6 UNDERGROUND

Ryan Reynolds     Melanie Laurent     Manuel Garcia-Rulfo     Adria Arjona     Corey Hawkins

Dave Franco     Ben Hardy

     Six characters so closeted, when someone says, “Who are you?” the answer is, “No one.” They like to see themselves as “ghosts.”  Number One (Reynolds) (they use numbers, rather than names) who essentially functions as the leader (and founder, perhaps) has strict principles to live by, which precludes forming attachments, having cell phones, or leaving any digital trace of their footprints.  (This code is bandied about from time to time, with some squirming against it, and some openly questioning it; but One always defends it.)  They’re a “Delta” force doing risky, undercover work; but unlike the Navy Seals, for instance, they are not attached to a government.  It’s part of their creed that they take orders from no one and make their decisions to take action all on their own (vigilantes).  This also means that things like “due process” and written laws of justice are not a part of their value system.  They do believe that if they see broad social injustice—such as a despotic leader exploiting his people—they have a right/duty to intervene through whatever means it takes.

     This system presents a wondrous opportunity for filmmakers (Michael Bay, director) to devise a point-by-point account of the group’s derring-do against a backdrop of luxurious settings (e.g., Florence Italy and Hong Kong), on gigantic yachts, in elegant hotels, and so on.  It’s like a James Bond film, but here you have six/seven heroes/heroines to gaze upon.  Likewise, it’s an opportunity for a macho extravaganza of destruction.  (Thank goodness, they spared Michaelangelo’s David sculpture in Florence!)  It’s the cinematographer’s (Bojan Bazelli) job to show off the visual elegance of these scenes, accompanied by Lorne Balfe’s reverberating score.

     6 Underground is a libertarian’s wet dream about heroic acts being achieved outside the strictures of authority and government.  It’s likewise a video-game-like lavish display of machismo—executed by women (thank you very much!) as well as men.  I do appreciate females being portrayed with as much authority as the males. And it even shows their superiority at times when two males can’t keep from fighting like little boys.

     As in many action films, 6 Underground is heavy on the car chases and heroics at the expense of story and character development. Maybe this was meant to be more tongue-in-cheek than I got, but, to me, Ryan Reynolds did not fit with the hard-edged character he was meant to be.  Just to look at him physically, is to see a nice and gentle guy who could pull off Deadpool beautifully.  I think a more sharp-edged—going toward the cynical—look in the actor would be more apropos in this case.

     I can say that on the one hand, 6 Underground is entertaining in places and has unexpected elements, and I always like to see the evil man get his due.  On the other hand, envisioning a vigilante force outside of law exerting its judgment (including killing) without benefit of a lawful trial makes me uneasy.  I’m also against the wanton destruction shown during much of the film, especially when cars are careening every which way and bashing into other cars, buildings, and historical sites along the streets in Florence and elsewhere. These scenes become tediously repetitious.

     Aside from Reynolds—who I think was miscast, although he is a good actor—Melanie Laurent, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Ben Hardy, Corey Hawkins, Adria Arjona and Dave Franco enrich the plot and inhabit their characters well, especially Laurent, Hardy, Hawkins, and Garcia-Rulfo.  

If you’re up to a video-game kind of movie, this will please you.  But if you have a problem with vigilantism and absurd car chases, find another film to watch.

Grade:  D+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

DEADPOOL 2

Josh Brolin     Ryan Reynolds     Morena Baccarin     Bill Skarsgard     T.J. Miller     Zazie Beetz     Julian Dennison

Eddie Marsan     Leslie Uggams     Brianna Hildebrand     Lewis Tan     Stefan Kapicic     Jack Kesy     Terry Crews  

     Deadpool is back, loaded with heroics, physically impossible altercations and gun battles, just as before in the first Deadpool, mixing in even more jokes and references to other movies.  He seems to be living a contented life with his beloved Vanessa (Baccarin), and they are discussing baby-making when his past re-emerges in a way that will make him do something that will plague him for all time to come.  

     Now, he is out for revenge, which lands him in jail (the “icebox” for mutant offenders), where he is paired with a mutant orphan (Russell, aka “Firefist”), who idolizes Deadpool and pleads for friendship, to no avail.  But after Deadpool has repeatedly rejected him, he learns more about him, and at Vanessa’s urging, decides to protect the orphan from two forces out to get him.  One is the abusive head of the reformatory where the child had been living; and the other, the formidable Cable (Brolin), a time-traveling super-hero from the future who is worried about what Firefist might do that could affect him in some way.  He serves as the new villain.

     To go after these foes, Deadpool realizes he needs to form a band of warriors, which he will name X-Force.  Many apply for the job, some of which are Zeitgeist (Skarsgard), Bedlam (Crews), and Domino (Beetz).  The interviews of these characters are fun to see, not the least of which is Peter (Rob Delaney), who has no special talent and just comes along for the ride. Seeing their special powers in action provides additional entertainment.

     The film, directed by David Leitch, a former stuntman who, as in Atomic Blonde, has created well choreographed fight scenes, does not really break new ground, and actually becomes tedious in its endless self-commentary staged battles, and endless references to other films. The fight I enjoyed most was on a hijacked urban train with Deadpool stopping Cable’s bullets with his twirling ninja swords.  Reynolds and Brolin are standouts in their respective roles of two distinctly different characters—one, a motor mouth who goes after bad guys, and the other a true villain without mercy.  The actor from New Zealand who plays Russell, Julian Dennison, first won international fame in Taika Waititi‘s Hunt for the Wilderpeople,  He is just as good here as in the previous film, and manages to steal your heart.

     Tyler Bates’ music is a good part of the entertainment, as is Jonathan Sela’s cinematography.  When X-Force parachutes down into a city, the scene set against a bright blue sky, is humorously reminiscent of Magritte’s painting, “Golconda.”

Deadpool 2—not dead in the water, but a sequel only diehard Marvel fans will appreciate.

Grade:  B                                By Donna R. Copeland

THE HITMAN'S BODYGUARD

Ryan Reynolds   Samuel L. Jackson   Salma Hayek   Elodie Yung   Gary Oldham

     The title of this film should have been “Sound and Special Effects”, or “Videogames Onscreen”, because the sounds are so eardrum shattering and the special effects so pronounced, they drown out what little dialog there is.  There is a bit of respite(?) in Michael Bryce’s (Reynolds) and Darius Kincaid’s (Jackson) repartee/arguments, and some of these are actually funny, but they get repetitious fast.  Really, the only value in seeing this film is to witness Salma Hayek as Mrs. Kincaid showing what she is made of.  No shrinking violet she!  And her tirades are more entertaining than anything else in The Hitman’s Bodyguard.

     The skeleton of the story is that Kincaid has evidence against Vladislav Dukhovich (Oldham), a ruthless Eastern European dictator, for crimes against humanity in the International Court of Justice in The Hague.  Now, Kincaid is a hitman, but the court is desperate for good evidence, so they have offered a deal to Kincaid that if he will testify against Dukhovich, his incarcerated wife (Hayek) will be freed.  [There’s a bit of romantic schlock thrown into the story:  Kincaid dearly loves his wife and will do anything to get her out of prison, even go to prison himself.  Bryce has bumbled his relationship with Amelia Roussel (Yung), and needs to make amends.]

     Amelia knows that the only way to get Kincaid safely to The Hague to testify is to hire a bodyguard, namely Bryce, to get him there.  That constitutes most of the story—getting Kincaid to The Hague without Dukhovich’s goons killing him first.  Along the way, helicopters, trains, and cars will be involved in deadly explosions, impossible car races, and blasting gunfire.  Magically, when Bryce and Kincaid get separated, they always know how to find each other and show up in the nick of time to save the other.  (Of course, there is always an argument about whether each needed the other or not.)

     The Hitman's Bodyguard is not bad because it’s not a good film; it’s bad because it’s a videogame (not a movie) that we’re not playing (someone else is).  At best, it is a parody of action films.  There is little character development, substantive issues addressed, or even plot.  Atli Orvarsson’s music could have been a witty commentary on the action, but it had to compete with the special effects and sound, which cancelled it out.  Plus, the music and sound effects were so intrusive at times, they drowned out dialog.

     This movie had potential, but when we see that there were 30+ producers, it may be that too many hands/interests were in the mix. 

If you love videogames and are more interested in action over plot and character development, you will be one to like this film.

Grade:  D+                      By Donna R. Copeland

LIFE

Rebecca Ferguson     Jake Gyllenhaal      Ryan Reynolds     Hiroyuki Sanada     Olga Dihovichnaya     Ariyon Bakara

      Life: an apt title for a gripping story about a mission to Mars in search of evidence of extraterrestrial life.  The six-member crew of the International Space Station are excited about testing the sample they’ve obtained, and all eyes are transfixed on it when Hugh (Bakara) begins his experiments to see if it will produce life at all.  When a one-cell organism appears, they joke about Hugh’s “child”, and as he teases it to interact, he starts getting attached.  (A rather hokey parallel event occurs at the same time when another crew member watches on Skype as his son is being born on earth.)  Please!

     Fortunately/unfortunately, the “thing” now called “Calvin” begins to thrive, and starts growing at an alarming rate.  After only days, it has uncommon strength and enough intelligence to threaten humans and their inventions.  At first, the concern is to get the sample to earth, which is then modified to getting Calvin there, and finally to how to keep Calvin away from earth entirely. Lives are lost in the most gruesome ways imaginable (and each one is shown in graphic detail) as various methods are tried to overcome it.

     Director Daniel Espinosa (Safe House, Child 44) brings the script by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick to life (pun intended), greatly enhanced by Nigel Phelps’ production design, Seamus McGarvey’s cinematography, and all the other special effects artists.  Inventive ways are used to show in gruesomely graphic fashion how Calvin operates and what it does to human bodies.  Of interest are the ways in which we see the astronauts cope with the unreal situation—the times they keep their cool and the times they are completely freaked out.  Also demonstrated is the futility of attempting to plan for every eventuality in a complex system.

     Miranda (Ferguson), as the Project Investigator and medical doctor on board leads her team decisively with support from the other astronauts: Roy (Reynolds), David (Gyllanhaal), Kat (Dihovichnaya), Kendo, (Sanada), and Hugh (Bakara), biologist.  It’s a diversified group professionally and ethnically, which melds together nicely to get a job done, and heroes are not scarce.  A drawback of the film is that we don’t get to know enough of the background of the characters to see them and care about them as individuals.  The film seems to be more focused on the technology and special effects than on the people and character development.  It could also have spent more time and highlighted the weight of the numerous ethical dilemmas the crew faced, particularly Miranda. 

Life opens up thoughts about space exploration and the possible scientific, moral, and ethical dilemmas that may arise from it.

Grade:  C                     By Donna R. Copeland

DEADPOOL

Ryan Reynolds     Ed Skrein     Morena Baccarin     T. J. Miller     Stefan Kapicic     Brianna Hildebrand

          This latest Marvel Comics production is sure to please the fans.  Loaded with heroics and physically impossible altercations and gun battles, it mixes in plenty of humor, excitement, and pathos.  Wade Wilson (Reynolds) was a Special Forces operative who was experimentally treated for cancer by Ajax (Skrein), which left his face woefully disfigured, although he is given super powers that seem to compensate very well.  He has taken the name of Deadpool, and is out to wreak revenge on the perpetrator, while as a mercenary, he dispenses with bad guys. 

         Meanwhile, he has fallen in love with the beautiful Vanessa (Baccarin) and plans to get right back to her after he has taken care of his enemy.  He will need to have help, primarily from the Colossus (Kapicic), who is still trying to persuade Deadpool to join the X-Men, and Colossus’ sidekick Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Hildebrand) who can transform herself into a fiery cannonball, leaving violent explosions in her wake.  Moral support comes from Deadpool’s old friend and barkeep, Weasel (Miller). 

        Director Tim Miller and his colleagues have used special effects to great advantage in the action scenes that in addition to countless hand-to-hand combat also involve screeching car crashes on freeways, explosions, and huge buildings taking a giant slide down the hill.  Composer Junkie XL has provided a musical score that blends well with the action scenes and tender moments—sometimes with a little humor.

     Reynolds holds his own in the lead role, and Ed Skrein makes a fearsome evil counterpart.  The love scenes between Reynolds and Baccarin have just the right mixture of sexy and funny to keep up entertainment value.  Kapicic and Hildebrand as the Colossus and partner provide extra color and interest.

Marvel Comics fans will consume this concoction with relish.

Grade:  B+                                                 By Donna R. Copeland

MISSISSIPPI GRIND

Ben Mendelsohn     Ryan Reynolds     Sienna Miller     Alfre Woodard

          There’s an unusual quality to Mississippi Grind; it keeps you thinking that something major is going to happen, but it never does, really.  Things just go along in the same way, with nothing much changing—certainly not the two main characters.  There are little surprises in the way characters might react, but not in any significant way, and these are often inconsistent with the reactors’ personality.  Gerry (Mendelsohn) is a compulsive gambler and small town crook in Iowa.  He meets Curtis (Reynolds) who is passing through town at a poker game.  They strike up a friendship that is mystifying since there doesn’t seem to be any meaningful connection between them.  They both love gambling, but their styles are different, and Curtis’s is much more mature.  Lying does come easily for both, though.

          The very superstitious Gerry gets it into his head that Curtis is his “lucky charm” and that the two of them should go on a gambling trip together, so they head down the Mississippi River to New Orleans for a big poker game, going through St. Louis and Memphis, taking a detour to Little Rock, then when that doesn’t turn out so well, they continue on their route to New Orleans.  All the while, we are privy to their winnings and losses (the latter mostly Gerry’s), transitory relationships with women, and petty shenanigans. 

          About the only times the movie seems to have substance is when the two men have heart-to-heart talks with Curtis trying to talk sense into Gerry, and Gerry owning up to some of his failings.  Brief scenes with an ex-wife and mother do a good job in shedding light on how the two men came to be the way they are.  It also paints a clear (sordid) picture of gambling addiction, and how compelled those who have it the worst remain in its thrall.  They rely on magical thinking, lie about their losses, and always believe that the next bet will be the big win.  Aptly, there is a vivid rainbow scene in the opening frame, and rainbows crop up again from time to time as a metaphor. 

        The strongest asset of the film is the acting skill of Mendelsohn and Reynolds, the former capturing the sleaze and is the epitome of a compulsive gambler and shyster and the latter smooth, charming, and intelligent—but also prey to the gambling habit.  Another strong point is the bluesy music (Scott Bomar) that identifies place so exquisitely.

         On the other hand, I felt that much of the story simply doesn’t make sense, particularly why Curtis would stay with Gerry for so long.  Curtis is a drifter, and clearly gets annoyed and impatient with Gerry, so what is there that makes him loyal to him?  Two unexpected events at the end don’t make sense the way the story and the characters have been drawn.  They imply there has been both vindication and rehabilitation, but there is nothing that has happened before that would support either.

A tedious road movie with gamblers.

Grade:  C                        By Donna R. Copeland

SELF/LESS

--> Ryan Reynolds   Matthew Goode   Ben Kingsley   Natalie Martinez   Michelle Dockery   Derek Luke   Victor Garber

-->

Self/Less could have been so much more of a film if the creators had maintained the focus on humans’ search for immortality.  Their fantasy of science creating a way for a person to “shed” a diseased body and retain their mental capacity and experience certainly is intriguing.  Dr. Albright (Goode) casually observes that this is a win/lose proposition, but unfortunately for Damian/Eddie (Kingsley/Reynolds) this is only elaborated on after the operation is completed. 

           The loss part for this particular movie for me were the car chases/crashes and fierce gun battles, with unbelievable outcomes.  Sometimes filmmakers think they have to always cater to the young man’s taste and include heroics even when it is not necessary to make a film interesting.

           Leaving that aside, Damian is dying and someone gives him a mysterious card that says the name on it could be helpful to him.  He tries to connect with his estranged daughter Claire (Dockery), but when she rejects him and they get into an argument, he feels guilty and miserable.  Soon after, he collapses and is taken to the hospital, whereupon he decides to visit Dr. Albright.  Damian is a billionaire, so he can well afford the “treatment” offered by Dr. Albright—the transplant of a new body while leaving his mind intact.  Damian does not want to die so agrees to the procedure.

           Interesting to me is that post surgery, he has to be retrained in many kinds of physical actions—like walking—but in short order, he is fit as a fiddle—and only in his 30’s.  He is given a new name, identity, and papers and lives the good life with a new friend (Luke) he has met in New Orleans, where the procedure was performed and where he is put up in an apartment as arranged by Dr. Albright.  Then he begins to have hallucinations and other symptoms associated with the transplant, and is reminded that he absolutely cannot skip taking the pills prescribed by Dr. Albright.  Without the medication he will eventually lose his abilities and die.  But Dr. Albright has built in a handy little perk for himself:  The patient cannot contact him; Albright will periodically visit the patient and give him a small bottle of the medication, thereby keeping him “on a hook” and observed.

           But what he—now he is Eddie—observes in his hallucinations bothers him so much because they seem so real, and because he has never seen the people within them before.  He starts to explore, first by searching on the internet, and then doing some detective work.  What he finds, is shattering, and the rest of the story is about how all that plays out.

           I was upbeat about seeing Self/Less because I liked Tarsem Singh’s earlier film, The Fall, and as I say, the part about seeking immortality through the process called “shedding” (i.e., shedding the body) was intriguing, and the aspect of crime associated with scientific breakthroughs enlivens the pace and captures our interest.  It’s going over the top with the violence to the point of absurdity that detracts from the quality of this film.

           The main cast is really fine with Ben Kingsley acting out a billionaire’s dilemma in encountering something he can’t do anything about, and Ryan Reynolds’ portraying an armed services veteran whose fitness and combat skills are formidable.  Matthew Goode is convincing as a competent scientist in complete control, but with ulterior motives that are initially hidden.  The two main actresses (Michelle Dockery and Natalie Martinez) have lesser roles, but are very good in what they do.

Too much violence lessens the impact of a potentially interesting film.

Grade:  C+                                                             By Donna R. Copeland

           

WOMAN IN GOLD

--> Helen Mirren     Ryan Reynolds     Katie Holmes     Charles Dance     Elizabeth McGovern     Daniel Brühl     Max Irons

-->

Beautifully filmed, Woman in Gold tells the story of one woman in about 100,000 whose family’s art works were stolen by the Nazis during World War II.  Maria Altmann (Mirren) and her well-to-do Jewish family lived in Vienna at the time, and had acquired now-famous paintings and jewelry, most notably Gustav Klimpt’s Woman in Gold.  Newly wed, Maria and her husband Fritz (Irons) arranged to flee before they were sent to a concentration camp, but had to leave her parents behind along with, of course, all valuables. 

      The two made it to the U.S., and her sister followed.  Years pass, her husband and sister have died, and Maria finds some old correspondence that reminds her of her aunt—of whom she has very fond memories—and the Klimpt painting of her.  She questions why it is in an Austrian museum instead of being returned to the family heirs.  She has a friend whose son is a lawyer, and Maria asks to talk with him and show him the letters.

      The two don’t exactly hit it off; he seems slightly boorish to her, and she seems troublesome—even rude—to him.  But there is something that compels them to persist in the project to reclaim the paintings legally.  This will be a difficult task, partly because the Austrians have so “owned” the Klimpt paintings, they’ve become a national treasure, and obviously, the museum will not let the paintings go lightly. 

      The film draws on the lives of two real people, E. Randol Schoenberg and Maria Altmann for the story, from which Alexi Kaye Campbell wrote the screenplay.  That gives it an authenticity and a sense of history-in-the-making that a film such as this needs.  The film The Monuments Men (2014) attempted a story on the Nazis’ making off with thousands of art works, but it lacked the personal and present connection that this film possesses, which might make a difference in its popularity with the general population.

      Simon Curtis’ (My Week with Marilyn) art in directing is visibly apparent, with Campbell’s strong script, Martin Phipps’ and Hans Zimmer’s music, and the cinematography of Ross Emery.  Adding to the artful mix are the performances of Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds.  Mirren is at her usual inimitably strong talent for bringing a character alive, but the surprise is Ryan Reynolds who, as the attorney showing persistence, frustration, dismay, and sheer determination, gives his very best performance.

A heart-rending and historically meaningful film.

Grade:  A                            By Donna R. Copeland