Movie Review

  • xXx: State of the Union (2005)

    xXx: State of the Union (2005)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, February 2016) I remember that xXx: State of the Union got terrible reviews upon release, but watching the film lately is enough to make anyone wonder why the reviewers were so vexed. Of course, time has been kind to lead actor Ice Cube, who seems even more iconic today thanks to his anointment in Straight Outta Compton: Part of State of the Union’s charm comes from seeing his gruff demeanour clashing with the usual nonsense of a typical dumb action movie. It’s worth highlighting that Ice Cube has personality and the film distinguishes itself (even a decade later) by featuring it as best it can. There is some daring in State of the Union’s premise of a coup building against the US government, and a sprinkling of action sequences (especially a purely nonsensical but fast-paced bullet-train sequence at the climax of the film) are enough to keep things interesting to the end. Under Lee Tamahori’s direction, State of the Union is not a film that takes itself seriously, and so becomes one of those movies in which absurdities act as features rather than problems. It’s easy to feel some odd affection for it, especially if you’re already an Ice Cube fan and find much postmodern fun in contemplating an NWA founding member saving the US government from rogue elements.

  • Amistad (1997)

    Amistad (1997)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, February 2016) I’m late to Amistad, but watching it explains a lot of Steven Spielberg’s latter filmography, most obviously Lincoln. (Although I suspect that I’ll understand even more once I see The Color Purple). While I could blather on about Amistad’s excessive length and slow pacing, that would be missing the point of a film that dares to show how civilized arguments can make better humans out of everyone. This movie believes in the rule of law, but doesn’t shy away from showing distressing scenes of slavery and torture. (Amistad illuminates Lincoln’s distant treatment of slavery by the explanation that Spielberg already showed the worst in his earlier film, and wasn’t keen on graphically revisiting the issue.) It’s a period drama but a handsomely executed one, featuring actors that were either at the height of their powers (Anthony Hopkins, Morgan Freeman) or on the verge of stardom (Matthew McConaughy, and Djimon Hounsou in a terrific performance). There are plenty of other things to like: Amistad lets subtitles play a role in the way viewers feel the story unfolding, credibly shines a light in pockets of American history that people would like to forget, ends on eloquence (albeit with an explosive coda) and appeals to our better natures. I wouldn’t necessarily call it gripping or essential, but it’s easily compelling and worthwhile … and has survived admirably well the almost-twenty years since its release.

  • Autómata (2014)

    Autómata (2014)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, February 2016) There are a few things I really like in Automata: As a Spanish production, it has a sensitivity and flavour of its own; the practical special effects are impressive; it’s good to see Antonio Banderas in a lead role again; and it is deeply steeped into the 2014–2015 wave of movies pondering the coming AI revolution. On the other hand, I’m not so enthusiastic about much of the rest. The world building is absurd; the pacing is off; the plot threads lead nowhere interesting; and the film fails to do much with its own invented rules. “Life finds a way” is a dull foundation on which to base an artificial-intelligence thriller these days, and Automata, at times, seems to be boldly rediscovering Science-Fiction notions that were old-hat in 1980s SF movies or 1960s written SF. The ending is a let-down, some of the plot development are gibberish and Banderas doesn’t even get a capable foil to play against. While I started watching Automata with the best intentions, the film itself gradually ate away at my reserves of goodwill until the best I could say was a variation on “well, it’s a good effort”. On the other hand—a robot science-fiction movie from Spain? How rare is that? Shouldn’t we be happy that it even exists?

  • Vacancy (2007)

    Vacancy (2007)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Crackle Streaming, February 2016) As far as horror thrillers taking place in murderously dangerous backwater settings go, Vacancy is perhaps more noteworthy for what it doesn’t do. Considering that the plot has to do with an estranged couple being stuck in an isolated motel used to film snuff movies, you would expect the film to be very explicit in its gory violence. But while some sequences in Vacancy are indeed disturbing, it remains reasonably light-footed in its depiction of gore. Thankfully, the result is to bring the focus back on the lead couple’s growing dread rather than in-your-face disgust at the sight of bloody mayhem. It makes the rest of the film’s growing tension more effective and helps distinguish Vacancy from countless other very similar films. It helps that Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale deliver performances anchored in reality: While Vacancy gets crazier by the minute thanks to director Nimród Antal, it does start with a fairly astute first few minutes that cleanly establish the protagonists before dropping them into a long nightmare. Several sequences help answer basic credibility questions about the nature of the premise (as in: why “Run, you fools!” isn’t an answer) and the thrills keep going during the appropriately short duration of the film. While Vacancy is no classic, it has survived well as a competent genre exercise. It could have been far, far worse.

  • That Awkward Moment (2014)

    That Awkward Moment (2014)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, February 2016) There’s a sub-genre of movies that could be called (for lack of a better name) “forgettable romantic comedies featuring up-and-coming movie stars”, and That Awkward Moment is a perfect addition to that canon. Its most noteworthy feature is that it stars Miles Teller, Michael B. Jordan and Zack Efron—while the third is already a star in his own way, Teller and Jordan both have other movies (Creed, Whiplash) that hint at their true acting talent. Here, they’re not actually asked to do any dramatic heavy lifting: the film coasts a long time on their basic charm, even as their characters aren’t particularly admirable. Another romantic comedy for men that celebrates immaturity and boorishness, That Awkward Moment is perhaps best appreciated as a fake-anthropological study of young males on the cusp of romantic responsibility, although by the time the Hollywood process is done with the film, there’s nearly nothing authentic left to see. Various bits and pieces work; other bits and pieces are just puzzling or unpleasant given the casual misogyny of the script. Imogen Poots and Mackenzie Davis do well as the female matchups for the male protagonists, and as usual in these kinds of films they’re far more level-headed and sensible than our nominal main characters. It doesn’t amount to much: by the end, That Awkward Moment is slight enough to escape making any lasting impression other than a vague feeling that this isn’t going to be one of the films that Jordan or Teller will highlight once they become authentic megastars.

  • Out of the Furnace (2013)

    Out of the Furnace (2013)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, January 2016) There’s an acknowledged dearth of mainstream realistic adult dramas in today’s cinematic landscape, but I’ll gladly watch a stream of escapist superhero fantasies if the alternative is feeling like slitting my wrists. Unusually dull and sombre films such as Out of the Furnace aren’t the antidote when they’re paralyzed by so much unbearable self-importance. Taking place in the rusted ruins of American industry, it features two down-on-their-luck brothers trying to fit in a world that doesn’t want them once they’ve gone to prison or to war. Out of the Furnace is never a cheerful film, but it gets steadily worse as the protagonists are pushed in increasingly desperate situations. Director Scott Cooper does know how to handle such a film—alas, the material he’s serving isn’t meant for casual consumption. Christian Bale is fine yet not particularly remarkable as the lead, while Casey Affleck is more memorable, but also less likable, as his brother. There are many familiar actors in smaller roles. The dour tone of Out of the Furnace carries through the ending, which almost comes as a relief given how badly we want to get away from this place.

  • Burnt (2015)

    Burnt (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Video on Demand, January 2016) The world of food has been so tremendously vulgarized to the masses in the last decade that Burnt arrives not as a celebration but a bit of a side dish. As the story of a brash three-star chef who comes back to haute cuisine after some time in the trenches atoning for past mistakes, Burnt has the framework of an incisive look in the life of a professional chef … but doesn’t make all that much of it. Bradley Cooper’s usual mix of cockiness and charisma serves him well as the protagonist, while some of the supporting players (Omar Sy, Sienna Miller, Daniel Bruhl) do just as well. Many of the film’s details, scenes and quips also work, but there’s a maddening sense that Burnt is not going as far as it could have. Nor does it avoid a familiar narrative arc culminating in the protagonist hitting rock bottom. Similarities to Chef, as different as the films (and subject matter) can be, are inevitable and not to Burnt’s advantage. Whereas Chef made viewers warm, happy and hungry, Burnt leaves cold, annoyed and full. It’s not exactly a bad or unpleasant movie, but it suffers from too many other points of comparison, too many familiar elements and too little risk-taking.

  • Inside Out (2015)

    Inside Out (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, January 2016) Much of the recent criticism of Pixar, in the wake of Cars 2 all the way to Monsters University, has been rooted in the knowledge that for most of its history, Pixar has not only delivered, but over-delivered. Their movies didn’t just have high concepts, they crammed as much invention as possible in those frameworks, to offer sequences never before seen, strong thematic symbolism and deep emotional cues. (Especially in their Ratatouille, Up!, Wall-E, Toy Story 3 home-run.) Their last few films were well executed but far more ordinary. Now here comes Inside Out to bring Pixar back to its former glories: another incredibly high concept, eye-watering emotional moments, and never-seen-before plot points. Consider that it’s a story that almost entirely takes place within a 12-year-old girl’s mind, climaxes on her deciding (or not) to run away from home, celebrates sadness as an essential part of the psyche and plays far differently for kids and adults. It’s nothing short of a tour-de-force and this despite offering a number of metaphors that break down once you stretch them a little. (It’s in the nature of the incarnated emotions and the film’s theory of the mind that you just want to play with the high concept, extend it, try to make it fit in ordinary and ridiculous situations.) Pixar’s technical game is as good as it gets as well, with fantastic animation and a visual motif of “points of light” making up the characters, lending Inside Out a distinctive atmosphere that leaves lesser efforts far behind in sheer polish. As a movie, it’s great but as a reminder of what Pixar can do once it abandons formula, it’s even better.

  • The DUFF (2015)

    The DUFF (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, January 2016) Every generation gets the teen romantic comedy that it deserves, while older audiences look on with bemused horror. Still, there’s a place for competently executed formula, especially when the details are crafted with an almost-anthropological flair for conveying the flavour of the time. Here in The DUFF, a well-worn high-school romance plot is dusted off and given Social Media trappings, as a likable but (relatively) plainer-looking teenager discovers that she’s the “Designated Ugly Fat Friend” to her other friends. Throwing (relatively) here is crucial given that lead Mae Whitman is far from being ugly or fat, something that even the film acknowledges it in terms that go beyond Hollywood logic. In fact, The DUFF earns its place among second-rung High School comedies by showing a good self-awareness, a willingness to tackle old problems in new guises (i.e.; cyberbullying), Whitman’s very likable performance and a steady forward narrative rhythm that means few dull moments. The DUFF can’t completely escape the shackles of its chosen structure, and much of its final act is strictly routine. But for a while, it’s fun, funny, and maybe even revealing of the ways that teenagers are navigating the new social landscape with smartphones grafted to their sides.

  • Entourage (2015)

    Entourage (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, January 2016) I know of the HBO show Entourage despite never watching it, which puts me in a strange position when trying to figure out its movie adaptation. The basics are easy to puzzle out: Here’s one successful actor; one manic agent; three hangers-on; industry satire; obvious Hollywood wish fulfillment for young men… I could see how it would work, if it weren’t that I found few of the main characters to be interesting or sympathetic. Oh, I’ll agree that Jeremy Piven is a force of nature as an uber-agent (his helicopter assault on a business meeting is everything I’d expect from a powerhouse like his) and Adrien Grenier is halfway interesting as an actor who manages to direct a great movie. The rest are annoying. (Rhonda Rousey isn’t much of a thespian, even though this is her best performance to date.) The film’s misogyny is repellent enough, but the boys-will-be-boys shtick is its own brand of exasperating as well. Entourage’s Hollywood satire isn’t particularly biting (although I’m thinking that after five seasons of the TV show, much of it has already been done) and the general humour doesn’t fly all that well either. Some of the wish-fulfillment does work (especially considering the swank locations, prototype car and sunny California weather) but that’s a meagre return for a film that’s more confounding than anything else for those who are not already a fan of the series.

  • The Martian (2015)

    The Martian (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Video on Demand, January 2016) It’s a good time to be a hard-Science Fiction fan. After decades of repeating that there were no hard-SF movies (save for maybe parts of 2001 and Contact), here are Gravity, Interstellar and now The Martian in successive years to prove us wrong. The Martian has the added benefit of being perhaps the warmest and the purest hard-SF of the three, blending a likable character with reams of effortless exposition about the technical details of being stuck alone on Mars, years away from any potential rescue. Much of the story plays like an endless series of problem-solving mini-dramas, which is closely aligned with the basic ethos of hard-SF. Matt Damon is very, very good in the title role, alone on-screen for a chunk of the story, separated from the rest of the cast. But director Ridley Scott is the one who excels here, delivering his most purely enjoyable film in a long while, making the most out of a terrific script by Drew Goddard that faithfully adapts Andy Weir’s page-turning novel. Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jessica Chastain and Manuel Pena make great impressions in smaller roles, while the special effects work is dazzling. A note should be made of the film’s use of pop music, from cheap shots at disco (leading to an apt spot for “Staying Alive” during the end credits), to a spellbinding montage set to David Bowie’s Starman. Such touches help humanize a script that easily could have been far too dry (in the manner of so many hard-SF novels written by scientists) to attract popular acclaim. Fortunately, The Martian seems to have hit the right chords: It was a massive commercial and critical success, paving the way for similar movies. The drought of hard-SF on-screen may have lasted decades, but chances are that it’s down for good.

  • Straight Outta Compton (2015)

    Straight Outta Compton (2015)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Blu-ray, January 2016) After watching Straight Outta Compton, I wish my knowledge of Hip-Hop history was just better enough to let me enjoy the film as more than a detached biography. While the very broad strokes of N.W.A.’s story are familiar, I’m sure I would have gotten a lot more out of Straight Outta Compton had I actively enjoyed the music at the time. Moments such as when N.W.A. first hear Ice Cube’s diss-track “No Vaseline” play well on-screen as dramatic sequences, but they work even better as validations of what viewers already knew. Oh well; at least I can testify about the film’s effectiveness at presenting N.W.A.’s rise, success and tragic end, along with tendrils of sub-stories into other West Coast Rap characters, not the least being Suge Knight’s demonic presence. Competently directed by F. Gary Gray (who finally seems back on track after a few disappointing films), Straight Outta Compton can depend on two fantastic performances: Jason Mitchell as the doomed Easy E, and O’Shea Jackson Jr. channelling his own father as Ice Cube. (There’s something both awesome and endearing about Ice Cube’s character watching his kids play in the yard when we know that one of them is now Ice Cube himself.) Some sequences are terrific (not the least being the band defying the police’s specific orders not to feature a controversial song, then being arrested for it) and the film feels richer the more you’re familiar with the source material. Given Straight Outta Compton’s unexpected commercial success, a series of related pictures about Hip-Hop history is nearly assured and I’m fine with that. Just let me catch up on a few years’ worth of rap music and I’ll be good to go.

  • Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011)

    Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Video on Demand, July 2016) As a parent, you get to see the weirdest things, and I’m being completely honest when I say that Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked was nowhere my radar of things to watch. But daddy proposes and kitty decides, so that explains what I’m doing watching animated chipmunks sing to popular songs while landing on a deserted island. What’s even less probable is that I ended up enjoying myself. Oh, this isn’t particularly sophisticated filmmaking or even particularly refined comedy. The film is for kids, the jokes are obvious, the actors taken pleasure in hamming it up (with particular props to David Cross as a Chipmunks-hating antagonist and Jenny Slate as a castaway steadily getting crazier as the film advances. I knew practically nothing of the series beyond gagging at the trailers for the first two movies, but it’s not hard to quickly pick up on the basics. The rest is too cute to be angry, as the CGI animals blend with the otherwise live-action movie. (As noted elsewhere, this is practically a subgenre by now.) There are enough chuckles here to make the experience enjoyable by adults, and the bouncy musical numbers (including a predictable final rendition of “Survivor”) will keep the kids hopping. Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked is a cartoon, it’s fun and it’s not entirely insulting. My standards for kids’ movies are age-appropriate.

  • G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)

    G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On TV, January 2016) I wasn’t expecting this second G.I. Joe movie to be any good after the entirely dumb 2005 film, but it turns out that G.I. Joe: Retaliation definitely has its share of strong moments. A number of action scenes hold our attention, although the result ends up being limited by the silliness of its original material. Continuing where the first instalment stopped, Retaliation has the halfway-gutsy charm of starting with an impostor playing the role of US president and killing off the lead character of the previous movie within minutes, leaving Dwayne Johnson to lead the rest of the film. A few good sequences, such as the prison visit/breakout (anchored by the instantly compelling Walter Goggins) and a demented cliff-side battle, do much to remind us that we are watching a grander-than-logic action film ready to go all-out on big stunts. Unfortunately, Retaliation suffers from a much duller conclusion, blunting what could have been much more enjoyable throughout. It doesn’t help that for every time we’re shown actual combat equipment or quasi-believable refinements, the film shoots itself again in the foot by reminding us of how silly it is, with juvenile code names (Can anyone call someone else “Snake Eyes” in real life and not break out laughing?) and ridiculous plot developments. G.I. Joe: Retaliation almost tries to be more than an adaptation of a beloved but silly kid’s toy mythology. Alas, it is limited by its origins material, its willingness to please fans and its maddening lack of ambition when comes the time to commit to being more than a dumb action film.

  • Into the Blue (2005)

    Into the Blue (2005)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (Netflix Streaming, January 2016) While Into the Blue wasn’t favourably reviewed upon release, it’s the fast-paced thrills-and-romance tropical adventure that it wants to be. Who doesn’t love sympathetic protagonists being stuck between two criminal groups as they hunt a lost Spanish treasure and discover a downed plane filled with drugs? With Paul Walker in the kind of charming-action-hero role he did best, Jessica Alba looking remarkably good, director John Stockwell capturing immersive underwater sequences and clean cinematography, this is an unassuming and enjoyable B-grade thriller. (It’s quite a bit more memorable than the similar Fool’s Gold, for instance.) The Caribbean scenery is used judiciously, the underwater set pieces successfully navigate a line between excitement and ridiculousness, everyone is ludicrously good-looking and there isn’t much time to get bored as the plot goes from one thing to another. This is not a great movie, but it’s an enjoyable one for what it tries to do. Keep your expectations in check and the result will leave you smiling and possibly booking a flight to the Bahamas.