ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL Review

Though a fan of science fiction I'm not familiar with Yukito Kishiro's 1990 manga comic Battle Angel Alita that inspired the latest Robert Rodriguez picture as produced by James Cameron. I'll clarify that I truly enjoy science fiction largely for the genre's ability, whether it be in the writing or when translated to the big screen-the concept artist, director, or costume and set designers-ability to create a new environment and/or new world's altogether. Further, to apply a structure to this environment where an advanced, and if not advanced at least futuristic society, exists where the world follows the rules of this implemented structure is inherently fascinating as it undoubtedly takes cues from our present world and applies what the creator might think will be to the human races benefit or ultimate detriment. Such prophecies within the genre over the years have created an amalgam of tropes, motifs and clichés, but while the dystopian future has been a familiar trend over the last few years especially it does well to establish a compelling backdrop or habitat, if you will, for the kind of people we come to know in Alita: Battle Angel. Cameron, Rodriguez, and Laeta Kalogridis's (Shutter Island) screenplay shows early on that it has the aforementioned innate ability and, more importantly, a strong desire to construct a world centuries ahead of our present time that is not only inventive, but feels fully realized and lived-in. What the screenplay doesn't do and arguably fails to do is follow through on the promises of this world in which it builds. Meaning, that while it's not automatically a negative to utilize familiar sci-fi and action tropes there does need to be a unique take on whatever traits your movie or story might be adopting from the genre and there are certainly flashes of as much in Alita, but most of it comes from the investment in our main character rather than any kind of investment in the beats she is following. You want to know more about the character, you want to live alongside them because this world that has been created feels so alive and so layered and so interesting, but it's almost as if you also wouldn't mind checking in on and seeing what other characters are up to because as much as we like Alita, there isn't really much depth or surprise to the video-game structured script that is pitting her against the ultimate final boss in the sky.

New Trailer for ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL

It's kind of hard to think that Alita: Battle Angel isn't going to be huge. I mean, besides the fact it's been in the works for a long time and the guy who made Titanic and Avatar (as well as Terminator and T2) is behind it-there is something rather innovative about it all and whether the quality is ultimately better or worse the closest thing I can equate it to in my lifetime is the buzz prior to the release of 300 in 2007. I can remember being in one of my college film classes and the professor along with many of the students talking about how excited and curious they were about that new Zack Snyder film. The visual medium of film was given something of a shot in the arm by 300 and its new take on how far those visuals could be pushed in the age of green screen and visual effects. If he was to be outdone in buzz, James Cameron certainly wasn't going to be outdone in box office and thus 2009 came along and Avatar was released upping the ante of what was possible with visual effects even if the film didn't make as lasting an impression on pop culture. It seems prior to beginning work in the world of Pandora though, Cameron was close to directing this adaptation of the graphic novel series "Battle Angel Alita" by Yukito Kishiro that revolves around an amnesiac female cyborg who is rescued from a scrapyard by a doctor, rebuilt, and then set on a path of hunting down vicious criminals in the 26th century. Cameron is still involved as a producer and co-writer on the project while Robert Rodriguez (Sin City, Desperado) has taken over the director's chair. Rodriguez falls into that school of directors who are always looking to push boundaries and if this new trailer is any indication it looks as if the director may very well have his first hit in ten plus years on his hands not to mention a new franchise. This thing looks spectacular as the blend of real photography and motion capture effects is flawless, the action is staged in a very visceral fashion, and the story, while coming with shades of Ghost in the Shell and no doubt other material I'm not aware of, piques my interest due to the seeming connection the titular character has with this item from the past and the fact it may indicate what the future holds; stuff like that always gets me. Not to mention, this thing has a hell of a cast with Rosa Salazar taking on the role of Alita and co-starring the likes of Eiza González, Jennifer Connelly, Michelle Rodriguez, Christoph Waltz, Jackie Earle Haley, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrein, and Casper Van Dien. Alita: Battle Angel opens December 21st, 2018.

MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE Review

As it goes with these adaptations of popular dystopian YA franchises it is best to know from which perspective a particular review is coming and how passionate the (re)viewer is about the source material they have just witnessed adapted for the big screen. Warning: I have not read James Dashner's version of the "chosen one" narrative so, for me, The Maze Runner series sits somewhere comfortably in between the gold standard that is The Hunger Games and the deplorable Divergent series that couldn't even muster enough fandom for Lionsgate to follow all the way through on it (I guess the first one was fine). Maze Runner is nestled comfortably in between these two opposite ends of the spectrum though, because it is more or less a different take on the exact same story Divergent tried to pull, but done so in a much more enthusiastic manner (which is saying something as these Maze sequels have lacked the energy of that initial flick) as well as being much less convoluted with the main detractor being they have failed to create anywhere near the emotional investment on the part of the audience in these characters; sorry, Tommy, Teresa, and Brenda, but you are no Katniss, Peeta, and Gale. That said-there are A LOT of characters in these movies as tends to be the case in each of the examples cited thus far and by virtue of this requirement there is ample opportunity for solid talent to enlist themselves as part of a guaranteed series of jobs and to that point it is nice to see the likes of Barry Pepper, Giancarlo Esposito, Patricia Clarkson, Aidan Gillen, and Walton Goggins in supporting roles where they are hamming it up the best each of them can even if at least three of them are playing the same type of ringleader role. To this end and to the end that I'm thankful 20th Century Fox decided against splitting this finale into two movies Maze Runner: The Death Cure is a well-made and well-executed action thriller that is more or less comprised of the same sequence of events again and again until our gang of ragtag heroes reaches the last standing city and faces the bad guys down once and for all. That may be a bit harsh as there are shades of honor on both sides of the line that make things more complicated than one might expect from such a film and there is a clear theme of loyalty that screenwriter T.S. Nowlin and franchise director Wes Ball have never strayed from, but much like WCKD, the evil corporate enemy in these movies, The Death Cure delays the inevitable conclusion we all know is coming due to our genre conditioning just a little too long.

First Trailer for MAZE RUNNER: THE DEATH CURE

Man, I really need to see Maze Runner: Scorch Trials, but it's been so long since I missed it and have't heard much about the series since that the whole thing just kind of slipped from my radar. Still, I know that I purchased Scorch Trials because I was out of town at my first Toronto International Film Festival when the film came to theaters and was bummed I never caught back up with it before it was released on home video because I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed the first one. And, of course, this third and final installment in the series was set to come out earlier (and by earlier, I mean February of this year), but was delayed due to production having been halted for over a year as a result of star Dylan O’Brien suffering severe injuries as a result of an on-set accident. Filming resumed nearly a year later, after O’Brien had thankfully recovered and was ready to complete the series. With the series finale of Teen Wolf happening last night, in which O'Brien also starred, I'm assuming that's why we're now getting our first look at this final film, but it seems director Wes Ball (who has been with the franchise since the beginning) and 20th Century Fox weren't completely ready for the launch as the first twenty seconds or so of this trailer are scenes from the first two films while the remainder of the trailer clocks in at less then fifty seconds. Still, what we get here looks to be pretty satisfying in terms of the scope and of the action and the intensity of the story. Granted, having still not seen the middle chapter I'm not sure as to where the characters heads are at or where the plot has since taken them since the reveal at the end of the first film, but this quick teaser makes me want to rectify that as I'm eager to see what the whole of this series will offer as Ball seems to have constructed a worthy finale for a series that has flown just enough under the radar to be a good and smart investment for Fox while maintaining its credibility as a fun YA action/adventure. Maze Runner: The Death Cure also stars Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Giancarlo Esposito, Walton Goggins, Aidan Gillan, Patricia Clarkson, Rosa Salazar, Nathalie Emmanuel, Will Poulter, Ki Hong Lee, Jacob Lofland, Barry Pepper and opens on January 26th, 2018.

INSURGENT Review

It is odd to come to the realization that you are no longer within the target audience for a certain genre of film. Sure, I may not have enjoyed Insurgent, the second film in the Divergent series, but the makers of the film don't care if I like it or not. This is a film catered to the junior high audiences that eat up these young adult novels in spades and move on to the next one in order to satisfy their angst-ridden school days. This isn't a bad thing, especially with the recent wave of strong leading female characters no doubt making young women feel more able than ever and alleviating the need to conform. That may sound rather banal in terms of themes, but they are ideas every generation needs to learn and it just so happens the current generation is picking up on such ideas by way of brave heroine's in dystopian futures. While I rather enjoyed author Veronica Roth's initial trip into a futuristic Chicago where society has been divided into five factions according to individual personalities, I found it difficult to make it through the second book in her trilogy. Insurgent always felt more like a trudge than Divergent when it should have been an opportunity to go a step further than it's exposition-filled predecessor. Insurgent, the book and the film, want so bad to open up this world that Roth has created, but instead this middle chapter is hindered by not having the structure of a clear beginning or end. I had to force myself to begin reading the source material again after a previous false start. I made it through in my second attempt, but it was more of a chore than anything and I've yet to pick up Allegiant, the third and final book in the series that will of course be split into two movies, and honestly have no desire to do so. While Insurgent is certainly a competent film and has flashes of real creativity and strong performances, it stalls early in it's storytelling prowess and never recovers. By the end of the film I felt like almost nothing had happened and the ball had been pushed only a few yards down the field from where we started two hours before. It's hard to know who to blame-Roth's overly layered source material or the multiple screenwriters tasked with adapting the it that have streamlined it to the point it all feels pointless, but someone should be held accountable.

First Trailer for MAZE RUNNER: THE SCORCH TRIALS

The race to find the next big young adult adaptation has been one of fierce competition and many failures that now seems all but tired and pretty much over. That said, last falls The Maze Runner turned out to be something of a nice distraction and a second-tier financial hit to the tune of $340 million worldwide on a $35m budget. This was more than anyone expected and now it stands as kind of the last game in town, which believe me, is a nice advantage. While we still have the last two screen adaptations of Veronica Roth's Allegiant to go through, I am now more excited to see where Thomas (Dylan O'Brien) and his friends wind up in this twisted world of betrayals, backstabbing's and lies than anything having to do with Tris and her one-dimensional friends. Many attempted to capitalize on the YA trend, but it seems the time has passed and the likes of The Maze Runner and its remaining film adaptations might be the last true examples of a trend that will inevitably rise again in due time, but for now-this is it. I haven't read the five-book series by James Dashner and likely won't given I'm already along for the ride, but I hope the movies are able to keep up with the solid momentum of the first. If this teaser trailer is any indication it looks as if director Wes Ball has a keen intention of doing just that as the pacing and ensuing adventure of the concluding bombshell the first film presented look to be on point here. This time around, Thomas and the surviving members of his maze face a new set of challenges on the open roads of a desolate landscape filled with unimaginable obstacles. The Maze Runner: Scorch Trials also stars Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Kaya Scodelario, Giancarlo Esposito, Ki Hong Lee, Rosa Salazar, Jacob Lofland and opens on September 18.