kranz in minor supporting roles that he only utilizes for single scenes, but even the likes of Goggins is criminally underused in that a talent of his stature wasn't necessary for his six lines of dialogue. Sure, “Mojave” has some interesting things going for it as Monahan is a capable writer and pens some interesting back and forth about the measure of success and how it affects the narrative of one's life, but in the end none of it means anything. For all the flowery language and high-brow quotes our two leads pull out of their asses there is no substance in their actions, which I guess is the kind of demons they are attempting to chase away in the first place. How can their lives symbolize their deepest desires and greatest ambitions rather than simply being an on-going conversation about those dreams and desires? Bleak, no doubt, but that seems the writer/director’s desired tone, which in turn causes his movie to drag. All of that said, “Mojave” isn't actively bad, but it does have a weird sense of camp to it that would seem intentional if it wasn't trying so hard to impress with its language. Instead, whatever the intent, it comes off as a self-serious thriller that inadvertently becomes campy due to playing into so many tropes of the genre. First, we are introduced to Hedlund's Thomas through what is a taped interview as he mumbles on about how he's been famous in one way or another since he was 19 and that he's already tired of life having received all he wanted so early. Of course, this is all ominous as we are then treated to Thomas taking a vehicle into the desert with the intention of doing away with himself. He crashes his car with the somewhat tepid hope that it might finish him, but when it doesn't he makes a fire and spends the night in the middle of the Mojave yelling at the coyotes to come and get him. The coyotes never show, but something else does that will alter the course of Thomas' life in Isaac's Jack. Even in his initial appearance, Isaac seems to know he shouldn't be conveying his character in as humorless a fashion as Hedlund has chosen to do with his. Dressed in a black duster stained by his surroundings and some version of a fedora with a rifle on his hip and a gold tooth in his mouth, Isaac's drifter has to say very little to give us an impression of who this guy might be. That Isaac actually imbues a performance under this facade only makes the character more interesting and kind of fun, but one that is ultimately undone by his annoyingly over-usage of "brother". If the guy says it once he definitely says it a million times to the point it doesn't just become a part of this individual’s unique vernacular, but is repeated often enough to make a drinking game from while opening up the remainder of the dialogue to higher scrutiny. From here, some irreversible stuff happens between these two leading to an extended conflict once Thomas attempts to return to his lavish lifestyle in the Hollywood hills. Where the movie succeeds is in its offering of the matching of its two leading minds. Each represent either end of a modern spectrum; Thomas with his privileged lifestyle trying to find some reason to go on while Jack with his unfulfilled destiny despite having a belief in his ideas that he feels no one else has ever seen. It is the battle of those who are born into advantage and those always battling the inherent disadvantages of our society. The majority of viewers will likely view this world from the perspective of Isaac's Jack who takes this opportunity to finally stick it to the man very seriously and thus all the more fulfilling to those who've ever faced defeated dreams. Despite Isaac giving the more charismatic performance and audiences likely relating to his plight more, we are never privy to which of these guys is "supposed" to be the good guy. Isaac's character even acknowledges as much at one point in the film in a scene that feels more climactic than the actual climax. We may not ultimately agree with Jack's actions, but we understand where he's coming from and this gray area is what makes the characters both engaging, more layered, and more authentic. That the main throughline of the plot is for Thomas to essentially frame Jack for a crime he committed and let this life less worthy than his (based simply on notoriety) take the blame while he continues to prosper speaks to a line of thought that is shared by many in this world. The main idea is there, as are these solid performances from both Isaac and Hedlund (though a scene where Isaac openly mocks Hedlund's somber veneer while still adding in, "brother," is particularly amusing), but it is the execution that simply feels stale. There is an aura that is so familiar to the proceedings that it complements the LA wasteland setting too well. We've seen this cautionary tale before, where you can trust no one in the industry and only those already in the inner circle are the ones allowed in the inner circle. What hope do us sad dreamers actually have? While Isaac's Jack is intent to create his own opportunity, Monahan's conclusion lets us know where the writer/director comes down on things despite being comfortably nestled into the scene enough that he can write, direct, and get such dismal material as this produced. Where the movie largely fails is both in the confused tones and mismatched genres generated by the script and the inability to mold said script into anything appealing. How Monahan was able to attract such talent to the film seems simply due to the fact he must be friends with most of these people. Both Hedlund and Isaac are clearly capable talents that have expressed huge range given their filmographies, but that talent is put to the test here by a script that goes nowhere and characters that ultimately are as haphazard as the screenplay. As an audience member, we only become invested in these loose circumstances because of the commitment of the performances on display, but that doesn't even mean we necessarily like the characters. As the film opens we wonder who Hedlund's character is given he's apparently been famous for more than a decade and what he might be doing venturing into the desert and sleeping with women who clearly aren't his wife (a wife that is trying to get a hold of him via phone calls he isn't answering). The movie never clarifies what kind of artist Thomas is, but we assume he's some type of filmmaker given he is forced, but doesn't like to deal with, stereotypical producer Norman (Wahlberg) throughout. There is no reason as to why we might sympathize with this guy, much less be interested in following him, but then Isaac's character shows up talking more than the talkers he initially complains about and the pace changes from that of a pointless to a familiar one as its quite clear how things are going to play out in the broad sense. There are maybe one or two scenes that are truly effective given the writing, directing and acting each overlap in a way that makes you wonder where the good movie within this mess has wandered off to, but that quick optimism is cut off by the next scene where one of the many characters is laying around in their underwear spouting off philosophical sayings that are meant to foreshadow the conflict to come (This happens. A lot). “Mojave” is a trite thriller masquerading as a provocative think piece that bears its true self far too early for anyone to ever fall for its trap.
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 by Philip Price
Watching “The Finest Hours” is like going to a restaurant you know and trust and despite being satisfied when you leave, feeling as if there was definitely something lacking. The contents are all inviting and have an undeniably charming quality to them, but upon consumption you simply aren't as full as you'd hoped given the dish wasn't as rich as it had the potential to be. “The Finest Hours” is a handsome film, directed by Craig Gillespie, and features both impeccable costume design and an earnest soundtrack not to mention a story that is genuinely thrilling. Pair these strong qualities with an all-around impressive roster of cast members not only in the key roles, but in supporting and minor parts throughout and it's nothing short of a guarantee that the film wasn't going to at least be a rather solid venture. And it is. In fact, that's exactly what “The Finest Hours” turns out to be with there not necessarily being any issues other than the fact it doesn't feel like an exception in the long line of cinematic adventures we're given throughout the year despite the story being one of an exceptional heroic act. For this reason, the movie adaptation of the story and of Casey Sherman and Michael J. Tougias' novel feels as if it is something of a missed opportunity in representing a story that could have really produced a great or even "exceptional", piece of fiction. Instead, “The Finest Hours” gives audiences what we expect in that it is consistently engaging, naturally tense in moments, and hits just the right amount of emotional beats to make the harrowing rescue mission all the more affecting in the end. It is in this emotional connection though, that the film doesn't connect as often as it should. Even without the love angle from which the film comes at the story there should be more than a handful of emotionally charged moments given both men at the head of these dueling narratives are staring death in the face. And yet, we never feel as emotionally invested in the proceedings as the characters clearly are. There is a disconnect and while it doesn't destroy the film, it certainly keeps it from realizing its full potential. We begin in 1951 in Wellfleet, Massachusetts as Bernie Webber (Chris Pine) is set to embark on a blind date with Miriam (Holliday Grainger), a girl who he's only spoke with on the phone up until this night. Bernie is a member of the Coast Guard and given Miriam has requested to make it a double date he takes along another of his Coast Guard pals in Gouthro (Beau Knapp). Given the wonder Bernie seems to already have for Miriam it isn't difficult to guess that once they do finally meet, things go well. A year or so passes and things are naturally getting more serious between the couple. Bernie, being the shy, timid man that he is simply feels lucky to have as beautiful a woman as Miriam in his life, but he is concerned about taking things too far as they are set to experience one of the worst storms to ever hit the East Coast that winter and given he doesn't know what his job might inevitably require of him, he's afraid to take the next step. It is at this moment we cut to an oil tanker off the coast of Cape Cod that is in the midst of battling this unheralded winter storm when their ship is literally ripped in half. As the man who knows the most about the ship, Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck), is somewhat by default put in charge of figuring how to keep their half of the ship afloat long enough for rescue boats to find them or until they can make it to shore. Sybert is surrounded both by supporters (John Ortiz, Graham McTavish, Josh Stewart) and detractors (Michael Raymond James) making each and every decision that much more stressful. It is after a citizen of Wellfleet, Carl Nickerson (Matthew Maher), notices the tanker from the shore that Webber's commanding officer, Daniel Cluff (Eric Bana), sends him and a crew of three other men including Richard Livesay (Ben Foster), Andy Fitzgerald (Kyle Gallner), and Navy man Ervin Maske (John Magaro) into the frigid temperatures and 70-foot high waves on a small lifeboat to rescue the more than 30 stranded sailors trapped aboard the rapidly-sinking vessel. Naturally, the most appealing aspect of this story is the heroism and bravery involved in completing such a task, but seeing as all Webber and his crew of men are doing is figuring out how to drive through waves or get over them there is only so much Gillespie can do seeing as the characters don't discuss how they intend to go about doing what is said to be the impossible. Even more disappointing than this concerning the narrative led by Pine's Webber is that much of their time on screen is clearly spent in front of a green one with the CGI being more visible to the average audience member than it should. Sure, there is constant rain coming down on these guys and Pine, Foster, Gallner, and Magaro clearly were drenched over and over to simulate the unrelenting conditions of this environment as best they could, but given the look and feel of these segments and that they take up the majority of the center of the film, it seems an alternative route would have made the environment feel more authentic and thus the characters in more peril. Even as Bernie jets ahead, spearing these gigantic waves with their small lifeboat, there is never as much a sense of danger with Bernie and his crew as there is with Affleck's portions given their environment is ten times more veritable. What saves these portions from being completely absent of story propulsion (and not just literal forward movement) is the character arc of Bernie and how he grows to be this commanding presence that is self-assured and validated through this experience. While most know Pine for playing the cocky, surefire Captain Kirk he pulls off the more apprehensive and quiet man that Bernie is while still imbuing his natural charm into the character. I found it interesting that the story would open with the beginnings of this relationship Bernie would share with Miriam, but it immediately shows us how Bernie comes to realize someone is depending on him. This is critical for his development over the course of the film. Beginning by highlighting this relationship also sets up the emotional core of the film, but as I said earlier this aspect is something of a disappointment given Grainger clearly has a character who is worth getting to know and the movie seems to want to do more with Miriam than it ends up doing. Where the film succeeds in being the rousing rescue/adventure story that it has been billed to be is in the scenes on the battered tanker as Sybert and his crew have to put their inhibitions and attitudes aside and figure out how to keep on living despite a ticking clock that could jump to zero at any second. Whereas Bernie sees himself as lucky for landing a girl as beautiful and kind as Miriam, or for guiding him through the treacherous waters, Sybert doesn't. Sybert is a single man with no family and no seeming purpose in life other than to understand his boat. He is a man who makes his own luck and believes that if he is to get off this ship alive that he is going to have to use his learned skills and intuition to do so. He will rely on nothing else, the least of all luck. In what could have easily been a brooding and bleak performance, Affleck instead turns Sybert into a man of great vigor and valor. It's clear Sybert has no desire to be in charge and that he would rather keep to himself in the engine room, guiding the boat to where it needs to go and keeping his ducks in a row. When the time calls for it though, he steps up and puts to rest the conflicting ideologies going back and forth on the deck between the rest of the crew and states flat-out what is going to happen. In not looking for recognition or reward, Affleck's performance is one of honesty and thus we find him more worth investing and believing in even if the odds Bernie has to overcome are greater. The double narrative does give the film a nice pace though fifteen minutes or so could have been trimmed or rather certain scenes been staged more dramatically so as to earn the type of applause and payoff one only hopes such a story will have. Like its issues with the character of Miriam though, “The Finest Hours” seems to have an ambition it doesn't know how to achieve. Everything about the film is perfectly acceptable and I doubt I'll ever hear anyone say this is a bad movie, but there is most definitely something lacking. Maybe it's the horrible Southern accent Bana (an Australian) attempts or maybe it's the repetitive nature of Bernie's plight that bring the film down from what it could have been, but more than this the film simply doesn't have enough innovation in its DNA or as much determination as its characters to rise above and stand out from the crowd.  by Philip Price
“Dirty Grandpa” is the kind of movie that longtime fans of Robert De Niro will scoff at and that others will see as Zac Efron continuing to hang his movie stardom on the only game in town that seems to work for him: R-rated comedies. By this point in time though, De Niro isn't hurting his legacy as much as he is simply continuing to do what he loves, but with less demanding material. The guy's legacy is cemented in the films he made and the roles he personified in his prime that are still discussed today. “Dirty Grandpa” won't hurt his legacy because no one will remember “Dirty Grandpa” two months from now. Efron, on the other hand, has been testing this reliable formula since “Charlie St. Cloud” and the indies he attempted didn't hit. The moment that not only “The Paperboy” failed to connect, but both “At Any Price” and “Parkland” failed critically and commercially it was as if Efron told his agent to only send him one type of script. Over the past two years Efron has starred in “That Awkward Moment,” “Neighbors,” “We Are Your Friends” and the movie we're discussing in this review. Just around the corner, the actor has four movies in some stage of production all of which are comedies, and all likely rated-R. So, what does this tell us about “Dirty Grandpa”? Well, it tells us to expect nothing more than the tried and true formula that has kept Efron afloat and that will continue to give De Niro paydays in the vein of “The Intern” and “Last Vegas.” These are perfectly fine, broad comedies that do what they are intended to do and little more. They open up with an accessible premise, do their job for an hour and a half, and wrap everything up nicely so we can go home feeling good about the $10 we invested in it. “Dirty Grandpa” certainly tries too hard in certain moments and director Dan Mazer doesn't know how to balance the raunch with the heart very well, but I laughed often enough to qualify it as more of a win than a waste of time. At the very least there is genuine character development happening as the arc of the film depends on it and there is clear effort being made to craft a legitimately funny movie which is more than I can say for the total cash grab that is “Ride Along 2.” We've seen “Dirty Grandpa” before. This is the one where an uptight guy who has lived his life up until the point we meet him strictly by the books and at the wishes of someone else. We then bear witness to an intervention of a noble figure who swoops in just before our protagonist is getting ready to make the biggest mistake of his life. In this scenario the uptight, straight-laced fella is Jason Kelly (Efron), a lawyer who works at his father, David's (Dermot Mulroney), law firm and is set to marry fellow lawyer, Meredith (Julianne Hough), whose father is a partner at David's law firm thus making the two perfect for one another. David, who doesn't have the least bit of respect for his absentee father, has guided his son through every decision in his life despite there being a clear passion for travel and photography that is brought up early and awkwardly enough that we know to take note. It is when David's father and Jason's grandfather, Dick Kelly (De Niro), loses his wife that things get thrown off course. The day after the funeral Dick requests that Jason accompany him to Florida where Dick can shack up with his old war buddy, Stinky (Danny Glover), for the remainder of their days. It quickly becomes apparent Dick has a bigger end goal in mind though. After 40 years of marriage and 15 years of no sexual activity due to his wife's cancer Dick is ready to get back out there and live life the way he wants. Jason is unknowingly pulled into his grandfather's search for the youngest woman he can find that is willing to have sex with him, but lucky for them fate intervenes. At a diner Dick and Jason cross paths with Jason's old classmate, Shadia (Zoey Deutch), and her friends Bradley (Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman) and Lenore (Aubrey Plaza). While there are clearly sparks between Jason and Shadia, Lenore just so happens to be on a quest to complete a trifecta of sexual experiences in her senior year of college. Mistaking Dick for a professor, Lenore sets her sights on the game old man while Jason reluctantly goes along for the ride, but inevitably ends up learning more about himself than he ever imagined. In many ways, “Dirty Grandpa” feels something like the spiritual sequel to “High School Musical” that was viciously hijacked by De Niro's character. Jason is essentially what would have become of Troy Bolton had those characters continued to grow in the fantasy world that Disney created for them. Even here, director Mazer surrounds his young and attractive cast with bright colors and picturesque houses that ooze the materialistic tendencies each possess. Would Troy have lived happily ever after with Gabriella? Probably, but Hough's Meredith makes a nice substitute for the standard Stepford who would eventually become monotonous and cause whatever version of Efron that's now present to resent her for allowing him to sleepwalk through the rest of his life. In one scene, Efron even pays a slight homage to his roots by really getting into a karaoke performance that will no doubt appease his grown-up HSM fans. If this were a Disney movie the message of doing what truly makes you happy rather than what you think will make others happy with you would be more overt, but “Dirty Grandpa” almost reaches the point of preaching this idea that it completely negates all the times I did laugh. Almost. That said, it is the hijacking of this alternate universe where Troy grows up to be a lawyer rather than studying kinesiology and returning to coach the Wildcats that gives the film its own ground to cover and more importantly, a platform for De Niro to just go for it. The best part about this film, besides a few small supporting characters that we'll talk about later, is De Niro's performance. While the guy might be picking projects to do left and right it is difficult to argue that the actor doesn't at least put his best foot forward even with material as vulgar and unrefined as this. As the titular perv, De Niro tosses out one liners with ease and builds a backstory that comfortably pits him as a master of sorts in any situation be it doing a rendition of Ice Cube's "It Was a Good Day," with a large group of black people or keeping up with Lenore's flirt game by throwing back something to one-up her dirty, messed-up mind every time they come in contact with one another. If “Dirty Grandpa” is good anything though, it is to show the ever-widening range of Plaza as never in a million years would one expect April Ludgate to act in such a manner, but the chemistry and banter between De Niro and Plaza is worth the price of admission alone. Sure, so we've more or less seen this movie before and sure, we know how things are going to end up the second Meredith interrupts her fiancé's grandmother's funeral to ask him what color tie he plans on wearing to their rehearsal brunch (yeah, she's that kind of annoying-won't even go with the traditional "rehearsal dinner"-anything to be different!), but it's the journey that counts, right? Well, given “Dirty Grandpa” is littered with enough strange and hilarious supporting characters to keep its rather thin premise alive the journey turns out to be a pretty interesting and ultimately fun one. The always reliable Jason Mantzoukas is hysterical as Pam, a small business owner who runs one of those gift shops along the coastline that sells Spring Break t-shirts and highlighter trucker hats, but really makes his money in the drug trade. The running bit he has about being blatantly obvious and kind of proud of his chosen occupation and role in the community is solid, but only reaches new heights when combined with Henry Zebrowski and Mo Collins as two oblivious Daytona Beach cops that view Pam as a friend and someone to impress. While Mantzoukas keeps things interesting on the excursion aspect of the film there is Adam Pally as Cousin Nick to keep things interesting on the home front. In what seem to be largely improvised scenes at both the visitation and immediately following the funeral Pally delivers on his delivery while the content isn't half bad either. A running joke of the competition between jocks Cody (Jake Picking) and Bruh (Michael Hudson) who look to claim Shadia and Lenore for themselves and the leading grandfather/grandson duo feels forced for the sake of plot though, and doesn't elicit enough laughs for it to play as big a role as it ultimately does. It is when the film tries to get heavy in its third act when discussing mortality and last-ditch redemption projects that the film takes on more than it can handle. Up until this point, “Dirty Grandpa” had been content with being little more than a slight diversion and it was good at that because it was pleasant enough. Lucky for us, the film quickly cuts the developing somber tone with jokes about Andre the Giant and all is well enough once again. It may seem as if I'm grasping at straws here, but there is no need to be offended by the inability of something like “Dirty Grandpa” to be great, but more we should simply be thankful that it is able to offend at all as that was clearly its goal. Mission (mostly) accomplished.  by Philip Price
Director Michael Bay is not someone you would call subtle. As the director of films like “Armageddon,” “Pearl Harbor,” ‘Bad Boys’ I & II, and the ‘Transformers’ series it is clear to see the guy doesn't mind indulging just a smidge. Typically, the guy gets a pretty bad rap for crafting films of spectacle with very little substance, of putting forth his uber-machismo attitude that displays the women in his films as little more than figures of sexuality, and for generally allowing his movies to get away from him as the action (and more specifically the explosions) take over. That said, “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi” is very much a Michael Bay film. Of course, it is a film that Bay has been wanting to make for some time now and that desire, that passion clearly shines through. One could add to the list of Bay's tendencies his penchant for idolizing the American flag and the country it represents. When it comes to America or at least the American military, Bay seems to believe in absolutes and by absolutes I mean the guys on the ground, the soldiers, the people doing the dirty work are the kind of people we should all aspire to be. And maybe that's true, maybe the way Bay has depicted the six men who didn't have to do what they did on September 11, 2012, but chose to risk their lives to save other American lives is completely accurate. I have no qualms with how these heroes are represented as ‘13 Hours’ doesn't look to get political, but simply aspires to tell the story of the type of man it takes under such circumstances to make shit happen. My qualms with the film come when these men have little to no substance to them, when they are more or less interchangeable, and when the attempts at adding some weight or personal insight to the situation are so blatantly obvious it takes you out of the movie. Still, those who go into ‘13 Hours’ knowing what they want and what they're getting will undoubtedly describe this as nothing short of awesome and the type of pro-American film liberal Hollywood doesn't make enough of. Instead of being pro anything though, I like to imagine most filmmakers simply try to lend each story they tell a sense of well-rounded perspective, but with Bay there is no inhibition about the actions of these men and to even question as much is a fallacy. And so, ‘13 Hours’ is the culmination of everything Bay has ever wanted to put to screen and while it's certainly an entertaining action flick it still doesn't connect in the affecting way his over-powered soundtrack suggests he wants it to. Based on the events of September 11, 2012 in Benghazi, Libya, ‘13 Hours’ tells the story of when ambassador J. Christopher Stevens (Matt Letscher) traveled to this hostile territory only to be subjected to a coordinated attack by Islamic militants on his compound and the nearby American embassy. At two and a half hours the film details the events leading up to the attack, the attack itself and the aftermath. After a whirlwind of informative text explaining Libya's civil war where the same militias that attacked the American embassy and CIA compound were formed as a result of the opposition of leader Muammar Gaddafi we are thrown into the exposition of meeting our lead protagonists. Jack Silva (John Krasinski) is a private contractor hired by good friend and head of security Tyrone "Rone" Woods (James Badge Dale) to protect the inhabitants of a secret base in Benghazi where the CIA is working to gather intel. The chief CIA agent on site, Bob (David Costabile), doesn't particularly feel the hired guns are necessary and so he is more or less forced to put up with Rone and the rest of his gang that includes Tonto (Pablo Schreiber), Boon (David Denman), Tig (Dominic Fumusa) and Oz (Max Martini). It is when the lack of any proper security at the embassy is exposed and these premeditated attacks begin that our heroes who are residing at the CIA compound less than a mile away, but who technically have no responsibility to the ambassador or his own security team, are forced to jump into action. While this small group of operators and soldiers along with a small contingent of Libyan forces have no hesitation in reinforcing the CIA compound and embassy it is their chief who withholds permission to take action. It is here the film hints at the political accusations towards State Department officials who, in the aftermath of the attacks, were criticized for denying requests for additional security prior to the attack. In her role as Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton subsequently took responsibility for the security lapses. While there is no mention of Clinton in the film the frustrations and lack of faith in these highly trained soldiers is apparent in the sentiment. That these soldiers were willing and considered it their responsibility to defend the compound and the American lives inside it is the story Bay is telling and in this sense he is provided with enough gunfire and patriotism to fuel his fire. As our moral compass in the story Krasinski's Silva is who we cling to most. Given it is a Bay film there is some trouble in finding something below the surface with any of these men, but given the fact I'm a fan of Krasinski and given his usual charm paired with Bay's trademark virility is on full display here it combines to be the most stirring of the performances. From the early close-ups of Silva readying himself to remove his wedding ring (the hired hands are all be married with children and remove their rings so as not to give their enemies an edge) to the ham-handed flashbacks in which we see Silva building a tree house with his two daughters while his wife tells him their girls, "don't need a tree house, they just need more time with their father," it's easy to see the manipulation Bay is employing to suck us into the story. The problem is Bay doesn't need to actively try to make us sympathize with these people. Even if the general public doesn't know what it takes to be one of these guys, to be a soldier, most still understand the sacrifices being made and the level of courage it takes to look potential death in the face and still roll the dice. There is an inherent sense of who these guys are based solely on the line of work they're willing to be a part of, but again - Bay is not known for his subtlety. What is even more troubling than Bay's approach to his character development though, is his approach to the action and violence that is portrayed in the film. Fair warning: the violence is gruesome as all get out with some gnarly visuals put on full display so that audiences might get immersed in the unthinkable lengths some humans will go to in order to do away with other humans. And while the acts of violence in this film are meant to display a lack of humanity on the side of the militias Bay purports to give us these moments so that we might be in shock and awe over just how gnarly things get. There is no sense of loss, no emotional resonance to these moments where actual human lives are being decimated in the blink of an eye, but rather the feeling is that these deaths are almost vulgar in their representation. It's as if Bay is getting off on showing the reality of a hand hanging by only a few tendons. It is only through the slim attachment to Krasinski's Silva that we sense any type of compassion, but it's nowhere near enough. I began this review by touching on Bay's tendency to over-indulge and while this tendency is clear in a number of examples throughout ‘13 Hours’ the most glaring one is in that nearly two-and-a-half hour runtime. The story certainly creates a complicated world of politics, of good guys and bad guys, and logistics that need explaining that will come to mean more as the events progress, but we aren't even thrust into the main conflict of the film until almost an hour in. There is no doubt the screenplay could have been tighter and the number of action scenes cut in half. By the time we reach the last 45 minutes of the film the whole affair has become such pure chaos that it is impossible to tell who is fighting who and who is good and who is bad. Every good guy has a bushy beard and ash-stained face to the point it is impossible to tell them apart much less make out the difference between them and the people they are fighting against. While Bay has always been a maestro of action sequences his over-indulgence here comes to disarm him as the shoot-outs get repetitive. There isn't enough to differentiate between what our protagonists are doing from one fight to the next to make us understand what has changed in between despite the enemy clearly trying out new tactics. While the film can be beautiful to look at there is no sense of cohesion between the rapid gunfire and the countless explosions that light up the sky, but spark nothing in us emotionally. That said, Bay isn't completely out of tricks as a car chase sequence at the center of the film is peak Bay. It is a sequence so over the top and so unabashedly extreme that there is no way the actual events could have unfolded as we see them here and yet it is as tense as anything in the film while simultaneously being the most exhilarating sequence. It relies on no performances from any of the actors and could essentially be a short film in its own right, but while a highlight among the movie surrounding it this only manages to show the weaknesses of the final product as a whole. Bay is still keen to intercut breathtaking imagery between battles and shoot almost every scene at magic hour, but none of this, none of the over-long battles, and none of the manufactured emotion are enough to make this anything more than a rousing, one-off action movie where the only thing I'll remember is that our heroes like “Tropic Thunder” and so I kind of liked their movie. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but hey, it could have been a lot worse.  by Philip Price
The first “Ride Along” movie came out a little over two years ago. I saw that movie in theaters opening weekend, but admittedly haven't returned to the film and never felt any desire to do so (there are much better Kevin Hart comedies out there if you need to fill your Hart quota). Going into this unnecessary, but inevitable sequel (the first earned $134 million domestically on a $25m budget) I attempted to conjure up some type of memory of that first film, but other than the basic premise I had nothing. I couldn't even recall enough to know where they might go with things in this sequel. As it turns out, and if I remember correctly, not much has changed. Hart is basically still at security guard status in terms of how Ice Cube thinks of him and the whole point of the endeavor this time around is so that Hart's rather ignorant and annoying character might prove himself good enough to be a detective rather than simply a police officer. The effort put into story here is almost insulting as writers Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi (two of the four original screenwriters) essentially throw a bunch of clichés at us while having Hart's character try and comment on how clichéd they are by correlating them to the ‘Grand Theft Auto’-like video game that he's obsessed with. If you're wondering, yes, playing video games along with the online persona he's created in "Black Hammer" are the biggest character developments of Hart's character that we get. As for Cube, he sticks with the same, stern attitude that hates to put up with his partner's incessant talking, but is somehow OK with this guy marrying his sister and being a part of his life for the foreseeable future. It is this daunting thought that gives way to the epiphany of allowing Hart's Ben Barber to accompany his James Peyton to Miami for what is supposed to be a quick trip to obtain and question a witness. Of course, things don't go as planned and bigger crimes are connected to even bigger crime bosses and you know what beats this thing is going to hit and where it's going from the beginning. With his wedding upcoming, Ben is getting all the more anxious to take the next step in his profession while at the same time getting frustrated with his wedding planner (Sherri Shepherd). After an opening sequence that details how Ben shoots James' new partner, Mayfield (Tyrese Gibson being underutilized as hell), and that a connection in the case he and Mayfield were investigating leads to a hacker in Miami the opportunity is ripe for Ben to both redeem himself and show his worth. James reluctantly decides to take Ben with him to Miami where they track down A.J. (Ken Jeong). A.J. is the hacker who, for one reason or another, decided to take some money from his boss, Antonio Pope (Benjamin Bratt). The twist is that Pope is an honest businessman and philanthropist to the people of Miami, so when A.J. exposes the wealthy Pope to be who he truly is, James, Ben and their new found Miami friend, homicide detective Maya (Olivia Munn), team up to take this kingpin down. And that's all there is to it. The wedding sets the goal for which our characters need to return in time and Munn's Maya is more a love interest for Cube than an independent woman just trying to make a living (did we really need to know she practiced yoga?). Bratt, who hasn't been on the big screen for nearly three years, makes a formidable baddie if not a particularly memorable one, but this movie isn't meant to be memorable, is it? No, “Ride Along 2” is meant to be a broad comedy with standard jokes that are guaranteed to offend no one while marching out an appealing cast to play familiar archetypes that are sure to allow general audiences to settle right in and mindlessly enjoy this brief, hour and a half comedy without recognizing just how lazy and rote the film actually is. While I remember laughing enough at the first one, this sequel can't even inspire slight chuckles consistently which unfortunately ends up leaving the film to lean on the action which is a joke in itself. Director Tim Story (who has now headed up four franchises with this, “Think Like A Man,” “Barbershop” and “The Fantastic Four”) is clearly only here for the paycheck as he avoids shooting an entire chase scene by showing it to us through Ben's video game influenced point of view. Worse than this lack of any kind of stylistic choice in his bland direction though is the laziness within the storytelling. Does anyone involved here even care what story they are telling? Are they even trying to tell one? Any audience member with any kind of awareness of how sequels work will understand this is a product rather than a piece of art and it is a product manufactured on the appeal of Kevin Hart and Ice Cube's popularity and the even greater returns that will presumably be received when they are on screen together. In essence, “Ride Along 2” is little more than an excuse to make a little more money while allowing Hart to do his thing and elicit a few laughs (all while promoting his next stand-up special, mind you) while continuing to carve out his niche within the industry where he can put out something akin to the “Ride Along” movies every January and make handsome returns. As it did with Adam Sandler though, this shtick will get old and people will stop coming if it's clear you're only putting in enough effort to get paid with their money. I admittedly came to this conclusion early on as I sat back and experienced “Ride Along 2.” It became apparent that this was more a collection of scenes where all involved were simply throwing things at a wall to see what would stick rather than anything resembling an actual movie and throughout its hour and 40-minute runtime it never proved me wrong. I would have appreciated this movie more had it tried anything at all and failed, but that it fails because it tries to do nothing new, or fresh, or even remotely funny makes it all the more frustrating. Sure, there are a few throwaway lines that Cube tosses out with such confidence and grimace that I laughed, but this was mainly because I was reminded of his character in the ‘Jump Street’ movies more than anything. And sure, Hart has a few tangents that contain a few moments of inspired hilarity here and there, but when Ken Jeong is the best part of your movie you know you've failed on multiple levels. I haven't thought Jeong was funny since the first ‘Hangover’ film, but “Ride Along 2” utilizes him just enough that he doesn't become grating, but rather becomes the only reliable comic relief in this rather dull procedural. Some of the jokes are so over the top dumb it's a wonder they didn't stop halfway through shooting them and wonder what the point of it all was or at the very least was it even funny? I'm referring to bits like the one you see with the ceiling fan in the trailer, or the one where Hart wrestles a CGI alligator, or the one the movie ends on where Hart is being drug behind a speed boat while screaming non-stop in hopes that someone is laughing at him. It all feels desperate. It's not funny, it's just kind of sad. The movie does little to advance the characters giving them just enough forward motion so that they might easily revert back to the beginning stages where a third film could pick right back up and essentially start from the same point. Sure, Ben and Angela (Tika Sumpter) are now officially married making James and Ben officially family and sure James has a little more faith in him by the time he and Ben have caught Pope, but in the final shot where James decides to point and laugh at his brother-in-law rather than haphazardly trying to rescue him he shows that he still has no respect for the guy. Cue “Ride Along 3” ...  by Philip Price
I've never seen an episode of “Game of Thrones.” I'm not even sure I could tell you why so many people love it or what the basic premise is. The reason I tell you I'm not familiar with this pop culture phenomenon is because it's inevitable the star of “The Forest” will garner much good will for her leading lady debut due simply to the fact she's a seemingly well-respected character on that hit TV show. Because I only recognize Natalie Dormer from “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay” films I have no frame of reference with which to know what I should or shouldn't have been expecting from this January horror release. Of course, that is the other major factor in how one will perceive “The Forest” before seeing it: it's a January horror release. Generally, studios tend to dump their scrap pile on audiences in the month following the barrage of Oscar hopefuls that they (the studios) hope will continue to earn money throughout awards season while simultaneously clearing their shelves of any long-gestating projects that simply need somewhere to die. In this sense, January is more or less a graveyard of long lost B-movies that will make a few bucks and then disappear after a single weekend never to be heard from again. Once again, in this sense, it seems pointless to even write a review for something like “The Forest” which will so clearly be dismissed and then buried beneath the rest of January's dull releases to the point by the time this thing comes out on DVD and Blu-ray three and a half months from now most people won't even remember it came out in 2016. Still, I was hopeful that the seemingly buzzy Dormer would make good on her promise of being a performer of integrity and buck the trend of January horror films to deliver something both psychologically disturbing and legitimately scary at the same time. Instead, “The Forest” is one of those horror movies that feels as if it was pieced together by a creative team that's only watched a few bad horror flicks and still decided they knew well enough what they were doing to take their own crack at it. Relying solely on cheap jump scares and a supposed twist ending that were clearly meant to have audiences reeling, “The Forest” will instead only leave most dumbfounded that we're expected to be impressed. To its (and Dormer's) credit, the premise is at least engaging. Based around the Aokigahara Forest, a real-life place in Japan where people go to commit suicide, the idea is that there is an added layer of mysticism to this place. In essence, what writers Nick Antosca, Sarah Cornwell and Ben Ketai (yes, it took three writers to slap this thing together) have done is to make the titular forest one where the freaks come out at night and prey on those in weak emotional states which, given most people are there to off themselves, is pretty much everyone. What the story doesn't do is commit to this idea. While it might have been interesting to see our protagonist, Sara (Dormer), slowly descend into some kind of madness where neither she nor the audience knew what was real and what wasn't (and it leads you to believe that's where things are headed), the film instead decides to make Sara's quest to find her missing twin sister, Jess (also Dormer), one that is incoherent, clumsily crafted, and ultimately doesn't answer any of the potentially interesting questions it poses in its second act. We are never given any reason as to why Jess, a teacher serving a period of time in Japan teaching natives how to speak English, decides to wander into a suicide forest or why she might be missing for an extended period of time. Whereas the film decides to set up a few possible motivations for conflicts that Sara will encounter upon entering Aokigahara none of these pan out in any kind of satisfying or revelatory fashion. Instead, the film bops along as if unaware of its countless missteps. Essentially, “The Forest” is a movie about a young woman who comes to search for her twin sister who has mysteriously disappeared and while that is all well and good what the movie ends up being is a piece of wannabe horror that will have any reasonable adult yelling at the screen due to the stupidity of not only the characters, but the screenplay. Beginning well enough director Jason Zada (who has zero noteworthy credits as far as I can deduce) and his editor cross edit scenes of their inciting incident and the necessary exposition to set up the story. Both efficient and mostly effective I was immediately willing to jump on the opposite side of the bandwagon and began convincing myself I might actually be able to enjoy this movie-maybe even serve as the voice of reason when it came to these January releases that most seem to instinctively pounce upon. Given our blonde, conservatively dressed Sara arrives in Japan to search for her rebel-rousing sister within five minutes though, things quickly stall. It becomes clear quite quickly that once the exposition dialogue is covered and the three screenwriters realized they were going to have to craft actual conversations from this point on things took a turn for the ugly. The dialogue is pretty painful-and that's being kind. There are plenty of cringe-inducing lines that don't bear repeating, but the performers can only do so much and even here-things aren't great. As Sara, our lead protagonist, Dormer is fine enough. As Jess, the sister the story revolves around, but who we barely come to know, she is actively bad. Given we're with Sara most of the time though, Dormer's convincing enough, but she has paper thin character traits to work with and the only substantial relationship we see her develop is one that's intentionally ambiguous to the point the actress is basically playing against nothing. That isn't to say Aiden (Taylor Kinney), a mysterious journalist who initially seems to want to court Sara before making his actual intentions strangely conspicuous, is bad he's just blah-there's nothing there. Kinney is a capable actor who has a great screen presence, but much like Dormer he has little more to do than stand around and look pretty while staring into the lush green forest. Once Sara arrives in Japan there's no forward motion. The story simply grinds to a halt for a long period of time with Zada and his screenwriters seemingly only concerned with finding different sets of circumstances they might place Sara in so as to deliver a quick jump scare. Unfortunately, and despite my early optimism, “The Forest” will not be the January horror film to buck the trend of terrible January horror films. “The Forest” is one of those scary movies where unassuming souls venture into an environment that is so obviously destined to bring them misfortune that it's hard to even feel sympathy for the characters. The writers attempt to give our heroes a valid reason as to why they would go against such odds, but never flesh out those reasons enough to convince us those same heroes aren't simply ignorant. If you're looking for good horror where people venture into places they know they shouldn't go, but do anyway than look no further than “The Descent” or even “The Ruins” as your appetite for scares, thrills and gore will all be appeased by either whereas “The Forest” will leave you pulling your hair out over its futility rather than its frightfulness. While I hate to completely dump on a movie there is hardly anything redeeming to say about this piece of schlock. Some of the visuals are pleasing due to the nature of the environment and after Sara and Aiden spend their first night in the forest there are some genuinely interesting questions put in place, but due to the fact the actions of our protagonist remain consistently mindless and the execution of how the script goes about answering these questions there is no substance to the revelations and no weight to the intended emotion. The movie gets in no more than one legitimate scare that has to deal with a creeper at a campsite that is made frightening by keeping the audience strictly in line with the point of view of the person inside the tent, but this only lasts a brief moment before it is upended by some unintentionally hilarious line of dialogue or super awkward cut (and there are a lot of those here). It's almost as if the writers didn't know how to tell the story they wanted to tell and so instead of trying to work that story out they instead abandoned any thought of character development, depth, and even authentic dialogue in exchange for pitiful scares and even more pitiable characters. In short, you should skip this one even when it's on TNT in two years.  by Julian Spivey
Today’s Academy Awards nominations brought forth controversy for the second consecutive year when all 20 of the nominees in the four acting categories (Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress) were all white. It led to a Twitter trending topic #OscarsSoWhite that seemingly will become a tradition on the popular social media site for years to come. Last year I understood the backlash better as I felt David Oyelowo certainly should have been nominated for Best Actor for inhabiting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the film “Selma.” I would have also been in favor of giving both African-American and female director (another frequent complaint is the lack of female directors) Ava DuVernay a nomination for Best Director. But, that was last year and this year I believe the #OscarsSoWhite controversy to be much ado about nothing. People shouldn’t really be surprised that all 20 nominees in the four acting categories are white, because for months now the majority of prognosticators (experts who are very good at their jobs) have been leading up to this. The non-white actors with the best chances to be nominated were Will Smith for “Concussion,” who’s film only ended up receiving middling reviews, and Idris Elba for “Beasts of No Nation,” who’s film was released primarily on Netflix, which might have had some in the industry who vote shrugging their shoulders (plus, supporting actor always seems like the hardest category to crack). Some were irritated that Michael B. Jordan didn’t get a nom for “Creed,” but not once did I ever see his name even among the possibilities, and others were irritated that Benicio del Toro wasn’t nominated for “Sicario,” again I rarely if ever saw him prognosticated as a nominee. My question to those complaining about the Oscars not nominating a minority actor or actress in one of the acting categories is: Which actor do you remove from this field of stars and highly-acclaimed performances to insert either a Smith, Elba, Jordan or del Toro? The Academy Awards have certainly been dominated in the past by Caucasian actors, but that’s because the percentages of white actors greatly outnumber those of minority actors, and that’s likely indicative of an issue of diversity in the film industry that I would never try to deny. It would be fantastic to see more actors of color in the industry, as would it be fantastic to see minority actors getting roles that don’t have any reason to specify race. I don’t feel that the Academy – who’s President Cheryl Boone Isaacs is both African-American and a woman, something that seems necessary to bring up giving the controversy – has an agenda against certain races, sexes or sexual orientations. The movie industry as a whole might, but I feel the Academy does the best job it can at choosing the rightful nominees for its awards. I think it does a good job because if you look at the nominees they pretty much mimic both the prognosticators’ guesses and the critics’ reviews from the year in film. I hate to say it, but when topics like #OscarsSoWhite come up it sometimes feels like people want a token nomination. It feels like people want at least one minority nominee in each category every year. But, award nominations and the winners should always be earned. Jamie Foxx earned his Oscar for “Ray,” Denzel Washington earned his two Oscars for “Glory” and “Training Day,” and in 2014 when Lupita Nyong’o won Best Supporting Actress for “12 Years a Slave” and Chiwetel Ejiofor (“12 Years a Slave) and Barkhad Abdi (“Captain Phillips”) were nominated for Oscars they were all earned. It’s not easy to get nominated for Academy Awards. There are only 20 slots – 10 for men and 10 for women. There are on an annual basis probably 15-20 worthy candidates for each of the four categories. And, every year we’re all going to feel irritated when one of our favorite actors or performances is, in our opinion, snubbed. Based on expert opinions and prognostications this year it doesn’t feel like any of the actors or actresses who didn’t receive nominations were harshly snubbed, certainly not to the extent that I felt Oyelowo was last year. So, while all 20 nominated Oscar performances are from white actors and actresses there really doesn’t seem a good reason to be all up in arms about it. Let’s simply honor the 20 best performances (roughly) of the year without worrying about things like race, because there are other serious and important racial issues in this country that should hold precedent anyway.  by Philip Price
Here we are once again with the 2016 Oscar nominations and while I attempt to limit any coverage of the awards season hoopla (simply because there are so many to cover and too little to care about) the Academy Awards are obviously the biggest show of the season and so it was with great anticipation I awaited this morning’s announcements. My initial reactions are that of being generally pleased. I’m happy to see “The Big Short” get a lot of love (mainly Adam McKay’s Best Director nod) while also somewhat taken aback by the lack of love for “Steve Jobs” (especially in the lack of an adapted screenplay nom for Aaron Sorkin). There are no glaring admissions this year as there was with “Selma” in 2015, but many have already started complaining that once again the actor’s race is completely whitewashed. Out of 20 nominations not a single person up for an award is not Caucasian. The admission of the likes of Idris Elba for “Beasts of No Nation,” Will Smith for “Concussion” and both Michael B. Jordan and Ryan Coogler for their work on “Creed” are being called out, but as awards analyst Sasha Stone reminds us, “Chris Rock is the host so I'm pretty sure he'll get them where they live.” “The Revenant” starring Leonardo DiCaprio (who will undoubtedly win Best Actor this year) and directed by last year’s Best Director/Best Picture winner Alejandro González Iñárritu leads the pack with 12 nominations, followed closely by “Mad Max: Fury Road” with 10 then “The Martian” with seven (with director Ridley Scott strangely omitted from the Best Director list) and “Spotlight” with six. Notable snubs include the aforementioned absence of Ridley Scott in the directing category who, prior to this seemed like a shoo-in. Instead of Scott, “Room” director Lenny Abrahamson made the cut as did McKay who I had being left out in my predictions in favor of Todd Haynes for “Carol.” Speaking of “Carol,” the Cate Blanchett starrer garnered a solid six nominations, but was shut out of both the Best Picture and Best Director categories. Blanchett and her co-star Rooney Mara were honored with acting nominations while Phyllis Nagy also received a nod for her adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel. The surprising nod for the film came in the Original Score category as I expected both “Inside Out” and “Spotlight” to garner noms. The other two nominations for “Carol” came in the form of Cinematography and Costume Design (Sandy Powell was nominated in this category for both “Carol” and “Cinderella,” both of which starred Blanchett). While I’m not as big on “Mad Max: Fury Road” as everyone else it is refreshing to see an unabashed action blockbuster make the Best Picture list and almost more gratifying to see its director, 70-year old George Miller, get nominated for his work as well. While I don’t think anyone expects the film to pick up any wins outside of the technical categories it was nominated in I would have loved to have seen Charlize Theron get an acting nomination over, say, Jennifer Lawrence. That said, I don’t think Lawrence’s nomination for “Joy” is undeserved despite it receiving mixed reviews and it being the only nomination for the film. Not that it matters as, unless the climate really shifts in the next month, Brie Larson has the Best Actress category as locked down as DiCaprio does Best Actor. It is in the supporting categories that things get interesting. With the only nomination for “Creed” coming in the form of Sylvester Stallone for Best Supporting Actor it is his to lose as far as I’m concerned. While it is nice to see Tom Hardy recognized in some fashion with this supporting actor nod being his first and him starring in the two films that lead the nominations this year I’m slightly bummed that both Michael Keaton and Steve Carell were left out (though they could have given either of them the honor in Best Actor over Bryan Cranston for “Trumbo”). None of this matters though as Stallone’s biggest competition is Mark Rylance of “Bridge of Spies,” who is arguably the better actor, but Stallone is the bigger name with a fan base that will be rooting for him. I must admit, I am. It is the Supporting Actress category that isn’t nearly as clear cut as the rest of the major fields. I was happy to have called Rachel McAdams getting a nod for her work in “Spotlight” as it is my personal pick for the best film of the year, but I don’t think she stands a chance in hell of winning. If I were to pick a winner today I would go with either Rooney Mara or Jennifer Jason Leigh for “The Hateful Eight.” Alicia Vikander has had a wonderful year with both “The Danish Girl” and “Ex Machina” (woot woot on the Best Original Screenplay for Alex Garland) as well as the underrated “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” and she could end up being the dark horse of this category, but Kate Winslet is also an Academy favorite and she’s already won the Golden Globe. Still, it is Mara who holds the emotional core of “Carol” together and it is Leigh’s performance in Tarantino’s latest that is being talked about most. Ultimately, I’d put my money on Leigh if I had to call it right now. Speaking of Quentin Tarantino the guy was shut out of the Best Original Screenplay category in favor of Garland’s nod which I’m really OK with given I liked “Ex Machina” more than “Hateful Eight,” but it is in this category that “Straight Outta Compton” also received its only nomination and for four white screenwriters nonetheless. Despite knowing none of the actors nor director F. Gary Gray would get a nod for ‘Compton’ I was really rooting for it in the expanded Best Picture field, but alas no such luck. I was happy to see films like “Ex Machina,” “Sicario” and even ‘Star Wars’ get a few mentions in the technical categories, but in talking about the Best Picture field I’m also really happy that some of my favorite films of the year such as “Brooklyn” and “The Big Short” were given recognition not only in this major category, but in many of the other highbrow categories including adapted screenplay and both Saoirse Ronan and Christian Bale in the acting categories. While I enjoyed both “The Martian” and “Bridge of Spies” well enough (both fine films from seasoned professionals) I don’t know that they warranted the attention they were given here. Documentary Feature and Animated Feature more or less played out without surprise with the notable exclusions of both “The Peanuts Movie” and “The Good Dinosaur” in the Animated field, but it is the Best Picture category that might end up being the most interesting of the year and certainly dictating the directing winner. Given the sum total of the votes it seems the Academy is keen to both “The Big Short” and “Spotlight” with those being my picks as of right now for the two front-runners with either of their respective directors potentially winning as well. But then again, “The Revenant” could sweep the whole thing and give Iñárritu his second consecutive Best Picture/Best Director wins. One thing is for certain about Revenant though, and that is that it will garner cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki his third consecutive win in the category. Check out the full list of nominees below and catch the broadcast on February 28th at 6 p.m. on ABC hosted by Chris Rock. Nominations for the 88th Academy Awards Best Picture The Revenant Spotlight Mad Max: Fury Road The Martian Room Brooklyn The Big Short Bridge of Spies Best Director Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant) Tom McCarthy (Spotlight) George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road) Adam McKay (The Big Short) Lenny Abrahamson (Room) Best Actor Bryan Cranston (Trumbo) Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant) Matt Damon (The Martian) Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs) Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl) Best Supporting Actor Sylvester Stallone (Creed) Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies) Christian Bale (The Big Short) Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight) Tom Hardy (The Revenant) Best Actress Brie Larson (Room) Cate Blanchett (Carol) Charlotte Rampling (45 Years) Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) Jennifer Lawrence (Joy) Best Supporting Actress Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight) Rooney Mara (Carol) Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl) Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs) Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) Best Animated Feature Inside Out Anomalisa Boy and the World Shaun the Sheep Movie When Marnie was There Cinematography Emmanuel Lubezki (The Revenant) John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road) Dariusz Wolski (The Martian) Robert Richardson (The Hateful Eight) Roger Deakins (Sicario) Best Adapted Screenplay Drew Goddard (The Martian) Phyllis Nagy (Carol) Emma Donoghue (Room) Nick Hornby (Brooklyn) Adam McKay & Charles Randolph (The Big Short) Best Original Screenplay Tom McCarthy & Josh Singer (Spotlight) Alex Garland (Ex Machina) Meg LeFauve, Pete Docter, & Josh Cooley (Inside Out) Matt Charman, Joel & Ethan Coen (Bridge of Spies) Jonathan Herman & Andrea Berloff (Straight Outta Compton) Best Documentary Feature Amy The Look of Silence What Happened, Miss Simone? Cartel Land Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom Film Editing Tom McArdle (Spotlight) Margaret Sixel (Mad Max: Fury Road) Hank Corwin (The Big Short) Stephen Mirrione (The Revenant) Mary Jo Markey & Maryann Brandon (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) Best Foreign Language Film Son of Saul Mustang A War Theeb Embrace the Serpent Best Original Score Ennio Morricone (The Hateful Eight) John Williams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) Carter Burwell (Carol) Thomas Newman (Bridge of Spies) Johann Johannsson (Sicario) Best Original Song "Writings on the Wall" from SPECTRE "Manta Ray" from Racing Extinction "Earned It" from Fifty Shades of Grey "Simple Song 3" from Youth "Til It Happens to You" from The Hunting Ground Sound Mixing The Revenant Mad Max: Fury Road Star Wars: The Force Awakens The Martian Bridge of Spies Sound Editing Sicario The Martian Mad Max: Fury Road The Revenant Star Wars: The Force Awakens Production Design Mad Max: Fury Road The Revenant Bridge of Spies The Danish Girl The Martian Visual Effects Mad Max: Fury Road Star Wars: The Force Awakens The Martian The Revenant Ex Machina Costumes Sandy Powell (Carol) Sandy Powell (Cinderella) Jenny Beavan (Mad Max: Fury Road) Paco Delgado (The Danish Girl) Jacque (The Revenant) Makeup and Hairstyling Mad Max: Fury Road The Revenant The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out a Window and Disappeared Best Documentary Short Subject Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah Body Team 12 Last Day of Freedom Chau, Beyond the Lines A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness Best Short Film (Animated) Sanjays Super Team Bear Story Prologue We Can't Live Without Cosmos World of Tomorrow Best Short Film (Live Action) Shok Stutterer Everything Will Be Okay Day One Ave Maria  by Philip Price
With the Golden Globes now out of the way and the winners more or less settled as to who might be primed for Oscar glory from such wins it is a perfect time to predict who the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences will honor with nominations this Thursday. Yes, nominations for the 88th annual Academy Awards will be announced this Thursday, January 14th at 7:30 a.m. at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater and we are here today to simply predict who might fall into the major categories. While I certainly plan to post my predictions for who I think might win in these respective categories prior to the awards ceremony on February 28th, that is not the competition we will be debating today. Today, it is more about which nine or 10 movies will make the cut in the best picture category, will Michael Keaton get a best actor nom or will he possibly compete against Mark Ruffalo in the supporting actor category for “Spotlight” and so on and so forth. There is a lot of strong competition going on this year the Golden Globe winners highlighted the potential of both “The Revenant” and “The Martian” while previous front-runners, “Spotlight” and “The Big Short” were shut out. That doesn't mean too much when compared to where the Oscars will take things (though I think Brie Larson's win for “Room” and Sylvester Stallone's win for “Creed” both bode well for their Oscar chances), but the more interesting races will be that of if the Picture/Director categories will be a split or if Alejandro González Iñárritu actually stands a chance of repeating his best picture/best director win from last year. It is easier to predict the acting categories based on Globe wins - I could easily see all four of the drama winners repeating at the Oscars next month, but where things get interesting are in the more technical categories as well as the biggest award of the night, best picture. Enough about the dynamics of the possibilities though, let us get on with the predictions... While there are of course a number of other categories that I don't touch on here such as costume design, make-up and hairstyling, production design, original song, sound editing and mixing, visual effects as well as documentary feature and the short films categories these are my predictions for what are considered more of the major awards. With that said, these aforementioned categories are where the likes of “Mad Max: Fury Road” will likely flourish sans original song which will undoubtedly go to Sam Smith for his “SPECTRE” tune despite the fact I'm still rooting for "See You Again," because dammit if “Furious 7” doesn't deserve SOMETHING. Best Picture Spotlight The Revenant Carol Room Brooklyn The Big Short Mad Max: Fury Road The Martian 45 Years Best Director Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant) Tom McCarthy (Spotlight) George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road) Ridley Scott (The Martian) Todd Haynes (Carol) Best Actor Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant) Matt Damon (The Martian) Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs) Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl) Steve Carell (The Big Short) Best Supporting Actor Sylvester Stallone (Creed) Mark Ruffalo (Spotlight) Michael Keaton (Spotlight) Mark Rylance (Bridge of Spies) Paul Dano (Love & Mercy) Best Actress Brie Larson (Room) Cate Blanchett (Carol) Charlotte Rampling (45 Years) Saoirse Ronan (Brooklyn) Jennifer Lawrence (Joy) Best Supporting Actress Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight) Rooney Mara (Carol) Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl) Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs) Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) Best Animated Feature Inside Out Anomalisa The Peanuts Movie Shaun the Sheep Movie When Marnie Was There Cinematography Emmanuel Lubezki (The Revenant) John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road) Dariusz Wolski (The Martian) Edward Lachman (Carol) Roger Deakins (Sicario) Best Adapted Screenplay Aaron Sorkin (Steve Jobs) Phyllis Nagy (Carol) Emma Donoghue (Room) Nick Hornby (Brooklyn) Adam McKay & Charles Randolph (The Big Short) Best Original Screenplay Tom McCarthy & Josh Singer (Spotlight) Quentin Tarantino (The Hateful Eight) Meg LeFauve (Inside Out) Matt Charman, Joel & Ethan Coen (Bridge of Spies) Jonathan Herman, Andrea Berloff (Straight Outta Compton) Film Editing Tom McArdle (Spotlight) Margaret Sixel (Mad Max: Fury Road) Hank Corwin (The Big Short) Stephen Mirrione (The Revenant) Pietro Scalia (The Martian) Best Original Score Ennio Morricone (The Hateful Eight) John Williams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) Michael Giacchino (Inside Out) Howard Shore (Spotlight) Junkie XL (Mad Max: Fury Road)  by Philip Price
As always, there is a lot to look forward to this year at the cinema. In attempting to look through all of the major releases for the upcoming year that are already on the calendar I've come across more than enough movies to keep a variety of audiences entertained, but what follows is not just a list of films I'm most excited to see (though that is surely the bulk of it), but also commentary on just how difficult it's become to both look forward to and be excited about the onslaught of super hero films I know we will inevitably receive. I'm a fan of comic book movies and am looking forward to seeing all seven of the major ones that will be released over the course of 2016, but to allow them to take over seven individual spots on my list seems ridiculous and something of a waste. Everyone who's been to the movies in the last two months (and if you've seen the ‘Star Wars’ numbers coming in you'll know that's a lot of people) know there is a new “Batman V. Superman” movie coming out and another Marvel movie where Captain America and Iron Man face-off. They may even know that Ryan Reynolds is playing some kind of version of Ryan Reynolds in a red suit, but while I'm as hopeful as the biggest fanboy that “Deadpool” turns out to be as great as the wonderful marketing campaign has led us to believe-it's an obvious choice, an obvious movie to anticipate. Does that mean every film on my list is a smaller film that you probably haven't heard about yet? No, not at all. There are, of course, films like “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” “Star Trek Beyond” and “Star Wars: Rogue One” sprinkled throughout because, guess what? I like ‘Harry Potter,’ director Justin Lin and ‘Star Wars’ so I'm genuinely excited to see how those movies turn out. By stating the obvious at the beginning though, by saying that, "Look, there are going to be this many super hero movies this year and yes I'm pumped for all of them, but here are a bunch of other movies that might interest you that I'm excited about," this list might provide insight to a film you didn't know was coming down the pipeline prior. And so, we'll begin by talking about the ones that you've all likely heard about already: the mega-blockbusters, the ones where you'll wait in line to see them at midnight (or 7 p.m.), so that you're among the first to see the movie everyone will be talking about. We will approach these super hero films chronologically. I repeat: this is not the order in which I am excited about them, but more the order in which they will come out. Of course, at this point, that may as well mean the same thing due to the fact that as we get closer to each release date for a super hero film I will undoubtedly get more excited about that specific one and convince myself it is, in fact, the one I'm most excited for (but really “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” easily takes top billing this year). Anywho-let's get on with it... The Super Hero Dilemma “Deadpool” (2/12) – “Deadpool” tells the story of a former Special Forces operative turned mercenary who is subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers and no choice but to adopt his titular alter ego. “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” (3/25) - In what is supposed to be the "sequel" to “Man of Steel,” but is really the set-up for the eventual ‘Justice League’ movie, this Zack Snyder helmed follow-up follows Batman (Ben Affleck) as he fears the actions of Superman (Henry Cavill) will be left unchecked, thus forcing him to confront the supernatural being. While the world wrestles with what kind of a hero the world really needs Batman and Superman fight each other. That is, of course, until the second trailer for the film ruined everything and let us know a new threat in the form of Doomsday (apparently created by Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor) will take both caped heroes to task. It becomes the responsibility of both Superman and Batman to set aside their differences along with Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) to stop Lex Luthor and Doomsday from destroying Metropolis. “Captain America: Civil War” (5/6) - In what is essentially ‘Avengers 2.5,’ Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. return as political interference in the Avengers' activities causes a rift between former allies Captain America and Iron Man. “X-Men: Apocalypse” (5/27) - Returning for his fourth ‘X-Men’ film, director Bryan Singer follows up 2014's ‘Days of Future Past’ by taking the ‘First Class’ cast in to the ‘80s and introducing the world's first mutant, Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac). With his emergence, the ‘X-Men’ (including Jennifer Lawrence, Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Sophie Turner, Evan Peters, Nicholas Hoult, Tye Sheridan, Kodi Smit-McPhee and Lucas Till) must unite to defeat his extinction level plan. “Suicide Squad” (8/5) - With the one-two punch of “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” and director David Ayer's “Suicide Squad” the DC comics universe is more than ready to stake their claim in today's cinematic landscape. Starring the likes of Jared Leto as the The Joker, Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Killer Croc, Will Smith as Deadshot, Jai Courney as Captain Boomerang, Cara Delevingne as Enchantress, Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flagg and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller the film follows a secret government agency that recruits imprisoned supervillains to execute dangerous black ops missions in exchange for clemency. “Gambit” (10/7) - It is with some concern that I even place “Gambit” on this list as, despite star Channing Tatum being more than ready to move forward with the project, things have not been smooth for this production thus far. The film was set to begin shooting this past fall, but then director Rupert Wyatt dropped out and the cast and crew were left with no leader. Since, director Doug Liman has taken over and Lea Seydoux has been enlisted to play love interest Bella Donna Boudreaux. With ‘Days of Future Past’ and “Fantastic Four” writer Simon Kinberg on board to produce here's to hoping this year’s other ‘X-Men’ spinoff is finished in time for its planned release date. “Doctor Strange” (11/4) - The other Marvel movie this year will introduce a new hero into the fold, this time dealing with some seriously strange magic or so we've been told. With director Scott Derrickson at the helm I expect this project about a brilliant but arrogant surgeon (Benedict Cumberbatch) who gets a new lease on life after his career is destroyed when a sorcerer takes him under his wing to be a serious departure from the typical Marvel mold. 25. “The Jungle Book” I am both concerned and intrigued by these live-action adaptations of the Disney classics I watched as a child. When I would watch these films as a kid I always wondered what they might look like were they made with real people rather than hand-drawn, but as I grew up I chalked those imaginings up more to something that was greater in theory than in reality. As of late though, studios have begun churning out adaptations and unique takes on the age old fairy tales the current generations know mostly from the Disneyfied versions. Whether you prefer “Mirror Mirror” over “Snow White and the Huntsman,” whether you enjoyed “Cinderella” more than “Alice in Wonderland,” or whether you thought “Malificent” was a missed opportunity there is something that still resides that makes you intrigued by the idea of these movies we viewed as epics when we were children come to life and with director Jon Favreau's take on “The Jungle Book” I'm more than intrigued. I'm looking forward to “Beauty and the Beast” in 2017 and I'm certainly interested in how Favreau's film will affect the planned “Jungle Book: Origins” that Andy Serkis is directing for a 2017 release from Warner Bros. While I imagine ‘Origins’ will hew closer to Kipling's original text, Favreau's film is from the Mouse House itself and so, like last year’s fairly wonderful “Cinderella,” I imagine this version will be a family-friendly adventure taken straight from the sketchings of the 1967 version if not slightly more grounded in reality. Here's to hoping the final product is a fine piece of reality even if it will never be able to measure up to those childhood imaginings. (4/15) 24. “Conner4Real” I've been a fan of The Lonely Island since first seeing "Lazy Sunday" over 10 years ago now and will forever be a fan not only of their digital shorts, but of their 2007 feature effort, “Hot Rod.” “Hot Rod” is one of those singular movie-going experiences where I went with a large group of friends and we all laughed our asses off consistently. “Hot Rod” is one of those movies I could watch over and over again and I have. I could quote you any line from the film if you asked me to and would happily recite both the "Cool Beans" jingle as accurately as possible while testifying to how much I like to party or that the necessary safe word while speeding down a hill is whiskers. My point is this-I'm freakin' excited for a new Lonely Island movie and apparently there is one coming out this year. Since hearing whisperings about “Conner4Real” this past summer and that it was already shooting in Los Angeles I've been anxious to learn more about the film. While there have been no stills, posters or trailers released for the film as of this writing what we do know is that Andy Samberg will play the titular Conner who tries to get the members of his old boy band back together for a reunion after his latest solo album bombs. Fellow Island members Jorma Taccone and Akiva Schaffer will both star as the former boy band members as well as helm the project. According to a report from Deadline the film is intended to be, "a potshot at fluffy music documentaries including ‘Justin Bieber: Never Say Never’ and ‘Katy Perry: Part Of Me.’" This doesn't sound too unlike last year’s “7 Days in Hell,” in which Samberg also starred and was able to mine some great comedy from. (6/3) 23. “Star Trek Beyond” Last month, just prior to the release of J.J. Abrams’ “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” we were treated to a barrage of new trailers and naturally one of those was a quick minute and a half sizzle reel from Abrams’ previous space opera franchise- ‘Star Trek.’ This time around, the new adventures of the Enterprise crew would be led by director Justin Lin (Fast & Furious 3-6). The script was also co-written by Simon Pegg (who looks to have given himself a more substantial part) after taking over for original writer and director Roberto Orci. The film is said to follow Kirk (Chris Pine), Spock (Zachary Quinto) and the rest of the crew after they get stranded on a strange alien planet, but little more is known of the actual plot. What we gleaned from the first trailer though was that director Lin would certainly be bringing to this franchise what he seemingly excelled at in the ‘Fast’ films and that is a ton of action. The majority of the audience for “Star Trek Into Darkness” was split on really enjoying the popcorn entertainment value of it all while the diehard fans essentially hated the re-writing it did of ‘Wrath of Khan.’ Given the fact I'm not a diehard Trekkie I was able to more or less enjoy Abrams’ second installment with zero qualms. With Lin at the helm it seems as if Paramount is keen on changing the direction of where this franchise was headed by giving it a full makeover in the creative department. As much as I really loved Abrams’ 2009 film and enjoyed ‘Into Darkness’ I'm really optimistic and hopeful for what new energy Lin might bring to this property and the idea that it will be fueled more by what apparently made the original series so appealing is, well...appealing. (7/22) 22. “The Light Between Oceans” Michael Fassbender is certainly one busy guy as 2016 will see Fassbender not only return as Magneto in “X-Men: Apocalypse,” but at least two other films, maybe (possibly) even three. With an Untitled Terrence Malick project still sitting on the shelf, “Trespass Against Us” (directed by Adam Smith and co-starring Brendan Gleeson) and his re-teaming with “Macbeth” director Justin Kurzel for the video game adaptation “Assassin's Creed” that is set for a December release there will be plenty of Fassy to go around this year. Still, it is the latest from director Derek Cianfrance that really entices me. Cianfrance has previously made the gut-wrenching “Blue Valentine” and the family epic “The Place Beyond the Pines,” the latter of which was one of my favorite films of 2013, and so to have another of his films on the horizon is a real treat. “The Light Between Oceans” is the debut novel of author M.L. Stedman about a lighthouse keeper and his wife living off the coast of Western Australia who raise a baby they rescue from an adrift rowboat. Fassbender will play the lighthouse keeper while Alicia Vikander will play his wife. Rachel Weisz has also joined the cast and while, at the present time, the film doesn't have an exact release date it is the one book I will add to my ever expanding "to read" list that I would hope to finish before seeing the film. I am a big fan Cianfrance's previous effort and enjoy the emotional weight he packs into every aspect of his films and while I have no familiarity with this source material I imagine he wouldn't have chosen to adapt it did it not have a strong emotional effect on him and one he'd like to parlay through his visual medium. (N/A) 21. “Ghostbusters” At first glance, another re-make of another classic ‘80s property seems like another tired idea, another strike against Hollywood for going back to the well and another sign of the impending doom for any such original material ever break out as a stand-alone blockbuster again. It's a fair assessment-it seems everything these days is somehow based on some pre-existing source material that will at least guarantee the studios there will be some modicum of interest in the final product. That said, once you pair director Paul Fieg with the project and give him free reign to make his new version of the 1984 Bill Murray/Dan Aykroyd film an all-female version that not only stars the likes of marquee names such as Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig, but current SNL standouts like Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones (not to mention Chris Hemsworth in the Janine role) and there is something to be excited about. Not only am I looking forward to this new, re-imagined “Ghostbusters” based purely on the presence of McKinnon and Jones (though that is a big factor), but I'm generally excited to see what a film like “Ghostbusters” will look like in the modern world. Looking back on the original films there is such an atmosphere, such a sense of place and time and those movies are very much of the era they were born out of and so I look forward to seeing what Fieg does to give his new film its own sense of place-which seems especially critical given the legacy it will be joining. (7/15) 20. “Deepwater Horizon” Co-written and produced by J.C. Chandor, “Deepwater Horizon” is one of those films that initially seems to be as generic as one can imagine. The title sounds like something you've probably seen on a VHS from the ‘90s while the idea that it stars Mark Wahlberg and some type of ocean rig immediately sends thoughts to the already forgotten “Contraband.” What separates the film for me, and makes me rather excited to see it, is both the involvement of Chandor and director Peter Berg. Granted, Berg hasn't had the best streak of directorial efforts (2012's “Battleship” sticks out sorely on his resume), but he did team with Wahlberg once before to create the truly brutal and truly moving “Lone Survivor.” “Lone Survivor” was one of my favorite films in 2013 and with a story revolving around the titular oil rig that exploded in 2010 off the Gulf of Mexico, resulting in a catastrophic oil spill it seems there is great potential here. Wahlberg will play the second manager in command on the oil rig as the film will apparently follow what happened in the 48 hours leading up to the explosion and what happened immediately after. The film also stars Kurt Russell, Dylan O'Brien, Kate Hudson and John Malkovich. (9/30) 19. “Passengers” Speaking of original films that have the potential to break out and become a stand-alone blockbuster- “Passengers” seems to be the best shot of such happening that we will have in 2016. From an original screenplay by Jon Spaihts (who famously wrote the first draft of “Prometheus”) the film tells of a spacecraft traveling to a distant colony planet and transporting thousands of people that has a malfunction in one of its sleep chambers. As a result, a single passenger is awakened 60 years early. Faced with the prospect of growing old and dying alone, he eventually decides to wake up a second passenger. If that doesn't sound familiar that's probably because you haven't heard of this movie for reasons of its promising premise, but more for who it will star. Shoot, you probably don't even know you've probably heard of this movie until you realize it's the one that will star both Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence. While this will certainly propel the film toward several headlines given the publicity around both high profile stars over the last few years thanks to huge turns in different Marvel properties, “The Hunger Games” and “Jurassic World” what is almost more engaging is the inclusion of director Morten Tyldum. While it is something of a no-brainer to try and recruit stars of such value for an original property in a day and age where the idea of the "movie star" is dying, Sony could have essentially given this directing gig to anyone that was on the rise, but with “The Imitation Game” and almost more impressively with 2011's “Headhunters,” Tyldum is a solid choice that I can't wait to see flourish on this scale. (12/21) 18. “Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiars” It is with some hesitance that I place the latest from Tim Burton on my most anticipated list. I want to believe in the once unique director who ushered in a voice all his own and a visual style to match, but it seems for some time now that the director has more or less been operating on autopilot. While his last film, 2014's “Big Eyes” seemed like a step in the right direction and one that was out from under the ultra-stylized world he'd been sulking in for quite some time, but it seems the director is incapable of staying away from such an environment for too long as his next project was quickly decided to be the adaptation of Ransom Riggs best seller. The rather engaging novel, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, was originally intended to be a picture book featuring photographs Riggs had collected, but on the advice of an editor, he used the photographs as a guide from which to put together a narrative. That resulting narrative follows teenager Jacob Portman (Asa Butterfield) as he gathers clues that take him to a mysterious island where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's School for Peculiar Children. With Eva Green in the titular Miss Peregrine role and other heavy hitters such as Samuel L. Jackson, Judi Dench, Terence Stamp, Chris O'Dowd and Kim Dickens filling out the rest of the cast I can't wait to see Riggs story brought to life. It should also be noted that the inclusion of this film on my most anticipated list is likely due in part to the fact I've read the novel and genuinely enjoyed it. So much so that I'm rooting for this film to work so that we might also see the rest of Riggs' series, Hollow City and The Library of Souls, turn up on the big screen eventually. (12/25) 17. “Hail, Caesar!” Just as the Oscars will be readying their 2016 broadcast, a place where the Coen Brothers have accepted their fair share of statues, the writer/directors will be releasing their latest upon the world with little to no interest in what the Academy seems to think of their film. In fact, given the film’s subject it might just be the Coens are making something of a larger statement about the industry in general, but we'll have to wait for the final product to see what's really going on. It seems strange that a new Coen Brothers movie would not be included in the end of the year Oscar hopefuls, but that's where we're at with “Hail, Caesar!” comfortably settled into its early February release date. Per usual, the directors have lined up quite a roster of talent and per usual they look to have used them to great effect by zeroing in on what type of movie stars today's movie stars would be if they were movie stars of another era. Distributed by Universal and led by Josh Brolin (who is really picking up steam lately after a few lackluster years) the story tells of a Hollywood fixer in the 1950's who works to keep the studio's stars in line. The film is said to take place all within the span of a single day, a day where the fixer's biggest problem to solve is that of locating the missing star (George Clooney) of the studio's latest epic. The first trailer for the film certainly gives off the distinct comic touch of the Coens as the film overall looks to be something of a hybrid of “Barton Fink” and “The Big Lebowski.” Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes, Jonah Hill, Scarlett Johansson, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton and Channing Tatum also star. (2/5) 16. “The Nice Guys” The anticipation for the return of Shane Black must have been at fever pitch given the guy directed his first feature a decade ago and didn't return until eight years later and for a Marvel movie at that. I feel in the minority when it comes to “Iron Man 3” given I rather enjoyed much of it, but the following “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” has amassed since it's quiet release in 2005 is somewhat incomprehensible. I saw the film then, as an 18-year old and remember liking it, but don't remember too much about the actual film. I'll certainly need to go back and re-visit it soon given the fact anyone I tell that to will tell me the same thing, but if the debut of the trailer for Black's third feature directorial effort last month did anything it was remind me of the noir-ish/irreverent tone his debut featured in spades. I wasn't sure what to expect from the film given the standard sounding premise, but leads Ryan Gosling (who will show up again later on this list) and Russell Crowe look to be having a great time while the ‘70s setting paired with the outlandish brand of everything...the comedy, the violence, the dialogue, even the look of the film is somewhat over the top in its homage to that decade...makes this feel like a lot of fun. After seeing “The Big Short” several times and adoring it at this point it is clear the extent to which Gosling can stretch his comedic skills (there's no end in sight, by the way). Gosling looks in especially funny form here as he seems to more or less be playing the relief while Crowe is the straight man. Getting a nice, big summer release date and also starring Kim Basinger, Matt Bomer, Margaret Qualley and Ty Simpkins, “The Nice Guys” feels like one to watch. (5/20) 15. “Everybody Wants Some” Richard Linklater's third feature film, made in 1993 just two years prior to “Before Sunrise,” was something that not only broke him out into the mainstream, but the likes of Milla Jovovich, Matthew McConaughey (where his, "alright, alright, alright" catchphrase originated), Ben Affleck, Parker Posey, Adam Goldberg and Joey Lauren Adams, as well. “Dazed and Confused” became and has remained something of a cult hit and one of the most well-regarded comedies and high school films of the last 30 years. The idea of crafting some sort of "spiritual sequel" as Linklater has called “Everybody Wants Some,” would seem to have been a daunting task, but given the glimpse we received after the first trailer debuted a couple of weeks ago it seems as if Linklater had no trouble getting back into that adolescent frame of mind. Rather than following an ensemble on their last day of high school in 1976 though, “Everybody Wants Some” is about a group of college baseball players who navigate their way through the freedoms and responsibilities of unsupervised adulthood during the ‘80s. While I was too young to have seen “Dazed and Confused” when it originally premiered I've certainly grown to appreciate the film, but more it is Linklater's writing and his ability to capture small truths in his screenplays that I admire most. As I've somewhat grown up watching Linklater's career progress I've only become more infatuated with what the diverse director might tackle next and that he's now returning to a place, time, and tone that he clearly knows well is nothing short of exciting. (4/15) 14. “The BFG” While a fan of Roald Dahl and the many movie adaptations of his work, including ‘90s-staples “James and the Giant Peach” and “Matilda,” I never happened to read “The BFG.” While, given the synopsis, I can imagine how this might have been just as fascinating a stop-motion film as ‘James’ or just as thrilling a live action family film starring Mara Wilson as Sophie it is somewhat refreshing the film hasn't had a big screen adaptation as of yet (not counting the 1989 animated made for TV movie, that is) and has now received the big blockbuster treatment while still being in lovable, capable hands. After another dip in the more serious waters that was “Bridge of Spies,” director Steven Spielberg has seemingly returned to the world of wholesome material where he is able to strike a chord with both children and adults alike. While the first trailer for the film is a teaser in the truest sense of the word we did get something of a glimpse at the titular Big Friendly Giant who will be played by ‘Spies’ stand-out Mark Rylance. Given his subtle, but highly nuanced performance in that film I am anxious to see what he does with this type of material. Otherwise, Ruby Barnhill looks to be a perfect leading young lady as she seems to possess a great sense of innocence and wonder with the overall tone playing up the fantastical elements of the story in every nook and cranny of its frames. While the likes of J.J. Abrams have tried to capture this type of Amblin tone before in films like “Super 8” and Jeff Nichols will do the same thing in “Midnight Special” this year it will be fun to once again see the master try his hand at making a film that embodies the PG summer blockbuster extravaganza. (7/1) 13. “The Bourne Untitled” By the time this next, as of yet untitled, Jason Bourne film premieres it will have been almost nine years since we last left Bourne swimming into the abyss. Of course, there was that one ‘Bourne Legacy’ film about chems that attempted to have Jeremy Renner carry on the series after it seemed Matt Damon was firmly opposed to returning to the character, but alas here we are. For the record, Damon never said he wouldn't return to the world of Bourne, just that he wouldn't do it without the guidance of director Paul Greengrass, but once Greengrass committed himself to return Damon signed on as well. It's unclear if they will attempt to tie in the events of ‘Legacy,’ but either way the fact the major creative team (minus Tony Gilroy) from both ‘Supremacy’ and ‘Ultimatum’ have returned is a hugely promising sign that we're in for what will hopefully be an exceptional spy thriller that will carry on the legacy those aforementioned sequels began rather than tainting it as there is always that danger. Both Damon and Greengrass along with the directors frequent collaborator, Christopher Rouse, have scripted this fourth installment in the Jason Bourne series and given their seeming investment in this world and in this character I can only imagine they'd agree to return if they had something they felt was worth telling. It's crazy to think that Damon was only 32 when he made “The Bourne Identity” and will turn 46 in October of this year while presumably still going strong, but if this is done right he will be able to bring a whole new meaning to the phrase, "The Bourne Legacy." (7/29) 12. “Money Monster” For years now George Clooney has been attempting to reinvigorate the genre that has kind of graciously been labeled "movies for grown-ups" with the likes of “Michael Clayton,” “Up in the Air,” “The American,” “The Ides of March,” “The Descendants” and “The Monuments Men.” Sure, he's thrown in a few guarantees like “Gravity” and the what seemed to be a home run “Tomorrowland,” but he largely likes to star in, produce and direct films made explicitly for the more mature crowds. While he will once again be seen alongside the Coens in “Hail, Caesar!” this year I'm more excited to see what he and “Ocean’s Eleven” co-star Julia Roberts (who's been doing her part for grown-up movies as well with last year’s average, but still underrated “Secret in Their Eyes”) are up to in “Money Monster,” the latest directorial effort from Jodie Foster. The film follows Clooney's Lee Gates who is a TV personality whose insider tips have made him the money guru of Wall Street. Things get tricky when Kyle (Jack O'Connell), who loses all of his family's money on a bad tip, holds Lee and his entire show hostage on air threatening to kill Lee if he does not get the stock up 24 and a half points before the bell. Naturally, Lee's ratings soar as the entire country tunes in to the media frenzy while at the same time shedding light on a possible scandal involving the company in question. While Foster's last feature, “The Beaver,” was more interesting for its connections to the real-world breakdown of star Mel Gibson she has directed a handful of episodes of both “Orange is the New Black” and “House of Cards” that, along with this rather incredible cast, have me interested to see how good this project might turn out. (5/13) 11. “The Free State of Jones” Opening on the same date as “Money Monster” is the latest from director Gary that stars Matthew McConaughey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw. “The Free State of Jones” tells the story of defiant Southern farmer, Newton Knight (McConaughey), and his extraordinary armed rebellion against the Confederacy. Opposed to both slavery and secession, Knight launched an uprising of poor white farmers that led Jones County, Mississippi to itself secede from the Confederacy, creating a "Free State of Jones." His relationship and post-war marriage to a former slave, Rachel Knight (Mbatha-Raw), effectively established the region's first mixed-race community. Knight continued his fight into the post war period, resisting Klan activity throughout the Reconstruction. His legendary rebellion distinguished Knight as a compelling, if controversial, figure of defiance long beyond the War. With an undeniably moving story and Ross both at the helm and behind the screenplay (from a story by Leonard Hartman) along with a stellar cast that also includes Keri Russell, Jacob Lofland, Mahershala Ali, Sean Bridgers and great character actor Gary Grubbs there is much to be excited about here. While we have little to go off of other than a few production stills the film looks to be a gorgeous period piece that tells of an unconventional love story. Based purely on the credentials, it seems clear the McConaissance will continue in 2016. (5/13) 10. “Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them” Director David Yates is a busy man. Not only is he in post-production on his first post-Harry Potter feature, “The Legend of Tarzan,” but he is also in the midst of production on Warner Bros. return to the wizarding world of Harry Potter with the film adaptation of J.K. Rowling's 2001 novel Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them. The book was published under the pseudonym Newt Scamander and purports to be Harry Potter's copy of the textbook that was on his list of necessary school supplies in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Given our protagonist here is Scamander himself (Eddie Redmayne) I'm assuming this is an original story that will give audiences insight into how Mr. Scamander came to be experienced enough to pen an entire textbook on the magical creatures of the wizarding universe. While this new film won't deal with "The Boy Who Lived" exclusively, the idea of being able to return to such a world, and in November no less, is something of pure bliss for my generation in particular. Without having much to go on I can't really tell whether I should necessarily be excited for the film, but with Yates, who helmed “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” all the way through the finale in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2,” once again in charge of things I have a large amount of faith in the fact I will enjoy this new adventure very much. Katherine Waterston, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Ezra Miller, Samantha Morton, Jon Voight, Ron Perlman, Carmen Ejogo, Jenn Murray, Faith Wood-Blagrove and Colin Farrell also star. (11/18) 9. “Zoolander 2” 2015 was a generally weak year for comedy. While there were some that I enjoyed there wasn't anything that stood out or broke any ground or had the potential to become a pop culture mainstay like something along the lines of say, “Zoolander.” With 2016 in full swing my hope is that the return of Derek Zoolander will put this year on a fresh track in delivering more promising and innovative comedies rather than middle of the road blips like “Daddy's Home” or “Sisters.” As the once budding stars of “Zoolander” (Vince Vaughn included and God, I hope he has a cameo here) have each gone on to have successful comedic careers this sequel is something of a fitting conclusion to the The Frat Pack era while also being something of a re-energization. While I was always nervous that a sequel 15 years in the making would turn out to be little more than a cash grab or an attempt from Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson to simply re-live their glory days the full trailer for the film relinquished any such worry. Packed to the brim with great cameos, awesome gags and a genuinely funny and equally outlandish premise that concerns Derek and Hansel returning to modelling when an opposing company attempts to take them out of the business all points toward being promising. I can't wait. (2/12) 8. “A Cure for Wellness” I'm somewhat taking a shot in the dark here as not much is known about “A Cure for Wellness,” but based simply on its credentials alone-I'm supremely intrigued. When I was 15-years old I went to a nine o'clock show for “The Ring” at our local theater not knowing much of what the film was about. As I arrived at the theater, my mom dropping me, my brother, and sister off, a couple of friends from school ran up to our vehicle after getting out of the seven o'clock show proclaiming it as the scariest movie they'd ever seen. From that moment on I was genuinely scared to enter the theater and my friends weren't lying-it was indeed the scariest movie-going experience I'd ever had and have still ever experienced to this day. Of course, that I experienced such fear and anxiety during my initial screening of the film, but still went back to the theater to see it a second time has always spoken volumes to me. Why, after being legitimately terrified by what the movie conveyed would I wander back in to a large, dark theater to re-live that experience? Over the years I've re-watched “The Ring” countless times and it still holds up and it still sticks with me each time I see it. Of course, that film’s director, Gore Verbinski, would go on to make three “Pirates of the Caribbean” films and the fact he made this little horror film that was based on a Japanese original would be soon forgotten. Verbinski, since leaving ‘Pirates’ alone, has made “Rango” (one of the best films of 2011 period) and “The Lone Ranger” (an admittedly bloated, but hardly horrible action/adventure film that is gorgeous to look at). What I'm getting at is that the man is a good if not great filmmaker, but what makes his latest venture most intriguing is that he is returning to the horror genre. Starring Jason Isaacs and Dane DeHaan I don't expect Verbinski to replicate the success of “The Ring,” but I do hope that he can match the effect it had on audiences. (9/23) 7. “Midnight Special” Jeff Nichols’ latest, “Midnight Special,” was easily one of my most anticipated of 2015 and then, unfortunately, this past summer it was delayed from its original release over Thanksgiving weekend until this March. Typically, delaying a movie is a bad sign as far as the quality of the final product is concerned, but with Nichols there isn't the slightest hint of doubt in his skill. The move, while mainly fueled by rumors of reasons that additional work was needed after test screenings, was probably for the best financially, as well, given the film would have been facing off against ‘Mockingjay-Part 2’ and “Creed” as well as a new Pixar film that would have certainly buried what could potentially be a great family film. In discussing the film before even beginning production Nichols was quoted as saying, "I want to make a 1960's biker film. I want to make a big, PG summer blockbuster family film, kind of like I want to revamp ‘Tremors.’ I've got an idea for that. That kind of movie." Given that “Midnight Special” tells the story of a father and son who go on the run after learning the child possesses special powers it seems Nichols might have captured a story that could convey such a tone and with the release date change it takes Nichols idea of being a "big, PG summer blockbuster" one step closer to becoming a reality. Starring Michael Shannon, Joel Edgerton, Kirsten Dunst, Adam Driver, Bill Camp, Scott Haze, Paul Sparks, Sam Shepard and Jaeden Lieberher. On the other hand, if you're not a fan of this move and a little upset with Nichols for giving into the temptations of the big studio system, fear not, as he also said he was working on another script at the same time that hued closer to his other work and was, "austere, quiet, sad, and beautiful." (3/18) 6. “The Founder” Director John Lee Hancock can be rather hit or miss as “The Rookie” I remember hitting it's inspirational notes nicely, while his follow-up, “The Alamo” was universally panned. Of course, he then followed that up with “The Blind Side,” which was universally praised, but seemingly hasn't aged as well as most expected. The reverse happened with his 2013 feature, “Saving Mr. Banks,” as it initially seemed to underwhelm crowds who expected a lot from the story it was telling, but in my eyes anyway has become something of a treasure that gives me something new to discover each time I catch it on TV. Why then, you might ask, is the director’s next film this high on my most anticipated list? Well, a few reasons-the first being that it is once again Hancock taking on a true story with a very specific protagonist and in this territory the man seems to flourish. Second, the screenplay was written solely by Robert D. Siegel who has previously written “The Wrestler” and “Big Fan” without any source material to pull from. And third, there is the fact that Michael Keaton stars and to say that guy is on something of a hot streak lately would be an understatement. “Birdman” won for Best Picture at last year’s Academy Awards where I also think the Best Actor statue should have gone to Keaton rather than Eddie Redmayne, but Keaton stands a very good chance of also leading the ensemble of this year’s Best Picture front-runner, “Spotlight.” Whatever has changed about his project selection over the last few years seems to have been for the best and that he found Siegel's screenplay about McDonald's founder Ray Kroc intriguing enough to take on the titular role can only mean good things for this 2017 Oscar hopeful. (11/25) 5. “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” At Disney's CinemaCon in 2013 the company stated they were planning to release a new ‘Star Wars’ movie every year, beginning with J.J. Abrams ‘The Force Awakens’ in 2015. In case you've been living under a rock for the past few weeks that little film has been dominating the domestic and global box office and headlines since its premiere and even today has smashed the “Avatar” record of being the biggest domestic earner of all time. So, while it is no surprise that Disney plans to make as much money from their $4 billion investment as they can it will undoubtedly be interesting to see where these spin-off movies take them and how they are received by a general audience that will seemingly take anything Star Wars-related that we're given at the moment. All of that said, Disney and head of the LucasFilm division, Kathleen Kennedy, have certainly gathered a promising creative team to bring these intervals of films to life. With the first of these films being about the rebels who set out on the mission to steal the plans for the Death Star Disney has recruited director Gareth Edwards to helm the project with Chris Weitz writing the screenplay and a cast that includes Felecity Jones in the lead, with support from the likes of Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Ben Mendelsohn, Forest Whitaker and Diego Luna. Given all we know so far and what Disney has delivered so far with the ‘Star Wars’ property there is no reason to be pessimistic about this franchises future. (12/16) 4. “Arms and the Dudes” Todd Phillips is an interesting director. The guy has exclusively made broad comedies since “Road Trip” in 2000, but it was with “The Hangover” in 2009 that he became something of an institution and by the time he'd finished crafting the third, darker, ultimately rebellious chapter in that men behaving badly franchise he was a comedy auteur. Phillips has a persona that screams the fact he thinks he's cooler than you and all of the best characters in his movies seem to replicate that state of mind. Whether it be Beanie in “Old School,” Hutch in “Starsky & Hutch,” or Phil in the ‘Hangover’ films-they are self-assured assholes who know they're funny and they wear that quality on on their sleeves. I am among the (very) few that might call themselves fans of “The Hangover Part III” if, for nothing else, the lush photography and the inherently cinematic quality of the production. While the content was confused in its attempt to still be a comedy while at the same time rally so hard against the criticisms of ‘Part II’ that it ended up doing neither in a particularly effective fashion and yet there is an alluring quality about the film for me. I love spending time with those three main characters and that the mentality of the filmmakers was as clear as ever was appealing. They weren't afraid to let us know their intentions and while many will say it didn't work, for me, it might be the most interesting comedy I've ever seen because of it. That said, it was always going to be interesting to see where Phillips took his career after putting the kibosh on his signature franchise. This year, that question will be answered with a movie starring Jonah Hill and Miles Teller (both who know how to play an asshole really well) as two young men who won a $300 million contract from the Pentagon to arm America's allies in Afghanistan. And yeah, it's based on a true story. (8/19) 3. “Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk” Ang Lee is a master filmmaker and there is no reason that any year a film of his is released for it not to be at the top of any film lover's most anticipated list. Based on the novel written by Ben Fountain that was published in 2012, the story follows Lynn (newcomer Joe Alwyn) who is part of a unit called the Bravo Squad who's been fighting in Iraq. After a brief but intense fight anointed as "the Battle of Al-Ansakar Canal", Lynn and seven other surviving members return to the U.S. and are hailed as war heroes. These war heroes are sent on a "Victory Tour" by the government and as part of this tour, Bravo Squad are invited as guests of the Dallas Cowboys to their annual Thanksgiving game. The squad is also set to make an appearance during the halftime show with Destiny's Child. However, it is soon revealed that following the Victory Tour, the government has not relieved the men of their duty for their achievements and that they are to return to Iraq. Lynn begins to express disenchantment with the treatment of supposed war heroes from American citizens who have seen nothing of war. Though I haven't read Fountain's novel the power of the story is evident in this short synopsis. It doesn't hurt that Lee has enlisted Simon Beaufoy (“Slumdog Millionaire”) to adapt the novel as well as a cast that includes Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart, Vin Diesel, Steve Martin, Chris Tucker and Tim Blake Nelson to bring it to life. While my instinct is that this will be a major contender next awards season I guess there is the off chance this could also be another “Taking Woodstock” situation which, still, was a solid film if not one that is remembered among Lee's impressive filmography. Here's hoping to one that makes its mark. (11/11) 2. “Silence” Martin Scorsese has been developing his next film for several decades. To call it a passion project feels like something of an understatement at this point. Having worked on an adaptation of the Shusaku Endo novel, Silence, for years things finally began shaping up when financing was secured near the end of 2013 and production officially began in what was reportedly July of 2014. The story concerns two Jesuit priests who, in the seventeenth century, face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to locate their mentor and to spread the gospel of Christianity. Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver will serve as the priests in the film while the likes of Ken Watanabe and Liam Neeson will also star. There were rumors at the beginning of last year that post production might be completed in time for a planned November release date that would have placed the film in the middle of this awards season, but clearly that didn't happen. It is difficult to find any more concrete facts about the film as there is still no planned release date for the film, but there was talk in November of 2015 that Scorsese was in the middle to end stages of the editing process and there were hopes that the final edit would be done in time for a premiere at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. Whether that happens or not we'll have to see, but at the very least we can conclude we'll likely be seeing “Silence” in the second half of 2016 at some point. What is even more exciting is that this heavy material undoubtedly gave the director plenty to work with and so to be able to anticipate what as talented a director as Scorsese will do with material we already know he's extremely passionate about only serves to create what will hopefully be one of the more memorable movie-going experiences of the year. (N/A) 1. “La La Land” Damien Chazelle directed what might be one of the best movies of the past 15 years with 2014's “Whiplash” and whatever it was the 31-year old director would choose to do next there was sure to be a great amount of anticipation around it. Working again from an original screenplay that tells the simple story of a jazz pianist who falls for an aspiring actress in Los Angeles it is difficult to imagine what Chazelle might be doing to attempt to follow-up his more than impressive debut. Of course, he could not be thinking about the inevitable comparisons at all and is instead simply making a light. modern-day romance about a relationship between two creative people based on a script he wrote before even making “Whiplash.” From the limited amount of information we've gleaned from the film thus far those qualities seem to be true. Based simply on the small collection of stills we've seen from both the set and of the actual film there seems to be a tone that elicits the magic of music and old Hollywood that is inherently noteworthy. While it was originally planned for Miles Teller to reunite with his “Whiplash” director, the lead male role eventually went to Ryan Gosling who would once again pair up with Emma Stone after starring in two previous films together (“Crazy Stupid Love,” “Gangster Squad”). This, on its own, is enticing as Gosling and Stone have a rather palpable chemistry while the fact they'll be surrounded by a stellar supporting cast that includes J.K. Simmons, Finn Wittrock, Rosemarie DeWitt, John Legend and Jason Fuchs is all the more encouraging. While we may not know much of what “La La Land” has to offer at the moment there are one too many golden factors in play here for this to not be the movie I'm most excited about seeing in 2016. (7/15) |