June Movie #4: Now You See Me

Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Morgan Freeman, Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Isla Fisher, Dave Franco, and Michael Cane
Run Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
Directed By: Louis Leterrier

Now You See Me is about four magicians who use their magic to commit crimes. The FBI and Interpol work together with an ex-magician to figure out how the magicians are committing these crimes, as well as to try to stop them.

One thing about magic in movies is that you know it's fake, you know there's a trick. They have the luxury of stopping the camera to make someone disappear or editing to remove images they don't want you to see. I always take these things with a grain of salt. But I'm also the same girl who believes that a bus can jump 50 feet. I can quite easily suspend belief and let myself enjoy a movie without questioning too much (well, most of the time). So, while there was a voice in the back of my head grumbling about there's always a trick to magic in movies, the movie lover in me wondered with wide eye amazement, "Gosh, how did they pull off that trick?" And that's exactly the attitude you need to have in order to enjoy the movie. Forget movie magic. Marvel at the tricks as if they were real.

That being said, there was far less magic than I expected and far more FBI chase scenes (and beating their heads against the wall while looking dumb) than I ever could have imagined. THAT disappointed me. The Four Horsemen (Harrelson, Eisenberg, Fisher, and Franco) seemed to have such a rapport that it drew me in. The razzle dazzle seemed fun. They seemed like they were having fun. And their magical Robin Hood style of taking from the rick and giving to the poor was refreshing.

In addition to trying to figure out how the tricks were pulled off, I was also spotting the twists. There were several and I got most of them, save the biggest one. I am always frustrated and disappointed - and yet very happy - when I realize that I figured out the plot twists before they were revealed (and my elation is multiplied by the number of minutes before the reveal that I uncovered the twist). Since I figured out several of the twists from pretty much the beginning of the movie, I am quite disappointed with the movie (and yet very proud of myself). It is because of this that I cannot bring myself to like this movie. It disappointed me on so many levels. First is the ease of uncovering the twists, second is the main storyline - the FBI. I want magic, darnit! I've seen enough FBI/CIA whodunit chase movies. I was drawn to the magic and I didn't get any, whether it be actual or whimsy.

For the most part, this is a decent movie. Well acted. A lot of suspense. What comes next? How will they solve it? When? But the numerous plot letdowns prevent me from even liking this movie. It tried but failed.

June Movie #3: What Maisie Knew

Starring: Julianne Moore, Steve Coogan, Alexander Skarsgard, Onata Aprile
Run Time: 1 hour 39 minutes
Directed By: Scott McGehee, David Siegel

What Maisie Knew is a modern adaptation of the Henry James novel. It's about a divorcing couple so wrapped up in their own lives and problems that they neglect their daughter Maisie.

When I first read the description of the movie, I thought, "What Henry James novel?" and "How much of an adaptation?" I Googled it. Turns out, the book and movie are the same title and the movie is pretty much the same as the novel. I was shocked. Henry James wrote in the late 19th century. I couldn't believe he'd write about divorce, let alone about a problem that is so prevalent today. The ending is slightly different in the movie (it cuts off before Maisie gets older). I liked the movie's ending better. It was sweeter, more uplifting.

In this modern adaptation, Maisie's mother is an aging rock star (played by Moore) and her father is an English businessman (played by Coogan), constantly on the phone and travelling internationally. Her father marries Maisie's nanny, who has always had a crush on him and thinks it's true love. In a desperate attempt to not be outdone by her ex-husband, Maisie's mother marries a much younger bartender named Lincoln (played by Skarsgard), who she's only known for a few weeks. Wrapped up in their own lives, each parent forgets when it's their turn to take Maisie (played by Aprile). And when they remember, they each have their new spouse take care of Maisie. Both parents claim that they can't live without Maisie but as soon as Maisie enters, they completely ignore her... until the new spouse begins bonding with Maisie and then jealousy ensues.  Eventually, the two new spouses bond over their love of Maisie and their unsettling feeling that they're being used.

This movie is sad and frustrating. It's incredibly well acted and well done. A bit slow. At times I was not impressed with Aprile's acting. Sometimes, it seemed as though they built the scene around what she'd say and do but other times she seemed to make it seem so effortless and sharp (like the scene when Lincoln made her dinner and she replied that she couldn't eat it because it was too pretty).

I liked this movie but I didn't love it. At times, it was quite slow and a little boring. I had to focus my attention on the cute little Maisie or the wonderfully subtly Skarsgard acting (which can be so light and obscure that you might miss his beautiful performance of a guy thrown into a battle that's not his own and understanding what needs to be done).

June Movie #2: The Hangover III

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifanakis, Ken Jeong, Justin Bartha, John Goodman
Run Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Directed By: Todd Phillips 

The Hangover III is not like the previous two installments. The Wolf Pack's memory of the previous night's shenanigans is not impaired. But like the first two installments, poor Doug (played by Bartha) does not have much screen time. This movie begins with the death of Alan (played by Galifanakis)'s father (played by Jeffrey Tambor). The Pack later finds out that Alan is not dealing well with the death of his father and has gone off his meds. The Pack teams up to take Alan to a rehab center. Road trip! On their way, they run into gangster Marshall (played by Goodman) who kidnaps Doug as a way of encouraging the Pack to help find the man Marshall's really after - Leslie Chow (played by Jeong). It seems Chow stole from Marshall and has recently escaped from prison. Alan is friends with Chow, a fact that Marshall is exploiting in order to get back the gold that was stolen from him. 

First, let me interject - poor Doug. 

My initial assessment of this movie - A lot of dead animals. I wasn't a fan of the number or how they died. Dead animals ain't funny.  

For the most part, I liked the plot of this movie. I truly liked how they diverted from the first two movies' paths. I found that originality (for at least this franchise) to be refreshing. The new plot was very well done. It had a lot of action. A lot of suspense. A lot of subterfuge. It was funny. It was intriguing. Most of the truly funny moments were shown in the previews. There were still some surprises and some good lines. I did laugh many times. Not as much as the first one but I suppose that's to be expected with sequels.

Although I'm sure many people won't appreciate the final scene, I for one, did. I had heard repeatedly that this installment was the final. And yet the ending certainly leaves it open for another. Or perhaps it was paying homage to the original. The ending was great. I'll just say that. 

I think if you look at this movie as a separate movie (not as a sequel), you may like it for itself. It has a slightly different vibe. It's still a little zany. It's still funny (just not super funny). And it had heart. I liked it. I didn't love it but it was decent. I appreciated the effort. It was a nice diversion. I just wish there weren't as many dead animals. 

June Movie #1: Star Trek Into Darkness

Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Benedict Cumberbatch
Run Time: 2 hours 12 minutes
Directed By: JJ Abrams

I will preface my review by saying I'm not a Trekkie. I think I can count on one hand the number of Star Trek episodes I've seen in their entirety. I know of the characters, a bit of the premise. I like sci-fi but I'm just not as devoted as some people.

This is the first movie of the year (and it's June!) that I saw not only with another person but with Jeff (translation: This is Jeff's first movie of 2013). Jeff did not like this movie as much as I did. He thought it went against the nature of Star Trek too much (all the fighting and warring) since the Enterprise's mission was peace. My two counterpoints: 1). The TV series takes place years into the future of the movies. Their premise may have changed. and 2). There was an awful lot of battles with aliens in the TV series. So, for those of you who side with Jeff, this may just not be the movie for you. There's a lot of fighting going on.

I rather marvel at the fact that the new, young characters completely embody their famous characters. They blend with the original actors and yet have their own new take, new style, new approach to the characters to make them their own.

Unfortunately, it's been well over a month since I watched this movie so my memory of precise feelings and plot points is diminished. I wasn't bothered by the Khan casting as some people were. I didn't understand some of the things surrounding his storyline, though. Why did it have to be his blood to revive Kirk when they had 27 others to choose from. Why did they use Khan to build weapons when they were clearly capable of making pretty cool technology themselves, particularly if they knew his background/origin? Why didn't they put Khan on ice faster? Where was the Khan shower scene that was supposed to rival Carol's clothes changing scene (I thought I saw a snippet of it on-line... but perhaps that was an internet invention).

This movie raised a lot of questions and frustrations from the moment it began. Perhaps these questions and frustrations stem from my lack of Star Trek knowledge but you shouldn't have to be a Trekkie in order to appreciate - and understand - the movie (so if that's the case, this diminishes my fondness for this movie). One of my major frustrations was the numerous false endings - places in the movie that seem to be the ending point and yet another scene comes after it. It just wouldn't end! And perhaps another great frustration with this movie was one pivotal emotional scene that was not at all emotional if you even have a remote idea of what the future holds for this crew. It bothered me that it was supposed to be so damaging, so painful, and I couldn't even muster an "Eh." It wasn't sad. And yet the filmmakers were treating it as the saddest thing in the world.

I'm not a fan of aliens for the sake of aliens (I absolutely hated the Earth scenes with aliens walking around - the future is 200 years from now. Pretty sure if we haven't made contact with an alien now, they won't be living amongst us so freely 200 years from now). And you know things are in the future when you see something floating that shouldn't be floating. Again, not impressed.

This movie has heart. I'll give it that much. I'll put aside my questions and frustrations and annoyances about unrealistic depictions of the future and actually say that I liked this movie. It was funny. It moved... most of the time (there were a lot of slow scenes, particularly when you're waiting for the Enterprise crew to get back into space). But Jeff, who is a little more of a Trekkie than I, did not like it. Non-Trekkie kinda liked it; sorta-Trekkie did not.