AVENGERS: ENDGAME

Robert Downey, Jr.    Chris Evans    Chris Hemsworth    Paul Rudd    Jeremy Renner

Scarlett Johansson     Mark Ruffalo     Brie Larson   Bradley Cooper    Tilda Swinton    

Don Cheadle     Karen Gillan     Zoe Saldana     Tilda Swinton     Gyneth Paltrow

Chadwick Boseman     Danai Gurira     Letitia Wright     Elizabeth Olsen

     Endgame is quite the finale to Marvel Comics’ Avengers series.  The creators (Anthony and Joe Russo, directors) manage to reprise almost all the roles in previous films, and there are reunions as touching and significant as the beginning of this last season of HBO’s “Game of Thrones.” The film starts with an eerie reminder of Thanos’ (Brolin) intentions in Infinity Wars (to destroy half the people on earth to deal with over-population) by showing Hawkeye (Renner) training a young woman in shooting arrows while his wife calls on family members for a picnic lunch.  Suddenly, everyone but Hawkeye disappears.

     Five years later, some of the Avengers are congregating to come up with a solution. But part of the problem is that some have become content; for instance, Tony Stark (Downey) is basking in family life with Pepper Potts (Paltrow) and their young daughter Morgan.  When some of the others—specifically Banner/Hulk (Ruffalo)—think they have the solution:  A time machine that will take them back to the time before Thanos stole the stones, retrieve them, and use them to get back the people destroyed and create a different world.

     They have a difficult time rousing Stark/Iron Man from his contentment and risk losing those he holds most dear; but, of course, the whiff of a challenge and an adventure reels him in.  From then on, a full contingent of the Avengers [Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America (Evans), Thor (Hemsworth), Black Widow (Johansson), Ant-Man (Rudd), and Hawkeye] test and use their knowledge of time travel to reverse Thanos’ delusional plan.  

     They are indeed able to travel back in time, but it won’t be as simple as they expect. There will be many reunions, but the Avengers will encounter some of the same challenges they thought were over. The special effects for time travel will be a highlight of this story.  The viewer experiences just exactly what we imagine it would be like if we were so privileged.  

     Then, when you get to what looks like the last big battle (and it goes go on and on), don’t settle back in your chair or get ready to leave; much more is coming to create a satisfying conclusion in terms of closure—not necessarily satisfaction with what does occur.

     As with most Marvel Comics movies, this one is overly long, bloated by the obligatory fight scene toward the end, and of course a fistfight scene is required as always.  But in its favor, the story is exciting and suspenseful; the special effects outstanding; and the humor almost always really  funny.  Also, women have stronger roles than in the past.

Endgame is a worthy conclusion to the Avengers series.

Grade:  B                                    By Donna R. Copeland

TAG

Ed Helms     Jon Hamm     Jeremy Renner     Jake Johnson     Hannibal Buress

Isla Fisher     Annabelle Wallis     Rashida Jones     Leslie Bibb

      Five guys are ultra serious about their game, having played it since 1983 when they were kids, convinced that it will keep them young.  And they do seem like little boys playing their macho games. After they grew up, they did restrict it to the month of May, but during that month any one of them—or group of them—could appear at any time to tag someone.  The one who is “it” gets to tag, and then that one becomes’ “it”, just like in the childhood game.

     This particular May is special (and the reason why changes across time), but Hoagie (Helms) rounds up three of them (having no compunction about interrupting a Wall Street Journal interview or even a therapy session), saying that Jerry (Renner) is getting married and dropping out after this year.  Callahan (Hamm), Randy (Johnson), and Sable need little convincing to hop in the car and head to Jerry’s hometown.  The stakes are soooo high because Jerry is the champion who has never been tagged.

     Jerry is the best part of the story, in that he is ingenious in anticipating every move of the conspirators, preparing for them in comedic ways, and—by the way—being a master in what looks like martial arts; he can foil every attack and then escape without being detected.  Renner actually broke a couple of bones in doing his stunts.  He is impressive to watch, and although this is not nearly the caliber of Hurt Locker—for which he is perhaps best known—the role is similar in the character’s canniness and attraction to risk.  It’s certainly different in the mischievous eye of Jerry.

     Other main characters are in roles familiar to us.  Ed Helms is the ambitious achiever who often misses the mark by just a little bit.  Jon Hamm is the suave CEO of a large, successful company.  Jake Johnson is the slightly manic talker with a talent for saying the wrong things.  Unlike these, Hannibal Buress’ character isn’t like his previous roles; here, he is thoughtful, speaks in convoluted sentences, and is more than a little paranoid—a clever addition to the cast of characters.

     Females seemed to have been “tacked on” in stereotypical roles:  the aggressive Anna (Fisher) dying to be a part of the guys’ game and being a female version of a guy.  Susan (Bibb) being the beautiful ultra feminine bride wielding her power behind the scenes.  Rebecca (Wallis), the reporter so intrigued by her subject’s life, she abandons her intended story to follow him on a tangent.  The most realistic character is Cheryl (Jones), who expertly fields two suitors from high school, maintaining her equilibrium and sense of self throughout.

     Tag reflects the backgrounds of the director (Jeff Tomsic) and writers (Rob McKittrick and Mark Steilan) being in television, although they based the story on Russell Adams’ account of the original group of men in the Wall Street Journal.  It plays like an extended sitcom with a bigger budget.  The audience I was with in the screening laughed heartily in the expected places, but I doubt this film will appeal to those interested in wanting comedy to push forward in a wave of creative expression that speaks to the contemporary frame of mind.

A light comedy about a group of men extending their childhood game into macho competitions in adulthood.

Grade:  C-                                    By Donna R. Copeland

WIND RIVER

Jeremy Renner     Elizabeth Olsen     Jon Bernthal     Martin Sensmeier     Julia Jones

      Taylor Sheridan (writer, director) is an artist who knows how to draw out the best from the other artists in his films—Cinematographer Ben Richardson, Musician Warren Ellis, Actors Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen and the rest of the cast, Production Designer Neil Spisak, Art Designer Lauren Slatten, and the other technical contributors.  Wind River represents a breathtaking example of the essence of accomplished filmmaking, from the sweeping snow-laden landscapes stained with blood, to the haunting musical score paired exactly with the dialog and action, to Renner’s wise old soul with extra sensory perception and gentle touch, and Olsen’s expert urban-trained FBI agent clearly not prepared for the different environment and population, but willing to learn.  There is even an exquisite/troubling blending of stunning beauty and unspeakable horror.

     I was especially impressed with cinematography that has the camera slink around with Cory tracking footprints in the snow, and guiding the eye upward or downward toward whatever it wants you to see.  A view to admire is one shot from an airplane over a snowy, mountainous landscape, showing lumbering trucks on the highway bearing heavy snowmobiles.  This prepares us for a showdown.

     One would like to imagine that the pristine snowscapes we admire on the screen (as we sit in our toasty, comfortable theater seats) would hold innocence and purity and be reflected in fit bodies and souls.  But alas, just as we hear about the brutal attack by a lion on a herd of cattle, we see a fallen human body in the snow with a head wound and blood coming out her mouth.  Tracker Cory (Renner) sadly knows who it is, which provokes memories of an earlier death that still tears at him.

     Cory is a good man, a respected local who, even without the memories, would willingly help FBI agent Banner (Olsen) who has been called in to solve the case.  These sequences constitute the few scenes tinged with humor, when the agent comes totally unprepared for the bone-chilling weather and has to borrow warm clothing from the sheriff’s stern wife.  (“Make sure you return it!”)  Later encounters with the locals are likewise amusing when Banner meets native Indians, unwittingly offending them, and roughnecks working on an oil drill.  Cory and the sheriff wryly get her up to speed from time to time, and she shows flashes of leadership and strength.  (I wish Sheridan had made her character much stronger, as many filmmakers are willing to do with females nowadays…but maybe this is happening only in action figures a la Wonder Woman, Atomic Blonde, and Valerian/City/Thousand/Planets?)

     This beautifully made film has substantive points to make as well as depth of character.  It’s about loss and death—especially of children—and the multifarious ways in which people cope with it; life on an Indian reservation (this part is not fiction); the nefarious effects of drugs on young people; the art of skillful, informed sleuthing and interrogation; and, finally, how satisfying justified retribution can be. 

Be prepared for an extravaganza of beauty in all its forms mixed with the realities of life lived.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

ARRIVAL

Amy Adams     Jeremy Renner     Forest Whitaker     Michael Stuhlberg

            When Dr. Louise Banks (Adams) opens the film with musings about beginnings, endings, and time, it’s a clue about the construction of the story to follow.  And after a few scenes with Louise and her daughter, we hear about 12 alien spaceships that have landed around the world, one of which is in Montana where Louise lives.  That evening, there is a knock at the door, and Colonel Weber (Whitaker) tells her that based on her previous translation for the US government, they would like for her to translate a recording of a conversation with the aliens.  She responds that a recording is insufficient; she would need to see the speakers in person.

            So she is eventually flown with Ian Donnelly (Renner), a theoretical physicist, to the site, where they are charged with deciphering what the aliens seem to be saying.  Keep in mind that there are 11 other sites in the world where other governments are doing the same thing, in countries like China, Russia, and Pakistan.  Already, the U.S. media is firing up fears of the populace about the aliens, and the governments—including ours—are quick to worry about security and take a defensive-ready stance in case there is an invasion.  It never occurs to them that the heptapods may be contacting humanity for some other reason.

            The film makes good social commentary about fear of strangers and how quick some are to jump to conclusions based on few facts, and stand ready with finger on the trigger.  One paranoid voice (on talk-radio, for instance) can prompt domino-effect action among people and governments around the world.  Louise’s valiant attempts to reason and make scientific inquiries before taking such action is like a voice crying in the wilderness.  She holds our attention as we wait breathlessly to see how the story will turn out.

            Director Denis Villeneuve (Sicario, Enemy, Prisoners, Incendies) has made previous sage commentary about human impulsivity, action with incomplete information, questionable motivations, and doggedness in searching for the truth, and this film measures up to his previous work in suspense and human dramas with which we can all identify.  The music of composer Johann Johannson enhances the drama, being eerily modern or beautifully symphonic, depending on the scene, and Bradford Young’s cinematography makes some scenes memorable purely for their composition and beauty, as when we see the upright mystical spaceship for the first time surrounded by textured clouds. 

            Amy Adams pretty much carries this film with her intense visualizations, painstaking work through problems, and emotional accessibility.  It’s too bad that her heavy breathing—meant to show anxiety perhaps?—was so predominant in such a strong figure.  She sounded like Darth Vader; whereas none of the men were heard doing this.  I am also a bit curious about Jeremy Renner’s role; so much of the time his character is just standing around or asking Louise how she is.  I think that’s a shame, both because the actor seems wasted in this characterization and because I would think a physicist would have a much more active role in hypothesizing and in advising government officials.  (You’d probably never find the current physicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson adopting such a passive role!)

             I very much enjoyed the characterization of Louise as something of a seer who could see into the future but had elected not to try to affect it in any way.  It’s the kind of acceptance that would be beneficial in many of our human struggles.

This is a different kind of action film, one that deals with universal issues with slower paced, scientific measure.

Grade:  B                                    By Donna R. Copeland

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: ROGUE NATION

Tom Cruise     Rebecca Ferguson     Jeremy Renner     Simon Pegg    

Alec Baldwin     Ving Rhames     Sean Harris     Simon McBurney

      With a complex plot and twists and turns, Mission Impossible:  Rogue Nation does indeed appear to be impossible time after time.  As usual in this series, there are suffocating moments when you wonder how on earth (or in the air) they’ll get out of a scrape, and clearly loyal friendships become paramount.  Intrigue is heightened by a central character who keeps you guessing as to where the loyalty lies. 

      In this feature, Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is part of the IMF, a U.S. secret service run by William Brandt (Renner) that is currently being threatened by CIA head Hunley (Baldwin), who believes the Syndicate IMF has been after is a figment of their imagination, particularly Hunt’s.  But because IMF is committed, they go rogue, and Hunt is aided by his old pals William Brandt (Renner), Benji Dunn (Pegg) and Luther Stickell (Rhames). 

      By the way, the movie is filled with humorous puns and references to other Missions, and in this feature, the IMF is not the only entity going rogue.  The frequent jokes and asides make the viewing fun, and offset the repeated high-wire acts (e.g., in an opera house during a performance of Puccini’s Turandot) and near escapes from fights, chases, and under-water challenges. 

      I think writer (with Drew Pearce) and director Christopher McQuarrie have successfully extended the franchise one more time, with intellectual complexity, political maneuverings, and derring-do.  The camera work of a master, Robert Elswit, increases the quality.

      Tom Cruise does his usual fine job in portraying an almost superhuman character whose hunches are infallible.  Adding an appealing, more naïve but still smart sidekick like Pegg adds another entertaining dimension.  A stunning addition is Ferguson’s Ilsa, a beautiful, intelligent, and forceful counterpart to Hunt, where there is chemistry mixed with refreshing ambiguity. 

      It’s impressive that this fifth version of the Mission Impossible series remains fresh and captivating after so many years.  McQuarrie has achieved just the right balance in all its entertaining components.

Fans of the Mission Impossible series are not likely to be disappointed.

Grade:  A-                        By Donna R. Copeland